“I’ve lost two,” one of the two female elves said. “Jodie and Birdie. They’ve both gone missing.”
“When exactly did this happen?”
“They all disappeared within the last couple of weeks. And it isn’t just our friends. Lots of elves have disappeared and no one has any idea where they’ve gone.”
“That’s terrible,” I said. “It may be totally unrelated, but when I was in here the other day, I was talking to Daze and Blaze, the rogue retrievers. Do you know them?”
“Of course. Everyone knows Daze.”
“While I was talking to her, she got a call, telling her to go straight into the office. She mentioned something about missing persons.”
“This has been all over The Candle newspaper for the last week or so,” another of the elves chimed in. “I’m surprised you haven’t seen it.”
“I rarely get the chance to read the papers. Where did your friends go missing from?”
“Birdie and Jodie had been playing badminton at the sports centre, but they never made it home.”
Another one of the elves piped up, “My friend had been swimming there. That was the last anyone saw of her.”
“Did they all go missing from the sports centre?”
“My friend didn’t,” the other female elf said. “She’d been to the library.”
“But isn’t that next door to the sports centre?”
“Yes. Do you think you can help us, Jill?”
“I can try. I should probably speak to Daze first, to see where she’s up to on this.”
As soon as I left Cuppy C, I gave Daze a call, but it went straight to her voicemail, so I left a message, asking her to get back to me.
***
I really wasn’t looking forward to this, but there was no point in putting it off any longer. Despite my best efforts, I’d been unable to find any evidence that the shooting incident, which Rusty claimed to have witnessed, had actually taken place.
The neighbours on either side of the house in question had seen and heard nothing. And when I’d looked around the master bedroom of the property in question, there had been no sign of a shooting, let alone a murder. The only thing of any note in the Smart household had been the obvious animosity between Mr and Mrs Smart. The blazing row they’d had while I’d been upstairs had been quite shocking. But having an argument was one thing, murder quite another. The fact that Mr Smart was alive and well, and able to argue with his wife, made a mockery of Rusty’s claim that he’d been murdered.
I didn’t want to hurt Rusty’s feelings any more than I had to, so I’d suggested we meet at the park. I was hoping that a walk in the fresh air might soften the blow somewhat. He was waiting for me by the park gates. As soon as he spotted me, he gave me an enthusiastic wave, which made the task ahead even more daunting.
“This was a good idea of yours, Jill. I spend a lot of time looking out at the park, but not nearly enough time in it.”
“It’s a lovely day for it.” We started down the path that cut through the park, towards the houses where the alleged incident had taken place.
“I’m very excited to hear what you have to tell me,” Rusty said.
“I’m afraid it isn’t good news. I’ve spent some considerable time investigating this matter, but I’ve drawn a complete blank. I’ve spoken to the neighbours on either side of the property in question, but they saw and heard nothing.”
“Maybe she used a silencer, Jill. Have you thought of that?”
“I suppose it’s possible, but there’s more. I’ve been inside the property itself.”
“How did you manage that?”
“We private investigators have our methods. I managed to get a good look around the house, and I spent a lot of time in the master bedroom, which is the room where you thought you saw the shooting. I have to tell you, Rusty, I’ve been at many crime scenes and there’s always some trace of evidence left behind, but there was nothing to see in there. No signs of gunshots, no blood, nothing at all to suggest a shooting had taken place. And the fact is, Mr Smart is alive and well, and shows no sign of being injured.”
“I just don’t understand it, Jill.” Rusty was clearly disappointed by my news. “I know what I saw.”
We had almost reached the other side of the park when I happened to look up. Coming through the gates, only a hundred yards ahead of us, were Mr and Mrs Smart.
Oh bum!
“Rusty, I think it might be best if we headed back now.”
“But why, Jill? I’m disappointed by your news, but I’m enjoying our little walk. And your company of course.”
“Mr and Mrs Smart, the couple from the property where you thought you saw the shooting, have just walked through that gate, and I don’t really want them to see me.”
He glanced over at the couple. “That’s him! That’s the man I saw being shot.”
“He looks perfectly healthy, wouldn’t you say?”
“Yes. I don’t understand it.”
“Come on, Rusty, let’s go.”
“That’s not her.”
“Sorry?”
“The woman with him. That isn’t the woman I saw doing the shooting.”
I managed to persuade Rusty that we should go back to his house. When I left him, he was still adamant that the woman he’d seen in the park with Mr Smart was not the same woman he’d seen shooting a man. By now, though, I was having serious doubts about Rusty’s reliability as a witness. Even though I could have made a pretty penny by continuing with the case, I didn’t want to take advantage of a man who was clearly delusional, so I’d told him I was sorry, but there was nothing more I could do. Although he was
