by Helen Phifer
‘It’s awful, what a shame. He was only a young lad, there is some messed up stuff going on in this town. I bet you’re glad that you don’t have to work it all.’
Annie looked down at her bright yellow stab vest and laughed. ‘How do you figure that one out? I transfer to the Lakes to get away from all of this and by my second week I’m knee-deep in another bloody murder case. What a nightmare this is turning into.’
‘Gawd Annie, what is it with you and mad axe men, you attract them like flies to shit.’
Annie bent her head towards Sally, ‘I honestly don’t know but I swear this is as involved as I get with this one. Father John is a lovely man and I’ll help him as much as I can but I’m keeping well away from anything remotely dangerous.’ She began to walk towards the panda car she’d parked up hours ago, then turned to Sally. ‘Did you smell that awful smell before? Like rotten veg or a dead animal.’
Sally shook her head. ‘Nope, nothing, were you near a sewer drain or something? It’s not coming from the house is it, apparently it’s really bad inside.’
‘No I don’t think so, the windows and doors are shut, it can’t come from in there and it was near to the church, right where I stepped out of the door.’
‘Must be an old drain, this weather does nothing to improve the smell.’
Annie smiled and continued walking up the street to the panda car. She’d forgotten all about the terrible smell in her house that kept coming and going and now she didn’t know if she wanted to go home in case it was still there. She could sense something but had no idea what it was, all she knew was that it was bad. She got into the car and started the engine, as she pulled her seat belt across she glanced in the rear view mirror and screamed. The dead kid was sitting directly behind her, the air in the car crackled it was so cold. The girl lifted a finger to her lips to shush Annie and then she whispered, ‘Please don’t make a noise, he will hear you and know I’m here. I’m not allowed to talk to you but I need you to help me. I don’t want my brother to kill anyone else, but I can’t do anything to stop him. I’m stuck here and have been since the day that I died.’
‘Who’s your brother and why are you stuck here?’
The girl faded into thin air but her voice whispered directly into Annie’s ear, freezing the tiny hairs inside, ‘Sean Wood is my brother’s name and I’m Sophie. The shadow man won’t let me leave and you will know when he’s around because he smells really bad. I have to go, he’s coming.’
And she was gone, leaving behind a trail of frost on the inside of the window next to where she had been sitting. Annie was shaking, who or what the fuck was the shadow man? She turned on the engine, wanting to get far away from the church before he put in an appearance. She drove home and parked the panda car outside her house. Well if the neighbours hadn’t figured out she was a copper they would now. Still it should make them all feel safe; she couldn’t help but smile – if only they knew that she was actually a bloody liability. She got out of the car and went into her house, finally booking off duty with the control centre. She stripped her body armour off in the hall then opened the small wall safe she had in the hall cupboard and locked her radio in there. She sniffed the air; the house didn’t smell of anything bad tonight just the faint aroma from the various air fresheners she had dotted about the place. She took her phone out to ring Will, there was no reply. She needed to tell him about Sean Wood, there wasn’t anyone else she could tell. They would want to know how she had come by this information and what was she going to say, that a dead nine year old girl told her in the back of a police car? She would definitely be detained and taken up to the hospital for a mental health assessment. Poor Annie it finally got too much for her is what they would be saying at work. She had no idea who this Sean Wood could be, she needed more than a name. If she could find out more about Sophie then that could help. She tried Will’s phone again, still no answer so she left him a voicemail and tried to sound relatively sane while she spoke. There was nothing else she could do except have a cold shower and make herself some tea, read for a bit and try and get some sleep.
Chapter 28
Annie checked her reflection in the mirror then walked to the door of the women’s locker room, turned around and then checked it again. Her stomach was churning and she didn’t know if it was nerves or hunger. She hadn’t eaten all day because she felt nervous so it was probably a bit of both. She was looking forward to seeing Tom and Lily but she hated social events, they were always low on her list of priorities. Her plan was to show her face and then sneak away after a couple of hours, she didn’t intend on staying long but she didn’t want Lily to think she was rude after she had been so kind to her. Cathy walked out of the inspector’s office looking very glamorous; she took one look at Annie then laughed. ‘Are you going to a barbeque at Tom and Lily’s by any chance?’
‘Yes, is that okay?’
‘Of course it is you daft bugger, where do you think I’m heading off to? Please can I have a lift and then I can get drunk and forget about my own crappy life for a couple of hours.’
Annie laughed. ‘Yes of course you can, it will save me the embarrassment of having to walk in on my own looking like a fish out of water.’
They left the station and got into Annie’s car. It was a beautiful evening, the air was still warm and it was perfect. They chatted about the weather, Laura’s murder and everything apart from Will.
‘How do you know them?’
‘Oh I only just met them, the first day I started working here and we just hit it off, they seem like such a nice couple. You wouldn’t think they were well off.’
‘Apart from the huge boat and the mansion on the Lakeside you wouldn’t know at all.’
They both laughed. ‘They are a really nice couple and very supportive of the police. I’m surprised you haven’t met them before if you have been going out with Will.’
Annie turned to ask her what she meant when Cathy shouted, ‘Next right, sorry I forgot that you haven’t been here before.’
Annie made a sharp turn and drove through a pair of huge metal gates; the drive was narrow to begin with, evergreen rhodendron bushes on either side, but then it opened onto one of the most breathtaking houses she had ever seen. It was huge, not as big as the mansion she had managed to burn down last year but it was close. Built from slate and limestone with the render in between whitewashed, it had a huge set of steps leading to the front door which were flanked on either side by very realistic stone lions. The trees were lit up by hundreds of fairy lights and bunting was strung from tree to tree. She parked her Mini in a tiny space next to a huge Mercedes and didn’t realise her mouth was open until Cathy began to laugh.
‘Not bad eh? Now who lives in a house like this?’
Annie smiled, ‘Oh wow can you imagine? It’s beautiful.’
Cathy jumped out of the car, ‘Come on I’m thirsty, let’s get this party started.’
Annie followed her. She didn’t go near the front of the house but followed the strings of bunting around the path which led to the back. As they rounded the corner the smoky smell of barbeque coals wafted around to meet them, whatever it was Tom was cooking it smelled good and her stomach rumbled. There were already at least twenty people congregating around the huge drinks table that held every bottle Annie could name, along with a fridge full of soft drinks and lager and a separate one filled with wine.
‘Bingo, we’re in luck, they haven’t drunk everything in sight yet.’
Annie followed Cathy towards the bar, still in shock at how beautiful the house and gardens were. A hand touched her arm and she turned to see Lily, who looked stunning. She hugged Annie fiercely and whispered in her ear, ‘Remember you are just as good as anyone here and you look gorgeous.’
Annie felt her cheeks begin to burn and hugged Lily back, ‘Thank you, you look amazing Lily.’
‘Thanks Annie, welcome to our home.’ She waited until Cathy had poured two glasses of wine and passed one to Annie. ‘Come and
say hi to Tom, he’s been telling everyone about you. To be honest I think he may have a bit of a crush on you so just slap him if he gets too much.’
Annie who had just taken a huge gulp of the crisp, cold wine spluttered all over. Lily winked at her and led her by the hand through the crowd of people to the biggest barbeque she had ever seen, where Tom was proudly flipping burgers.
He turned to see them both and grinned; putting down his fork he stepped towards Annie and hugged her. ‘I’m so glad you could make it, you can rescue us from the boring I’m-so-rich brigade. When they start the annual I’m richer than you are competition in approximately an hour’s time.’
‘Well I can try but I have no idea what I could do to top that.’
Lily pulled her hand, ‘Come on, I’ve saved the best table for us, Tom’s son should be here soon, he’s promised me faithfully that he’ll be here regardless of what’s happening at his work.’
They sat down and Cathy wandered over to join them with a bottle of wine in one hand and a glass in the other. Annie sat and listened as Lily chattered on, telling her a condensed biography of each person present. She sipped her wine slowly, wanting to be able to drive home. She had nowhere to go if she got drunk and didn’t fancy sleeping in her car. An hour later when the food was being served and the wine was flowing freely, Lily screeched and then stood up. She ran towards the side of the house, excited to see whoever it was that had just arrived. Annie turned to speak to Cathy about how amazing it all was when she was interrupted by Lily; she turned to see Will standing next to her, grinning.
‘Well fancy seeing you here of all places, it didn’t take you long to get in with the locals.’
He winked at Annie and Lily squealed with delight, ‘Eek, tell me you two know each other but in case you don’t, Annie this is Tom’s son Will.’
Annie felt her cheeks begin to burn, she wanted the floor to open up and swallow her whole, what an idiot. Why had she not figured out who Tom’s son was, Will was practically the model of his dad. Annie smiled at Lily, ‘Yes we do know each other, quite well. Isn’t it a small world?’ She was trying her best to keep her composure but it was increasingly difficult and it made her realise just how little she knew about the man who had stolen and then broken her heart.
Cathy began clapping and chuckling to herself, ‘Well bugger me, if it isn’t the lovers reunited.’
Annie glared at her but she was too busy laughing at her own joke, which was fuelled by her fourth glass of wine.
Lily began to drag Will away, ‘We’ll be back in a minute; I just have to show Tom that Will made it away from his desk.’
Annie stared after them, horrified. She looked across at Cathy,
‘Sorry kid but I didn’t want to ruin the surprise, I realised that you had no idea and thought it might make you turn around and drive straight home if I told you.’
‘I feel like a complete fool, how embarrassing. I had no idea. I really should get going.’
She stood up to leave and Cathy shook her head, ‘You can’t leave now, he’s only just arrived. This whole thing was probably done to set the pair of you up.’
Annie turned to see Will, who was being kissed rather enthusiastically on the cheek by the wealthy, skinny daughter of one of Tom’s friends and that was it, she couldn’t take it anymore. It wasn’t jealousy, it was humiliation. She would never fit in here in a million years. Tom was laughing at something Will had said and Annie began walking back the way she had come with her head down, she had to get out of there. Go home to her modest house, sink a bottle of wine and cry herself to sleep. She almost made it to her car when footsteps came running up behind her and she smelled Will’s aftershave before he gently placed his hand on her shoulder to turn her around.
‘You can’t leave now; I’ve only just got here.’
She shrugged his hand away, ‘I’m sorry, did you think I was here to see you. I had no idea you were coming or I wouldn’t have bothered.’ She pulled her car key from her pocket and pressed the button to release the lock. ‘Annie please don’t go, I want you to stay. It’s so nice to see you; I miss you more than words can say.’
She shook her head and got into the car, slamming the door but putting the window down enough to speak to him. ‘I came because Lily and Tom have been so nice to me; I had no idea they were your parents. Six months I lived with you and you never thought to tell me anything about your dad. Instead you’ve let me make a complete fool of myself. I’m going home Will, enjoy the rest of your night. You were coming here without me anyway so it doesn’t make the slightest difference whether I’m here or not.’
She started the engine and began to reverse. Will shook his head and stood behind the car until she had to slam the brakes on.
‘Move Will, I want to go home.’
‘I don’t want to move, why are you so pissed off? Because I never told you my dad was loaded. What would you have said if I’d told you, it isn’t important and it has nothing to do with you and me so what’s the big deal?’
She couldn’t answer him truthfully because she didn’t really know what was wrong with her; apart from the fact that she needed to go home and cry all over the place like a right girl. ‘Nothing’s wrong, it just proves that you and me are not cut out to be together. There’s no trust and I’ll never be the girl you want me to be.’
Defeated, he stepped to one side to let her leave. He lifted his sleeve to wipe at the corner of his eye, ‘But you are already the girl I want you to be; I just want you Annie Graham.’ He whispered it after her, watching her leave, then he turned to face Lily who was watching with her hand over her mouth.
‘Oh Will, I’m so sorry, I shouldn’t have interfered.’
He walked towards her and wrapped his arm around her shoulders. ‘Don’t be daft Lily; it’s me who has messed this up beyond belief. Thank you for trying and she isn’t mad at you, she’s mad at me. Last year she went through a really tough time after her husband tried to kill her. Then she managed to get kidnapped by the man who killed those girls last year and he tried to kill her.’
Lily squeezed his hand, ‘Dear God Will, poor Annie! But I don’t understand, why is she so angry with you?’
Will felt his cheeks begin to burn. ‘Because I messed up a couple of weeks ago and ended up sleeping next to one of my work colleagues on the sofa. Annie walked in to find the pair of us nearly naked. I swear I never did anything, I wouldn’t have, but I’ve totally fucked it all up Lil.’
She hugged him. ‘You need to sort this out, it’s pretty obvious how much she loves you and I’ve never seen you act this way over a woman so I think it’s safe to say that she’s the one, Will. Come and have a drink, something to eat and talk to your dad. Then tomorrow you are going to send her the most exquisite red roses and declare your undying love for her. She needs you but more importantly I think that you need her even more.’
Lily led Will back around to the rear garden where the laughter was louder and the smell of food was too much to bear. He sat down next to Cathy who was working her way through a plate full of food.
‘Well, well you’re not doing a very good job at getting back into our Annie’s good books are you? Did you really not tell her about all this and that one day you’ll be a millionaire living the high life. Leaving the rest of us behind dealing with the same old shit?’
‘Get stuffed Cathy; she would have run a mile. I wanted her to love me for me.’
Cathy spat bits of bread and chewed up burger all over the table. ‘Fuck me, you’re even more screwed up than I am. Seriously though you need to sort it out, she’s a good kid and as much as it pains me to say this because I’m not into all this soppy shit after I caught Dan shagging around, you two make a good couple and I don’t want you upsetting my officer. I promised Kav I’d take care of her and you’re not helping.’ She poked him in the chest.
‘What do you think I should do then, seeing as how drinking two bottles of wine has made you the expert of the day?’
; ‘Ask her to marry you, prove that you’re serious and don’t bring out a pre-nup agreement for her to sign. I reckon if you fuck it up again she’s entitled to go after every penny you have. It might just make you think twice next time temptation jumps in your way.’
A hand patted Will’s shoulder and he looked up to see his Dad smiling at him holding two bottles of beer. He handed one to Will and nodded at Cathy. ‘That’s pretty good advice Cathy, spoken like a true professional.’ He winked at her and she pushed herself up from the chair.
‘Excuse me; I need to pay a visit to the ladies room.’
Tom sat down in the chair next to Will. ‘I’m sorry to hear about it son, it sounds like you have a lot on your mind. Do you want some good advice from an old man?’
Will took a long swig of his beer and nodded.
‘As much as I hate to agree with Cathy she does have a point, after everything Lily has just told me about Annie, if you are serious about her maybe you should take the plunge. You could have a long engagement, it doesn’t have to be one of those get yourself married in six weeks jobs, but it might convince her how much you love her.’
***
Annie was furious with herself, she had just acted like a jealous teenager and she was old enough to know better. Why did Will Ashworth have that effect on her? She was going home to bed, maybe in the morning she’d feel a bit better about the whole balls up. She would need to apologise to Lily and Tom, could she embarrass herself much more? As she arrived at her two-bedroom semi she burst into tears. It wasn’t much but it was hers and she worked hard to pay for it. Movement at the bedroom window made her look up, but she couldn’t see anything, a trick of the light. She sat in the car for five minutes staring up at the window to see if anything else moved but it didn’t. Her heart was racing and she was expecting the dead kid to press her face against the glass. When Annie was satisfied there were no ghosts in her house she got out of the car and walked around to the back garden, unlocking the door. If she got a whiff of cabbage she was out of there but it was the sweet smell of vanilla that greeted her from the plug-in air freshener by the back door. She went in and dumped her bag on a kitchen chair. Opening the fridge she thought about a bottle of wine but settled for water. Taking her laptop off the worktop she made her way upstairs to bed. She was going to do some research to see if she couldn’t find out who Sean Wood was and where he was now. Then she could approach Will professionally with everything she had, and probably apologise to him for being an idiot whilst hopefully saving the day.