#promo #extract Dark Days at the Beach Hotel by Francesca Capaldi
Dark Days at the Beach Hotel
by Francesca Capaldi
Can Helen save the hotel… and her reputation?
Helen Bygrove is managing the hotel, now that her husband has been conscripted. Against all expectations, Helen and her team are doing marvellously, despite the shortages brought by war. Even the exacting Lady Blackmore agrees. But then the calm is shattered when poison pen letters are sent to prominent townsfolk and Helen finds herself the target of a police investigation. Is someone trying to ruin Helen, and the Beach Hotel? And can she rely on the handsome but taciturn Inspector Toshack to help her? When her husband, Douglas, is invalided out of the war he is determined to take back control of the hotel and things go from bad to worse.
How can she ever escape his bullying? Is she a fool to hope that she may have a second chance at love?
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Book Extract from Dark Days at the Beach Hotel
Detective Inspector Toshack, recently invalided out of the army, is questioning Helen Bygrove, manageress of the Beach Hotel since her bullying husband was conscripted. He wants more information about the writing samples submitted by her staff, after libellous letters have been sent to local people.
‘I have a list here of the names of those who submitted samples. Could you please confirm that all staff members have been included?’
She took the list from him as he leaned over with it. ‘They should be. I made sure that even the part-timers not due in came to write a sample. Apart from Mr Watkins.’
‘I’d appreciate it if you checked it anyway.’
She kept her impatient sigh to herself. ‘Very well.’ The names weren’t in any kind of order, which didn’t help, but she took a pencil and ticked them off, one by one, as she considered each category of staff. ‘Yes, all present and correct.’
‘Would you write next to each what their role in the hotel is?’
About to question the reason once more, she decided against it. The quicker she fulfilled his requests, the quicker she could be rid of him. She took her fountain pen this time to complete the task, which took some minutes.
‘There you are, Inspector. All done.’ She handed the sheet back.
‘Thank you.’ He turned slightly awkwardly on the chair, before pushing himself up. ‘I’ll leave you in peace now.’
Helen almost fancied that he smiled slightly as he said this, but she couldn’t be sure. It could be a grimace from the pain in his leg.
He was about to walk away when there was an urgent knock on the door.
She called, ‘Enter,’ only to be faced with an alarmed Gertie.
‘Mrs Bygrove, Miss Harvey is in the foyer, causing a stink. Good job you’re still ’ere, Inspector.’
‘It’s that bad?’ said Helen.
‘She says she’s received another anonymous letter, something about Fanny and this awful ’otel. ’Er words.’
‘Fanny?’
‘Edie’s doing her best trying to calm things down, but lots of people are in the foyer listening.’
Helen rose and followed Gertie out into the narrow passageway, turning left onto the main staff corridor, which led to the door into the foyer. The inspector followed on. Sure enough, Miss Harvey was in the foyer, shouting and waving pieces of paper around. Several patrons, presumably those leaving the dining room after lunch, were gathered, wide-eyed, listening.
‘Please, Miss Harvey, can’t you see that this is just someone trying to cause trouble?’ said Edie, standing in front of the desk. ‘Why would anyone from here write these letters about us?’
‘To throw people off the scent, that’s why!’
Inspector Toshack went ahead. ‘Miss Harvey, I would advise you to calm down. This is not the way to deal with the situation. You should have brought the letter down to the police station.’
‘I did that with the first one, as did others, and what’s happened? Nothing! I’m not having some wanton piece writing to insult me.’ She lifted up one of the sheets. ‘Fanny the chambermaid is a dirty disgusting slut, with her bastard child – ’
Several onlookers gasped, including Lady Blackmore and Cecelia.
‘That’s right, that’s what it says. And then it goes on to say, And you are just as bad if you continue to patronise the hotel. No wonder you remain unwed, you old cow.’
‘That is enough, Miss Harvey. Let me have that.’ Inspector Toshack snatched the letter from her hand, folded it and put it in his coat pocket. ‘We don’t need to upset all and sundry now, do we? And Miss Moore may have a point. Why would someone from here write about their own hotel?’
He was sticking up for them now? Helen couldn’t make the man out. Not five minutes ago he’d seemed determined to prove it was someone from here writing the letters.
‘Like I said, it’s a red herring.’ Miss Harvey pinched her lips together. ‘And they’re using this excuse to call me horrible names, and to say that I’m a degenerate because I come to a place where people like, like… certain women, who are no better than trollops, are sheltered.’
Major Thomas, stepped forward from the group looking on. ‘I think you need evidence before you start bandying around these accusations, madam. I’ve lived in this hotel a good number of years now, and I’ve never seen any evidence of underhand activity. And who exactly is supposed to be the target of this letter? I’m a little confused. Is it you, or those in the hotel?’
‘Thank you, Major,’ said Toshack, ‘But I’ll handle this.’
The major bowed his head in deference, then stepped back.
‘It is not for you to decide who is guilty, Miss Harvey. We will gather evidence at the police station.’
Author Bio –
Francesca has enjoyed writing since she was a child, largely influenced by a Welsh mother who was good at improvised story telling.
Writing under both her maiden name, Francesca Capaldi, and her married name, Francesca Burgess, she is the author of historical novels, short stories and several pocket novels. She is a member of the Romantic Novelists’ Association and the Society of Women Writers and Journalists.
The first novel in the Wartime in the Valleys series, Heartbreak in the Valleys, was shortlisted for the Romantic Novelists’ Association Historical Award 2021. Both the Valleys series and the Beach Hotel series are published by Hera Books.
Francesca was born and brought up on the Sussex coast, but currently lives in Kent with her family and a cat called Lando Calrission.
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