Sitting down with the other visitors, she waited until the door opened and the prisoners were led in. She smiled as Jake walked in behind another prisoner and took his seat opposite her before lifting the handset.
“Hey, bro, good to see you.”
“You too, sis.”
As usual, Jamie did most of the talking. He was always desperate for news of the outside world and she always made sure it was cheerful and upbeat. She had thought long and hard about telling him about Daniel on the way up here but had decided against it for now; it wasn’t exactly a happy subject.
“Jake, are you listening to me?” He looked distracted, staring into space as if she wasn’t there.
“What? Sorry, what were you saying?”
“Jake, what’s wrong? You’re not yourself today at all.” He’d been quiet since she walked in and didn’t seem interested in what she was telling him. He seemed about to tell her something when one of the guards walked past and he quickly closed his mouth and said nothing.
“Jake? What is it?” She watched as he checked where the guard was before seeming to hunch himself over the mouthpiece.
“I’m okay. But Jamie, listen to me. If anything happens to me it won’t have been an accident.”
Jamie was complete taken aback. “What do you mean if something happens to you?”
“Shhhhh! Keep it down, would you?” He was looking around him, making sure no one could overhear. “Just remember what I said, okay?”
The guard chose that moment to tell them visiting time was over and to wrap it up.
Jamie watched, dumbstruck, as Jake put the handset down and blew her a kiss with a small smile before getting in line and filing out of the room with the other prisoners.
What the hell was that all about? she thought as she collected her car keys and made her way out to the parking lot. Part of her wanted to go back inside and demand that she be allowed to see him and get to the bottom of it, but she knew full well that they wouldn’t allow it. Also, something about the way he had looked at the guard told her it wouldn’t be a good idea.
She couldn’t enjoy the countryside on her way home. She couldn’t stop thinking about what Jake had said and what he could possibly have meant by it. Usually, on the way home from these visits she stopped at a diner she passed on the way and had a coffee. It had become a bit of a routine for her and one she looked forward to. Today, though, she just wanted to get home and drove straight past. She would talk to Kat and see what she thought.
Fifteen
After Finn had gone and Jamie had set off for the weekly visit to Jake there was just the two of them. Daniel had slept for two hours curled up on the sofa and Kat had curled up in the chair next to him with a strong cup of coffee and watched over him.
Her lack of ability to do anything was bothering her and she was feeling irritable. For the first time since handing in her badge, she was wishing that she hadn’t, that she could be more involved with the investigation. Just sitting in the wings while others worked the case didn’t sit well with her at all. She sighed. There was nothing she could do about it, she just had to hope that Finn would let her do something. Finn. She’d given him space, not wanting to push him and hadn’t sought him out when it had become clear that he’d been avoiding her but seeing him with Sally at the hospital, she wondered if she’d done the wrong thing.
Daniel stirred on the couch, interrupting her thoughts. “Hey, sleepy.”
He smiled as soon as he saw her.
“How are you feeling?”
“Okay, but I’m hungry.”
“Well then, young man, best we feed you then!”
Holding his hand, she took him into the kitchen in search of lunch. She’d already made up her mind that he’d gone through enough for one day and that she wasn’t going to try and get any more information from him. Her priority now was to get him settled in and to work on making him feel safe.
Undoubtedly he’d missed a huge part of his childhood, so after lunch they went into the dining room and covered the table with sheets. After rummaging around for a bit, Kat managed to find some paints and they spent the rest of the afternoon happily making as much of a mess as they could. He even laughed a couple of times and Kat was sure this was a sign they were making progress.
By the time Jamie got home from visiting Jake, he had relaxed a bit and was no longer following her from room to room, quite content to be left in the living room watching TV as long as he knew where she was.
“What a day.” Kat sighed as she came downstairs after seeing Daniel safely tucked in bed. Taking the well-deserved glass of wine that Jamie held out to her, they both went to sit in the living room. Letting the couch envelop her, she took a sip from the glass and groaned. “God, I needed that today. So, how was the visit? Was Jake okay?”
Jamie twirled her glass in her hand looking thoughtful. “Well, to be honest, it was strange.” She looked up. “He really wasn’t his usual self and then, just before I left, he said something that really worried me.”
“What?”
“He said that if anything happened to him that it wouldn’t be an accident.”
“Okay, that’s odd. Did he say anything else?”
“He didn’t have chance. That was right at the end of the visit.”
Jamie looked worried and Kat had to admit she was, too, now. “Well, there’s nothing we can do right now, especially as we don’t have any idea what he was talking about. It’s my turn to visit next week so I’ll see if I can get anything more out of him.”
They spent the rest of the evening talking about Daniel, but both of them were worn out and exhaustion soon got the better of them. After saying good night to Jamie, Kat went upstairs to check on Daniel before turning in herself. He was sleeping soundly, cuddling one of the teddies they’d put in his room and the sight made Kat’s breath catch in her throat. Closing the door gently, so as not to disturb him, she made her way to her own room and gratefully fell into bed.
***
Something had woken her. Remaining still and trying to control her breathing so she could hear clearly, she listened. Nothing. She must have imagined it. Flipping her pillow to the cold side, she rolled over and that’s when she saw him. He was curled up on the floor next to her bed, fast asleep. It was a sight that brought an immediate lump to her throat. It must have been the sound of him coming into her room that had disturbed her on some level. There was no way she was going to just leave him there, but he obviously didn’t want to be alone. She chided herself for not thinking about that. In a strange house with strange people, of course he didn’t want to be alone.
Quietly pushing the covers aside, she climbed out of bed. He was so small and thin that it was an easy task to lift him and put him in her own bed and she was pleased she managed to do it without waking him. She pulled the covers over him before dropping a kiss on his forehead. Grabbing herself a spare blanket, she wrapped herself in it and curled up in the wingback chair she had positioned near the bedroom window
The moon was almost full tonight and lit the room with a glow. Resting her head back against the chair, Kat looked out of the window across the gardens at the back of the house. Her thoughts inevitably drifted to Finn. Had she done the right thing telling him? Yes. She was wrong not to tell him at the time but she’d been not much more than a kid.
The closeness that had started to develop between them though when she’d come back after all those years had scared her and she’d known that if there was to be any future for them then she needed to be honest. It had been one of the hardest things she’d ever had to do, telling him about his son. The son he never knew he had. Her father had made it clear; his daughter was not going to be an unmarried mother, nor would he allow her to marry beneath her. She’d been given a choice. Get rid of the baby or leave.
She could still remember that day as if it were yesterday. Her mother had stood behind him in the living room, sobbing, but doing nothing to stand up for her. She already knew that she wou
ld rather die than get rid of the baby so he’d sealed her fate. Yes, she’d considered telling Finn then but she knew he had dreams of college, of a bright future. They’d talked about it often enough and she had no doubt that he would do it. She loved him; how could she stand in his way? She couldn’t tell him because he was honorable and would have stood by her; she couldn’t let him do that. So she’d packed her bags that night and left town without so much as a goodbye.
She looked over at where Daniel was sleeping soundly. Her son would be much older than he was now. She couldn’t turn back time and change the decisions she had made, but she could do everything she could for this child, this small boy who had wormed his way into her heart from the first minute she’d laid eyes on him. Feeling her eyelids start to droop, she closed her eyes and let herself drift back off to sleep.
Sixteen
She’d woken when the sun had risen above the horizon and its rays had landed on her eyelids, teasing her awake. Jamie had already been up when she’d gone down to the kitchen, leaving Daniel asleep in her bed.
“Morning,” Kat mumbled.
“Morning. How did you sleep? You look tired.”
“Sleeping in a chair will do that to you.” She explained what had happened during the night.
“Poor little thing.” Jamie handed her a coffee fresh from the pot. “He’ll settle in, Kat. It just might take a little bit of time.”
“I know. Listen, I was thinking. Obviously, I can’t go into the office and leave Daniel alone for the time being so I was thinking, if it’s okay with you, I’ll pop in later today and grab some stuff and do some work from home.”
“You don’t have to do that, Kat. We can cover things for now.”
“I know, but I want to,” Kat insisted.
“If you’re sure, then of course it’s okay with me.”
“Okay, I’ll swing by later.”
“Okay. Well, I’d better get going. Give him a hug from me.”
She was just finishing her coffee when she heard him come downstairs. “I’m in the kitchen!” she called out, not wanting him to panic and think he was alone.
“I’m just going to make breakfast,” she told him as he walked in rubbing his eyes. “Pancakes okay?”
“Yes, please.”
They ate in silence, though Daniel didn’t eat much. He was used to barely being fed so it was hardly surprising; she knew it would take time to build up his appetite again.
“You all done?” she asked before clearing his breakfast plate, stacking it in the dishwasher and turning it on. “Do you feel up to a short trip into town today?”
He nodded.
She knew he needed to take it easy but getting him out of the house might also do him so good.
“Okay, good. I’ll tell you what, the coffee shop in town makes great milkshakes so we’ll go and get one.” She reached for her cell. “Now, you go and wash up and get out of you pj’s. I’ve just got to make a quick call.”
She waited until he’d left the room before dialing Finn’s number. It only rang once before he picked up.
“Hi, Finn, it’s Kat” She knew he’d let her know if there had been any developments but she wanted to check in and let him know what she had planned. “Any news?”
“No.” She heard him sigh heavily. “Has he said anything else to you, Kat? Anything at all that might give us more to go on?”
“I would have called you if he had,” she chided gently.
“The night shift had a poke around last night and didn’t spot anything, but there’s so much ground to cover. If we just had an idea where to start!”
“Did you think about what I said? Is there anything I can do to help?”
“Actually, yes. Do you think you could have a look at the local land records, see if you can see anything unusual? The kind of operation the kid is describing, there just has to be some kind of a trail.”
“Yep, of course I’d be glad to help. I’ve told Daniel that I’ll take him into town this morning for a treat so I’ll pop in to grab them first and bring them back here to go over. Can you contact them and let them know it’s okay?”
“Yep, will do. And thanks, Kat.”
Seventeen
He’d barely said a word in the car. She’d driven to the office and grabbed some files to take home and work on and then headed straight into town. Kat felt her heart squeeze in her chest as she glanced over at him. He had been through so much. The physical injuries would heal, she knew, but the psychological scars undoubtedly ran deep and those were the ones that were worrying her right now. Apart from sleeping by the side of her bed, he seemed to be coping well. Too well. So much pain needed an outlet. Thankfully, his first session with the therapist was scheduled for that evening. It was going to take a lot of time and love to get him through this and she had every intention of making sure he got whatever he needed.
Finding a parking spot outside the town hall, they made their way inside. The building was on the main street through Brecon Point and was only a few doors down from the police station. With Daniel holding her hand, she spoke to the clerk who confirmed that Finn had contacted them and authorized them to let her take some of the property records home. She’d had to sign her life away, in triplicate, to do so but it meant that she didn’t have to make Daniel sit there for hours with her while she went through them. Thankfully, the box wasn’t that large and, with a bit of effort and with Daniel opening the doors, she was able to get it into the trunk of her car without too much difficulty.
“Okay then, young man. How about that trip to the coffee shop I promised you?” she asked after the car was all locked up again. It was only a few hundred yards down the street and there was no point moving the car so they walked hand in hand, with Kat introducing him to the town as they went.
Eighteen
He’d hoped the boy would be found dead in the woods. He’d suffered quite a beating at the last match and he’d hoped that that, combined with the fact that he was very weak anyway, would have assured that he didn’t make it. But he’d just been told that not only was he still alive but he’d been found and taken to the police. He was furious. Nothing like this had ever happened before and now, because of a stupid mistake by one of his men, the whole operation was in jeopardy.
“What has he told them?” he demanded of the person on the other end of the phone. His hand gripped the phone tightly; his next move depended on the answer to his question.
“Nothing. I mean, obviously he’s told them about the operation but he hasn’t told them anything that could lead them to you. He doesn’t know anything to tell them, does he?”
“No.” He wracked his brain to try and think if there was anything at all he could tell them that would lead them back to him but he couldn’t think of anything.
“Okay, keep me updated.” He disconnected the call, dropping the phone on the kitchen table in disgust. He could lose everything and it all depended on whether the boy knew anything or not. Who knew what he could have overheard that could give them just the clue they needed to get back to him? That thought made him angrier than he ever thought possible.
Looking around, he took in the kitchen which had barely changed in sixty years. Even the cabinets were the same ones that had been there throughout his childhood. This farm had been in his family for decades and now he could lose it all.
There was only one thing to do. The boy. He couldn’t leave him out there. Although he didn’t think he knew anything, he wasn’t absolutely sure. No, he was a loose end that needed to be dealt with, and soon.
Nineteen
They were sitting in the coffee shop, enjoying the milkshake she’d promised him, when her phone rang. Smiling at Daniel, she checked the screen and saw that it was Finn. Hoping for news, she answered quickly.
“Hey, Kat, are you still in town or are you back home already?”
“We’re across the road having a milkshake.”
She listened as he explained about what he had discovered so far a
nd about the pictures he wanted Daniel to have a look through.
“I’m not sure, Finn.” She looked at where Daniel was concentrating hard on his drink and lowered her voice. “I’m not sure how he’ll take it.”
She heard him sigh on the other end of the phone. “I know, Kat, and believe me, if I didn’t have to I wouldn’t even ask. I hate the idea of putting him through any more but it could help and at this point we need all the help we can get.”
She knew he was right but it tore at her heart to have to put him through any more distress. But they had no choice; they needed to find out as much as they could about the monster who had done this. Agreeing to meet him at the station after they’d finished up, she put the phone away and turned her attention back to Daniel.
“Are you enjoying that?” She smiled, taking in the milky moustache that he now sported on his top lip. He just nodded and concentrated on scooping the foam from the bottom of the glass with a long handled spoon. “I’m just gonna go to the bathroom, okay?” She pointed to the door on the other side of the shop. “It’s just over there”. Daniel had to twist in his chair and look behind him to see where she was pointing. “Is that okay?”
“Yeah.”
Sliding out of the booth, Kat headed for the bathroom, turning as she got near to check on him over her shoulder. She needn’t have worried; the milkshake had his complete attention.
The McKays Box Set - To Kill For, Blood Sport, Hard Time & Gang Land Page 19