bordering Lord Eames’ property, thinking about his visit here yesterday. The questions that had sprung to mind at the shock of Danby’s announcement were still there. Why here? Why now? And why Kenton? He didn’t like the fact that a body had been discovered the day after he’d made a reconnaissance of the area. As a copper he didn’t trust coincidences and yet he knew they happened far more often than acknowledged. Yet this one seemed personal.
If
Maidment and Foreland hadn’t changed their plea to guilty, and
if
he hadn’t taken his unexpected diversion, would Jasper Kenton have still ended up here dead? That was ridiculous though because he’d never seen or heard of Kenton before yesterday. But that jagged feeling between his shoulder blades made him wonder if he was being set up, although why someone should kill Kenton in order to do so was not only puzzling but also incredible and ridiculous. There had to be a perfectly logical explanation for his body being here and the remoteness and privacy of the area were both pretty good reasons. The timing was just unfortunate.
He made to help Beth Tremaine, one of the Scene of Crime Officers, on to the pontoon but she waved aside his assistance with a friendly gesture. Phil Taylor, the other SOCO, clambered off the boat and behind him Jim Clarke, the lanky police photographer, followed suit. Uckfield eased his squat frame off with a grunt. At least they didn’t need to worry about nosy passers-by, Horton thought, as they walked down the pontoon to where Danby was waiting for them on the shore, or securing the crime scene because nobody came this way.
But there had been that beachcomber, Wyndham Lomas.
A fact Horton had kept to himself because disclosing it would mean revealing that he had been here. He wasn’t comfortable with that because he’d need to explain why. What could he say?
I wanted to see the countryside? I was on my way to the ferry?
Bloody funny way to get to the ferry, he could hear Uckfield saying cuttingly. But didn’t he have a perfectly plausible explanation, the news that the weather vane donated by His Lordship would be returned to the abbey? OK, so it was a bit feeble and it didn’t explain why he’d trekked through a small wood to reach the shore, but perhaps he could say he had wondered if he’d find someone at the rear of the property having drawn a blank at the front. He pushed the thought aside for now as they reached the broad-shouldered tall man in his late forties standing at the end of the pontoon. He’d deal with that later when he had more information.
Danby shook Uckfield’s hand and nodded a greeting at Horton. ‘Now do you see what I mean about unwrapping him?’ Danby said, gesturing to the body as they headed towards it, repeating a remark he’d made to Horton on the phone. The tide was still on the rise and would reach the body in about two and a half hours. It wasn’t far from where Horton had exchanged remarks with the beachcomber and he would certainly have seen a body if it had been here yesterday. Had the beachcomber put it here after Horton had left the area? Was that why he had been on the beach? And now Horton came to consider it, how had the beachcomber Lomas got here? Access to this area was extremely limited. Had he trudged through the woods after Horton? Even if he had, Horton couldn’t see how he could have transported a body through it unless it had been conveyed in something like a wheelbarrow, and even then it would have been extremely difficult.
Uckfield sniffed and retrieved a tooth pick from the pocket of his waterproof jacket. To Danby he said, ‘How come you’re here?’ It was a question that Horton had been about to ask although he had guessed the answer, which was confirmed when Danby replied.
‘I came over to check out the property and grounds while Richard’s away. It’s part of our security contract. I saw something lying on the shore as I approached by boat. At first I thought it was
If
Maidment and Foreland hadn’t changed their plea to guilty, and
if
he hadn’t taken his unexpected diversion, would Jasper Kenton have still ended up here dead? That was ridiculous though because he’d never seen or heard of Kenton before yesterday. But that jagged feeling between his shoulder blades made him wonder if he was being set up, although why someone should kill Kenton in order to do so was not only puzzling but also incredible and ridiculous. There had to be a perfectly logical explanation for his body being here and the remoteness and privacy of the area were both pretty good reasons. The timing was just unfortunate.
He made to help Beth Tremaine, one of the Scene of Crime Officers, on to the pontoon but she waved aside his assistance with a friendly gesture. Phil Taylor, the other SOCO, clambered off the boat and behind him Jim Clarke, the lanky police photographer, followed suit. Uckfield eased his squat frame off with a grunt. At least they didn’t need to worry about nosy passers-by, Horton thought, as they walked down the pontoon to where Danby was waiting for them on the shore, or securing the crime scene because nobody came this way.
But there had been that beachcomber, Wyndham Lomas.
A fact Horton had kept to himself because disclosing it would mean revealing that he had been here. He wasn’t comfortable with that because he’d need to explain why. What could he say?
I wanted to see the countryside? I was on my way to the ferry?
Bloody funny way to get to the ferry, he could hear Uckfield saying cuttingly. But didn’t he have a perfectly plausible explanation, the news that the weather vane donated by His Lordship would be returned to the abbey? OK, so it was a bit feeble and it didn’t explain why he’d trekked through a small wood to reach the shore, but perhaps he could say he had wondered if he’d find someone at the rear of the property having drawn a blank at the front. He pushed the thought aside for now as they reached the broad-shouldered tall man in his late forties standing at the end of the pontoon. He’d deal with that later when he had more information.
Danby shook Uckfield’s hand and nodded a greeting at Horton. ‘Now do you see what I mean about unwrapping him?’ Danby said, gesturing to the body as they headed towards it, repeating a remark he’d made to Horton on the phone. The tide was still on the rise and would reach the body in about two and a half hours. It wasn’t far from where Horton had exchanged remarks with the beachcomber and he would certainly have seen a body if it had been here yesterday. Had the beachcomber put it here after Horton had left the area? Was that why he had been on the beach? And now Horton came to consider it, how had the beachcomber Lomas got here? Access to this area was extremely limited. Had he trudged through the woods after Horton? Even if he had, Horton couldn’t see how he could have transported a body through it unless it had been conveyed in something like a wheelbarrow, and even then it would have been extremely difficult.
Uckfield sniffed and retrieved a tooth pick from the pocket of his waterproof jacket. To Danby he said, ‘How come you’re here?’ It was a question that Horton had been about to ask although he had guessed the answer, which was confirmed when Danby replied.
‘I came over to check out the property and grounds while Richard’s away. It’s part of our security contract. I saw something lying on the shore as I approached by boat. At first I thought it was
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