The Lost
- Автор: Бекетт Саймон
- Серия: Jonah Colley #1
- Год: 2021
- Язык: английский
- Год: Orion/Trapeze
- ISBN: 978-1-398-70690-3
- Жанр: Триллеры
Электронная книга - «The Lost». Краткое содержание книги:
Ten years ago, the disappearance of firearms police officer Jonah Colley’s young son almost destroyed him.
A GRUESOME DISCOVERY
A plea for help from an old friend leads Jonah to Slaughter Quay, and the discovery of four bodies. Brutally attacked and left for dead, he is the only survivor.
A SEARCH FOR THE TRUTH
Under suspicion himself, he uncovers a network of secrets and lies about the people he thought he knew — forcing him to question what really happened all those years ago...
‘So we’re awake, are we? How are we feeling?’
Jonah didn’t know. He groped for some memory but found only panic and confusion.
‘Where...?’ His voice was a dry croak. He swallowed, trying to moisten his mouth. ‘Why am I...?’
‘It’s OK, you’re in hospital. You were injured. Just hang on and I’ll go and fetch the doctor. She’ll explain everything.’
No, wait... Jonah didn’t want her to leave, but she was already going out. He lay there, clammy with anxiety. His mind was a hole, swallowing any thoughts as soon as they arrived. Clenching his fists, he tried to slow his breathing and focus on the small, clean pain as his fingernails dug into the flesh of his palms.
The door opened again. The nurse came in, accompanied by a stern-faced woman in blue scrubs. She came to stand by the bed while the nurse took a clipboard from its foot and began making notes.
‘Hi, there. Good to see you awake,’ the newcomer said. She had a strong Irish accent. ‘I’m Dr Mangham, one of the consultants who’ve been looking after you. How are you feeling?’
Jonah’s heart was still racing. ‘Confused,’ he managed.
‘That’s perfectly understandable. I know you’ll have a lot of questions, but would you mind answering a few of mine, first? To start with, can you tell me your name?’
For a bad second or two there was nothing, then the answer presented itself. ‘Jonah. Jonah Colley.’
She nodded, as though he’d passed a test. ‘Can you tell me what your job is, Jonah?’
‘I’m... I’m a police officer.’ His confidence began to return as he found himself able to remember. ‘A sergeant.’
‘Good. And do you know where you are?’
Jonah looked around the room. There was no accompanying memory, but the location was obvious enough.
‘In hospital...’
‘Can you remember why you’re here?’
Scraps of memory began to filter through, bringing the onset of panic. Jonah looked down at his hands. The skin was reddened and sore.
‘I was in a warehouse. At a quayside... I was attacked.’ It was coming back to him now, a cascade of nightmare images. Gavin and the young woman. The fight. He put his hand to his head, felt stitches and shaved stubble. ‘Jesus, what...?’
He gasped as he shifted, sending pain lancing through his knee.
‘Try to take it easy,’ the doctor told him. ‘We had to operate on your knee, so it’s best not to make any sudden movements for the time being. Now, I expect there’s a lot you want to ask, so I’ll try and answer any medical questions while we do a quick examination. Is that OK?’
The nurse was already bustling around, strapping a blood pressure cuff around Jonah’s arm.
‘How long have I been here...?’ he asked.
‘Two days. Keep your eyes on my finger,’ she said, raising it in front of his face and moving it from side to side. ‘Can you remember being awake before this?’
‘No.’ He felt anxiety bubbling up again as he explored the holes where memories should be. ‘I can’t recall anything since... since before I was brought in.’
‘That’s not uncommon. You had a head injury that required stitches and left you with a hairline fracture of the skull. It caused swelling on your brain so we thought we might have to operate, but fortunately the pressure reduced without intervention. OK, I want you to squeeze my fingers. Good. Now the other hand.’
Jonah obeyed dumbly, struggling to grasp any of this. ‘Is there any long-term damage?’
‘That’s what we’re trying to find out. But the scans are reassuring, and from what I’ve seen so far I’m not too worried. You came in with other injuries as well — cuts and contusions, and chemical burns on your hands — but they’re mostly superficial. Can you push with your right foot against my hand? Hard as you can. That’s it.’ She straightened. ‘Well, there doesn’t seem to be any muscle weakness or motor impairment. We’ll have to run more tests, but I think you can be optimistic. Your coordination and muscle strength seem fine, which, frankly, is better than we’d hoped, and the skull fracture should heal on its own over time. You are likely to suffer the effects of concussion for a while, though. Headaches, light sensitivity, perhaps a little confusion. You might find your thoughts are a bit muzzy, but that should only be temporary.’
‘Should?’
‘Brain injuries are difficult to predict. Some people recover very quickly, with others it can take longer. But try not to worry. We’re very happy with how you’ve responded.’
Try not to worry. Yeah, that’ll work. Jonah lifted his hand to touch the stitches on his head again, then decided he didn’t want to. ‘What about my knee?’
‘Yes, I was coming to that.’ The doctor pursed her lips as she looked down at the pinioned limb. ‘It sustained a lot of damage. Your kneecap was... Well, there are multiple fractures, and some bone fragments were displaced. Plus there are ruptures to the tendons and ligaments. But the good news is the initial operation went well.’
Jonah stared down at his leg. ‘Initial operation? You mean there’ll be more?’
‘You’d best ask the orthopaedic surgeon about that. He’ll be along later to discuss options. But you’re obviously very fit, and the muscles around your knee are well developed. That’ll help when it comes to rehab.’
Options. Rehab. Words that didn’t seem to have any connection to him. ‘How long before I can get back to work?’
The doctor smiled. But it was a professional one, meant to deflect. ‘I don’t think you should be worrying about that for the time being.’
If she was hoping to reassure him, it had the opposite effect. ‘I need to make my report...’
‘I’m sure you do, and there’s a detective inspector who’s very keen to talk to you. But that can wait till tomorrow.’
‘I’d rather not wait.’ Jonah was desperate to fill in the blanks of the past two days, to find out what the hell had been going on in that warehouse.
The doctor’s smile had a definite edge. ‘So would he, but I’m afraid that’s my decision. The best thing you can do now is rest.’
Jonah wanted to argue. Questions were jostling to be asked, about Gavin, about the young woman and the other victims, about the unknown man he’d fought with. But all at once he felt drained. And then, as the doctor and nurse left, he saw something that momentarily took everything else from his mind. Before they closed the door, Jonah caught a glimpse of a uniformed police officer in the corridor outside. Jesus, they’d put a guard on his room? It made no sense. But then none of this did.
As Jonah’s eyes closed, Gavin’s voice seemed to chase him down a dark tunnel.
I screwed up. I got it all wrong. Everything...
Chapter 4
Ten years ago
‘Daddy, are you awake?’
He tried to burrow his head into the duvet but it was tugged away from him. He blinked as sunlight jabbed at his eyes.
‘Daddy, wake up!’
A small hand took hold of his cheek. ‘Ow,’ said Jonah.
‘Are you awake?’
‘No.’
There was a cackling laugh. ‘You are!’
I am now. Lack of sleep dragged on him. He’d worked late and hadn’t got in till after dawn. He closed his eyes. ‘No, I’m asleep. I’m dreaming a hideous monster’s sitting on me.’
More laughter. ‘That’s not a monster. It’s me!’
‘Who’s me?’
‘Theo!’
‘No, this is too big to be Theo. It’s definitely a monster. And you know what happens to monsters, don’t you? They get EATEN!’
Theo squealed as Jonah grabbed him and pretended to bite his arm. As the small arms and legs flailed delightedly, the bedroom door opened.
‘You’ll make him sick, he’s just had his breakfast,’ Chrissie said, heading to the wardrobe. She was wearing a short bathrobe, and Jonah took a moment to admire her legs. He enjoyed watching her, and a flicker of interest crossed his mind. But she’d already done her hair, which in Chrissie’s language was a clear ‘hands off’ signal. And even if there wasn’t an excitable four-year-old to consider, it had been a long time since daytime sex had figured in their marriage.
‘OK, champ, you heard your mum.’ Jonah swung Theo off the bed and set him down.
‘I want to go to the funfair!’
‘What funfair?’
‘The one with the castle! By the seaside!’
Not being aware of any fortifications or seafront in North London, Jonah took that to mean it wasn’t an actual funfair. But Theo rarely let reality cramp his imagination, and Jonah didn’t want to either. That would happen soon enough.
‘Tell you what, let’s skip the funfair today. How about the park instead?’
Theo considered. ‘Will there be dragons?’
‘Absolutely no dragons.’
‘What about magic carpets?’
‘No magic carpets, either. But there will be some rusty swings, and a creaky roundabout. And if you’re really lucky, I might let you skin your knees on the slide again.’
More outraged laughter. ‘No!’
‘Oh, you mean you don’t want to go to the park?’
Theo bounced his head in a vigorous nod. ‘Yes!’
‘OK, then. And if you like, we can—’
‘Theo, Mummy needs to get ready for work. Go and watch TV,’ Chrissie cut in.
‘But Mummy...’
‘Now, please.’
Theo looked at his father. Hoping. Jonah gave a rueful smile. ‘Better do as your mum says.’
Dragging his feet, the image of desolation, his son trudged to the door. Jonah waited until he’d left the room.
‘You’re going into work? I thought this was your day off?’
Chrissie was rooting through drawers. ‘Neil asked me to go in.’
Neil Waverly was senior partner in the law firm where Chrissie worked part-time. She’d started off as a pool secretary, but two months ago had been appointed as Waverly’s PA. The lawyer was a few years older than Jonah, and a lot more successful. His cashmere suits were tailored to camouflage an expense account paunch, and he arranged his hair to hide a bald patch. Neither dented his ego. Jonah had started visualising the man’s face when he worked out on the punchbag.
‘Well, if Neil wants you to go in, there’s no more to be said, is there?’ he said. So much for him getting any more sleep today.
‘Don’t start.’
He hadn’t meant to. Couldn’t help it. ‘Can’t somebody else go?’
‘No, that’s what they pay me for. You’re glad enough of the extra money.’ She pulled on a pair of pants under her bathrobe before taking it off. Jonah tried to stifle the suspicion that they were new. ‘Anyway, I don’t complain about you working late shifts, like last night.’
And here we go. But Jonah was too tired to face the same old argument. One he knew he wouldn’t win. ‘I thought we were having a family afternoon,’ he said. Knowing it was capitulation.
‘So did I, but it’ll have to wait. I’ll be late finishing, so I’ll have to meet you at the restaurant later. The babysitter should be here at seven.’
Jonah had forgotten they were seeing Marie and Gavin that evening. ‘Theo’s going to be disappointed you won’t be home when he goes to bed.’
‘It’s only for tonight. You’ll have a better time without me anyway.’ Chrissie reached behind her back to fasten her bra. It had lace insets. Jonah couldn’t remember seeing it before either. ‘Don’t pretend you won’t.’
‘Maybe you should try coming with us sometime.’
‘Maybe you should get off my back,’ she said, turning away.
Which was how most of their conversations ended these days.