Dead Woman's Shoes: 1 (Lexy Lomax Mysteries) (30 page)

He gave Lexy a salacious smirk. “I had to look elsewhere. A lot of young women go for the more mature man. Especially in a backwater like this.”

“And especially if he takes them to bistros and buys them Prada shoes.”

“Quite. Anyway, the money I’d been throwing around was our retirement savings, so the news about Princess was timely, as you can imagine. I had been rather hoping to continue living in the style to which I’d become accustomed. But somehow I needed to organise things without Tammy twigging. And I also needed Avril to keep her trap shut. So I told her I was going to get Princess registered as a new breed on the QT, and then surprise Tammy with it on our wedding anniversary.”

“Very romantic,” said Lexy, trying to keep her eye on the syringe. She had moved an inch further along the wall to her left.

“Avril realised, as quick as a tick, what I was up to, and said she’d be delighted to keep my little secret, as long as I made her a regular monthly payment.”

Tristan gave Lexy a wry look. “Even so, it was still worth it. But I needed someone competent around animals to help put my little plan into action. So I took the lovely Sheri-Anne into my confidence. We worked everything out very carefully. Chose a date when Princess would be receptive to a male cat and tracked down and swiped the only one who would do – her own father.” He frowned. “Still find that distasteful. Also Sheri-Anne had to seduce that thick lump Lance, in order to get close to the tom. Oh, well. All was going fine though, until Avril caught Sheri-Anne and me together in a little wine bar, making plans to move away on the proceeds of our venture. Can’t imagine how she knew we were there – I suppose she must have followed us. Bitch. So the monthly payments went up.”

He glanced up at the window as Edward went straight into
Happy Talk
.

Lexy eased herself two more inches to the left. If she got out of this in one piece she never wanted to hear the words ‘South’ and ‘Pacific’ again. If she got out.

“But you were nearly there,” she heard herself say. “Avril being paid off, Princess ready to rock, Tammy none the wiser.”

“Yes – apart from the problem with Avril, everything else was as smooth as silk. Until she had the idea of a large cash payment.” Tristan’s eyes hardened. “At which point I was starting to think that she would be better off out of the equation altogether.”

Lexy stiffened. He was going to confess. And she thought the ghost walk on Friday night had been such a strong alibi for Tristan. She should have checked...

“But someone beat me to it.”

Huh? Lexy’s eyes opened wide.

Tristan gave a rich chuckle. “When I heard that Avril had been bumped off I had to stop myself leaping up and punching the air! First thing I did was nip back and grab the blackmail money Sheri-Anne and I had left for the old witch.”

Lexy’s lips twisted. Milo’s uniformed colleagues would think that they’d been sent on a fool’s mission when they turned up at the village hall.

She drew in a breath. Milo. If he picked up her message he could be here any moment.
Quick as you like, Venus
, she prayed.

“Anyway, Operation Catnap had gone like a dream,” Tristan was saying. “We’d got the male cat caged up and ready in the barn. Sheri-Anne had to do a bit of work to get them both in the mood, but the violins and candlelight paid off in the end.” He sighed. “We
were
going to collect Princess from the barn this evening. Take her with us to the States. Got her passport and everything. Flights booked. Then sell the kittens, except for one of the male ones, of course, and... start all over again.” He glared up at the window. “Doesn’t he ever shut up?”

Lexy flexed herself. “So – you must have been really pleased to see me and Edward this afternoon, complete with Princess Noo-Noo?”

“I thought I hid my towering rage very well,” said Tristan. “It helps so much to have a stage background. But I have to admit you’ve messed things up quite badly. Now I’ve got to steal the bloody cat all over again.” He snorted. “When I find Sheri-Anne, that is. In fact I don’t even know why I’m wasting my time telling you all this...¦”

“So – Sheri-Anne’s OK?” Lexy interrupted.

“Fit as a fiddle. We had a little rendezvous at the village hall earlier.”

Lexy curled her lip distastefully, then gave Tristan a challenging look.

“What’s in the syringe?”

“Just a bit of sedative. You’ll have a nice snooze in the back of the surgery, Hope Ellenger will come in and find you tomorrow – shock, surprise – and Tammy will be waking up at home at about the same time. Meanwhile Sheri-Anne, Princess and I will be a memory. But one they’ll be talking about in Clopwolde for years.” He visibly preened himself.

“So what are you going to do about Edward?”

Tristan thought for a moment. “I’ll have to give him an armful too, won’t I?” He looked up at the window again. “A merciful release for us all.”

Lexy found herself almost agreeing with him.

“Have to call him in when I’ve dealt with you.” Tristan rubbed his chin. The syringe dripped again. “Tell him you’ve fainted or something, and when he’s bending over you – bosh! As they say.” He grinned.

“But if you didn’t kill Avril,” said Lexy, still trying to keep her voice even, “who did?”

“No idea. Now – let’s get this over with.”

Lexy tried desperately to make sense of the series of images flitting through her head. A blue, tight-fitting outfit. Rust-coloured wig. Avril walking up Windmill Hill at a quarter past seven on Friday evening. And Avril walking up Windmill Hill at seven-thirty.

She suppressed an exclamation.
Both
the old dears had been right! Which meant...

“Tristan – I don’t think you’re going to find Sheri-Anne.” Lexy eyed him urgently.

“What?” He waved the syringe impatiently. “Not at this rate I’m not.”

“Get a load of Honeybun TONIGHT!”
Edward really knew how to belt them out.

Lexy flicked her eyes, led him forward another inch. He had reached the centre of the wall now and she was within a metre of the door to the drug room.

“I think someone else has already found her.”

“Rubbish. Now... I advise you not to struggle. Don’t want to put this in the wrong place – I’m not a doctor, although I’ve played plenty in my time. Here we go, one, two...”

“I mean it. She’s double-crossed you.”

He faltered. It was all she needed. Lexy launched herself at the open door to the drug room, grabbed the handle and yanked the door towards her as hard as she could. It slammed shut so violently the whole room shook.

She found herself involuntarily ducking as the huge St Bernard femur bounced from its bracket and crashed down straight on top of Tristan’s chestnut mane.

He staggered forward, cracked his head on the edge of the examination bench and slid to the floor, the syringe still in his hand.

The other door burst open, and DI Milo skidded in, followed by Kinky, with Edward bringing up the rear, goggling in disbelief.

At least he’d stopped singing.

“You cut it a bit fine,” said Lexy to Milo. He was already on his mobile.

“Ambulance, please. Clopwolde village veterinary surgery. A middle-aged IC one man unconscious with head wound...”

“Where did he spring from?” Edward pointed hysterically at Tristan. “He didn’t come past me, I swear.”

Lexy picked up Kinky and hugged him briefly. He glared at Tristan’s prone form. “He was already here,” she said. “We were having a cosy little chat, and the bone just chose that moment to fall off the wall. Knocked him off balance, and he hit his head on the examination bench.” She smiled grimly down at Tristan. “Bosh! As they say.”

Tristan gave a low moan.

“It can’t have hit him too hard,” said Milo. “He’s coming round.”

“What’s that?” Edward was staring at the syringe.

“Oh, that was meant for me,” said Lexy. “Animal sedative, I think. Tristan was intending to put me to sleep for a few hours. Then he was going to come for you.”

Edward looked so horror-struck that Lexy burst out laughing.

Milo was kneeling beside Tristan. She squatted next to him. “Thespian boy here’s the least of our problems,” she said, quietly.

Milo gave Lexy a sidelong glance. “So he’s not the killer?”

Lexy shook her head. “But I’ve had a chance to do some thinking. Astonishing how the mind is concentrated when some jerk starts waving a syringe in your face.” She paused. “You see, I think I now know why Avril Todd went to that field.”

Milo raised his eyebrows. Edward leaned on the examination bench, looking from one to the other.

“And she wasn’t there from choice,” Lexy declared.

“What do you mean?”

“Remember that problem with the old dears and the time Avril walked up the hill?”

“Huh?” said Edward.

“That again?” Milo shifted irritably.

“Yes. The thing is – they were both right.”

“What – so Avril came home, and went straight out again, then came back up the hill a few minutes later?” Milo gave her a weary look.

“No”, said Lexy, patiently. “They both saw Avril walking up the road at exactly the time they said. Except that the Avril who walked up the road at seven-thirty wasn’t the real Avril Todd. It was someone dressed up to look like her.” She drew a deep breath. “Someone who had carefully planned to kill her.”

21

Edward emitted a low whistle. In the distance, a siren wailed.

“The first part of the plan must have been to get into the house dressed as Avril,” Lexy said. “The impostor either had a key, and snuck in, or else barged past the real Avril when she answered the door. They must have known that Roderick Todd was going to be away last Friday, so it would have to be someone reasonably well acquainted with Avril.”

Lexy was aware of Edward staring at her so intensely that his eyes seemed about to leap from their sockets.

“Once inside,” she went on, “my guess is that Avril must have been overcome somehow and injected with the sedative that was found in her system at the post-mortem. The killer intended to take Avril to the field in Nudging and do away with her there, probably because they assumed she wouldn’t be found for a while.”

“Reckoned without you, then,” said Milo.

“What about the murder weapon?” said Edward.

Lexy thought back to what the old lady had seen at half past seven. “The impostor was carrying a tapestry bag just like Avril’s. Whatever it was must have been concealed in there, along with a change of clothing.”

“As we know,” she went on. “The Todds have an integral garage, so this impostor got the real Avril into the back of her Volvo, concealed her under a blanket or something, then shortly after, got the car out of the garage, still dressed as Avril, and went out. So it looked as if the real Avril Todd was going out at her usual time, alone.”

“It would certainly explain the mystery of how she’d been able to drive doped up to the eyeballs,” interjected Milo. “And, of course, as the impostor was leaving the house, you turned up, expecting to follow the real Avril.”

“And you turned up,” said Lexy, “intending to follow me.”

“Confused?
Moi?”
Edward moaned.

“Go on.” Milo threw a quick glance at Tristan, who had also given a moan.

“OK. The impostor must have known Avril might wake up, so they had to drive hell for leather to the field, get her out of the car, and dispatch her properly while she was still half asleep. That’s why Avril sounded so weak and confused,” said Lexy.

“And they used Avril’s own car as a getaway, and left it in a ditch where it could be easily found.” Milo supplied.

“Yes – it was a safe bet, because as Avril tended to use her car as an unpaid taxi for the am-dram, a jumble of DNA and prints would be all over it anyway.” Lexy spoke quickly, aware of the ambulance siren getting closer, her mind falling over itself. “I reckon this person changed from the Avril disguise into dark clothes, and
walked
back to Clopwolde cross-country.”

Milo nodded. “Of course. If they were used to walking and knew the path it would only have taken an hour or so.”

“And when they got back,” continued Lexy, “they slipped into the village hall and put the clothes and wig in an old trunk, intending to dispose of them properly later. Except Edward and I found them. Perhaps the murder weapon’s in there too.”

“What about the tapestry bag?” Edward chimed in.

Lexy gave a swift shrug. “I’m guessing the murderer left it at Avril’s house. If Roderick Todd is like most men, he’s not going to find it strange that his wife had two shopping bags. If he even notices.”

Tristan moaned again.

They heard the ambulance pull into the alleyway. Within minutes, Tristan was being loaded into the back, while Edward spoke to the paramedics.

“Yes – I was walking past and I heard a noise. I found him unconscious when I came in to investigate. The bone must have fallen off the wall and knocked him against the examination bench.”

Tristan opened his mouth soundlessly.

“Shouldn’t he be arrested, or something?” said Edward, as they watched the ambulance depart.

“He’ll keep. At the moment we’ve got bigger fish to fry.” Milo headed for the high street.

“Where are we going?” Edward asked.

“Gorse Rise. The vet’s place.”

Lexy felt herself going pale. “Do you know something we don’t?”

“Just a hunch.”

They sat in Milo’s estate car outside Guy Ellenger’s bungalow, silently watching.

Dusk was falling, and next door in Amalfi the curtains had been drawn. Every couple of minutes a feline shape swung on one or other of the drapes. They heard a sharp remonstration at one point, and a bulky figure loomed and disentangled the shape.

Guy Ellenger’s curtains were still open. They could see the vet pacing around his living room. Hope was sitting on a chair near the window.

“So – you think Guy did it?” Edward asked.

“I’m actually wondering if they did it between them, somehow,” Milo said.

“Only one of them is big enough to dress up as Avril.”

“Well – nevertheless, I want to get them both in for questioning. Although the vet’s not going to like it – especially as he’s just got back from the nick. He might prove a bit...evasive.”