Intrigue in the Village (Turnham Malpas 10) by Rebecca Shaw

know. Busy as usual.’
    ‘Good. I’m glad to see you’re making friends. You had quite a bunch of them calling the other night.’
    A light in Maggie’s brain flashed on. ‘Oh! Yes, plenty of comings and goings at my house, for sure. Best to keep busy.’
    ‘Exactly. See you again soon.’
    So help me! thought Maggie. He’d noticed the meetings. And as the nights became lighter as the summer approached, they would be even more noticeable. Those bright blue eyes of his saw far too much. She’d have to be careful.
    Peter knocked and walked into Kate’s office. She got to her feet to shake hands. ‘What a lovely surprise, Rector. Can I help in any way?’
    ‘Have I caught you when you’re busy? I can always—’
    ‘Sit down. Please. Now, how may I help?’
    ‘I’m just back from visiting in Little Derehams.’
    There wasn’t so much as a flicker of any recognition in Kate’s eyes.
    ‘Been to see Mrs Bliss as she’s new to the parish.’
    Still no other reaction, except sorrow.
    ‘Her house is a disgrace. It wouldn’t matter if she was the most industrious housewife, which she isn’t because she’s so depressed, she couldn’t make it look good. Leaking windows, slates off the roof and that all-pervading smell is a faulty septic tank, I’m sure. The gas fire she has must be fifty years old by the looks of it and never serviced, I imagine. There are no proper bathing facilitites apart from the old kitchen sink, the lavatory is outside theback door and should have been condemned around nineteen forty. She doesn’t even have a proper shorthold lease, so, in theory, she could be thrown out at any time. But what was worse was the letter heading of the landlord.’
    ‘What could be worse than what you’ve just described?’
    ‘So you’ve no idea, then?’
    ‘No idea. What about? I haven’t been to see her.’
    Peter took in a big breath and said, ‘Her landlord is a company called Turnham House Properties.’
    If Peter had struck her she couldn’t have been more shocked. ‘You mean
Craddock
owns it?’
    Peter nodded.
    ‘I’d no idea.’
    ‘What other explanation can there be? One must assume so, when Turnham House Properties is the name at the head of the paper.’
    ‘One must.’ Kate was gripping the edge of her desk so tightly her knuckles were white, and beads of sweat were appearing on her forehead. ‘My God! I’d no idea.’
    ‘I thought not. Can I leave it with you?’
    ‘You certainly can.’
    Peter didn’t give Craddock Fitch much of a future if Kate’s fury was anything to go by.

Chapter 6
    ‘Craddock, I need some answers, although you may not like what I have to say.’
    Craddock blew smoke from his cigar into the air, drew his ashtray closer and then said indulgently, as though he had no cares in the world, ‘Fire away, my dear.’
    ‘Peter came to see me this afternoon.’
    Craddock sat upright. ‘Was he in one of his campaigning modes? He’s difficult to resist when he is. He gets those blue eyes of his looking straight into your soul and you’ve said yes before he even opens his mouth.’
    ‘Oh, he opened his mouth all right.’ Kate outlined their conversation, and concluded by saying, ‘But the headed notepaper gave him the surprise of his life.’
    ‘Oh?’
    ‘You don’t know?’
    Craddock shook his head, took another pull on his cigar and was just expelling it when Kate said, ‘Turnham House Properties.’ She waited but he merely shook some ash from his cigar.
    ‘Well?’
    ‘If it said Turnham House Properties then it must belong to me, mustn’t it? It’s a subsidiary of the main company.’
    ‘Why be so secretive? How many houses do you own in Little Derehams?’
    ‘Almost all, a notable exception being Keepers Cottage where Louise and Gilbert Johns live.’
    ‘You bought them one by one, you mean?’
    Craddock Fitch nodded. ‘I wanted to do that in Turnham Malpas but got thwarted at every turn – you know what they can be like, cussed – and the