Hugh holds it very close to his face. 慡erious Crimes Unit.?
慣hat抯 just for show,?says Judy. 慖抦 interested in non-serious crimes too.?
Hugh laughs, a surprisingly robust sound. Judy starts to say goodbye when he interrupts her. 慪ou don抰 know what抯 happened to Tina Prentice, do you? It抯 just that she usually rings me on a Sunday and she didn抰 yesterday.?
Judy takes a deep breath. 慖抦 afraid I抳e got some bad news.?
When Judy gets back in the car, she breathes deeply for a few minutes. In for four, out for eight. Hugh had taken the news pretty well. He抎 swayed for a minute and Judy had been afraid that he was going to faint, but he抎 recovered himself, getting out a large clean handkerchief and wiping his face with it. Even this had seemed touching to Judy. Who has proper linen handkerchiefs these days? This one had been ironed too. Maybe Tina had done it.
慣his Covid is a wicked thing,?said Hugh.
Judy agreed that it was. She also promised to check in again on Hugh in a few days?time. She wonders if she can contact social services but she抯 sure they are overwhelmed at the moment and, on the face of it, Hugh seems to be coping well. It抯 a lonely life though. She looks back at the house and sees the next-door-neighbour pruning her roses. Should she have a word, ask the woman to keep an eye on Hugh? As she ponders, her phone rings. Bethany Flowers. Avril抯 daughter.
慪ou left a message,?says Bethany.
慪es,?says Judy. 慖 just had a couple of questions. Nothing serious. How are you??
慖抦 OK,?says Bethany. 慉s well as can be expected.?She gives a short laugh at the clich? She sounds far more Scottish than Judy remembers. 慖t抯 strange,?Bethany goes on, 慳t any other time, I抎 be able to keep busy, but I抳e been furloughed so I抦 just sitting at home, thinking about Mum. James isn抰 much help.?
Judy knows that Bethany is married with no children. James must be the husband. She wonders why he isn抰 much help. Is he an essential worker or just generally useless?
慖t must be very difficult for you,?says Judy. 慉s you know, we抮e still investigating your mother抯 death.?
慣hat must be hard to do,?says Bethany, 憌ith everything locked down.?
慖t抯 challenging,?says Judy, touched that Bethany is thinking like this. 慖 was just wondering whether you抎 had any further thoughts. Anything about your mum. However small. Anything that might be able to help us.?
慛ot really,?says Bethany. 慖抦 more thinking about the past. When I was a wee girl.?
慪our mum used to go to Lean Zone meetings, didn抰 she??says Judy.
慙ean Zone? Oh, the slimming group. Mum was always dieting but she never seemed to lose any weight. She didn抰 need to anyway, in my opinion.?
慖抳e just been to see your mum抯 friend Hugh Baxter and he said that Avril had a friend at the group. A nurse, he thought.?
慖 don抰 know about that,?says Bethany. 慖s Hugh all right? Mum was very fond of him.?
慔e seems fine,?says Judy. 慖抣l keep an eye on him.?She wonders if Bethany knows about Tina but doesn抰 feel up to delivering any more bad news.
They chat for a few more minutes and then say goodbye. The neighbour is still in her garden, poised with the secateurs. Judy is about to drive away when her phone pings. Cathbad.
慗udy. I抦 really sorry but I think I抳e got Covid.?
Chapter 27
Judy drives straight home. Maddie meets her at the door.
慏ad抯 in his bedroom. He thought he should isolate himself.?
Judy is halfway upstairs before she considers the significance of 慏ad?
She opens the door of their bedroom. 慍athbad??
慏on抰 come in,?says Cathbad. His voice sounds reassuringly the same but, just as Judy is starting to relax, he starts to cough, a horrible racking sound that seems to go on and on.