“Let’s hope,” he said. “George had a point. I can’t afford to be closed for long.”

  “I said, no talking.” Estrada had returned. “Did you not hear my instructions, Officer Richter?”

  His pudgy face turned beet red. “No, ma’am. I mean, yes, ma’am, I heard you. But they said business talk would be okay.”

  “Nothing Gemma Doyle says is okay with me.”

  Various of the guests who hadn’t met me before gave me curious looks, clearly wondering why I was being singled out. I refrained from giving them a wave.

  “Okay,” Estrada said. “It’s late. Gemma Doyle and Andy Whitehall, I need to talk to you two tonight. As for the rest of you, does anyone here have anything to tell me about why that young woman would have been in the water? She didn’t have a coat on when she was pulled out. Why would she have been outside on a night like tonight?”

  “She was a heavy smoker,” I said. “Sorry, that’s a small error on my part. Considering we’re all hoping she will make a full recovery, I should say she is a heavy smoker.”

  “How do you know this? Did you go out and smoke with her?”

  “Of course not. A matter of observation. Despite her nice party clothes and her excessively applied, drugstore-shelf perfume, the distinctive scent of tobacco hung heavily around her. Not only that, but she had cigarettes and a lighter in her bag. Her phone was in her bag also—when she went outside, at any rate—and she had that purse still on her when Andy and I found her. I trust you recovered it.”

  Estrada gave me the look I knew so well. “When I need advice on conducting an investigation, Ms. Doyle, I’ll ask you.”

  “Gemma’s right,” Trish Whitehall said. “About the smoking anyway. I went outside earlier to have a cigarette and Tina was finishing hers.”

  “If that isn’t enough to make you quit, I don’t—” Pete Whitehall said.

  “Not now, Dad,” Andy said.

  “Was this shortly before she was seen in the water?” Estrada asked.

  “No,” Trish said. “I don’t remember exactly, but long before that.”

  “Same with me,” Madison said. “I saw her smoking out there. We said hi, but not much more than that. Again, it was earlier. Before cake, I think.”

  “Officer Richter, take these people’s names and contact information,” Estrada said. “I, or someone on my team, will be in touch with you in the morning for a statement. But before you go, did Ms. Armstrong say anything to anyone that might indicate she was bothered about something? Did she argue with anyone tonight?”

  “She wasn’t invited,” Trish Whitehall said.

  “Not invited? What does that mean?”

  “Leave it, Mom,” Andy said.

  “Mrs. Whitehall?” Estrada prompted.

  “She crashed the party. I assume you’ve been told this is a birthday party for Jayne, my son’s fiancée. Tina Armstrong was not invited, and she was not welcome. We should have shown her to the door.”

  “Any reason she was not welcome?”

  Trish’s eyes widened as she realized she was saying too much. She closed her mouth and dipped her head. Estrada stared at her, waiting for an answer.

  “She’s not a friend of our family is all I mean,” Trish finally muttered. “This was a private event.”

  “Wasn’t she a former girlfriend of Andy’s?” Madison asked. “She said that, didn’t she? An old girlfriend back to haunt the new girlfriend’s party.” She laughed. Her cocktail glass was almost full. Despite Estrada’s orders, the bartender handed Madison another drink when Richter wasn’t looking. In return, Madison slipped a twenty-dollar bill across the counter. I decided I had more important things to concentrate on than to report them.

  “Tina and Andy were close once, so why should she not come?” Jayne turned her smile on Andy. “She was very pleasant. She wished me a happy birthday and wished us well in our marriage. I thought she was nice.”

  Andy shifted uncomfortably, and he did not return the smile.

  Estrada was watching him in a way I didn’t like. “Close? How close?”

  “It was a long time ago,” Andy said. “We dated in … school.”

  In England, we don’t call places of higher education “school,” although Americans refer to college and university as such. Tonight, the way Andy pronounced the word implied he was talking about their small-town high school. Not the years he and Tina had been together in New York City pursuing further education and careers. I wasn’t about to correct the detective’s interpretation.

  “She came to the party alone?” Estrada asked.

  “Yes,” several people said.

  “I think Donald here killed her.” Keith slapped my friend on the back so hard Donald stumbled forward.

  Estrada’s eyes narrowed as she turned to them. “Why do you say that, sir?”

  “To get me interested in that murder mystery stuff he’s so fond of. He was telling me about this store in town that sells Sherlock Holmes things. Nothing better than a real-life murder to stoke interest.”

  Donald sputtered in indignation.

  “I have no evidence—as of yet—that a murder took place.” Estrada’s voice was chilly. Then again, sometimes it’s hard to tell. Chilly is her natural state. “Accidents happen around water, particularly when alcohol is involved. As for you, sir, if you have a serious accusation to make, please do. Otherwise, I do not consider this a matter for jokes.”

  “My bad. Sorry, pal.” Keith didn’t look at all sorry.

  “It’s okay. I think,” Donald said.

  “How about we go together to this store some time? I’ll give you a call, set something up.”

  “Keith, the detective told you to shut up,” his wife shouted.

  “Madam,” Estrada said. “May I ask what you’re writing there?”

  Ever since I returned from my brush with death (as I would later embellish the tale to impress Great-Uncle Arthur and my sister, Pippa), Audrey had been scribbling away. She didn’t bother to look up as she was addressed. “Just making a few notes, before I forget. Might as well get it down, now, here, while it’s all fresh.”

  “What sort of notes?” Estrada asked sharply. “Are you a journalist?”

  “Oh, no. Nothing like that. I’m writing a book. That’s to say, I’m thinking of writing a book. Early days yet.”

  “Audrey was a Hollywood insider,” Madison explained. “She’s always talking about the stories she could tell.”

  I considered it odd that Audrey suddenly found inspiration for her insider Hollywood book at a police interrogation in West London, but before I could pry further, Estrada said, “Speaking of journalism, I assume, Ms. Talbot, you will be writing up this incident?”

  “Already filed,” Irene said. “Mentally, anyway. Let’s see what transpires next.”

  Estrada grimaced, but before she could say more, Officer Stella Johnson opened the door and stepped through. She whispered into Estrada’s ear, and the detective nodded. Stella gave me a quick look before going back outside, and I knew what Estrada was going to say before she said it.

  “I am sorry,” she said. “The hospital called. Ms. Armstrong did not make it.”

  Someone gasped. A few women started to cry; a man crossed himself and murmured a prayer. Trish Whitehall stared straight ahead, her jaw set, her expression unchanging. Jayne put her arms around Andy’s shoulders and whispered, “I am so sorry.”

  “Her family has been informed,” Estrada said. “I need to go to the hospital and speak to them and the attending doctor, but before I do that, I want a word with Gemma Doyle and Andy Whitehall. Everyone else, please give Officer Richter your names and phone numbers and then take your leave. This party is over. You may take your personal items, such as your purses and coats, but nothing else. I assume those,” she nodded toward the tower of brightly wrapped gifts, “are yours, Ms. Wilson. They’ll have to stay here.”

  Jayne nodded.

  Of all people, Robbie got to his feet and started talking. “It’s important you try to remember everything that happened here earlier. Things get forgotten in the turmoil of the moment. Important things. Things the police need to know.” He turned to speak to the restaurant employees sharing his table. “Most important for us, the staff. We see things from the shadows, right? People don’t pay any attention to us and they say stuff they shouldn’t in front of us. We hear things, we see things, things that seem normal, but on second thought, aren’t. Right, everyone?”

  Most of the staff murmured agreement and nodded.

  Martin snickered and made a show of rolling his eyes, and I was reminded that he and Robbie clashed earlier tonight.

  “Who are you?” Estrada asked Robbie.

  “Robert Ellis. I was filling in here tonight. Helping out, like, as Jayne and I go way back. Jayne, if Andy has to stay for a while, how about I give you a lift home?”

  “That would be—” Jayne began.

  “That won’t be necessary,” I said quickly. “Jayne came with her mother and brother. They can give Mrs. Ramsbatten a lift. They’re all going the same way.” Jayne gave me a curious look. They were, in fact, going in totally opposite directions, but it was the best excuse I could come up with on the spur of the moment.

  The look Robbie gave me, on the other hand, was one of pure poison. I smiled sweetly at him in return.

  Martin chuckled. He was seated next to Robbie, and he leaned over and whispered something in the other man’s ear. I didn’t hear the words, but the anger on Robbie’s face deepened. Martin leaned back and crossed his arms over his chest looking very pleased at whatever witticism he’d dispensed, and the reaction he got.

  People began standing up. A line formed in front of Officer Richter.

  The forensics people had arrived, bringing their powerful lights. They moved around the deck, taking fingerprints and photographs, examining the wood of the railing and the metal of the gate. A woman leaned over the railing and shouted to someone below. Blue and red lights danced cheerfully across the water.

  All the usual hubbub and chaos and routine of a suspected crime scene. Ryan would be sorry to have missed it. It can be hard to catch up by reading reports.

  Unless this could all be put to bed before Ryan was due to come home. Although that was unlikely. The police would want to be positive Tina’s death had been accidental before closing the case.

  “Bunny, care to go someplace for a nightcap?” George asked.

  “I’m sorry,” she said, “but it’s getting late and this has all been quite upsetting. Can I take a rain check?”

  “Certainly.” George whipped out his phone, and Bunny gave him her number. Ashleigh was in line behind her mother and didn’t look entirely pleased, although Bunny clearly did. Madison told Richter she and Audrey were staying at the Harbor Inn and would be there until the day after the wedding. Andy told his staff he’d call them in the morning to let them know what was happening. Several muttered that they couldn’t afford to be off work, not in winter when business was so slow.

  “If I don’t have regular shifts here,” Martin said, “other places need a chef of my quality.”

  “What can I say?” Andy said. “It’s not up to me.”

  Finally, only Andy and I remained in the company of the police. Andy’s mother had been reluctant to leave, but he reminded her he was an adult, kissed her on the cheek, and told his father to go home. He walked Jayne to the door and they stood together for a long time, holding each other, not speaking. “Talk in the morning,” he said when they finally separated.

  “Sit,” Estrada ordered.

  Andy and I sat, and the detective joined us around a hastily cleared table. “For your information, I’ve contacted Detective Ashburton. He says he hasn’t heard from you tonight, Gemma. On a personal level, I mean.”

  “I’m hoping this can be cleared up and he can continue with his course.”

  “You think it will happen that quickly?”

  “No. As for me, on a personal level, what happened to Tina is distressing, and I’m deeply sorry for her and for her family. But I didn’t know her. I’d never met her before tonight, so my personal feelings are not as involved as they might be.”

  I thought Estrada might ask Andy what his personal feelings were, but she didn’t. She simply asked us to take her through what happened tonight and we did so.

  “Why were you and Jayne Wilson outside in the first place?” she asked when we’d finished telling the tale. “Neither of you smoke, and it’s a cold night.”

  “No reason,” I said easily. “A quick catch-up and to wish each other a good night. We were standing at the railing, watching the water, and we saw her. Tina. So I jumped in. Which, I will now freely admit, might not have been the wisest course of action.”

  “Jayne ran inside, yelling for help,” Andy said. “Everyone hurried out to see what was going on. I guess I was first to get there. I saw Gemma floundering around in the water and I knew she needed help.”

  “I wouldn’t say floundering. I was attempting to get my bearings.”

  Estrada asked about earlier in the evening. If we’d noticed Tina arguing with anyone, or anyone behaving at all suspiciously.

  “A less suspicious gathering, I can’t imagine,” I said. “It was a birthday party. A private event. Everyone was on their best behavior.”

  “Your mother wasn’t happy Tina invited herself, Andy,” Estrada said.

  “My mom never liked Tina,” Andy admitted. “Even when we were together. She adores Jayne, that’s all. Maybe she thought Tina’s presence would be upsetting to Jayne.”

  “Which it wasn’t,” I said. “Not in the least. As Jayne said herself.”

  “Was it upsetting to you, Andy?”

  Andy flushed and looked away. Not a wise move on his part. Estrada’s eyes flickered, and she sat a little bit straighter. “No, not upsetting,” he said. “We had a last-minute cancellation, so a seat was free and we had a meal for her.”

  Which is not what Estrada had been asking, but she didn’t press the point. “You were quick to dismiss that man’s offer to drive Jayne home, Gemma. Any reason?”

  Louise Estrada’s initial dislike and distrust of me had been known to cloud her judgment when I’m around. But I never let myself forget she’s highly observant and a good judge of character. “No reason other than Mrs. Ramsbatten needed a lift too, as did Jayne’s mother. I’ve been giving some thought to the accident idea, and I have to say—”

  “Is what you have to say based on physical evidence or merely on speculation, Gemma?”

  I was rather offended by her tone. I never speculate without data. Well, almost never. “I have taken the available physical evidence, what I saw of it, and considered it in light of events here tonight, general weather conditions, possible state of mind of the victim as observed by me, and—”

  Estrada stood up. “Thank you for your time. I’ll need to get detailed formal statements from you both tomorrow. Now I have to get to the hospital. It’s going to be a long night.” Something crossed her face and for a moment she looked almost human. “I hate talking to the family. I really hate it. Worst part of the job.”

  “You might ask them if Tina was a good swimmer,” I suggested.

  Chapter Ten

  My phone buzzed to announce an incoming text while I chatted with Estrada. Knowing by the sound who it was from, I didn’t check it until Andy and I were in his car driving through the dark, quiet streets.

  Dark and quiet, that is, once we were away from the Harbor Road boardwalk, small-boat dock, and pier, where bright lights had turned night into day and the few town residents still up stood in the cold watching the activity on the deck of the Blue Water Café.

  Ryan: Not again!

  Me: Again. Heading home now. Talk in 10?

  Ryan: I’m here.

  “Ryan?” Andy asked as I put away my phone.

  I leaned back in the seat, rested my head on the head rest, and closed my eyes. “Estrada notified him they had a call, and she just happened to mention I was at the scene. He’ll want the details.”

  “First thing I’m doing when I get home is have a hot shower.”

  “Good idea.” I pulled out my phone and sent another text.

  Me: Talk in 20

  That done, I said, “Are you okay, Andy? Really okay, I mean? About Tina’s death?”

  He sighed. “Yeah, I’m okay. This is going to make me sound pretty shallow, but she won’t be my problem anymore.”

  “Was she threatening to become a problem?”

  “Yeah, Gemma, she was. She called me a couple of times a few months ago, suggested we meet for coffee. She came into the restaurant for a drink at the bar more than once and asked to see me. She wanted me to rethink my marriage to Jayne.”

  “And?”

  “And after the first coffee meeting, I ignored her calls and told my staff I was too busy to take a break. She told me I was the love of her life and she wanted us to get back together.”

  “Tell me you told her that was not going to happen.”

  “I did. Firmly and succinctly. Even if Jayne wasn’t in the picture, I don’t want to be with Tina. I have no feelings at all for her. Not anymore.”

  “Did you tell her that?”

  “Not in so many words. I tried to let her down easily. Maybe I was too easy on her, ’cause she didn’t seem to get the hint.”

  Andy pulled up to my house. A light was on in the hallway, the drapes in the front room open, and I could see Violet and Peony peering out the windows. To reach window height, they had to stand on the couch. So that’s what they get up to when I’m not home.

  Andy stared out the car window into the night. “That stuff happened early in the fall, before we went with you to England in October. The calls and the drop-ins and accidental encounters stopped when I got back, and I figured she’d realized it wasn’t on. I don’t mean to present myself as some sort of valuable catch, Gemma. I’m just a small-town cook.”

  “I think you’re a valuable catch,” I said in total honestly. “A small-town chef who is a genuinely good man.”