Book Description
The latest page-turner offering mystery and romance from the Award-Winning Author of Dangerous Waters
Two violent deaths. Separated by time, but with a fatal connection…
A man loses his father. A young woman loses her mother. Both in tragic circumstances that lead, when they meet, to surprising revelations from the past.
Louisa needs to find the father she has never known, to warn him of possible danger - for them both. Her search takes her from England to Guernsey. Malcolm's journey is more tortuous: conceived in Guernsey, he travels to Canada as a baby with his bereaved mother. Many years later he arrives in India, and from here he is led back to Guernsey to open a health centre at La Folie. This was his father's home, where Malcolm was conceived, but never lived and where his father was killed at the start of the Second World War.
At the heart of the two deaths lie stolen jewels. Valuable enough to kill for. Twice.
Finding her father brings Louisa more than she bargains for, and her life is transformed, while Malcolm learns that life is, after all, for sharing…
chapter 1
1939
– September – Guernsey
Betty woke with
a start. For a moment she wondered what had disturbed her but then the sound of
shouting
cut across the silence of her bedroom. Groaning, she swung her legs out of bed,
and grabbed the old, patched dressing gown that Roland insisted should be
thrown out. But she hated throwing things away and pulled the belt tight around
her thickening waist before tiptoeing out into the passage.
Darkness enveloped her but as she crept
towards the stairs she could see lights in the hall, guiding the way. She trod
softly downstairs, knowing that her appearance would only provoke the men
further. Roland, her employer and now
fiancé, and Archie, his nephew and her one-time lover. She could guess what
they were fighting about – her. Their voices echoed around the expanse of the
hall as Betty’s bare feet hardly touched the
granite-tiled floor as she headed for the library – Roland’s domain and the
source of the shouting.
Her heart pounded as she hesitated
outside the door. She hated the thought the men were now at loggerheads and, from what she could hear
through the slightly ajar oak door, close to blows. Peering through the gap,
she could just make out their figures. Roland sat behind the imposing mahogany
desk he’d inherited from his grandfather. He glared at Archie, who leaned over
the desk, his fists thrust towards his uncle. With his back to the door Betty couldn’t
see his face, but guessed it would be red with anger. He’d always had a temper on him.
‘I’ll marry who I like! I won’t be
told what I can or can’t do by some young whipper-snapper who doesn’t know when
he’s well off.’ Roland thumped the desk before standing up, looking down at
Archie. ‘I took you in out of duty after that benighted sister of mine died.
And in spite of what you claim, I never promised to adopt you and make you my
heir. Why would I, while there was still a chance I’d marry and have children
of my own?’ He marched around the desk to stand proud and tall in front of
Archie. Betty’s heart swelled with love as she squinted through the crack. You
tell him, Roland! Cocky braggart! He can’t hold a candle to you.
‘And now I am marrying and about to become a father and count myself the
luckiest of men. But I’ll not see you homeless, boy–’
‘You’re damn right you won’t!’
Archie shouted, causing Betty to jump. ‘You owe me, Uncle. I’ve worked hard for
you these past seven years and been paid a pittance. I didn’t complain,
thinking I’d inherit one day. But now you tell me I’ll get nothing and it’s not
right!’ Archie’s fists were now clenched by his side, his head thrust close up
against Roland’s. Betty’s heart beat faster. Oh, dear God! Don’t let them
start fighting, I couldn’t bear it.
‘I paid you the going rate for the
work you’ve done, such as it was. You’re not exactly the hardest worker I’ve
employed, boy. And as we don’t even know who your father was, I’m not legally
obliged to provide for you.’ Roland paced around and Betty only caught a
glimpse of him now and then.
‘You can stay here at La Folie if
you like, after Betty and I are wed and leave for Canada. I want us to be far
away now war’s been declared. Stay here as my steward until the fighting’s over
and we can return–’
‘No!’ Archie’s voice, harsh and
desperate, filled the air. Betty held her breath, her hands placed protectively
on her stomach. She caught a glimpse of Archie as he grabbed something from the
desk before lunging forward out of sight. A loud cracking sound, followed by a
groan, propelled her through the door.
At the sight of her beloved Roland
stretched out on the floor, blood pouring from an ugly gash on his head, she
felt everything go black and crashed to the floor. The next thing she knew,
strong arms lifted her up and sat her down roughly in a chair. As her head
cleared, she looked up at Archie’s face a few inches in front of her.
‘Why did you come down, you daft
woman! Thought you’d be asleep,’ Archie growled.
‘What have you done? Roland…?’ Betty
twisted her head to try and see her fiancé but Archie blocked her vision.
‘I…I didn’t mean to hit him that
hard. He hit his head on the corner of the desk as he went down.’ He screwed up
his face and gripped Betty’s arms. ‘He’s out cold. I–’
Betty drew on all her strength and
managed to push Archie from her, before crawling across to where Roland lay.
‘Oh, my God! Don’t say you’ve killed
him!’ she cried, kneeling beside Roland’s inert form. ‘Here, help me turn him
over.’
Archie knelt and rolled Roland onto
his back. One look told them both that he was dead.
Tears splashed down as Betty hugged
Roland’s battered and bleeding head. She rocked back and forth, a keening sound
escaped from her lips.
‘He got me so mad about me not
inheriting anything. I’m family! He
owed me–’
Betty was hot with rage.
‘He owed you nothing! Like he said.
Why couldn’t you have been satisfied with being steward? Thanks to your greed
I’ve lost the man I love and my child is fatherless before it’s born. Oh, Roland,
Roland!’
She carried on rocking, as sobs racked her
body. Roland’s blooded face filled her with horror. They had planned to see the
vicar about the banns that very day, wanting to marry at the end of the month.
She had been so happy, so looking forward not only to marrying Roland, but to the adventure of
sailing off to Canada. Away from the inevitable reality of war. Roland had
often said that the Channel Islands were particularly vulnerable, with the
islanders not standing a chance if Hitler decided to invade.
But now…Thanks to Archie and that
temper of his, she was a widow before she was a wife. And carrying the child that had filled Roland with
such joy and pride.
‘We…we have to bury him, Betty. And
then get away from here. I’m not going to hang for this…’
Betty looked up sharply. ‘What do
you mean "we"? This is all your doing, not mine. I’ve just seen you
kill my…my love in cold blood! I’ll have no part in your trying to cover it up.
Once I tell the police–’
Archie grabbed her arms and shook
her till her teeth rattled.
‘You’re
not telling no police nothing! If you so much as start to spill the beans to
anyone, I’ll say you did it. A lover’s tiff. It’ll be your word against mine.
Either way, you’d be an accessory and would hang as well.’
Betty’s head reeled with grief and
anger.
‘You won’t get away with that!
Everyone knows how much we loved each other. And I’m carrying his child! Why
would I…I kill him?’
‘I wouldn’t say you meant to. It was an accident. Just like
it was with me. But they still might find you guilty of murder and you’d hang.
So,’ he said, letting go of her bruised arms, ‘we have to get away. And soon.’
Betty tried to focus on what Archie
was saying. Was it true? They were alone in the house and there was no-one to
support her. The rest of the staff lived out and wouldn’t return until the
morning. Her parents were dead and she had no other family. Although considered a bright pupil at
the Girls’ School, Betty had found it difficult to get a good job until Roland
appointed her his housekeeper. It was Archie who’d got her the position, when
they’d been sweet on each other, three years ago. That had not lasted long, not once she discovered his awful
temper. And Archie hadn’t reckoned with her falling in love with Roland. And he
her.
‘But where can we go? And what’ll we
do for money?’ Betty sat dazed on the floor, still cradling
Roland’s head. Surely this was all a bad dream and she’d wake up and everything
would be as it was. The two of them off to St Phillipe’s to see the vicar…
Archie paced around, tugging at his
hair, as if that would give him inspiration.
‘We’ll have to get away from the
islands. Get to England somehow.’
‘But I don’t want to go to England!
This is my home, where I belong–’
‘Not anymore it isn’t! It’s not safe
for either of us now. I just need to think…’ He pulled up short. ‘I know. That
Ed Sarre owes me a favour. He can take us in his fishing boat. I’ll make up
some story that Roland wants us to leave quickly now that war’s been declared
and that he’s flying out to join us once he’s locked up the place. As for
money, there’s plenty here worth a bob or two and Roland always kept a wad of
cash in the safe, so we’ll be all right. But first we have to bury him. And
quick, before it gets light.’
Betty found herself dragged roughly
to her feet and forced to find a sheet in which to wrap Roland. She moved
around as if in a trance, her mind shutting her off from the reality of what
was happening. All she knew was that her life was about to change. And not for the
better.
REVIEWS
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Anne was born in Rugby to a Welsh father and an English mother. As a result she spent many summers with her Welsh grandparents in Anglesey and learnt to love the sea. Now she is based in Devon to be near her daughter and 2 small grandchildren. Her restless spirit has meant a number of moves, the longest stay being in Guernsey for twelve years after falling in love with the island and the people. She contrived to leave one son behind to ensure a valid reason for frequent returns. Her younger son is based in London - ideal for city breaks ☺
By profession Anne is a psychotherapist who long had a desire to write and Dangerous Waters,her first novel,was published in 2012. It was awarded Silver(Adult Fiction) in TheWishingShelfAwards 2012. Her second,Finding Mother, was runner-up in Family Sagas in the 2013 SpaSpa Awards. The third in The Guernsey Novels series, Guernsey Retreat, IS OUT NOW.
Author contact links are:
www.anneallen.co.uk
Twitter: AnneAllen21
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/pages/Anne-Allen-Author/176883759173475?ref=bookmarks
