Paul Gitsham - A Case Gone Cold (novella)

‘Highly recommended. Crime Writing at its very best’ – Kate Rhodes on The Last Straw, Book 1 in the DCI Warren Jones series

When an open-and-shut burglary case lands on DCI Warren Jones’ desk, he suspects it’s come to the wrong detective – until he learns a tantalizing detail. Despite the suspect having admitted to the crime after being found with the stolen goods, DNA found at the scene does not match the man currently on bail – but is a match to an unsolved, violent rape case dating back to 1992.

With their man in custody refusing to talk, Warren must embark on a manhunt for the mystery accomplice. And so begins a game of cat and mouse that will test Warren’s rawest instincts and resolve – and throw up a shocking twist.

Also by Paul Gitsham

The Last Straw

No Smoke Without Fire

Blood is Thicker Than Water (A DCI Warren Jones novella)

Silent as the Grave

A Case Gone Cold (A DCI Warren Jones novella)

The Common Enemy

A Deadly Lesson (A DCI Warren Jones novella)

Forgive Me Father

A Case Gone Cold

DCI Warren Jones 3.5

Paul Gitsham

ONE PLACE. MANY STORIES

Copyright Copyright Author Bio Dedication Prologue Now Six Months Later Letter to the Reader Excerpt Acknowledgements Endpages About the Publisher

An imprint of HarperCollins Publishers Ltd.

1 London Bridge Street

London SE1 9GF

First published in Great Britain by HQ in 2018

Copyright © Paul Gitsham 2018

Paul Gitsham asserts the moral right to be identified as the author of this work.

A catalogue record for this book is available from the British Library.

This novel is entirely a work of fiction. The names, characters and incidents portrayed in it are the work of the author’s imagination. Any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, events or localities is entirely coincidental.

All rights reserved under International and Pan-American Copyright Conventions. By payment of the required fees, you have been granted the non-exclusive, non-transferable right to access and read the text of this e-book on-screen. No part of this text may be reproduced, transmitted, downloaded, decompiled, reverse engineered, or stored in or introduced into any information storage and retrieval system, in any form or by any means, whether electronic or mechanical, now known or hereinafter invented, without the express written permission of HarperCollins.

E-book Edition © May 2018 ISBN: 978-0-00-830116-3

Version: 2019-11-11

PAUL GITSHAMstarted his career as a biologist, working in such exotic locales as Manchester and Toronto. After stints as the world’s most over-qualified receptionist and a spell making sure that international terrorists and other ne’er do wells hadn’t opened a Junior Savings Account at a major UK bank (a job even less exciting than being a receptionist) he retrained as a Science Teacher. He now spends his time passing on his bad habits and sloppy lab-skills to the next generation of enquiring minds.

Paul has always wanted to be a writer and his final report on leaving primary school predicted he’d be the next Roald Dahl! For the sake of balance it should be pointed out that it also said “he’ll never get anywhere in life if his handwriting doesn’t improve”. Twenty five years later and his handwriting is worse than ever but millions of children around the world love him. * * This is a lie, just ask any of the pupils he has taught.

You can learn more about Paul’s Writing at www.paulgitsham.comor www.facebook.com/dcijones

* Paul has always wanted to be a writer and his final report on leaving primary school predicted he’d be the next Roald Dahl! For the sake of balance it should be pointed out that it also said “he’ll never get anywhere in life if his handwriting doesn’t improve”. Twenty five years later and his handwriting is worse than ever but millions of children around the world love him. * * This is a lie, just ask any of the pupils he has taught. You can learn more about Paul’s Writing at www.paulgitsham.com or www.facebook.com/dcijones * This is a lie, just ask any of the pupils he has taught. This is a lie, just ask any of the pupils he has taught.

To Hugo. You’re far too young to read the nasty stories that your Uncle Paul writes, but maybe one day he’ll need a hero whose first name starts with H.

Contents

Cover

Blurb ‘Highly recommended. Crime Writing at its very best’ – Kate Rhodes on The Last Straw, Book 1 in the DCI Warren Jones series When an open-and-shut burglary case lands on DCI Warren Jones’ desk, he suspects it’s come to the wrong detective – until he learns a tantalizing detail. Despite the suspect having admitted to the crime after being found with the stolen goods, DNA found at the scene does not match the man currently on bail – but is a match to an unsolved, violent rape case dating back to 1992. With their man in custody refusing to talk, Warren must embark on a manhunt for the mystery accomplice. And so begins a game of cat and mouse that will test Warren’s rawest instincts and resolve – and throw up a shocking twist.

Title Page A Case Gone Cold DCI Warren Jones 3.5 Paul Gitsham ONE PLACE. MANY STORIES

Copyright Copyright Copyright Author Bio Dedication Prologue Now Six Months Later Letter to the Reader Excerpt Acknowledgements Endpages About the Publisher An imprint of HarperCollins Publishers Ltd. 1 London Bridge Street London SE1 9GF First published in Great Britain by HQ in 2018 Copyright © Paul Gitsham 2018 Paul Gitsham asserts the moral right to be identified as the author of this work. A catalogue record for this book is available from the British Library. This novel is entirely a work of fiction. The names, characters and incidents portrayed in it are the work of the author’s imagination. Any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, events or localities is entirely coincidental. All rights reserved under International and Pan-American Copyright Conventions. By payment of the required fees, you have been granted the non-exclusive, non-transferable right to access and read the text of this e-book on-screen. No part of this text may be reproduced, transmitted, downloaded, decompiled, reverse engineered, or stored in or introduced into any information storage and retrieval system, in any form or by any means, whether electronic or mechanical, now known or hereinafter invented, without the express written permission of HarperCollins. E-book Edition © May 2018 ISBN: 978-0-00-830116-3 Version: 2019-11-11

Author Bio PAUL GITSHAM started his career as a biologist, working in such exotic locales as Manchester and Toronto. After stints as the world’s most over-qualified receptionist and a spell making sure that international terrorists and other ne’er do wells hadn’t opened a Junior Savings Account at a major UK bank (a job even less exciting than being a receptionist) he retrained as a Science Teacher. He now spends his time passing on his bad habits and sloppy lab-skills to the next generation of enquiring minds. Paul has always wanted to be a writer and his final report on leaving primary school predicted he’d be the next Roald Dahl! For the sake of balance it should be pointed out that it also said “he’ll never get anywhere in life if his handwriting doesn’t improve”. Twenty five years later and his handwriting is worse than ever but millions of children around the world love him. * * This is a lie, just ask any of the pupils he has taught. You can learn more about Paul’s Writing at www.paulgitsham.com or www.facebook.com/dcijones * Paul has always wanted to be a writer and his final report on leaving primary school predicted he’d be the next Roald Dahl! For the sake of balance it should be pointed out that it also said “he’ll never get anywhere in life if his handwriting doesn’t improve”. Twenty five years later and his handwriting is worse than ever but millions of children around the world love him. * * This is a lie, just ask any of the pupils he has taught. You can learn more about Paul’s Writing at www.paulgitsham.com or www.facebook.com/dcijones * This is a lie, just ask any of the pupils he has taught. This is a lie, just ask any of the pupils he has taught.