Murder On Wild Winds Island

CHAPTER SEVEN

He was tall, in his late fifties or early sixties and had a smile plastered to his weathered skin I wasn't sure I trusted.  His hair was grey and a little wild but that could have been caused by the rain and wind.

The weather had calmed down, but the wind was still blowing and the air was icy.  I was tempted to head inside and call the police, but it occurred to me that the man probably worked for the rental company.

He approached and I felt around in my pocket for my phone; just in case.

"Morning Morgan.  Sorry for the inconvenience with the car.  I'll have it out of here in no time."  He said as he looked at me over his frameless glasses. 

His skin was pale and his eyes were dark, but he seemed friendly enough and he was holding the spare keys in his hand.  I smiled back, "Good morning.  That's okay.  It's just weird that someone decided to dump it here."

He frowned, "Very strange indeed.  We don't even have a record of anyone hiring it.  I would have sworn it was in the car lot with all the others.  I was shocked when the police called last night and told me they'd found one of my cars."  He paused and looked thoughtful, "Sorry, where are my manners?  I'm Harold.  I own Island Rentals.  It's nice to meet you; although the circumstances could have been better."

I smiled and shook my head, "It's not your fault.  Thank you for coming to get it so early; I appreciate it."

He unlocked the car and slid into the driver's seat.  I walked out barefoot onto the smooth concrete and smiled politely as he checked the log book, "See.  Nothing here.  So strange.  Anyway, if you want anything at all, you just give me a call." 

I felt like he was trying to sell me the car, not lend me one, but I was glad to meet another friendly resident and was once again amazed at how friendly they all were.

"One thing."  He said as he put the car in reverse, "Now you're running the show, think you could switch the paper back to actual paper?"

I was surprised by the request, "Oh I'm not in charge, but I'll put the suggestion to Gerard and see how I go."  I didn't expect Gerard would agree, but at least I could mention it to him next time we spoke or emailed.

I was glad to see the car gone and decided to head to the bakery to grab a coffee before going coffee machine shopping.  Stepping out of the front door again, I waved goodbye to Apricat and locked the door behind me.  I glanced at my phone, saw no messages and decided to try and forget about the break in.  The chances were high it was just some teenagers mucking around and trying to spook me.

I straightened my shoulders and set off to the Pontiac Bakery, determined to have a good day.

Walking through the front door, the first person I saw was Lucas Layton, the police officer from the previous night.  He smiled when he saw me and looked relaxed and calm.  He was out of uniform and it was clear he was getting some breakfast after night shift. 

"Morning Morgan."  He said, balancing his extra large beverage and some sort of sweet treat that had already started to leave oil marks on the brown paper bag.

"Morning.  How was the night shift?"  I asked.

"Eh. Not too bad thanks.  After your call, nothing much happened. We kept an eye out on and off all night, but we saw nothing unusual.  Which reminds me, Island Rentals can't get anybody out to your place until this afternoon but assured me they will collect the car as soon as they can."

My blood ran cold, "What?  Harold dropped around just before to collect it.  Said it was weird because it wasn't listed as being hired by anyone."  I said, unsure whether I should be concerned or not.