Mind Games

Chapter 5

The physical wounds were more easily mended than the mental scars, but time can heal all number of things. It was important for everyone to move forward and look to a future they were not sure they would ever have.

Maria and Andrew may have bonded mentally; however, they still needed to get to know each other in the real world.

‘I know you better than any man in the world, almost like Adrian, and still, I know next to nothing about you,’ Maria said as they drove.

‘I feel the same…who is Adrian?’ Andrew asked, suddenly concerned.

‘That is exactly what I mean. We are strangers.’ She smiled.

‘Perfect strangers.’ He laughed.

‘What?’ Maria asked.

‘It’s a song I like, it’s not important. Now, who is Adrian?’ Andrew returned to his main concern now.

‘My brother, he’s gone,’ Maria whispered sadly.

‘I am sorry, I thought, I mean, I didn’t intend to…’Andrew stuttered.

‘I know what you thought and it is okay. I miss Adrian, that’s all.’ Maria smiled.

They drove on in silence. They had a lot to consider about each other and themselves. Whole lives to reveal and share. They had to find a place to share them. It was though a contented silence. The contentment of being with the right person and having the time to know them better. Having the space to love and live.

As they drove she watched his legs as he pushed on the pedal and accelerator, her own feet pushing against the floor in unison. They were going to be good together; she didn’t think so, she knew. She, he, they could feel it.

Ellen was back at work in no time. And, though Ted had done a great job, the police still needed answers. They sent DI Douglas to interview her, a good choice…for Ellen.

‘So, Miss St Peters, that’s an odd name.’ He asked as he tried to appear indifferent to her gaze.

‘Is that a crime? Anyway, I don’t find it odd.’ She smiled.

‘No, Miss, er, I was just saying…’ The smile had its effect.

‘It doesn’t matter,’ she interrupted, enjoying his discomfort. ‘So, what is it that brought you here, apart from the bodies?’ She smiled again throwing him of course. He tried to regain some authority.

‘Do you think it is funny, the trail of death we found here?’ he said, trying to return her stare.

‘I lost a friend, nearly my life, so why do you think I would find any of this funny?’ The smile was gone.

‘Look, I am sorry for your loss, really, I just want to get to the bottom of this. Can we start with Mr Steele?’ Douglas tried to get back to the matter at hand.

‘My boss, Mr Paul was his right-hand man. They head-hunted me from a recruitment company. I didn’t know at the time, but recently found out, that they were less than honest.’ Ellen’s staccato delivery of the facts, her facts, surprised Douglas. He smiled.

‘Very good, but, and it is a big but, am I supposed to believe you only found out about the man recently. His businesses?’

‘Yes, you are. I have nothing to do with his other businesses. I supplied staff to them. And I ran a hotel. Did I know my boss was a…bastard…for want of another word. Yes, I did. I wasn’t asked to like him, or Mr Paul, I was expected to run this place.’ Ellen was unwavering in her answer.

‘You must have suspected something, seen something, surely.’ Douglas sighed.

‘I did, eventually. They shot me for it. Is that good enough for you?’ That stare, icy, piercing. Douglas looked away and searched for another question as Ellen continued. ‘It seems I was right not to look too far over the years, don’t you think?’

‘I see.’ Douglas distracted himself by checking a note on his phone. Eventually he spoke. ‘What exactly went on here? I’ve heard rumours and, with all due respect, this place is not worth getting killed over.’

‘It is disrespectful. Very.’ Ellen sighed. ‘And, as for whether it is worth getting killed over, perhaps you should ask Police Chief Wilkinson. George very much liked it here.’ There was the smile again, though no warmth. Douglas swallowed hard.

‘You know the Chief?’

‘Yes, very well indeed as it happens. Now…’ Ellen paused and took a sip of water. ‘Would I be right in thinking that it was George, Chief Wilkinson, who asked you to come here? The note on your phone with the question about this place, that came from him, didn’t it? He was particularly keen to know what I knew, isn’t that right?’

Douglas did not speak. He looked down at his phone and then back to Ellen, feeling stripped bare. Again, he checked his phone, the next question, but Ellen was already speaking.

‘Do they keep records, and what kind? Who keeps them? I guess that comes next. Well, tell George not to worry, they are very safe and secure. It’s important he knows that.’ Ellen smiled as the policeman blushed, his questions taken and answered, to an extent. It angered him to be made to feel so small as he snapped.

‘Secure or not, I want to see those records. I want to know what sort of place this is or was. You don’t get shot over a bed and breakfast.’

‘Fine, I’ll look to get hold of them once you get a warrant. And please be sure to ask the chief for authorisation. You might also want to talk to Michelle Saunders, of The Recorder, she is also an incredibly good friend of the hotel, and I think she would find our records fascinating.’ Ellen grinned.

The Recorder‘That sounds like a threat, lady, and you should know…’ Despite his angry indignation, Ellen interrupted him.

‘Excuse me, sir, I don’t make threats, and how exactly could it be a threat. I am sure the chief has nothing hide or worry about. Does he? And the newspaper editor, I simply thought she could vouch for us…and the Bishop of London, he was a guest many times. Do you know the prosecutor Stephen Dixon? He specialises in fraud these days but I believe he was quite the criminal lawyer back in the day. Now he has met Chief Wilkinson and knows his…er…reputation very well.’ Ellen stood. ‘Now if that is all, Detective Inspector Douglas, I have work to do.’

The policeman felt humiliated and angry, but words would not come and, in truth, there was nothing to say. He had been outthought and out-manoeuvred. Sent in to do a job armed with questions and no knowledge, Wilkinson would not trust him with that. Once in his car, he phoned his boss and it was no surprise when, after a long silence, he simply said, ‘Leave it, Douglas. I never want to hear of that place again. I will handle the rest.’

Ellen got on with running the hotel while starting a search of her own. Charles Steele was the boss of the hotel and properties but, to her surprise, a certain Stephanie Steele was the owner. Of this place and many others. Ellen set out to find this, now, extraordinarily rich woman. Otherwise, it was hotel business as usual while the dream business was put on hold; temporarily or permanently, she was not sure. She had no pressure to do either, or indeed anything, she was just living and for now that was enough.

Ted Carter remained as manager, happy to have life in the slow lane again. The deaths, especially the doc, took a toll on him, but the return of the hotel to normality made him feel at home again and that was the greatest comfort. He was even pleased that Ellen remained, awed as he was by her presence and fortitude.

Maria and Andrew settled in the north of the country. A small village close to a lake and woodland, all the space in the world in which to get lost, all the cover with which to hide and all the beauty to enjoy. It was inspirational for Maria’s painting which now alternated between the painfully beautiful and dark explorations of the human mind. They were past pretending that events had not changed them both, it was now about how they learnt and evolved. Together they resolved that they would make it work for them, together they succeeded.

Over time Maria’s views towards Ellen softened, enough so she reached out and they spoke again. Away from the death and horror, her actions made more sense and her decision to get her away was actually a heroic act that almost got her killed. Andrew helped to explain how, once involved, it was not easy, if at all possible, to get out. Contact made, and peace made, a friendship was formed that would endure. They even visited the hotel, if only to see Ted and face some demons.

As a couple they were inseparable, the mental bond growing ever closer as they inhabited each other’s bodies and minds. They thought less and less about the future as the present became all they needed. Two remarkable people in an unremarkable wilderness.