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- Herausgeber: WS
- Kategorie: Abenteuer, Thriller, Horror
- Serie: Cosy Crime
- Sprache: Englisch
Suspicious Minds delves into a complex web of deception, loyalty, and intrigue as Sarah and Jimmy uncover the dark secrets of Roy Brown's activities. Roy's intricate schemes, entangled with blackmail, fraud, and smuggling, lead to a gripping tale of betrayal and manipulation. As the story unfolds, suspicions mount, relationships are tested, and the search for truth becomes increasingly urgent. With compelling characters and a suspenseful narrative, Suspicious Minds takes readers on a captivating journey through 1940s England, where hidden agendas and personal agendas converge in a thrilling conclusion. Prepare to be immersed in a world where the line between trust and deceit blurs, leaving a lasting impact on all involved. Discover the gripping tale of Suspicious Minds for a riveting read that will keep you on the edge of your seat.
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Seitenzahl: 40
Veröffentlichungsjahr: 2024
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Published by DC Thomson & Company Limited.
Courier Buildings, 2 Albert Square, Dundee.
Suspicious Minds
Author: Alison Carter
Illustration: Sailesh Thakrar
The mayor was keen to help the young Germans, but not everyone in the town thought it was a good idea . . .
Set in 1948.
I think it’s a shame,” Sarah said. “It’s a sweet little railway station.”
Sarah’s father, Jimmy Baldwin, buttered his toast with the last of the margarine.
“There’s no point in being sentimental,” he said. “The town doesn’t need a second station. It isn’t profitable.”
Sarah screwed the lid on the marmalade jar.
“Hang on – there’s no more margarine and that was nearly the last of the marmalade. I feel like it’s 1943 again and everything rationed.”
Jimmy laughed.
“I’ll see if your mother can sweet-talk Mrs Forester into a few more jars.”
Sarah stood behind her father and planted a kiss on his bald head.
“Mrs Forester can be convinced of anything. And you deserve marmalade, all that travelling you’ve done to Germany and back.”
“I’m still waiting for a letter from Frau Brandt. I need the final details.”
“How many are coming?”
“Five for Budliworth, and about another twenty for surrounding villages. I’m excited.”
“I bet you are. Arranging this has been a long haul. I’m excited, too, Dad, although I’m not good with children or teenagers.”
“You’re barely out of the teenage years yourself.”
“Dad, I’m twenty-three!”
“Are you?” He grinned. “I’ll have to watch the young men of Budliworth to make sure they don’t steal you away.”
“Chance would be a fine thing,” Sarah said. “How many eligible bachelors do you think I know?”
“Tom Rawlins.”
“He’s engaged to Tilly Grant from the bakery.”
“Um, Iain Price.”
“Moved to Canada after he was demobbed.”
“Roy Brown. He’s a likely lad.”
“Good point, and Roy used to have a bit of a thing for me. But I don’t see him much; he’s always working.”
“Get Roy to go to the dance with you on Friday.”
“I might,” Sarah said. “Or I might go to the meeting in the town hall about the station closure instead.”
Jimmy ran a hand over his head.
“That meeting’s a waste of time – take my word for it. They’ll build much-needed housing on the site once the track’s been cleared away – prefabs, maybe. Where’s your mother? Her tea’s cold.”
After breakfast father and daughter set off together for town, Sarah to the solicitors’ office where she clerked and Jimmy to the town hall.
That evening, talk of the visiting German children and the branch line closure was forgotten when Jimmy brought back devastating news. There had been a death among the council employees.
“A Mr Charles Evans,” a pale Jimmy said, as his wife handed him a cup of tea.
“He was found dead yesterday in Buddley Forest.”
“Was he an older man?” Mrs Baldwin asked gently.
“He was sixty – so no, this wasn’t old age, and it wasn’t illness, either. He killed himself, Janet.”
Mr Evans was a relatively new employee of the council, Jimmy said.
He’d worked his way up in administration at one of the factories over in Runcorn and had been thrilled to move sideways into local government.
“He was in a junior housing role,” Jimmy said, “but he did good work, important routine work.”
Sarah sat down beside her father.
“Is housing a difficult place to work?”
“Well, no. There are departments stretched to bursting point because there’s no money after the war. But housing?”
“I imagine he was unhappy or mentally unwell,” Mrs Baldwin suggested.
“I suppose so.” Jimmy sighed. “This has made everyone in the council miserable.
“He was a bachelor but there’s an elderly mother. I met Mr Evans when he first joined and he seemed eager and diligent. This is dreadful.”
Sarah and her mother tried to reassure Jimmy that the cause of the tragedy would be found and Charles Evans’s mother at least given an explanation, but Jimmy remained puzzled and sad.
“He tries to take responsibility for everything,” Janet Baldwin told her daughter.
“I know,” Sarah said. “It’s what made him so determined to bring these young people over from Germany and give them a chance.”
“When does young Bunty arrive, by the way?” Mrs Baldwin asked.
“Not so young now,” Sarah said, “and soon.”
It was 1948, and Jimmy Baldwin was mayor of Budliworth, a pleasant if uninteresting town east-south-east of Liverpool.
