Lethal Ties by Christmas Helen

Author:Christmas, Helen
Language: eng
Format: epub
Published: 2021-04-17T16:00:00+00:00

Chapter Forty-Three

An uncomfortable knot of silence gripped the three of them.

Joe sat frozen in his chair, but even in the darkest recess of his mind, he could not help imagining himself lying there.

One of six helpless boys at the mercy of those monsters.

“Christ, Sam,” Maisie breathed. Her eyes flashed with panic, serving a timely reminder of all they had suffered. “Have you reported this to the police?”

“I have now,” he shuddered. “All I ever wanted to do was forget the whole ordeal, until the investigation arose, but as soon as the name ‘Orchard Grange’ came up, I was wondering if the victims might be you two.”

“But you haven’t explained where you went,” Joe said.

At last Sam lifted his eyes. “I was coming to that.”

Sadness hung in their depths as they held his gaze, but Joe was beyond feeling sympathy. Sam’s story left a minefield of gaping holes, and Joe was not going to leave this room until he had answers.

“Good,” he said. “‘Cos d’you have any idea how worried we were?”

“I do - but just before dawn the police turned up at Orchard Grange...” He bit his lip. “I thought they were there to arrest Mortimer and his thugs but I was wrong. Turns out some ‘estranged family member’ had been in touch and asked them to come and collect me.”

Joe felt his chest tighten, his thoughts a confused muddle.

All those years cloaked in mystery, and this was the reason he had awoken to find Sam’s bed empty?

“It’s all beginning to make sense,” Maisie gasped. “This is the story your social worker told Sarah.”

“And the reason I never came back,” Sam said, his voice deep with remorse.

“So who was it?” Joe snapped. “This ‘estranged’ family member?”

“Well, you’re never going to believe this - but it was my father.”

“I thought you hated your father,” Maisie whispered.

“I did. Especially after the way he treated Mum, but I had to consider his power. Put it this way, I was led to believe that he was the one who requested a patrol went out, seeking out the whereabouts of that party.”

Joe frowned, struggling to take it in. “But why the fuck would he do that? After all those years he wanted nothing to do with you?”

“I know. It sounds mental and I thought the same. That he’d be glad to be shot of me. The truth is, though, he was really cut up about Mum’s murder, and once he’d found me, he chose to do the right thing. Couldn’t get me out of Orchard Grange fast enough, to whisk me up to the Scottish Highlands and into the family fold.” He gave a cynical sniff. “I won’t pretend I had a great childhood ‘cos I didn’t. The man was a total control freak, but that’s not the point...”

Joe’s heart sank. Looking at Sam now, he so much wanted to console him, yet his disclosure felt more like a betrayal.

“Yeah, well that’s all very well, Sam, but let’s go back to the morning after the party.

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