A Secret Killer (Julia Blake Cozy Mystery Book 4) (3 page)

Chapter 5

Julia
looked towards where Cain was pointing.
“
That
’
s
Hugo
’
s
office! There must be a burglar inside. Come on.
”

“
Aren
’
t you
going to call the police?
”
Cain asked.

Julia
was already out of the car. She walked quietly up the stone steps and tried the
door handle. The door opened. Cain caught up with her and whispered,
“
What
are you doing? That burglar could be armed!
”

Julia
whispered over her shoulder,
“
I
’
m
armed too. There
’
s no point calling the police, the thief
will be miles away by the time they arrive. Shh, I
’
m
going in.
”

Julia
heard Cain gulp as she stepped into Hugo
’
s
house. She wasn
’
t going to let some no-good thief break
into Hugo
’
s
house and get away with it. She turned towards the office, she could hear Cain
’
s
quickened breath behind her. Did he have to breath so loudly? She pushed open
the office door, saw the back of the intruder, and yelled out,
“
Stop
right there! I
’
m
armed!
”

The
intruder spun around. He let out a loud guffaw.
“
Julia!
Really? What are you going to do with that cleaning spray? Polish my glasses?
”

Julia
lowered her lemon-scented cleaning bottle. She
’
d
used it before on a criminal and it had proved to be quite effective. She
addressed the
‘
burglar
’
.
“
Hugo!
What are you doing here? I thought you weren
’
t
back for a few more days.
”

Hugo
took his glasses off and cleaned them on his shirt. He put them back on and
grinned at Julia.
“
I had a productive visit to America! I
found out much more than I was expecting. No point hanging around there,
thought I
’
d
come home and get on with my investigations. Who
’
s
this young fella? He
’
s not your son, is he? I thought your
Sam was at university.
”

Julia
turned to Cain.
“
Oh, sorry, this is Cain Andrews. He
’
s
working with me now. This is his first day.
”

Hugo
took a step forward, his eyes narrowed.
“
Are
you okay? You look very pale. Do you need to sit down?
”

Cain
shook his head. In a quiet voice he said,
“
Julia,
I mean Ms Blake, she just came in!
”
His voice rose.
“
She
thought there was a burglar in here, and she just came right in!
”

Hugo
laughed.
“
She
’
s
like that! You do know about those murders that she helped the police with, don
’
t
you?
”

Cain
nodded.
“
I had
heard something.
”

Hugo
went on,
“
If it
wasn
’
t for
Julia here, those bumbling policemen would never have caught the murderers. If
I
’
m
ever killed I hope Julia finds my killer! She
’
s the
type of person you want on your side, brave and nosy, doesn
’
t
miss a thing!
”

Julia
coughed.
“
I
think nosy is the wrong word, curious sounds better.
”

Hugo
waved his hand at her.
“
Words! They all
mean the same thing. If you
’
re going to act
like an amateur private detective you should get better weapons.
”

Julia
looked at her spray, Hugo had no idea of its acidity. She gave her attention to
Cain.
“
Are
you okay? I didn
’
t mean to scare you.
”

Cain
gave her an unsteady smile.
“
I think I
’
m
okay. Can you let me know if you
’
re planning on
rushing into any more dangerous situations? If you
’
re
expecting me to back you up, I
’
m afraid I won
’
t be
much use, I
’
m not
the fighting type.
”

“
That
’
s
good to hear!
”
Hugo boomed out. He picked
something up and threw it at Cain.
“
Excellent catch!
I like a person with good reflexes. What do you think of that paperweight? Do
you think it
’
ll
make a good present?
”

Cain
looked closer at the object.
“
I like it, the
Statue of Liberty looks good.
”
He put it down on the table in front of
him.

Hugo
nodded.
“
It
was a last minute present, it
’
ll have to do.
Now, as lovely as it is to see you both, what are you doing here?
”

Julia
said,
“
It
’
s
your cleaning day.
”

Hugo
’
s
hand flew to his forehead.
“
Damn! I clean
forgot! With all this American business going on, I
’
m all
over the place.
”
There
was a beeping noise. Hugo swore under his breath and took his phone out of his
pocket. An angry expression flashed across his face as he read a message. He
tapped a reply and shoved the phone back in his pocket.

“
We
don
’
t
have to clean today,
”
Julia
said.
“
I can
see that you
’
re
busy. And you could probably do with a sleep.
”

Hugo
’
s
mouth twitched.
“
What are you trying to say Ms Blake?
”

“
You
look worn out.
”
Julia sniffed.
“
And a
shower wouldn
’
t go
amiss. How long have you been wearing those clothes?
”

She
ignored the gasp that came from Cain.

Hugo
let out a loud laugh and said to Cain,
“
As
well as being nosy, your new employer speaks her mind! I love that about her.
”

Julia
tutted.
“
I
’
m not
nosy. What did you go to America for?
”

Hugo
wiggled his eyebrows.
“
You know I can
’
t
tell you that. Client confidentiality and all that. Let
’
s
just say that I found out something interesting, something that I
’
ll
have to tell the client.
”
He sighed.
“
I don
’
t
think she
’
s
going to be happy about it.
”

Cain
said,
“
What
is it that you do? If you don
’
t mind me
asking?
”

Hugo
looked from Cain to Julia.
“
Good grief
woman! Haven
’
t you
told him what I do? The poor lad must be expecting someone from that dreadful
show, Summersdale Secrets, to leap out of a door at any moment.
”
He turned back to Cain.
“
I
take it that you
’
ve seen that show?
”

Cain
nodded.

Hugo
shook his head.
“
Of course you have, everyone
’
s
seen that show. I wish I
’
d never agreed
to that blasted TV company filming here, you wouldn
’
t
believe the trouble it
’
s caused.
”
He was interrupted by the beeping
of his phone again. He ignored the beeps.
“
Now
then, Cain, you come with me and I
’
ll tell you
exactly what I do. Be prepared to be amazed!
”

Julia
said,
“
Hugo,
we can come back another time. I can tell Cain what you do.
”

Hugo
put his arm around Cain
’
s shoulder. Cain
sagged under the weight of the taller man. Hugo said,
“
You
’
ll do
no such thing, Julia Blake! And you
’
re coming with
us to listen to my story again. And don
’
t you
dare interrupt me!
”

Julia
smiled. She knew when she was beaten. She followed Hugo as he led Cain out of
his office. Hugo looked tired. But there was something else, there was worry in
his eyes. And who was sending messages that annoyed Hugo so much? He was such
an easy-going man, Julia had never seen him react so angrily as when he
’
d
read that text message.

Something
was going on with Hugo Barnes. And she was going to find out what it was.

She
wasn
’
t
being nosy, just concerned about a friend.

Chapter 6

Hugo
walked in front of Cain and Julia down the hallway. He turned to a corridor on
his left and boomed out,
“
Like a rabbit
warren this house! I
’
ve lost many a visitor down these
hallways! Lost Julia once, didn
’
t I?

Cain
’
s
mouth dropped as he followed Hugo and Julia into the kitchen.
“
Wow!
It
’
s
like we
’
ve
gone back in time. It looks just like the TV show.
”

Hugo
nodded in a pleased manner.
“
The TV company
asked if I
’
d
keep it like this. This is the only part of the inside of the house that is
filmed.
”
He pointed towards the back door.
“
And
you
’
ll recognise
this door from the opening sequence on the show. Who opens it? One of the
maids? Ha! I must admit, I don
’
t watch the show
much, don
’
t
care for it. Come over here, young man, I
’
ll
unlock the door then you can recreate that scene yourself. For some reason, all
the visitors to this house want to walk through that door.
”

Julia
saw Cain
’
s
hand twitch, as if he was already reaching out for the iron handle. Bless him,
she hadn
’
t
seen him look so excited since they
’
d first met, it
took years off him. She said,
“
Go ahead, Cain,
we
’
ve
got time.
”

Hugo
bounded over to the back door and unlocked it. He stood to one side and made a
sweeping gesture towards the old-looking door. Cain gulped and held out a
shaking hand, he grabbed the handle and pulled. His eyes looked as if they were
ready to pop out of his head.
“
Wow! The garden
looks just the same as on the telly! I can
’
t
believe it! It
’
s
awesome!
”

Hugo
shared a smile with Julia. They let Cain walk back and forth through the famous
door a few more times then Hugo said,
“
That
’
s
enough! You
’
ll
wear the door out. Let me lock it, I
’
m always
forgetting to do that. Sit down! I
’
ll make us a cup
of tea.
”
He studied Cain for a moment.
“
I
’
ve
got some fruit cake in the cupboard, you can have a slice or two. You look
half-starved. Have you been poorly? Or locked up somewhere?
”

“
Something
like that,
”
Cain muttered. He sat down at the
long wooden table. Julia sat opposite him. She
’
d
need to tell Hugo about Cain
’
s past. It was
only fair, not everyone would want an ex-convict in their homes.

Hugo
hummed to himself as he opened several cupboard doors. He slammed down a slab
of cake the size of a brick in front of Cain. A smaller size was placed in
front of Julia. Julia
’
s heart twisted
as Cain shot her a questioning look, as if to ask for her permission to eat the
cake. She smiled and gave him a nod, wondering for the hundredth time since
meeting him, what had this young man been through?

Hugo
brought over a tray and placed it carefully on the table. Julia sighed when she
saw it.
“
Not
this set, Hugo, it
’
s far too delicate. It should be kept
somewhere safe.
”

“
Nonsense.
It
’
s
part of my story. I need it as a prop.
”
He grinned at Cain.
“
I can
see you like that cake, there
’
s plenty more.
Julia, don
’
t
offend me, you have some too. With your mouth full of cake you won
’
t be
able to interrupt me!
”
He winked at Cain.
“
Right,
let me begin. Here
’
s your tea, there
’
s
sugar in that little bowl, and milk in that tiny jug.
”

Cain
’
s
hands looked huge as he picked the milk jug up.
“
This
is a beautiful tea set. Where did you get it from?
”

Hugo
laughed and slapped Cain heartily on the back. Crumbs of cake shot out of Cain
’
s
mouth. Hugo said,
“
I like you, you
’
re
asking the right kind of questions. This tea set is a family heirloom. This
house has been in our family for generations, it was built over four hundred
years ago. My family owned the land around here, there used to be tenants on
our land at one point. All that has changed of course. You don
’
t
hear about wealthy landowners these days. My father was the last to have
tenants. He struggled with money as the years went by and he had to sell our
land to a property developer. If you look over the hedge at the bottom of my
garden you
’
ll
see the new estate that the developer built. Sorry-looking houses, all look the
same, tiny windows, excuses for gardens.
”
He shook his head.
“
Father
did what he had to. When he died I didn
’
t
think I
’
d be
able to keep the house. I put it on the market and then set out on the mammoth
task of cleaning our belongings out.
”

“
That
must have been sad for you,
”
Cain said. Julia noticed that his cake
was gone. He must be hungry. Did he have any money? She knew barely nothing
about him.

Hugo
looked at the tea set.
“
Sorting out the
family belongings was the best thing to happen to me. This old house has
several attics and one long cellar. I found lots of old wine in the cellar -
but that
’
s
another story. In the attic I found all sorts of papers and documents relating to
this house and the surrounding area, all of its history. I found it fascinating
and I thought other people would too. I started a blog about what I
’
d
found! I wasn
’
t
sure anyone would read it at first, but they did. It started locally, and then
it grew. It seemed that people liked my style of writing. I put pictures on my
site of the things I
’
d found, like this tea set.
”

Cain
carefully put his cup down.
“
Is this old?
”

Hugo
waved his hand dismissively.
“
About two
hundred years. Don
’
t stop drinking your tea! This tea set
is to be used, not looked at. I
’
ve still got all
the pieces, it
’
s
stronger than it looks.
”

Cain
folded his hands on his lap. Julia smiled, she
’
d
felt the same the first time that Hugo had made her a cup of tea.

“
Anyway,
this TV company got in touch. They liked all the photos that I
’
d put
online, the ones of the house and the gardens. They said they were making a new
period drama and my house would be ideal. At first I told them no, I didn
’
t
want a load of strangers traipsing around my home. But they told me the house
and garden would be used for external shots only, and then only for six months
of the year. I still wasn
’
t convinced
until they told me how much they were going to pay.
”
Hugo ran his hand through his
hair.
“
I
nearly passed out. All that money! It would mean I could keep the house, and I
could indulge in my hobby.
”

“
Not
just a hobby, it
’
s become your way of life,
”
Julia interjected.

Hugo
pointed at her.
“
This is my story, eat your cake.
”

Julia
smiled and stuck a fork into the fruit cake. Even though he never said
anything, it was clear that Hugo loved having company. He worked on his own
most of the time so it was a treat for him to have an audience. She glanced at
her watch. Did he have to take so long though?

Hugo
folded his arms and leant back in his chair. He gave Cain a direct look and
said,
“
You
wanted to know what I do? I uncover skeletons, not those kind buried in the
ground. No, the kind that people bury in their wardrobes.
”