Bad Dog: A Gripping British Crime Thriller (The Detective Kett Murder Mystery Series Book 2) by Alex Smith

Author:Alex Smith [Smith, Alex]
Language: eng
Format: azw3
Publisher: Relentless Media
Published: 2020-01-01T00:00:00+00:00

CHAPTER SIXTEEN

The black dog followed Kett all the way back to Norwich.

It climbed into the car with him, sitting on his lap, the stench of it unthinkable and the weight of it unbearable. It was so bad that it was hard to breathe, and twice Kett pulled over to the side of the winding country lanes to open his window and gulp down air before the howl of panic inside him grew too big to control.

The depression was hounding him because of Billie, he knew. He couldn’t help but feel guilty for forgetting her, for letting her slip out of his thoughts like she was slipping from a rope into a cold, dark lake. He’d forgotten her, he’d abandoned her. It had only been for a few hours, sure, but that was just the beginning. Maybe next time she’d vanish for a whole day. Then a week. She’d be lost.

It couldn’t happen again. He wouldn’t let it.

“I’m sorry, Billie,” he said aloud. “I won’t forget.”

He used the Bluetooth to call Bingo as he drove onto the main road, the phone ringing twice before it was answered by his old Super in the Met. It was the most futile question in the world, he knew. Utterly pointless. And yet, he couldn’t stop himself. He literally could not stop those two awful words from spilling out of his mouth.

“Any news?”

A sigh, the sound of Bingo stroking his moustache.

“I love you for trying, Robbie,” Bingo said. “But no, no news.”

Kett hung up, slamming a hand on the wheel and almost nudging the old Volvo off the road. For a second—less than a second, just the smallest increment of time—he wondered if doing that would solve his problems, if maybe in death he would find Billie there, waiting for him.

Then Alice ran into his thoughts, smiling the same smile her mother had worn. Evie was there too, hanging onto her sister’s coattails, Moira toddling along behind. And he hated himself for ever thinking it, for ever thinking about leaving them alone.

He called home, the house phone ringing, and ringing, filling him with the same sense of dread he always felt when he heard that infernal noise. Then it clicked, and somebody breathed into the line.

“Evie?” he said.

“Mine!” came Moira’s voice, followed by Evie’s.

“Give it to me, I answered it, it’s mine.”

“Mine!” screamed Moira, then the phone clattered to the floor.

It made Kett smile, the way hearing their voices always made him smile—even when they were driving him to desperation. The black dog padded off his lap and slunk into the back seat of the car, still there but much quieter.

“Girls?” he said. He heard a clunk.

“Daddy?” said Alice. He heard her running, knew that she was trying to escape her sisters. “Are you coming home?”

“Very soon,” he said. “Everything okay? Is Clarissa okay?”

“She’s nice,” said Alice. “We made bags. Mine’s purple. Evie didn’t do it because she’s stupid.”

“Is Clarissa there?” Kett asked. “Can I have a quick word?”

“Yeah,” said Alice.

There was a bleep, and the phone went dead.

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