by Emma Snow
“To think this could all have been tarmac,” Peter said, looking around him.
Nobody talked about Samuel Lyons. He was gone. They would all deal with what happened in their own way, separately and together. Jenny would need the most help to come to terms with it. But she had a lot of people around her who were only too willing to assist in any way they could.
The police case was still ongoing and the memory of Chloe's funeral was fresh in all their minds. There was a lot that could have been said about both things but nobody talked about them during the picnic. It didn't seem right.
Nor did anyone mention what had happened to Alex and Erin. They didn’t need to. Someone had leaked the details to the local papers and it would serve as gossip for Helmsley for years to come. Alex had indeed bribed a number of officials on the local planning committee to approve his plans for the castle. He had gotten in too deep by taking money from investors and spending it on himself, hoping to use the purchase of the castle and future profits to get himself out of the hole he’d gotten himself into. When the sale didn’t happen, one of the investors started digging.
Alex and Erin went bust when the truth came out. Charges were probably going to be filed but that didn’t matter. What mattered was that the castle was safe.
Peter had made clear what he wanted to happen and Ben had no desire to go against his father’s wishes.
Ben and Martha would run the place together. They were happy to oblige. Ben’s only trouble was with the car hire company. They were not pleased that their vehicle needed retrieving from Yorkshire. In the end, he arranged to drive it back up with Martha. He wanted to show her his Scottish house at least once before settling down in Helmsley for good.
The two old men talked about chess while they ate. Ben and Martha talked about the future and about their future. Jenny talked to her mother about the siege of the castle during the Civil War. Martha thought for a brief moment she could see someone who looked like Chloe over near the Great Hall. When she looked again, there was no one there.
Behind them all, the sun slowly began to set.
Also by the same author
A Girl to Die For - A Novella
About the author
Emma Snow is a romantic thriller writer living in the UK. She has written A Girl to Die For, before turning her hand to her first full length novel which became Missing Piece. She spends her days reading, writing, and drinking too much tea. Her bookcases are overflowing with old favourites and new works she will get round to reading at some point. She can usually be bribed with chocolate. Please consider writing a review if you enjoyed her book. You can get in touch with her to let her know what you thought of Missing Piece via her Facebook page.
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