Matt smiled broadly. ‘I should go away more often. And as you say, it’s still early, isn’t it?’
They left the breakfast things and hurried back upstairs.
* * *
As Will prepared for his assault on the store, Kate pressed on with her decorating. She looked considerably better this morning, if you chose to ignore the panda eyes and the body that was little but skin and bone. Will decided that a sleep and the food had done her good. He had said he was happy for her to continue working on the house, just as long as she ate everything he prepared for her — breakfasts, lunches and dinners, and that she did not work on into the night. She hadn’t been exactly enthusiastic, but she hadn’t objected, so Will had some hope.
He strode out to his car and stopped. Some fleeting thing had caught his attention. Then it had gone. He stared back at the house, but it was lost to him. He sniffed. Annoying.
* * *
At twenty past ten, shopping complete, Will kicked open the back door and called for Kate to help him in with the bags.
He had unloaded the vehicle and dragged it all into the kitchen before she appeared.
‘Sorry, Bear. I was on the phone. Someone I contacted through the internet had some information for me about Whisper Fen, and he had some great new websites for me to look at. How was the shopping spree?’
Biting back his comment on her obsession with Whisper Fen, Will mustered a faint smile. ‘Oh, spent a fortune as usual, but at least we’ll have some fresh food to eat. How’s your work going?’
‘Slow. Better get on.’ She left him to put away the groceries and returned to the lounge.
He made coffee and took it into her. A glance around the room revealed little difference from when he had left for the shops. He guessed that her phone call had sent her scurrying to the computer, abandoning the lounge. He offered to help her, but she declined.
Not much keen on wallpapering, Will didn’t argue. He said he would go and do some odd jobs. Remembering the muddy shoes, he made his way out to the porch.
He washed off the mud ready for polishing when he remembered what had bothered him earlier. As he had pulled on his trainers, he had seen Kate’s best black shoes on the shoe rack, their slender heels caked in mud. Now they were gone.
Where had she been in a pair of Gucci heels?
He finished his job and decided to ask her. Then he saw Matt’s Toyota pulling up outside.
‘You look full of the joys of spring,’ he commented as Matt strode towards him.
Matt gave him a wink. ‘Oh, do I? Now I wonder why that is.’
Will thought of his own cool reception and felt empty inside. He changed the subject. ‘What have you got there?’ He indicated the folder under Matt’s arm.
‘More photos, a few old newspaper cuttings and some interesting stuff about the building of this house. Heaven knows why my parents had it, but I found it with some old deeds and documents that belonged to them. It even lists the materials used and the names of the builders. I reckon Kate’ll love it. Even I have to admit it’s interesting.’
‘Oh, you’ll be her friend for life,’ said Will bitterly. ‘Sorry. That came out all wrong.’
‘Been a bit fraught, mate?’ Matt asked softly.
‘Could say that. But come in and see what she’s done with the lounge. It’s impressive, even if she’s nearly killing herself getting it done.’ He led the way into the house. ‘I’ll leave you two to it while I make some tea, okay?’
Matt nodded. ‘Just give me enough time to do a bit of evaluating. I’m wearing my police hat today and I’m going to use some of my old investigative skills.’
‘As long as she doesn’t suspect anything.’
Matt smiled. ‘Rest easy. I’m just a fellow enthusiast, full of eagerness to impart what I know about the marsh here.’ He lowered his voice. ‘The good bits, anyway, nothing too macabre, I promise.’
‘Okay, well, I need to go and check my emails. I’ll bring you a mug of tea later.’
Matt went into the lounge. Will listened to him making all the right noises before going into the small room off the hall that they used as a study. He logged into the computer.
He skimmed through his own mail, deleting most of the messages, then took a look at Kate’s emails. He found a string of unopened messages, and dozens of websites that she had saved as favourites. All had to do with genealogy or local history.
He opened one and found it was an old story about a local eel-catcher. He left that one and clicked on another that consisted of a series of sensational newspaper articles, including a story about the disappearance of a two-year-old girl from Whisper Fen.
He sat forward, closer to the screen, horrified. There was a third child then. A third lost child at Holland House.
He read on. According to the article, it had occurred three years after the house was built. Victoria Holland, the rich farmer’s daughter-in-law, to whom the house had been given as a wedding present, had given birth to twins — a boy called Albert and a girl named Elizabeth. Shortly after their second birthday, the children had been playing in the garden in the care of their nanny. This woman had apparently returned to the house in order to get her charges some cool drinks. When she came back, a matter of minutes later, the little boy was alone and crying. Elizabeth Holland had disappeared without trace.
Will groaned in dismay. Kate must not read this. He deleted the message and the link. Then he realised that she must have made a note of all these website addresses from the phone call. He sifted through the papers on the desk but found nothing. Then he searched the waste bin and found it. He removed the screwed-up piece of paper and pushed it in his pocket, collected up the bin and took it out to the incinerator in the garden, where he burned the lot.
He went to the kitchen with a heavy heart. How many more dark secrets did Holland House have to reveal? And how many of these would his wife discover?
While he made tea, Will listened to Kate’s excited voice praising Matt for remembering some choice piece of information about the fen.
He carried their mugs into the lounge. Kate called out, ‘Oh, I’m so glad Matt came to see me today, darling! He’s a treasure trove of information.’
Will summoned a grin. ‘That’s our Matt for you, a right little treasure.’
‘And here’s the best bit. He knows an old man who has lived here all his life. And he used to work in the garden here! He’s going to take me to meet him. Isn’t that great? I bet he’ll have some incredible stories.’ Her dark-rimmed eyes burned almost feverishly.
‘Absolutely, babe.’ Will turned to Matt. ‘Thanks for taking the time to do this. As you may have gathered by now, my lovely wife has something of an obsession with Holland House.’
‘And rightly so,’ Matt said. ‘I’m a great believer in learning the history of your local area.’
‘See!’ Kate flung at him. ‘I’m not the only one who wants to learn everything I can about this magical place.’
Matt stayed for another half-hour before taking his leave. ‘I promised to call in at Emilia Swain’s place on the way home. I’m just hoping that nothing else has happened to her.’ He looked at Will. ‘Fancy a ride out there? Then you can walk back.’
‘Sure, then it’ll be time for me to get lunch.’