talking into his mobile telephone. She spoke a few words to him, shrugged, shaking her head. It seemed only seconds before she left, moving stiffly up the hill in the descending darkness in the direction of her own home.
Steve and Di looked at one another in shocked silence. Sonja was always a bit strange, but they had not been prepared for a reaction like this. No floods of tears or any other sign of grief. If it hadn’t been for her taut face and strained voice, they would have said she seemed not to care one way or the other.
Chapter 10. Sunday evening
It was the owl that shriek’d, the fatal bellman, which gives the stern’st good-night.
Macbeth. Act 2 Scene2
A gust of wind rounded the hill, causing Diana to shiver in her thin shirt. A blue-black moonlit night enveloped the small group of people gathered in the vineyard. The first early stars appeared as silver specks in the vast canopy above, whilst bats silently flitted around their heads. It wasn’t truly cold, just a freshening of the wind. Steve noticed her shiver and guessed she was suffering from an attack of delayed shock and could do with a drink. So could he for that matter.
He hugged her close and murmured into her ear. ‘Are you all right, darling?’
She gave him a wan smile. ‘I’m Okay really. I’m just so tired. It’s everything that’s happened today and the police seem to be dragging on a bit. What are they doing apart from talking? I’ll be really glad when they finally say we can go. I suppose they’re taking so long because of how he died.’
He nodded and was about to say that he’d try and find out what was keeping the police from letting them go home when he was forestalled by the man in charge.
Inspector Andreas Christopopodoulou walked over and joined Steve and Diana. As he turned to address Steve it was obvious from his confident manner that he assumed he had covered everything.
He wasted no time in coming to the point, surmising that someone had obviously attacked Leslie whilst he was out walking. The attacker had used a knife to cut his throat. Leslie had then either fallen down, or was pushed over the cliff into the disused vineyard below. The policeman was sure this settled everything as far as they were concerned; he thanked the two of them for their help and declared they were now free to go. He would speak to them again in the morning.
Steve and Diana listened in silence as the pompous little man concluded his explanation with a quick brushing together of his hands in dismissal. Di stole a quick look at Steve who just knew what she was going to say next.
‘And what about the bruising to his mouth? And I’m sure you noticed his hands.’ She blurted out.
The policeman gave her with a haughty glare. ‘Oh, I am not sure it is anything. He probably got knocked about as he fell. The bruising is minor, again the fall. And he is of course elderly. They bruise more easily. He actually has more scratches than bruises. The bushes you understand?’
The inspector’s eyes flashed in irritation with this female’s meddling.
‘We have covered everything,’ he continued. ‘We have spent enough time here tonight. The rest will be left to forensics.’ He stole a look at his wristwatch.
Steve knew that the Cyprus football team was playing in a European friendly tonight. It was a warm up game before the start of the football season. He cynically decided he knew just where the policeman’s real interest lay.
‘Yes, but his wrists look almost as if they were tied together. I know it’s your job and you probably know best but I,’ she paused and looked at Steve for support. ‘We were concerned about it all.’ Steve could almost feel the inspector’s annoyance mounting.
The inspector’s eyes narrowed. Steve recognised the antagonism in the little policeman’s face. He was acting typical of someone who couldn’t stand interfering people; and from a woman at that. Steve pitied him really. Di could
Steve and Di looked at one another in shocked silence. Sonja was always a bit strange, but they had not been prepared for a reaction like this. No floods of tears or any other sign of grief. If it hadn’t been for her taut face and strained voice, they would have said she seemed not to care one way or the other.
Chapter 10. Sunday evening
It was the owl that shriek’d, the fatal bellman, which gives the stern’st good-night.
Macbeth. Act 2 Scene2
A gust of wind rounded the hill, causing Diana to shiver in her thin shirt. A blue-black moonlit night enveloped the small group of people gathered in the vineyard. The first early stars appeared as silver specks in the vast canopy above, whilst bats silently flitted around their heads. It wasn’t truly cold, just a freshening of the wind. Steve noticed her shiver and guessed she was suffering from an attack of delayed shock and could do with a drink. So could he for that matter.
He hugged her close and murmured into her ear. ‘Are you all right, darling?’
She gave him a wan smile. ‘I’m Okay really. I’m just so tired. It’s everything that’s happened today and the police seem to be dragging on a bit. What are they doing apart from talking? I’ll be really glad when they finally say we can go. I suppose they’re taking so long because of how he died.’
He nodded and was about to say that he’d try and find out what was keeping the police from letting them go home when he was forestalled by the man in charge.
Inspector Andreas Christopopodoulou walked over and joined Steve and Diana. As he turned to address Steve it was obvious from his confident manner that he assumed he had covered everything.
He wasted no time in coming to the point, surmising that someone had obviously attacked Leslie whilst he was out walking. The attacker had used a knife to cut his throat. Leslie had then either fallen down, or was pushed over the cliff into the disused vineyard below. The policeman was sure this settled everything as far as they were concerned; he thanked the two of them for their help and declared they were now free to go. He would speak to them again in the morning.
Steve and Diana listened in silence as the pompous little man concluded his explanation with a quick brushing together of his hands in dismissal. Di stole a quick look at Steve who just knew what she was going to say next.
‘And what about the bruising to his mouth? And I’m sure you noticed his hands.’ She blurted out.
The policeman gave her with a haughty glare. ‘Oh, I am not sure it is anything. He probably got knocked about as he fell. The bruising is minor, again the fall. And he is of course elderly. They bruise more easily. He actually has more scratches than bruises. The bushes you understand?’
The inspector’s eyes flashed in irritation with this female’s meddling.
‘We have covered everything,’ he continued. ‘We have spent enough time here tonight. The rest will be left to forensics.’ He stole a look at his wristwatch.
Steve knew that the Cyprus football team was playing in a European friendly tonight. It was a warm up game before the start of the football season. He cynically decided he knew just where the policeman’s real interest lay.
‘Yes, but his wrists look almost as if they were tied together. I know it’s your job and you probably know best but I,’ she paused and looked at Steve for support. ‘We were concerned about it all.’ Steve could almost feel the inspector’s annoyance mounting.
The inspector’s eyes narrowed. Steve recognised the antagonism in the little policeman’s face. He was acting typical of someone who couldn’t stand interfering people; and from a woman at that. Steve pitied him really. Di could
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