Starling House looked deserted. There were no cars or vans in the car park at the front of the building, and the windows were unlit.
‘Drive round to the back,’ Christian instructed Faith, who had already parked.
She turned on the engine and slowly made her way to the back of the building. The car crunched on the gravel of the sweeping driveway. All three were looking up at Starling House, trying to see some sign of life.
The car park at the rear of the building was for staff only, and there were three vehicles parked in random spaces. They recognized one straightaway. The Vauxhall Vectra belonging to John Preston.
‘VF51 CJS,’ Christian said, checking the Post-It note from his pocket.
‘Should we call for backup?’ Faith asked. It wasn’t long ago when Faith and Sian innocently knocked on the door of a witness and ended up being held at gunpoint. The memory was still raw for Faith; she had bad dreams about it from time to time. She hadn’t mentioned it to Sian but she looked at her in the rear-view mirror. Was she going through the same panicked emotions?
‘No. I think John Preston may actually be relieved he’s been found out,’ Sian said.
‘Really?’ Faith was surprised. ‘Why?’
‘He’s not a cold-blooded murderer. He just wants vengeance for his son.’
‘You sound like you have sympathy for him.’
‘I’m a mother of four. If anything happened to them at the hands of someone else, I’d want justice to be served.’
‘I agree with Sian,’ Christian said, suddenly thinking of his own two children.
‘So are we just going to sit here or are we going to go in?’ Faith asked.
‘We’re going in.’
SEVENTY-ONE
Manchester. December 2013
‘Dad, you’ve got a visitor.’
Ruby Hartley bounded into the kitchen. Her father, Daniel, was sitting at the table tapping away on his laptop. He looked up and his smile dropped as he saw Samuel Bryce standing in the doorway.
‘What are you doing here?’ he asked. His voice had dropped and was shaking.
‘Daniel, that’s no way to speak to a visitor,’ Laura said. She wiped her hands on the tea towel. ‘Hello, I’m Laura, Daniel’s wife. I must apologize for my antisocial husband. His manners appear to have taken the evening off.’
‘That’s quite all right,’ Samuel said, smiling without revealing his teeth. He had purposely spruced himself up for the occasion. He’d washed and flattened down his knotted hair and managed to find some old clothes in a bin at the back of Primark to make himself look halfway decent. ‘Daniel and I go back a long way. I’m used to his moods.’
‘You’re an old friend of Daniel’s? That’s nice.’
‘Yes. I’m visiting Manchester for the Christmas holidays and thought I’d look up an old friend while I’m here.’
‘Well isn’t that sweet. Would you like a drink … ?’
‘Samuel. Samuel Bryce. And a drink would be lovely, thank you.’
Daniel watched on in horror as his wife was innocently having a charming conversation with a killer. She had no idea who she was inviting into their lives.
‘Ruby, go and shout Thomas down to say hello to an old friend of your dad’s.’
‘Actually, love,’ Daniel said, jumping up. ‘Let me just have a few words with Samuel on our own. I’ll take him into the living room.’
He practically pushed Samuel out of the kitchen and manhandled him into the lounge. He closed the door behind them with a slam.
‘What a beautiful Christmas tree,’ Samuel said looking up at the seven-foot spruce.
‘What the fuck are you doing here?’ Daniel spat with venom.
‘I’ve come to see your family. I’ve come to wish you all a very merry Christmas. I’ve come for my present.’
‘Present?’
‘Yes. I thought you’d like to give me a couple of grand in the spirit of the season.’
‘I told you the last time I don’t have that kind of money,’ Daniel hissed.
‘Really? I think you’re lying; but then you were always good at lying, weren’t you? Let’s see,’ he said, walking around the large living room. ‘That TV must have set you back a few grand, and I know for a fact Bang & Olufsen aren’t cheap either. Was that an Apple Mac you were playing with in the kitchen?’
‘Come off it Wes … Samuel, that isn’t fair. I’ve paid my dues. I served my time and I made something of myself. You could have done it too. Why should I help you because you couldn’t be bothered to create a decent life for yourself?’
‘Don’t you dare!’ Samuel said. He walked up close to Daniel, who took a step back in fear. ‘You have no idea of the struggle I’ve had to cope with. I’ve tried to make a life for myself. I’ve tried to get a career, a house, and a job, but I’ve always fallen at the final hurdle. Do you know why? This,’ he tapped the side of his head. ‘I can’t get Felix Myers out of my head.’
It was the first time Daniel Hartley had heard Felix’s name since his trial, and he recoiled at it was spoken.
‘Unlike you, I have a conscience,’ Samuel continued. ‘You’ve obviously been able to put it behind you and move on. Did you think serving nine years was enough? Did you think that made everything better? Well it didn’t. I couldn’t just turn my mind off and carry on as normal. I’ve had Felix Myers living in my head for almost thirty years, and it’s fucking killing me. You may have been able to shut him out but I haven’t. So yes, I think you could afford to give me a few quid to help me out.’
‘No way. I’m not giving you anything,’ Daniel tried to sound confident but it wasn’t working. ‘I’m going to call the police and say you’ve broken the terms of your licence. You’ll be straight back in prison, and you’ll never see daylight again.’
‘And what will that do? Do you honestly think you’ll be safe with me behind bars? I know where you live now. I know your name. I
