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The team gently turned the man onto his back and as the gasp left her mouth, she understood why Keats had made the call.
They had both met this particular man before.
EIGHTEEN
Stacey wished she could stop the trembling in her legs.
Having made the decision to come clean to the boss, she now wanted to get it over and done with as quickly as possible.
She’d crept past Devon sleeping on the sofa on her way out, taking care not to wake her. Stacey had no idea what time Devon had finally come home, and she hadn’t ventured out of the bedroom to take a look.
She completely understood Devon’s anger towards her. Had the situation been reversed, she would also have been deeply hurt. But now the cat was out of the bag with Devon, she had to find the courage to face everyone else. She wondered if she could have handled the situation any worse if she’d tried.
Of all the things Devon had said, the hardest to hear was that she had allowed Terence Birch to create this intimacy, this shared situation that excluded everyone else. Her embarrassment, shame and weakness had given him exactly what he’d wanted.
Telling Devon was unlikely to change his behaviour, but it did mean that she was no longer alone. However angry Devon was, Stacey knew that would give way to support and love.
That point had been proven ten minutes ago when her phone had tinged a text message while she’d been sitting in silence waiting for the boss to arrive.
The message had said:
I love you more than life. We’ll talk tonight.
The words had been followed by a dozen heart emojis, and the message had strengthened her resolve to come clean with everyone, but her nerves were weakening now.
She’d hoped to catch the boss before the rest of the team arrived, but that plan was out the window, she realised as she heard Bryant’s and Penn’s voices outside the door.
‘Hey, Stace,’ they both said.
‘You didn’t bring the boss?’ she asked.
‘Nope. Text message to say she’ll be—’
‘You talking behind my back again, Bryant?’ the boss asked, entering the room.
‘Only good stuff, guv,’ Bryant said, glancing over at the coffee machine.
Stacey was well ahead on that one. It was the first thing she’d done. The boss was going to need it.
Stacey stood and reached for the boss’s favourite mug.
‘Good call, Stace, and before we begin the business of the day, some news. Unconnected to our case, but Terence Birch was killed in a hit-and-run incident last night.’
Stacey felt the world come to a stop around her as the coffee pot fell from her hand.
NINETEEN
‘What the hell was that all about?’ Bryant muttered to Penn as they threw paper towels over the spilled liquid.
Stacey had been stricken with horror at the guv’s announcement and then made a hoarse, mumbled request for a private word.
They all knew that Stacey had been acting strange for a while, but why would the death of a witness from a previous case have had such a profound effect on her?
As Penn stood to grab more kitchen towels, he stole a look into the Bowl.
Stacey was sitting down, and the tears were rolling over her cheeks.
The guv stood with her arms crossed, wearing an expression he hadn’t seen in a while but knew very well.
