Darkness Falls (Kate Marshall, #3)(37)

Kate stopped a hundred meters out and floated on her back. She looked over at Jake, his head bobbing in the water, smiling up at the sun, which had just broken over the horizon.

“You know, you’re welcome to invite your friends to stay over,” she said. Jake turned and swam back to join her.

“Sam might come for a weekend, if that’s cool. He loves surfing,” said Jake.

“Sam is one of your housemates?” said Kate, trying to remember. Jake had mentioned a lot of new friends in his English lit classes.

“Yeah. The others are off working in Spain . . .” Jake bit his lip, and Kate could see he wanted to tell her something. “I’ve made another interesting friend,” he said.

Kate looked over at him and raised an eyebrow. “Oh yes?”

“Not like that. Her name’s Anna. Anna Tomlinson. I met her on Facebook last year . . . We’ve been messaging back and forth.”

“You kids are so lucky,” said Kate, moving her arms lazily back and forward in the water. “I had to write letters to my friends during the holidays.”

“Anna’s the daughter of Dennis Tomlinson . . . I don’t know if the name rings a bell?”

Kate sat up in the water. The name did ring a bell. Dennis Tomlinson had been one of the serial killers she’d lectured on in her Criminal Icons course at the university.

“Dennis Tomlinson who raped and killed eight women?” she said.

“Yeah.”

“Dennis Tomlinson serving eight life sentences?” asked Kate. She didn’t feel relaxed anymore.

“Yes. She contacted me, unexpectedly, asking if I wanted to talk to someone who knows what it’s like to have a father like . . . that.”

“Where does she live?”

“The north of Scotland. She lives on a farm in the middle of the mountains. She wrote a book fifteen years ago, and she used the money to buy the land.”

Kate shivered. The water no longer felt zingy, and her fingers were numb.

“I hope you’re not thinking of writing a book.”

“No. Why would you think that? I’m happy working here. I love doing the diving lessons, taking the boat out, being here with you.”

“Okay, I’m happy you’re happy,” said Kate.

“Did you think I wasn’t happy?”

“I worry that I screwed you up.”

“You didn’t screw me up. You made me appreciate life,” he said. Kate was surprised by this and didn’t know what to say. “Anna wasn’t lucky like me. She was all alone when her father was arrested. She was seventeen. Her mother died when she was sixteen . . . It’s been good to meet someone who’s had a similar experience . . .”

She looked at Jake treading water beside her. The sun glinting on his hair, shiny as a conker.

Why shouldn’t he talk to someone who’d had the same experience? Peter Conway would always be his father; Jake would always be his son. Kate would always be the link between them, and it was her actions, her affair with Peter Conway, when he was her boss in the police, that had led to all this.

“Has anyone mentioned your . . . mentioned Peter at uni?”

“Not really. I’ve told my mates, and they’ve been okay. It’s all right, Mum. I’m happy. Really happy. I just want to tell you everything. How are things with you? How’s the case going?”

Kate told him that she had to go over and meet Joanna’s childhood friend, Marnie, but she felt no closer to understanding the case.

“Just think. The longer it takes you to solve it, the longer they pay you!”

“That’s what Tristan’s sister said.”

“She’s not happy he’s gone part time at the uni?”

“No. And she’s having trouble with the whole caravan-site thing. She didn’t love the fact that me and Tris repainted the toilet block ourselves a couple of weeks back.”

“That reminds me. I’ve hired three local women to come and do the weekly changeovers, starting this weekend. If they’re good, I’m hoping they’ll do the season,” said Jake.

“Well done,” said Kate. She’d put the running of the caravan site to the back of her head now that Jake was home. The changeovers happened each week on Saturday between ten a.m. and two p.m., when one lot of guests left and the caravans were cleaned and the beds changed before the next group arrived. They’d taken a lot of bookings over the last week, which was good news, and the summer season would be starting the week after next.

“They’re nice ladies. Local. A mother and daughter and their friend. They live in Ashdean and can all drive over together,” said Jake. “It’ll give me time to do more diving trips at the weekends.”

It took a little of the pressure off Kate’s shoulders, knowing that the site would be up and running and money would be coming in.

“Brrr. I’m starting to get cold. I’ll race you back.” Jake lurched forward and started swimming back to shore.

“Hey, you got a head start!” said Kate.

“You better start swimming, then!” he shouted back with a grin. “Last one home makes breakfast!”

Kate thought of all the years when Jake had lived with her parents and she couldn’t make him breakfast. She hung back a little and then started swimming after him to shore.