The Games People Play: The Complete Trilogy Boxset by Barbara Gaskell Denvil

Author:Barbara Gaskell Denvil [Gaskell Denvil, Barbara]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Gaskell Publishing
Published: 2020-04-17T22:00:00+00:00

Niles Daish rang the bell at Rochester Manor, then waited patiently on the wide pillared doorstep as a wild confusion of snow blew onto his back and down his coat collar.

Lavender let him in and called Harry. Then she pottered back into the dining room, finding Sylvia kicking at the unresponsive fire.

“Damp logs.”

“Snow got into the woodshed,” explained Lavender. “Now there’s a young man asking for you and Harry. I saw Harry go out to the garage earlier, but I’ve called him. The young man says he’s Niles Daish.”

Once everyone had settled, she brought in a steaming teapot and a plate of biscuits. There were no cakes left over from Sylvia’s visit to Kate’s bakery the day before. The fire had finally taken pity on his roomful of chilly inmates and was blazing into fantasy fairy-tale shadows. Niles leaned back and rubbed his hands together. “They think it’s me,” he said. “I’ve been followed to work, followed home, followed to the pub and followed even to the Post Office. Tis like being stalked. I care loads for my sister. Evie’s me favourite. I don’t go killing nobody. Tis not me character.”

“Unfortunately,” said Harry, “domestic violence – well, I don’t know the statistics. But when a girl goes missing, it’s usually her father, husband or brother that killed her. So they’re jumping to conclusions. But they haven’t arrested you. So there’s hope. Well, far more than hope. But I’m afraid Sylvia and I haven’t found a single real clue as yet.”

Niles ignored the tea. “It’s the Chimney Killer, isn’t it? My lovely Evie’s dead. I reckon you know already, and you’re keeping quiet just to keep me happy.”

Both Harry and Sylvia shook their heads with emphasis. While Harry finished his tea, Sylvia took a deep breath. “Dear Niles,” she said, “there is a risk that she’s been kidnapped. Not dead perhaps, but unable to escape. We have absolutely no proof of her death, nor that she’s been taken by anyone in particular. And we haven’t stopped looking. But like you, we just don’t know where to look. The police have exhausted the search along her normal route home. We’ve gone over all the fields and farms, even along the banks of the Torr and into the next village. There’s no sign of any accident nor any burial. We haven’t stopped looking, I promise. But where to look next?”

“Is anyone,” Niles was almost frightened to say it, “still guarding the house with the chimney? She could be there, couldn’t she! I mean, locked up. Or – even worse.”

Once again both Sylvia and Harry shook their heads. “No, absolutely not,” Sylvia said, as Harry changed his shake to a nod. “As far as anyone can tell, that house hasn’t been used by anyone for several years. And the police have checked it over and over and over. They’ve been trundling around in their plastic forensic suits for weeks, pulling every corner apart. The tunnel that led to the cellar has gone. But the police still guard the house, front and back.

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