Bea pulled into a space that was near a large timber barn, which opened into the car park. Within, two tractors?hardly in use, considering their pristine condition?were serving as perches for three stately looking peacocks, their sumptuous tail feathers cascading in a colourful effluence across the tops of cabs and down the sides of engines. Beyond the barn, another structure?this one combining both granite and timber?displayed huge oaken barrels, presumably aging the farm’s product. Rising behind this building the apple orchard grew, and it climbed the slope of a hill, row after row of trees pruned to grow like inverted pyramids, a proud display of delicate blossoms. A furrowed lane bisected the orchard. In the distance, some sort of tour seemed to be bumping along it: an open wagon pulled by a plodding draft horse.
Across the lane, a gate gave entrance into the attractions of the cider farm. These comprised a gift shop and café along with yet another gate that appeared to lead to the cider-production area, the perusal of which demanded a ticket.
Or police identification, as things turned out. Bea showed hers to a young woman behind the till in the gift shop and asked to speak to Aldara Pappas on a matter of some urgency. The girl’s silver lip ring quivered as she directed Bea to the inner workings of the farm. She said, “Watching over the mill,” by which Bea took it that the woman they were looking for could be found at…perhaps a grinding mill? What did one do with apples, anyway? And was this the time of year to be doing it?
The answers turned out to be sorting, washing, chopping, slicing, pressing, and no. The mill in question was a piece of machinery?constructed of steel and painted bright blue?attached to an enormous wooden bin by means of a trough. The machinery of the mill itself consisted of this trough, a barrel-like bath, a water source, a rather sinister-looking press not dissimilar to an enormous vise, a wide pipe, and a mysterious chamber at the top of this pipe, which at the moment was open and being seen to by two individuals. One was a man wielding various tools against the machinery that appeared to operate a series of very sharp blades. The other was a woman who seemed to be monitoring his every move. He was wearing a knitted cap that came down to his eyebrows, as well as grease-stained jeans and a blue flannel shirt. She was garbed in jeans, boots, and a thick but cozy-looking chenille sweater. She was saying, “Have a care, Rod. I don’t want you bleeding all over my blades,” to which he replied, “No worries, luv. I been looking after clobber lots more difficult ’n this lot since you was in nappies.”
“Aldara Pappas?” Bea said.
The woman turned. She was quite exotic for this part of the world, not exactly pretty but striking, with large dark eyes, hair that was thick and shiny and black, and dramatic red lipstick emphasising a sensual mouth. The rest of her was sensual as well. Curves in all the right places, as Bea knew her former husband might have said. She looked to be somewhere in her forties, if the fine lines round her eyes were anything to go by.
The woman said, “Yes,” and gave one of those woman-evaluating-the-competition sort of looks both to Bea and to DS Havers. She seemed to linger particularly on the sergeant’s hair. The colour of this was sandy, the style not so much a style as an eloquent statement about impatience: Hacked over the bathroom sink seemed to be the best description. “What can I do for you?” Aldara Pappas’s tone suggested the task was hopeless.
“A bit of conversation will do.” Bea showed her identification. She nodded to Havers to show hers as well. The sergeant didn’t look happy about doing so since this required her to conduct an archaeological excavation through her shoulder bag, seeking the leather lump that went for her wallet.
“New Scotland Yard,” Havers told Aldara Pappas. Bea watched for a reaction.
The woman’s face was still although Rod gave an appreciative whistle. “What you get up to now, luv?” he asked Aldara. “You been poisoning the customers again?”
Aldara smiled faintly and told him to carry on. “I’ll be at the house if you need me,” she said.