With Sylvie Delacourt in custody, Grant finally allowed himself to relax. To hell with the paperwork, he thought, and he drove straight back to the hospital.
Lisa had been dangerously dehydrated but she was slowly gaining strength. Emily’s situation was more serious. The paediatrician met him outside Emily’s room.
‘How’s she doing?’ Grant asked.
‘Emily came very close to dying but she’s a strong little girl. As I suspected, she had sepsis. By the time your officers found her, she’d gone into septic shock. It will take forty-eight hours for the antibiotics to do their job.’
‘It was pretty close then.’
‘The child was near death. Even a few moments more and it might have been too late.’ She placed her hand on Grant’s arm. ‘Seems like you did a fantastic job finding them.’
‘Not me. It was everyone.’
She laughed. ‘Yeah, you always say that.’
Grant’s next stop was checking on Diane. The nurse told him she was out of the operating theatre and the doctors had been able to repair the damage. Thank goodness, no ostomy bag for Diane. Diane was asleep, surrounded by her husband and three sons. Grant scribbled a get well soon note and left it by her bedside.
Emily and Lisa were safe. Riley was dead and Sylvie Delacourt would be sentenced. For the first time in days, he could have a proper night’s sleep.
56
It wasn’t until the following day that Tom and Ruby met Alice at the hospital. Tom had never seen Alice so happy and she definitely had a new confidence about her.
When Alice saw Tom she rushed towards him and flung her arms around his neck. ‘I’ve so wanted to see you. Thank you. Thank you so much for saving my children.’
‘My pleasure,’ Tom mumbled.
They walked towards Lisa’s room and every time Alice looked at him, she smiled. It was sort of nice and it was kind of embarrassing too.
‘Not used to being the hero?’ Ruby teased.
Tom went red. ‘DI Hunter had her part to play in it.’
‘Except I know hers was a minor one,’ Alice said. ‘Come and see Lisa. She wants to give you a hug.’
After a night in hospital Lisa was able to walk and the doctors said she could go home soon. Emily’s situation was now stable though she was still only permitted to see her mother. Not even her grandmother had been allowed beyond the glass window of Emily’s room.
‘My mother insisted I tell you again how grateful she is, Tom,’ Alice said. ‘And guess what? Emily wants to be a police officer when she grows up and she’d like to see you as soon as she can.’
Tom smiled. ‘Oh don’t you worry about that, she won’t be able to keep me away.’
When Lisa saw Tom she clung onto him like a koala, with both arms and both legs. ‘You save me and you saved Emmy.’
When Alice eventually persuaded Lisa to let Tom go, Lisa proudly handed over a drawing. ‘This is you.’
It was a picture of Tom carrying her and Emily from the house, with one child tucked under each arm. She had drawn him with sticking up hair and big boots. One child was crying and the other had their eyes closed.
Tom stared at it and felt a big lump in his throat.
‘What a lovely picture. How is Emily doing?’ Ruby asked.
‘The doctors are happy with her progress. She’s talking which is a very good sign and they don’t think she has any permanent organ damage. She’s still fragile, and it might take a couple of weeks, but they expect her to make a full recovery. A few minutes later, and well, you know…’ Alice dabbed at her eyes. ‘But this isn’t a day for being tearful. What you did was wonderful and I’ll never forget it.’
When they left, Ruby linked her arm in Tom’s.
‘Are you going to put Lisa’s picture on your wall?’ she asked.
‘If I do, are you going to come see it?’
Ruby smiled and tipped her head on one side in that nice way she had. ‘Maybe.’
And Tom really hoped she meant it.
On another hospital ward, Jack Glover had regained consciousness. They knew the first thing his wife had said to him was, she was going ahead with the divorce.
Zofia Kaminski had reported that Jack raped her at the Christmas party. She had decided to press charges. Once she knew of Jack’s part in Daniel Pearson’s break-in, it made her change her mind about keeping silent. Zofia said she owed it to the other women Jack had assaulted and to Pearson. All those years ago, she had gone to the police after the rape and they had photographic and biological evidence on file, which was enough for a prosecution to go ahead.
57
Assistant Chief Constable Treadgold was suspended.
Grant knew they had enough to convict him. Hector Mason, the fence, was willing to testify that jewellery from the heist had been given to Treadgold as a pay-off for his silence. Treadgold’s trail of corruption had finally caught up with him. Once the investigation completed, Treadgold would be facing a custodial sentence.
As Grant found out on their previous case, Treadgold had turned a blind eye to murders in the past and it looked as if Treadgold had been accepting payments from criminals for years. Hector Mason, the middleman, would be placed in a safe house until Treadgold’s enquiry was complete.
Grant was in Fox’s office. Fox had her back to Grant and she was staring out the window.
‘It looks as if we’ll get enough to charge Treadgold. When it hits the media, the hacks will have a field day. Dishonest officers tarnish all of us.’
‘True, and then the storm will blow over, and for the moment we’re basking in the Glover story,’ Grant said. ‘Enjoy it. The press can’t get enough of those two blonde lovelies.’
‘The video of DS Delaney pushing Emily on the swings was the clincher. It’s all over the television,’ Fox said.
‘It’s her smile I like.’
‘I didn’t know you were such a softie. You never cease to amaze me, Grant. How on earth did you pull this case off?’
‘By having the best team in the business.’
‘No, by being the best boss in the business which is why…’ Fox sat down and gave him a level stare, ‘…why I’m recommending you for a promotion. They’re looking for someone to head up the South East Major Incident Team.’
The MIT? Goodness, Grant thought, that would be a real challenge.
‘Ma’am, I’m not sure.’
She wafted her hand. ‘Think about it and keep it to yourself for the moment, until you’ve made your decision.’ She sniffed and placed one finger on the top of McGowan’s file. ‘If there’s one thing I can’t stand it’s rotten apples in the barrel. An officer like McGowan could have gone on to be as dirty as Treadgold. It turns out McGowan has a gambling habit. I guess Treadgold paying him for information was too much of a temptation.’
Grant would never forgive McGowan for the betrayal nor for endangering Diane’s life. You could never underestimate the power of money. McGowan had sold out for the lure of easy backhanders from Treadgold. And for it, Steve McGowan was also suspended pending an investigation and he would be losing his badge.
Fox sighed. ‘It’s been exhausting. Well done, David, and I mean it.’
‘Thank you, ma’am. And thank you for putting my name forward for the MIT.’
She snorted. ‘Don’t let it go to your head, and if you don’t mind, I’ve got a mountain of administration to get through.’
He got the hint. As he was about to step out of the room, Fox looked up from her keyboard and called after him. ‘Oh yes I almost forgot, will you be doing a drinks thing for your birthday?’
Fox had the nerve to pretend innocence. He almost laughed out loud as he waited for the punchline.
‘Fifty-eight it’ll be this year, won’t it?’ Fox said, the triumph in her voice unmistakable.
‘That’s right.’ Grant said. Fox never could resist getting the knife in about his age, could she. And he laughed all the way back to the cubbyhole.
58
Ruby was glad to attend the funeral service for Maria Fernandez. She and Tom were there representing Sussex Police because Grant was still caught up dealing with Treadgold and McGowan. It was sad how few people attended – only six in all. One of them was Maria’s brother, Billy.
Afterwards, Ruby laid flowers by Maria’s resting place and Billy came to speak to her.
‘Thank you. My sister always liked flowers,’ he said. ‘Where we grew up, there were tennis courts down the road and she used to like going there. Not to watch the tennis but because they grew flowers alongside the courts.’
‘My condolences,’ Ruby said. ‘I’m sorry you lost your sister.’
‘Listen, I want you to know Maria wasn’t a bad girl, it was Riley who ruined her with drugs. She tried so hard to break the habit. In the end, it was ruining my life as well as hers because she kept asking for money until one day I snapped. I told her I never wanted to see her again. Of course, I bitterly regret that now. I wish I’d been there to help her.’
‘Maria helped us to find Emily and Lisa,’ Tom said. ‘When she died, she left a message which led us to the right place.’
‘Did she?’
‘Yes,’ Ruby said. ‘Without it, the children would never have been found in time.’
Billy was fighting back the tears and he gripped Ruby’s arm. ‘She always was kind at heart. Thank you for telling me Maria did good in the end.’
59
With thirty stitches needed in her abdomen, Diane had been lucky. She was expected to make a full recovery, though it would take time. Tom emptied a bag of grapes into the bowl and pulled up a chair.
‘How’re you feeling?’ Ruby asked.
‘I move a centimetre and it’s agony,’ Diane said. ‘And for goodness’ sake don’t make me laugh because that’s the worst. Have you heard any more about McGowan?’
‘He’s been suspended pending an investigation,’ Tom said. ‘And so has Assistant Chief Constable Treadgold. The word is Treadgold will be going down, and McGowan will be dismissed. Grant is knee-deep in it at the moment.’
‘To think Steve was passing on information behind our backs,’ Diane said. ‘After all we’ve been through together.’
‘I didn’t like him from the beginning but running at Riley like he did,’ Ruby said. ‘Wow. It was complete lunacy.’
No one mentioned how McGowan had risked Diane’s life.
‘Steve was as corrupt as Treadgold. I would never have believed it,’ Tom said. ‘It makes me feel sad he did it for money. I heard they’ve found gambling debts and cash transferred to Steve’s accounts. It looks like Treadgold was paying him for information on our previous case.’
‘How’s Grant taking it?’ Diane said.
‘He’s satisfied he can finally nail Treadgold for corruption though the part about McGowan, well, I think it’s been a horrible kick in the gut.’ Ruby helped herself to some of Diane’s grapes. ‘Grant doesn’t want to talk about it.’
‘Uh-oh that’s not a good sign. I guess I should wait to tell Grant my news then,’ Diane said.
Tom had a horrible sinking feeling. Being betrayed by McGowan was the worst. They’d been colleagues, friends even, and Tom had always felt McGowan had his back. Now what? Don’t tell him Diane had decided to quit?
Diane patted his hand. ‘Don’t look so glum. I’ve got a long recuperation ahead of me and I’m not going to leave the police force although… I think it’s time for a change of direction. When I was following up on Zofia Kaminski it reminded me how I’ve always wanted to work with the Sexual Assault Unit. I put it on the back burner except now I feel the time’s right. I’m going to ask for a transfer to SAU.’
Tom tried to take it on the chin. ‘The SAU. Right. They’re pretty neat, so I’ve heard. I’m going to miss you. Wow, it’ll be cosy, just Grant and me.’
‘I’ll still be around. No need to act like I’m going to another planet. Oh, and I heard on the grapevine there are big changes coming up for everyone,’ Diane said. ‘No, no I can’t say more or I’ll be in trouble. Oh gosh.’ She frowned. ‘Sorry, I’m getting a splitting headache.’
Diane refused to be pumped for more information and Ruby ushered Tom out the door. ‘Diane needs to rest. Hey, don’t be upset about her news. Emily and Lisa are safe. Revel in the successes for a while.’
‘And what about the future? We’ve lost McGowan, and Diane wants to leave and it sounds like there’s a shake-up on the horizon. Grant asked you to dinner tomorrow, right?’
‘Yes. You too then?’
‘I thought it was to celebrate the Glover case only what if it isn’t? What if he’s got something more serious to tell us?’
‘Don’t worry about it, if he’s got news I don’t think it will be bad. Sarah Hunter told me she’s invited as well.’
Ruby looked into Tom’s dark eyes and he caught the change in her expression. They’d been friends for a while now. Don’t say Ruby was ready for a new direction too? He didn’t think he could stand losing her.
‘What?’ he asked.
Ruby put her hand to Tom’s cheek. ‘This,’ she said softly. And she brought her lips to Tom’s and gave him a long sensual kiss.
Epilogue
Sometimes Grant felt sorry for his wife, Lily. She wanted him to take early retirement and the two of them go on some goddam cruise. He couldn’t think of anything worse though his daughter had laughingly told him if he ever did go on that sort of vacation, there was likely to be one mammoth Agatha Christie case for him to solve, stuck in the middle of some ocean.
Heading up the Major Incident Team would be a big step up and bring him the most difficult cases in the business. He loved a challenge but was that what he really wanted at his age? Did he have a few more years left to give? Or was it time for retirement and a quieter life. Maybe settle down as a private investigator?
Opening up the letter he’d just written on the matter, Grant checked it again. It was definitely time for a change. He signed the letter with a flourish, and with a small smile, sealed the envelope closed.
THE END
Acknowledgements
A huge thank you to my wonderful beta readers - Greta, Kat, Kate, Kiltie and Shalini.
Also thanks to the publishing team at Bloodhound Books who always do a great job - I appreciate all the professional input and advice.
Special thanks to Mark Romain for checking through the police procedural elements. Mark was a Metropolitan Police officer for thirty years. He spent two stints on homicide, the last one spanning ten years, and worked on a number of high-profile cases.
Avid crime readers can be assured any mistakes in the storyline are entirely my own or included for dramatic effect!
A note from Ann Girdharry
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Ann Girdharry
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