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‘So, let me get this straight. You discovered the painting at the antique shop owner’s property?’
Lili nodded again. ‘It’s a long story. I have a key and I’ve been feeding Joseph’s dog and watering his plants. It all started when I found some pet food—’
Lili had just started her explanation about the very first time she’d visited The Summerhouse with Maisie, after discovering some pet food in Joseph’s groceries that had been delivered to the shop by mistake, but the officers were already out of their seats. They grabbed their jackets from the backs of their chairs and rushed out of the room.
Lili stared after them thinking,was it something I said?She turned her head to look at the officer who had escorted her to the room; he was still standing by the wall in the corner. He too was staring after his colleagues.
Lili coughed into her hand. ‘Ahem. Excuse me – does this mean I’m free to go?’ She hoped so. She’d felt she was under interrogation and had been starting to feel quite intimidated while answering their questions.
The uniformed officer stepped out into the corridor. He reappeared a moment later. ‘I guess so.’
Lili shrugged, thinkinghow oddthat the interview had ended so abruptly. She wasn’t sorry.
On the way out of the police station, she collected her luggage, her coat, and her phone. Lili stood outside and looked up the train times to the south coast. ‘Crumbs!’ If she got a move on, she would make the next train.
Lili walked down the street and hailed a cab. ‘Liverpool Street Station, please,’ she said as she sat down in the back of the taxi. The prospect of seeing Joseph was at the forefront of her mind, but her first stop had to be The Summerhouse. She wanted to see Maisie first and check she was okay.Goodness knows how she feels about her mother being arrested, Lili thought. She knew she had to set her own feelings about Nate to one side; she guessed he wouldn’t be pleased to see her. At least Ray had put him in the picture regarding Joseph’s shop; he knew she had nothing to do with the robbery.
Lili made it to the station in time to catch the next train. She still had the phone number of the taxi company she’d used before. She called them as soon as she was seated and arranged a taxi to take her straight from the station to The Summerhouse. After a quick pit stop to see Maisie and tell Ray what she’d discovered in the British Cemetery in Corfu – not just about her relations, but about Joseph – she would set off to the hospital to meet him. If he was already at the house, all the better.
