Page 20

Chapter Twenty

When Yanni and I got into the car, I felt the anxiety radiating from her. I should have realised that we weren’t going straight back to the police station, but it wasn’t until we’d been travelling for several minutes in the opposite direction that it finally sank in where we were actually heading. ‘We’re going to speak to Storcrest’s family, aren’t we?’ I asked.

Yanni nodded grimly; this part of the job evidently wasn’t her favourite thing. ‘His daughter Jennifer lives on Sugar Lane. They were very close.’

‘Sugar Lane?’ I was surprised. Back when I’d been growing up, that had been the rough end of the village and I couldn’t imagine Warren Storcrest’s daughter choosing to live there. I guessed gentrification happened everywhere; maybe Sugar Lane wasn’t so bad now.

‘I saw them together yesterday,’ I admitted. ‘In the hospital.’

‘She works there, although yesterday was her day off. She’s one of the head nurses – she does a wonderful job.’

My eyebrows climbed upwards. I’d expected Jennifer to be a high-society nepo baby, spending her days taking photos to post on the ’Gram. If the daughter was grounded, though, it made more sense that Dove liked her. I didn’t know much about my new colleague yet, but I already had the impression that she was down to earth. Plus she baked, and that ticked a box in my plus column.

‘We’ll speak to Jennifer first, then she can decide if she wants to tell her brothers or let us do it.’ I felt Yanni’s trepidation; she knew and liked Jennifer so this would be hell for her. I was relieved I wasn’t delivering the news.

Sugar Lane looked much nicer than it had back in the day, but it was still a long way down from the grandeur of Warren’s area. Jennifer’s neat little cottage had two small windows upstairs, two downstairs, and it was well kept. Assuming she had inherited her father’s skills, I was surprised she didn’t live near the water; water shifters love to be near the water.

Thinking of water shifters tipped my thoughts back to Fraser Banks. He was part of the water shifters, so whatever his magic was I would’ve assumed he’d want to buy property by the sea rather than sniffing around my house, which was near the forest. But other houses didn’t come with the Eternal Flame. Well, tough shit. Mine didn’t either.

‘Maybe you can make a cup of tea,’ Yanni suggested as we got out of the car. ‘Stay quiet and give her space to take in the news. Sometimes people need to yell or shout. Sometimes they don’t say anything at all. Everybody reacts differently.’

‘Sure.’ I was happy to follow her lead. I’d never had to deal with family bereavement as a PI, something I was grateful for.

‘I think you’d better stay in the car for this one,’ Yanni added to Eva, giving her fur a quick ruffle. ‘We’ll try not to be long, okay?’

Half a day in and my dog had already cemented herself into Yanni’s life; it was impressive going. Eva wagged her tail and stretched out on the back seat. Yanni cracked the windows to give her fresh air, but the weather was mild so she’d be fine there even if we were inside for hours.

When the front door opened, it was the same young woman I’d seen in the hospital with Warren the day before. Her hair was blonde and wavy, streaked with pink, and she wore a pair of denim dungarees with a ripped T-shirt underneath.

‘Jennifer… ’ Yanni started .

Finding the chief of police on her doorstep, she blinked. ‘Chief? Is everything okay?’

‘I wondered if I could come in and talk to you for a moment? It’s about your father.’

I watched – and felt – the fear flood through the young woman. She froze. ‘Is it bad news?’ she asked faintly. ‘Because if it is, I need my brothers here.’ Her voice cracked.

‘You go ahead and call them,’ Yanni said sympathetically.

Jennifer’s eyes slid shut and she gave a low moan before she leaned against the door frame and took a few deep breaths. ‘I don’t understand. He was recovering well from the food poisoning. I saw him myself.’

‘If we can come in?’ Yanni pressed. ‘And you call your brothers?’

‘Come in and I’ll do that. They won’t be too long – Rory’s on school holidays and Gilbert works on the boats.’

She stepped back and let us into her living room, then went into the kitchen to have some privacy whilst she called her siblings. I sat quietly, wishing there was something I could do or say.

‘Should I make you a cup of tea?’ I offered when she was done on the phone. ‘Or hot chocolate?’ Hot chocolate had always been the comfort food in our house. It felt silly to suggest it, but it was something my mum always did to make me feel better.

Jennifer shook her head. ‘No, it’s fine. I … I’ll wait outside for them. Is that okay?’

‘Of course.’

Yanni and I sat in silence, preparing to destroy this family’s whole world.