by Wonny Lea
‘Well if I don’t then maybe it’s time I did,’ responded Martin and then he asked for quiet as he publicly thanked everyone for their amazing efforts. He brought them all up to date regarding events at the Parkland Nursing Home and the arrests that had been made.
‘You have all been terrific,’ he said. ‘If it hadn’t been for Sergeant Evans’ twitchy nose we would never have begun the investigation at Parkland, and who knows how many more residents would have been killed? And I think it will bring some comfort to Elsie Forrester to know that the finding of her sister’s body in Coopers Field has led to us to being able to help other vulnerable people sleep safely in their beds.’
There was general agreement and lots of glasses raised to that thought.
‘Finally,’ said Martin. ‘Let me tell you the other reason for our little celebration. She doesn’t know the result herself yet, but I do, and I ask you now to all raise your glasses to a new member of the CID team. Welcome on board, Detective Constable Helen Cook-Watts!
Cover Picture
The photograph on the front cover, taken by the author, shows the wooden sign in Bute Park, Cardiff, giving directions to Coopers Field.
It’s fitting that for the cover of a murder mystery the author has chosen to point to a field named after an unknown man. No one really knows who Mr Cooper was, and although his name is attached to this piece of land in surveys dating back to the late sixteenth century, there is no official record that he ever owned it.
Coopers Field, situated in the southernmost part of Bute Park and within easy walking distance of the city centre, is today mainly used as an events area and hosts popular attractions such as ‘Sparks in the Park’, an annual Bonfire Night firework display that raises money for local charities.
Bute Park is freely available to the people of Cardiff and to all the city’s visitors, and provides an amazing area of green parkland at the heart of the vibrant capital city of Wales. It is bordered on one side by the River Taff and along one of the other sides by the walls of Cardiff Castle. Sophia Gardens and Pontcanna Fields complete the outer perimeter of the Park. In all there is a total of 56 hectares full of historic interest as well as horticultural and environmental features.
The park was once part of the grounds of Cardiff Castle, and gets its name from the third Marquess of Bute whose family were the landowners. It was the fifth Marquess who gifted the land and Cardiff Castle to the people of Wales in 1947, and the legacy continues to be managed by Cardiff Council.
The area was originally designed by the nineteenth-century gardener and horticulturist Andrew Pettigrew, and to add to his work an interesting mix of rare and ornamental trees has been planted since 1947. The park is now home to over 2000 trees.
As well as trees, the park provides a refuge for a variety of wildlife, and observant visitors will not just see the squirrels and the more common birds, but also tree creepers, otters, herons, and woodpeckers, to name just a few.
There is a wealth of historic interest dating back to Roman and medieval times but if it’s just a picnic you want then it will be easy to find a quiet spot even at the busiest times. If you may want to take the easy option and not even make the sandwiches the Summerhouse or the Secret Garden Café are brilliant alternatives.
A quick and easy way to learn all about the park’s history, trees, flowers and wildlife is to visit The Bute Park Education Centre. There is usually a range of craft activities on offer and the staff will suggest trails and provide maps that will ensure you miss nothing and see the best of what the park has to offer.
The DCI Martin Phelps Series
Wonny Lea
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Copyright © Wonny Lea 2012
This edition published by Accent Press 2014
The right of Wonny Lea to be identified as the author of this work has been asserted by her in accordance with the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988.
ISBN 9781783754588
All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic, electrostatic, magnetic tape, mechanical, photocopying, recording or otherwise, without the written permission of the publishers: Accent Press Ltd, Ty Cynon House, Navigation Park, Abercynon, CF45 4SN
The stories contained within this book are works of fiction. Names and characters are the product of the authors’ imaginations and any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, is entirely coincidental