Murder My Neighbour by Veronica Heley Page A

right. She’s trying to push everything on to me as usual, and this is one too far for me.’ The burden rolled back. ‘And yet . . . No, I suppose you’re right.’
    â€˜It’s moral blackmail.’
    Ellie nodded. ‘Yes, I must try to think of it that way and not get into a tizzy about it.’
    â€˜You’ve prayed about it?’
    She nodded. Oh. Actually, she hadn’t. Not really.
    â€˜And the other problem? Mrs Pryce?’
    â€˜Could you bear to take another walk around there with me? I want to see if her car’s still in the garage. Vera and Pet said Mrs Pryce was going to drive herself to her new home in her own car. There’s a big padlock on the door, but perhaps we could take a torch and shine it through the window in the covered way to see if the car’s gone.’ She struck her forehead with her hand. ‘I forgot. Mia’s out and I can’t leave Rose alone.’
    â€˜I’m expecting some more phone calls, so I can’t come just yet. Mia was going to have lunch with her roly-poly boyfriend and said she wouldn’t be late. Can you wait till she gets back and I’ve spoken to a couple of people? I’ll come with you then.’
    Ellie subsided into her chair and surveyed the paperwork her part-time secretary had left out for her to do. ‘Yes, of course. That would be the sensible thing to do.’
    Thomas nodded and left her to it.
    Ellie wanted to sweep all the paperwork off her desk on to the floor. And maybe trample on it. She wanted to lie down on the floor and have a tantrum like a two year old.
    Sensible? She didn’t feel sensible. She felt . . . stressed.
    She ought to pray about all sorts of things, but everything was going round and round in her head like a washing machine caught on a spin cycle.
    Diana’s finances.
    Little Frank’s bed-wetting.
    Rose’s failing health.
    The missing Mrs Pryce. Find the lady.
    Ellie couldn’t concentrate on any one of them long enough to formulate a coherent appeal to the Almighty. After all, He knew all about it, didn’t He? Oh yes. But she seemed to remember that He liked to be reminded. Well, the best she could do was . . . Please, if you could spare a minute?
    So . . . be sensible? Deal with office work?
    It was impossible to concentrate.
    She went back to the kitchen to start a new shopping list. Mia had said she’d bring back something for supper, but they were nearly out of sugar and tea bags . . . spreadable butter . . . and they’d hardly any cereals left, or bread. They needed more eggs, of course. The freezer looked half empty; it was time to restock. There was an excellent greengrocery in the Lane. She needed more than she could carry in one go. She wondered if they would deliver if she made up a big enough order.
    Mia had been doing most of the food shopping of late, but Mia would soon be gone.
    Ellie bobbed around from cupboard to fridge to larder, her list growing. She’d been shown how to order online some time ago, but had forgotten how. Perhaps it was time to relearn a skill which would be useful when Mia left?
    Rose slept a little and woke feeling more cheerful, much more like her old self. Her wrist was still swollen, though. They had tea at the kitchen table and ate the last of a sponge cake Mia had made. How did she manage to get her cakes so light?
    Stewart rang to say that he’d arranged a viewing of Disneyland for the following morning. He said he was rather busy so did Ellie need him along? Oh dear, he was in a huff, wasn’t he? She couldn’t be bothered to explain, so said that would be perfectly all right, thank you.
    Mia returned from her lengthy lunch date with glowing cheeks and eyes snapping with . . . temper? Or romance? Plus a rack of lamb chops which looked delicious.
    She readily agreed to help Ellie put an order for food through online and stood