Martin Edwards - The Coffin Trail

‘Listen,’ she said as he put down her suitcase. ‘You’ve already had enough excitement to last a lifetime. I still can’t get over the idea of Tash killing her own housekeeper. Let alone this horrid picture that keeps coming into my mind of her splattered all over the courtyard. All the blood and the brains — ugh! This is a beautiful part of the world, I’ve been telling everyone, but…weird, somehow.’

‘You’re still glad we moved here?’

‘Of course! Let’s face it, I’ve fallen on my feet. If we didn’t have a cottage in the country, Suki would never have crossed my palm with silver. I only wish you hadn’t made me promise not to write about the murders. I could have made a small fortune. All the same…’

‘Yes?’

‘The agent still hasn’t found a buyer for my flat. Not at the price I wanted.’

‘You are asking top dollar.’

‘Why not? It’s an up-and-coming area. But I was wondering whether it might be an idea to keep the flat. It would be so useful to have a place to stay in the city. Our very own pied-a-terre. What do you think?’

‘Why would we need it?’

In playful mood, she wagged a finger. ‘Don’t forget what you said about Tash. She wanted to start again, but you said it was impossible. We’re all the prisoners of our history.’

‘God,’ he said gloomily. ‘I can be pretentious sometimes.’

‘You’re an Oxford don,’ she said, punching him gently in the stomach. ‘It comes with the territory.’

He shook his head. ‘Oxford’s in the past. I’m not going back.’

‘You’ll change your mind. Everybody does in the end.’

‘Not me.’

‘Daniel.’ Her tone was patient and kind. ‘The Lake District is wonderful, but it is a bit — well, remote. We don’t want to cut ourselves off.’

‘But that’s what we agreed.’

She reached towards him and started to unbuckle his belt. ‘Hey, let’s not argue. I’ve only been home five minutes and there are far better ways we can spend the time.’

He closed his eyes as she touched him. She still had the gift of making him forget everything but the here and now. Trouble was, with his eyes shut, his brain played a trick on him. Wove a dark spell that made his body tremble.

No point denying it, no point in trying to fool himself. In his mind, Miranda too had changed places. For a few seconds before he jolted back to his senses, the wandering hands belonged to Hannah Scarlett.