“Nightmares for life. Which is why I want to escape. Cowardice, of course, but common sense too.” Sylvia shook her head, pulled her scarf tighter, and climbed into the passenger seat beside Harry. “And now the whole thing about this long lost daughter. Long dead daughter, I should say. And did Sullivan know who he was killing?”
“But it might not have been rape since she was on the game. Maybe he had no idea who she was, just paid for a quick job, then left.”
“With her knickers? But I suppose we can’t even be sure it was him who killed her. Yet using her clothes like that certainly indicates something – linking his daughter to his wife. But of course, poor Joyce wasn’t the mother.”
“So who was?”
“It might be on record. It’s an unsolved murder. A cold case.”
“So many questions. Did Lionel know? Did the girl know? Was it murder by someone else? Or was it the nastiest answer, which is that Lionel Sullivan knowingly raped and murdered his own daughter, and hid her knickers away in some safe place even while he was in prison?”
Slowly, as if the possibilities were overshadowed by the unpleasant probability, both Sylvia and Harry sighed and changed the subject.
“And do we go to Milton’s trial?”
“We don’t know Eve, but we know the parents. We’ll see first whether they want us.”
Iris and Ruby were trotting up the bush wrapped pathway towards the car park. “Thank goodness. Let’s get back to those roaring fires.”
“And bed. And booking that holiday.”
“But secretly dreaming about damned Lionel Sullivan, what he did to his daughter, and whether he still intends coming after us.”
It was two days later when they saw Paul Stoker’s interview on television. Stella called them over. “Probably rubbish, but possibly interesting. He was the fellow who wrote that trashy little bestseller about Lionel Sullivan and mentioned both of you.”
Sylvia squashed into the space beside Harry since half the manor residents were watching the programme.
The interviewer was enjoying the revelations, and Stoker, wearing an ear-splitting smile, was evidently enjoying it too.
“Of course,” Stoker said in answer to one question, “we’re told that Sullivan murdered his wife. But she wasn’t legally married to him since he’s still married to his first wife.”
“We’re heard something of such a rumour,” the BBC reporter murmured doubtfully. “Something of a cold case murder, now supposed to have been committed by Sullivan.”
“That’s the rumour.” Stoker smiled. “But not the actual truth. He was married young to a whore by the name of Claire, but walked out on her after a few years. She brought up their two daughters alone and put the elder girl on the streets as little more than a child. Eventually, the girl traced her father. Sullivan went back to see his wife. They murdered the daughter between them.”
The interviewer shook his head. “Do we have proof of such a monstrous act? Why would they do such a thing?”
“No proof,” Stoker said as every resident of Rochester Manor held their breath. “Not yet. But I happen to know it’s the truth, and I happen to know why.”
“But you must know, Mr Stoker,” the interviewer leaned forwards, “this puts you in great danger from Lionel Sullivan himself. He may believe you know too much. I assume you’ve talked to the police?”
“Naturally.” Paul Stoker kept grinning. “And the police have offered protection. As you know, I was once thought to be the guilty party myself. Well now, they owe me protection, don’t they!”
“But if you claim witness protection,” decided the interviewer, “you can’t appear on television, Mr Stoker.”
“I’m not afraid of that silly old weasel,” Stoker proclaimed. “And I’m writing another book. I know the secrets, and I know the truth. I’m calling it ‘The dark truth behind the Sullivan Lies.’ The publishers are screaming out for it. So don’t forget. Buy it and find out what really happened. You’ll be surprised, I promise. And Sullivan won’t be catching me. Not in a month of climbing up chimneys.”
Apologies for the cliff hanger. However, you don’t have to wait long to find out. Get Daisychains to find the answers.
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About the Author
My passion is for mystery and late English medieval history. This forms the background for my historical fiction. I also have a love of fantasy and the wild freedom of the imagination, with its haunting threads of sadness and the exploration of evil. Although most of my books have romantic undertones, I would not class them purely as romances. We all wish to enjoy some romance in our lives, there is also a yearning for adventure, mystery, suspense, friendship and spontaneous experience. My books include all of this and more.
I have now moved into modern Crime Fiction and the fascination we have for evil, with my new series ’The Games People Play’.
But my greatest loves are the beauty of the written word, and the utter fascination of good characterisation. Bringing my characters to life is my principal aim.
For more information on this and other books, or to subscribe for updates, new releases and free downloads, please visit barbaragaskelldenvil.com
Also by Barbara Gaskell Denvil
Historical Mysteries Collection
Blessop’s Wife
Satin Cinnabar
The Flame Eater
Sumerford’s Autumn
The Deception of Consequences
The Stars and a Wind Trilogy
A White Horizon
The Wind from the North
The Singing Star
Box Set
Crime Mysteries
Between
The Games People Play
If When
Ashes From Ashes
Daisy Chains
Time Travel Mysteries
Fair Weather
Future Tense
Children’s Bannister’s Muster Time Travel Series
Snap
Snakes & Ladders
Blind Man’s Buff
Dominoes
Leapfrog
Hide & Seek
Ashes From Ashes Page 28
