THE COMPLETE DETECTIVE JEFF TEMPLE five gripping crime thrillers box set by James Raven

Author:James Raven [RAVEN, JAMES]
Language: eng
Format: epub
ISBN: 9781789315851
Published: 2020-10-20T22:00:00+00:00

CHAPTER 30

ANGEL’S ROOM was filled with soft white light. The air was warm and static and smelled of eucalyptus. As Temple approached the bed, her freckled cheeks lifted with a gentle smile.

‘I’m sorry I couldn’t get here sooner,’ he said. ‘But it was impossible to get away.’

He kissed her gently and tasted toothpaste on her lips.

‘I’ve been following the news,’ she said. ‘I can hardly believe what’s happening.’

He turned to look at the small TV screen. It was showing a map of the M25. The crawler caption at the bottom read: Third sniper attack. More drivers shot.

‘They’re saying he shot people outside their cars again,’ Angel said.

Temple turned back to her. ‘This guy’s a fucking monster,’ he said. ‘He’s now killed a total of twenty-four people. Twelve of them shot dead.’

Angel reached for his hand and squeezed his fingers.

‘I can see it’s getting to you,’ she said.

He couldn’t deny it so he just nodded. He was a hard-bitten detective with many years’ experience, but this case was proving to be the biggest challenge of his life. It was twisting him up inside and making him question his faith in humanity. He’d hunted serial killers before. He’d brought rapists and child murderers to justice. But no case had ever crawled under his skin like this one. Nothing he’d encountered in the past had prepared him for what he was now witnessing.

And it was beginning to show. He cut a dishevelled, rather mournful figure. His eyes were bloodshot and his face was wrinkled with stress lines. His white shirt was crumpled, the tie drooping from the unbuttoned collar.

‘How are you feeling, sweetheart?’ he asked her.

‘My ribs catch every now and then and it hurts like hell, but the medicine’s a godsend.’

‘And the blood clot?’

‘I had another scan this morning. It’s unchanged.’

‘That’s a relief.’

She creased her brow. ‘You look tired, Jeff. You need to sleep.’

In fact he was so tired it felt like sludge was running through his veins. His muscles were heavy and weak and a dull weariness that went beyond exhaustion pervaded his body.

‘Have you met your new boss yet?’ she asked.

‘You mean Vickery?’

She nodded.

‘We had a conversation via video link,’ he said. ‘He told me you two know each other and he sends his best wishes.’

‘We worked together on the Joseph Roth case,’ Angel said.

‘I know. Vickery told me. He said he was hoping to see you at Roth’s memorial service.’

‘That’s right. This Friday. I had planned to go. It’ll be a big event. Roth was well liked and it was thanks to him that the terrorists were caught.’

‘And what was it like working with Vickery?’

‘He was OK. A bit cocky, and very direct. But a good copper. What about you? What was your impression?’

Temple shrugged. ‘I think I’ve already put his back up.’

‘Why?’

‘He’s convinced the sniper is an Al Qaeda terrorist. I’m not.’

He pulled over a chair and sat down. Then he brought her up to date on everything. This time she was more responsive. She listened to what he said and nodded a couple of times.

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