Page 73 of Death on the Rocks

“Didn’t you tell them I’m only here for a week?” Lily asked. “I have no interest in leasing a property.”

“I can definitely report that back after I’ve shown you around.”

“But I don’t need to look around. I’m getting on the ferry in half an hour.”

“We should be quick, then.” He pulled keys from his pocket and approached the door.

“I’lllook around,” Kit said. “You can tell themI’lllease it.”

“I’m only authorised to show Miss Larkin the property,” he said with a warning glance at Kit.

Mr Greaves held the door for her, but she stayed frozen in place.

“This is weird,” PC Grainger said in a tone that made it seem he was talking to himself. “Why would they offer the place to you when it’s been closed for so long?”

“It doesn’t make any sense at all,” she agreed, catching his eye and hoping for some kind of guidance.

His shrug felt encouraging. “I’ll wait here,” he said. “Shout if there’s a problem.”

Okay, so now she was even more hesitant to go inside, but she also felt a familiar pang of curiosity and knew she’d always wonder if she didn’t find out more.

“Just a quick look,” she said, brushing past Mr Greaves as she crossed the threshold.

The room she stepped into was small, with a counter at the back and a stack of stainless-steel tables and chairs at one side. A thick layer of dust covered every surface, and there were dubious-looking stains on the pale blue walls.

“The ice cream making equipment is in the back,” Mr Greaves said, and she followed him through to another room, where large metal machines lined the walls. “They’re made to last, so the owner is convinced they’ll still work.”

Lily shook her head, unable to fully register what he was saying while her mind conjured memories of tasting ice cream directly from the machines.

“The rent will be cheap,” Mr Greaves was saying. “To compensate for the work you’ll need to do to get things up and running again. It’s mostly cosmetic. There’s also a flat upstairs.” He pointed to a flight of stairs at the back corner of the room. “I can show you up there.”

“No,” she said fiercely, causing him to stop with one foot on the first step. “I don’t understand. You need to explain.”

“The owner’s main stipulation is that the building remains an ice cream shop.”

“They want me to restore it and open it again?” she asked, needing all the clarity she could get. “As an ice cream shop?”

“Yes.”

“And I could live in the flat upstairs?”

“Yes.”

“Why?” She screwed her face up. “Why would they offer that when I didn’t ask for it? It’s a weird offer to make to a complete stranger.”

Mr Greaves nodded his agreement.

“Are they a stranger?” she asked while her chest tightened with trepidation about the answer.

“I’m not at liberty to disclose the identity of the owner,” he said.

“If I’m going to lease the shop from them, surely at some point I’ll need to at least know their name. And I think I already know it. The owner’s name is Gail Greenway, right?”

“I’m not supposed to disclose their name. But that sounds as though youareinterested in the offer.”

“No!” She shook her head vigorously. “I’m interested in knowing who owns the place and why on earth they’d offer to rent it to me.”

“If you were to take the offer, you’d need to get used to some secrecy. The owner is a very private person. You’ll only ever deal with me.”

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