Frozen Grave (Willis/Carter #3)(111)

‘It’s over, JJ. You destroyed the only good thing we ever had between us. I’ve found someone else now.’

In the moonlight his face was drained of blood. The act of moving had shifted the arrowhead and punctured his femoral artery. He stood and staggered towards Emily.

‘Help me. I need you.’ He sank to his knees and his chin dropped to his chest.

Emily kept her bow pointed at Carter as she backed a few steps towards Ellerman. ‘Help me up. We can still get away. We just have to get to my car.’

‘Yes. I’m going to look after you. We only need one another. You’ll see.’

Emily reached an arm down to help him up. He got wearily to his feet.

‘Okay. We can make it. You ready, JJ?’

‘I’m ready.’

He gripped her tightly and drove her forward over the edge of the cliff and the quarry filled with screams. There was a cracking sound in the middle of the deepest of the three lakes at the base of the quarry. The moon shone down on Ellerman lying on the top of the frozen surface as it slowly cracked around him. His eyes were open. His skull was smashed – blood leaked warm onto the frozen surface. Emily moved once, a spasm, then she sank with him into the black water.

Smith was in the cells by the time Carter and Willis got back from Devon. Carter and Willis stood outside the interview room.

‘What’s going to happen, guv?’

‘We have all we need to convict Balik of Olivia Grantham’s murder.’

‘What about Smith’s sister, Emily?’ Willis looked at him incredulously. ‘She murdered the women.’

‘We don’t know if it was her or Ellerman setting others up to do it and transporting them in his car. We have yet to find that out. Maybe we never will.’

‘Pretty sure it was Emily: she taught Toffee to use the Internet, she had access to the PCs used to message Harding and the others.’

‘Yeah, but I understand how things went wrong for her. I can see that she was a good person, just deceived one too many times. She needed help along the way when she didn’t get it. She found it in someone like Ellerman,’ said Carter. ‘Ellerman was the root of all this.’

‘Guv?’

We convict Balik, job done. Ellerman got what he deserved.’

‘Case isn’t closed.’

‘No, case isn’t closed, but I’m satisfied with the outcome.’

‘What are we going to do with Smith?’

‘He hasn’t done anything wrong as far as I can see. He may be a twat but he hasn’t done anything we can convict him of. He’s lost his sister, that’s enough.’





Chapter 60


In the morning, Alison parked her car as she always did on a weekday and got out and opened the rear door. She took out her coat, put it on and picked up her backpack and then she saw the dog limping out from behind the arch. She put her hand to her mouth to stifle a cry. The dog’s eye was gone. It had massive wounds over its body. The skin was so ripped that she could see the bone of its shoulder. She stood there, watching as it limped towards her.

‘Oh, my God.’ She swallowed as the emotion stuck in her throat. The dog was coming towards her with a purpose. It could hardly walk but it was focussng on her and it kept coming. Alison looked around the car park but there was no one there to help. There was a homeless girl watching from the far side, her shawl wrapped around her head. She was staring but not moving.

Alison stood absolutely still as she watched the dog drag itself towards her and then she took a step towards it.

Sandy couldn’t stand upright. Her balance was gone but she knew she had to reach the woman who gave her the food. She knew if there was one more task she had to do before she gave up, it was to try to save her master. She kept her eyes on the woman and limped towards her.

The dog continued to come forward. Alison took two more steps towards it and stopped. The dog turned and waited for her to follow. It limped back towards the far side of the arch and she followed. As she came level, she saw a man; he was shaking with fever and his face was mottled and swollen around deep cuts.

The dog collapsed by her master. Alison took out her phone and dialled for an ambulance.

Willis stared at the photos onscreen as she dialled a number.

‘Hello?’

‘Hello.’ There was a slight time delay on the line. ‘Is this Eddie?’

‘Yes, speaking. I know who this is . . . this is Ebony, right? I got your email. I’ve been sat by this phone ever since. How are you doing?’

‘I’m okay . . .’

‘Thank you for the photos in the email. I could not believe it when I received them.’

‘Sorry – it must have been a big shock. Not the kind of thing you think will happen.’

‘No, not a shock, but it was a great surprise. It’s not every day you find out you have a twenty-four-year-old daughter that you never knew about.’

‘She never told you, did she?’

‘No, I was young. I probably wouldn’t have been much use but I would have done my best by you. I would have loved to have had a daughter. Well – it’s never too late, huh? You will meet my sons and see how much you look like them; you’re tall, right?’

‘Yes. Five ten.’

‘Just like me. My boys are both way over six foot.’ Willis had a sudden urge to cry with happiness.