MURDER IN PEMBROKESHIRE an absolutely gripping crime mystery full of twists (Tyrone Swift Detective Book 8)

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MURDER IN PEMBROKESHIRE an absolutely gripping crime mystery full of twists (Tyrone Swift Detective Book 8) Page 27

by GRETTA MULROONEY


  Swift drank some mead. A flash of sun danced through the window on Sofia’s freckles. ‘Elinor and Gwyn were like those women who used to attend to the dead — making him ready and placing familiar things around him.’

  Sofia wasn’t impressed. ‘So kind of them. As you know, Elinor can’t keep things in. She believed that her husband had killed Afan because he always felt inferior to him, and it sent her into a panic. She’d no idea then that Guy had snooped on their conversations about Gwyn and Caris. Guy had seen the body as he cycled past the cairn and was overjoyed. He’d been wondering what to do about the growing problem of Afan, Gwyn and Caris. He’d been somewhat reassured when he’d heard that Gwyn didn’t want anyone knowing about her assault at school, but he was vulnerable now that Afan wanted to expose his part in it. Because he’s a nasty, malicious man he decided to collect the phone and weapon and throw them in the sea. Do the killer a big favour by way of thanks. His fist-pumping was sheer delight that someone had disposed of a man he hated, and who posed a threat to his comfy life.’

  ‘Doesn’t say much for the marriage, though, that Elinor immediately thought her husband was a murderer.’

  ‘It certainly unravelled her. She needed to keep Guy safe at all costs, so that the adoption could proceed. She worried that once the police started to ask questions, Gwyn’s school experience might come out and their plans would collapse. She walked around for some time, worrying at it. She knew that Gwyn didn’t want the incident to become public knowledge. If she told Gwyn she’d killed Afan because he’d discovered what had happened at the school, that would ensure Gwyn kept quiet. Bind her in, make her part of the awful secret. She didn’t weigh up what Caris might do or say in the aftermath. She was too muddled and confused, with her world crumbling. As soon as she found Caris’s body, she must have suspected that Guy had killed her. She’s on suicide watch at present. The loss of the dog seems to be affecting her as much as anything. She’s got his ashes, apparently. Sleeps with them under her pillow.’

  There was a crash. Spencer had dropped a plate of sandwiches on the floor. Sofia shook her head. ‘He’s a pendafad, but he’s my pendafad. Well . . . I have to get back to the station. I can’t leave this complex case to the tender mercies of Spence. It’s been good to work with you.’

  ‘You too. Maybe we can meet when you’re in better health.’

  ‘Maybe we can.’ She put her good hand out and smiled. ‘Take care, Lone Ranger. It’s been interesting.’

  He saw her out to her cab. The fleeting sun struck her hair and gleamed on dark gold strands as she climbed in carefully. Her coat snagged in the door and she had to yank it in. Her eyebrows danced. He waved as the cab departed. He was caught by a pang, a sensation of loss.

  The day grew gloomy as the afternoon wore on. A sharp breeze whipped the trees. Swift walked Amira to the Bridge Arms. She was wearing a thin wool coat over a linen dress and shivered.

  ‘This must be a shock after the warmth of Lyon,’ Swift said.

  ‘Certainly is. But sadness chills you too, doesn’t it?’

  ‘It does.’

  ‘I haven’t had a drink yet,’ she said at the pub door. ‘Will you have one with me before you go, to toast Afan?’

  The pub was quiet, the fire glowing warmly. They sat beside it with their glasses of Malbec. Swift could see how Amira had matured in the years since he’d last seen her. She was more composed, but she still had the open, frank expression that he remembered.

  ‘This is good wine. I needed it. Afan loved absinthe but I’ve never developed a taste for it,’ she said.

  ‘I haven’t drunk it in years. Probably not since I last sat in a bar with Afan.’

  They sat quietly for a while. ‘I’ve been going over everything,’ she said, regarding him with her almost black, cat-shaped eyes. ‘Afan was beset by other people’s problems. They all came to him for help: Morgan and Caris, Bruno, Kat, Elinor with her marital woes and then Caris again, with her story about Guy and Gwyn. It demonstrates what a good, kind man he was but my goodness! He was just trying to live a simple life, but they wouldn’t let him.’

  Swift agreed. ‘He was too kind, too willing to listen. If he could have concentrated on his bees and mead, he’d still be with us. But unless you’re a hermit, hiding out in the chapel, there’s no such thing as a simple life. Wherever there are groups of people, there are problems. Jealousy, cruelty, rancour, betrayal — Tir Melys had its fair share.’

  ‘More than its fair share, I’d say. Oh, Ty, you came here expecting to have a pleasant break with an old friend and see what you stepped into!’

  ‘Hmm.’ Typical of you, Ruth had said. Nothing can ever be straightforward. Have you ever thought that trouble seems to follow you around? Not that he expected any sympathy from that quarter these days. Although, to be fair to her, she had accepted his wish to discuss the wedding with Branna.

  ‘How did Guy get Caris alone so that he could stab her?’ she asked.

  ‘I’ve heard the outline. He decided that she posed too much of a risk after he heard her saying that she couldn’t keep quiet about Gwyn.’ He paused. ‘Although Caris carried a lot of angst and guilt about that, I’m not sure that she would have gone public. She had too much to lose, just as Gwyn had, and her overriding instinct was to protect Morgan and her mother.’

  ‘So she died needlessly.’

  ‘Quite possibly. Guy phoned Caris while she was on the train back from Cardiff, sounding guilty and remorseful. He told her that he needed to make amends and was trying to work out the best way forward. He said he was desperate not to do anything to impede the adoption, because it meant everything to Elinor. He begged Caris to meet him and talk it over. She agreed. He picked her up on the edge of town and said he’d like to speak to her in the chapel, where it would be private and quiet. He promised to have her home in time to cook lunch. He must have put on a good show of appearing genuine and repentant. In the chapel, he stood near the hermit’s chamber and then pushed Caris in and stabbed her.’

  Pain crossed Amira’s face. She took a drink of wine. ‘How ironic, that Elinor found her body.’

  ‘That was a traumatic time for Elinor. Bryn had just announced that the Merchants were planning to sell Tir Melys. Despite all her efforts and sacrifices, her covering up for Guy, she saw the chances of adopting a child slipping away. Then, after a row with Guy, she found Caris. Even then, she tried to protect him and make Gwyn a suspect.’

  ‘Will Peter and Guy get long sentences?’ Amira asked.

  ‘Hard to predict. The minimum for murder is fifteen years. Elinor’s mental health will be taken into account. She told me that I must find her “unhinged”. She was driven to the edge and I’m not sure she’ll come back from there.’

  ‘And Gwyn Bowen?’

  ‘She’s on bail. Who can tell how things will go for her? Guy failed her when he had a duty of care so that will be considered. But in the end, she was a criminal.’

  ‘Such a sad young woman.’

  ‘I’m sad for her, but sadder for the victims. I’m sorry for the loss of Caris but it’s Afan I grieve for.’ It hardly seemed to matter now, but he’d wondered which of the many problems Afan had wanted to talk to him about. Given the timing, he’d decided that it must have been the situation with Kat. That was personal and would have made his friend uneasy. Afan would have been unable to see any end to the constant pressure. He told Amira.

  She bit her lip. ‘What would you have said to Afan about that?’

  ‘The only thing I could have said — stop paying her, stop the manipulation. Forgive yourself for what happened at Ogmore.’

  ‘You were a good friend.’

  Not in the end. ‘I’d have tried to be when I was here, if I’d had the chance.’

  Amira raised her glass. ‘Here’s to Afan. Adieu.’

  ‘Adieu.’ Swift clinked his glass to hers.

  The fire crackled. Raindrops blew against the window beside them. Swift watched the sprays of water and drank de
eply. Fountain rain.

  THE END

  ALSO BY GRETTA MULROONEY

  THE TYRONE SWIFT SERIES

  Book 1: THE LADY VANISHED

  Book 2: BLOOD SECRETS

  Book 3: TWO LOVERS, SIX DEATHS

  Book 4: WATCHING YOU

  Book 5: LOW LAKE

  Book 6: YOUR LAST LIE

  Book 7: HER LOST SISTER

  Book 8: MURDER IN PEMBROKESHIRE

  DETECTIVE SIV DRUMMOND SERIES

  Book 1: THESE LITTLE LIES

  Book 2: NEVER CAME HOME

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  A SELECTION OF BOOKS YOU MAY ENJOY

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  US www.amazon.com/dp/B01LWY0PUJ

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  But DI Rowan Jackman and DS Marie Evans of the Fenland police soon discover that there is a lot more to Daniel than meets the eye. He has no memory of the first five years of his life and is obsessed with who his real mother is.

  With no evidence to hold him, Jackman and Evans are forced to let him go, and in a matter of days Daniel has disappeared and the lonely Lincolnshire Fens become the stage for more killings.

  In a breathtaking finale, the truth about Daniel’s mother comes to light and DI Jackman and DS Evans race against time to stop more lives being destroyed.

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  MURDER ON THE OXFORD CANAL

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  US www.amazon.com/dp/B0763RXLRV

  DISCOVER THE MILLION-SELLING SERIES NOW.

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  MURDER ON THE OXFORD CANAL is the first in a series of page-turning crime thrillers set in Oxfordshire.

  HE IS WATCHING YOU

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  UK www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B07KKK5N7W

  US www.amazon.com/dp/B07KKK5N7W

  DISCOVER AN ABSOLUTELY GRIPPING RACE-AGAINST-TIME THRILLER FROM BESTSELLING AUTHOR CHARLIE GALLAGHER.

  A young woman’s body is left in a metal container in a remote location. The killer is careful to position her under a camera that links to his smartphone. He likes to look back at his work.

  HE IS WATCHING HER. BUT SHE ISN’T DEAD.

  So he will return to finish the job.

  Detective Maddie Ives is new to the area. She is handed a missing person report: a young woman with a drink problem who’s been reported missing fifteen times. It looks like a waste of time. But DS Ives has a bad feeling about the woman’s disappearance.

  DI Harry Blaker is called to the hit-and-run of an elderly man left to die on a quiet country road. There is no motive and it looks like a tragic accident. But he’s been working Major Crime long enough to know that something isn’t quite right. The two officers find their investigations intertwine and they will need to work together.

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  GLOSSARY OF ENGLISH USAGE FOR US READERS

  A & E: accident and emergency department in a hospital

  Aggro: violent behaviour, aggression

  Air raid: an attack in which bombs are dropped from aircraft on ground targets

  Allotment: a plot of land rented by an individual for growing fruit, vegetable or flowers

  Anorak: nerd (it also means a waterproof jacket)

  Artex: textured plaster finish for walls and ceilings

  A level: exams taken between 16 and 18

  Auld Reekie: Edinburgh

  Au pair: live-in childcare helper. Often a young woman.

  Barm: bread roll

  Barney: argument

  Beaker: glass or cup for holding liquids

  Beemer: BMW car or motorcycle

  Benefits: social security

  Bent: corrupt

  Bin: wastebasket (noun), or throw in rubbish (verb)

  Biscuit: cookie

  Blackpool Lights: gaudy illuminations in a seaside town

  Bloke: guy

  Blow: cocaine

  Blower: telephone

  Blues and twos: emergency vehicles

  Bob: money

  Bobby: policeman

  Broadsheet: quality newspaper (New York Times would be a US example)

  Brown bread: rhyming slang for dead

  Bun: small cake

  Bunk: escape, i.e. ‘do a bunk’

  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 where old people are cared for

  Car park: parking lot

  CBeebies: kids TV

  Chat-up: flirt, trying to pick up someone with witty banter or compliments

  Chemist: pharmacy

  Chinwag: conversation

  Chippie: fast-food place selling chips and other fried food

  Chips: French fries but thicker

  CID: Criminal Investigation Department

  Civvy Street: civilian life (as opposed to army)

  Clock: punch

  Cock-up: mess up, make a mistake

  Cockney: a native of East London

  Common: an area of park land or lower class

  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

  Dan Dare: hero from Eagle comic

  DC: detective constable

  Deck: one of the landings on a floor of a tower block

  Deck: hit (verb)

  Desperate Dan:
very strong comic book character

  DI: detective inspector

  Digestive biscuit: plain cookie

  Digs: student lodgings

  Do a runner: disappear

  Do one: go away

  Doc Martens: heavy boots with an air-cushioned sole

  Donkey’s years: long time

  Drum: house

  DS: detective sergeant

  ED: emergency department of a hospital

  Eagle: boys’ comic

  Early dart: to leave work early

  Eggy soldiers: strips of toast with a boiled egg

  Enforcer: police battering ram

  Estate: public/social housing estate (similar to housing projects)

  Estate agent: realtor (US)

  Falklands War: war between Britain and Argentina in 1982

  Fag: cigarette

  Father Christmas: Santa Claus

  Filth: police (insulting)

  Forces: army, navy and air force

  FMO: force medical officer

  Fried slice: fried bread

  Fuzz: police

  Garda: Irish police

  Gendarmerie: French national police force

  Geordie: from Newcastle

  Garden centre: a business where plants and gardening equipment are sold

  Gob: mouth, can also mean phlegm or spit

  GP: general practitioner, a doctor based in the community

  Graft: hard work

  Gran: grandmother

  Hancock: Tony Hancock, English comedian popular in 1950s

  Hard nut: tough person

  HGV: heavy goods vehicle, truck

 

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