THE BLEEDING HEART KILLER an absolutely addictive crime thriller with a huge twist

by Bill Kitson

  ‘I thought you told me that Dale Harvey could remember very little about his captivity,’ Fleming objected.

  ‘We know that, but she doesn’t.’

  As a bluff, it worked as well as Nash could have hoped. Listening to the tape afterwards, he admired the way Clara had introduced the subject of Toni’s relationship with the young boxer. It was clear that she still mourned her boyfriend’s death. Clara’s artistry extended when she brought up the matter they were most concerned about. She didn’t mention that it was Dale Harvey, not his father, that she was referring to. Nor did she mention that Dale could recall very little of his period of captivity, and what he could was hazy at best.

  Toni broke down and sobbed, admitting that she had willingly allowed White and Fiona to use her basement to keep their victims, and that she had participated in the abductions.

  With that confession, and the report from the forensic team who had examined the house, Nash returned to question Fiona again. This time, with the mounting evidence against her, she confessed to her part in the conspiracy. Neither she nor Toni seemed in the least concerned about their victims. To them, a form of justice had been meted out, and if it was impossible for the law to touch the criminals, they, together with Clyde White, had acted as judges, jurors, and executioners.

  ‘I don’t understand the different tortures they used,’ Fleming said.

  ‘They did to the victims what they perceived they had done at the trial. Georgina Drake used her sexual wiles on the male jurors, hence the assault on her . . . er . . . private parts; she was blindfolded because she couldn’t see the truth. Henry Maitland was a bully; we were told he kept pointing his finger at the others, hence the amputation, and again the blindfold. Dickie Donut, I mean Richard Graham, lied under oath when he provided Dale and Chad’s alibis for the time when Stanton was murdered, which was why they removed his tongue, and DI Hoyland wouldn’t listen to the truth, so they poured wax in his ears.’

  ‘I don’t understand why Dickie Donut was strung up, though.’

  ‘It was because he was a puppet. The strings were being pulled by Gus Harvey. You can’t condone what the three of them did,’ Nash said afterwards, ‘but you can understand why they did it. To them it must have seemed that they had been failed, not once but twice. First, failure to protect their loved ones, and then failure to bring the perpetrators to justice.’

  ‘What about Gus Harvey?’ Fleming asked.

  ‘The confessions we got from Fiona Potter and Toni Chandler solved another minor mystery. We couldn’t work out how Gus Harvey’s car reappeared when he was still missing — and how Chad Wilkinson’s body came to be inside it. They admitted luring Gus on the pretext of releasing Dale and then drugging him and holding him prisoner. They thought it appropriate to deliver Chad, and later Gus, back to the point where they believed all the evil originated — Gus Harvey’s house.

  ‘Gus will be fit enough to stand trial. I interviewed him for the first time yesterday, and I was immediately struck by what Clara said after we found him. This wasn’t the same Gus Harvey we met beforehand. Between them, his vulnerability and the torture broke him. He didn’t actually admit to all the things he’s done, but neither did he deny them. However, he did admit to giving the interview with the reporter. I’m convinced that once he’s properly aware of the strength of the case against him, and knows that Dale has already confessed, Gus will admit to all his crimes. There is more trouble awaiting him, too. I understand the Inland Revenue are planning to sue him for back taxes, and Customs and Excise are going over his books because there is a shortfall in VAT received.’

  ‘I think they would be as well locking him up and throwing away the key,’ Pearce added.

  ‘It will mean the end of Harvey’s business empire, of that I have no doubt,’ Nash said, ‘and as for those massage parlours that Chad Wilkinson owned, I believe they have already been bought by a woman from eastern Europe, who plans to extend the services and to resume tanning and beauty treatment. That way, the other services they offered in the past will no longer be available.’

  They were about to conclude their discussions when Nash got a phone call from a member of the CSI team working at Fiona Potter’s house. He listened to what the officer said before replacing the receiver. He looked at the others, his face grim as he told them, ‘They’ve found a suicide note hidden in Fiona’s diary, written by her sister Denise. I won’t trouble you with the harrowing details; but it confirms what Dale has already confessed to, the rape he and Wilkinson committed on a young, vulnerable and defenceless girl.’

  It was late Friday afternoon when the meeting broke up. ‘Would it be OK if I leave early?’ Clara asked, ‘I’ve someone I’ve arranged to meet.’

  ‘No problem, I’ll hold the fort. I’ve nothing much to rush off home for, other than a quick stop off on the way,’ Nash told her.

  ‘Haven’t you got anything exciting planned for tonight and the weekend?’ Clara asked.

  Nash’s reply emphasised his solitary existence starkly, ‘Only a mountain of washing and ironing, if you consider that exciting.’

  * * *

  Nash got into the Range Rover, looked in the mirror, and smiled at the giant teddy bear strapped in on the back seat. ‘Well, my friend, let’s see if we can find you a new home.’

  He parked in front of the terrace house and knocked on the door. The large teddy tucked under his arm.

  Mira Kaminski opened the door, her expression guarded when she saw the visitor.

  ‘Hello, Mira,’ said Nash. ‘Don’t look so worried; it isn’t you I’ve come to see. Can I come in for a moment?’

  She stepped aside and showed him through to the lounge where her brother and his wife were sitting.

  ‘My name is Inspector Nash from Helmsdale station. I’m sorry to call so late, but I was hoping the little one would be asleep by now.’ He held the teddy out and passed it to the child’s mother. ‘I wondered if you could find someone to play with this.’

  He drove home, his mood somewhat lightened by the reaction of the Kaminski family. When he reached Smelt Mill Cottage, Nash began by putting the casserole he was to dine on into the oven, then loading the washing machine. He poured a glass of wine and walked through to the lounge. He stared at the landscape that hung on the wall, his eyes misting over as he looked at the cat silhouetted in one corner, the artist’s distinctive signature. On a sudden impulse, he snatched the phone up and began to dial a number. After entering the prefix 0034, he stopped and deleted the four digits that represented the international dialling code for Spain.

  Nash turned back and looked once more at the painting. Unable to resist the impulse any longer, he began to redial.

  THE END

  Please join our mailing list for free Kindle crime thriller, detective, mystery and romance books, and new releases!

  www.joffebooks.com

  About the Author

  Having taken early retirement from the finance industry, prolific writer Bill Kitson enjoys the challenge of writing both crime and general fiction, often with a twist of humour. Both his series, the DI Mike Nash crime thrillers and his Eden House Mysteries, are set in North Yorkshire, the county of his birth.

  He also writes his Greek Island Romances under the pseudonym William Gordon.

  Living and working throughout most of the North of England, he is now settled on the east coast along with his wife.

  His writing never stops, and when he isn’t seeking inspiration from the surrounding countryside he can be found in a small fishing village on one of the Greek Islands, staring out to sea — laptop at the ready!

  For further details go to:

  www.billkitson.com

  www.billkitsonblog.wordpress.com

  ALSO BY BILL KITSON

  THE DI MIKE NASH SERIES

  Book 1: WHAT LIES BENEATH

  Book 2: VANISH WITHOUT TRACE

  Book 3: PLAYING WITH FIRE

  Book 4: KILLING CHRISTMAS

  Book 5: SLA
SH KILLER

  Book 6: ALONE WITH A KILLER

  Book 7: BLOOD DIAMOND

  Book 8: DEAD & GONE

  Book 9: HIDE & SEEK

  Book 10: RUNNING SCARED

  Book 11: THE BLEEDING HEART KILLER

  Please join our mailing list for free Kindle crime thriller, detective, mystery and romance books, and new releases!

  www.joffebooks.com

  FREE KINDLE BOOKS

  Do you love mysteries, historical fiction and romance? Join 1,000s of readers enjoying great books through our mailing list. You’ll get new releases and great deals every week from one of the UK’s leading independent publishers.

  Join today, and you’ll get your first bargain book this month!

  Click here to start getting lovely book deals!

  Follow us on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram

  @joffebooks

  Thank you for reading this book. If you enjoyed it please leave feedback on Amazon or Goodreads, and if there is anything we missed or you have a question about, then please get in touch. The author and publishing team appreciate your feedback and time reading this book.

  We’re very grateful to eagle-eyed readers who take the time to contact us. Please send any errors you find to corrections@joffebooks.com. We’ll get them fixed ASAP.

  A SELECTION OF BOOKS YOU MAY ENJOY

  THE MURDERER’S SON

  BY JOY ELLIS

  UK www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B01LWY0PUJ

  US www.amazon.com/dp/B01LWY0PUJ

  What if your mother was a serial killer?

  A BLOODY KILLER SEEMS TO HAVE RETURNED TO THE LINCOLNSHIRE FENS

  A gripping crime thriller by the bestselling author of the Nikki Galena series.

  Twenty years ago: a farmer and his wife are cut to pieces by a ruthless serial killer. Now: a woman is viciously stabbed to death in the upmarket kitchen of her beautiful house on the edge of the marshes.

  Then a man called Daniel Kinder walks into Saltern police station and confesses to the murder.

  But DI Rowan Jackman and DS Marie Evans of the Fenland police soon discover that there is a lot more to Daniel than meets the eye. He has no memory of the first five years of his life and is obsessed with who his real mother is.

  With no evidence to hold him, Jackman and Evans are forced to let him go, and in a matter of days the lonely Lincolnshire Fens become the stage for more killings and Daniel has disappeared.

  In a breathtaking finale, the truth about Daniel’s mother comes to light and DI Jackman and DS Evans race against time to stop more lives being destroyed.

  Full of twists and turns, this is a crime thriller that will keep you turning the pages until the shocking ending.

  MURDER ON THE OXFORD CANAL

  BY FAITH MARTIN

  UK www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B0763RXLRV

  US www.amazon.com/dp/B0763RXLRV

  DISCOVER THE MILLION-SELLING SERIES NOW.

  MEET DI HILLARY GREENE, A POLICE WOMAN FIGHTING TO SAVE HER CAREER.

  Not only has she lost her husband, but his actions have put her under investigation for corruption.

  Then a bashed and broken body is found floating in the Oxford Canal. It looks like the victim fell off a boat, but Hillary is not so sure. Her investigation exposes a dark background to the death.

  Can Hillary clear her name and get to the bottom of a fiendish conspiracy on the water?

  This is a crime mystery full of well-observed characters, which will have you gripped from beginning to end.

  MURDER ON THE OXFORD CANAL is the first in a series of page-turning crime thrillers set in Oxfordshire.

  HE IS WATCHING YOU

  BY CHARLIE GALLAGHER

  UK www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B07KKK5N7W

  US www.amazon.com/dp/B07KKK5N7W

  DISCOVER AN ABSOLUTELY GRIPPING RACE-AGAINST-TIME THRILLER FROM BEST-SELLING AUTHOR CHARLIE GALLAGHER.

  A young woman’s body is left in a metal container in a remote location. The killer is careful to position her under a camera that links to his smartphone. He likes to look back at his work.

  HE IS WATCHING HER. BUT SHE ISN’T DEAD.

  So he will return to finish the job.

  Detective Maddie Ives is new to the area. She is handed a missing person report: a young woman with a drink problem who’s been reported missing fifteen times. It looks like a waste of time. But DS Ives has a bad feeling about the woman’s disappearance.

  DI Harry Blaker is called to a hit and run of an elderly man left to die on a quiet country road. There is no motive and it looks like a tragic accident. But he’s been working Major Crime long enough to know that something isn’t quite right. The two officers find their investigations intertwine and they will need to work together.

  BUT THEY MUST WORK FAST. TIME IS RUNNING OUT FOR THE WOMAN IN THE CONTAINER.

  GLOSSARY OF ENGLISH USAGE FOR US READERS

  A & E: Accident and emergency department in a hospital

  Aggro: Violent behaviour, aggression

  Air raid: an attack in which bombs are dropped from aircraft on ground targets

  Allotment: a plot of land rented by an individual for growing fruit, vegetable or flowers

  Anorak: nerd (it also means a waterproof jacket)

  Artex: textured plaster finish for walls and ceilings

  A Level: exams taken between 16 and 18

  Auld Reekie: Edinburgh

  Au pair: live-in childcare helper. Often a young woman.

  Barm: bread roll

  Barney: argument

  Beaker: glass or cup for holding liquids

  Beemer: BMW car or motorcycle

  Benefits: social security

  Bent: corrupt

  Bin: wastebasket (noun), or throw in rubbish (verb)

  Biscuit: cookie

  Blackpool Lights: gaudy illuminations in seaside town

  Bloke: guy

  Blow: cocaine

  Blower: telephone

  Blues and twos: emergency vehicles

  Bob: money

  Bobby: policeman

  Broadsheet: quality newspaper (New York Times would be a US example)

  Brown bread: rhyming slang for dead

  Bun: small cake

  Bunk: do a bunk means escape

  Burger bar: hamburger fast-food restaurant

  Buy-to-let: Buying a house/apartment to rent it out for profit

  Charity Shop: thrift store

  Carrier bag: plastic bag from supermarket

  Care Home: an institution where old people are cared for

  Car park: parking lot

  CBeebies: kids TV

  Chat-up: flirt, trying to pick up someone with witty banter or compliments

  Chemist: pharmacy

  Chinwag: conversation

  Chippie: fast-food place selling chips and other fried food

  Chips: French fries but thicker

  CID: Criminal Investigation Department

  Civvy Street: civilian life (as opposed to army)

  Clock: punch

  Cock-up: mess up, make a mistake

  Cockney: a native of East London

  Common: an area of park land/ or lower class

  Comprehensive School (Comp.): High school

  Cop hold of: grab

  Copper: police officer

  Coverall: coveralls, or boiler suit

  CPS: Crown Prosecution Service, decide whether police cases go forward

  Childminder: someone who looks after children for money

  Council: local government

  Dan Dare: hero from Eagle comic

  DC: detective constable

  Deck: one of the landings on a floor of a tower block

  Deck: hit (verb)

  Desperate Dan: very strong comic book character

  DI: detective inspector

  Digestive biscuit: plain cookie

  Digs: student lodgings

  Do a runner: disappear

  Do one: go away

  Doc Martens: Heavy boots with an air-cush
ioned sole

  Donkey’s years: long time

  Drum: house

  DS: detective sergeant

  ED: accident and emergency department of hospital

  Eagle: boys’ comic

  Early dart: to leave work early

  Eggy soldiers: strips of toast with a boiled egg

  Enforcer: police battering ram

  Estate: public/social housing estate (similar to housing projects)

  Estate agent: realtor (US)

  Falklands War: war between Britain and Argentina in 1982

  Fag: cigarette

  Father Christmas: Santa Claus

  Filth: police (insulting)

  Forces: army, navy, and air force

  FMO: force medical officer

  Fried slice: fried bread

  Fuzz: police

  Garda: Irish police

  Gendarmerie: French national police force

  Geordie: from Newcastle

  Garden Centre: a business where plants and gardening equipment are sold

  Gob: mouth/ can also mean phlegm or spit

  GP: general practitioner, a doctor based in the community

  Graft: hard work

  Gran: grandmother

  Hancock: Tony Hancock, English comedian popular in 1950s

  Hard nut: tough person