The Toast of the Town (Fox & Oakby Murder Mysteries Book III)

Esther

The three women walked into the construction site, and Imogen saw a few of the workers give the Holyoakes a wave. Fiona unlocked the back door of the building, and they walked in. The ground floor of the building was divided into sections by plastic sheets, and Imogen saw stairs leading to the floor above and probably all the way to Fiona's studio. Something else caught her eyes in a corner of the building, near the large doors previously used by fire engines.

"What's that?" she asked, unable to hold back her curiosity. She squinted and studied what appeared to be a modified shipping container. "Is that what I think it is?" she gasped.

"Yes, it's Esther," Fiona said with a shy laugh.

"The Esther?!" Imogen couldn't believe her ears! "The famous car that was given to the Reverend Roland Holyoake by his best friend, Father Fitzroy? Named after Esther Spruce, Felckney's most famous amateur detective?!"

"Yes, a Jaguar XK120, fixed head coupé, black with burgundy salon." Fiona's voice rang with affection. "Overhead camshaft engine, straight-6, 160 horsepower. It's an early wedding present from Will," she added, her cheeks powdered with blush.

Imogen gawked at the artist.

"Fiona is a petrol head," Viola said warmly. "Motors love her. She can wake any engine to life."

"It got passed down to Will, because he's the oldest Holyoake, and he said I could have her. She's glorious!" Fiona exhaled. "She survived three gun fights and two crashes! And her roar, it's just....oh!" The artist's face grew dreamy.

"No one else in the family cares for it," Viola added with a shrug. "What's the point of keeping it in storage when it can be loved and taken care of?"

"She does need a lot of TLC, to be honest." Fiona threw a loving look at the container. "The Reverend Holyoake was a wizard with cylinders and pistons. He served in the 11th Armoured Division, and they called him the Cromwell Whisperer, because of his aptitude for dealing with the Cromwell tanks. Since then, poor Esther hasn't seen much appreciation."

"Oh wow," Imogen muttered. "It's like a piece of Fleckney living history. But, Fiona, I don't want to sound materialistic, but according to the papers I remember seeing in the Town Hall archive, the car is worth more than seventy thousand pounds! No wonder people think you have valuables worth stealing!"

"Well, we only have Esther," Fiona said in a small voice. "And we were assured the triple security system on the container is infallible."

"They used to think the same about the Zune," Viola muttered.

"The what?" Imogen asked.

"You're too young to remember," Viola said with a laugh. "But I think Rhys still isn't over all the money he wasted then. What's important is the question of whether someone can get to Esther. What is the lock like on the container?"

"There's a fingerprint lock," Fiona answered, "then a five digit combination, and also an electronic key. One needs to open all three to get inside."

"Well, according to popular media a fingerprint is easy to lift off any surface," Imogen said pensively. "Where is the electronic key?"

"I keep it in my purse, with my other keys," Fiona said and patted her large tote bag, decorated with a pattern of frolicking foxes and deer.

"Are you, though?" Viola asked, and Fiona hastily opened the bag and started digging in it. "Please, tell me your password on the lock isn't 1-2-3-4-5," Viola joked good-naturedly.

"No, of course not!" Fiona exclaimed, and then pulled out a large bunch of keys.

She searched through them and then exhaled a small 'oh no.'