ON DEVIL'S BRAE (A Psychological Suspense Thriller) (Dark Minds Mystery Suspense) by Faith Mortimer

needed somewhere quiet to retire, and this place was as good as any.”
    Cassandra thought there was mystery there but decided not to push; she was a guest after all. “How well did you know Susan? You see, Susan left home when she was a teenager, and I didn’t find out about her until much later.”
    Elizabeth looked interested. “To tell you the truth, we didn’t know she had any surviving family. Susan rarely mentioned anything about family things, and we assumed she was all alone in the world.”
    “Was she a friend of yours? I’m sorry to persist, but you see, because I never got to know her, I’m keen to find out what I missed during all those years. What type of a woman she was. We only shared a few weeks together before she returned here and passed away.”
    Elizabeth paused and stared out of the window. Two coal tits were scrapping over a peanut taken from the bird table. “She was ill, apparently.”
    “I know Susan was diagnosed with a brain aneurysm. Mr Triggs told me. I wondered about her depression? The inquest said she died of an overdose. Did you know she took medication for it?”
    The older woman darted a look in Cassandra’s direction. “I know nothing about pills or depression. We weren’t very close.”
    Cassandra smiled. “No, I’m sure Susan will have kept that to herself. Depression is very personal and hard to deal with, especially when you’re living on your own.”
    “She spent most of the time making her sculptures. Occasionally, she’d paint and take an easel out if the weather was fine. Or just a sketchpad…she seemed to like walking. Sometimes she’d be out for hours and would get home late. I’d see her passing by. I would have invited her in, but I know Susan would have refused because she kept to herself, mostly.”
    “Angus told me there’s an exhibition of Susan’s work in Edinburgh. He thought I ought to go and see her work first-hand. Apparently, the pieces which are left in the cottage are only a few odds and ends. I thought some were quite strange, actually.”
    Elizabeth narrowed her eyes. “In what way were they strange?”
    “Well, considering she was an artist of repute, some of the pieces she left here are…quite amateurish. Not at all what I expected. You could even say they are childish in their execution. I’m no judge of art, but apart from the animal sculptures, there’s nothing there I’d have paid money for.”
    “I don’t know what you’re referring to.”
    When Elizabeth said nothing more, Cassandra wondered whether she had bored her with talk of Susan and her work. Out of politeness, she asked, “You say you came to live here because of Lorna…how long have you been here?”
    Elizabeth cast a quick look in the direction of the kitchen before she spoke in a low voice. “We’ve been here for just over twenty-two years now. Lorna was suffering from depression, and it culminated in a nervous breakdown. Afterwards, she was desperate to live somewhere new, where we could start all over again, with no one knowing us. She likes it here and is adamant she wants to stay. I doubt if we’ll ever leave.”
    Cassandra glanced away after seeing Elizabeth’s despondency…and something else. She thought it was loneliness. Poor woman. If she had been in the same position, she would have felt like climbing the walls. What on earth did she do to fill her day apart from looking after Lorna? “I understand. Perhaps we all would benefit from living quietly for a time. Do you ever leave the village? I mean apart from shopping for supplies, do you visit anyone socially or go away on holiday? This is such a small community, you must get lonely.”
    She laughed. “Oh no, we couldn’t leave the place. Lorna would hate it. I confess I do sometimes get lonely though. It would be nice to have the occasional visitor, but we’ve let things drift with the few members of the family we still have. Besides, Lorna isn’t very good around a lot of people. She’s