“I will begin,” said Jack, “How long had you known your husband, how did you meet and how long have you been married?” He rolled three questions together to save time.
“We met at Shrewsbury flower show two years ago, Gerald was a dog handler. I like dogs, we got speaking I stroked the dog and we went from there, we married six weeks later.”
“May I ask you if your husband had mentioned anything of any sudden deaths in his family”?
“No never, nothing”, she replied.
Doris was looking through the file and said; “I see he had not one day’s sickness in the three years he was a police officer”.
“Well he had none whilst I knew him” came the reply
Jack leaned over and asked Doris a question, then said, “Mr Jackson I see Gerald joined the force some three years ago in the month of February, I suspect there was no recruiting at that time, can you account as to how he came to be appointed”.
“Ah yes I knew Gerald well, he was a dog trainer at a local club as well as being a local gardener.”
“He was highly recommended to us by the previous Chief Superintendent, Dan Davies, according to the file as you will see.”
“The circumstances I am not aware of as my predecessor left on sickness and has since died tragically.”
“There must have been an over whelming reason why he appointed Gerald who I might say proved to be an outstanding officer”
“I am sure he was,” replied Jack.
“May I ask you Mrs Cheshire are you aware if Gerald knew or had any contact with a man from the Wrexham area possibly named Sid”?
“No I never heard the name and he never mentioned Wrexham”.
“Your husband it appears was gardener before joining the police are you aware of what he had done before that, I see there is nothing of previous employments in his file”.
”I am sorry Mr Richards I have not a clue in fact I do not really know anything of his past life before we met.
“I see,” replied Jack “Did he have any strange visitors to see him before his death?”
She thought then replied, “The only stranger I recall was a lady”.
“A lady” asked Jack.
“Yes one day whilst he was on foot patrol in the town here I saw him speaking with a foreign lady she looked like an Arab type or Spanish something like that. I saw them speaking I decided to stop and have a word, Gerald looked a ghastly shade of pale as the lady left”.
“Did you ask him about the lady?” asked Doris
.”Several times but he would never discuss it,” replied Sandra.
“I see”. May we both thank you very much indeed Mrs Cheshire for agreeing to see us, you have been very helpful”.
“Is that it?”
“Yes that is it. Thank you so much. May I say how very sorry I am at your sad loss of such a fine husband and officer?”
“Well thank you Mr Richards”.
“Well Mr Jackson if we may visit the scene please”
“Why yes of course I will just arrange for an officer to transport Mrs Cheshire home”.
“By all means” replied Jack, “in fact we will make our way to Church Stretton and meet you in the town then we can all travel to the actual scene together”.
It was a twenty-minute journey to the picturesque town of Church Stretton.
Whilst parked up waiting the two investigators finally laughed and spoke.
“What a pompous ass?” said Doris.
“I take it you mean Jackson?” Replied Jack, pushing his hat back into the action mode.
“Yes of course” she said.
“God knows what he thought we would do with a widow in the case of a natural cause death as we have it now”, said Jack.
A knock came onto the window, they looked it was Jackson, “get into our car,” said Jack.
“Right” said Jackson, “drive straight on up the hill I will tell you when to stop”.
They drove only half a mile when Jackson said,
“Pull over there, it was in that lay-by it all happened there” said Jackson.
Doris stopped and parked, they alighted and Jack paced the area then looked down the hill. He walked to each end of the lay-by then took out his camera and took several photographs. Within ten minutes, they were finished, back in the car and heading down hill.
Arriving in the town Jack smiled as he saw a traffic warden placing a ticket on the car of Chief Super Jackson, who jumped from the vehicle and was last seen remonstrating with the warden.
When they arrived back in Tarporley, it was 6pm.
Doris dropped him off at home and commented, “I am ready for a drink”.
“I also” replied Jack “a strong one”.
He closed the car door went inside and was soon flopped in his chair, the smell of cooking charmed his irritation at the last job of the day but as usual said nothing.
It was nearly 9pm, the telephone rang, Jack answered it to find it was Doris who announced that Striker required her at the police Station for a few days.
“Ideal” replied Jack “I will take a few days to think things over, making notes and plans. Ring me when you are free otherwise I will call in at the office to ensure nothing is happening. Oh, I see. If you would that will be ideal”.
He replaced the phone and before she could ask he said, “Anne, I will be here for a few days, Doris is required on her regular work, I will spend some time here going over things. She will also check at my office to ensure nothing is amiss. You are stuck with me for a while it appears.
She smiled, gave him a kiss on the cheek and went to the kitchen to finish making the nightly drinking chocolate.
The next morning with little to do it had been some time since they had made a foray into the village but this particularly sunny Saturday morning Anne decided a breath of fresh air was just the thing.
The walking finally over they were returning home when they arrived at Mrs Delwright’s meeting house as Jack now christened it. Who should be going in were the Woodcocks. Seeing Jack approaching, Christian stopped just inside the door, obviously spoke to his wife and called “Hello Jack and Anne come in for a mid morning drink?
Arriving at the door there was really no alternative so inside went Anne closely followed by Jack who for a change was not wearing his normal hat but incredibly, he had agreed to wear a new one.
It was cream and black advertised as summer wear and taken into use after Anne had bought it as a birthday present.
Entering the café the scene was the same as all other visits in that there were groups of mainly middle-aged women, it being a golfing opportunity for the men folk on such a delightful Cheshire morning.
When the new common arrivals, just policemen and their wives walked in there was a sudden silence save for Mrs Delwright who was in full flow announcing “ That Erica, was a lady filled with emotion, a drama Queen”.
Walking further inside and becoming seated Jack finally took off his hat and sat quietly but was all ears, mostly for tacit entertainment.
There was a group of six ladies typical of the Cheshire clique society. One lady was more outstandingly entertaining than the rest who frankly, Jack judged, was the leader and the rest were her followers.
It appears her name was Vera, at least which is what Girda called her as she arrived with the additional hot water to ensure the group had a top up of drinks on the once used tea bags thus saving on the cost of additional drinks but permitting more gossiping time.
“I say”, announced Vera for the whole room to hear, “These farmers complaining of no bees what a complete load of balderdash.”
“Where I work there are thousands of bees, blasted horrid things and their fellows the dreaded wasps. They are everywhere”.
The group nodded in agreement encouraging Vera to add, “Ghastly, they really are ghastly”.
“What are you two having to drink?” asked Jean.