Barking Up the Right Tree

Chapter 3

9

Dismissing my suspicions about Alice, I turned my attention to work. It was a Bank Holiday weekend, and we were busy. The afternoon was exhausting, and I was on my feet, rushing backwards and forwards to the kitchen where Hannah was toiling at the oven and the sink, and running outside to check on Poppy in between orders. The day seemed to last interminably but finally Poppy and I were on our way home. I couldn’t wait to have a long soak in the bath and put my feet up, while Poppy seemed determined to stop and to sniff at each tree and lamp post, and every clump of weeds and patch of grass. Before supper, we went out in the garden. My decision to forget about Alice was tested, because Poppy remained fascinated by the metal fence. At every opportunity she scampered over to it and scrabbled at the earth, as though trying to tunnel underneath it. She seemed particularly interested in the corner of the fence at the far end of the garden.

‘What can you smell, Poppy?’ I asked her quietly. ‘What’s on the other side of that fence?’ I heaved a sigh. ‘If only you could talk.’

Once again I began to suspect that something really might be hidden in Alice’s garden – something that could conceivably have been buried just when Sophie had disappeared. Hard though it was to believe that Alice could have done away with her daughter, I was feeling increasingly uneasy about living next door to her. It seemed likely the ‘S’ about whom my great aunt had been concerned was Sophie, and living next door to her, Lorna would surely have noticed what was going on. She had been mystified. But then I remembered the letters Alice had mentioned and realised that my idea couldn’t possibly be true. Unless someone else was sending Alice regular letters from overseas, and Alice was lying about the identity of her correspondent, Sophie was clearly alive and well and away travelling overseas.

The following Sunday I went to The Plough for lunch and was pleased to spot Toby seated by himself in a corner of the garden. My mood lifted further when he waved and smilingly called out to me to sit at his table. As soon as I caught sight of him, I had intended to join him, but it was nice to be invited. I tried not to allow myself to believe he had gone there hoping to see me.

‘I thought Hannah might be here,’ he said, dashing my secret hopes as I reached his table. ‘So, how have you been keeping? You’re looking cheery.’

‘Yes, it’s all good,’ I replied, looking down and patting Poppy to hide my dismay.

Abandoning me, Poppy trotted over to Toby and rolled over for him to pat her tummy, which she loved.

‘She likes you,’ I told him.

I didn’t add that she liked anyone who made a fuss of her.

‘I’ve always wanted a dog,’ he admitted, with a smile.

It was tempting to ask him to take Poppy home with him, but I wanted to keep Rosecroft. If my great aunt’s dog was given away, I wasn’t sure who would find out, and how that might impact on my ownership of Rosecroft. Besides, I liked having her in the house with me at night. Although she was bound to roll over for an intruder to tickle her tummy, she would at least bark and wake me up if anyone broke in during the night. I had lived by myself before, and knowing she was in the house made me feel safe.

‘The trouble is, I’m out at work all day, and my mother’s allergic to dogs,’ Toby went on.

‘That’s a shame.’

He nodded. ‘Just one of those things. Hannah told me you’re working at the tea shop. So how’s that going?’

I took a seat. ‘I can’t say working as a waitress was exactly a lifelong dream of mine, but it’s not too bad.’

‘You could look for another job if you don’t like it at the tea shop.’

‘I know, but it’s not so easy to find jobs these days, especially in Ashton Mead.’

‘Swindon’s not that far away.’

‘I wouldn’t want to leave Poppy alone all day. She’s still only a puppy. And besides, it’s fun working with Hannah.’

‘She’s a great girl,’ he agreed enthusiastically.

Not for the first time, I wondered about Toby’s relationship with Hannah. She had assured me they were just friends, but sometimes Toby gave me the impression he would have liked something more than that.

‘How long have you known Hannah?’ I asked him.

Straightening up from petting Poppy, he smiled. ‘Oh, forever. We used to go out, you know, way back.’

‘What happened?’ I asked, doing my best not to look dashed by his words.

‘The same as what happens to most relationships between a fifteen-year-old girl and a sixteen-year-old boy,’ he laughed. ‘It was a long time ago and, as I recall, she dumped me for a boy who had a car, or at least could drive and borrow his mother’s car. At that age, to have pulling power a boy needed wheels. That seemed to be more important to the girls than anything else.’

I nodded. I could still remember the first girl at my school whose boyfriend had a car. With a mixture of admiration and envy, the rest of us had hung around outside the school gate to watch her being picked up.

‘What about now?’ I asked. ‘Is there a spark of romance between you?’ Smiling to conceal how important this was to me, I hoped he wouldn’t find my question intrusive, but it was too late to take it back. Toby returned my smile but his answer was evasive.

‘Hannah and I have been friends for a long time, since we were very young. We know where the bodies are buried. Talking of which,’ he went on, still smiling, ‘how are you getting on with your investigation into the body Alice has buried on the other side of her fence?’

Lowering my voice, I told him about Poppy’s reaction to my neighbour. ‘It’s strange, isn’t it? I mean, she loves people as a rule. I’ve never seen her behave like that with anyone else. And then there’s the fence.’

Toby raised his eyebrows quizzically. ‘What fence?’

‘Alice’s fence. It’s metal. That’s odd, don’t you think? I mean, it looks as though Alice is trying to hide something and I’m pretty sure Poppy is on to her. Poppy doesn’t like her. And –’ I paused to allow the effect of my words to sink in before continuing in a theatrical whisper, ‘Sophie has disappeared.’

Even though Toby’s laughter riled me, I liked the sound. Watching little lines crease the skin around his eyes, I felt an unexpected longing to touch his cheek with the tips of my fingers, and wondered how he would react if I flung my arms around his neck. There was something infectious about his laughter. Had he not been laughing at me, I would have joined in.

‘I didn’t mean to offend you,’ he said, seeing my mortification, and brushing a few strands of black hair off his forehead. ‘But honestly, Emily, you can’t possibly be serious about all this. If the police suspected a crime had been committed every time someone went off travelling, they’d have no time to hunt for real criminals.’

I smiled to hide my confusion. ‘Yes, I’m sure you’re right,’ I said. ‘It was just a flight of fancy.’

‘You should watch that overactive imagination of yours,’ he warned me, suddenly serious. ‘Be careful who you go blabbing to. Not everyone would appreciate being accused of murder, and Alice has friends in the village.’

‘I thought she lived like a hermit,’ I said, surprised by his words. ‘What friends does she have?’

‘My mother for a start,’ he replied promptly, ‘and Maud, and a whole gaggle of old dears who may seem perfectly harmless, but who would hound you out of the village if they knew you were making groundless accusations against one of their coven. Worse, they would work their satanic magic against you and send you nightmares.’ He grinned. ‘Don’t look so worried. I’m joking. I don’t believe in witches any more than I believe Alice could possibly have done away with Sophie who, by the way, is a sweet young girl who wouldn’t say boo to a goose. But you need to forget about your ridiculous notions, Emily, before you start talking to the wrong person and end up making enemies for yourself. Seriously, I advise you to drop this nonsense.’

‘I don’t appreciate being lectured to like a silly schoolgirl.’

‘Don’t behave like one then.’

We scowled at one another and I wondered how I could ever have found him attractive.

‘You know your dog is digging up Cliff’s precious begonias?’ Toby said.

I spun round on the bench and my elbow knocked my drink off the table. Luckily the glass didn’t break. Poppy stopped scrabbling in the flower bed, spraying earth all around her, as I leapt to my feet and tugged at her lead to pull her back from the begonias. She dashed over to the table and set to work l*****g the grass, while I tried to pull her away from my spilt beer, and pat the earth surreptitiously back into place around the plants at the same time. When I finished, I sat down again just as Toby stood up and told me he was leaving. Poppy trotted to the other side of the table where he had been sitting, lay down and closed her eyes, as though to express her disapproval of me. It seemed no one felt any sympathy for my concerns.