The Murder Suite: Book One - The Audrey Murders by Leonie Mateer Page A

completely disappeared.
    Sometimes local guys would stop by the chalets and ask if they could go pig hunting up her mountain.  Lately she had used the excuse that her guests would be disturbed by the gunshots.  She hoped the rain would put off any shooters – at least for a week or so.
    The phone rang.  It was Pearl. 
    “Just checking all is OK with you up there” she said. 
    “Yes fine” Audrey said.  “The guests have all checked in.  I just hope we don’t lose the power like last time,” she said, thinking it best to be friendly. 
    “Better keep them inside,” said Pearl. “Looks as though we are getting a lot of slips on the road. We have one down here at the harbor. The digger is on its way.   They will never find that Blackmore guy now. The harbor is brown and murky.  Maybe he will surface after the floods,” she rambled on. 
    “Hope so” said Audrey wondering if Pearl suspected anything. Then she realized Pearl thrived on adversity and loved a good mystery.  Once she got her teeth into something you couldn’t pry her away from it.   Audrey hoped this flood would give her something else to concentrate on. 
    “Gotta go,” said Audrey.  “Thanks for checking on us, at least we still have our phones”. 
    For some reason the locals used their home phones more than their cell phones.  Mobile phones in New Zealand were expensive and Audrey hated texting so she seldom used it.  Usually in the floods, the phone lines went out with the power lines.  If you didn’t charge your mobile phone you were out of luck trying to communicate. 
    Audrey always made sure she had batteries for the portable boom box so she could get news from the local radio stations.   She realized she should check the guests had enough candles and matches in case the power went out soon.   She made her way out into the blustery wind and pouring rain to do her last minute checks. 
     
     
    C H A P T E R   3 5
     
    The rain finally stopped.  The sun shone over the drenched farmland as the waters subsided and green grass began to surface through brown muddy waters.  Residents opened their doors to a new day with rakes, shovels and hoses in hand.  It was a community effort cleaning up after a flood.  Chain saws buzzed in the distance as trees were removed from blocks paths and roadways.  Roadside workers went from mud slip to mud slip clearing away the damage so the roads could open again.  Farmers replaced fallen fences and cleared out waterways.  The town of Kaeo mopped the muddy floors and hosed down their walkways.  By the afternoon everything was pretty much back to normal.  Low lying areas still had pools of muddy water but roads were clear and businesses were open to all.   The furniture truck was on its way back to Kaeo having spent the night in Kerikeri along with Maria and the boys. 
    The police house didn’t get any water damage as the water just reached the top of the foundation and didn’t go into the house.  Thanks to the sand bags placed at all the doors. 
    Constable Driver hadn’t got much sleep so decided to take a nap while waiting for the family to arrive.  It had been a tough night.   He was called to a number of burglaries. It seemed as though the local lads took advantage of the flood to break into quite a few empty houses.  Driver had been swamped in paperwork all morning.   He needed some time out.  He walked over the old sofa in his office.  It has been his refuge during long nights.  As he stretched out and grabbed a cushion for his head he heard the door of the police station open.  Damn! What now?
    “Anyone here?” He heard a gruff voice calling out. “Hey Constable, you in here?” Driver got up and walked out into the lobby.  He could smell Smithy before he saw him.
    Smithy was not much of a bather.  By the looks of him, he had slept in the same clothes for some time.  Driver knew he lived alone with just his old dog for