A Lesser Evil - Lesley Pearse [122]
Fifi was bone-weary as she walked home from the tube station that evening. A full day back at work, after doing nothing for so long, had proved exhausting.
She stopped at the corner shop to get some bread. Mrs Witherspoon, the shopkeeper, was deep in conversation with Eva Price, the red-headed divorcee, but both women turned as Fifi walked in.
‘Carry on if you were talking about me,’ Fifi said sarcastically, thinking they’d heard Dan had left her.
‘We weren’t talking about you, dear,’ Mrs Witherspoon said. ‘We were just wondering what more could happen in this street.’
It was the tone of the shopkeeper’s voice that jerked Fifi out of her own problems. Normally it was low, almost conspiratorial, possibly because Mrs Witherspoon spent a large portion of her day receiving and passing on gossip, but now it was shrill and frightened.
‘We can’t blame Alfie for this one, not when he’s under lock and key,’ said Eva, looking even more troubled than Mrs Witherspoon.
‘What’s happened?’ Fifi asked.
‘You haven’t heard?’ Mrs Witherspoon asked. ‘The police have been up and down the street all day!’
‘I went back to work today,’ Fifi said. ‘I was just going home. It’s not something to do with Dan, is it?’
‘No, love. It’s John Bolton. He’s dead. They found his body in the river early this morning,’ Eva said with a heavy sigh. ‘Not an accident either. They’ve started a murder enquiry.’
Dan walking out had driven all the thoughts about the man in the Jaguar and John Bolton out of Fifi’s mind. But this shocking piece of news brought them right back. ‘No!’ she exclaimed, suddenly feeling quite faint.
‘Vera came in here for her fags this morning,’ Mrs Witherspoon said, leaning her hefty bosom on the counter. ‘She was going on about him staying out all night, said when he came home she’d be ready with the rolling pin. It were only a couple of hours later the police came. Soon as I saw the car I guessed something had happened to John. Poor Vera, there’s some around here that’s got no sympathy for her cos John was a villain, but to me she’s just a woman who’s lost her old man. I feel real sorry for her.’
‘How awful for her,’ Fifi said weakly. She could well imagine how she would feel if the police came to tell her Dan was dead. ‘Have they got any idea who did it?’
‘Don’t think so,’ Eva replied. ‘They’ve been asking lots of questions, but John weren’t the kind to talk about his business.’
‘Some folk are saying his “business” was protection rackets,’ Mrs Witherspoon said, her eyes glinting. ‘If it were, then he deserves what he got. But it’s poor Vera I’m worried about, she’ll be beside herself.’
It was too much for Fifi. Suddenly she couldn’t stay in the shop a moment longer. She put the money for the bread down on the counter, excused herself and rushed off.
As she opened the front door, Frank saw her from his kitchen.
‘How did you get on at work?’ he called out.
‘Fine, thank you,’ she said, wanting to get upstairs immediately because she felt so panicky.
‘Have you heard about John Bolton?’ he asked, and came down the passage towards her.
Fifi’s heart sank. She couldn’t be rude and rush away. ‘Yes, just. Mrs Witherspoon told me. It’s awful, isn’t it? As if there hasn’t been enough misery in this street already.’
‘Common sense tells me it can’t have anything to do with Angela’s death.’ Frank shook his head sadly. ‘But what are the chances of two people living in the same street being killed within weeks of each other, without there being a connection?’
‘There was a connection. John played cards at the Muckles’,’ Fifi said a little sharply.
‘Yeah, but that’s not much of one, and he certainly weren’t there at the last game,’ Frank said thoughtfully. ‘Of course, he might have