SECRET CRIMES a gripping crime thriller full of suspense by MICHAEL HAMBLING Page A

weekend.’
    ‘Was that at her house?’
    ‘Yes. I texted her when I set off so she knew when to expect me. She was waiting in her front porch with her case. Nothing unusual happened on the drive across, as far as I can recall.’
    ‘You’re in retail management, aren’t you?’
    ‘Yes. I manage a medium-sized department store. Weekends are our busiest time.’
    ‘So you have a pretty responsible job.’
    ‘In a way, yes. But there’s not much room for manoeuvre, not for the individual store manager these days. All the important decisions are made higher up, at head office. We are just responsible for implementing them.’
    Sophie nodded.
    ‘It took us about an hour and a half, maybe a bit longer, to get here. By the time we’d checked in and unpacked it was nearly eight. Sarah waited while I changed out of my work suit and touched up my make-up. Then we went out. We managed to get some food in the pub. That’s where we chatted to Ed. He was at the bar at the same time.’
    ‘Who chose that pub?’ Marsh asked.
    ‘Me. Sarah wanted to go to the Red Lion, but a band had already started playing and it was absolutely mobbed. And I was starving. I pulled her away from the door because I could see that the Swan was a bit quieter. We got some food there quite quickly.’
    ‘Did Sarah seem put out when you got her to leave that pub and go somewhere else?’ Marsh asked.
    ‘It’s difficult to say. Maybe for a very short while, but I did agree to go back with her later. She was happy with that.’
    ‘You said you changed into informal clothes at the hotel. Does that mean that Sarah didn’t need to? Was she already in her evening outfit when you picked her up?’ said Sophie.
    ‘Yes. She was in jeans and a sparkly top. And her leather jacket.’
    ‘But I thought she worked in a bank.’
    ‘I’d guess that she finished at five and had time to go home and change. That was what I assumed.’
    Sophie changed the subject. ‘Did you see anyone you recognised from a previous weekend?’
    Rosemary shook her head. ‘No. I think we were about the last to check in at the hotel. Most people had arrived earlier and already gone out. And no one at the pubs was at all familiar.’
    ‘What about late at night when you came back to the hotel’s lounge bar? Who else was there?’
    ‘I really can’t remember. I was so tired by then, all I wanted to do was go to sleep. There might have been a small group around a table in the other corner. I think there was. But I can’t remember anything about them.’
    ‘This might be a bit harder for you, but I want to get some idea of the relationship between the two men, Derek and Brian. How close did they seem?’
    Rosemary thought for a moment. ‘They didn’t talk much. But then, it would have been difficult the way Sarah and Derek were behaving. She had her arm hooked into his almost as soon as they met. But they didn’t seem to be very alike, not in personality anyway. As far as I remember, they didn’t speak to each other much.’
    ‘When they did speak, who took the lead?’
    ‘Probably Brian. Derek was more laid back. Brian seemed kind of edgy. I don’t know if it was just last night or whether he was always like that.’ She paused. ‘There was something about Brian that I just didn’t like. I might have imagined it, but once or twice I thought it was something more than just resentment that I wasn’t playing ball.’
    ‘Do you know who Sarah’s next of kin might be? Are either of her parents still alive?’
    ‘She never talked about her father to me. I always assumed that he must have died some time back. Her mother died just a couple of years ago, I think.’
    Sophie glanced at Marsh. He shook his head very slightly. She smiled encouragingly at Rosemary. ‘We don’t have any more questions for now, Rosemary. You’ve been really helpful, thank you. We’d like to talk to Ed now but we shouldn’t be long.’
    Rosemary left the two detectives and joined Ed and Ella