“When are you giving up the job?” Jed asked when she’d finished the call. “You need to rest, and we’ve got to plan what we’re doing with the houses.”
“Who says we’re doing anything with them and who are you to tell me to rest? I like my house just as it is, thank you.”
“We could knock them together, make a bigger living space for the kids.”
It was a wonderful idea, but Rachel wasn’t sure if she wanted to take it on. “Think of the mess, the upset of having workmen all over the place. This baby will be here in less than six months. It’s a lot to take on.”
“You forget, I know people in the trade. I could have it done and dusted within a couple of months. We already have the plans — Alan drew them up, remember?”
Alan had had big plans too, and look what had happened there. “It’s not just about the house, though, is it?” she said. “There’s us to consider, and the sort of relationship we’ll have.”
“No problem on my part. I want to marry you.”
That threw her. “I can’t talk about this now. I need to go to work, check how the team are doing. Let’s not hurry the marriage thing, it’s too soon. I want the girls to get used to having you around before we do anything so rash. And I haven’t had a proper conversation with Alan yet.”
“Alan will be fine, he’s got the Belinda on his arm and the pair of you are divorced,” he reminded her. “As for the girls, they’re growing up fast. Megan is already living part-time with her friend and Mia doesn’t have a problem with me at all.”
“I’ll consider everything, and we’ll talk about our future together another time.”
* * *
Friday
Superintendent Mark Kenton was sitting at Rachel’s desk waiting for her when she arrived.
“I’ve heard an unsettling rumour,” he said.
“Not about the Shawcross case. That’s doing fine, thank you.”
“No, about you. A little bird tells me you’re planning on taking extended leave.”
Now, who . . . ? Not Elwyn, he’d promised to keep quiet, and she trusted him absolutely, so who’d ratted on her?
Then it dawned. “Nell Hennessey. I had to tell her something to get her off my back.” Her voice sounded too high-pitched, even to herself. Kenton knew she was lying.
“Are you planning to leave us, Rachel? Straight answer. I know I pointed out those jobs in Stockport, but I wasn’t being serious. I don’t want to lose you,” Kenton said.
“Even though I’m stubborn and bloody expensive on the forensics front? Are you sure, Mark?”
“Your team is doing a good job. I’ve no complaints. Come on, what is this rumour all about?”
Rachel poured herself an orange juice from a carton she’d brought in. “I’m pregnant, Mark, just over three months.”
Kenton stared at her as if he hadn’t heard her right. “You sure?”
“Quite sure. I’ve trodden this path before. And before you ask, yes, Jed is the father.”
He coughed. “What’s next with Shawcross? Got all the results you need yet?”
Rachel smiled. Prefer to ignore the bit about Jed, did he? “I’ll check in with Jude shortly. But he isn’t going anywhere, our guest. He’s as guilty as sin.”
Kenton picked up his mobile and started to scroll through the images. “Evidence that he killed Swan is a bit thin, circumstantial in the main. Perhaps this will help.”
Rachel took the device from him. The photo showed the body of Swan lying in the sitting room of Redhill Terrace.
“Where did you get this?”
“It was sent by Shawcross to his ex-wife Vanessa on the night he shot Swan. It was meant as a warning. She did nothing about it — too afraid. She knows Shawcross of old. But she had the foresight to keep it, just in case. I’ve sent it to the IT technicians. They can give you the date of when it was taken.”
“This is great, Mark, just what we need. Shame the woman didn’t give us this sooner.”
“She’s terrified of him, Rachel. Which is why she has avoided coming to see us during this investigation. If Shawcross had the merest hint that Vanessa was helping us, he’d have killed her.” Kenton got up to leave.
“He definitely won’t wriggle out of this one now,” she said. “I can’t wait to see his face.”
“We’ll miss you,” Kenton said, “but you will come back, won’t you? You’re not thinking of leaving us for good?”
“I’m not sure what I’m thinking, Mark. Jed wants to marry me. If that happens, it’ll change both our lives.”
She was winding Kenton up. Rachel was a long way off deciding about marriage. She’d tried it once and it hadn’t worked, so why go through it again?
Her office phone rang. It was Jude, calling from the lab.
“It’s good news, Rachel, the best. The DNA from the blood on Sherwin’s hand and the Saint Christopher match that of Mathew Shawcross. It looks like you’ve got him.”
The icing on the cake. Rachel heaved a sigh of relief. There was no way he could argue, scream or fight his way out of this one. He’d killed three men, and injured Siddall twice. Shawcross was going down for a long time.
Epilogue
Three months later
“Look at you!” Amy exclaimed as Rachel entered the office. “You’re positively blooming. Pregnancy suits you, ma’am.”
Rachel ran a hand over her baby bump. “Thanks. I think I’m quite enjoying the whole experience this time round.”
“You heard about Shawcross?” Elwyn asked.
“Yes, it was in the papers. I would never have had him down as the suicidal type,” Rachel said.
“Hanged himself with a ripped-up bedsheet,” Amy said.
Elwyn handed her a drink. “The CPS are still deciding what to do about Siddall and Pearce. Siddall is just getting on with his life, but Pearce has been knocking Rita about again. She’s decided to press charges this time. So, we’ll wait and see.”
Rachel’s eyes strayed to her office. “Replaced me yet? I did hear something.”
Elwyn smiled. “She starts Monday, and I’m sure she’s not a patch on you.”
“According to her reputation she is, if not better. Nell Hennessey is an excellent detective. Give her a chance, Elwyn.”
“She’s bringing her own sergeant with her, a DS Rio Sharpe. I don’t even know if that’s a man or a woman’s name. What d’you think?”
“Rio is a young woman, tipped to go far. Nell took her under her wing a couple of years ago. She was a DC back then.”
“It still won’t be the same,” Jonny said. “You will come back to us, won’t you? Once the baby comes, you won’t decide to leave or anything?”
Rachel laughed. “You will all be just fine without me. Do your best. Impress DCI Hennessey and you’ll make DS in no time.”
Rachel went around the team one by one, hugging them goodbye. “You’re all invited to the christening. In the meantime, be good, and don’t upset the new boss too much. See you all later.”
Rachel left the office with tears in her eyes. She’d never imagined the day would come when she’d walk away from the job she loved. But Jed and the baby, the pull they had on her heartstrings, had won for now.
THE END
ALSO BY HELEN H. DURRANT
DETECTIVE RACHEL KING
Book 1: NEXT VICTIM
Book 2: TWO VICTIMS
Book 3: WRONG VICTIM
Book 4: FORGOTTEN VICTIM
THE DCI GRECO BOOKS
Book 1: DARK MURDER
Book 2: DARK HOUSES
Book 3: DARK TRADE
Book 4: DARK ANGEL
THE CALLADINE & BAYLISS MYSTERY SERIES
Book 1: DEAD WRONG
Book 2: DEAD SILENT
Book 3: DEAD LIST
Book 4: DEAD LOST
Book 5: DEAD & BURIED
Book 6: DEAD NASTY
Book 7: DEAD JEALOUS
Book 8: DEAD BAD
Book 9: DEAD GUILTY
Book 10: DEAD WICKED
DETECTIVE MATT BRINDLE
Book 1: HIS THIRD VICTIM
Book 2: THE OTHER VICTIM
DETECTIVES LENNOX & WILDE
Book 1: THE GUILTY MAN
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A SELECTION OF BOOKS YOU MAY ENJOY
THE CALLADINE & BAYLISS MYSTERIES
(Book 3 features DI GRECO)
BOOK 1: DEAD WRONG
UK: www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B010Y7641M
US: www.amazon.com/dp/B010Y7641M
First a shooting, then a grisly discovery on the common . . .
Police partners, DI Calladine and DS Ruth Bayliss race against time to track down a killer before the whole area erupts in violence. Their boss thinks it’s all down to drug lord Ray Fallon, but Calladine’s instincts say something far nastier is happening on the Hobfield housing estate.
Can this duo track down the murderer before anyone else dies and before the press publicize the gruesome crimes? Detectives Calladine and Bayliss are led on a trail which gets dangerously close to home. In a thrilling finale they race against time to rescue someone very close to Calladine’s heart.
BOOK 2: DEAD SILENT
UK: www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B01185U8NE
US: www.amazon.com/dp/B01185U8NE
A body is found in a car crash, but the victim was already dead . . .
BOOK 3: DEAD LIST
This book is the first to feature D.I Greco
UK: www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B013J9BUAW
US: www.amazon.com/dp/B013J9BUAW
An unlikely serial killer with a bucket list of victims . . .
BOOK 4: DEAD LOST
UK: www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B018W6EANQ
US: www.amazon.com/dp/B018W6EANQ
An abandoned cotton mill holds horrific secrets
Police partners, DI Calladine and DS Ruth Bayliss face one of their toughest challenges yet. A group of homeless people have set up camp in the grounds of a disused cotton mill belonging to local businessman Damien Chase.
BOOK 5: DEAD & BURIED
UK: www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B01HXXTWKA
US: www.amazon.com/dp/B01HXXTWKA
Annie Naden and her husband buy a remote country cottage at auction. It’s the home of their own that they always wanted, but as they begin renovations, Annie discovers a satchel in a dusty old hidden cupboard. Inside are the usual schoolbooks, now over 40 years old, and a girl’s diary. Among the record of day-to-day crushes and pop concerts, is a secret whose terrible consequences are still resonating to this day
THE DI GRECO MYSTERIES
DI GRECO BOOK 1: DARK MURDER
UK: www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B0163DVHC2
US: www.amazon.com/dp/B0163DVHC2
A woman is found dead by a canal . . . why have her eyes have been viciously poked out?
Detective Stephen Greco has just started a new job at Oldston CID and now he faces a series of murders with seemingly no connection but the brutal disfigurement of the victims. Greco’s team is falling apart under the pressure and he doesn't know who he can trust. Then they discover a link to a local drug dealer, but maybe it’s not all that it seems.
Can Greco get control of his chaotic team and stop the murders?
DI GRECO BOOK 2: DARK HOUSES
UK: www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B01CGR9KEQ
US: www.amazon.com/dp/B01CGR9KEQ
A young woman is found brutally murdered in an empty house
Detective Stephen Greco and his team must piece together her life as quickly as possible. Within twenty-four hours there is another killing using the same method. The detectives realise that the victims are random but the locations are not. The killer is more concerned with finding the right house — somewhere he won’t be disturbed.
DETECTIVE AVA MERRY SERIES
BOOK 1: DEAD SECRET
UK: www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B00XYMC5GI
US: www.amazon.com/dp/B00XYMC5GI
Shocking family secrets come to light when a young woman is murdered.
Amy Hill, a nineteen-year-old student, is strangled and her body dumped on open ground in the city. New police partners, DI Jim Neal and DS Ava Merry are called in to investigate this brutal crime. The last person to see Amy alive was Simon, the son of a family friend, but before he can be properly questioned he disappears.
Detectives Neal and Merry are led on a trail of shocking family secrets and crimes. Can this duo track down the murderer before anyone else dies? Stopping this tragic cycle of violence will put DS Merry’s life at risk in a thrilling and heart-stopping finale.
If you like Angela Marsons, Rachel Abbott, Ruth Rendell, or Mark Billingham you will be gripped by this exciting new crime fiction writer.
DEAD SECRET is the first in a new series of detective thrillers featuring DS Ava Merry and DI Jim Neal. Ava Merry is a young policewoman, recently promoted to detective sergeant. She is a fitness fanatic with a taste for dangerous relationships. Jim Neal is a single dad who juggles his devotion to his job with caring for his son.
Set in the fictional Northern city of Stromford, this detective mystery will have you gripped from start to shocking conclusion.
TITAN TRILOGY
BOOK 1: HABIT
UK: www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B00HRIJVFS
US: www.amazon.com/dp/B00HRIJVFS
A #1 best-selling thriller that you won’t be able to put down!
A young woman, Rebecca Heilshorn, lies stabbed to death in her bed in a remote farmhouse. Rookie detective Brendan Healy is called in to investigate. All hell breaks loose when her brother bursts onto the scene. Rebecca turns out to have many secrets and connections to a sordid network mixing power, wealth, and sex. Detective Brendan Healy, trying to put a tragic past behind him, pursues a dangerous investigation that will risk both his life and his sanity.
HABIT is a compelling thriller which will appeal to all fans of crime fiction. T.J. Brearton amps up the tension at every step, until the shocking and gripping conclusion.
GLOSSARY OF ENGLISH SLANG FOR US READERS
A & E: accident and emergency department in a hospital
Aggro: violent behaviour, aggression
A level: exams taken between 16 and 18
Allotment: a plot of land rented from the council, used to grow vegetables or flowers
Barm: bread roll
Beaker: glass or cup for holding liquids
Benefits: social security
Bent: corrupt
Betting shop: a place where you can place bets on horses and other sports
Bin: wastebasket (noun), or throw in rubbish (verb)
Bloke: guy
Blow: cocaine
Bob: money
Bookies: a place where you can place bets on horses and other sports
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 wh
ere old people are cared for
Car park: parking lot
Chat-up: flirt, trying to pick up someone with witty banter or compliments
Chemist: pharmacy
Chinwag: conversation
CID: Criminal Investigation Department
Clock: punch
Cock-up: mess up, make a mistake
Common: an area of park land/ or lower class
Common or garden: ordinary
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
Crown Jewels: the Queen’s jewels and crown worn on state occasions (can also be an expression for anything valuable)
DCI: Detective Chief Inspector
Deck: one of the floors of a tower block
DI: Detective Inspector
DS: Detective Sergeant
Do a bunk: disappear
Do a runner: disappear
Do one: go away
Doc Martens: Heavy boots with an air-cushioned sole
FORGOTTEN VICTIM an absolutely gripping crime mystery with a massive twist (Detective Rachel King Thrillers Book 4) Page 20