Chapter 21

Bogdan Jankowski sits on Ian Ventham’s patio, thinking through Tony Curran’s murder and possible suspects. Bogdan is not surprised by death; memories of his father’s death near Krakow and his mother’s fatal stroke have left him with a fatalistic view that something always comes for everyone.

As Bogdan looks over Ian’s formal garden, he reflects on his work for Ian: tiling the pool, painting the bridge, laying the patio, and building parts of the house. Ian has now asked Bogdan to oversee the Woodlands development in Tony’s place. Bogdan values the challenge more than the money and likes working around the village.

Father Matthew Mackie arrives at Ian’s house for a planned meeting, and Bogdan answers the door. Mackie hopes to persuade Ian not to move the Garden of Eternal Rest, the old graveyard that stands in the way of the development. Ian listens politely but privately congratulates himself on outmaneuvering obstacles, including the council ruling, Karen Playfair, and Gordon Playfair’s land.

Mackie argues that Ian has a moral duty to leave the graves untouched, even if there is no legal barrier. Ian insists the bodies will be moved with care, though Ian knows the contract has gone not to experienced specialists but to Angels in Transit, a cheap company Ian set up with a funeral director and Sue Banbury. Mackie warns that the graves will contain scattered old bones that must be found, recorded, and respected by law.

Ian refuses to change course and dismisses Mackie’s religious and moral objections, saying he is legally allowed to move the cemetery and will do so. Mackie promises to make the process as difficult as possible, but Ian lists many other development problems and treats the priest as just another obstacle. When Mackie asks Bogdan whether disturbing the dead will bring penance, Bogdan says God judges everything, but “bones is bones.”