The hallway had been transformed into a reception, and Kim immediately understood why it had been so easy to walk in the door. The reception desk was behind a sheet of glass with a grid of holes to speak through.
There were three gold velvet tub chairs around a smoked glass coffee table to her right. The walls were painted white but with a hint of something that took away the starkness of the colour. Wildlife prints covered one wall.
A solid oak door stood to the left, and Kim was willing to bet that one was locked.
This was as far as you went without permission.
A girl dressed in a black polo shirt and black trousers appeared carrying a mug of something hot. Her glossy blonde hair hung down to the middle of her arm.
She offered an open smile. ‘Hello there. Welcome to Change. How can I help?’
She set the mug down, and Kim got a whiff of something lemony.
‘May we speak with Mr or Mrs Gardner?’
‘Do you have an appointment?’ she asked pleasantly.
Kim shook her head.
‘May I ask what it’s about?’
‘An active murder investigation,’ Kim said, holding up her ID and preparing to do battle again.
‘Ooh, serious stuff,’ she said, widening her eyes. ‘Let me check if they’re free.’
The girl took a portable phone to the edge of the space and turned away from them. The holes in the glass partition didn’t afford them any opportunity to listen in.
She turned back.
‘Yes, they’re free. Well, budget meeting but who doesn’t mind an excuse to postpone those?’ she said, pulling a face. ‘Please come through.’
A buzzer sounded on the door to the left.
‘I’m Jessica, and I’ll take you to their office.’
Kim followed her through the door along a brightly lit corridor, painted the same shade of white as reception but with summer prints on the wall.
‘Just here,’ she said, standing before another door marked ‘Private’.
She tapped lightly before entering.
The door opened into one of the most impressive spaces Kim had ever seen.
The room was blessed with high ceilings and tall windows. An antique desk was placed before each window and Kim could see why. The view of the back garden area was stunning. Cherry trees and coloured laburnums intertwined with each other. Daisies and fuchsia plants fought each other at low level whileSalixbushes and delicate acers popped up all over the place. Beyond the explosion of flowers was a view of the rolling countryside.
Kim brought her attention back inside the room. A round meeting table had three people sitting around it.
She knew she was looking at Celia and Victor Gardner and a young man, early twenties, also wearing the uniform of all black.
‘Please come in, officer,’ the woman said, standing and taking off her glasses.
Victor Gardner smiled in her direction, and Kim was struck by the handsomeness of the couple. She guessed them to be mid-forties.
‘My husband, Victor, and my son, Eric,’ she said, nodding towards the other person at the table.
She motioned to the files and papers on the desk. ‘Post-audit accounts,’ she said, rolling her eyes.
Jessica coughed from the doorway.