On Deadly Tides Read online

  The door to the rectory opened, and Robbie, the much-loved cairn terrier who had been discovered by the rector’s wife a few years earlier, shivering and abandoned in the churchyard, bounded out and raced toward them. He was followed by Bronwyn Evans herself, wearing a floral-patterned housedress and a navy-blue cardigan.

  Keeping to the path that separated the church on one side from the graves on the other, she made her way to the bench in purposeful strides. “Oh, Penny,” she said when she reached them, “I’ve just heard something on the noon news that might involve your friend.”

  “What friend?”

  “Your Canadian photographer friend. Colin, isn’t it?”

  Penny’s heart felt like a trapped bird beating against her ribs. “What about him? What’s happened?”

  “I’m so sorry. Of course, it might not involve him at all, but when I saw you out here, I thought I’d better come and speak to you.”

  “Please, Bronwyn,” said Victoria, “for pity’s sake, out with it.”

  “We just heard on the noon news that an international expedition of scientists studying the alarming rate of climate change in Canada’s North is believed to be missing. Word for word, that’s what they said. The BBC mentioned that two of the scientists are from Cambridge University. The newsreader didn’t mention your friend by name, but that is the group he was working with, isn’t it? So naturally I assumed he must be missing, too.” She looked from one to the other, her eyes brimming with confused concern. “Of course, I could be completely wrong, and I hope I am. It might not involve him at all. But as Thomas said, how many scientific expeditions can there be at one time studying the climate in the Canadian North?”

  Penny didn’t answer, but pulled her phone out of her pocket. After thumbing frantically and jabbing at the small screen, and with an impatient exclamation, she put it away and jumped up, her untouched sandwich falling from her lap onto the ground in front of the bench. She raced through the churchyard, past the rectory, and disappeared down the narrow, cobbled street that led to the town square.

  Seeing Robbie headed for the sandwich, Bronwyn snatched it up, tossed it in the wire litter bin, and took Penny’s place on the bench beside Victoria.

  “She was just telling me she hasn’t heard from him,” Victoria said as she picked up Penny’s abandoned water bottle, made sure the lid was screwed on tightly, and placed it in her bag. “She’s afraid he’s lost interest in her.”

  “From what I observed at Mrs. Lloyd’s party, I’d be very surprised if that were the case.” Bronwyn kept a watchful eye on Robbie, who hadn’t given up on the sandwich and was seated in front of the bin, alternately staring at the contents and giving Bronwyn a soulful, pleading look. “Where’s she gone, do you suppose?”

  “Back to the office to get on the Internet, probably. By the time I get there, she’ll know if the group that’s gone missing is the one he was with.”

  Bronwyn scooped up Robbie and put him on her lap. “In this day and age, with all the modern means of communication and GPS tracking and the like, you wonder how something like this could happen.”

  “Well, hopefully those modern means of communication will help find them.”

  Chapter Twenty-Six

  The look on Penny’s face as she glanced up from her laptop when Victoria entered her office said it all.

  “So it is his group,” said Victoria. “I’m so sorry.”

  “I’ve read all the news stories and set up a Google Alert for when there’s fresh information. The scientists and ‘other members of the expedition,’ as they’re called, didn’t return to their base camp when they were supposed to, so the authorities were notified, and everything is being done to locate them. Fortunately, they had a couple of Inuit researchers with them, who are familiar with the territory, and I’m sure the authorities will bring in experts who know what to do.”

  “You’re taking this rather well, I must say.”

  “Of course I am. In this scenario, there’s hope. In the one I was imagining, where he’d lost interest in me, there wasn’t. It was over.”

  Before Victoria could reply, Louise Graham poked her head around the door. “I’m feeling so much better today that I thought I’d walk into town for a bit of exercise, and your receptionist said it would be all right for me to come back and see you.” She looked from one to the other. “But maybe this isn’t a good time. You seem involved in something, and it looks like I’m interrupting.”

  “No, it’s all right,” said Penny. “Come in. But you’re right. It is something.” She explained the situation about the missing scientists and her interest in the photographer who accompanied the group.

  “Oh, I’m sorry to hear this. I hope they’ll all be found soon. I’m sure they will be.” She clasped her hands in front of her. “But the thing is, there’s something I wanted to talk to you about. According to the policewoman, the case is now going in a different direction, and things could take a bit longer to clear up. Naturally, I’d like to stay on until we learn more, but I’m afraid that—well, my money’s starting to run out. I wondered if you knew of any work going around here.”

  “I’m assuming you’re here in the U.K. on a visitor’s visa,” said Victoria, “and unfortunately, that doesn’t permit you to work. So I’m afraid we can’t offer you anything, and I doubt any of the shops in town would, either. The authorities are very strict about that.”

  “You know that you can stay with me as long as you need to,” said Penny, “but it might be better if you had something to do to keep busy. I’m sure it would be okay for you to do a bit of volunteering, if you feel up to it. There’s the charity shops, and the dog rescue group always needs help. Oh, and Bronwyn’s got her jumble sale coming up at the church, and she’s always on the lookout for new recruits, if that would interest you.”

  “Yes, it would,” said Louise. “I’m quite active in our church back home. And who knows? Maybe while I’m sorting out the jumble, I can pick up something new to wear.”

  “I’ll ring her and see if—” But before Penny could finish the sentence, Bronwyn herself was standing in the doorway, with Robbie on his lead by her side.

  “Oh, Bronwyn,” said Penny. “Come in. We were just talking about you.”

  “Me?” Her eyes flickered over to Louise, standing beside Penny’s desk.

  After introducing the two women, Penny mentioned that Louise was interested in helping with the jumble sale.

  “That’s wonderful,” said Bronwyn. “I’d be very glad of the help. But Penny, I just wanted to pop in and make sure you’re all right. I was a bit concerned when you took off like that. And I wondered if you’d managed to find out anything more.”

  “There’s very little information available,” said Penny. “But it’s getting a bit crowded in here, so why don’t we all go to the quiet room, where we’ll be more comfortable. And we might as well have some tea or coffee.”

  “Actually, I’ve got to get back to work,” said Victoria. “Those invoices aren’t going to pay themselves.” She hesitated in the doorway. “But let me know the minute you hear anything.”

  “We should let you get back to work, too, Penny,” said Bronwyn. “Louise, how about you and I walk over to the rectory, and we’ll have a little chat there.” And then, when a thought occurred to her, she added, “Have you had your lunch?”

  “I was going to pick up something in town. I am feeling a bit peckish, now you mention it.”

  “Well, there’s some leftover quiche, and then we’ll have a nice cup of tea. I baked a bara brith yesterday and you might like to try a slice.”

  “What’s that?” asked Louise.

  “It’s a quick bread with raisins. Bara means “bread” in Welsh, and brith means “speckled,” so speckled bread. The raisins bring the speckle,” she added helpfully. “You soak them in tea.”

  “Oh, that sounds delicious. Yes, I would definitely like to try that.”

  “I hope you don’t mind dogs. Robbie here is st
ill a bit annoyed with me because I wouldn’t let him have Penny’s sandwich. He won’t be allowed any bara brith, either, because of the raisins, so his frostiness is likely to continue.” They said goodbye to Penny, and after Louise had made a suitable fuss over Robbie, with Bronwyn leading the way, they slipped away into the hallway that would take them to the reception area and out the front door.

  “I love dogs,” said Louise. “I’ve got a rescue at home. We have no idea where she came from or what breed she is. There was a sign in the bank that said ‘free to good home’, so we brought her home, and she’s been loved every day since.”

  “What’s she called?” Bronwyn’s voice was fading, and Penny could just make out Louise’s reply.

  “Dolly.”

  After that, she heard no more. Those two are going to get on just fine, she thought. Nothing brings people together like a shared love of dogs. And although Penny appreciated Bronwyn’s thoughtfulness of inviting Louise home with her so she could get back to work, she doubted she’d get much work done that afternoon. She started looking through Canadian media websites, hoping that they would have more details because the event was unfolding on Canadian soil. And never mind the Cambridge scientists. As far as she was concerned, there was only one person involved, and it was his fate she was worried about.

  * * *

  “Bronwyn sent a few things with me for us to have for our supper,” Louise said that evening. Penny looked up from her laptop. “I’ll just go ahead and make dinner, shall I? It won’t be anything fancy. Just a piece of fish and some vegetables.”

  “That would be lovely. Thanks.” Penny returned her attention to the screen.

  Half an hour later, Louise set their meals on the table, and Penny picked up her fork.

  “This looks delicious.” She set down her fork. “But I just don’t have much of an appetite, I’m afraid.”

  “Neither do I,” said Louise, “but it’s probably best if we make an effort. Just eat what you can.” Penny didn’t move.

  “I know you’re terribly worried about your friend, but I get the feeling he’s rather more to you than that. Would it help to talk about him?”

  “His name’s Colin Campbell, and he’s a wildlife photographer.”

  “Yes, that much I do know,” Louise said with a kind smile. “Bronwyn told me. Tell me what you like about him.”

  Penny’s eyes sparkled. “I haven’t known him that long, but I just enjoy being around him. There’s a kindness to him, a gentleness, and he’s smart, too. And I admire that he had the courage to pack in a life he wasn’t enjoying, to try for one that was more suited to him—that he was willing to take that risk, even though it meant giving up a lot of money.”

  “So a bit like what you did, then?”

  “Oh, I didn’t give up anything. I had nothing to go back to in Canada, and there was no money involved. This—living here—was the best thing that ever happened to me. And I don’t mean just the cottage, although I am so fortunate to have inherited it—I mean my whole life here in Wales. It’s where I belong. So it was easy for me. I just found myself in the right place. Why would I leave?”

  “Would you consider relocating back to Canada, then, if things move along in a good direction with Colin?”

  Penny didn’t hesitate. “No, I wouldn’t. He’d have to move here. Otherwise, we don’t have a future together.”

  “From your quick response, I gather you’ve thought about it.”

  A light pink infused Penny’s cheeks. “Yes, it’s crossed my mind. You know how it is. You picture yourself … you think of the possibilities …”

  “You allow yourself to dream, don’t you?”

  “I hope I’m not being silly about this, that it is what I think it is, what I hope it is.”

  “What you want it to be. I hope so, too.”

  “And now, let’s change the subject. Would you like to tell me more about Jessica? Was she ambitious, would you say?”

  “All she ever wanted was to be a reporter, but she would never have been ruthless about it, and she had a really strict code about truth telling, which some journalists don’t, as you probably know. She refused to lie her way into a story, as she described it. She was always up front with the people she interviewed.

  “When she started out at the paper, they saw her as a young girl who could cover fluff stories, and she did that for a while, but then she wanted something more. She wanted harder news stories, to cover city hall. And when they gave her the chance, boy, did she run with it. She uncovered a story to do with a politician. There was a big paving contract up for tender, and when it was awarded to a bidder who didn’t seem the best qualified, she decided to look into it. It set her antennae twitching, she said. And she was relentless. She just kept digging, and it turned out this politician had been taking bribes. There were meetings at the newspaper, and lawyers brought in, and the editors decided they would run the story. As a courtesy, Jessica called the elected member the night before the story would run, to prepare him, and he begged her not to run the story, ranting all about how it would ruin him, his family, and so on. But by then it was out of her hands, and the story ran.”

  “Could someone involved in all that have followed her here?” Penny asked. “The elected member, someone in his family, anyone from the paving company?”

  “It’s possible, I suppose. But I don’t see why they’d go to all that trouble. And besides, all this happened last year.” Her eyes brimmed with tears. “I just can’t believe she’s gone. It’s shocking to me that her space in the world isn’t there anymore.”

  “Oh, Louise, I’m so sorry.” Penny reached for her water glass, then said, “There’s wine. I’d like a glass. Would you care to join me?”

  “It’s probably nowhere near as good as our beautiful New Zealand wine, but I’m happy to give it a go.”

  “You probably won’t like it. It’s only that French muck.”

  Their plates of food remained untouched, but now, with a glass of wine, the conversation continued.

  “The way you described Jessica just now,” said Penny, “I’m struck by her tenaciousness. Now, I don’t know if there’s a connection here, but someone told me once that people often get killed because they heard something, or they saw something, or they’ve got something, and—this could be the important one—because they know something.”

  “But what could Jessica possibly have known?” cried Louise. “She’d only been in the country for five minutes.”

  “Well, maybe that’s the thing,” said Penny. “It’s not what she knew. She was an investigative reporter. What if someone was afraid that she was going to discover something, and killed her before she could.”

  Louise reached across the table and rested her hand on Penny’s arm. “My skin started to tingle when you said that.”

  “It wasn’t what she knew,” Penny repeated, as if to clarify it for herself. “It’s what she was going to know. What she was going to find out. And whatever that information was, it was very dangerous and someone did not want her to find it out.”

  Chapter Twenty-Seven

  “She mentioned the stories she was planning to work on when we met her that Friday night in the bar,” Penny said. “But I was a bit distracted, you see, because I’d just met Colin and was rather focused on him. But as I recall, Jessica mentioned she wanted to write some travel features, and something about a New Zealand man who disappeared while he was in England, and then of course there was Bill Ward. I wonder if he’s got something shady in his past that wouldn’t hold up to scrutiny in the cold light of day.” She took a sip of wine. “And it seems reasonable to assume that the person who killed Jessica was the same person who tried to poison you with an overdose of your own sleeping tablets. And Bethan and I agree that whoever that person was, they have a close connection to the hotel. Now it could be someone who works there, but Bill Ward was a familiar face around the place. He holds his art weekends there, and he had a long-standing relationship with the as
sistant manager. I’m sure any hotel staff member who saw him wandering about the place wouldn’t think twice about it. He could go wherever he pleases because he’s practically one of them.

  “And then,” Penny continued, “There’s the matter of Jessica’s missing backpack. We all agree that could be important. It could factor somehow into her death. It may be that there was something in it the killer wanted.”

  “Her laptop?”

  “Could be. She was a reporter. Did she use an old-fashioned notebook?”

  “She used everything that a journalist needs to do her job. Notebook, tape recorder, smartphone, the Internet, social media … everything.”

  “And her phone?”

  Louise shook her head. “It may be in the backpack, but it wasn’t on her. Unless it’s in her suitcase, which I still haven’t opened. I don’t have it.” They sat in silence for a moment, and then Louise continued. “I’m still feeling unsettled—and anxious about everything, truth be told. Especially after what happened in the hotel.”

  “That’s understandable.”

  “Yes, and while I’m very grateful to you for your hospitality, I’m a bit worried because your cottage is …”

  “Isolated. Yes, I know it is.”

  “And I wasn’t sure how to bring this up with you without sounding ungrateful, but when I mentioned this to Bronwyn, she suggested I might feel a little more secure if I stayed at the rectory with her and her husband. And as soon as she said it, it felt like the right thing for me to do. I feel I must listen to the little voice inside me telling me to go there. Please don’t be offended. I appreciate everything you’ve done for me. I do hope you don’t mind.”

  “Of course I don’t mind. In fact, I think it’s a good idea. You absolutely must do what you think is right for you to feel safe.”

  “And do you?” Louise asked. “Do you feel safe here?”

  “Well, I always have, but then it wasn’t me someone tried to hurt with those sleeping tablets. And will you leave in the morning?”