Gavin's Death (Cara Daniels Cozy Mystery Book 4)

A
Cara Daniels Cozy Mystery

Book
4

Gavin’s
Death

Chapter
1

“How
do you feel about estate agents?” Robin asked.

Cara
Daniels looked warily at the angel in front of her. “Why are you asking? Is
this another one of your feeble jokes?”

Robin
grinned. “No, but I wish it was. I’ll have to think of a suitable joke later.
It’s a serious question.”

Cara
shrugged. “I’ve never given them much thought, I haven’t had many dealings with
them.”

Robin
nodded and looked closer at her. “Ah, of course. You last used an estate agent
when you bought a house with your ex-husband. And then you let him have the
house when you found out about his affair.”

Cara
turned to her computer and focused on the website that she was designing. She
mumbled, “Is this leading somewhere?”

Robin
came to her side. His smile faded. “I’m sorry, Cara, that was thoughtless of me
to talk about your ex-husband. How long do you think it will be before I can
talk about him?”

Cara
felt her shoulders tensing. Through gritted teeth she said, “Why do we have to
talk about him at all! Have you got a job for me or not?”

Robin
took a step back and held his hands up. “No need to shout. Yes, I’ve got a soul
saving job for you.” He paused and suddenly grinned. Then he shook his head.
“No, I can’t tell you that estate agent joke, your ears are too delicate for
it.”

Cara
took a deep breath and turned away from her screen. “Robin, much as I love
having an angel appearing in my apartment, I have got work to do. Will you
please say what you have to say?”

Robin
folded his arms and nodded. “Okay, I’ll be serious now. Gavin Bennett is
thirty-two years old and he is going to be murdered in less than thirty-eight
hours.” He raised an eyebrow when Cara didn’t say anything. “What? Oh! Yes, and
he’s an estate agent. Which leads me back to my first question, what do you
think about estate agents?”

Cara
said, “He’s going to be murdered in less than thirty-eight hours? That’s more
precise that your normal time frames.”

Robin
held his wrist up. “I’ve got a new watch.” His eyes flicked upwards. “The ones
in charge were impressed with the work I’ve done and they gave me this watch. It’s
showing Gavin’s death time frame.”

Cara
smiled. “I’m pleased for you. All I get when I save a life is a stinky white
feather from your wings.”

Robin’s
chin wobbled. “Pardon?”

Cara
laughed. “I’m joking! I love getting those feathers. Where does Gavin work?”

Robin
sniffed. “A joke isn’t a joke if people don’t laugh.”

Cara
stood up and patted Robin on his shoulder. “I’m sorry, I didn’t mean to upset
you. Tell me more about Gavin. Are you going to come with me on this case?”

Robin
immediately cheered up. “I am! I’m going to stick to your side like jam on
bread! Shall we get going now?”

“Where
does Gavin Bennett work?” Cara repeated.

“At
Wright’s Estate Agents in town.”

Cara
winced. “Oh, not them! They’ve got the most annoying ads. Their slogan is ‘Wright’s
Estate Agents, the right estate agent for you!’ They’re always advertising on
the local radio, they’ve got such an annoying jingle! Makes me want to smash my
radio up every time I hear it.”

Robin
held a finger up. “Now I know how you feel about estate agents.”

A
third voice spoke, “You two are not taking your job seriously. This is a matter
of life and death.”

Cara
spun around and looked at the face on her computer screen. “Gran! It’s you! How
did you get on my screen? Where are you? When are you coming back?” She sat
down and stared at Gran, she hadn’t seen her for weeks. Cara looked closer.
“Have you got a flower in your hair?”

Gran
laughed. “I have! I’m calling from Hawaii. What a beautiful place! You should
go some time. How are you getting on with your soul saving work? I’ve heard
that you’re doing a wonderful job.”

Cara
gave her a wry smile. “Once I got over my disbelief of angels, and people
having souls, I must admit that I’ve enjoyed helping people.”

Gran
tutted. “You haven’t just helped people! You’ve prevented them from committing
murder, you saved their souls from shrivelling into almost nothing! Don’t be so
flippant, you’re doing an extremely important job!”

Cara’s
cheeks warmed up. She pressed her lips together and gave Gran a small nod.
There were many worries she had about this soul saving business, the biggest
one was that she wouldn’t get to the right person in time before they committed
a murder.

Robin
appeared at Cara’s shoulder and gave Gran a friendly wave.

Gran
smiled at him. “You must be Robin, I’ve heard how well you’re doing too. I like
your image, young and fashionable.”

“Thank
you, Abigail. Is it okay to call you Abigail? It’s a pleasure to meet you,
you’re a legend amongst us angels. Everyone wants to work with you. No one will
ever be as good as you at saving souls.”

Cara
gave him a look which he completely ignored.

Gran
chuckled and waved a hand at him. “That’s kind of you to say. I’m having a
break at the moment, a break that was forced on me by my latest angel! I’m glad
he did though, dealing with people and their murderous thoughts can take it out
of you! Which reminds me, Cara, you must make use of the gadgets and products
that I have in my house. They will help you.”

Cara
said, “I can’t face going there, Gran. I miss you too much.”

Gran
moved closer to the screen. “You must use my house, treat it as your own. In
fact, why don’t you give up your lease on that apartment and move in full-time?”

“But
won’t you be back soon?” Cara asked.

Gran
sighed. “I’m not sure when I’ll be back. I’m relying on you to continue with
the soul saving jobs. I can see the doubt in your eyes. Try not to have doubts,
Cara, a doubt can cost you a soul.” Gran glanced over her shoulder. She looked
back at Cara and said, “I have to go, I’ve entered the limbo competition. Go
and save a soul!”

Robin
said, “She’ll do her best, Abigail!”

Gran
disappeared from the screen before Cara could ask her any more questions.
Cara’s heart felt heavy in her chest. She looked at Robin. “I miss her so much.
I’ll never be as good as Gran at saving souls.”

Robin’s
look softened. “What did your gran say about doubts? Now, are we going to stop
Gavin Bennett from being murdered?”

Cara
gave him a wobbly smile and said, “I’ll try.”

Chapter
2

A
short while later Cara parked across the road from Wright’s Estate Agents.

Robin
was sitting in the passenger seat. He said, “I’ve seen consumer programmes
about estate agents. Why do people hate them so much?”

Cara
shrugged. “I suppose some people have had bad dealings with them. The estate
agent that we … I used was okay. The sale went through quickly. Should we go
into the building?”

Robin
went on, “On the programme there was an estate agent who tricked people into
selling their home at a ridiculously low price so that he could make money
quickly. That’s not fair, is it? And he made some houses sound better than what
they were, again tricking people.” Robin shook his head. “I don’t like humans
when they behave like that.”

Cara
gave him a small smile. “Are you sure you want me to save the life of Gavin
Bennett? We could just drive away.”

Robin
looked shocked. “We can’t do that!” He paused and looked closer at her face. He
wagged a finger. “Ah, another joke. You should work on your jokes, Cara,
they’re not as funny as you seem to think they are.”

Cara
reached under the driver’s seat and pulled out a small briefcase. “Time for
Gran’s gadgets.” She opened the case and took out a small pair of binoculars.
She then placed a small box on the dashboard and aimed it towards the estate
agent’s window. “Let’s see what sort of a man Gavin Bennett is.” She looked
through the binoculars. “I can see a few people inside. Which one is Gavin?
Oh!” She dropped the binoculars.

“Cara,
what is it? You’ve gone as white as a ghost.”

Cara
turned to Robin. “Are you sure about the time frame in which his death is going
to happen?”

Robin
tapped his watch and frowned. “Yes, it still says the same time. You’re scaring
me, what have you seen?”

“Gavin
is the man sitting at the desk nearest the window.”

Robin
focused his gaze on the man. He slowly nodded. “I see, his death line is quite
thick.”

Cara
pointed her binoculars at Robin. “When I’ve met possible murder victims before,
I’ve seen their death lines and the lines are thin. It gets thicker as the victim
gets closer to their death, doesn’t it? Why does Gavin’s look like that?”

“Erm
…” Robin began. “I’m not sure you want to know.”

Cara
stared at him. “I do want to know. Tell me.”

“Okay,
no need to give me the evil eye. That thick line means that Gavin has many
possible threats against his life.” He saw Cara’s confused look. “It means that
many people want to kill Gavin Bennett.” Robin gave her a smile. “Which means,
Cara, that you’ve got your work cut out for you on this case! Isn’t that
exciting?”

“No.”
Cara switched on the listening device. “Gavin Bennett can’t be that bad.”

She
soon changed her opinion.

Cara
and Robin watched Gavin as he answered his phone with a smile on his face. “Mrs
Jenkins, how lovely to hear from you. Yes, we’ve had many potential buyers
interested in your beautiful home. I’m confident that we’ll have it sold in no
time! You can reply on me, Mrs Jenkins. Goodbye! Take care.”

As
soon as Gavin put the phone down his smile dropped. He yelled out, “Susan! For
God’s sake, get rid of that Jenkins dump! I don’t care how much it goes for. I
can’t be doing with that old trout phoning me every day.”

Cara
shared a look with Robin and said, “Maybe he’s under a lot of stress.”

Gavin
answered another call, his smile back. “Good morning, Mr Smith. Yes, I have
many properties for you to look at. Don’t be silly, you’re not wasting my time
at all. You have to get the right house even if that means we have to look at
hundreds together. I’ve all the time in the world for you, Mr Smith. You can
trust me. Goodbye! Take care.”

As
soon as the call ended Gavin almost snarled as he yelled, “Susan! I thought I
told you to block calls from that idiot! If you let him through again we’ll be
having words about your future here at Wright’s! Get me a coffee.”

Cara
lowered the binoculars. “Robin, this isn’t a joke, can we drive away?”

“Unfortunately
not. He’s a … an unpleasant man. I can’t say the exact words that I’m thinking in
front of you.”

Cara
smiled. “I’m thinking certain words in my head. If you’re thinking the same
words as me, how do you know them?”

“I’ve
been watching a lot of reality television. Cara, are you ready to meet Gavin
Bennett face-to-face? Do you want me to come with you?”

“Yes,
but make yourself invisible. The last time I dealt with an estate agent he was
fine with me when I was on my own, but when I was with my husband it was like
I’d become invisible. I’d rather have Gavin’s full attention.”

Robin
shook his head. “I can’t believe women are still treated like that. Men can be
so insensitive. Yes, I think it’s best that I’m invisible. I don’t want him to
be intimidated by my good looks.”

Cara
shook her head as she put the binoculars and listening device away. She got out
of the car and walked towards the estate agent’s. She steeled herself to meet
Gavin Bennett.

Chapter
3

Gavin
Bennett gave her a cheery hello as she entered the estate agent’s. Cara smiled
back out of good manners. Robin hissed at her side, “Don’t trust his smile,
he’s sussing you out, seeing if you’re someone who’s worth his time. Look at
his calculating eyes!”

Cara’s
smile faltered. It was useful having Robin at her side but not if he was going
to give her a running commentary.

Gavin
said to her, “Are you looking for anything in particular today?”

Cara
shrugged weakly. She should have prepared herself in the car, had a list of
house specifications ready. “I’m just looking.”

Gavin
pointed to a wall where the houses listed for sale were pinned up. “If you see
anything you like, give me a shout.”

Robin
lifted off the ground and flew over to the photographs of the houses. “Cara!
Look at this one! It’s got a conservatory! And this one’s got a downstairs
toilet!” He looked closer. “Wow, this one has a home gym. That would be useful
for you.”

Cara
ignored Robin as she glanced at the photos. Perhaps she should consider buying
a house. She’d been renting her apartment ever since the divorce. Part of her
didn’t want to settle into a permanent home, she was worried that she would
have to leave it again, that someone would take it from her.

She
jumped as Robin placed his hand on her forehead. “Just taking your emotional
temperature, you had a funny look on your face.” His look softened. “You don’t
have to worry about things being taken away from you, Cara. Don’t let the past
affect your future.”

Cara
moved her head swiftly from his hand and walked away from Robin. That was easy
for him to say, he was an angel, he didn’t need to worry about living
arrangements. He probably had a heavenly bed set up somewhere. Cara frowned,
where did Robin go when he wasn’t with her? She’d have to ask him.

A
woman’s voice called out, “Mr Bennett, there’s a call for you. Nora Silcoates
again, she says it’s urgent.”

With
a tight smile on his face Gavin said, “Please tell Ms Silcoates that I’m not
here. And, Susan, I’ve told you before about her, I won’t be taking her phone
calls.”

Cara
looked over at Susan who was sitting behind a desk in the far corner. Susan
sighed and shook her head slightly. Her shoulders sagged as she told the caller
that Mr Bennett wasn’t available.

Robin
tutted. “Poor Susan, I can tell she doesn’t want to be here, she doesn’t like
working for Gavin Bennett. And who can blame her? Have you heard the way he
talks to her? Of course you have, you’re not deaf.”

Cara
looked closer at the middle-aged woman. Was Susan the possible murderer? Would
she be pushed to her limit with Gavin Bennett?

Susan’s
phone rang again. She picked it up and after a moment said, “Just a moment, Mr
Fox.” There was a small tremor in her voice as she called out, “Mr Bennett,
there’s a Mr Liam Fox on the phone. Do you …” she gulped, “do you want to speak
to him?”

“Of
course I’ll speak to him, Susan. Put him through.”

Cara
moved back along the row of photographs so that she was closer to Gavin. Robin
moved with her.

Gavin
said, “Liam! Great to hear from you! What? Of course I’m not keeping the best
houses from you. In fact, a new property has come on to the market this
morning, it’s perfect for you.” Gavin rustled through some papers on his desk
and held one up. “It’s 32 Church Street. Lovely detached property. I can meet you
there in twenty minutes. What do you say?” There was a pause and then Gavin
laughed. “You can trust me.”

Robin
folded his arms and said, “I don’t trust him.”

Gavin
ended the call and stood up. He pulled on his jacket. “Susan, I’m going out on
a viewing.”

“But
it’s time for my break,” Susan said.

Gavin
opened his mouth and looked as if he was going to tell Susan what she could do
with her break but then he saw Cara looking at him. He gave Susan a benevolent
smile and said, “You can have an extra break this afternoon.”

Cara
saw an opportunity to keep close to Gavin. She pointed at the paper that Gavin
had in his hands. “Did you say you had a property on Church Street?”

“I
did. It’s new on the market.” He quickly looked her up and down. “It’s
expensive, probably outside your budget. If you have any queries about our
other properties, speak to Susan.”

Cara
felt heat rise in her. Keeping her voice steady she said, “You don’t know what
my budget is,” she made a pretence of looking at the nameplate on Gavin’s desk,
“Mr Bennett. I have come into a large amount of money. I intend to use it to
buy a home as soon as possible.”

Robin
laughed and clasped his hands together. “What a great lie! Look at his face
change!”

Gavin
smiled and said, “I’d be more than delighted to show you the property on Church
Street. I’m going there now to meet a potential buyer.” Gavin moved his head
closer to Cara’s and lowered his voice. “To be honest, this buyer is a bit of a
pain. He’s never been satisfied with any properties that I’ve shown him. He
keeps accusing me of keeping all the good houses away from him. I’m not
entirely convinced that he wants to buy a house.”

Cara
nodded. “Can I see the house after your buyer?”

Gavin
buttoned his jacket, the smile never leaving his face. Cara reckoned he must
have strong facial muscles to keep it in place for so long. Gavin said, “Give
me an hour to show Mr Fox around and then I can show you. It’s number 32. Do
you know the way?”

“Yes,
thank you.”

Gavin
grabbed his keys and a briefcase, along with the paper with the house details
on. “See you soon.”

He
left the estate agent’s. Cara heard a small sigh of relief from the corner of
the room.

Cara
called out a thank you and goodbye to Susan who now looked as if a huge weight
had been lifted from her shoulders. Cara and Robin left the building.

When
they were back in the car, Robin said, “What do you think about Gavin Bennett
now that you’ve met him?”

“I
think he’s horrible. I can see why his death line is thicker than a normal
person’s.” She sighed. “But I know we have to save his life, not so much for
his sake, but for the person who’s going to kill him.” She started the engine
up. “Time for some spying.”