Page 92 of Joker in the Pack

The thought that Warren could be a predator left me cold inside, but I stopped myself from jumping to conclusions. After all, the whole village had swallowed any number of lies about me. Perhaps that was why Warren hadn’t judged me when almost everybody else had?

Carol shuddered despite the fact that her dining room was heated to a balmy temperature. “What are the Foxfords coming to? First Ronnie, then Warren and Larry, and now this man fixated on Olivia. Back in my youth, parents disciplined their children properly, and we didn’t have any of this trouble.”

Nye pushed his chair back a couple of inches and glanced at his watch. “You’ve been very helpful, and thanks so much for breakfast.”

Carol’s face fell. “You’re leaving already?”

“Like you said, I should look into the matters you raised.”

“Yes, yes, of course. Let me pack you up a bag of pastries to take with you.”

I trailed Nye out to the car, and once again, he held the door open for me. Manners. It seemed every man around here had them, even the perverts like Larry.

Where did Nye learn his? He knew my entire life story, but I didn’t even know where he lived. Did he have a family? What was his upbringing like?

Then again, what did it matter? Nye wasn’t interested in me, and after this mess got sorted out, I’d probably never see him again. It wasn’t as if we ran in the same circles.

That thought left me more depressed than ever as Nye started the engine.

“What’s next?” I asked.

“I’ll ask my team to take another look at Larry and Warren, and while they’re doing that, I want to speak to Betty.”

I had a horrible feeling that little chat would put me firmly back in her bad books.

In the post office, Betty was holding court behind the counter with a group of her acquaintances huddled around. Their eyes lit up when they turned and saw Nye. I’d always imagined they discussed recipes for apple pie and the latest knitting patterns at WI meetings, but maybe I was wrong. Maybe they ogled calendars and compared the models’ assets.

As we got closer, I realised Betty didn’t share their glee. If anything, she looked a little nervous.

“Can you spare a few minutes?” Nye asked.

Her smile disappeared. “Now?”

“We can come back later if it’s more convenient.”

She motioned at a door on the far side of the shop. “Better to get it over with. We’ll have to continue our chat tomorrow, girls.”

Betty flipped the sign from Open to Closed as they left, then led the way upstairs to her tiny flat.

“It’s about my Larry, isn’t it?”

At least Nye’s questions wouldn’t come as a complete surprise.

He nodded, and she waved at a two-seater sofa. “You’d better sit down. Would you like a cup of tea?”

“White with one sugar for Olivia, no sugar for me.”

The sofa felt entirely too small as I perched next to Nye, and it sagged in the middle so our thighs touched. I should have stayed at home.

“I’ve had a difficult time with Larry,” Betty admitted once she got comfortable in the chair opposite.

“In what way?” Nye asked.

“He’s a flighty soul. I wish he’d find a good girl and settle down, but he keeps flitting from one lady to another. I can’t keep up. And it’s like he’s embarrassed for them to meet his old mum. He’s never brought a single one home to visit me.”

Probably because it wasn’t the done thing to meet your stalker’s parents. That would be more like kidnapping.

Nye went for diplomatic. “Perhaps he just hasn’t met the right woman yet?”

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