The Darkness Beneath, page 25
‘It reached a point where I was too scared to leave him. I actually accepted this was my life. He proposed to me and I accepted, not because I loved him, but because I was frightened of him. It took me five years to come to my senses, to understand how fucked up my life was. Bella and Clarke died and the bastard wouldn’t even let me go to their funerals. That was the catalyst; something snapped and I realized how pathetic I had become. That was when I knew I had to leave him, to get away somehow. And that’s how I ended up back here. I’ve given up everything to get away from him, including my career. I know I can’t ever try to sell my work again, because I am scared he will be able to find me. But you know what? It’s a small price to pay for my freedom.’
As she had done with him, Alex remained silent, no words necessary. He released her hand, slipped his arm around her and Nell let her head rest on his shoulder. They remained like that for a while, staring out to sea, both caught up in their own thoughts.
A few miles away a killer sat in his lair, plotting his next move.
CHAPTER THIRTY-ONE
Newt had barely slept and Luke picked him up from the beach house, noting his brother looked like death warmed over. His plan had been to drop him off at the hospital then head into work, and he had shown up wearing one of the expensive Italian suits he favored for the office, before quickly realizing Newt was going to require emotional support. Luke put a call in to his secretary, told her he was going to need another day off; he figured he could deal with some of his workload on his laptop. As they headed down the hospital corridors to find Doctor Singh, his suit caught a few admiring glances from the nurses, stoking his ego.
Michael was still unconscious, but Newt insisted on sitting with him, so Luke took himself off to the waiting room, shed his jacket and loosened his tie, before setting up his laptop, figuring he might as well try and get a little work done. He was busy replying to emails when Nell and Alex arrived half an hour later. Alex was wearing his police blazer, suggesting he was on duty, and Nell was looking fresher than Newt, though there were still dark circles of worry around her eyes.
So far, she had shown little emotion over what had happened. While Newt had been a blubbering mess, Nell had remained dry eyed and stony faced as they waited for news on her brother. Luke knew she was hurting as much as Newt, but found it fascinating how she seemed scared to show her true feelings and was curious to know what had happened to make her build her walls so high. In part she reminded him of his cousin, Jane. She had seldom shown emotion. Of course, Nell wasn’t a hard-faced bitch like Jane, and she didn’t look down on him either. Jane hadn’t been capable of showing emotion. It wasn’t fair to compare Nell to her.
‘Any news?’
Luke set his laptop to one side, looked up at Alex. ‘Not yet, but he’s stable.’
‘Is Newt with him?’
‘Yeah, he wants to be there when Michael wakes up. I figured I’d stay out of everyone’s hair and wait back here.’
‘I should go see him before I go,’ Alex said to Nell. Luke noted that as he spoke he ran a hand down her back. ‘Call me if there’s any news.’
Nell kissed him goodbye, watching as Alex disappeared down the corridor.
Luke had sensed tension between the pair of them the previous day, but whatever had caused it had gone. He was still struggling with them being together. Nell’s involvement with Alex pulled her further from his reach and he didn’t like seeing another man’s hands on her.
‘You manage to get some rest?’ he asked, patting the empty seat beside him.
‘Yeah, I didn’t think my mind was going to switch off, but I was so tired I guess sleep was inevitable.’ She sat down, turned to face him. ‘How’s Newt? Did he get any sleep?’
‘Not really. I don’t think he’ll rest until Michael is awake.’
‘Hopefully that’ll happen today.’ Nell reached out, squeezed his hand, and leant in close. ‘You’re a good brother, Luke. Newt’s lucky to have you.’
Luke swallowed hard, held on to the contact, aware he was growing hard. This close he could smell the scent of her shampoo, feel her warm breath on his face, and it was driving him crazy. She was such a pleasing mix of contradictions, so fragile, yet tough – at times guarded and refusing to show emotion, yet in moments like now, reaching out to offer comfort. He had been a lucky man, able to use his looks and charm to get the women he wanted, but Nell was off limits. It was almost unbearable knowing he couldn’t have her.
Something must have changed in his expression, because she was suddenly pulling back, dropping his hand, the look on her face slightly wary, as if she knew what he was thinking.
‘Are you okay?’
‘Yeah sure, I’m fine.’ Nell glanced towards the door of the waiting room. ‘I guess I should go check on Newt and Michael. I can bring back coffee. You want one?’
‘Thanks.’
She gave him a prim smile, the openness of the moment gone, her walls back in place. Luke watched her leave the room, long legs in worn jeans, her blond hair spilling over her shoulders in wild curls. He had felt the moment, knew she had too.
He wanted her so badly and he wasn’t quite sure what the hell he was going to do about that.
*
Jenna found Tommy coming out of the Sizzling Griddle, a cup of coffee in his hand as he headed into work. Impatiently she parked by the curb, getting out of her car and hurrying across, casting a quick worried glance around before she approached him, not wanting to raise any suspicion. ‘We need to talk.’
His expression was wary and, like Jenna, he looked around the high street checking no one was watching them. ‘I’m on duty, Jenna. Can’t this wait until later?’
‘No, it can’t. We need to talk right now.’
Tommy hesitated, his reluctance clear. He glanced around before roughly grabbing hold of her arm and pulling her into the alley that ran down the side of the diner. ‘What’s up?’
‘I heard about Michael O’Connor. He almost died.’ Jenna punched her fist hard against the wall of Tommy’s chest, frustration bubbling over. ‘Is that how you deal with things?’
‘What are you talking about?’
‘Don’t play all innocent, Tommy. I know you did it.’
‘No, I didn’t.’
When Jenna continued to pummel at his chest with her fists, furious he was trying to deny it, he caught hold of her wrists, forced them down by her sides. ‘I didn’t do anything to Michael O’Connor. I swear.’
‘You said you were going to take care of things. Get us out of this mess.’
‘I know I did and I still plan to, but I promise you I didn’t attack Michael. That wasn’t me.’
Jenna was silent. She had been so mad when she had found out about the attack, blaming Tommy for getting them further tangled up this mess. He had assured her he would take care of the situation and it had been easy to conclude he was the one responsible for Michael’s attack.
Fresh tears filled her eyes and she swiped away at them furiously.
‘So if you didn’t put Michael in the hospital then who the hell did?’
*
Curtis Milborn was riding his truck down the high street when he saw his wife emerge from the alleyway with Tommy Dolan a few feet behind her. Both of them had a shifty look about them, gave cursory glances up and down the road before heading off in separate directions. Rage burned inside him, fuelled by the flames of Wild Turkey he had drank a few minutes ago. Dolan had been the bane of his life for more years than Curtis could remember and just looking at his face conjured unpleasant memories. Was Jenna cheating on him? The thought played on his mind making him angry and mean.
They were going to have a little chat about that.
*
Michael awoke mid-morning on Wednesday. Nell was in the room with him, grateful to be away from Luke, and Newt had gone to fetch coffee and stretch his legs. Nell was holding his hand at the time, a whirlwind of thoughts circulating in her head, as she replayed her conversation with Alex from the previous night, mulled over her brother’s attack, and now wondered what the hell she was going to do about Luke.
She had dismissed her suspicions, but the look he had given her as they had sat in the waiting room that morning had been unmistakable. He wanted her. And that left Nell feeling uncomfortable and guilty, worrying if she was in some way responsible for leading him on, and also disappointed, as she had believed the pair of them could have been good friends.
Still could be good friends, she corrected herself, though she knew it was difficult once attraction was involved.
She was going to have to talk to him, tell him she didn’t feel the same way, though he should know that, damn it. She was sleeping with one of his buddies.
More than sleeping with: last night her relationship with Alex had progressed to something deeper. Neither of them had defined it, but Nell had felt it, knew he did too, and when they had finally gone to bed, it had been about more than sex.
Her thoughts were still on the predicament when she felt Michael’s fingers move gently against her hand.
‘Oh my god, Michael, can you hear me? Are you awake?’ She grasped at his hand with both of hers, willed him to move. When he did he squeezed her hand, his eyes fluttering open.
‘Nell?’ His voice was croaky, weak. ‘Water, I need… water.’
Nell glanced around at the pitcher, unsure if he was allowed to have any until the doctors had checked him. ‘Let me find a nurse.’ She let go of his hand, rushed from the room, colliding with Newt and Doctor Singh who were deep in conversation in the hallway.
‘Michael’s awake.’
Newt’s eyes widened and he pushed past Nell, the doctor close behind him. Nell followed them back into the room, stood by the door as Doctor Singh performed a few routine checks.
‘Water,’ Michael repeated.
‘Can he have some?’ Nell asked.
‘Just a few small sips to start off with. His throat will be dry.’
Nell poured half a glass as Newt sat by the bed and tightly gripped Michael’s hand. As she helped her brother take a sip, Luke appeared in the doorway, a smile on his face. ‘I thought I heard a commotion. Welcome back, buddy.’
‘Do you remember anything about what happened?’ Newt asked.
‘Fucker… hit… me,’ Michael managed. He sipped more water. ‘That’s why I’m here, right?’
Nell grinned; relieved her brother hadn’t lost any of his sense of humor. ‘You gave us one hell of a scare. I was worried we were going to lose you.’
He managed a smile for her. It was still weak, but the light was back in his eyes. ‘I’m not going anywhere.’
Alex headed straight over to the hospital as soon as he got the call from Nell, leaving Violet Marsden and her assistant working on the remains that had been pulled from the ocean. He had spoken with Stone first thing that morning, was expecting him on the midday ferry, so was aware his visit to the hospital would have to be briefer than he would have liked. The most important thing was knowing Michael was okay. For now it was more about checking in on him as his friend than it was about asking questions as the chief of police. He would send Kyle Mathis over to the hospital later in the day to take a statement and only hoped Michael would be able to remember vital details that would help them catch his attacker.
Newt, Luke and Nell were all around his bedside when he walked in and he was relieved to see his old friend propped up in bed, eyes alert and some color back in his cheeks. Michael shot him a contrite half grin, looked a little uncomfortable.
‘Can you guys give us a moment alone?’ Alex asked, thinking it best the pair of them try and clear the air without an audience.
‘Sure thing.’ Newt got up from the seat he had been occupying beside Michael’s bed, pushing Luke towards the door. Nell brushed past Alex and gave his hand a discreet reassuring squeeze before following the others down the corridor to the waiting room.
Alex closed the door after them before taking the seat Newt had vacated.
‘How are you feeling?’
‘Like someone smashed me in the head with an iron bar,’ Michael quipped. ‘Oh wait, they did.’ He managed a grin, was awkwardly silent for a moment, staring intently at his hands. ‘Listen, Alex. I’m sorry I ragged on you about Nell.’
‘It’s okay. We should have told you instead of keeping it a secret.’
‘Yeah, you should have, but I understand why you were reluctant to do so. I was a bit of an asshole about it.’
‘Yes, you were,’ Alex agreed, his tone dry. ‘But we’ll move past it.’
‘So, are you gonna catch the fucker who did this to me?’
‘I’m gonna try. I’m guessing you didn’t see who it was.’
‘I thought it was kids at first. The door was unlocked, and I could hear someone hiding at the back of the unit. I was convinced it was those little Osborne assholes.’
‘And you’re sure it wasn’t?’
Michael looked affronted. ‘Are you suggesting two thirteen-year-olds could kick the shit out of me?’
‘I’m just asking the question.’
‘I only saw the foot of the person who hit me. Black boot, adult sized. I have no idea who it was. I just know they wanted me to stay down.’
‘Permanently, going by your injuries,’ Alex agreed. ‘You’re a lucky man, Michael O’Connor, that whoever attacked you couldn’t crack through that thick skull of yours.
Michael shot him a look. ‘Smartass.’
‘Kyle Mathis will stop by later, get a full statement from you. That okay?’
‘Sure, I want to get this son of a bitch.’ Michael looked contemplative for a moment. ‘So, have you figured out if you’re in love with my sister yet?’
Alex thought back to the previous night and how Nell had opened up to him. He could tell she hated the part of her that had been weak enough to stay with Caleb, had been shallow enough to fall for his lies and the materialistic life he had initially promised. She was embarrassed by her past, but she had no need to be, because it had taken courage to leave him. She was far stronger than she gave herself credit for.
‘I’m getting there,’ he admitted, not yet ready to use the L-word, but aware she was the only woman he had shared his own past with, knew the attraction between them was already something stronger than lust.
‘Good,’ Michael nodded, seeming satisfied with his answer. ‘Because the doctor tells me I’m going to be stuck in this bed for a while longer, so I’m going to need you to look out for her. She’s your responsibility now.’
Alex didn’t bother to point out he had been looking out for Nell all along. ‘You’ve got it,’ he agreed.
‘Because it still worries me knowing someone was out there taking shots at her.’
‘I won’t let anything happen to her, I promise.’
‘Good.’ Michael smiled. ‘I’m counting on it.’
CHAPTER THIRTY-TWO
‘It’s going to be near to impossible to get an ID on most of the body parts, as they are just bones, and pretty chewed up bones at that,’ Violet Marsden told Alex and Hunter without preamble. ‘Unless you can bring me a list of names of potential victims we can try to run the DNA against. But I’m not hopeful. Once bodies have been in the water for more than a few weeks…’
‘I’m in the process of compiling a report of missing persons from within a 500-mile radius,’ Hunter told her. ‘Let me cross-check and eliminate then I’ll get you a list.’
Violet shot a look at Alex, lips twisting. ‘He’s efficient, this friend of yours.’
Her comment brought a chuckle from Hunter who seemed quite taken with the island’s ME. ‘So what are you able to tell us at this stage?’ he asked.
‘Well, you’re looking at body parts from multiple victims, most probably. But getting any IDs is going to be near on impossible. Penelope Maher’s limbs have ligature marks, suggesting she was restrained. Her body was cleanly cut, most likely with a cleaver or similar, and after death, but you see these slices here?’ Violet lifted an arm, indicating to a series of cuts. ‘These were inflicted while she was still alive.’
‘Are you able to tell cause of death?’
Violet shook her head. ‘I’m still working on that, Chief. These cuts wouldn’t have killed, they were meant to torture. Sick bastard made sure he had his fun before he killed her. He seems to like his knives, yet there are no fatal stab wounds on her torso, so my guess would be he slit her throat, though I can’t be sure at this stage.’
‘How old are the oldest ones we’re talking?’ Hunter asked.
‘It’s hard to say with bones in the ocean; it’s not an exact science. Probably none of them are going to be much older than five years before the shrimps and the crabs and whatever else has them down to nothing. Looking at some of the slice marks on some of the fresher bones, though, I’d say we have the same guy working his vicious magic. He’s obviously weighed them down and dropped them off in the same little dumping ground. And if our divers have found this many, just think how many more could be floating around undiscovered. He seems prolific too, looking at the variety of different corpses there seem to be out there. Who knows.’
Hunter leant back against the counter, jingling change in his pocket. He glanced at Alex. ‘So we’re quite possibly talking about at least two or three kills a year. We have to catch this guy, and fast.’
They left Violet with her work. Hunter took half an hour to check into his hotel room, having decided it would be easier to stay overnight, before they reconvened in Alex’s office early afternoon to go over the Caroline Henderson file and the copies of the security footage Hunter had brought with him showing the last known movements of both Caroline and Penny Maher. Alex studied the footage closely, agreeing with Hunter it was the same man in both videos.
‘The staff weren’t as much help in the bar where Caroline was last seen drinking. They didn’t even remember her, let alone the guy who had been talking to her. Our first bartender, the one who served Penny Maher, has been the most help. He remembered the guy, had been listening in amused by their conversation. Said Penny was a little drunk and hitting on our guy. That he had seemed hesitant about leaving the bar with her.’ Hunter opened his briefcase. ‘We got him to work with a sketch artist. The result isn’t great, but it gives us something to work with.’
