Woman in the Water. Katerina Diamond

      ‘Oh, it’s been months. I haven’t seen either one since they left.’

      Adrian noted that Chilton hadn’t asked why they were asking questions about the two men. People usually ask, curiosity getting the better of them. It could just be that Chilton didn’t actually give a monkey’s, or maybe it was something else. Maybe he already knew.

      ‘What time does your boss get in?’ Imogen asked.

      ‘Today, he won’t be in until after lunch.’

      ‘We’ll need to speak to him. Could you tell us his address?’ Imogen said.

      Jimmy shifted uncomfortably, his calm, collected look turning to one of unease.

      ‘Ruby on the desk can give it to you. I need to get back to my meeting, if that’s all?’

      ‘Thank you, Mr Chilton. Don’t leave town; we may need to question you again.’

      Chilton nodded and walked over to the desk, instructing Ruby to give them Reece Corrigan’s address. She gave them a suspicious side-eyed look as Chilton spoke.

      ‘What do you make of that, then?’ Imogen asked Adrian, her eyes fixed on Chilton as he went up the stairs.

      Adrian had noticed that his behaviour wasn’t right. It was obvious just from speaking to him that Jimmy was lying and keeping secrets. He didn’t seem to be afraid in the same way that Leon Quick had been, but there was something weaselly about the man.

      Adrian turned back to Imogen when Jimmy had finally disappeared from view.

      ‘God knows. I don’t know what’s going on anymore.’

      ‘Let’s go get this address and visit the big boss.’

      ‘Maybe he can shed some light on this situation,’ Adrian said.

      ‘What are the chances of that?’

       Chapter Twenty-Four

       I should have known better than to think I could escape, that there was any chance for me to have a normal life. I don’t even know what that is. Everything has been so twisted for so long now that I really think I am where I belong. There is no Hail Mary for me, no last-minute reprieve.

       Being back home is like riding a bike with a broken seat or slipping into an uncomfortable pair of shoes that you can’t remove. I wish with every fibre of my being that I had died on that riverbank, and yet I survived and here I am, back here again. Groundhog Day.

       Every day is the same, I wake up and then I pretend to be the person he wants until it’s time to go to sleep again. I may as well be a doll or a robot. I am barely human at all.

       Slipping out of the hospital was easy enough; no one thought I would go. People are always underestimating me and that’s fine. I don’t really care. I wonder if I really care about anything, anymore. I used to want to get away, but now I think I have used up nine lives and not all of them were mine. This is where I belong, uncomfortable shoes and all.

       Chapter Twenty-Five

      Since Imogen and Adrian had started dating, things had definitely changed at work. As they drove out to Reece Corrigan’s home address, Imogen found her cheeks warming as she watched Adrian drive. She had never really thought about how attractive he was, as if the mere fact of her thinking about it might inflate his ego. He was a more cautious driver than her, didn’t seem to wander off in his own head as much as she did. He was definitely more at peace than he had been in a long time. Since his last girlfriend, Lucy, was murdered in connection with an investigation they were conducting last year.

      She remembered when they’d met, how she had assumed so much about him and yet within just a few hours they were completely at ease with each other. You don’t get that every day. Imogen knew that this could get tiresome at some point. That one day she might not want to spend the day with the person she spends her nights with, but for now it was easy, it felt right. These moments together in the car were her favourite, she had no idea why.

      ‘Do you think the DCI knows about us?’ Imogen said.

      ‘No, I don’t, do you?’

      ‘I can’t imagine her not pulling us up on it. What would you do if she does?’

      ‘Then we deal with it, I guess. I’ll move, if she wants, to another department, another team or something.’

      ‘You would do that?’ Imogen said, taken aback by the very idea.

      ‘Why not? Wouldn’t you?’

      ‘I feel like I’m just getting settled here and don’t really want to change again. I like the way things are.’

      ‘I like it too, but I think I like you more. I’ve been here since I started, maybe a change would be good for me.’

      ‘I wouldn’t want to feel responsible for that.’

      ‘I know, but you wouldn’t be. I have thought about this before. After losing Lucy and now finding myself with you … I know I hadn’t been with her long, but it was the first time in a long time that I thought I was capable of a real relationship. When she died, I thought that was it for me. No more chances. Sometimes you just have to decide what you want most – and I know you’re more important to me than this job.’

      ‘Where would you go?’ she said, surprised that he had given this any thought at all.

      ‘I have no idea. Maybe I could train new recruits for a while, or maybe I could move to canine division.’

      ‘Dogs?’

      ‘What’s wrong with dogs?’

      ‘Nothing. You’ve just never mentioned it before.’

      ‘It could be time for a change, anyway. I don’t want to piss off the DCI and who knows, maybe you’ll like me even more?’

      ‘Not sure that’s possible.’ She smiled.

      He put his hand on her knee and squeezed. This felt like an unusually mature approach to the situation from Adrian, Lord knows he wasn’t usually so level-headed and measured when dealing with matters of the heart. They had been through a lot together over the last couple of years and she had seen him at both ends of the spectrum, high and low. There was no doubt that he had grown and changed into a different person. She liked to think she was at least partially responsible for that.

       Chapter Twenty-Six

      It was obvious from the moment they arrived at the house that it was worth well over a million. This area and this view alone were both assets, but the real gem was the property itself. An eco house, white and wood with large metal beams, the back of the house was overlooking the Blackdown Hills on the border. Green upon green upon green. The house was detached, although they had neighbours either side with just a short distance between them. Enough not to be bothered by loud television sets or even louder parties.