CONSTABLE NICK BOX SET 6-10 five feel-good village cozy mysteries

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CONSTABLE NICK BOX SET 6-10 five feel-good village cozy mysteries Page 93

by Nicholas Rhea


  Stephen produced the necessary books from the bureau without my having to ask and laid them in front of me before joining me over coffee. But of Lucy there was no sign. Ralph said nothing but merely grinned at me as Stephen sat and looked into his coffee mug. Conversation would not be easy. But where was Lucy?

  ‘Your mum not around?’ I asked eventually.

  He shook his head. ‘She’s gone mountaineering,’ he said, then added quickly, ‘She allus has had a liking for mountains, and when that lass o’ Slater’s came to help out, they decided to have a month off. They’re gone to Canada, to the Rockies.’

  Good for Lucy! I was surprised at this sudden abandonment of the farm, but I smiled at Stephen.

  ‘She’s a fine lass, that Sylvia,’ I said.

  ‘She’s too bossy for me,’ he grunted. ‘She’s as bad as my mother, so I’m off when they get back, Mr Rhea.’

  ‘Off?’ I asked. ‘Where to?’

  ‘Hull,’ he said. ‘There’s a new tractor distributor opened there. They were advertising for a tractor mechanic. I got the job. I start next week.’

  ‘And the farm? What’s going to happen to that?’

  ‘Mum and Sylvia will run it,’ he said quietly, getting up to return to his task.

  THE END

  ALSO BY NICHOLAS RHEA

  CONSTABLE NICK MYSTERIES

  Book 1: CONSTABLE ON THE HILL

  Book 2: CONSTABLE ON THE PROWL

  Book 3: CONSTABLE AROUND THE VILLAGE

  Book 4: CONSTABLE ACROSS THE MOORS

  Book 5: CONSTABLE IN THE DALE

  Book 6: CONSTABLE BY THE SEA

  Book 7: CONSTABLE ALONG THE LANE

  Book 8: CONSTABLE THROUGH THE MEADOW

  Book 9: CONSTABLE IN DISGUISE

  Book 10: CONSTABLE AMONG THE HEATHER

  Book 11: CONSTABLE BY THE STREAM

  Book 12: CONSTABLE AROUND THE GREEN

  Book 13: CONSTABLE BENEATH THE TREES

  Book 14: CONSTABLE IN CONTROL

  Book 15: CONSTABLE IN THE SHRUBBERY

  Book 16: CONSTABLE VERSUS GREENGRASS

  Book 17: CONSTABLE ABOUT THE PARISH

  Book 18: CONSTABLE AT THE GATE

  Book 19: CONSTABLE AT THE DAM

  Book 20: CONSTABLE OVER THE STILE

  Book 21: CONSTABLE UNDER THE GOOSEBERRY BUSH

  Book 22: CONSTABLE IN THE FARMYARD

  Book 23: CONSTABLE AROUND THE HOUSES

  Book 24: CONSTABLE ALONG THE HIGHWAY

  Book 25: CONSTABLE OVER THE BRIDGE

  Book 26: CONSTABLE GOES TO MARKET

  Book 27: CONSTABLE ALONG THE RIVERBANK

  Book 28: CONSTABLE IN THE WILDERNESS

  Book 29: CONSTABLE AROUND THE PARK

  Book 30: CONSTABLE ALONG THE TRAIL

  Book 31: CONSTABLE IN THE COUNTRY

  Book 32: CONSTABLE ON THE COAST

  Book 33: CONSTABLE ON VIEW

  Book 34: CONSTABLE BEATS THE BOUNDS

  Book 35: CONSTABLE AT THE FAIR

  Book 36: CONSTABLE OVER THE HILL

  Book 37: CONSTABLE ON TRIAL

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  A SELECTION OF BOOKS YOU MAY ENJOY

  THE MURDERER’S SON

  BY JOY ELLIS

  UK www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B01LWY0PUJ

  US www.amazon.com/dp/B01LWY0PUJ

  What if your mother was a serial killer?

  A BLOODY KILLER SEEMS TO HAVE RETURNED TO THE LINCOLNSHIRE FENS.

  A gripping crime thriller by the bestselling author of the Nikki Galena series.

  Twenty years ago: a farmer and his wife are cut to pieces by a ruthless serial killer. Now: a woman is viciously stabbed to death in the upmarket kitchen of her beautiful house on the edge of the marshes.

  Then a man called Daniel Kinder walks into Saltern police station and confesses to the murder.

  But DI Rowan Jackman and DS Marie Evans of the Fenland police soon discover that there is a lot more to Daniel than meets the eye. He has no memory of the first five years of his life and is obsessed with who his real mother is.

  With no evidence to hold him, Jackman and Evans are forced to let him go, and in a matter of days Daniel has disappeared and the lonely Lincolnshire Fens become the stage for more killings.

  In a breathtaking finale, the truth about Daniel’s mother comes to light and DI Jackman and DS Evans race against time to stop more lives being destroyed.

  Full of twists and turns, this is a crime thriller that will keep you turning the pages until the shocking ending.

  MURDER ON THE OXFORD CANAL

  BY FAITH MARTIN

  UK www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B0763RXLRV

  US www.amazon.com/dp/B0763RXLRV

  DISCOVER THE MILLION-SELLING SERIES NOW.

  MEET DI HILLARY GREENE, A POLICEWOMAN FIGHTING TO SAVE HER CAREER.

  Not only has she lost her husband, but his actions have put her under investigation for corruption.

  Then a bashed and broken body is found floating in the Oxford Canal. It looks like the victim fell off a boat, but Hillary is not so sure. Her investigation exposes a dark background to the death.

  Can Hillary clear her name and get to the bottom of a fiendish conspiracy on the water?

  This crime mystery will have you gripped from beginning to end.

  MURDER ON THE OXFORD CANAL is the first in a series of page-turning crime thrillers set in Oxfordshire.

  HE IS WATCHING YOU

  BY CHARLIE GALLAGHER

  UK www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B07KKK5N7W

  US www.amazon.com/dp/B07KKK5N7W

  DISCOVER AN ABSOLUTELY GRIPPING RACE-AGAINST-TIME THRILLER FROM BESTSELLING AUTHOR CHARLIE GALLAGHER.

  A young woman’s body is left in a metal container in a remote location. The killer is careful to position her under a camera that links to his smartphone. He likes to look back at his work.

  HE IS WATCHING HER. BUT SHE ISN’T DEAD.

  So he will return to finish the job.

  Detective Maddie Ives is new to the area. She is handed a missing person report: a young woman with a drink problem who’s been reported missing fifteen times. It looks like a waste of time. But DS Ives has a bad feeling about the woman’s disappearance.

  DI Harry Blaker is called to the hit-and-run of an elderly man left to die on a quiet country road. There is no motive and it looks like a tragic accident. But he’s been working Major Crime long enough to know that something isn’t quite right. The two officers find their investigations intertwine and they will need to work together.

  BUT THEY MUST WORK FAST. TIME IS RUNNING OUT FOR THE WOMAN IN THE CONTAINER.

  GLOSSARY OF ENGLISH USAGE FOR US READERS

  A & E: accident and emergency department in a hospital

  Aggro: violent behaviour, aggression

  Air raid: attack in which bombs are dropped from aircraft on ground targets

  Allotment: a plot of land rented by an individual for growing fruit, vegetables or flowers

  Ano
rak: nerd (it also means a waterproof jacket)

  Artex: textured plaster finish for walls and ceilings

  A level: exams taken between 16 and 18

  Auld Reekie: Edinburgh

  Au pair: live-in childcare helper, often a young woman

  Barm: bread roll

  Barney: argument

  Beaker: glass or cup for holding liquids

  Beemer: BMW car or motorcycle

  Benefits: social security

  Bent: corrupt

  Bin: wastebasket (noun), or throw in rubbish (verb)

  Biscuit: cookie

  Blackpool Lights: gaudy illuminations in a seaside town

  Bloke: guy

  Blow: cocaine

  Blower: telephone

  Blues and twos: emergency vehicles

  Bob: money, e.g. ‘That must have cost a few bob.’

  Bobby: policeman

  Broadsheet: quality newspaper (New York Times would be a US example)

  Brown bread: rhyming slang for dead

  Bun: small cake

  Bunk: escape, e.g. ‘do a bunk’

  Burger bar: hamburger fast-food restaurant

  Buy-to-let: buying a house/apartment to rent it out for profit

  Charity shop: thrift store

  Carrier bag: plastic bag from supermarket

  Care home: an institution where old people are cared for

  Car park: parking lot

  CBeebies: kids TV

  Chat-up: flirt, trying to pick up someone with witty banter or compliments

  Chemist: pharmacy

  Chinwag: conversation

  Chippie: fast-food place selling chips, battered fish and other fried food

  Chips: French fries but thicker

  CID: Criminal Investigation Department

  Civvy Street: civilian life (as opposed to army)

  Clock: punch (in an altercation) or register

  Cock-up: mess up, make a mistake

  Cockney: a native of East London

  Common: an area of park land or lower class

  Comprehensive school (comp.): a public (re state-run) high school

  Cop hold of: grab

  Copper: police officer

  Coverall: coveralls, or boiler suit

  CPS: Crown Prosecution Service, who decide whether police cases go forward

  Childminder: someone paid to look after children

  Council: local government

  Dan Dare: hero from Eagle comic

  DC: detective constable

  Deck: one of the landings on a floor of a tower block

  Deck: hit (verb)

  Desperate Dan: very strong comic book character

  DI: detective inspector

  Digestive biscuit: plain cookie

  Digs: student lodgings

  Do a runner: disappear

  Do one: go away

  Doc Martens: heavy boots with an air-cushioned sole, also DMs, Docs

  Donkey’s years: long time

  Drum: house

  DS: detective sergeant

  ED: emergency department of a hospital

  Eagle: children’s comic, marketed at boys

  Early dart: to leave work early

  Eggy soldiers: strips of toast with a boiled, runny egg

  Enforcer: police battering ram

  Estate: public/social housing estate (similar to housing projects)

  Estate agent: realtor

  Falklands War: war between Britain and Argentina in 1982

  Fag: cigarette

  Father Christmas: Santa Claus

  Filth: police (insulting)

  Forces: army, navy and air force

  FMO: force medical officer

  Fried slice: fried bread

  Fuzz: police

  Garda: Irish police

  GCSEs: exams taken between age 14 and 16, replaced O levels in 1988

  Gendarmerie: French national police force

  Geordie: from Newcastle

  Garden centre: a business where plants and gardening equipment are sold

  Gob: mouth, can also mean phlegm or spit

  GP: general practitioner, a doctor based in the community

  Graft: hard work

  Gran: grandmother

  Hancock: Tony Hancock, English comedian popular in 1950s

  Hard nut: tough person

  HGV: heavy goods vehicle, truck

  HOLMES: UK police computer system used during investigation of major incidents

  Home: care home for elderly or sick people

  Hoover: vacuum cleaner

  I’ll be blowed: expression of surprise

  In care: refers to a child taken away from their family by the social services

  Inne: isn’t he

  Interpol: international police organisation

  Iron Lady: Margaret Thatcher, applied to any strong woman

  ITU: intensive therapy unit in hospital

  Jane/John Doe: a person whose identity is unknown/anonymous

  JCB: a manufacturer of construction machinery, like mechanical excavators

  Jerry-built: badly made

  Jungle: nickname given to migrant camp near Calais

  Lad: young man

  Lass: young woman

  Lift: elevator

  Lord Lucan: famous British aristocrat who allegedly killed his children’s nanny and disappeared in 1974 and was never found

  Lorry: truck

  Lovely jubbly: said when someone is pleased

  Luftwaffe: German air force

  M&S: Marks and Spencer, a food and clothes shop

  Miss Marple: detective in a series of books by Agatha Christie, often used to imply a busybody, especially of older women

  MOD: Ministry of Defence

  Mobile phone: cell phone

  MP: Member of Parliament, politician representing an area

  MRSA: A strain of antibiotic-resistant bacteria

  Myra Hindley: famous British serial killer

  Naff: tacky/corny, not cool

  Naff all: none

  National Service: compulsory military service, in the UK ended in 60s

  Net curtains: a type of semi-transparent lace curtain

  NHS: National Health Service, public health service of the UK

  Nick: police station (as verb: to arrest)

  Nowt: nothing

  Nutter: insane person, can be used affectionately

  Nursery: a place which grows plants, shrubs and trees for sale (often wholesale)

  O level: exams taken between age 14 and 16 until 1988 (replaced by GCSEs)

  Old bag: old woman (insulting)

  Old Bill: police

  OTT: over the top

  Owt: anything

  Pants: noun: underwear, adjective: bad/rubbish/terrible

  Para: paratrooper

  Pay-as-you-go: a cell phone on which you pay for calls in advance

  PC: police constable

  Pear-shaped: gone wrong

  Petrol: gasoline

  Pictures: movie

  Pillbox: a concrete building, partly underground, used as an outpost defence

  Pillock: fool

  Pips: police insignia indicating rank

  Piss off: an exclamation meaning go away (rude), can also mean annoy

  Pissing down: raining

  Playing field: sports field

  Pleb: ordinary person (often insulting)

  Portakabin: portable building used as temporary office etc.

  Post: mail

  Planning Department: the local authority department that issues licences to build and develop property

  PNC: police national computer

  PSNI: Police Service of Northern Ireland

  Prat: idiot, can be used affectionately

  Premier League: top English soccer division

  Proms: annual concerts held at the Albert Hall

  Public analyst: scientists who perform chemical analysis for public protection purposes

  RAF: Royal Air Force

 
Rag: newspaper

  Ram-raiding: robbery where a vehicle is rammed through a shop window

  Randy: horny

  Recce: reconnaissance

  Red Adair: famous oil well firefighter

  Resus: resuscitation room

  Right state: messy

  Ring: telephone (verb)

  Roadworks: repairs done to roads

  Rozzers: police

  RSPB: Royal Society for the Protection of Birds

  RTC: road traffic collision

  RV: rendezvous point

  Royal Engineers: British army corps dealing with military engineering, etc.

  Rugger: rugby (posh American football)

  Sarge: sergeant

  SCO19: Specialist Crime and Operations Specialist Firearms Command

  Scrote: low life

  Section: to have someone committed to a mental hospital under UK mental health laws

  Semi: semi-detached house, a house with another house joined to it on one side only

  Shedload: a large amount

  Shop: store

  Shout the odds: talk in a loud bossy way

  Sickie: day off work pretending to be ill

  Sixth-form college: where students study A levels

  SIO: senior investigating officer

  Skell: a homeless person, aka ‘tramp’ (insulting)

  Skip: a large open container used for building waste

  Slapper: used to label somebody as overtly sexual, typically a younger woman, aka ‘skank’ (insulting)

  Smackhead: heroin addict (insulting)

  Snout: police informer

  SOCO: scene-of-crime officer

  Sod: an annoying person

  Sort: to do or make

  Solicitor: lawyer

  Sparky: electrician

  Spook: spy

  Spuds: potatoes

  Squaddie: a soldier of low rank

  Stunner: beautiful woman

  Super: superintendent (police rank)

 

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