‘No persuasive reason, but when Marcus disappeared that time I checked further into the family. I already knew Marcus had a criminal record. He had told me that once down at the pub, and he’d let on that his father-in-law could cause trouble.’
‘Did you ever meet Hamish McIntyre?’
‘Once or twice, and on both occasions he was friendly. I can’t say that I spent time with the man or indulged in any lengthy conversations.’
‘Are you aware that Samantha Matthews has a boyfriend?’
‘I’ve seen a man there on several occasions, but what’s his importance? He’s only been coming around for the last nine months or thereabouts.’
Wendy could see that Brian Jameson was a more astute man than Harry Anders, and if the man knew more than he was saying, it would not be easy to prise it from him.
‘Do you know who he is?’
‘I know his car. Why don’t you ask Samantha? After all, Marcus disappeared six years ago. What’s wrong with her having a man?’
Neither Larry nor Wendy wanted to state that the reason they had not questioned Samantha directly was that she could still be involved in the death of Marcus.
‘Can you give us a detailed description of the man’s car?’ Wendy said.
‘It’s a late-model BMW. I take it you want the registration number.’
‘If you could.’
‘I was on the street taking a photo of my car. I was trying to sell it, and the boyfriend’s car was parked in front. I’ll send you the picture.’
***
True to his word, Jameson emailed the photo of his car, Samantha’s boyfriend’s car visible in front of it. Wendy forwarded the picture to Bridget, using her smartphone.
In the office, Isaac was waiting for Larry and Wendy on their return. ‘I hope you’ve both packed an overnight bag,’ he said.
‘What is it?’ Wendy asked.
‘Liz Spalding. She’s been found dead.’
‘Murdered?’
‘The crime scene investigators are checking, so are the local police, but yes, it’s murder.’
‘Any clues?’
‘Not yet, but the crime was committed in an open space. There’s a strong possibility that somebody might have seen something. I’ll stay here in the office, deal with whatever comes in, with whatever you find. You’ll be meeting with a Detective Inspector Greenwood. I’ve told him that you’ll be there today. And if it’s late, don’t worry about waking him up, he’s expecting you to call. He’ll be taking the lead so update him on our investigation.’
Larry phoned home, met with a gruff response from his wife, told her that he was going to be away for a few days. He knew she wasn’t a person to stay angry for long and by the time he came back, all would be well in the Hill household again. Wendy had no such issues to worry about, only an old cat that needed feeding; Bridget would care for it.
Twenty-five minutes later, as Larry and Wendy were preparing to leave, Bridget shouted out, ‘I’ve found out who the car belongs to. Have a good trip.’
The trip down to Cornwall took just over five hours, Larry and Wendy taking turns at driving. It was late in the evening, close to midnight, before they drove into the village. Inspector Greenwood had arranged accommodation for the two of them at a local hotel, a bar downstairs. Larry was determined to avoid it.
Jim Greenwood met them as agreed, even though it was late. He was a lanky man, a long thin face with a pronounced nose, not an attractive combination, Wendy thought.
‘A forager down at the bottom of the cliffs found her. Sometimes items of interest wash up on the shore, and we’ve a couple of people in the village who like to look for these items, not sure why, as most times they only find an old can or a flotation device of one sort or another, rarely anything worth keeping,’ Greenwood said.
‘How long had she been there?’ Larry asked.
‘We leave that up to the crime scene investigators, but I knew her. I saw her three days ago up near her cottage. It’s a small community, you soon get to know everyone.’
‘Any witnesses?’ Wendy asked.
‘We’re not sure yet. We’re still conducting our enquiries, but it wasn’t a secluded area where she was pushed off the cliff. Any reason why someone would have wanted her dead?’
‘She’s been part of our investigation for some time. She was involved twenty years ago with a man who was murdered under unusual and violent circumstances. We believe we have a connection to another person of interest as to why he died.’
‘We questioned Mrs Venter, local busybody, harmless, friendly with everyone. She appears to be the last person that spoke with Liz Spalding. According to Mrs Venter, she and Liz exchanged pleasantries before each going their separate ways. They met no more than fifty yards from where the woman was thrown off the cliff. That was two days ago.’
‘Thrown or pushed? You’ve not been clear on that,’ Larry said.
‘There are clear signs of a scuffle, one woman dragging the other. Either the murderer was stronger than Liz or caught her by surprise. According to the investigators, Liz Spalding was lifted at the edge of the cliff and thrown off. It’s a forty yard drop onto jagged rocks, and then there was high tide, the body wedged in the rocks. Even after only a couple of days, it’s not a pretty sight. An attractive woman, as you both know.’
‘We’ve both met her before, and yes, she was attractive. Was she alone at the cottage?’
‘It’s been checked, and there was no sign of another person. There was a message on her phone. She had left it at the cottage. A man had phoned to say he had been delayed for a couple of days. We’ve got a phone number
