Chris Collett - [Tom Mariner 01] by The Worm in The Bud (txt) Read Free Book Online

half of it covered by a brand new expanse of block paving.
    On the approach to the house, Jamie had become manifestly more disturbed, flicking his fingers by his ears, his eyes panning anxiously from one side to another. Once Knox had pulled into the drive, the two officers stood back while Anna attempted to coax her brother out of the car.
    But before they’d even unlocked the front door, with a sudden shout of, ‘No black mouth!’ Jamie took off running down the street.
    Knox was off like a shot, too, but it was Mariner who got there first, catching up with Jamie, grabbing him and propelling him, struggling, back to the car. ‘What’s all this “black mouth” stuff?’ Mariner asked Anna, trying not to let his breathlessness show.
    ‘I don’t know. I’m as much in the dark…’ She stopped. ‘Wait. You said he was shut in the cupboard? That could be it. He might think we’re going to shut him in the “black mouth” of the cupboard again. We’ve brought him back here too soon. This is too frightening for him.’
    ‘Terrific.’ Another avenue barred, though not entirely.
    As they prepared to leave, the front door of the adjacent house opened and a woman emerged, carrying a small fluffy canine, to step delicately around the piles of sand and bricks.
    ‘Hold on.’ Seeing an opportunity, Mariner jumped back out of the car and, introducing himself, thrust his ID towards the woman, over the low hedge.
    Long past the age for reading glasses, she squinted at it, before looking over Mariner’s shoulder towards the unmarked police car. ‘Have you got Jamie in there? I thought so.’
    ‘And you are…?’
    ‘Moira Warren.’ She shook her head sadly. ‘I can’t believe that such a dreadful thing has happened to that poor young man. He was wonderful with Jamie.’
    News travelled fast, but only apparently one way. Mariner had already been told that so far the house to house had turned up no worthwhile information. Nobody had seen or heard anything the previous night. It hadn’t helped that there had been some kind of social gathering down the street early on, which meant that cars had been coming and going for most of the evening. Anything happening at number thirty four would have just blended into the activity.
    ‘But you didn’t notice anything out of the ordinary yesterday?’
    ‘No. I’ve had the workmen here all over the weekend, working on the drive. This job should have been finished in three days, but you know what it’s like. They start something and then there’s a problem. Five days it’s been going on and it’s still…’
    ‘Did you know Eddie and Jamie Barham very well?’ Mariner cut in.
    ‘Not really, no. We only moved in two years ago this February gone and we hardly ever saw them. I know the last people used to help out with Jamie, sitting with him sometimes. I did try once, but…’
    ‘…but?’
    Her tone got defensive. Conscience kicking in. ‘It was difficult, Officer. Jamie’s a grown man. He’s strong and I’m not getting any younger. My husband said I shouldn’t do it. I already told all this to the young policeman who came to see me.’
    ‘So you haven’t helped out recently?’
    ‘No. But I don’t think Eddie needed it lately because of the girl.’
    ‘What girl?’
    ‘I assumed that she was Eddie’s girlfriend. I never actually asked. You don’t like to be nosy, do you?’ That took a stretch of the imagination. ‘We were just pleased to see that Eddie had a young lady. He must have missed out on so much because of well, you know.’ With a glance in Jamie’s direction she lowered her voice conspiratorially, though not quite enough to prevent it carrying as far as the car. ‘To be honest I’m not surprised it all got too much for him,’ she intimated.
    ‘There’s a sister you know. Haven’t seen hide nor hair of her since we’ve been here but she’s out there somewhere. You’d have thought that she might have…’
    ‘This girl. Was her name