The little boy was wearing the same clothes he had been wearing back at the flat. He had rusk and raspberry stains down the front of his top and his face was dirty. In the rush to get Ben to the hill Maria hadn’t had time to change his clothes, or clean his face. She grabbed a wet wipe from her bag and tidied him up.
“Thank you,” said Ben.
Liz lay on her side at the exact spot where she and Ben had their first kiss at the base of the hill. Ben climbed to his feet, and Christopher’s shaky legs walked him closer to her. He stumbled in front of her, fell onto the soft grass and crawled the last few inches to be next to her.
Ben lifted Christopher’s small hand and placed it in Liz’s.
The second their hands touched their worlds changed.
They were alone in the woods, just the two of them. Liz looked at the handsome brave young man she’d fallen in love with and Ben saw the beautiful, funny girl who he’d set his heart on years before.
They smiled without speaking and looked into each other’s eyes. Ben ran his finger along her cheek and stopped at her beautiful red lips. She kissed his finger as a tear fell from her eye.
“I’ve been waiting for you Ben Walker,” said Liz in a soft voice.
“I know you have ………..I’m sorry you’ve had to wait so long.”
They got to their feet and climbed the hill. Ben was behind her, and just like the time before, he saw the little tattoo of the butterfly poking out from the top of her shorts as her T-shirt rose up.
They stood together at the top, hand in hand and facing each other. He was a little taller than her and looked down into her beautiful dark eyes. Liz moved forward and kissed him on the lips. He could taste her lipstick.
Ben put his arms around her and felt the warmth of her soft skin and could smell her sweet perfume. Liz enjoyed the feel of his skin against hers as they embraced upon the hill.
Ben could feel a tugging at his shirt and looked down to see a small boy.
“Michael!” exclaimed Ben.
“I’ve been waiting for you, for a very long time.”
Ben turned back to Liz.
“It’s my brother, Michael……….., Michael this is Liz.”
“I know who she is,” replied the boy.
Liz looked down towards the bottom of the hill and saw her mother and father, Campbell and Maria, and her limp and lifeless body holding the hand of a scared looking little boy.
She began to cry as she called to her parents.
“Mum, Dad, don’t leave me.”
“Sorry Liz, it’s you who are leaving them, it’s time for you to let go, they’ll understand,” said Michael.
“No!” she cried as she turned to climb back down the hill. Ben stopped her.
“It’s over, but it’s not the end……..…..it’s our time to move on and be together.”
Chapter one hundred and fifty six
The Hill
Badock’s Wood
11.07am
Saturday 23rd June
“Mummy mummy,” cried Christopher Jameson, as he struggled to pull his hand away from Liz’s.
She lay still, with her head to one side and her eyes fixed, staring at the top of the hill.
Christopher freed his hand from hers, stood up and unsteadily ran to his mother crying. She bent down and picked him up and he buried his head into her shoulder.
“Home mummy, take me home.”
Garraway stood up and calmly strolled over to Liz, held his finger against her neck and patiently waited. After thirty seconds he closed her eyes with the palm of his hand.
He quietly sighed, stood up and turned to Terry and Anne who were holding each other.
“I’m sorry,” said Garraway as he walked away from Liz’s body.
He glanced at his watch and made a note of the time of her death. And then the crying began. He slowly walked to Maria and Campbell.
“Come on, they need to be alone.”
They walked to a bench and sat in silence whilst Terry and Anne emptied their hearts.
“Markland, look at you………..you’re walking without your crutches,” said Campbell.
Garraway looked down at his legs. He stretched his arms and wriggled his fingers. He rotated his head and rubbed the back of his neck.
“The pain, it’s gone.”
He stood up and walked around the bench.
“It has………..it’s gone, the pain has left me.”
Campbell didn’t answer. As far as he was concerned, it was just another one of those things that had happened because of the hill.
Christopher looked at his mother with tired eyes.
“Mummy, can we go home now.”
Chapter one hundred and fifty seven
The Turnpike
7.19pm
Thursday 6th September
Ten weeks later
Colin Matthews watched as Markland Garraway stood at the bar waiting to be served. They had decided to meet up in honour of Ben on the third anniversary of his death and raise a glass to the remarkable young man.
Garraway walked back to the table where Matthews was sitting, weaving his way between tables and other drinkers who were blocking his way.
“So what’s the boggle with your arthritis?” asked Matthews.
“It went………..like wham kabam, it just disappeared. My consultant can’t explain it. He says I’m a marvel of medical science. He, nor anyone of which he’s aware, has ever seen anything like it before.”
“And how do you feel?”
“Brilliant Colin, I feel just brilliant.”
They discussed Ben Walker’s case and other things and buried the hatchet. They agreed that they would never see eye to eye, but from now on, things would be a lot more harmonious between the two men.
“Here’s to you………..for finally catching the bad guys,” said Garraway raising his pint glass.
“No, here’s to us. Without you and your crazy ideas Daniel Boyd would still be at large…………thank you Markland,” replied Matthews, as he clinked his glass against Garraway’s.
“So what are your intentions?” asked Matthews.
Garraway looked up from his pint glass with froth covering his top lip.
“My intentions?” he replied, wiping his mouth with a tissue.
“Yes, you’re fit for work and Munroe considers you to be a hero, would you think about returning to detective work?”
“No, no…………not now. I like what I’m doing.”
“Are you telling me, you would rather train detectives, than be one?”
“Yes, yes I would. There’s a lot less pressure, and I’m getting too old. I think I’ll leave it to the young blood. There’s a lot of good new detectives on the scene. I’ll leave it to those guys.”
Matthews looked at Garraway, and in a slightly sheepish tone, asked him a question.
“Sir, I’m working on a case…………and one of the witnesses says that she is certain that she knows who the killer is.”
“That’s good,” replied Garraway.
“I know, but the thing is, she’s blind and wasn’t anywhere nearby when the murder took place…………it seems she had some sort of vision…………like a premonition of what happened sir.”
Garraway nodded as he listened.
“The thing is sir, a lot of what she says ties in with things we know…………and I was wondering, I was wondering, with your experience in this sort of thing, would you consider helping me with this case?"
Garraway smiled.
“Mr Matthews, yes………… I’d love to.”
The End
Epilogue
.
After the trial was over and the jury had considered its verdict the sentences were handed out.
Daniel John Boyd was sent to prison for life for the murder of Ben Walker and Stanley Brown.
Paul Green, Stuart Moss and Sebastian Townsend where given long custodial sentences for the brutal attack on Ben Walker. Charlotte Williams was s
entenced for a lesser period for withholding information from the police.
John, the young man who viciously attacked Liz Mason, was never found. Police are still looking for him. None of the others involved in the murder of Ben Walker knew much about him. No one knew where he lived or even his surname. He’d just disappeared from the face of the earth.
Carla Price was granted immunity from prosecution under Section 71 of the Serious Organised Crime and Police Act 2005.
The hill became popular with visitors. Many had travelled from around the world to see where the murder had taken place and more importantly to a place which had such mystical qualities.
Some believed what happened to Ben Walker to have been a hoax. Something fabricated to sell newspapers. But most believed it to be true.
The events surrounding the hill had a profound effect on many people, as it proved, without a shadow of doubt, that there was life after death.
When news of what had happened eventually filtered around the world, it was reported that Atheists and Agnostics turned to religion and similarly, those, who before reading about the case had strong religious beliefs, had since found their faith had been turned upside down and inside out.
The identity of Christopher Jameson remained anonymous. The Rhythmic Movement Disorder from which he’d suffered since he was a baby had completely stopped after Liz Mason passed away. He remembered little of what took place and had no recollection of any of the hypnotherapy sessions with Tom Judd.
Tom Judd wrote a bestselling book based upon his experiences.
Maria and Campbell married the following year and Maria gave birth to a daughter shortly after.
Terry Mason retired from TM.IT in two thousand and thirteen.
He and Campbell are now very good friends.
Markland Garraway continued working for the Avon and Somerset Constabulary as did Colin Matthews who was eventually promoted to Detective Chief Inspector.
The mystical power of the Bronze Age burial mound continues to affect people and occasionally weaves its magic by giving hope to some and closure to others.
Many people will attempt to understand its power, but all of those who strive to comprehend the mysterious and supernatural qualities will never learn the secrets of the hill.
Forever, The Hill will remain an impenetrable mystery.
Message from the author
A personal note from Andrew M Stafford
Hello,
Thank you for reading The Hill. I’m grateful that you’ve chosen it and have taken the time to read it.
I am a new author and The Hill is my debut novel. If you would like to contact me with your thoughts on this story, you can email me at [email protected]
If you did enjoy it, I would be grateful if you would leave a review on Amazon telling other visitors to the site what you thought of The Hill. Positive reviews can really help new authors succeed and could help others decide whether or not to purchase a book.
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My very best wishes.
Andy Stafford
Other Books by Andrew M Stafford
The Third Skull
What secret connects the death of two children and the horrific suicide of a pensioner 200 years later?
The Maynards are an ordinary family who move into an ordinary house, only to discover the grim truth of what happened to those who lived there before them. Without warning they are sucked into a chilling chain of events that rips their close family apart, and are forced to confront a malevolence which if not stopped, could be unleashed on the world, altering the future of humanity forever.
The Third Skull is a spectacular, page turning thriller combining mystery, paranormal, murder and suspense.
Click the link cover image below to purchase The Third Skull from your Amazon store
The Hill - Carla’s Story (Book Two): A Paranormal Murder Mystery Thriller. (Book Two) Page 29
