Tup and Stern and the Skipping Rope Scandal Tupin's Stone Mystery.
Written by S.
D.
Hudson Performed by Stephanie Poppins.
Chapter 7 Closing the door to room 201,
Tup and Stern picked up the book she'd temporarily discarded in favour of the desperate needs of a particularly sensitive pupil.
She was finding less and less time now the girls had cottoned on to the fact they could get out of lessons if they pleaded anxiety to Miss Weed.
The woman seemed to make it a full-time job,
Redirecting them to Tuppence's room.
All in the guise of pupil support,
Of course.
But in reality,
She was just desperate to keep Tuppence out of the way.
Since the post-mortem findings,
The woman was everywhere.
Tuppence wanted to tell Boners she was a plant from the police.
She had try hard on speed dial and she seemed to be very excited.
But he wouldn't believe her.
No doubt she's come up with some crackpot conclusion,
Thought Tuppence.
But what did this matter?
Tuppence had conclusions of her own to make once she collated all the facts.
She read and re-read the yellow page of her book.
To extract true lavender essential oil,
You must use a specialised steam distillation kit.
Steam passes through the harvested flowers to separate the pure oils from the water.
Pure lavender oil depresses the central nervous system when ingested.
And concentrated oil contains active compounds that are toxic and heavily sedating.
Classic neurological symptoms of lavender oil poisoning.
Are severe drowsiness,
Dizziness and motor impairment.
The victim may become incapacitated or confused by a swallowed substance.
That would explain the murderer's ability to take down such a huge lump.
As Malcolm Marshall,
Thought Tuppence.
But what was the motive?
And where did the oil come from?
The science department.
They certainly had the equipment to produce such,
But their team was very tight.
Three staff who took their jobs very seriously from what she knew of them.
They made biology an art form.
Somehow she couldn't see it.
Tup and stood up.
She must go to the allotment.
They grew all their open plants for their experiments there.
And she'd speak to Bart.
Wasn't he in the allotments the day before?
Plus,
She had to catch up with him about his interview.
With Alfred the Caretaker.
Tup and Smet barred on the way back to the main building.
They'd left the teaching block at different times but found each other outside as the rest of the staff made their way to the staff room for tea and cake.
Martin Bonus was good like that.
Staff were always treated well at St Ethelberg's.
I've got loads to tell you about Bart.
Up and said as soon as she saw him I hope you've got loads to tell me I couldn't find you anywhere to catch up when I got back from the village yesterday.
I was otherwise indisposed.
Teaching,
Then interviewing,
Remember?
Right Tuppence watched Bart's cheeks redden.
Oh no,
Don't tell me you got lost in the caretaker's cupboard?
Tup and Stern,
I was taking detailed notes.
I bet you were.
So?
You show me yours and I'll show you mine.
Up and sighed.
She wasn't really in the mood for any more games,
And seeing her expression drop,
Bart changed his tone.
Okay then,
Let's get serious.
What did the post-mortem say?
Walk and talk,
Said Tuppence.
We'll go to the allotment.
I've got free time next,
You.
Yeah,
Let's do this.
They hurried around the side of the building.
Across the gravel path and straight to where the large allotment sat.
You were hard at work yesterday,
Bart.
Did you notice anything?
Her bed was trampled in places like someone wasn't looking what they were doing.
But I put that down to the kids.
Hmm.
Stop being elusive,
T.
What are you getting at?
Is there any lavender grown here?
Yeah,
That seemed to get the worst of it.
Bart pointed to the purple clumps,
Torn out and left discarded.
That's what I'm getting at,
" Tubman said.
She crouched over the flattened stalks,
Turning a snapped stem between her fingers as though it might just confess something.
It's usually a fox when this happens.
I didn't think much of it,
" said Bart.
A fox with size 11's?
Tea pointed to the boot print,
Pressed into the soft earth beside the lavender clumps.
Foxes don't wear Dr.
Martin's part.
For a moment,
Neither of them spoke.
It was very quiet outside.
The kind of quiet that settled over a place when something had happened in it.
It must have been at night,
" Bart said.
And annoyingly this is the one patch of ground I can't see from my window,
" said Tuppence.
She stood and turned towards the school building,
Looming beyond the fence.
Its long back wall,
Its rows of dark windows.
She'd watched the comings and goings in the main building for weeks now.
From it,
She could see the lights clicking on and off.
The front gate.
Far in the distance,
The teacher's block and the playing field.
But this narrow strip tucked round the side,
Screened by a hedge,
Someone had clearly let grow too long.
This narrow allotment.
Was a blind spot.
Whoever walked through that lavender had known it was a blind spot.
Whoever collected the lavender had known it was a blind spot.
Lavender was what the killer used to disable Malcolm Marshall,
She said slowly.
Whoever collected this plant has blood on his hands.
I need to speak to Martin Boners.
But what about my interview with Alfred?
Don't you want to hear about that?
Tuppence looked very serious.
We'll have to catch up with that later.
Anyway,
It looks like you got all the information you needed,
Maybe even a little more.
Bart smiled.
I'll see you tonight and I can tell you everything then.
Nothing waits for Martin Bonus.
Don't I know it?
" said Tuppence.
With a smile on her face.
It was getting late when the lessons were over and Tuppence knocked on the door of Martin Bonas's apartment.
He's been busy up until now,
But she must speak to him before light's out.
Opening the door in something Sherlock Holmes would wear.
Martin looked down on the prettiest teacher in the block.
Tuppence,
Meanwhile,
Thought she had never seen him look so handsome.
That was her first mistake.
The second was watching Miss Weed emerge from behind his sofa.
She did not look at Tuppence immediately.
Tuppence noted that.
And the curtains were closed,
She noticed that too.
There's been some developments,
" she said,
Matter-of-factly.
Can we discuss it in private,
Please,
Martin?
She waited.
She would not be put off,
Especially by a scrawny,
Ugly snake like Alice Weed.
And when the smug woman left,
Tuppence made sure to sit in exactly the same spot she had.
Where the light from the lamp did its best work.
She looked around.
There were two glasses on the table.
Then she spotted the bottle of Perrier.
Okay.
Brandy Tuppence up and smiled.
This was more like it.
Maybe things were looking up after all.
Don't mind if I do.
As Martin busied himself with a glass decanter,
Tuppence looked around.
This was a large apartment with tall ceilings and a stag's head above the mantelpiece.
But it felt very homely.
There was a roaring fire and the walls were lined floor to ceiling with old books,
Their spines cracked and gilt-lettered,
Arranged with a precision that suggested a man who trusted order more than he trusted people.
Bringing the glasses over,
He sat opposite her,
Close enough that when he leaned forward to hand Tubman's her glass,
She caught the scent of cedar wood and old paper.
She filed this away for later.
She wasn't sure in which drawer.
But tuppence like cedar wood and old paper.
You read all these then?
" she asked,
Gesturing to the shelves.
Twice,
Some of them.
Tubman sat upright and took a long sip.
Well,
I'll get to it.
The lavender plot on the allotments,
She said as if he had any idea what she was talking about.
I saw the postmortem.
They used lavender to poison Malcolm before strangling him.
Lavender oil!
Whoever did it chose the one spot on this entire site no one can see to pick their poison.
Martin Bonis stared at her as he rubbed his thumbs together.
I might be able to help with that.
He said with a smile,
As though he'd been waiting for her to ask.
I hear everyone who leaves this building.
Really?
Tuppence was getting excited.
The main door has an alarm wired through to this flat.
It lights up every time it opens and every time it shuts.
There's no other night security,
So the governors gave me this flat and made me the alarm.
Martin offered a faint dry smile.
Tuppence,
Meanwhile,
Was very still.
So if someone left the building,
You'd have heard it?
I would.
His eyes held hers.
And I didn't.
Which means.
.
.
Tuffman said slowly,
Whoever trampled that lavender bed doesn't live in the main building at all.
Which rather narrows things down.
The caretaker.
All the kitchen staff.
Neither of them said anything for a moment.
Then Martin offered,
Top up.
For further discussion of the case.
And lifting her glass,
Tuffence agreed.
Yes,
Martin.
For further discussion.
Of the case.
