No Going Back by Casey Kelleher (black male authors TXT) 📗

‘How has this little one been?’ Lucy said, glancing down at Riley, swaddled tightly against his mother’s bosom as he finished his feed.

‘He’s been great, hasn’t he, Ashley? It’s like he’s never been away from me,’ Shelby said, pulling her top across her and looking at her husband as he nodded in agreement.

‘He’s just perfect! They both are,’ Ashley said, his voice swelling with pride as his gaze rested on his wife and child, as if he was the proudest man alive. ‘Is there any news on the Boland brothers and Jay-Jay Andrews?’

‘We’re still working on the Boland brothers. According to their lawyer, they are squeaky clean. They’re claiming that they never employed Jay-Jay Andrews, and we’ve no way to prove that they did, other than Jay-Jay’s word. Which unfortunately for him, doesn’t amount to much given his record,’ Lucy said, wishing she could give Ashley better news. Because men like the Boland brothers always managed to somehow stay out of trouble, and it was always the scapegoats like Jay-Jay Andrews who ended up taking the fall for them in the end. ‘But we did manage to find a few illegal firearms in their possession, so they won’t be getting away completely scot-free. The rest will depend on you, Ashley. If you are prepared to make a statement about the money that you borrowed from them, they could be prosecuted for operating as illegal unauthorised lenders. We could also pursue them for battery, only the club’s security footage has gone missing.’

Ashley shook his head.

Recalling the security disc that Kate had brought around to the flat when Shelby had been in hospital, and the fact that he didn’t want to spend the rest of his life looking over his shoulders for the likes of the Boland brothers coming for their revenge if he was the reason that they both ended up getting sent down.

‘I don’t want any more drama. I just want to be here, looking after my family. Riley is my focus now.’

Lucy nodded, understandingly.

Then remembering her sergeant’s words. ‘Sometimes, you can’t win them all,’ she added.

‘We managed to get the one that mattered. We got Imelda George.’

‘And thank God you did!’ Shelby said, moving Riley to her shoulder and rubbing his back gently in an effort to wind the boy. Then seeing the look of sheer adoration on Lucy’s face, Shelby smiled.

‘Do you want to hold him?’

‘Bloody hell, that is special treatment, isn’t it?! She’s barely let us hold him.’ Ashley laughed, raising his eyebrows at Lucy.

‘Well, it’s the least I can do. And I’m sure that Riley would love to have a cuddle with the detective constable who helped to bring him home safely.’

‘Can I?’ Lucy said, realising that she would like to hold Riley.

He had been all she had thought about for days, and just seeing him here, home and safe with his family, reminded Lucy why she did this job.

Sometimes it was beyond hard work. The hours, the people they dealt with, the injustice of the system. And then there were times like this, when suddenly it all seemed worth it.

‘Course you can,’ Shelby said, sitting forward and helping to guide the child into Lucy’s arms.

‘Ahh look at him,’ Lucy cooed, taking in his neat head of hair, his plump little cheeks.

Leaning down, Lucy couldn’t help herself but give Riley a small kiss on the top of his head.

‘He really is just perfect!’

53

‘Well, that was a week!’ Holder said, scooping up the last bite of his sirloin steak and shoving it into his mouth, watching as Lucy drank back her glass of wine.

‘You could say that again!’ Lucy said. ‘Thank God it’s over!’

‘Well, I’m not surprised one bit that they locked her up, are you?’ Holder said, referring to Imelda George being sectioned under the Mental Health Act. ‘I mean, you’d have to be off your rocker to believe that you could get away with cutting babies from their mother’s stomachs?’

‘Mental or desperate,’ Lucy said with a sigh. ‘Imelda George was certainly a combination of both. I don’t think I’ve ever seen such vacant eyes.’ She shivered, recalling how Imelda had stared at her when Lucy had read her her rights.

It wasn’t just evil or malice staring out from behind her eyes, but it wasn’t pure madness either. It had been a mixture of all three. Imelda George had been aware that she had committed a crime. And as much as her lawyer would love to argue insanity, it was premeditated. She’d planned it. Every step of the way. Lucy was just glad that she was in the right place now, and that she’d finally receive the right care. And she doubted that the woman would ever be allowed to live as part of normal society again. Though it didn’t make it any easier for the victims. A woman and her baby had lost their lives in the hands of Imelda’s madness, and Shelby Cooke had had a lucky escape.

‘Thank God we got Riley back.’ Lucy smiled, recalling how happy Shelby had been when she’d called in on her earlier today, after she’d finished her shift, before coming here to meet Holder for something to eat.

‘How are they doing?’ Holder said, raising his brow. ‘I take it she didn’t go back to the estate?’

‘No. She’s still at her parents’ place. She said that they are both driving her crazy but that she wouldn’t have it any other way.’

‘She couldn’t face going back to the Griffin Estate then?’

‘No. And I can see why. I guess that place just holds a lot of bad memories for her now. Like it’s tainted,’ Lucy reasoned, knowing that feeling better than anyone. ‘And she said that she wants to bring Riley up in a safer environment. Give him the best start that she can.’ Lucy smiled as Holder filled up her glass, before topping up his.

‘Well, that will be away from his old man then,’ Holder said, referring