Chapter Text
Dwayne had thought it was unlike the Chief not to answer his phone but it did not prepare him for what he was about to walk in on. He’d thought nothing of the low voice he heard coming from the Chief’s shack as he stepped on to the veranda. Probably just talking to Harry like the Chief often did.
“Chief?” He called out as he poked his head into the open side door. Dwayne froze as he tried to take in the scene. There was a flash of something vanishing below the other side of the bed out of his sight. His boss was shifting to sitting up in the bed grabbing haphazardly at the sheet that was covering his lower half and… was DI Poole shirtless? No striped pyjamas?! Dwayne stared into his bosses reddening face as the Chief’s jaw tightened and he tried to stifle the look of embarrassment.
“What is it Dwayne?” The Chief asked him in a professional voice which seemed at odds with his state of undress.
“Sorry to disturb you sir, but there’s been a body found up on Verre Point. It’s on the walking track between Glass and Shell beach. I tried calling but I couldn’t get through…”
The Chief’s eyes darted around the room, Dwayne’s followed his gaze to where a pair of wool trousers lay strewn on the floor.
“Sorry Dwayne, I must have forgotten to charge my phone last night. Not terribly responsible of me but I thought I had the day off today and had a bit of a late one.”
Dwayne nodded slowly, as he let his gaze wander around the shack, none of this was like the Chief at all: a ‘late one’, not answering his phone, the items of clothing left on the floor. He remembered that Camille had managed to convince the Chief to go with her to a jazz bar to hear one of her favourite bands from Paris. Both Dwayne and Fidel already had plans and she had insisted that she couldn’t find anyone else to go. Dwayne wanted to ask so many questions that he couldn’t decide on which one to start with.
“Has Fidel already secured the scene?” The Chief’s voice interrupted Dwayne’s thoughts.
“Yes, chief.”
“Well if there’s nothing else you better join him and start processing the scene. I’ll get myself decent and join you as soon as I can.”
Dwayne eyed the room suspiciously as he turned to go and then remembered. “Oh, I couldn’t get a hold of Camille either.”
“Ah well, she had one too many at the bar last night and I took her home. I’d imagine she’s probably sleeping it off. I’ll collect Sergeant Bordey on my way to the scene. You better be on your way, I won’t be too long.”
Dwayne left the shack still trying to make sense of what he’d just heard and saw. If it had been anyone but the Chief he would have taken one look at that scene and assumed it was the morning after a hook up. By the time he made it back to the motorcycle it dawned on him—that’s exactly what it was! As Dwayne put his helmet on he made sense of the movement on the bed when he arrived… that was an arm! A woman’s arm! And her hair. The lady had been hiding on the other side of the bed, the whole time—that’s why the Chief had been impatient to get him out of there. Dwayne smiled as he started the engine; he couldn’t wait to tell Fidel and Camille.
***
The crime scene was on a track carved out of the scraggly vegetation on the head land between two beaches. It was a public walk favoured by locals and tourists alike. By the time Dwayne arrived Fidel had put up the crime scene tape and was turning walkers away. They were collecting and logging evidence when the Chief and the Detective Seargent came walking into view. The Chief was looking his normal stuffy self in his wool suit and tie, his face sweating a little from the walk up from the beach. Camille was shading her eyes from the sun and stifling a yawn.
“What do we have Fidel?” The Chief asked.
“Older man found deceased by a local walker. From initial examination there appears to be a stab wound to the man’s chest, which may be cause of death, we haven’t found any possible weapons that match the wound in the surrounding vegetation. We did find a wallet a couple of meters back that way tossed into the bushes. No cash or credit cards in the wallet but there is a British licence belonging to Mr John Helmont, 65 years old, photo appears to match the victim. He’s the owner of a multimillion dollar business and owns a holiday villa further inland, which may be accessible by this track. The local who found him said that he often saw Mr Helmont walking this way.”
The Chief stooped over the body, “No apparent defensive wounds?”
“None,”
He stood up again. “Which direction is the victims residence?”
Fidel pointed inland.
“I noticed a fork in the path on the way here where does that lead?”
“To a scenic look out on Verre point.”
“So the body position suggests that Mr Helmont was walking away from his house, and was stabbed in the front, possibly by someone coming up the path the other way.”
The chief squatted to examine the plants on the path around the body.
“No damage to these plants suggests the body hadn’t been turned around, it’s a pretty tight path between them.”
The Chief started to wander down the path, without issuing any orders.
Dwayne turned to Camille who was still taking notes.
“What happened at the bar last night?” Dwayne asked, lowering his voice.
Camille didn’t look up from taking her notes. “The band was good, I danced with some people, I managed to get Richard to dance a couple of times, but I had a bit too much rum, things get a bit hazy after that but I remember he drove me home.”
“Yeah, you do look a bit rough this morning.”
“Thanks for that Dwayne,” Camille said sarcastically.
“Did you see him dancing or talking to anyone else?” Fidel asked.
“Not that I remember… but I did dance without him for a while so I might not have seen. Why all the questions?”
“Dwayne thinks the Chief had a lady friend over this morning.” Said Fidel.
Camille looked up from her notebook, her eyes wide.
“No thinking about it, I know I did, I walked into the shack and there he is—pulling up a sheet in bed not wearing his pyjamas, last nights clothes all over the floor. Could not have been clearer. I saw her.”
“What did she look like?” Camille asked.
“Well, I only saw her arm and her hair as she hid behind the bed, but she was dark skinned with curly hair.”
“Who was?”
Dwayne jumped, while they intently talking the Chief had walked back up to them without them noticing.
“The woman Dwayne saw you with this morning,” Camille said teasingly.
The Chief instantly turned red. “Ah… well… sorry Dwayne… but when a woman hides under the bed it’s hardly the time to make introductions to your coworkers.”
Fidel and Camille’s, who Dwayne suspected did not believe him up until that point, mouths dropped open.
Dwayne bumped the chief on the arm, “Who’s the lucky lady then?”
The Chief bristled, “I am NOT telling the one man gossip service her name.”
“Aw come on Chief, you have to tell us something. Is she a tourist?”
No answer.
“A local?”
The Chief stared determinedly.
“How long have you been seeing her?” Dwayne had an idea that might get him talking, “Or was it a one night stand?”
“Certainly not!… or at least I hope not. It’s quite new, we haven’t really discussed any thing, but I am quite serious about her.” As he spoke the Chief smiled a little and he got an almost dreamy look in his eyes that Dwayne hadn’t seen before.
Dwayne felt Camille shift a bit beside him.
“Is that Englishman code for you’d like to marry her?” Dwayne joked.
The Chief reddened, “I… ugh… it’s a bit soon… I wouldn’t want…to scare her off.”
Dwayne turned to Camille, expecting her to join in with the teasing but she just stood there looking surprised and maybe a bit queasy. She must have been real hungover.
“So where did you meet her Chief?” Asked Dwayne.
“I’ve said all I intend to on that matter. Now if it hasn’t escaped your notice we do have a probable murder to solve.” The Chiefs face was back to stern as he assigned tasks to his team. He asked Camille to join him in interviewing the family and they began to walk down the path.
“Hey Sarge,” called Dwayne under his breath and Camille turned, “see what you can find out about the chief’s girlfriend, will you?”
Camille shrugged before turning around and trying to catch up with the Chief.