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“I hope you like geese eggs,” he called over his shoulder. “I inherited a small flock of geese when I bought the farm. And they’re good layers,” he added.
“I’ve never tried them,” she admitted. The sound of a gaggle of geese had woken her yesterday morning, but she’d yet to lay eyes on the birds. They must spend most of their time grazing in the small orchard at the back of the property. Geese weren’t her favorite animal; a rather angry male had chased her as a child and she’d never warmed to them, even as an adult.
“They’re the same as a big chook egg, really.” Like an expert, he flicked the pan with his wrist and turned the eggs over easy.
Such an interesting man.
On one hand, he was a dedicated cop, serious and forthright. But he definitely had a gentler side. It was obvious in his love for his dog, and his love for this little cottage with all its rambling gardens and incumbent wildlife. She took a seat at the small table in the corner of the kitchen and watched Nico’s back as she sipped her coffee. His long-sleeved top was almost like a second skin and made Lacey acutely aware of each ridge and bump of his muscular back, shoulders and arms. He filled the room with his presence, working the kitchen with ease and familiarity. She wasn’t sure what to make of him. And wasn’t sure what to make of her feelings for him. She’d finally admitted that she was attracted to Nico, but that didn’t mean the sentiment sat lightly on her shoulders. She didn’t want to be attracted to him. For so many reasons. But utmost was the fact that she was on a self-imposed hiatus from her job as a cop, running around Tasmania trying to get away from herself, and not sure if she could ever go back to face reality. Meanwhile, he was the exact opposite. He was firmly rooted in reality. He’d taken up residence in this community and it seemed he was good at his job, enjoyed being a detective. He had everything a person should have at his stage of life.
Well, perhaps he had one thing missing from his life. She had yet to discover if he had a significant other. A partner. A girlfriend. He’d never mentioned anyone, but that didn’t mean there wasn’t a woman on the scene. Shaking her head, she took a sip of scalding coffee and directed her gaze out the kitchen window, away from that tantalizing back and broad shoulders still hunched over the stove.
Surprisingly, Lacey had slept well last night. Better than she might’ve imagined after her distressing day. Perhaps it was Smudge’s presence, gently snoring from his fluffy bed on the floor beside her. Or perhaps it was knowing there was a six-foot-two man sleeping a few doors down who’d come running to her rescue if she needed him. Not that she needed him. But still…
There was a knock at the front door, and Smudge took off down the hallway, barking at whoever had the gall to interrupt them this early in the morning. Nico exchanged a glance with Lacey, then with a shrug, went to answer the door.
“Margie, hello,” Lacey heard Nico exclaim when he opened the door, and Smudge gave a welcoming bark of greeting. Lacey peered down the hallway to see the diminutive woman standing on the front porch, an eager smile on her face. She wondered if Margie was a regular visitor, or if this had something to do with yesterday. A cold breeze was blowing in through the open door, and Lacey shivered, suddenly glad she hadn’t had to spend another night in her van.
“Do you mind if I come in?” Margie didn’t wait for Nico to answer, barging right past him. “I wanted to check on your young friend. And I’ve brought you some food in case you haven’t had time to cook. It’s just a courgette and mushroom slice.” Nico threw up his hands in mock despair behind Margie’s back and closed the door.
“Hello, luv.” Margie bustled into the kitchen, placing a casserole dish on the countertop. “I came to see how you’re feeling today. You know…after the…” Margie waved her hand in the air and her face dissolved into a mournful expression.
“Thank you,” Lacey replied, and was shocked when Margie embraced her in an unrestrained hug.
“It was such a terrible thing to happen. Just terrible.” Margie let Lacey go and turned to Nico. “And what about you?” she demanded. “I know you’re a big, gruff detective on the outside but this must’ve affected you too.” Lacey had to stifle a laugh as Margie stared up at Nico, and without warning, took him into an embrace as well. She was so tiny the top of her head barely even reached the middle of Nico’s chest. He looked bewildered for a second before he wrapped his arms around the older woman and then raised his eyebrows at Lacey in mock bafflement. Lacey had to applaud the woman’s caring nature; she was worried about them and had come to do her civic duty to make sure they were coping.
“And what on earth has happened to your poor face?” Margie asked as she withdrew from Nico’s arms and stared directly at his bruised eye. Lacey winced as Nico sent her a look.
“Someone took me by surprise,” he admitted. “But don’t worry, I soon gained the upper hand.”
Lacey put her hands on her hips and glared at Nico. He hadnotgained the upper hand. But he’d been gentlemanly enough not to dob her in, so all she could do was pout at him from behind Margie.
“Well now, if you had a woman in your life to look after you, then maybe that kind of thing wouldn’t happen.” Margie cast a not-so-subtle glance in Lacey’s direction, and Lacey felt the blood rising up her neck. At least it answered her question as to whether Nico had a girlfriend or not.
She was about to open her mouth and protest that she and Nico were not an item, and would never be an item, when Margie jumped to the next subject, saying, “I still can’t believe my poor Rania is dead.” The old woman took a seat at the table, wiping away a stray tear.
Nico turned back to the stove to tend to his goose eggs before they burned, and Lacey retook her seat next to Margie.
“I’m just cooking us up some eggs for breakfast,” Nico said to Margie. “Would you like some?”
“Oh, no thank you, luv.” Margie gave him a weak smile. “Herb and I have already eaten. He’s gone off on his bike with the Crank Masters. But I couldn’t face a thirty-mile ride this morning. Not when my head is full of murder. It’s all been a little overwhelming. I don’t know how Herb can do it.”
Lacey sympathized with Margie. Not that she’d even ridden five miles on a bicycle before, let alone thirty. But she guessed that’s how the older couple stayed fit. She’d seen how it could become a passion for some people, it just wasn’t her idea of fun.
Nico placed a plate of eggs and toast in front of Lacey, and she drew in the delicious smell as her stomach rumbled. She’d hardly eaten yesterday, her stomach had been in knots and her appetite had been nonexistent. But these golden yellow eggs made her mouth water. Nico drew out a third chair and sat down with his own plate of food.
“Thanks for checking on us, Margie. But as you can see, we’re fine. I’m taking Lacey into town with me today, so she won’t have to stay out here all alone.” He smiled genially and shoved a huge forkful of eggs into his mouth. Nico had omitted the part about him wanting to interview her a second time, as well as her seeing a psych, but she was fine with that. She suspected he was keeping his comments intentionally free of details because he didn’t want Margie spreading any kind of rumors around the community. She might be well-meaning in her anxiety about Lacey’s and Nico’s welfare, but Lacey didn’t doubt there was also an element of voyeurism to her visit.
Taking Nico’s lead she switched the subject back onto the old woman. “And how about you, Margie? How are you coping?” Her question set Margie off, the words tumbling from her lips about how she’d hardly slept a wink last night, and how she’d had to spend most of the afternoon consoling Pam, who lived on the other side of their cottage, who was terrified that a murderer was now on the prowl, and how she thought they all deserved police protection. Lacey listened and nodded along, while eating her tasty eggs and toast. Nico did the same on the other side of Margie.
Suddenly there was a loud honking from outside the kitchen window. Smudge got to his feet and barked at the back door. Lacey had never heard the big birds this close to the house before, and while geese were notorious for making great guard dogs, this sounded serious.
“Excuse me. Better check on the girls.” Nico got up, leaving the remains of his uneaten eggs on his plate, grabbing his jacket from a peg on the wall, and striding out the back door, Smudge hot on his heels. Lacey hoped the birds weren’t being chased by a wild dog or some such catastrophe. Watching Nico don his jacket made Lacey remember her own sheepskin jacket, still covered in Rania’s blood. Even if she got it dry-cleaned, would she ever be able to wear it again?
Margie waved a hand, but didn’t stop speaking, as if geese in trouble were of no real consequence. Lacey tuned back into Margie’s chatter just as she said, “And that poor boy, Karim. He must be devastated. His family came around to the house yesterday to get some of his belongings, but the police wouldn’t let them in. Said it was still a crime scene. Sad state of affairs if you ask me. Karim wasn’t with them. He must not want to come back to the place where he lost his soulmate. They were such a lovely couple together. So young and in love. You should’ve seen them.” Margie sighed and took a breath. But just as Lacey opened her mouth to speak, Margie was off again. “My Herb says that the police probably have Karim pegged as their number one suspect.” Margie looked up as if to make sure Nico was still outside, before she continued in a conspiratorial whisper. “But I just can’t believe that. Not for a second. Herb would’ve seen or heard something that night if it’d been Karim who killed her. If they’d had an argument or something, you know? Herb’s been suffering from insomnia a lot lately. I keep telling him he needs to see the doctor and sort himself out. So many times I wake up in the wee hours of the morning and my Herb is missing from our bed. I used to get up and go looking for him. Sometimes he’d be out in the shed tinkering with his bike, but other times he was nowhere to be found, so I gave up in the end. It’s too cold lately to be chasing my husband around in the dark.” Margie gave a soft giggle. “So, you see, my Herb would’ve heard if anything untoward was going on next door the other night.”
“Mmm hmm.” Lacey made a noncommittal noise, and Margie went on to tell Lacey all about Karim’s family, how he looked so much like his father, tall and handsome. Karim’s family were refugees from Syria, part of a resettlement of people who’d been forced out of their homeland. They’d landed in Hobart seven years ago, where Karim had finished school and then moved up here to become a baker. As Margie talked, something tickled at the back of Lacey’s mind, and she let herself examine the thought. Margie had said Herb was often missing from the bed. And sometimes she didn’t know where he went. That he probably would’ve heard if something had been amiss that night. Was he actually out of bed on the night Rania was killed?
Nico reappeared through the back door, bringing a blast of cold air with him, and Margie finally stopped talking and looked at him expectantly.
