Lynda La Plante: Blood Line

Alan Rawlins’s body was never recovered, and the sad task of giving his father the details of his demise was left to Anna. Mrs Rawlins was by now installed in a home and Alan’s father was preparing to sell the family house. He listened as Anna told him without going into too much explanation about the death of his son.

‘It’s odd, isn’t it? You know, if I hadn’t loved him enough to worry and want to find him, but had just accepted that he had gone off somewhere, none of this would have had to be uncovered.’

His small chiselled face looked worn and tired as he gave her a sad, watery smile.

‘To be honest, I think it would have been better. I am sorry that I ever contacted you, but I did, and I found out layers of lies. I found out that the son I thought I was blessed with was perverted and not even my own blood – bad blood – but at least it’s over.’

Anna received no thanks for the hours of diligent police work. Instead, as she drove home she kept on thinking about what Mr Rawlins had said. It was perhaps over for him, but not for her. In a few months she would have the lengthy trial and be on trial herself as she would be questioned by the defence team about her actions and decisions throughout the investigation. It was depressing, and she had never felt this way about any other case she had worked on.

When she let herself into her flat, the depression persisted. She threw her briefcase and car keys down onto the sofa as she picked up a half-filled bottle of wine, poured herself a glass and sipped it as she walked into her untidy bedroom where she kicked off her shoes and sat on the bed.

The telephone rang and made her physically jump. She leaned over to the bedside table and answered.

‘It’s me,’ Langton said.

‘Hi. I’ve just got home.’

‘You sound depressed.’

‘Funnily enough, you just hit the nail on the head.’

‘I know how it is. It often happens, even more so on a seedy case like this one, but you never gave up, Anna.’

‘Thank you.’

‘You want a bite to eat?’

‘No, to be honest I don’t.’

‘Okay. I’ll be there in half an hour. Get your glad rags on and we’ll go somewhere special.’

She laughed.

‘That’s better. You’ll get your second wind, Anna, believe me, and you impressed me. My little protégée is proving to be everything I thought she would be.’

‘So I’m your protégée, am I?’

‘Just joking. Get in the shower, get dressed and be ready in half an hour.’

She let the phone drop back into place, already feeling better.

She had just managed to shower and put on one of her best and most flattering dresses before the doorbell rang.

‘I’ll be right down,’ she said into the intercom.

She didn’t use the lift, but ran down the stairs, and there he was, waiting for her. He gave her a good look up and down, smiling his approval, and then hooked one arm around her shoulders.

‘You hungry now?’

She nodded.

‘Then let’s go eat, DCI Travis.