Free Rat Poison by Margaret Duffy

police.
    â€˜How can I get to talk to her?’ I asked.
    â€˜I’ll introduce you – that’s a perfectly normal thing to do.’ She gave me a very straight look and said quietly, ‘You and Patrick do work together sometimes, don’t you?’
    I nodded.
    She patted my arm. ‘John thinks so too. But if anyone asks of course we know nothing about it.’ Again I was subjected to her searching gaze. ‘Guns too?’
    â€˜I’m a pretty good shot,’ I told her. ‘We watch each other’s backs.’
    â€˜Good  . . . lovely,’ she said, gazing around a little distractedly as though we were discussing the time of the next Mothers’ Union meeting. ‘Let’s grab her before she scuttles off.’
    Finding the choice of words fascinating I put my tea and cake on a window ledge and followed her through the throng to where a woman was ferreting around with others on one end of the bric-a-brac stall. A certain amount of elbowing and dirty looks exchanging seemed to be taking place.
    â€˜Mrs Trelonic, I’d like you to meet my daughter-in-law, Ingrid,’ Elspeth said quite loudly on account of the hubbub. ‘As you probably know she and my son bought the rectory when the diocese was going to sell it.’
    â€˜Scuttles’ suddenly made sense when the woman turned towards me. Her tongue flickered across thin lips nervously and she gave me a brief and wary smile. She was younger than I had for some reason imagined and I could not picture her partnered with the unshaven and taciturn individual who had delivered our logs.
    â€˜I’m very sorry about your husband,’ I said.
    Her face became expressionless and, woodenly, she thanked me.
    â€˜Ghastly to be caught in crossfire like that,’ I went on. ‘Just an innocent passer-by.’
    â€˜He was always a loser,’ she snapped and turned away from us.
    â€˜Well, that was a waste of time,’ Elspeth said when we had returned to the bookstall.
    â€˜You told James that she set your teeth on edge. Why?’
    â€˜There was a time  . . .’
    I waited.
    â€˜When I thought she’d set her sights on John.’
    â€˜Surely not! ’
    â€˜All smiles and volunteering to do things. Staying behind after the services, sort of  . . . hovering.’ Determinedly, she added, ‘Yes, I know the man’s in his early seventies but he doesn’t look it since he had his heart op; he’s quite charismatic really.’
    Like his son.
    I sold a couple of books and then said, ‘Look, you don’t have anything to worry about. John loves you to bits.’
    â€˜I suppose she’s quite attractive in a funny sort of way and there have been rumours that she’s had affairs with several men in the village. But  . . .’
    â€˜Is this still going on as far as John’s concerned?’
    â€˜I thought not, but now I come to think of it  . . .’ She shook her head. ‘I must go and help with the teas. See you later.’
    Patrick appeared carrying Vicky and with Justin, and the trio went over to the toys where the latter immediately pounced on a large plastic water pistol. No, I willed his father to tell him, you already have a large water pistol. They bought it. Then parental control had immediately to be exercised when Justin wanted it filled right there and then. He was safely diverted by a rather flabby football that I knew would go straight in the bin that night by which time it would have fully deflated.
    â€˜Busy?’ Patrick asked when they arrived, Justin with his armful, and I had presented Vicky with a couple of little picture books I had chosen for her. ‘Any of yours here?’ he went on to ask before I could reply, peering at the titles.
    â€˜No,’ I replied evenly.
    â€˜Just trying to wind you up.’
    â€˜I know. That woman over there in the queue for teas wearing the