Murder in the Cake: Cozy Murder Mystery (Harley Hill Mysteries Book 4) (17 page)

Inside, the bike shop was dark, rock music belted out, and it smelled of oil and brake fluid. I liked it. A young kid with a pierced nose was sitting behind the counter that looked like it had been made out of half a tank.

“Hi,” I said and smiled. “Do you know how I get to flat 223A?”

He frowned, putting down his greasy copy of
Birds, Bikes and Tats
. “Who wants to know?”

“Really? People actually say that? My name is Harley Hill,
I
want to know.” I refrained from adding ‘numbnuts’.

He rubbed his peach-fuzz-stubble chin. “Harley, huh?” He grinned. “Nice name. It’s through the back, up to the mezzanine, you can’t miss it.”

“Thanks,” I said. He grunted and picked up his phone. I guessed that he was calling the occupant of the flat.
 

It was understandable. As long as they didn’t release the hounds, I should be okay. It wasn’t an isolated location, being in the middle of a street.

Out the back of the shop was a mechanic’s yard. It looked like the place where bikes were repaired and prepped for sale. Two guys that looked like they were part troll stopped working when they saw me.
 

I seriously considered turning on my heel and getting the heck out of Dodge, but my nerve held. At least I’d dressed for the occasion in black jeans, black T-shirt and black leather jacket. I thought that might win me some biker brownie points.

“The hairdresser is next door, love,” one of the mechanics said. He was a mountain of a man with a bald tattooed head and a lot of piercings. The wrench in his hand was as long as my arm.

“I take it you’re not their best client,” I said more bravely than I felt.
 

His mate, who had enough hair for three people, laughed.
 

Baldy grunted, which might have been a laugh, but it was hard to tell with all that metal in his face jangling.

“Actually I’m here to see Rick, is it up there?” Just then the door at the top of the stairs opened and Rick came out. He was wearing a pair of faded, oil-stained jeans and a sleeveless T-shirt, revealing an armful of tattoos.

“Do I know you?” he called down before lighting up a cigarette.

“No. My name’s Harley Hill, I’m investigating the death of your old boss, Henry Renholm. I’d like to have a word with you.”

“Get lost,” he said.

Short but sweet. “Look, if you don’t talk to me, you’ll have to talk to the cops at some point.”

He rushed down the stairs and came over to me.
 

His breath stank of cigarettes and cheap booze. “And why’s that,
Harley
?”
 

I took a step back, right into the arms of Baldy. He grabbed me, pinning my arms by my side. I was in trouble. But that was okay, I kind of liked trouble.

I leaned forward and strained against Baldy’s vice-like grip.
 

The bikers laughed.

“Aw, the little girl is trying to get away,” Baldy said.
 

He was wrong. I was just giving myself a bit of distance before throwing my head back, right into his face, making something crack with a loud crunching noise.

Stunned, he let go and danced around clutching his nose. I dodged around a motorbike away from the other two. There was a gate at the back of the yard. I leapt over a bike and raced towards it with Drake and the hairy guy hot on my tail.

I managed to slide the bolt just before they reached me. I yelled as I was lifted off my feet by Hairy. Baldy was still stumbling about by the stairs and cursing my name.

“You’ve made Big Ron angry, little girl,” Hairy said as he dragged me away from the gate. “You shouldn’t have done that.”
 

Drake picked up a wrench. This kind of trouble I could live without. I yelled again. Hairy put his hand over my mouth, stifling my scream.

Drake came over to me, slapping the wrench into his palm. If I could have spoken, I would have said something cool, or maybe I would have just cried, I wasn’t sure.

“I saw you in the club last night. You made Jana leave.” Drake shrugged his shoulders. “You need to learn not to stick your nose into other people’s business.”

I struggled in Hairy’s grip, but he was twice my size.
 

In desperation I bit his hand. He yelped and tore it away but didn’t let go unfortunately. I opened my mouth to scream for help just as the gate burst open and a big, black bike roared into the yard.
 

The rider was dressed head to foot in black, including the helmet with its tinted visor. It was Alex. My dark knight had arrived—finally.

Shocked by the sudden arrival, Hairy loosened his grip. I stamped on his foot and slipped out of his arms and, with a shove, unbalanced him so he fell forward into Baldy; both men then crashed to the floor with a chorus of grunts.

Alex slewed the bike to a stop inches from Drake and punched him in the face with a gloved fist.

Drake fell to the ground and immediately dropped the wrench. He threw his hands in front of him and scuttled backwards on his butt as Alex dismounted and came towards him. “We weren’t going to hurt her, I swear. We were just gonna scare her, honest.”

Alex took off his helmet. I’d never seen him look so angry. “Are you all right, Harley? Did they hurt you?”

“No, I’m fine. I didn’t think you were coming.”

“There was an accident, traffic was diverted. I tried to call but couldn’t get a signal.”

Drake made a dash for the door to the shop, but I saw him. I grabbed a wrench and threw it at his legs, tripping him. He went down, giving Alex enough time to grab him. The other two legged it out of the back gate.

“All right, son,” Alex said as he hauled Drake to his feet. “You’re nicked.”

“NO!” a voice called out. I looked up. Standing in the door of the flat was Jana Kessingworth in a state of undress. “Please, don’t arrest him.”

***

Drake’s flat was pretty nice on the inside. Lady Jana had made us a cup of tea and even managed to find some biscuits. I was starving and tucked in to the bourbon creams, but Alex just sat and glared at Drake, his tea untouched.

Trouble or not, one does not simply say no to free biscuits. Perk of the job! Besides, after all that rough and tumble, I needed the sugar.

“So, Lady Jana, care to tell me the truth now?” I said.
 

“Or we could take you both down to the station, your call,” Alex added.
 

I had the impression he wasn’t just playing bad cop. He sounded really angry, cold angry. I flattered myself it was because he was upset that they’d manhandled me.

Kessingworth put her head in her hands. Drake put his arm around her shoulders.

“It’s okay,” he said.

I turned to Lady Jana. “Actually it might not be. It really depends on what you tell me, like where you were the day Henry Renholm died.”

“I was with Rick. We were at a bike rally in Brighton.”

“Can anyone verify that?” Alex asked.

Lady Jana began to cry. “No, it’s a secret! I was in disguise.” She hugged Drake.
 

Alex snorted disgustedly. “Trying to keep your bit of rough a secret, eh?”

“It’s not like that. My father is pushing me into a marriage I don’t want, because our estates are short of money. It’s my duty, but I… I love Rick.”

“Weren’t you dating Henry Renholm?”

“I saw Henry, but it was a fling. When he started seeing someone else, I started seeing Rick. We had an open relationship.”

Just then Drake tried to get up. Alex was on him in an instant and shoved him back down onto the sofa.
 

“Hey, man, relax, I just want to get my phone,” Drake said.

“I didn’t say you had the right to a phone call, creep.”

I put my hand on Alex’s arm. “Go easy on him, Alex.” I couldn’t help but feel sorry for them. There was something about the way Lady Jana spoke that made me believe her. Either she was a great actress or she was telling the truth.

Drake turned to me. I guess he could sense that I was a bit of a softy. One of life’s natural good-cop types. “Please, let me get my phone. There’s a photograph on it that can prove where Jana was when Henry died.”

I looked at Alex. He shook his head, but I had to go with my gut. “Okay, Rick, get your phone, but if you try anything, I’ll let him deal with you.”

“And you really don’t want that, trust me,” Alex said.

Shaking, Drake retrieved his phone from the kitchen table. He thumbed through the photographs until he found what he was looking for.

“Here, this is it. Look at the date stamp.”

Alex and I peered at the phone. Lady Jana and Rick were posing by a row of motorbikes near Brighton pier. She looked like a typical biker chick, albeit with really great Chanel boots, and she was wearing a long blond wig and sunglasses, but it was definitely her.
 

The date was the same day that the coroner had confirmed Renholm had died.
 

“See, see, it couldn’t have been Jay, she was there with me,” Drake said.

“Jay is Jana, right?” I asked.
 

He nodded. “Yeah, that’s her cover. My friends know her as Jay, but they know her and can vouch for us being there, if they have to.”

“This will be all over the newspapers.” Jana sobbed into Drake’s shoulder. “I’ve ruined your life as well as my own. I’m so sorry, Rick.”

“I don’t care, Jay. I love you.”

“You can relax,” I said. “I… we believe you, don’t we, Alex.”

Alex folded his arms and took a moment to think about it. “I guess so, but I’m going to have to take that phone as evidence and have it run through the lab to confirm that date stamp.” He leaned over Drake. “And you tell your friends if I ever set eyes on them, I’ll make them sorry that they ever even looked at Harley, you got that? And I’m not just talking about assault charges.”

Drake nodded. “Yeah, yeah, man, thanks.” He turned to me. “Thank you so much for believing me. You want to talk to Rex Farquar; he had it in for Henry.”

“Don’t worry, he’s on the list, but what about Renholm’s other girlfriend?”
 

Drake laughed. “Friend? As in singular?” He shook his head. “Sorry, love, but our Henry was a player. He had at least two other girls on the go when Jana and I hooked up.”

“Do you know anything about them, names, addresses?”

They both shook their heads. “No, sorry,” Drake said. “He played his cards close to his chest when it came to the ladies.”

That was disappointing, but again, my gut told me that they were being honest. At the very least, it was something else to go on. Although it felt like the case was going sideways, it still felt like progress.
 

***

Alex and I left Jana and her boyfriend comforting each other. I can’t say I was a fan of either of them, but I did feel sorry for their predicament.
 

Alex was still wound as tight as a coiled spring. I’d never seen him like this.

When we got downstairs, he checked that the biker mechanics weren’t around before telling me to wait by his bike while he went into the shop.
 

I was feeling pretty shaken after almost getting beaten up by bikers, so I did as he asked.
 

A few minutes later he came back with a helmet and handed it to me.

“Put that on,” he said.

“Did you just steal that, Mr. Policeman?”

He patted his pocket and said, “I left the cash, don’t worry.”

“Good to know, but I can find my own way back to town, you know. I have big-girl pants.”

He shot me a wolfish grin. “Even a big girl needs a hand every now and then. Let me take you to town and buy you a decent cuppa. You’re shaking like a leaf.”

“I’m just cold. Oh, who am I kidding? Tea would be great—but only if it’s accompanied with a slice of cake or pie.”

“You drive a hard bargain.”

“Of course. Need to keep you on your toes.”

Chapter Nineteen

I’d arranged by phone to meet Cordi at a café near to where Farquar’s assistant lived.

Alex had taken me there earlier. After a tea and slice of cake, he left—said he had to pack for Cornwall. We said goodbye, but it felt awkward, like there was too much being left unspoken.

“Harley dear, what happened to you? You look dreadful!” Cordi said as she swept in.

“Oh, not much, I just had a fight with a biker gang. Nothing I couldn’t handle. How are you feeling now?”
 

Cordi took off her oversized sunglasses. She was wearing a two-piece, mint green trouser suit with matching handbag and a pale yellow scarf. “Oh, darling!” she gasped dramatically. “I feel terrible. Never again, I tell you. But never mind my self-inflicted pain; the show must go on, as they say. What’s the plan, partner?”

The waitress came over and smiled at me. I was rapidly becoming one of their best customers. “Can I get you anything else, Miss?”
 

“Yes, please. Could we have a pot of tea for two and two slices of that delicious carrot cake?”

“Certainly,” she said with a bright smile and headed off.

“First of all, we’ll have some tea and cake, and then we’ll go speak to Farquar’s assistant, Emilie Grey,” I said.

“Now that you’ve ruled out Lady Jana, do you think that Farquar is the killer?”

It was a good question, one that I still didn’t have the answer to, but I could feel that I was getting close. “Maybe. I don’t want to rule him out yet, that’s for certain.”

The waitress returned with the tea and cake.

“Shall I be mother?” Cordi asked.

I was more than happy for her to pour. I was shattered, but I didn’t want to worry her. I smiled. “If you like.”
 

Cordi poured the gorgeous honey-coloured tea into the pretty china cups. “Did you contact this Grey woman and tell her that we wanted to speak to her?”

“No. I didn’t want to give her the chance to come up with an alibi for Farquar, although he’s probably told her by now that he’s under suspicion.”

“If that’s true, it might be too late to get the truth out of her. Oh, this is frustrating. Cake?”

“Do bears poop in the woods?”