Thursday Murder Club, #1
The Thursday Murder Club
by Richard Osman
Contents
Chapter 83
Overview
Bernard Cottle secretly enters the allotment shed at night and finds a spade, confirming that Bernard is connected to something hidden and troubling. Bernard’s physical weakness prevents Bernard from acting, leaving Bernard helpless and emotionally overwhelmed.
The chapter shifts Bernard from a peripheral figure with a mysterious graveyard secret into someone burdened by guilt. Bernard’s tears suggest that whatever happened in the past still has immediate consequences for the murders and buried evidence.
Summary
Late at night, Bernard Cottle makes his way quietly up the uneven path to the Coopers Chase allotments. Bernard uses a torch aimed at the ground so Bernard can see without attracting attention, even though Bernard assumes the other residents are asleep.
Bernard reaches the shared allotment shed and opens its cheap padlock with his wife’s hatpin. Inside are the residents’ chairs, kettle, gardening supplies, and the posted rules of the Coopers Chase Allotment Users Association.
Bernard finds the spade against the back wall and immediately understands what Bernard is facing. Bernard tries to lift it, but the weight defeats Bernard, forcing Bernard to confront how weak Bernard has become.
Because Bernard cannot manage the spade, digging is impossible, and Bernard has no clear idea who could help or understand. Bernard sits in a folding chair and weeps over what Bernard has done.
Who Appears
- Bernard CottleSecretly enters the allotment shed, finds a spade, and breaks down over his guilt.