DI Lorne Simpkins 09 - Tortured Justice Read online

  CONTENTS

  Title Page

  Other Books by MA Comley

  Dedication

  Prologue

  Chapter 1

  Chapter 2

  Chapter 3

  Chapter 4

  Chapter 5

  Chapter 6

  Chapter 7

  Chapter 8

  Chapter 9

  Chapter 10

  Chapter 11

  Chapter 12

  Chapter 13

  Chapter 14

  Chapter 15

  Chapter 16

  Chapter 17

  Epilogue

  Note to the Reader

  Copyright Page

  Other Works

  Excerpt from Sole Intention

  TORTURED JUSTICE

  New York Times bestselling author M A Comley

  OTHER BOOKS BY

  M A COMLEY

  Cruel Justice

  Impeding Justice

  Final Justice

  Foul Justice

  Guaranteed Justice

  Ultimate Justice

  Virtual Justice

  Hostile Justice

  Torn Apart (Hero Series #1)

  End Result (Hero Series #2)

  Sole Intention (Intention Series #1)

  Grave Intention (Intention Series #2)

  Merry Widow (A Lorne Simpkins short story)

  It’s A Dog’s Life (A Lorne Simpkins short story)

  A Time To Heal (A Sweet Romance)

  A Time For Change (A Sweet Romance)

  High Spirits

  A Twist in The Tale

  The Temptation Series (Romantic Suspense/New Adult Novellas)

  Past Temptation (available now)

  Lost Temptation (available now)

  True Temptation (Coming 2015)

  Just Temptation (Coming 2015)

  If you fancy something a little saucy why not pick up one of the short erotic stories I have written under the name of Tiffany Towers http://tiffanytowers1.blogspot.fr/

  Keep in touch with the author at:

  Facebook

  http://melcomley.blogspot.com

  http://melcomleyromances.blogspot.com

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  This book is dedicated to my wonderful group of Facebook friends, you’ll recognise your roles in the book I’m sure. Thanks for keeping me sane when I’m not wrapped up in writing my latest novel and killing off characters.

  Special thanks to my wonderful editor Stefanie. Thanks also to Joseph my superb proof reader.

  And finally, my eternal thanks, go to Karri Klawiter for the wonderful cover as always, you’re a very talented lady.

  PROLOGUE

  The head of the group watched the other women arguing amongst themselves, frustrated that her well-thought-out plan appeared to be doomed from the outset. What is wrong with you lot? I’ve spent months hatching this plan! Months!

  She clapped, calling for everyone’s attention in the Griffin Hotel’s conference room. She had booked the room at short notice because some of the women had complained they didn’t have the time to drive out to the group’s usual meeting place. Felicity had been cute when making the booking and used a fake name to avoid leaving a paper trail. “Keep the noise down to minimum, girls, as agreed. Right, have we decided?” Silence greeted her, and by the looks on the other members’ faces it wasn’t difficult to tell that in the past hour they had accomplished exactly nothing. She puffed out her cheeks as she sighed. “Okay, maybe we should just call the whole bloody thing off?”

  “No! We can’t do that.” Julie stepped forward, towards Felicity. “I’ll volunteer to go first, if you like.”

  Felicity acknowledged the woman’s bravery with a smile. “That’s settled then. The next question is: when should we carry out the deed? We need to be discreet, girls. The last thing we want to do is draw attention to ourselves. Not yet, not at this early stage. Any suggestions, Julie? You know him. We’re at a disadvantage in that respect, we have no idea about his routine.”

  “Well, tonight would be an ideal opportunity. He usually goes to the pub on a Friday night around nine. Is that too soon to organise something?”

  Felicity looked at the watch on her slender wrist and swept back a wisp of long blonde hair as she contemplated. “Well, it’s seven o’clock now. I set up the other venue earlier just in case we came to a decision today to forge ahead with the plan. Let’s take a vote on it, shall we? All those in favour of grabbing our first victim tonight, say I.”

  The I’s were slow in coming much to Felicity’s frustration. But eventually, after a few stragglers finally agreed, the plan was approved by the rest of the group. Her heart pounded; was that through fear or because of the excitement building within?

  “Okay, let’s get this plan sorted into some semblance of order. Julie, you say…” she paused and waited for her second-in-command to fill in the man’s name.

  “Don.”

  “Right, Don. Ah yes, I remember him well.” Not personally, but she thought she had a fair idea of the pain and anguish the man had put her friend through over the years. It was time to rectify all those wrongs. And tonight we’re going to hand that punishment out, all of us. That’s what this group was about, righting the wrongs the men in each of the women’s lives, had put them through over the years. “What pub?”

  “The Horse and Cart.”

  “Okay, I need two more volunteers to accompany Julie and me this evening. The rest of you will go back to the other venue and wait for us.”

  The women chatted amongst themselves before Mags and Elaine raised their hands.

  “Excellent. I have the weapons ready in the car.”

  “Weapons? No one said anything about using weapons,” Elaine mumbled, fear lingering in her pale grey eyes.

  Felicity folded her arms and tapped her foot. “How else do you expect us to overpower these men, Elaine? I’m all ears, hon?”

  The woman gulped. “I suppose I hadn’t really thought about that side of things.”

  Felicity raised her hand and pointed a finger at the crowd. “If anyone wants to back out, you need to speak up now. After tonight it will be too late to change things.”

  The other nine women shook their heads. Felicity couldn’t help wondering how many of the women would regret agreeing to go ahead with the plan after the night was out. She thought the older women in the group would be the first to revolt after they captured Don.

  For the next half an hour they wrote out the details of the attack in full and thirty minutes after that the group split up. Six of the ladies jumped into two cars and headed back to the cottage, while Julie, Mags, and Elaine joined their leader in the car and drove to the Horse and Cart, where they awaited their prey.

  Julie pointed at a silver Mondeo which cruised to a halt at the rear of the car park. Fortunately, the car park was pretty quiet for this time of night, especially on a Friday due to the local football team holding their annual awards dinner at the community centre down the road. Don left his vehicle and walked towards the car the ladies were hiding in close to the entrance of the pub.

  “Get ready, girls. Julie, you get out of the car first and strike up a conversation with him. Can you do that?”

  Julie shrugged and her mouth twisted. “Oh my! I’m not sure.”

  “It’s too late to have second thoughts now,” Mags snarled in the back seat. “Get a grip, woman and get out there.”

  “Thank you, Mags, less of the anger.”

  “Sorry. Come on, Julie. We have one shot at this,” Mags stated, offering her friend a smile.

  Julie let out an exasperated breath and hooked her hand around the door handle
. “Wish me luck.”

  “Good luck,” the three girls responded. Felicity reached down beside her and pulled out the cricket bat. It was the only weapon she could lay her hands on at her home; everything else was at the cottage. She squinted as she watched Julie take slow, hesitant steps towards the man who’d made her life hell throughout their ten-year marriage. Don’s pace never faltered as he neared his ex-wife but his face contorted with rage. “Get ready, girls, I’m not liking the way he’s greeting her.”

  Julie tried to stand in her ex’s path but he brushed her slight frame aside. The car doors opened at the same time and the three occupants formed a line in front of the shocked man. His eyes drifted down to the bat Felicity was tapping in the palm of her hand.

  “What’s going on here? Get out of my way?” He spun around and shouted at Julie. “Are you behind this?”

  Julie stormed forward and slapped her ex hard around the face. “Yes, meet my friends. They’d like a little chat with you.”

  Before he had the chance to respond, Felicity swiped the bat, aiming at his head. The man tottered unsteadily in place. Another blow with the bat forced him down on the ground. The girls launched, attacking him with their weapons. A high-heeled shoe stabbed him in the upper leg. Another blunt instrument in the shape of a stunted iron bar came crashing down on his forearm. Everyone in the group heard the bone snap and Don cried out in pain.

  “Stop! I’ll get you for this, Julie, if it’s the last thing I do.” He cried out again, his injured arm clutched the top of his other arm as the pain increased on his face. He gasped for breath and whimpered, “Help me, the pain…‌I need to go to the hosp…” his voice trailed off as the women continued to beat him.

  A few seconds later, Julie called a halt to the attack. “Stop. That’s enough. We want him alive, don’t we? What’s the pleasure in killing him now, we need him to really suffer.”

  The four women looked around them, then stared down at the man writhing in agony on the tarmac at their feet.

  “We didn’t hit him that much. What’s wrong with him?” Mags asked bewildered.

  Julie gasped and her hand flew up to cover her mouth.

  Felicity took a step toward her, confused by her friend’s reaction. “What? What is it, Julie?”

  “Damn, I forgot.”

  “Forgot what?” Felicity demanded.

  “He has a bad heart.”

  “Crap, now you tell me?” Felicity paced the immediate area as she thought and clicked her fingers when she came up with a solution. “Okay, let’s get him in the car.”

  “Why?” Julie asked.

  “We’ll drop him off near the hospital.”

  The four women each grabbed a limb and bundled the groaning man into the back of the car. Felicity jumped in the driver’s seat and revved the engine while the others strapped on their seatbelts. “Ready? Keep an eye on him, he might be pulling a fast one.”

  “I doubt that, his lips are turning blue. Hurry!” Julie replied, unmistakable panic in her voice.

  Felicity put her foot down, the car sped out of the car park and headed towards the hospital. The only sound in the car was the increasing moans of their victim. The vehicle came to an abrupt halt in the street just around the corner from the hospital entrance. “Okay, let’s get him out.”

  Julie gasped again. “My God, you can’t leave him here. We have to take him to A&E. If he dies what will happen to us then?”

  “Stop panicking, Julie, he’s not going to die.” Felicity got out of the car and opened the back door. Mags jumped out and together they heaved the victim from the vehicle. He fell to the ground amidst more grunts and groans. “Get back in, Mags.”

  Felicity sped away from the scene at seventy miles an hour, taking a cursory glimpse in the rear-view mirror at the pain-riddled man they’d left lying on the ground, uncertain if he’d just taken his final breath or not.

  CHAPTER ONE

  “How could someone do such a thing?” Lorne raked a hand through her shoulder-length hair. The dog with the sorrowful brown eyes stared up at her.

  “Mum, we can worry about that later. We need to get this poor girl to the vet, quickly.”

  Lorne bent down to stroke the petrified creature, which couldn’t have been more than a year old. A thinning layer of hair covered her trembling, sore-covered body, obviously suffering from demodectic mange. Thankfully, her four pups appeared to be faring better than she was, even if they were a little underweight. Some callous bastard had dumped the five dogs down by the boating lake twenty minutes away, leaving the pups tied up in a black bag. Getting the dog into the car had been a mammoth task because the mother was understandably terrified of people. Lorne cautiously held out a hand for the dog to sniff, and the bitch turned her head away. Lorne felt as though a knife had pierced her heart. No dog had ever avoided her like that.

  Standing up, she flung an arm around Charlie’s shoulder. “You’re right, off to the vet we go. I’ll go ring him to let him know we’re on our way. Why don’t you try and gain a bit of trust with her, eh?”

  “Okay. Looking at her, that’s going to take an eternity. I’ll try and give her some food. She looks like she hasn’t eaten in weeks.”

  “I’ll be right back.” Lorne left the kennel at the rescue centre she ran with her family. Well, actually the job of running the place was now safely in the hands of her husband, Tony, and her daughter, Charlie. Although she’d returned to the Met a year ago, she still found it impossible to stay away from the centre, especially when a case as deplorable as this came their way. Mercifully, not many cases as bad as this one passed through their doors. However, when they did, Lorne despised the human beings who would dream of treating an animal, any animal, in such a horrendous way. She could see no reason for it. Any form of animal abuse was uncalled for, in her eyes. No one ever forced anyone to give a dog a home. Lorne was saddened and infuriated by the weekly reports of just how many dogs were being dumped in shelters across the country. Whatever happened to that saying, ‘A dog is for life, not just for Christmas’? Surely nowadays, there were enough programmes on the TV telling people how much daily exercise a dog needed. Were people really dumb enough to think a dog would be happy stuck in a backyard, often no larger than a postage stamp, all their lives? How would they feel to live such a pitiful existence?

  “Hey, you. What’s with the frown?” Tony stepped forward and kissed her on the lips.

  “I’m sorry, hon. I’m internally ranting about how stupid the human race can be regarding animals, better internally than chewing your ear off all the time, eh?” She smiled and picked up the phone. “I have to ring the vet. I’ll go with Charlie while you carry on with the morning chores if you like?”

  “What about your own job, are you forgetting that, love?”

  Lorne grimaced. Yes, she had temporarily forgotten about it. “Oops, should I ring in sick?”

  “That’s up to you. Knowing your conscience the way I do, it wouldn’t be happy with that scenario. Why don’t you trust Charlie and me to take the dogs to the vet and you get ready to start your proper job?”

  “You’re right. You’re always right. Let me at least make the appointment for you. The mother dog might have to be separated from her pups for a while until she recovers. I’ve never seen such a bad case of mange. I don’t think the pups have been affected yet, but who’s to say what those little parasites are up to; they jump from animal to animal undetected most of the time.”

  “Let’s not get ahead of ourselves just yet. Let’s see what the vet’s test results come back first. What if he wants to keep her overnight or for a few days?”

  Lorne thought over the proposal thoroughly before responding. “I’m not averse to that, there will be a cost implication involved though. Unless…”

  “Unless? What are you hatching?”

  “Just plead poverty. Make sure the vet knows how many strays we’re caring for at the moment, lay it on thick if you have to.”

  “You’re impo
ssible, woman. I’ll be sure to let him know. Make the call and get ready for work.” He tapped her on the backside and winked.

  Half an hour later a reluctant Lorne drove into work, having made the appointment with the vet for eleven that morning. It was at times like this she really missed being her own boss and caring for the dogs who needed her help on a daily basis, not that she didn’t trust Charlie or Tony to look after the animals well, of course. In her eyes, no one cared for the dogs as much as she could. However, necessity had forced her back to her role in the force, both financially and for her own sanity. She had struggled with the concept of giving up the daily grind of chasing criminals after ten years on the force; even starting up her own private investigator business with Tony hadn’t satisfied that hunger.

  So, there she was driving into work, a detective sergeant in the team she used to run, which was now under the leadership of her former DS and good friend, Katy Foster. At first, Lorne had felt awkward taking orders from Katy, not that she issued many anyway. Katy had reassured her that everything would turn out fine. On her first day back on the force Katy had taken her to one side to ensure her that she would be treated as a proper partner, an equal. It made complete sense considering Lorne’s wealth of experience. They were like-minded women and so far their partnership had been a huge success which had come as no surprise to Sean Roberts, their DCI, who had begged Lorne for months to return to his team.

  She drew up alongside Katy’s car in the station car park. Her partner was sitting inside her car having what looked to be a fraught conversation with someone on her mobile phone. Seeing Lorne, she rolled her eyes and intimated with a raised finger that she would be another minute or so. A few seconds later Katy’s door sprung open.

  “Trouble?”

  Katy shook her head. “Not really, just strife from Mum and Dad for not visiting them in months. When are they going to realise that I live a very stressful life and that I now live almost one hundred and fifty miles from them? I can’t just drop everything and take off for the weekend.”