01 The Tees Valley Killings by C. J. Grayson

Author:C. J. Grayson [Grayson, C. J.]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Tags: Fiction, Mystery & Detective, Police Procedural, Thrillers, Crime
ISBN: 9781804059616
Google: 76kC0AEACAAJ
Publisher: Joffe Books Limited
Published: 2023-06-13T23:00:00+00:00

50

Friday night

Darlington

Neil McMahon turned on the television and took a seat on the large sofa. He leaned to his right and picked up his mug of coffee from the low table then leaned back and took a sip.

To his left, his wife, Judith, was sitting comfortably in the corner, with her legs tucked under her bum and her eyes focused on the screen. She’d been there most of the night, catching up on the programs she’d missed over the past few weeks.

‘How are they?’ she asked him.

‘They’re a wreck,’ he said, sadly.

‘Bless them. It doesn’t get any easier, does it?’

‘No. It doesn’t.’

The ITV news had started moments ago but Judith had paused it while Neil was tidying the kitchen. The first story was about the discovery of Mary Richards’ body which had been found in Cemetery Lane just off Carmel Road. They had heard about it from colleagues and friends, but the details of the scene were harrowing. The shot went to an interview where a local member of the police, a DI Orion Tanzy, spoke into the camera, appealing to the public for information.

‘That’s the detective helping Ray and Tricia,’ Neil said. ‘He’s a nice chap.’

Once the report about the body had finished it switched back to the studio, where the smartly dressed reporter told the camera about the update on the missing seven-year-old, Evelyn Jones.

‘We go to Business Central Darlington, where the parents of Evelyn spilled their hearts out to the public, asking for their help to find their missing daughter,’ he said.

The screen changed to a shot of the wide table in the conference room. Ray and Tricia were seated behind it in the centre chairs. The lights on them were so bright it almost made their skin appear hollow.

‘There you are,’ Judith said, seeing him seated next to Ray.

Ray Jones spoke into the camera for a short while, as his wife wiped away her tears. Then Neil stood up and said his part. When he sat down, DI Orion Tanzy stood up and filled the reporters in on how the investigation was going from a police perspective.

‘I’m proud of you,’ Judith said to Neil. ‘Takes balls to stand up there and speak in front of all those cameras.’ She leaned over and squeezed his hand.

He waved it away modestly. ‘I just hope they find her soon. I know what Ray is feeling, I know how he—’

She squeezed his hand again, this time tighter. ‘I know, Neil. I know. It’s a pain that never goes away. I think about Casey every single day. She’s left a hole in our hearts that will never be filled.’

When their daughter, Casey, went missing all those years ago, after a month went by, they’d lost all hope. At the time, they were told that if she wasn’t found within three days, chances were that she’d never be found. Not alive, anyway. When they finally accepted that they wouldn’t see their daughter again, they tried for another child. Months went by, but Judith didn’t fall pregnant.

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