Square Snapper (Detective Inspector Burgess) by Deborah Middleton Read Free Book Online

cause.
     
     
     
     
     
     
     
     
     
     
     
     
     
     
     
     
     
     
     
     
    Chapter 11
     
     
    Although it had not rained for several days, the humidity was through the roof. There was a haze in the air above the ocean. Gone were the crisp, spring days where you could see a clean line between ocean and sky defined on the horizon. Burgess knew they were in for a hot one. The dew glistened on the grass making his shoes and the cuffs of his pants wet. He made a mental note to cut the grass at the weekend. They were in the height of summer now and Bermudians were beginning to get their camping licences and starting to shop for their Cup Match clothes. Cup Match is the annual holiday that spans Thursday to Sunday during the first week of August. Cricket was the main event. A team from Somerset on the Western tip of the island played each year against the team from the historic town of St. George on the Eastern end. It was Bermuda’s version of East meets West and an excuse for boating, barbecues and parties. Burgess was a die-hard St. George’s fan, while Archie rooted for Somerset. Each year they bought their lapel ribbons, dark blue on light blue for St. George and blue and red for Somerset, and placed their bets. It was their secret pact that the winner got to pour a bottle of beer over the head of the loser. For several years, Burgess had been victim of the beer shower. Last year, however, he had the distinct pleasure of giving Archie a good, foaming dousing. For the police, however, it was never really a holiday. Too much alcohol and too much sun, could lead to trouble and they were especially vigilant during the festivities.
    Burgess found himself driving into town more slowly than usual. He realized that his reluctance stemmed from an early morning meeting scheduled with the superintendent to go over Cup Match logistics. Instinctively, he knew that, in light of recent events, it was going to be a particularly unpleasant start to the day. He pulled into the police headquarters at Prospect and made his way to the Superintendent’s office.
    After a few minutes, he was ushered into the cool, carpeted office by the superintendent’s secretary, a trim young English lady who was the model of efficiency, the perfect match for a superintendent who prided himself on running a tight ship and having everything done “ay-sap.” Appearances were everything and she was a good gatekeeper too, keeping anybody who was not senior enough in rank waiting just the correct amount of time. It paid to remind them where they stood in the police hierarchy. Burgess often wondered if there was a set time for an inspector, another for a sergeant and just how long a lowly constable would be kept waiting.
    “Morning, Burgess.” With his thinning hair, hunched shoulders and great beak of a nose on which he had benched a pair of old fashioned reading glasses, the superintendent reminded Burgess of a large bird of prey.
    “Good morning, sir.”
    “Take a seat. How’re things?”
    “We’re making progress, sir, on the girl’s murder. We have some forensic evidence which we’re analysing and hope to have some more leads from it. The Canadian team is on island and has been doing a great job collecting evidence from the crime scene. They’re also looking at the drug overdose scenes to see if there is anything unusual there and any connection. The toxicology reports show that the heroin was laced with strychnine so we’re treating those deaths as murders.”
    “Might as well use the Canadians while they’re here, Burgess. Kill two birds with one stone. We need to have a resolution to this girl’s murder asap. The parents are flying in and I want to be able to at least give them closure. As far as the heroin is concerned, we need to get to the bottom of that asap.” Burgess could feel his blood pressure mounting at the continual use of the expression “ay-sap.” Why did he grate on his nerves so much? Could it be because he