The Half Truth(27)

‘Then I’m totally depending on you.’

‘Will it be okay with your boss?’

‘He’ll be absolutely fine. I’m lucky when I’m out in the field like this, I have the autonomy to make my own decisions. Working undercover, you can’t just tell the bad guys to hang on a moment while you check with your guvnor.’

Okay, he was bending the rules slightly and John was pretty sure Brogan wouldn’t be too impressed. He’d cross that bridge if, and when, he got to it.

‘Thanks so much,’ she said. ‘Dimitri is staying with my parents. He goes to stay with them most Friday nights. They love having him and he really loves being there too.’

‘Gives you a break as well,’ said John.

‘Not that I do anything, but it’s nice to know I can, should I want to.’ Tina looked at her watch. ‘Eeek, I didn’t realise that was the time. I’d better get Dimitri up. I did wonder about keeping him out of school, but I don’t want to worry him.’

‘No, keep to your usual routine. I’m sure Dimitri will be safe. Have you got work today?’

She nodded. ‘I think sticking to my routine will do me good too.’

‘I’ll drop you both off,’ said John, acknowledging the slight feeling of disappointment ebbing through him at the thought of Tina not being about that day. He took his cup over to the sink, where she was standing. She didn’t move out of his way and as he reached around to place the cup in the sink, he was very aware of the closeness of her body to his. The ever-so- faint smell of perfume teased his nostrils, a delicate flowery fragrance. It was at odds with the strong young woman he was only really getting to know. His perception of her five years ago, as a delicate, fragile widow, was slipping and making way for someone who had weathered a fierce storm of grief and was heading towards calmer waters, full of a quiet confidence that he hadn’t noticed before.

‘Thank you,’ she said. An awkward silence settled between them. Tina broke first. ‘I’d better get Dimitri up.’ A small look of embarrassment caressed her face. As she side-stepped away, John concentrated on looking out of the window, ahead of him.

What the hell was he getting himself into? Agreeing to all but go on a date with her, thinly disguised as police protection. Shit. This simply wasn’t like him. He hadn’t planned this at all.

Tina’s cat wound its way around his legs, arching its back slightly. It let out a small purr. He bent down and picked it up. ‘We seem to have strayed from the script, kitty. Let’s hope your mistress is worth it.’





Chapter 14


For the first time in several weeks, Tina felt relaxed going up to bed. It was reassuring having John in the house. Much as she hated to admit it, things had started getting to her. She had always prided herself on being able to cope on her own. But having John there tonight, in the house, gave her a sense that she wasn’t alone in this world. At night times the loneliness and grief of not having her husband haunted her the most. It wasn’t that she couldn’t cope alone, it was simply that she didn’t want to be alone. She hadn’t chosen to be a single mother, a working woman, juggling motherhood with day care and work life. It had been enforced on her and whilst some women extolled the virtues and revelled in the freedom this brought them, most of the time they had chosen that life. She hadn’t. She hadn’t chosen to be alone.

Thoughts of Sasha pushed their way to the fore. Not for the first time in the past five years, she wondered what her life would be like if he was still with her. Probably not very different. Or maybe it would be. What if he was mixed up in whatever business Pavel had been mixed up in?

She made a conscious effort to consign these thoughts to the depth of her mind. Now wasn’t the time to go over it all. She stopped outside Dimitri’s door and poked her head round. The landing light seeped across his bedroom, casting a gentle haze of soft yellow into the room. She paused and listened to his rhythmic breathing. Calm and peaceful. Oblivious to the storms brewing in a life he had so many connections with, yet no connection at all.

A muffled bang brought Tina out of her thoughts. She stood still. Alert. Listening for it again. Silence. She pulled the door to Dimitri’s bedroom closed and stepped across the landing to her own. There was the noise again. Not an acute, sharp sound right by her, but close enough to break through the stillness of the night.

She realised it was coming from Mr Cooper’s. It must be that door again. She would have to get someone to have a look at the catch. The last thing she wanted was to be kept awake by the thud of the door every so often. She was unsettled enough as it was. She made a mental note to check the window in the room too. Maybe it had been left open and the draught was causing the door to bang. She had meant to do it before but had got distracted when her phone had rung.