Condemned, R.C. Bridgestock [most romantic novels TXT] 📗

the steps of St Anne’s Church, knowing that her parents would look after the baby? Even though Lucinda had decided to go back to Seth, she may not have been sure it was safe to take the baby. Did the occupants of the collective church buildings know all along that the child was not an orphan, but Lucinda and Seth’s child? Had they tried, in good faith, to protect her from the Aldermans’ curse?

Ricky-Lee tapped on her door. Charley invited him in, but before he entered, he glanced over his shoulder, and the SIO looked through her window into the CID office where the rest of the team were egging him on.

‘I heard you wanted to see me, and I think I need to clear the air, boss,’ Ricky-Lee said, head bowed. ‘I was out of order, visiting Molly when I should have been working,’ he said. ‘I apologise. I totally understand if you want to send me back into uniform, but I really want to stay.’

Charley leaned back in her chair, hands in her lap. ‘How often have you heard the saying that the next phone call, or enquiry, could detect a crime?’ Charley said.

Ricky-Lee’s expression turned from downcast to bewilderment. ‘Pardon?’ he said.

‘Would you say that a bit of luck was often the key to solving a crime?’

‘As well as hard work,’ he replied.

Charley sat up, and picked up the phone. ‘Tell Mike I need to speak to him, will you?’

Ricky-Lee turned and swiftly walked to the door.

‘Oh, and Ricky-Lee,’ she said. Hand on the door handle he turned. ‘Don’t forget I’m watching your every move; you are walking a very thin line.’ The phone was answered at the other end. ‘Winnie,’ the detective constable heard her say as he left the room, ‘Can I come round, say in twenty minutes?’

All this time, Charley mused, Lily had known the secret that Josie had yearned for, if only Lily had sought her out and made amends for a childish mistake. It wasn’t the fault of either of them that Josie was taken away, and they were denied contact. Most probably the decision to have her adopted was to protect Josie from Connor O’Doherty, after her grandparents had died.

When Charley arrived at Winnie’s house, she was surprised to see Lily Pritchard sitting in an armchair drinking tea out of a china cup. There were cookies on the sidetable. ‘A gift from Tattie,’ Winnie said nodding at the sweet treats. There were tears in Winnie’s eyes, but a sense of peace too. Winnie reached for Charley’s hand. ‘She knew, Charley, she knew… Josie knew, Lily went to see her before she died.’

‘I know, you took her a posy of winter flowers, didn’t you? I understand now, Josie was one of “them” that you spoke of, wasn’t she?’ said Charley.

Lily nodded. ‘The other was Dinah Hayfield, Catherine’s daughter, who I am going to speak to,’ she said. ‘I’m sorry Inspector, that I didn’t tell you the whole truth, but I never lied to you. I swore on the Bible not to tell, but after our meeting at the police station, I knew I had to put things right, even if I were to be struck by lightning for breaking my promise. You’ve saved me a journey, I was coming to see you. I understand that you’ll need a further statement from me.’

Charley smile was kind. ‘There’s no rush, I appreciate how hard this is for you.’

Charley sat in her car and inhaled deeply. She could, after all these weeks, feel her body relaxing. Murder investigations were exhausting. ‘There is nothing stranger than fact,’ her grandpa would say, and once again, that saying had proved to be true. Her only hope was that now Crownest had been demolished, all the demons had been put to rest, and God forbid that there would be the proverbial phoenix rising out of the ashes…

The sound of her phone ringing made her sit up as she set off back to the office.

‘Where are you, boss?’

‘Heading back to the office. I’ll be there in a few minutes.’

With that Mike made to hang up, ‘I’ll speak with you then.’

When she arrived back at the station, Mike was waiting for her in the corridor to the CID office. He followed Charley into her office. ‘You’d better sit down, boss.’

‘Don’t tell me we have another body?’

‘No,’ he smiled, taking his seat opposite her. ‘It’s good news. Hussain’s DNA wasn’t on the gun found in Thomas’s locker. Apparently the gun had been wiped, but his DNA was on the bullets in the weapon.’

Charley’s face was aglow. ‘That’s brilliant news!’

Mike was eager to tell her more. ‘Ballistics say that the weapon we found is linked to a shooting in Birmingham. The victim lived, but suffered life-changing injuries.’

Charley made a fist. ‘I just knew there was more to this.’

‘Well, James Thomas might not have come to the attention of the police before, but he certainly has now. A number of police officers are lining up to speak to him about their enquires. He is clearly linked to Hussain and the drug organisation. But, I still wonder why he kept the weapon, especially in his locker?’

‘Maybe to use again?’ suggested Mike.

‘Yeah, maybe… Perhaps we will never know, like we will never know exactly what happened that fateful night at Crownest?’

As he was leaving, Mike turned. ‘The team are wondering if we should have a bit of a celebratory drink tonight?’

‘It seems like a good idea. Everyone has worked hard on this double murder, but unlike the general public believe, a case isn’t over for us when we apprehend and charge a criminal – there are still the files to be prepared.’

All of a sudden there was a lot of noise in the main office, then there was laughter. Charley followed Mike to the doorway.

Annie was the centre of attention. ‘As I drove past the university, this twat wearing hoodie ran straight into the road like a bloody greyhound. I just missed him, the fucking