by Joy Kluver
Bernie took it and placed it in an evidence bag. ‘Thanks. I’ll need the code for it.’
‘Two one three two,’ said Craig.
Bernie jotted it down in her notebook. ‘Is there anything else you want to tell me, Craig?’
He shook his head. ‘No, I don’t think so.’
‘OK. Interview concluded at fourteen forty-five hours.’ Bernie switched off the recording.
‘What happens now?’ asked Craig.
Bernie looked at the teenager. Her heart went out to him. She believed him but justice wasn’t her decision to make.
‘Well, I’ll write this statement up and then you’ll have to sign it. We may have further questions as well at some point but you’ve been quite thorough. I’ll get in contact with the CPS and they’ll decide the charges.’
‘But you must have some idea,’ said John Moffatt. ‘Surely it’s based on your recommendation.’
‘It’s based on the evidence, Mr Moffatt. We’ve seen the video that Craig was sent. What he’s just told me confirms what we’ve seen. Until I speak to the CPS, I can’t tell you.’
‘What about the bastard who took Laura? What’ll happen to him?’ asked John.
Bernie saw the strain on John Moffatt’s face. She wasn’t sure how the family would survive but she would do her best to make sure they did.
‘Again, I can’t tell you until I’ve spoken to the CPS but… I’m expecting a very long list of charges for him.’
Bernie stood up. ‘I’ll be in touch. And Craig, DS Anderson and I have no qualms about saving you. It’s our job to protect everyone, including you.’
Bernie’s shoulders sagged as she walked to her car. Her phone buzzed. She looked at the screen and saw it was Anderson.
‘Hey, you,’ she said.
‘Hey you, too. Do you want the good news or the good news or the good news?’
‘There’s no bad news? That makes a change. You choose.’
‘OK. Firstly, Gabriel’s been in touch. Bruno Manetti’s been arrested in Rome and is now in custody. We’re going to send them the phone ASAP but Manetti’s SIM card is already on its way to them. Rosa’s been in Spain but is now on her way home. It was as we thought. She wanted Ria to be safe from her ex so gave her the au pair job. She was very upset when she heard about her friend. Alberto and Julietta are relieved though.’
‘I bet they are. We probably owe them an apology, scaring them like that. What else?’
‘After giving a denial statement last night, Gardener’s mother has come back in and spilt the beans on her son. Sounds like he’s been an absolute bastard to his mother and sister. They had to go along with what he was doing or he’d hurt them. So that, along with Laura and Chloe’s interviews, is enough to charge him with abduction. Lastly, Child Protection have taken over the online stuff but they have found something interesting that might help Craig Moffatt.’
‘Oh, yes?’
‘A longer video clip from that night. Gardener sent a shorter version to Craig. In the longer one, Ria is laughing and seems to be enticing Craig on. Then she changes character and starts screaming. It was obviously meant to be a set-up all along and from what Gardener’s mother said, Ryan Willis was the original target. Although they never told the Willis family, Ben confessed to his parents about hiding Ryan. He got a real beating from his father for it. Clearly wasn’t a nice man. Not long after, his parents split up. For some reason, Ben thought it was to do with him and blamed Ryan.’
‘Sounds like a messed up kid. There’s one thing still bugging me though – Ria’s confession. We’ll never know which man she was scared of.’
‘Probably just as well. If she’d named just one man, we wouldn’t have looked at the others. And now they’re all facing charges. You can’t always know it all, Miss Marple.’
Bernie shook her head. ‘Stop calling me that.’
‘OK. Is Jessica Fletcher any better?’
‘No…’
‘How about Christine Cagney? She was damn sexy. Or Makepeace. She was hot too…’
‘Oh, Dougie. You are the most infuriating man but I do lo—’ Bernie stopped. The words had come out of her mouth without her really thinking about them.
‘You do what? Love me? God, Bernie. We’ve not even had that first date yet.’
She could hear the teasing in his voice.
‘I feel the same way too,’ he said.
‘Please tell me you’re not in the office.’
‘I’m not. I’m outside.’ He paused. ‘I guess this means I’m going to have to change teams.’
Bernie bit her lip. She didn’t want him to move but knew there was no choice.
‘I guess it does,’ she said.
68
Seven weeks later – Early December
The Marchant Arms was covered in Christmas decorations. The landlord and his wife didn’t go in for the understated look. The pub was crowded but an area had been reserved for Anderson’s leaving drinks.
‘I suppose I should give a speech,’ said DCS Wilson. All eyes turned to him. ‘Detective Sergeant Dougal Anderson…’
Anderson grimaced at his full name.
‘…it’s mostly been a pleasure having you on the MCIT team these last few months.’
There was a ripple of laughter.
‘You’ve certainly made an impact,’ said Wilson. ‘In more ways than one. I’m sad to see you go but glad that it’s for a good reason. I’m sure that you and Bernie will be very happy together. At least, I hope you will be. She’s hell to work with when she’s grumpy. So, please, for all our sakes, keep her happy.’
Bernie blushed.
‘I’ll do my best,’ said Anderson.
‘Good,’ said Wilson. ‘Our loss is Serious Organised Crime team’s gain. So I’d like everyone to raise their glasses and toast the newly appointed Detective Inspector Anderson.’
There were cheers as the team toasted Anderson.
‘Well done, mate,’ said Matt Taylor, banging him on the back.
‘That’s Detective Inspector to you, or sir, Matty boy,’ said Anderson, laughing. ‘Hey, you know what we need – chips! Sue – lots of chips, please!’
Kerry sidled up to Bernie. ‘Someone’s merry. So, he’s moving in before Christmas then? You two didn’t muck about, did you? Did you even go on that first date?’
Bernie gave a wry smile. ‘Actually, we did. We went to Bath for the day and had a really lovely time.’
‘And?’
Bernie sighed. ‘He booked a hotel for the night.’
They both laughed.
Kerry indicated to Bernie’s glass. ‘Get you another? Seeing you only have to stagger home.’
‘No, I’d better not. I’ve got a doctor’s appointment tomorrow. Dougie’s been nagging me to go and get these headaches sorted out. It won’t look good if I turn up with a hangover.’
‘No, it won’t. And mention your wrist too. You need proper physio.’
‘Like I have time for that. I don’t have time for anything.’
Bernie sat in the waiting room at the surgery. The doctor was running late. She sighed. She’d only booked an hour off work for this. Flicking through the health magazines, she resisted the quiz to see how healthy she was but did linger over the sex feature.
‘Bernadette Noel.’
Bernie looked up to see Dr Forbes smiling at her. She stood up and followed the doctor.
Bernie liked Dr Forbes. In her mid-forties, she ran the practice with one other partner. She was a doctor who loved the local community and was very much part of village life in Marchant. A real ‘cradle to the grave’ kind of doctor who willingly gave up her time for her patients.
‘So, Bernie, what can I do for you today? I so rarely see you here.’
Bernie smiled. ‘I know. I’m rubbish at coming to see you. I’ve been getting quite bad headaches for a few months now. It’s not my eyesight as I got that checked.’
‘Oh, you’ve got time to get your eyes checked then.’ Dr
Forbes smiled. ‘I can see here you’ve not had a check-up for over six months. So we’ll do the full works today. Let’s start with your blood pressure first.’
Bernie braced herself as the cuff tightened round her arm. She hated that squeezing feeling.
‘Hmm,’ said the doctor. ‘Hundred and forty over ninety – that’s quite high. That could be the cause of your headaches. I’m guessing you work irregular hours, drink a lot of coffee and probably not enough water and are generally quite stressed. And don’t sleep properly either.’
Bernie smiled. ‘Well, yes. I am quite tired.’
‘Even so, your blood pressure is still high.’ Dr Forbes rummaged in a drawer in her desk and took out a tube. She passed it to Bernie.
‘If you could go and do a sample, please.’
‘What, now?’
‘Yes, now. God knows when I’ll see you again, Bernie. As I said, full works today. Off you go.’
Bernie returned a few minutes later and passed the tube back. Dr Forbes unscrewed the lid and stuck a dipstick into it.
‘Now, the other thing to consider with your headaches and blood pressure, is your birth control.’ Dr Forbes gave a cheeky grin. ‘I’ve seen you around with your new man. I heartily approve. He’s very good-looking.’
Bernie’s cheeks burned. ‘Well, yes. I’ve been on the Pill for as long as I can remember.’
‘When was your last bleed?’
‘Late September, I think. I’ve been taking the packs back to back for three cycles like we agreed. I’m due a break next week.’
Dr Forbes turned back to the urine sample and pulled the dipstick out.
‘And you’re still taking it?’ the doctor asked.
‘Yes, every morning, religiously.’
‘You’ve not had any stomach upsets?’
‘No.’
‘So no diarrhoea or vomiting then?’
‘No,’ said Bernie. She stopped as a memory surfaced. Next to her car after seeing Ria’s body for the first time in the woods. She had vomited. And then a couple of days later, there had been the morning with Alex, followed by the night with Anderson. She looked aghast at the doctor. ‘Oh hell. I was sick about a couple of months ago.’
‘Well,’ said Dr Forbes, ‘that would explain it. Looks as though congratulations are in order. You’re pregnant.’
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Books by Joy Kluver
Last Seen
Broken Girls
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Last Seen (Available in the UK and the US)
A Letter from Joy
Dear reader,
I want to say a huge thank you for choosing to read Broken Girls. If you did enjoy it, and want to keep up to date with all my latest releases, just sign up at the following link. Your email address will never be shared and you can unsubscribe at any time.
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I hope you loved Broken Girls and if you did I would be very grateful if you could write a review. I’d love to hear what you think, and it makes such a difference helping new readers to discover one of my books for the first time.
This wasn’t an easy story to write. As a mother of teenagers, I’m all too aware of the dangers the internet can present. Online grooming becomes more prevalent each day and so it’s important to teach our children to be safe online. If you’re wondering how to talk to your children then The Breck Foundation is a good place to start.
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Thanks,
Joy
www.kluver.co.uk
Last Seen
Detective Bernadette Noel Book 1
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I can see her, laughing as she swings as high as she can, her beautiful blonde curls flying out behind her. My little girl. If only I’d listened to my gut. Then maybe she’d be safe here with me…
When five-year-old Molly Reynolds is snatched from the park in the small village of Otterfield, Detective Bernadette ‘Bernie’ Noel throws herself into the search, sick with worry for the quiet, sensitive little girl and her distraught mother.
Wasting no time, Bernie finds a small green cardigan under a bush in the park. It still has the smiley face sticker Molly won that week at school. It’s the first in a chain of clues – and Bernie can’t shake the feeling that it was left deliberately, as a message.
But Bernie encounters a wall of silence. Otterfield is a close-knit community, yet no one in the village has anything to say about the missing child. And Bernie is sure there is something Molly’s mother isn’t telling her either. Why?
And then she makes a chilling discovery: twenty-five years ago, another little girl went missing from the area. Her name was Sophie, and all they ever found of her was her teddy bear, hidden under a bush, just the same as Molly’s cardigan. Now Bernie knows she’s in a race against time to save Molly’s life.
Bernie’s team work round the clock to find a connection between the two girls – but when they find their proof it comes at the price of a shocking tragedy that strikes right at the heart of the case. Molly’s family have been hiding a secret, and now their little girl is in greater danger than ever.
Then Bernie makes one deadly mistake that places her right in the hands of the most dangerous criminal she’s ever faced. She was willing to go to any lengths to solve the case – but will she stay alive long enough to do it?
A completely addictive crime thriller with mind-blowing twists that will have you reading late into the night. If you like Val McDermid, D.S. Butler or Angela Marsons, you’ll love Joy Kluver.
Buy now!
Acknowledgements
I’d like to start with my editor, Therese Keating, and all the rest of the incredible team at Bookouture – it’s great to be part of the family. To my agent, Anne Williams – thank you for your continued support.
Thank you to Graham Bartlett and Karen Bate for their police expertise, and also Colin Hart. I’ve had to use some artistic licence with the story so any police inaccuracies are my own.
To Vicki Goldman and Alex Khan for their unstinting encouragement and an early edit from Vicki. To Rod Reynolds – thank you for reading and giving me advice once more.
Huge thanks to all the bloggers that took part in the blog tour. Having been a blogger for several years I know how much time and energy it takes to read and review so I really appreciate it.
The first draft of this book was written under the guidance of Elizabeth Kay, my tutor at the Malden Centre Writing Class, and critiqued weekly by the rest of the group – John, Viviane, Jean, Mike, Sue, Aleks, Marilyn, Caroline, Loraine and Clare. Thank you for all your help.
I knew nothing about motorbikes when I started writing this. So I’m grateful to Alistair Stewart for his advice and also the staff at J&S Accessories who entertained my questions about motorbike helmets.
As I’ve included some real places in Wiltshire, it was essential to do a research trip. Thank you to John and Esther Dusting for letting us stay, especially as it was the whole family! The track mentioned in the book is real and when we walked there, we really did meet a dog walker who told us about it being haunted. I have elaborated on it a bit but thank you to Diane Paris for sowing the seed! I’ve also recently discovered the website hiddenwiltshire.com, which provided more information about the track, so thank you to Paul Timlett.
And finally, to my husband, Phil, and our three children, James, Beth and Hayden – thank you for enduring the research trip, particularly the drive down the potholed lane! At least y
ou got your reward at the bakery.
Published by Bookouture in 2021
An imprint of Storyfire Ltd.
Carmelite House
50 Victoria Embankment
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www.bookouture.com
Copyright © Joy Kluver, 2021
Joy Kluver has asserted her right to be identified as the author of this work.
All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in any retrieval system, or transmitted, in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording or otherwise, without the prior written permission of the publishers.
eBook ISBN: 978-1-80019-646-9
This book is a work of fiction. Names, characters, businesses, organizations, places and events other than those clearly in the public domain, are either the product of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously. Any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, events or locales is entirely coincidental.