by John Nicholl
‘You’ve got to listen to me. I’ve been set up. I didn’t kill her.’
She rolled her eyes. ‘If that’s the best you’ve got, you’re going to need a bloody brilliant barrister. A trained chimp could convict you. You killed her and then you tried to kill yourself. The facts speak for themselves. It couldn’t be more obvious. You’re going to prison, Mike. It’s just a matter of how long for and what happens when you get there.’
Chapter 13
Anne had to wait for eleven months and four days before finally hearing from her sister. She recognised Kathy’s flowing script as soon as the envelope dropped through the letterbox with a French postmark on the front, and she hid her excitement as best she could as she ran upstairs to open the letter and read it in private.
She closed the door, took her shoes off, lay back on the double bed, ripped open the ivory envelope and began to read:
Dear sis,
Please destroy this after reading.
Anne smiled. Typical Kath. A bit overdramatic perhaps, or maybe not. Mike had been sentenced to life with a minimum twenty-one years before he could be considered for parole, after all. And perverting the course of justice could mean serious punishment. Maybe it was a sensible precaution… Oh well, back to the letter:
I’m in France now, which you probably guessed from the stamp. Keep it to yourself. You and me against the world, remember? Don’t tell anyone at all. Not even Mum or that lovely husband of yours. Our secret.
I’m living in a small seaside town called Frejus, not too far from Cannes, and like it very much. My name’s Adélaïde Dubois now, which took a bit of getting used to even though I chose it myself. I have a wonderful daughter called Isabelle, who means everything to me. I’m happy, sis. We’re both happy. And that wouldn’t have happened without your help. I’ll be grateful to you forever.
I’m working part time in a local bakery, which is owned by a lovely old Frenchman who lets me live in the flat above the shop. He couldn’t be more different to you know who. He’s kind and gentle with pale blue eyes, and I wish he was younger sometimes.
Anyway, enough of all that. I’d really like to see you again, sis. I miss you, and it’s time you met your new niece. I’m sure you’d love her just as much as I do.
I won’t be coming back to the UK again and don’t feel safe to ring, but perhaps you could visit me here. Please come soon. I won’t be hard to find, and there’s a spare bedroom ready and waiting. We did the right thing, sis. I hope you realise that. There was no other way.
All my love,
K xxx
Anne wiped a tear from her eye, lifted the letter to her face and kissed it gently with pursed lips. Thank God she was okay, and the baby too. Maybe they did do the right thing. Maybe.
She folded the letter, slotted it back into the envelope, and slipped it under the mattress for safekeeping. It wouldn’t do any harm to keep it for a while and read it again, would it? No, of course it wouldn’t. Where was the danger in that?
She jumped off the bed and headed downstairs to join her husband in the lounge, where he was watching a mildly amusing comedy film. ‘Fancy a coffee?’
Gary Gavin looked up from the screen and frowned. ‘Are you okay, love? You look as if you’ve been crying.’
She took a paper hankie from a trouser pocket and dabbed at each of her eyes in turn. ‘Oh, it’s nothing really. I received a letter from an old friend who’s been going through a particularly bad time. We used to be close.’
‘Go on, sit yourself down and put your feet up. I’ll make the coffee.’
‘She’s living in France now. She’s asked me to visit.’
‘Are you going?’
‘Would you mind?’
He looked back and shook his head on approaching the door. ‘We could go together. I wouldn’t mind a few days in France. A few bottles of red wine would go down very well indeed, thank you very much.’
Anne lifted her hands to her face and began weeping.
‘What is it, love? Come on, give me a hug.’
She clutched his arm and pulled him towards her as he sat himself down on the settee next to her. ‘There’s something I’ve got to tell you. Something shocking. Something I should have told you long before now.’
He freed himself from her clutches and looked her in the eye. ‘You know you can tell me anything, don’t you?’
‘No secrets?’
He nodded. ‘No secrets.’
‘If I don’t tell someone soon, I’m going to lose my mind.’
‘Just tell me, love. Whatever it is we’ll deal with it.’
‘Okay, here goes. It all started when my sister rang me…’
A note to the reader
Thank you for reading Bully Boy Blue. I’m always interested to know what readers think of my books, and I’d be grateful if you’d leave a review on Amazon.
Full-length novels by John Nicholl:
White is the Coldest Colour
The Mailer family are oblivious to the terrible danger that enters their lives when seven-year-old Anthony is referred to the child guidance service by the family GP following the breakdown of his parents’ marriage. Fifty-eight-year-old Dr David Galbraith, a sadistic predatory paedophile employed as a consultant child psychiatrist, has already murdered one child in the soundproofed cellar below the South Wales Georgian townhouse he shares with his wife and two young daughters. Anthony becomes Galbraith’s latest obsession, and he will stop at nothing to make his grotesque fantasies reality.
Available on Amazon in ebook, paperback and audiobook formats.
When Evil Calls Your Name
When twenty-nine-year-old Cynthia Galbraith struggles to come to terms with her traumatic past and the realities of prison life, a prison counsellor persuades her to write a personal journal exploring the events that led to a life sentence for murder. Although unconvinced at first, Cynthia finally decides she has all the time in the world and very little, if anything, to lose. She begins writing and holds back nothing: sharing the thoughts she hadn’t dare vocalise, the things that keep her awake at night and haunt her waking hours. Even the darkest secrets can’t stay hidden forever.
Available on Amazon in ebook, paperback and audiobook formats.
Portraits of the Dead
When Emma awakens in total darkness, she is aware of her nakedness, injuries and a bed not her own. A blindingly bright light suddenly pierces the blackness and a disembodied male voice calls her “Venus”. Venus - the goddess of love, beauty, sex and desire. He says she is “Venus Six”. What does this predator want from her? Can she outwit the masked man who demands to be called “Master”? Or will he be looking for Venus Seven?
Detective Inspector Gravel finds himself floundering when a local nineteen-year-old university student is abducted and imprisoned by a sadistic serial killer, who has already tortured and killed at least five young women.
Available on Amazon in ebook, paperback and audiobook formats.