Bewildered by Jake’s behaviour at the café, the two women decided to proceed with their investigation. With this in mind, Kate drove over to Ebberston and pulled over to consult her notes and sat-nav, into which she typed a postcode and drove to the house of a certain Councillor Mrs Hodges. They had planned to catch her with her husband but were thwarted because he was still at work in York.
A stout woman with a florid complexion, Mrs Hodges allowed them into her house with an edginess that aroused suspicion from the start. After a brief explanation of the reason for their visit, Kate plunged straight into the accusations.
“We have reason to believe that there’s a conspiracy among parish councillors to p*****t the course of justice. My client has been wrongfully arrested, and we intend t
