Behind Dead Eyes (DC Ian Bradshaw #2) - Howard Linskey Page 0,102

her clothes and pulled on Tom’s T-shirt then she climbed into the big double bed and pulled the thick duvet over her. Within minutes she was in a deep sleep but Helen was awakened an hour later by a sudden sound outside. Two cats were fighting. They screamed at one another repeatedly before going their separate ways.

Helen realised she was cold, and then thought of Tom downstairs with no blankets.

Tom was fully clothed, lying on the sofa with his coat pulled over himself, but he couldn’t sleep. He had consumed two more bottles of beer after Helen had gone to bed and now he was trying to doze off in a freezing room, but his legs were too long for the sofa. That and the injuries to his face, head and shoulder meant that no matter what position he lay in he couldn’t get comfortable.

He heard a click then and a crack of light shone under his door from the hallway onto his carpet-less floor. He sat up groggily as Helen opened the door. She was wearing his T-shirt and he had to make a conscious effort not to stare at her bare legs.

‘You’re going to freeze,’ she announced. ‘Come on, you don’t have to stay down here.’

Helen deliberately left the light off in the bedroom. She climbed into her side of the bed and turned away from him while he took off his jeans. Somehow she knew Tom would not get the wrong idea about this and he didn’t, but she was very aware of the weight on his side of the bed when he joined her and the heat from his body.

‘Thanks,’ he said quickly.

‘No problem,’ she said.

When Helen opened her eyes in the morning it took her a moment to remember where she was, then she rolled over and saw Tom Carney sleeping next to her. She tried not to think what Peter would have made of this but soon that thought was banished by the memory of the attack on them at her flat. All of sudden her jealous boyfriend seemed to be the least of Helen’s problems. She glanced at her watch on the bedside table and was surprised at how late it was. They had both been exhausted by their ordeal. She left Tom sleeping and slipped out of the bed to use the bathroom. Tom stirred and she watched him as he rolled over without waking.

Helen came out of the bathroom moments later, and when she reached the top of the landing she yelled out in alarm. A strange man was standing at the foot of the stairs, staring back up at her.

The man almost jumped out of his skin when he saw her. ‘Sorry, pet,’ he spluttered, though he looked at least as alarmed by their contact as she had been, ‘I didn’t know you were … I didn’t realise he was …’ Then he stopped and took a different approach: ‘I’ll put the kettle on.’

‘What’s the matter?’ asked Tom as he opened the door and blinked at her.

‘There’s a man …’ she managed.

‘Oh shit, yeah, I forgot about him.’ When Helen looked at him disbelievingly he said, ‘That’s Darren, my brother-in-law. He’s a joiner.’ And when that proved insufficient he explained, ‘He’s out of work at the moment. I hired him to finish some of the jobs on the house while I’m busy with these cases.’ He then realised the effect that seeing a strange man in the house must have had on Helen, following their ordeal the night before. ‘I’m really sorry.’

Now that Helen had calmed down, her first thought was that she had just met Tom’s sister’s husband for the first time in her underwear and one of Tom’s T-shirts.

‘Come down,’ Tom said. ‘I’ll introduce you.’

Tom went down the stairs moments later, while Helen got dressed. He found three steaming mugs of tea on the kitchen table and his brother-in-law grinning at him.

‘Thanks, Darren,’ he said. ‘Er, Helen’s just …’

‘It’s none of my business, bro,’ interrupted Darren, ‘but what happened to your face? I hope she didn’t do that.’

‘It’s a long story,’ and he was thankful Darren wasn’t the kind to insist on him recounting it, ‘but do us a favour and don’t tell sis about it; she’ll only fret.’

‘I won’t, but I saw your motor on the way in. Looks like you had an argument with a lorry.’

‘Is there any chance I could borrow your car for the day until I can get the insurance company to give