by A L Fraine
“Yeah, what?”
“Something Darryl said. He said if I’d been paying attention, we’d have found him sooner. I’ve been trying to work out what he meant, but I’m at a loss.”
“Oh, yes, I think I know what he means,” Kate said. “Do you remember those homely signs hung in Darryl’s hallway?”
“Aye.”
“One of them said, ‘Go safely, and leave something of the happiness you bring’.”
“Oh. Let me guess, it’s a Dracula quote.”
Kate smiled. “Bingo.”
“Shit.”
“It’s not worth dwelling on, Jon. Madness lies that way.”
“I know, I know,” he said, taking another deep breath to clear his head. Kate remained quiet beside him, and when he looked over, she wore that same troubled expression he’d seen on her face in the Super’s office, moments before. “Penny for your thoughts.”
“I’m just thinking about that blogger, and how he ended up on that bridge. I mean, we know he’s working with Ariadne, but… how did he know?”
Jon nodded. The same troubling thoughts had occurred to him, and had been living rent-free in his head ever since that confrontation. “I know. It’s been screwing with me too, and I can only come to one conclusion. But, if I’m right, then we have a much bigger problem.”
Kate raised her eyebrows. “Oh, really? Like what?”
“I think we have a leak. I think there’s someone in this office who’s feeding information back to Ariadne.”
“Holy shit. Are you sure?”
“How else would Scott have found out? I mean, I suppose Scott could have a contact in here, but I don’t think so, and this stinks of Ariadne to me. It’s got to be. Someone’s working with her.”
“Feck.”
“How about we talk about this over some food?”
Kate nodded and smiled. “Sounds good.”
“Your place or mine?” Jon asked. “I think we deserve some pizza, right?”
“My, my, you certainly know how to treat a girl.”
THE END
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Pilgrim will return in book 6
Balance of Power
https://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B09HKZGN46
Author Note
Thank you for reading A Second Chance, book 5 in the DCI Pilgrim series.
This particular tale has been through several versions before ending up being the story you’ve just read.
This case grew out of a fear that I think many parents have as their child grows up. In recent years, my boys (I have 3 children, all boys, between the ages of 6 and 11) have naturally pushed for more independence and want to be out, doing stuff, such as cycling around the block. The road the kidnapping happens on is very similar to my own where I live, with a crescent just up from my house that my boys have enjoyed cycling around.
But those first few times, it really is a nail-biting moment as we ask them to keep coming back and letting us know they’re okay.
The usual fears run through your head about them hurting themselves or meeting someone unsavoury.
So, I thought, what if that did happen? What if someone did allow their boy out, and something did happen to them?
What then?
I’ve been a real labour of love, and I hope you enjoyed this latest Pilgrim case.
If you want to interact with me more, you can join my Thriller Reader group on Facebook at the link below. Come and say hi. I’d love to chat with you.
You can find it here:
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I hope you’ll join me in book 6.
Kindest Regards,
A L Fraine.
www.alfraineauthor.co.uk