We followed her into the front room. “Please take a seat. Would you like a drink of tea or coffee?”
Suzanne helped me to locate the seat, as I replied, “Not for me, thanks. How about you, Suzanne?”
We did have a drink before leaving my house, so Suzanne declined the refreshment as well.
As we took our seats, heavy footsteps could be heard coming down the stairs. Barry came in and greeted us. He sounded a bit breathless and I guessed that he was probably a little over-weight. Taking a seat, he asked, “What a beautiful dog. What’s her name?”
“Kelly. She’s a great help. I’ve had her for a couple of years, now.”
As usual, the dog seemed to enjoy being the centre of attention and did not mind the unfamiliar hands that gently stroked her head and back.
“Do you like your new house?”, asked Barry.
“Very much”, I replied. “There’s plenty of space and the houses were very well-built in the 1930’s. Also, it’s very handy for the Metro into Manchester.”
Diane and Barry agreed. “Much better than the bloody flimsy boxes they’re building, nowadays”, Barry added. “I doubt if they will last for more than thirty years, if that!”
“Very true. I was surprised at how large the rear garden is. I think it is going to take a great deal of maintenance.”
“I do spend a lot of my time looking after the garden”, admitted Barry. “But, I can give you the phone number of a guy who maintains gardens, if you like.”
“That would be very helpful, thanks. I’ll make a note on my phone, if you don’t mind.”
Barry obliged and, after rummaging for the details, he read out the name and phone number of the local Gardener.
Diane proudly told us that she was a home-based dressmaker, while Barry had been working for twenty-five years as a joiner and carpenter with a local building company.
After a little more conversation, I decided to broach the subject of the previous occupants, “I must admit that I am curious about the people who used to live in my house. I never met them as everything was done through the solicitors and agents.”
The slight pause before they responded was meaningful. It was Diane who answered. “The Ademovic’s? A quiet couple. She was called Selmira, but I can’t think of her husband’s name. I seem to remember that he spoke English quite well, but I never heard him say very much. He appeared to be quite shy and reserved. Can you remember what he was called, Barry?”
After a moment’s thought, he answered, “I’m afraid that I am useless at remembering names. It was something Eastern-European, possibly Polish or Bosnian, but I just can’t remember. I didn’t see very much of him.”
These words triggered memories of the voice on my radio. A man’s voice with an eastern European accent. But, why?
Diane had a sudden thought. “Yes, I’m pretty certain that he was Bosnian. I think he went back to his home country, probably about two or three months ago”, Diane said. “Selmira told us that her husband’s mother was seriously ill and he wanted to be near her.”
“What were they like?”, I asked.
Again, the pause was a bit longer than I had expected. It was Barry who answered my question. “They kept to themselves. Not a particularly friendly couple, wouldn’t you say, love?”
“That’s very true. We never got to know them, really. We know the people on the other side of your house better than we did the Ademovic’s.”
Suzanne had been quiet up until now. She asked, “Did they have any children or pets?”
“No, neither. I think they were in their mid-thirties, but they lived on their own. Shame they didn’t have any children. Selmira seemed very unhappy and depressed after her husband went back. I think it was only about a month or two before she put the house up for sale”, Diane said.
“She didn’t stay in the house, though,” Barry added. “She seemed to leave the sale up to the agents and, I think she said that she was moving to stay with relatives, moving away from the area.”
“Yes, that’s right”, Diane agreed. “I think she said that she was moving down south, somewhere near to London, but I don’t know exactly where.”
We chatted for a bit longer, thanked the couple for their hospitality and stood up ready to return to my house.
“Ivanko! That was his name.” Diane had suddenly remembered the first name of her ex-neighbour. “It was a strange spelling, with a ‘K’ instead of a ‘C’. I remember Selmira explaining the weird spelling of their names, as they were both from Bosnia.” She paused, obviously trying to think of something else still on her mind. “They were Muslims and we could hear their strange music when it came to their prayer times.”
“That’s really very helpful. Thank you so much for all your information”, I responded, hoping I could remember these unusual names.
“Thanks, again, for your hospitality. I hope that I can be a better neighbour than the Ademovic’s.”
Barry laughed. “That wouldn’t be difficult. I don’t ever remember him even smiling at us. Always appeared to be a very serious, sullen guy.”
“If there is any help you need, just let us know. I am in most of the time”, Diane offered.
Chapter Five: two heads are better than one
“They seemed a nice couple, but I don’t think they have told us everything about your previous occupants”, Suzanne said to me as we returned to my house.
Strangely, I had felt the same, but wondered why Suzanne thought this. “What gives you that impression?”
She collected her thoughts together, before answering. “It was nothing they said, but I did see their eyes briefly look at each other before answering your question. Perhaps it’s what they did not say that is more important.”
I smiled. “Thanks, Suzanne. That is exactly why I wanted you to be there with me. I did notice a slight hesitation before they answered, but, without you I would not have known what you just told me.”
“But, I don’t know what it all means. All we know is that the husband went back to Bosnia to look after his mother and his wife moved out a few months later. In other words, we are not really much wiser, now.”
I thought about the situation and said, ”Diane told us that it was Selmira Ademovic who told them that her husband had gone. In other words, there is no proof that he actually went to Bosnia, just the wife’s word for it.”
There was a moment’s silence from Suzanne as she digested this information. “What are you suggesting, Tonie? Do you think that Selmira hired some killers to dispose of her husband?”
I shrugged my shoulders. “All I’m saying is that it could be a possibility. I know that it sounds crazy and, perhaps, a bit over-dramatic, but, still, it could be true. Sometimes, crazy things do happen.” I did wonder if reading my talking books had enriched my imagination, thinking of what crazy things people got up to in a Stephen King or James Herbert novel.
We sat in silence for a couple of minutes, thinking of the many possibilities. Did this house hold some terrible secret, or was my imagination getting the better of me?
Shrugging off these awful thoughts, I asked, “Suzanne? Do you have any plans for the rest of the day?”
“Nothing, really. Why?”
I laughed. “Don’t sound so worried. Life goes on and I need to do some shopping. If you have the time, I’d be grateful for your help and, after, I’ll treat you to a meal in a good restaurant. What do you think?”
There was no hesitation in her voice as she replied, “That’s fine, by me. It beats helping Mum with all the boring housework! I’d better text her and let her know.”
Within twenty minutes Kelly was curled at my feet in Suzanne’s Toyota Auris, heading in the direction of the supermarket. I did feel awful relying so much on Suzanne, but she constantly reassured me that she did not mind at all, as she enjoyed my company. She even pushed the trolley around the store, filling it with the items I needed to keep me stocked up for at least two weeks. It did not take long and, within a couple of hours, we were back at my house. I phoned the restaurant to make a reservation and, as it was a hot, sunny day, we relaxed outside with a cool fruit juice. Fortunately, my father had given me a few plastic garden chairs, which proved to be quite comfortable, as we relaxed in the welcome sunshine.
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