Killer on the Run

by M A Comley

  “I’m not sure that’s going to happen, Mark. I think he’s already made his mind up that Annabelle and the baby come first.”

  Mark shrugged out of her grasp and stepped away from the cheerful group. He picked up a can of beer from the table and crossed the garden to gaze down at the koi carp swimming in the fish pond her father had proudly created. Kayli decided to leave him alone for a while and to remain with the others celebrating the good news. Although the thought of having children had never crossed her mind, she loved Bobby and knew that she would adore the new arrival. It was always great to have children around, as long as she could hand them back to the parents at the end of the day.

  “Is Mark all right, love?” her father asked, sneaking up beside her.

  She smiled at him and shrugged. “I guess he will be, Dad. It can’t be helped. Giles is needed here. Annabelle has been having a really tough time of it this week. Mark needs to understand that people have different priorities in this life.”

  “Are you two getting on all right, love? He seems to have changed. Seems different somehow. Not sure how, but nothing gets past this old general.”

  “I’m not sure, to be honest, Dad. I think it would be best to leave him alone to get used to the idea. He hasn’t said much about the job since he returned.”

  “That’s not uncommon, love. I didn’t tell your mother about the ins and outs of my job during my army days. More because I didn’t want to bore her. It’s not always exciting times serving in the army.”

  “I know that, Dad, but it’s not as if he and Giles are serving with a regiment nowadays, is it? This is totally different, isn’t it? I want to know what the boys are involved in, and to me, it’s all a little too secretive for my liking.”

  “Why don’t you try and have a quiet word with Giles in that case if you’re not getting any joy from Mark?”

  “I’d hate Mark to think I was going behind his back.”

  Her father leaned in and whispered, “Nonsense. Do it discreetly, and he’ll never know.”

  “Thanks, Dad. I’ll try and have a word with him before we leave.”

  “Do it. The less time you spend worrying about Mark, the better. It’s not as if you haven’t got a demanding enough job of your own to worry about. And don’t think your mother and I haven’t noticed how much weight you’ve lost since we last saw you. No point trying to disguise it by wearing that beautiful floaty dress of yours. We can see it in your face, darling.”

  She gently nudged him in the ribs. “I’m fine, Dad. I promise. My appetite has been wayward in the last few weeks. That’s all.”

  He raised his hands. “I’ll keep my nose out of it. Just promise me you’ll take care of yourself.”

  “You old softie, of course I will. Thanks for caring. I better see what’s going on with Mark. Just hope he doesn’t snap my head off.”

  “If he does, he’ll have me to contend with.”

  “Thanks, Dad, but I’d rather fight my own relationship battles.”

  “I know.”

  Kayli filled her glass from a bottle of Chardonnay on the table and walked towards Mark. She placed a hand on his back, and he flinched beneath her touch. “Sorry, I didn’t mean to scare you. Everything all right?”

  “Fine, and you didn’t scare me. Do you have to sneak up on people like that?”

  “Sorry,” she replied, surprised by his harsh tone. Immediately, she regretted seeking him out and glanced across the garden at the smiles on the faces of the rest of her family then back at her fiancé, who seemed more distant from her now than he’d ever been in their relationship. She remained by his side, silent, for the next five minutes. The silence was interrupted by Mark’s mobile ringing. He answered it on the second ring.

  “Yep ... damn ... okay, I’ll be there ASAP. No, I doubt he’ll be coming back with me ... I’ll explain when I get there.”

  “Who was that, Mark?” Kayli asked, her heart pounding.

  “The guy I work for. I need to get the first flight back out there.”

  Her mouth gaped open for a split second before she found her voice. “What? But you’ve only just got back.”

  “I’m well aware of that, Kayli. It’s my job. I go where and when they want to send me, no questions asked.”

  “Well, I’m damn well asking them. Why? Why you?”

  “It’s my job!” he sneered at her, baring his gleaming-white teeth.

  Kayli shrunk back from him. There was clearly no sense arguing with him. “You better go then.”

  “Thanks for giving me your approval,” he snarled. He walked away from her, slapped Giles on the back, whispered something in his ear, and disappeared into the house. She heard the front door slam and her car start up in the drive. Kayli stood rooted to the spot, bewildered. What the hell? Did I deserve to be spoken to like that?

  A few seconds later, Giles joined her. “Sis, are you all right?”

  She shook her head in disbelief. “No. If you must know, it feels like I’ve just been hit by an express train. What’s going on with him, Giles? He’s been in a foul mood since his return. Refused point-blank to tell me what the job involves or if it’s dangerous, and now this. Jesus, I need answers. Not only because I’m a detective, but because I love that man. Although I barely recognise him now. I deserve answers, Giles, and I’m relying on you to give them to me.”

  He shook his head. “It ain’t going to happen, sis. We had to sign an official secret kind of form.”

  Her head jutted forward, and her eyes widened until they hurt. “You what? Is this some kind of frigging wind-up?”

  “No, sis. I’m sorry. I wish I could tell you. Let’s just say I’m glad I decided to give up the job.”

  She threw her arms out to the side. “Oh, fucking great! That’s reassured me no end, Giles. What am I supposed to think or say to that?”

  “It is what it is, love. He loves you, and that’s all you need to know.”

  “Does he? Words are cheap, aren’t they? It’s actions that really show someone how much they’re loved, isn’t it?”

  “You’re blowing this up out of all proportion, Kayli.”

  “You think?” she shouted. She looked over at the rest of the family, who were all frowning, looking concerned.

  Her father joined them. “What’s this all about, you two?”

  “It’s Kayli overreacting, Dad. That’s all.”

  She couldn’t hold her temper in any longer. She aimed a fist at her brother’s arm and thumped him hard. “How dare you make this out to be all my fault! How bloody dare you, Giles?”

  “See, there you go again.”

  Her father placed a comforting arm around Kayli’s shoulder. “Calm down, love. Why don’t we discuss this inside, in my office?”

  “Because there’s nothing to discuss, Dad. Mark has gone back out to Afghanistan, and neither he nor my darling brother here is willing to share why.”

  Her father glared at Giles. “Then I can understand why your sister is so upset. She deserves to know, Giles. Why has he gone back so soon? He’s barely set foot in the door for five minutes. Granted, he’s only been away two weeks on duty, but even so, why send him back home if they knew he’d be called upon in less than forty-eight hours? I’m with Kayli on this one, son.”

  Giles sighed heavily. “We had to sign a secrecy document, Dad. You know how that goes. I can’t tell you what goes on out there.”

  Kayli growled and stormed into the house. She locked herself in the downstairs toilet and cried until her tear ducts dried up.

  A gentle knock on the door startled her. “Sis, open the door.”

  “Leave me alone to wallow.”

  “I will not. Open this door, or I’ll break it down, and you know I’m not joking.”

  She swiped the tears from her cheeks and pulled back the lock.

  Giles yanked open the door then stepped into the confined space and gathered her in his arms. “Come on, Kayli. This isn’t like you.”

  “I know it i
sn’t. That’s why I feel so ashamed. Why? Why has Mark refused to open up to me? He says he loves me, but surely, if he did, he would confide in me.”

  “He does love you. It’s this damn secrecy paper we signed, love. It’s nothing personal, I swear.”

  She buried her head in his shoulder as fresh tears welled up. He caressed the back of her head with one hand while the other clung to the small of her back. “I want the man I fell in love with back. I don’t like the man he’s become ... he’s changed.”

  “Some men do that. He has a tough job now. He has to consider all the lives of the men serving under him, and it’s a huge responsibility that is obviously taking its toll on him mentally.”

  “Then why couldn’t he tell me that himself? Why pretend everything is all right when it clearly isn’t?”

  “I don’t know, except that people deal with things differently when they’re put in charge and the onus lies on their shoulders.”

  “You never had a problem with handling the responsibility when you were in charge.”

  “I know. He’ll get better at separating his feelings once he becomes more accustomed to the role. Give him time, eh?”

  She shook her head. “I’m not sure I can, Giles. My job is stressful enough without my personal life coming under attack every five minutes. Everyone deserves to be happy, don’t they? I know I do, and look at me, bawling my eyes out because my fiancé walked out on me at a celebratory barbeque that has been especially laid on for the two of you. How is that right?”

  Giles pushed her away from him. “Kayli, you’re at it again. Overanalysing things and making them seem bigger than they are.”

  Furious, she tore herself out of his grasp. “If that’s what you think, then maybe I should leave you all to your celebration and take my self-pitying notions and go home.” She turned and stormed through the house to find her handbag. It wasn’t until she reached the front door that she realised she had no means of getting home. So she set off on foot, without saying farewell to her parents.

  She heard footsteps crunching on the gravel behind her and the clunk of central locking. “Get in the damn car. I’ll take you home,” Giles shouted.

  “No, thanks. The walk will do me good. According to you, I need to get a lot of derisory thoughts out of my head anyway.”

  Giles groaned. “You know what, Kayli? You can be a real stubborn bitch at times. Do what you want. I’ll make your apologies to Mum and Dad. They’re going to be really hurt that both of you left without having the decency to say goodbye.”

  Kayli stopped dead. He was right. She was behaving totally out of character. I will not let Mark change my personality with his selfish behaviour. She spun around to face her brother, who was standing by his car door. “Anyone ever tell you that you can be a right bastard at times?”

  “Not lately.” He grinned, pressing the key fob to lock the car. He then held out his hand for her to take.

  Slowly, feeling ashamed of her mini temper tantrum, she slipped her hand into his. “I’m sorry for behaving like a spoilt brat.”

  “You’re forgiven. Stay strong, Kayli. He loves you, but maybe he’s simply forgotten how to show you how much you mean to him.”

  “Maybe. I’ll stay another half an hour then leave. No need for you to watch what you drink, though. I’ll call a taxi to pick me up.”

  “Good. I was hoping you’d say that.”

  She dug him playfully in the ribs and sighed. “Why does life have to be so hard at times?”

  “No idea. But let this be a lesson to you, Kayli. Remember we’re always here for you, through the good times and the bad. You hear me?”

  She leaned over and kissed his cheek. “Thanks, Giles. It means a lot to hear you say that. Great news about the baby. I’m glad you’ve decided not to go back out there with Mark, because Annabelle needs you here with her. This pregnancy has already taken its toll on her.”

  “I can tell. I had no hesitation. My family always comes first—you know that.”

  “Which is why I love you so much. You truly are one in a million, Giles. What will you do about work now?”

  “Well, I got paid a fair whack for the past two weeks. If we’re careful, that should see us through the next few months.”

  “Mind if I ask how much you got paid?”

  “Ten grand.”

  She halted mid-step and turned to face him. “What?”

  He shrugged. “I take it Mark didn’t tell you that. Odds are that he picked up more than me, what with him being in charge of the team.”

  She shook her head. Her sudden willingness to return to the barbeque deserted her once more. “That’s appalling. I can’t ... I’m sorry ... Make my excuses to everyone. I have to get out of here.”

  She sprinted across the gravel and out of the drive before Giles could stop her. An hour later, she walked through the front door of her house. The home she and Mark had created together suddenly felt like a cell to her, imprisoning her in a morbid cocoon. She immediately went to the fridge and retrieved a bottle of white wine. She poured a glass and downed it in one gulp. She refilled her glass and went back into the lounge, where she spotted the note on the coffee table. One word was written in large capitals: SORRY!

  CHAPTER FIFTEEN

  Kayli felt like death warmed up the following morning. She’d set the alarm thirty minutes earlier than usual. After a cool shower, she dried her long hair and got ready for work, determined to not let Mark enter her mind. She’d given herself a good talking-to whilst consoling herself over the bottle of wine the previous evening. If he wanted to live his life in danger mode, then so be it. She refused to let his actions mess with her head or rule her life. From now on, she would think for herself and be more positive, not dwell on what he was doing thousands of miles away. Everyone around her was right—she had lost too much weight recently. And for what? Worrying about a man who’s so wrapped up in himself that my feelings don’t matter.

  Screw that. I’m my own person. A successful woman in my own right. I don’t need a man in my life to know that I can succeed. What am I saying? That it’s over between Mark and me? The question repeated in her head over and over during her journey into work.

  She was surprised to see the rest of the team already at their desks when she arrived. “Am I late?”

  “Nope ... you’re never late. We just agreed to come in early and go over things. A new week and all that,” Dave replied, making his way over to the vending machine. He returned and placed a cup on the desk nearest to her.

  “Gosh, and you’re feeling generous too. Are you sure I haven’t walked into the wrong office?”

  His eyes narrowed. “And you wonder why I never go out of my way to do something nice for you!”

  “It’s appreciated. I’ve had a shocker of a weekend, but I’d rather not talk about that. The one positive I can take from this weekend is that it has made me determined to catch the bastard doing these crimes. Let me check the post, see if there’s anything worth dealing with, and I’ll be with you in five minutes. I take it we haven’t had the results from the bike yet?”

  “Nope. I chased Forensics as soon as I came in. The engineer is due around mid-morning, and they’re hoping to give us the results sometime this afternoon.”

  “Excellent. Not long to wait now then.” She ventured into her office, saw the stack of brown envelopes sitting on her desk, and left the room again. “On second thoughts, let’s go over what we have so far.”

  The team gathered around, and Kayli stood alongside the whiteboard to recap where the investigation was at that point. “Loose ends, what do we have?”

  “CCTV footage from the river where the bike was dumped?” Dave said, crossing his arms across his inflated chest.

  “I’ll get on that first thing, boss,” Graeme assured her.

  “Right, what else?” Kayli asked, her own mind not warming up as quickly as she’d hoped. Maybe that was due to the drink she’d consumed the day before.

  “Didn’
t you say you wanted to visit Brenda Godfrey’s place of work?”

  Kayli pointed at her partner. “You’re right. We’ll finish up here and shoot over there first thing, Dave. Anything else?”

  “I’ve checked the report for all the crimes that have taken place over the weekend, boss, and you’ll be pleased to know I found nothing appertaining to our cases.”

  “That’s a relief ... or is it? If the killer has dumped his bike, does this mean he’s gone underground? Or rethought his actions and felt Brenda Godfrey’s murder was a step too far?”

  “I doubt it’s the latter notion,” Dave replied.

  Kayli nodded. “I agree. Give me ten minutes to drink this, Dave.”

  “Sure, that means I’ve got time for another cup too.”

  Kayli bit the bullet and returned to her office to rip open her post. Her first instinct to leave it proved to have been the best plan of action. The envelopes contained nothing worth knowing. Certain procedures had changed, but the head office had written to her about them several times already. Another letter was chasing up a report about a past investigation that they’d been pestering her about for weeks. She groaned. “Okay, I better deal with that request when I get back, before they pull me over hot coals for being shoddy.”

  ~ ~ ~

  Around twenty minutes later, Kayli and Dave walked through the front door of Churchwoods doctor’s surgery, where an older woman was on reception. The smell of old files tickled Kayli’s nose, and she saw that the receptionist appeared to be having a clear-out of sorts.

  “Is there a practice manager I can speak to?” Kayli asked.

  “She’s in with the doctors at present. They have a general meeting every morning before surgery begins. If you take a seat, she shouldn’t be long.”

  “Thanks, we’ll do that.”

  Kayli and Dave paced the area until another woman, who was in her late fifties to early sixties, joined the receptionist behind the desk. The receptionist pointed in their direction, and the other woman crossed the waiting room towards them.