Within the Shadows by J.D MCG (book recommendations .TXT) 📗

over to Barnes, who sat alone inside his office, watching everyone running around, and slammed the door shut.

'Boss, what on earth is going on? Ally's just told me counter-terrorism is here and we're working with them?' He started to rub his hands over his head in panic.

'That's correct,' Barnes replied calmly. 'Just take a second to calm down.'

He placed himself in the chair opposite Barnes. 'So this is a real terror threat? I can't believe this case has gone from a simple domestic murder to people with a personality disorder, to then being a terror threat.'

'I know, it's a lot to take in.'

A knock at the door reminded Jacob of the busyness outside of Barnes' office. It was the lead officer from the counter-terrorism unit, Steven Hemmings.

'I'm calling a briefing in a few minutes, Joe. Just to update everyone and I need you there too,' Hemmings said.

'No problem,' he replied, still sitting in his chair. 'I'll be there in a minute.' Steven Hemmings nodded and shut the door behind him. 'Jacob, I know you've got a lot going on at home. You don't have to be here.'

'I'll be fine. I do have one thing to ask you though.'

'Fire away.'

'Did you know my father had a twin brother?' he asked and noticed a straight look upon his face.

'Look, Jacob. I'm not going to lie to you. I knew,' he revealed.

'You knew? You knew this whole time and never said anything?'

'There's a lot about your father you don't want to know.'

Barnes noticed Hemmings giving him a wave through the window and shot out of his seat. He opened the door and left Jacob still sitting in his chair.

'Are you coming?' he asked Jacob.

Jacob snapped back to reality from thinking about what Barnes had said. Once he jumped out of the seat, he caught up with Barnes.

'We'll discuss this later,' Jacob whispered upon entering the briefing room.

Barnes joined Hemmings at the front of the room, while Jacob sat between Ally and Sarah at the table. The room was full with both teams filling every centimetre. This was a huge case to the team and it frightened most, though Jacob noticed how calm Ally was, like it wasn't the first time she'd been involved in a case this big.

'How are you so calm?' he whispered in Ally's ear.

'This isn't my first rodeo, kid,' she whispered back, then started giggling.

'Good afternoon,' Hemmings started. 'If you don't already know me, my name’s Steven Hemmings. The counter-terrorism team are now working with DCI Barnes' team in finding our assailant called Esther. We believe her real name is Jenny Reynolds and she is suffering from Dissociative Identity Disorder. She could be armed and dangerous so I need everyone to be on their guard.'

Barnes began to give some information, taking over from Hemmings. 'Jenny has got her hands on a man-made disease which she is intending to use. We believe it has been altered since she last used it. We also have no idea how many hostages she's got, if she even has any, who she plans on using this virus on. I know it's not much to go on, but she's linked to other murders and suspects. She's a dangerous woman and we need to find her as soon as possible.'

'Any questions or new information, please see myself or DCI Barnes,' Hemmings finished before dispersing the team.

Barnes left and walked back into his office, sat at his desk and sighed loudly. It had been a long couple of weeks and he was feeling incredibly drained. Not giving him a minutes peace, the phone on his desk rang. It was the prison in which Lily was being housed, informing Barnes that she wanted to speak to Jacob. He’d kept the calls a secret for days, not wanting to bring Lily back into his life, but he'd seen what his father’s secrets had done to him as of late.

Barnes put the phone back down, denying Lily the right to speak to Jacob. He glanced out the window and saw Jacob and Ally giggling together, making Barnes realise that Jacob had moved on. He was stuck in a dilemma. He rose up and called Jacob into his office. Barnes' hands were sweaty. He was feeling nervous and worried about how Jacob would take it.

'Sit down, Jacob,' he insisted. 'I've just had a call... Well, I've had calls all week from the prison...'

'I don't want to see her,' Jacob jumped in.

'Are you sure? You need to get answers from her to get closure.'

'I've already put her behind me,' he replied. 'I'm not about to reopen old wounds, boss.' Jacob got off the chair once again. 'Is that all?'

Barnes nodded and Jacob left with thoughts of Lily and the questions he sought. Lily was all he could think about all afternoon. As he sat at his desk, Jacob blurred the sounds out around him, staring into space and clicking his pen.

'Jacob, are you okay?' Ally asked him.

He snapped back to reality. 'Yes, sorry, Ally. I'm fine.'

'No, you're not.'

He sighed. 'Barnes has just told me that the prison keeps calling. Lily is requesting to see me.'

'And are you going to go?' she enquired.

'Part of me wants to stay away from her and let her rot, but the other half of me wants all my questions answered. Plus I want to know why she sent me those photos.'

'Then go, Jacob. Otherwise, you'll never get the answers you seek.'

'You're right,' he replied.

Jacob had too much going on in his life right now and couldn't concentrate on the case at hand. Barnes is right. I need to step away from the case, he thought as he traipsed nearer to Barnes' office. He knocked on the door and entered slowly, not wanting to leave the team during this difficult