Contents
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Overview
DCI Olivia Bird interviews pub landlady Maddy Carter about Eden Fox’s suspected death. Maddy claims she was in bed, dismisses the art event, and questions Old Stu’s reliability. She fiercely defends her brother, Sgt Carter, yet reveals he missed work, highlighting village hostility toward Olivia and entrenched suicide assumptions.
Summary
On November 1, 2025, at The Smuggler’s Inn, DCI Olivia Bird formally interviews Maddy Carter regarding the morning Eden Fox was last seen alive. Maddy says she was likely still in bed at dawn, noting her pub opens midmorning and that business is slow off-season. She didn’t attend Eden’s exhibition, dismissing it as not her interest.
Olivia asks about Old Stu. Maddy describes him as a sunrise walker and surfer who loves his dogs but suggests age makes his memory unreliable. The implication challenges any account Old Stu may have given about the cliff incident.
The conversation shifts to Sgt Carter. Maddy insists questions should go directly to him and praises his character and vocation. Olivia counters that Sgt Carter didn’t report for duty, prompting Maddy’s concern and renewed defense of her brother.
Tension rises as Maddy criticizes Olivia’s presence in Hope Falls, arguing the village doesn’t need an outsider and framing Eden’s fall as just another suicide. Despite hostility, Olivia maintains professionalism, closing an exchange that underscores local resistance and the troubling fact of Sgt Carter’s unexplained absence.
Who Appears
- DCI Olivia BirdLead interviewer; probes Maddy’s alibi, Old Stu’s reliability, and reveals Sgt Carter missed work.
- Maddy CarterLandlady and Sgt Carter’s sister; claims she was in bed, defends her brother, hostile toward Olivia.
- Sgt CarterLocal officer discussed; defended by Maddy, notably failed to show up for work.
- Old StuVillager referenced; sunrise walker whose memory Maddy portrays as unreliable.
- Eden FoxSubject of the inquiry; last seen alive before an apparent cliff fall.