‘I suppose so.’
‘Anyway, there are things to do at home. The plumber is coming first thing in the morning, and if I’m not there to let him in he might not be available again for weeks. And I have to let them know at work what’s happening.’
Andrea was staying at their aunt’s house in Castleton. She was the sort of person who needed company for reassurance, so being constantly under Dawn’s eye would suit her.
‘You can’t go back to work, Simon,’ she said.
‘No, of course not. There are just a few things to sort out jobs I was in the middle of yesterday when they called me. You know what I mean. I’ll come back here as soon as I can.’
‘I don’t like you being on your own,’ said Andrea. ‘Not now, Simon. If Mum hadn’t been on her own yesterday …’
Simon squeezed her shoulder and smiled. Till be fine. Stop worrying.’
‘You should tell the police, shouldn’t you?’
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‘Don’t be silly.’
Andrea held the door and stood on the step, still reluctant to let him go. He could see her studying the houses in the close, as if afraid that they were being watched from behind the curtains at any one of half a dozen windows. Simon thought she was probably right. It was one of the reasons he had to get away.
‘Well, take care, then,’ she said. ‘Simon, take care.’
Simon nodded and walked quickly to his car. The whole day had been spent indoors, most of it in unfamiliar surroundings, among unsettling sounds and smells. A bit of fresh air was what he needed, and a chance to get things straight in his own head, before he had to go over it all again with his fiancee back in Edendale. Everything that had happened during the day, all the questions the police had asked him, every emotion he’d felt in the past few hours - Jackie would want to know the lot.
He drove down into the centre of Castleton and parked in the market square, intending to take a walk by the river. But when he saw the pubs in Castle Street, Simon realized that what he really needed was a drink. Or perhaps a couple. If the police stopped him driving home later on, then it was just tough. After a day like today, he didn’t really care.
Simon chose the George, for no other reason than it was the nearest pub, just a short walk through the quiet churchyard from the market square. He’d never been inside it before, but he liked the look of its whitewashed frontage with clematis growing up the walls. It looked a safe and reassuring place.
But once he’d set his mind on a drink, Simon forgot all about his promise to his sister to take care. And he forgot that it would be dark by the time he left the pub to walk back through the churchyard to his car.
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14
Ben Cooper bumped his Toyota down the rough track to Bridge End Farm, twisting the wheel at the familiar points along the way to avoid the worst of the potholes. The girls were curled up together in the back of the car as it rattled over the cattle grid and into the yard past the tractor shed. Only the big John Deere stood in the shed now, because Matt had sold the old grey Fergie that he used to tinker with. He’d said it was no good to him any more, and other people might be able to afford an expensive hobby better than he could.
Bridge End was still good land. Their maternal grandfather had cared for it well, tottering about the place in his shiny black suit with baling twine round his trouser bottoms. Their father had never been interested in running the place, though occasionally he’d roll up his sleeves to help.
Like all the family, Joe Cooper had been a tall man, with well-muscled forearms and big hands. He’d been such an archetype of integrity and moral principles that it was impossible to imagine him bending the rules. Even among his family, rules were made to be kept.
‘Home,’ called Cooper, turning off the engine.
Amy and Josie clambered out and ran across the yard to the house, being immediately surrounded by a flurry of dogs.
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Cooper heard his sister-in-law, Kate, greet them from the kitchen and send them to wash their hands. There was a clatter of feet on tiles and excited voices.
He followed the girls in, taking his time. He had too much on his mind to be able to cope with the memories that leaped out at him from the corners of the house.
The kitchen was the room they’d always used most at Bridge End, and these days it seemed to smell of herbs whenever he entered it. Kate made him a coffee, and he told her about his day. His sister-in-law was easy to talk to, and he was happy to get a chance to chat to her alone now and again.
‘I hope you’re ready for the party on Saturday,’ she said. ‘Amazingly, we seem to have got everything organized and under control.’
‘You’ve worked miracles, Kate. I just wish you’d let me do more for myself.’
Kate cocked her head, listening to the sound of raised voices at the back of the house. For a moment it sounded as though an argument was developing, but the children quietened down again, apart from a bit of thumping and pounding of feet, which was perfectly normal. Kate went back to what she had been doing.
‘We thought of making it a surprise,’ she said.
‘The party? Why? Were you worried I wouldn’t come if I knew about it?’
‘What?’ She looked at him with concern, but decided he was joking. ‘Anyway, we’ve arranged for Isabel to have a day out of the Old School so she can come, and we knew she’d mention it you.’
‘If she remembers,’ said Cooper, and instantly regretted sounding churlish.
He could hear the voices of his nieces coming towards them through the house. In another moment, their mother would be swept up by their demands, and she’d have no more time
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for Ben. But right now, she could sense that something was wrong. Sometimes, Cooper thought he must walk around with a traffic light on his head, because his moods seemed to be so transparent to the women in his life.
