Chapter 58

Elizabeth returns to Willows and sits with Penny, while John remains in his usual chair. Elizabeth tells Penny about the chaos surrounding the graveyard dig and assumes John has already given Penny the details.

Elizabeth lays out the two murders as the club currently understands them: Tony Curran was bludgeoned, while Ian Ventham died almost immediately after being injected with a large dose of fentanyl. Because John is a former vet, Elizabeth asks how accessible fentanyl would be. John explains that it would be difficult but possible to obtain through pharmacies, a break-in, or the dark web.

John’s mention of the dark web leads Elizabeth to consider whether computer access might matter to the investigation. Elizabeth then returns to the central problem: if Ventham died seconds after being injected, the killer must have been among the people present that morning. Ibrahim’s spreadsheet of thirty names becomes the starting point for narrowing the suspects.

Elizabeth is struck by sadness at Penny’s condition and imagines the life she can no longer share with her friend. In that moment, John reveals that Ibrahim visits Penny every day, bringing a magazine, solving bridge puzzles aloud with her, and kissing her hand before leaving. John also says Ron never visits, though Elizabeth accepts that such visits are not for everyone.

Elizabeth refocuses on motive. She asks who would want Ian Ventham dead at the exact moment digging was about to begin, and reframes the question as who would lose something if the development went ahead. Before leaving, she notes that Bernard Cottle may have a hidden motive connected to the development.