No Holds Barred by Lyndon Stacey Page B

fact.
    What also became clear was the affection that had been felt locally for Jenny’s first husband, Colin Barton, killed in a tragic farming accident. This wasn’t especially surprising, as Great Ditton was a close-knit community and his family had apparently been part of it for generations. As an incomer, Gavin was immediately at a disadvantage, and Daniel found himself feeling sympathy for the man.
    Not entirely trusting Sue’s apparent attitude towards Taylor Boyd, Daniel trod carefully in seeking information about him, merely observing that he appeared to have practically taken over the running of the haulage business in Gavin’s absence and that this must be a relief to Jenny.
    â€˜Relief’s not the word I would use.’
    â€˜What d’you mean?’ Daniel asked, taking a sip of his after-dinner coffee.
    â€˜Well, the thing is, I don’t think she trusts him a hundred per cent. Gavin took him on, see; she never would have. The family’s too well known around here.’
    â€˜Well known for what?’
    â€˜Well, you know – they’ve got a bit of a reputation.’
    â€˜They own the garage, don’t they?’
    â€˜Yeah, and the scrapyard – or salvage yard, as they like to call it. And there’s some as say that not all the scrap that goes through there is scrap, if you know what I mean.’
    Daniel did. It was a countrywide problem. With the price of raw metal being what it was, anything metallic that wasn’t tied down – and some that was – went walkabout of a dark night. Lead off the church roof, copper piping, metal railings and even manhole covers were all considered fair game by the thieves, and farmers were bearing the brunt of the problem, losing oil and diesel reserves, as well as tractors and other machinery. His suspicions of that afternoon were confirmed.
    â€˜She doesn’t suspect him of stealing from her, does she?’ He injected shock into his tone.
    â€˜Oh, no! I mean, I shouldn’t think so,’ Sue said. ‘It’s just  . . . anyone round here would be a little bit cautious where the Boyds are concerned. But if she thought he was actually stealing  . . . I mean, she’d fire him, wouldn’t she?’
    â€˜I suppose she would, if she had proof,’ Daniel agreed. ‘But you have to be a bit careful about firing people without due cause these days, I imagine. I mean, they’ll have you in court at the drop of a hat.’
    â€˜Mm, and he’d be right up for that, without a doubt.’
    Daniel was puzzled.
    â€˜If that’s your opinion of him, what made you go out with him?’
    She shrugged. ‘I dunno. It was just a one-off. I thought it might be a laugh. It wasn’t ever going to be serious, was it? But, I mean, he’s not bad-looking and he can be quite a charmer when he wants.’
    â€˜The allure of a bad boy,’ Daniel mused. ‘So, what’s his interest in dogs? Sorry, I overheard something and my ears always prick up when dogs are mentioned.’ The phrase he’d heard Boyd use earlier that evening had lodged in the back of his ex-copper’s mind, and although ‘to see a man about a dog’ was a common enough euphemism, the way he’d used it had seemed to imply a greater meaning. Sometimes the simplest explanation was the right one, but not, it seemed, in this case, because Sue looked genuinely baffled.
    â€˜ Dogs ? No. I mean, they’ve got a couple of Rottweilers at the yard, but they’re more guard dogs than pets.’
    â€˜Oh, perhaps they were talking about dog racing or something,’ Daniel said dismissively. Jenny had mentioned that it was one of her husband’s hobbies.
    â€˜Yeah, maybe.’ Sue didn’t sound particularly interested. ‘So, I gather someone left a welcome for you at the cottage  . . . Trashed it pretty badly, by all accounts.’
    â€˜Ah,