No One's Safe: DI Max Byrd & DI Orion Tanzy book 3
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Byrd and Claire had settled at home with baby Alan, who as it turned out, didn’t like sleeping. Claire spent most nights awake with him whilst Byrd slept, so he was able to go to work the following day. Byrd loved being a dad and recently asked Claire what they did with all the time they used to have before he came along. Regardless, he wouldn’t change it for the world. When Alan was three months old, he got his first tooth. Claire had taken the most perfect photo of him and put it on a large canvas for the living room.
In his little village of Low Coniscliffe, the person responsible for breaking into houses had finally been caught by a security system that one of Byrd’s neighbours, Jerry, had installed. It turned out to be a man in his fifties called Paul, who, for some reason, had turned bitter and couldn’t stand his neighbours being happy, so went out of his way to cause a stir. Byrd had enjoyed personally taking him to the station after seeing the CCTV footage Jerry had showed him.
DCI Fuller stepped down, admitting to the superintendent Barry Eckles that he’d had enough of Darlington, and wanted to move back to the West Midlands. Eckles asked Fuller who, from his experience, would he advise stepping up from the current workforce. Without question, Fuller told him he’d recommend either Byrd or Tanzy, and that he’d speak with them about it. If one of them decided to take on the role of DCI, it left a gap for someone to step into the role of the new DI. Eckles had also asked Fuller who he thought would be a good replacement for DS Stockdale. Without hesitation, Fuller had mentioned James Leonard.
Let’s just say things were looking good for Darlington and Durham Constabulary.
Acknowledgements
I hope you enjoyed ‘No One’s Safe’. It took me roughly eight months from typing the first word to publishing it as a complete novel. During that time there were: three drafts, a final copy, a proofreader stage, and an ARC reader stage too.
A big thank you goes to my family and friends. Their support in my passion is a blessing. I really appreciate it and could not do it alone. From my experience, as many writers will know, it’s very hard finding the time to write when you work full time and have a family, not to mention day-to-day living and life’s curveballs, so a big thank you must go to them for their patience.
A special mention to several Facebook groups such as Crime Fiction Addict, Crime Book Club, UK Crime Book Club, Books on the Positive Side, and Book Mark, for their continued support. There are many great individuals in these groups, some of those who are fellow writers and, almost every one of them, avid readers. In one way or another, they have supported me, whether it be friendship, light entertainment, or book recommendations. I would recommend checking out their pages. They are always looking for new members to share their passions for reading and crime.
I have to be honest and say No One’s Safe wouldn’t have been published the way it was without the following people.
James Leonard (who enjoys reading Linwood Barclay and Blake Crouch) took the time to go over this and, with his knowledge and skills on police procedures, he guided me where I was blind and picked up on several parts which didn’t quite fit together. It was his idea to update this novel with the use of Bitcoin and information regarding the dark web so credit to him for making it more current. Thank you Jim for your never-ending support with my writing, believing one day, I’ll be any good! And of course, for our long friendship over all these years.
Shez Barker (an avid reader who enjoys Chris Carter and Barbara Copperthwaite) connected with me via social media and, after plenty of social interactions, I now consider her a good friend. She is very busy up in Inverness, being a nurse, which as we know in current times, is a very time-consuming and demanding role in our society. Using her spare time to proofread this is massively appreciated, picking up on some very valuable points which have sharpened this novel up. I want her to know I’m very grateful for that. As I’ve previously mentioned, her support stretches back before I published my debut novel and that’s something I’ll always remember. Thank you for occasionally checking up on me to make sure I haven’t gone mad and to make time my myself, as she knows family life can get hectic.
Another special mention needs to go to my ARC reader group. I have learned a lot from these valuable readers; much of which, I would have missed. A special thanks to Mark Fearn, Dee Groocock, Amanda Oughton, Angela Lamb, Kathryn Defranc, Carol Drinkwater, Anne Mosedale, Terri Lewis, Vikki Bradley, Jim Ody, Janice Elmer, and Marion Harris. Without you guys, this novel would not be what it is.
My biggest thank you goes to my wife, Becky. An absolute gem who holds our family together like glue, letting me hide away and write while she keeps the children busy. Thank you for believing in me. Without you, I couldn’t do this.
Some of you have read all of my books so far and have continually shown your support via my social media profiles (Facebook, Instagram, etc.) with your kind likes, generous shares, and valuable comments. If there’s one thing I’ve learned so far, it’s that one person can only do so much or take something so far. It’s the people around him; the team; the support. So my last thank you is to you, the reader. You make all of this possible.
Thank you.
About the Author
C. J. Grayson has self-published his fourth novel eight months after he released his third novel, Never Came Home. Writing will always be hard (if you write, you’ll know what’s involved), but it’s a passion he’s always loved and he’ll continue to do it for as long as he can. He loves reading crime thrillers, watching supernatural / horror films, and drinking gallons of coffee.
In his earlier days, he did an apprenticeship in Pipefitting and worked in Engineering and Construction. He completed his HND in Mechanical Engineering and a Level 6 Diploma in Business Management.
He’s aged 32, lives in Darlington, in the North East of England, with his wife, Becky, and their three boys, Cameron, Jackson, and Grayson. If you didn’t know, his pseudonym is a combination of his children’s names. He dedicates his writing to them in the hope it’ll be something they can be proud of in the future.
His next book will be a stand-alone (or the first novel in a detective series – he hasn’t decided yet) based in Manchester. There’s a very good chance he’ll return to Max and Orion to see how they’re combatting the crime in Darlington.
If you can spare a few minutes and enjoyed this book, he’d really appreciate some feedback on Amazon and/or Goodreads. Your thoughts and support are more valuable to him than you’ll ever know. They keep him up till the early hours writing.
Keep up to date with his current work and updates regarding future novels through his website and following social profiles. You can also sign up to his Newsletter by going on www.cjgraysonauthor.com and filling in the very short form at the top of the page. You will get updates on progress, exclusive giveaways, and news before the rest of the world does, so feel free to sign up.
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Thank you.