Poppy Blake - The Windmill Café

Rosie saw Matt flash her a brief look of vacillation as he struggled with whether to utter his next sentence. From his expression, she wondered if he was going to talk about his ex-fiancée again, but was shocked when he inhaled a deep breath and revealed something even more personal.

‘Actually, you’ve hit the nail on the head. It was my childhood dream to become a police detective, but unfortunately life had other plans. I used to love solving all kinds of brainteasers and was an avid watcher of all the TV detective series. When I was eleven, my dad let me help him design the obstacle course at Ultimate Adventures. We argued because I wanted it to be not only a physical challenge, but also a test of the participant’s mental agility by using complicated puzzles to unlock each hurdle; it’s still one of our most popular activities.’

‘So why didn’t you join the police force?’

Matt swallowed down the dregs of his coffee and paused, fiddling with the handle of his empty mug, his eyes glazed as his memories scooted back to the reasons for his change of career direction. Their frank conversation during the archery shoot had introduced a carousel of emotions Rosie hadn’t been expecting. Coupled with what was going on with Suki, she thought her head would explode from sensation overload. Eventually, Matt banged his mug back to the table, clearly regretting his sudden openness, and forced a wide smile onto his lips.

‘Now it looks like there’s a real-life whodunnit for us to crack right here in Willerby! There’s no need to worry about the arrival of the environmental health inspectors tomorrow, because between us we’ll have the mystery of Suki Richards’s poisoning solved before they’ve had time to fill out their documents in triplicate.’

‘Back to the amateur sleuthing, eh?’ grinned Rosie, relieved to see the return of Matt’s inherent upbeat enthusiasm. ‘So, my question is, Detective Inspector Wilson, if someone did poison Suki, why? Was it for her money?’

‘It usually is. Money or love.’

‘Well, I’m going to plump for the love angle.’

‘Okay, so what’s your theory?’ Matt smiled, enjoying her attempt at mystery solving.

‘Well, I really don’t want to think it’s one of Suki’s friends – that’s just too awful to contemplate. So, could it be someone from Suki’s past, someone who’s been stalking her for years, following the ups and downs of her music career, convinced that the lyrics of her songs are directed at him and his unswerving love for her? Maybe he’d recently made his affections public and he’s been waiting for his chance to punish her for rejecting his advances. She’s been living in Ibiza over the summer so he’s been biding his time until she came back to the UK and when he found out she’d be in Norfolk opening a summer garden party, he took matters into his own hands and…’

‘Are you saying you publicized the Windmill Café’s party to the whole country?’

‘I, well, I… maybe he lives in Norfolk!’ Rosie tried not to be offended that her over-inflated theory had been punctured by Matt’s injection of common sense and then smiled. ‘Okay, who’s top of your list of suspects?’

Rosie had been so focused on her conversation with Matt that she hadn’t noticed that Mia and Freddie had appeared on the threshold and were listening to their discussion.

‘If you want my opinion, I’d start with that William guy,’ declared Freddie, his face filled with animation at being able to make his contribution to their speculations. ‘I might not be the most perceptive of people, but something’s obviously going on between him and Suki. Even if he had nothing to do with the poisoning – even if it turns out it was some sort of an accident – as Suki’s manager he should be taste-testing everything, and I mean everything, that she eats or drinks! If he’s not guilty of anything else, he’s guilty of negligence at the very least!’

‘And he did leave the party early to take a shower!’ added Mia, plonking herself down on the sofa next to Rosie.

‘So, what are we waiting for?’ Freddie strode towards the door, eager to seek his revenge, his eyes blazing with indignation. ‘Let’s nail the scumbag! That guy set me up and I’m not letting him get away with it. I could have been arrested, spent the night in the cells, or worse, I could have been charged with attempted murder!’

‘I don’t blame you for being angry, Fred, but it’s probably best if you stay away from the café for the time being.’

‘Why?’

‘Let’s just say, Felix Dawson is not overjoyed about the fact you went back to Suki’s lodge with her.’

‘Ah, yes, her elusive boyfriend. Where was he, anyway?’

‘That’s what I’d like to know too.’

‘Actually, if I had to put my money on someone having something to hide, it would not have been William,’ mused Rosie. ‘He’s the most straightforward person amongst all of them. And why would he work so hard to get Suki a record deal if he intended to slip a dose of poison in her throat spray so she couldn’t perform? It doesn’t make any sense. If he loses his star performer, he loses everything. But Matt’s right, the perpetrator has to be one of Suki’s friends – someone who knew she relied heavily on her throat spray and chose that as their way to deliver the poison. All we have to do is find out who and why.’

‘Yeah, that’s all!’ laughed Freddie.

‘Hang on, my phone’s ringing.’ Matt stood up and extricated his mobile from the pocket of his jeans. ‘Hi Carole.’ He paused, his eyes resting on Rosie, the sides of his lips twitching as he listened to the vicar’s wife.

‘Carole…’ Another pause.

‘Listen, Carole…’ She was clearly in full flow.

‘Yes, it’s true. It seems Suki was poisoned, but it was in her…’

‘No, Carole…’

‘Stop! No one suspects the WI’s Victoria sponge cakes… or your egg-and-cress sandwiches with horseradish sauce.’ Then Matt laughed. ‘It’s okay, Carole, I know why you’re hesitating – neither was it my mother’s home-made sausage rolls!’

They left a very disgruntled Freddie behind at Ultimate Adventures with promises to meet him later in the Drunken Duck to relay every detail they managed to uncover. Rosie had agreed with Matt that if they were going to take their investigations seriously the first thing they needed to do was dig deeper into Suki’s friends’ backgrounds. Butterflies were having a disco in her stomach on the drive back to the café as she wondered if the inspectors might have turned up early, but when the car park came into view she saw with relief that the only vehicles there belonged to their guests.

‘Hey, is that William?’ asked Mia pointing through the windscreen of Matt’s SUV.

‘Perfect,’ said Matt swinging the steering wheel towards the parking space next to William’s dark green MG. ‘Never look a gift horse in the mouth, as my mum’s so fond of saying! Looks like we’ve got our first interviewee.’

Rosie understood what Matt had in mind. She jumped down from the passenger seat and strolled over to where Suki’s business manager was loitering, his forehead creased into parallel lines. She saw him shoot an impatient glance towards the veranda of the lodge he shared with Nadia, the expression on his face making it obvious they’d had a row.

‘Hi, William. Are you on your way out somewhere?’

‘Not really, just needed to get out for some fresh air. Our lodge has suddenly become a little claustrophobic.’

‘Well, it looks like it’s about to rain. Fancy joining us for a coffee in the windmill? We’ve still got some of Suki’s scones left from earlier.’