The Scent of Death

Thirty-two

Plot reminder: After adding locations from the Kayleigh Harrison case to Ben's string map, Jennifer noted that the village of Bexhill now lays in the central zone - this where the stables which  Kayleigh occasionally frequented are located. As she and Ben await the receptionist, they notice a box of toy horses similar to the one Kayleigh was given.

*

I was only vaguely aware that the little blonde girl and her father were now stepping past us towards the exit door.

"How can I help you?" the woman's voice called.

Ben and I looked up over the souvenir shelves at the smiling face behind the counter. It took us a moment to recompose ourselves, recall the little spiel we'd prepared during the short drive over from the centre of the village. As I began steering Dudley towards the counter, there was one last lingering glance at the box of little plastic horses. Was it significant, I wondered? After all, there was nothing to guarantee that the place had stocked that particular toy ten years earlier, or that even if it had that it was the provenance of the one which had been given to Kayleigh. Even so, the coincidence was unsettling - enough so for me to feel my senses sharpen, my concentation intensify.

"We were passing on the main road and saw the sign leading down here," Ben began. "We've got a nine-year-old daughter who's just crazy about horses, keeps begging us to let her ride one."

He glanced across at me, as if seeking confirmation. "So we thought we'd check the place out," I added with a waft of my free hand out to one side.

It felt strange of course to be referring to a make-believe daughter, as if we were a long-established couple who shared a mortgage and a marital bed and a decade or more of life-defining memories. Fortunately, the woman appeared to unaware of the ridiculousness of our guise.

Closer up, her face seemed a little different to how I'd imagined from several metres away. Not older exactly, just a little more beaten and worn, shadowed somehow, as if the friendly reception-desk smile were just a mask she wore to hide some lingering inner bruise.

"We're just about to close up for the day as it happens."

My heart sinking, I jerked my hand apologetically. "Oh, OK. We'll pass by again some other time."

Ben shot me a glare before turning pleadingly back to the woman. "We don't pass this way all that often as it happens..."

Her smile widened. "No, no, it's okay. I'm only too happy to let you have a quick look inside, answer any questions you might have." She turned towards the window behind her, squinted up at the sky. "We'll probably have to be quick though. Looks like those black clouds'll be right upon us any minute now."

Stepping over to the entrance door, she ushered Ben, Dudley and I through ahead of her. A few metres beyond was wooden-fenced hexagon of sandy earth, along the border of which a chestnut mare was being led by a trainer. Perched contentedly on the saddle was a girl of a similar age to our fictional daughter, her parents calling out in encouragement from the sidelines.

"My name's Josie by the way," the woman introduced. She glanced at Ben and I in turn before flicking her eyes down at Dudley. "And you three?"

After being thus informed, she offered Ben and I a wide beam. "Nice to meet you." She then crouched herself down to Dudley, wiggled her palms to either side of his face. "And I'm absolutely honoured to make your acquaintance too Dudley."

He seemed much more interested in the chestnut mare however, his demeanour a smile-inducing mix of apprehension and curiosity. It was the first time he'd ever seen a horse, certainly so close up. For a dog to encounter a fellow quadruped of such scale must be akin to a human stumbling all of a sudden across a giant as tall as a house.