Page 26 of She Saw What He Did

‘Well, let me know if anything turns up, aside from fluffy toys of course.’

‘What about the shotgun cartridges on the beach?’ she asked.

He shook his head.

‘You know as well as I do that there is illegal wildlife shooting on this island.’

Ellen nodded. She felt guilty wishing so much for excitement. She’d certainly got that alright. They’d taken Abby and Jared Miller to hospital. He was going to be alright, the doctor assured her, although he needed a few days’ rest. Abby had been adamant about the murder. According to her statement the couple had been exploring the island when Abby saw two men arguing through the lens of her camera. Ellen, however, had not been able to trace any other boats visiting the island that day. Abby had taken photos of their own boat but not the others. The police report concluded, despite Abby’s statement to the contrary, that most likely their boat had not been properly tied to the jetty and had been washed out with the tide. Her pictures of the men visiting the island were grainy and blurred.

Laslow Island was crawling with police and Ellen was desperate for them to find something.

‘Still looking for a job on the mainland?’ asked Weis, cocking his head and giving Ellen a wry smile.

Ellen blushed. Does he know about my job application, she wondered. If so, then he would know that they turned her down.

‘I might be,’ she replied.

‘Seems you’ve got your hands full here,’ he grinned.

‘Yes, well, thanks for your advice,’ she said.

‘Anytime, just ask. Now, I need to get back to Porthaven where there’s real police work to do. In the meantime, if anything turns up, let us know.’

Ellen watched him climb aboard the waiting boat.

‘Can I offer you a lift?’ he asked.

‘No thanks, I’ll stay here a bit longer.’

If Porthaven police force wouldn’t help her then she’d have to conduct the investigation herself.

*

Ryan was waiting outside the hospital. He nodded on seeing her and strolled towards her car. It was cooler today, but Ryan wore his designer shades all the same. He zipped up his jacket and pushed his hands into the pockets.

‘Still slightly hungover,’ he explained. ‘You missed a great concert.’

‘Yes, well I was on duty,’ said Ellen, locking her car.

‘It seems Scott and I missed all the fun.’

‘I wouldn’t call murder fun,’ admonished Ellen.

‘Blimey Ellen, chill out,’ he scolded. ‘So, they haven’t found a body? What did Weis have to say?’

‘He thinks the Millers are wasting police time,’ she said, opening the hospital entrance doors.

‘He’d be the first to jump on us if we didn’t do things properly,’ scoffed Ryan, combing his fingers through his hair. ‘I looked through those photos. They’re very grainy. You can’t really see the men’s features.’

‘I know,’ nodded Ellen.

‘Presumably, this Abby Miller hasn’t been able to describe either of the men?’ asked Ryan, pushing the lift button.

‘No, they were too far away. We’ve got absolutely nothing to go on aside from the fact that we know the killer is average build and probably in his thirties.’

‘That narrows the field,’ said Ryan.

He removed his sunglasses, groaned and pushed them back on.

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