Neil Barrett had been cautioned for his part in the operation, after turning chief witness and sharing all he knew about the operation. The case against the Stratovsky family was still on-going up in London and Vincent was due to appear in that case any day now. Several witnesses in the case had been threatened already, so Neil, Melanie and Jimmy Barrett had been taken into witness protection and moved to an unknown location, somewhere in the Midlands, for their own safety, until such time as Neil would testify in court.
Cookie’s funeral had been incredibly moving, and Vincent had been honoured when Sarah had asked him to read a eulogy at the service. He had spoken with great pride about how well she had worked under him and how he hoped that other existing officers would take a leaf out of her book: to lay it all on the line. There had been tears, of course, but it had been a great way of finding closure. Although he still blamed himself for allowing Cookie and Ali Jacobs to come to harm, he had found solace in the promise that he would fight harder than ever, to see criminals brought to justice, in their memory. He had put Kyle Davies forward for promotion and although he had only recently joined Vincent’s team on a permanent basis, the D.C.I. had agreed to Davies’ promotion to Detective Sergeant. Vincent saw a bright future for Davies.
Vincent looked up as he heard the Court Usher call for parties to return to Court Two; the verdict was in. Johan Boller rolled by in his wheelchair, flanked by an officer either side of him. The usual protocol for the suspect to be brought up from the holding cell beneath the court had been waved, as there was no wheelchair access. Vincent refused to make eye contact with the young man, as he didn’t want to see the look of self-pity. Boller was where he was because of his own actions, and Vincent just hoped that the jury was smart enough to see through the cloud of uncertainty, presented by the defence.
Vincent dialled Sarah’s number and held the phone to his ear. It rang twice before he heard her voice answer.
‘Is it in?’ she asked eagerly.
‘Not yet, but I’m heading in now,’ he replied.
‘What do you think it will be?’
‘I’m not sure,’ he replied honestly. ‘They’ve only been away for a couple of hours, which either means they have been utterly convinced by the evidence, or utterly unconvinced. I don’t know how to call it. I just wanted you to know that the verdict is imminent.’
‘Thank you,’ she said calmly.
‘Where are you now?’
‘I’ve just arrived in Baden. Nichole’s parents have a farm on the edge of the town. I hope they are home, as they still don’t know I’m coming or why.’
‘Do you think they will believe you?’ Vincent asked.
‘I think they will, yes. I think it is important they know who killed their daughter and I believe they will be relieved to hear that he is going to prison for his crimes, even if it isn’t specifically for the murder of their daughter.’
‘Is your father still with you?’
‘No. I left him and Veronica in Berne, sight-seeing. They have been through enough. I don’t need them to hear what I have to say to the Brunel family.’
‘Are they enjoying their honeymoon?’
‘I’m sure they would rather I wasn’t tagging along, but dad said he wouldn’t feel comfortable, leaving me in the U.K. while they were away. They have their own room at the opposite end of the hotel we’re staying in, so at least they have some privacy.’
Vincent laughed and wished her luck with finding the farm. He finished by telling her he would phone back in five minutes or so. Vincent turned the phone off and placed it back in his pocket, before strolling towards the door and entering the courtroom.
As Sarah pulled the car into the Brunel farm she heard her mobile beep to indicate she had received a new message. She anxiously reached for the phone and scrolled to the message page. It was from Vincent and reading it brought a tear to her eye; not one of sorrow but of relief. The message was one word: guilty!
The End
ALSO BY STEPHEN EDGER
Integration
THE OFFER
Mark Baines is a Team Leader in a call centre. He dislikes his job and dreams of the day he can afford to give up his job and buy the house of his dreams. Following a terrifying burglary at his home, he is contacted by a group prepared to pay him one million pounds in return for a favour.
THE CATCH
The offer seems too good to be true, and he begins to worry about what they might expect in return. The group calls again and tells him to integrate their laundered monies through the bank he works for, but he refuses. When Mark’s girlfriend Gabrielle goes missing and his brother is attacked, Mark begins to realise just how far the group will go to get what they want.
EVERYONE HAS THEIR PRICE
As the game begins and the pressure mounts, Mark finds himself risking everything he has to find Gabrielle and save his own life before the group and the police catch up with him.
INTEGRATION
Blackmail, murder, suspense, conspiracy and money laundering: Integration is a British crime thriller set in the murky depths of the finance industry.
ALSO BY STEPHEN EDGER
Remorse
'I didn't mean to kill her. That is the first thing you need to understand about me...'
FAIRY-TALE LIFE
John Duggan had it all: married with a beautiful four month-old daughter; Manager with a career on the up; nice house in a good area of Southampton.
BEHIND CLOSED DOORS
His wife is cheating on him; his daughter’s relentless screaming deprives them of sleep; he drinks too much.
ON THE EDGE
Unable to deal with the mounting pressure, he hires a private investigator to spy on his wife. But Johnson Carmichael has troubles of his own.
As the conclusion of Duggan’s trial looms, he must come to terms with what he has done and why he is facing a life behind bars. He is about to learn a valuable lesson: not every fairy-tale has a happy ending…
REMORSE
Betrayal, revenge, regret and suspense: Remorse is a gritty British thriller exploring what fathers will do when driven to desperation.
ALSO BY STEPHEN EDGER
Redemption
LAST YEAR
Mark Baines was blackmailed into integrating two hundred and fifty million pounds of laundered money through the bank he worked for. The same group framed him for murder. Now serving two life sentences in a maximum security prison, the future looks bleak.
BREAK OUT
A siege at the prison allows Mark to escape with a mysterious group who know everything about him. They are searching for a secret passage buried somewhere in the heart of London, and they believe Mark is the key to finding it.
UNDERWORLD
Ali Jacobs is undercover with a Russian mafia family in London. She is shocked when her path brings her into contact with Mark again.
Kidnap, car chases, and an uneasy union with underworld figures mean Mark is in a race against time to prove his innocence and find redemption.
REDEMPTION
Kidnap, torture, blackmail and revenge: Redemption is the breath-taking follow-up to the acclaimed Integration.
ALSO BY STEPHEN EDGER
Shadow Line
THURSDAY NIGHT
The pilot of a routine flight from Paris deliberately crash lands the plane at Southampton airport. Miraculously, there are no fatalities, but who is the man in the Panama hat risking his life to save all on board and who is the mystery eighty-third passenger?
FRIDAY MORNING
An insurance broker carrying an automatic gun opens fire on his colleagues before turning the gun on himself. What motivated him to take such drastic measures and where did he get the weapon?
SATURDAY MORNING
A student enters the West Quay shopping centre with a bomb strapped to his chest. He takes control of the complex and begins to preach from the Qur’an. Why is he bringing his terrorist act to Southampton and why did he choose today?
IN THE SHADOWS
Charged with leading the three investigations, D.I. Jack Vincent is under enormous pressure to deliver results. The last thing he needs is the Security Services poking around. With three seemingly unrelated cases occupying his time, this really will be the toughest week of Jack Vincent’s life.
SHADOW LINE
Murder, espionage, suspense, terrorism and a face from the past: Shadow Line is the thrilling follow-up to Redemption.
ALSO BY STEPHEN EDGER
Trespass
VICTIM
September 1989: Beth Roper is a single mother struggling to earn enough money to take care of her four year-old daughter, Lauren. One night, she is followed home by a stranger who forces his way in and brutally assaults her whilst her daughter sleeps in the next room.
ATTACKER
May 1993: Known deviant, Nathan Green is on trial for the violent assault of two women and the murder of a third. The trial forces the victims to confront the man whose eyes they will never forget. He is eventually sentenced to life in prison, but it doesn’t feel like justice for one of the victims.
ACCUSER
November 2013: Following her mother’s passing, a now adult Lauren Roper hires Private Investigator Johnson Carmichael to prove that it was Nathan Green who assaulted her mother back in 1989. The trouble is Nathan Green has just been murdered by a fellow inmate during a prison riot.
With no evidence, no witnesses and only the fragile memory of the client to work with, this is a case Carmichael doesn’t want. However, when he begins to ask questions and his life is threatened, he learns there is more to Lauren’s claims than first thought.
TRESPASS
Fear, murder, revenge, and suspense: Trespass is a gritty British thriller examining the horrifying effects of sexual assault.
ALSO BY STEPHEN EDGER
Crosshairs
WARNING
This morning, Southampton MP Eve Partridge received a hand-delivered letter threatening revenge for her failure to serve the city. She contacts the police immediately but despite her protests they ignore the warning. When the terrorist later contacts D.C.I. Mercure and tells her where he’s left his first bomb, the threat becomes clear.
THE GAME
Whilst the police scramble to discover who is behind the bombs, five strangers carry on their lives, unaware that they have been targeted to play a part in the bomber’s endgame. D.S. Kyle Davies is on a train to meet his new D.I. when an assassin known as ‘The Serpent’ contacts him directly and tells him they are going to play a little game. If Kyle does what he is told, The Serpent will tell him how to stop the final bomb exploding at 7 p.m.
RELENTLESS
With no other choice, Kyle must risk everything to take on the challenge. As the deadline approaches, The Serpent reveals the bomb is on a bus. What he won’t confirm is which of the six passengers on board has the detonator.
Five innocent people. One bomber. The clock is ticking…
CROSSHAIRS
Politics, conspiracy, terrorism and suspense: Crosshairs is a British crime thriller delivered minute-by-minute until its gripping finale. This is the first book in ‘The Cadre’ series. Published by Endeavour Press.
ALSO BY STEPHEN EDGER
Complicit
REUNION
Connor Price is a young man meandering through life without purpose. He hates his job, can’t pay off his student loan and is back living with his parents in North West London. He receives a chance phone call from Dylan Thomas, his best friend from school and they agree to meet up. Dylan offers him money if Connor will go with him to a meeting. Connor is suspicious but Dylan assures him it is nothing illegal.
ON THE RUN
Connor’s world is turned upside down when he witnesses Dylan execute two Russian gangsters at the meeting, and then steal their bags full of cocaine and cash. When Dylan disappears, Connor is left to face the music alone, and becomes the target of the drug dealer, loan shark and Russian mafia who Dylan ripped off.
NO ESCAPE
The Chairman of a secret organisation known as ‘The Cadre’ is hunting Dylan as well. He has terrifying plans for Britain’s future and will stop at nothing to achieve his goals. He thinks Connor is the key to finding Dylan, and uses the high-ranking members of his organisation to exert the necessary pressure to get to the truth.
Connor is fighting for his freedom, his future and his life. Who do you turn to when even the police are after you?
COMPLICIT
Politics, espionage, conspiracy and finance: Complicit is the breath-taking follow-up to Crosshairs. This is the second book in ‘The Cadre’ series. Published by Endeavour Press.
ALSO BY STEPHEN EDGER
Double Cross
LOOKING FOR ANSWERS
Aaron Cross is hunting for the men responsible for May’s terrorist attack on Southampton, and the death of his uncle. He finds himself retracing his uncle’s final movements in Mexico. Dylan Thomas is still running from The Cadre whilst searching for his missing girlfriend. When Aaron’s and Dylan’s paths collide, little do they realise how much they are going to need each other if they are to survive and finally stop The Cadre’s plans for a New World Order.
IMPOSSIBLE ODDS
D.I. Tony White and his protégé D.S. Kyle Davies are also trying to prove who really masterminded the terrorist attack on Southampton. Their chief suspect is MP Eve Partridge, but with the whole country and The Cadre supporting her, their chances of building a case are remote at best. With nobody they can trust but each other, they set out on a dangerous journey to deliver justice.
NEW WORLD ORDER
With a new UK Prime Minister and US President on board, it seems like nothing will stop The Cadre achieving their plans for world domination. But they didn’t account for the four men with nothing to lose, who cannot be bought and will risk everything in the pursuit of freedom.
DOUBLE CROSS
Politics, terrorism, conspiracy and suspense: Double Cross is the non-stop thriller that ties together Crosshairs and Complicit. This book is the final part in ‘The Cadre’ series. Published by Endeavour Press.
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Stephen Edger is the author of 8 novels and 4 short stories, who lives and writes in Southampton, UK. Stephen is a law graduate who has spent the last twelve years working in the British financial services industry.
You can learn about Stephen and his work at www.stephenedger.com.
www.facebook.com/Author/StephenEdger or www.twitter.com/stephenedger
Table of Contents
MONDAY
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
TUESDAY
8
9
10
11
12
13
14
WEDNESDAY
15
16
17
18
19
20
THURSDAY
21
22
23
24
25
26
27
FRIDAY
28
29
30
31
32
33
SATURDAY
34
35
36
37
38
39
40
41
42
43
44
45
46
47
48
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