no bilateral extradition treaty between the UK and Russia, any hope of co-operation from the authorities to hand Pavel over, were non-existent. Hannah Edwards needed to hear it from him himself that there had been some development in the case. John didn’t want her switching on the news and finding out or some journalist turning up on her doorstep.
John parked across the road from the village school. He watched the parents arriving and lining up outside the gates, waiting for home time. He scanned the queue, looking for the familiar fair hair of his partner’s widow.
He spotted her halfway down the line, head bent looking at her phone. Her hair was tied back in a ponytail and she had her gym wear on. She looked in good shape. John was pleased she seemed to be taking care of herself. There had been a time when he was worried she wasn’t bothering. After Neil’s death, her world had come to a standstill and John hadn’t been sure if it would ever start up again.
The guilt within surged, as it always did, when he saw her, but this time it receded with more ease than before. He hoped she was turning things around.
The gates opened and the parents filed into the playground. John got out of his car and leaned against the bonnet while he waited for Hannah to come back out with Ella; her and Neil’s eight-year-old daughter.
He didn’t have to wait long. As mother and daughter emerged from the crowd of navy and grey uniforms, Hannah looked up and met John’s gaze. She smiled and waved, said something to Ella, who looked over and waved too. Then they made their way across the road to John.
John kissed her on the cheek. ‘Hi, Hannah, good to see you.’ He leaned down and gave Ella a quick peck on the top of her head. ‘Hiya, Ella. How are you? That’s a nice school bag you’ve got there, is it new?’
‘Hi, John. It’s a High School Musical one.’ Proudly she held it up for John to see the picture. ‘It was a present.’
‘Wow! That looks nice. Who got you that?’
Hannah interrupted before Ella could reply. ‘You’ll have to explain to John about High School Musical and your bag some other time. I’m sure he’s really busy.’ She looked up at him. ‘Everything okay with you?’
‘Yeah, fine. Look, can I give you a lift home?’
Hannah looked uncertain. ‘It’s okay, we’re fine walking.’ She hesitated. ‘Is everything really okay?’
‘Let me take you home,’ said John. ‘I do need to speak to you, but not here.’
‘Not at the house. Let’s walk. We can go via the park.’ She didn’t wait for John to agree, but took Ella’s hand and began walking. John had no choice but to follow.
The walk to the park took only five minutes but each second lay heavier than the previous. Tension swirled around them. Only Ella was oblivious to it as she proceeded to tell John all about High School Musical. Hannah didn’t speak and as John stole a glance at her from the corner of his eye, he could see the stiffness in her face, neck and shoulders.
Once at the park, Ella happily went off on the climbing frame and slide. John and Hannah sat on the bench watching but not really looking.
‘What is it you need to tell me?’ said Hannah. Straight to the point, no messing around.
‘Just to forewarn you that there’s been some development in the Porboski case.’
‘You mean in the murder case? Neil’s murder case.’ Her voice was sharp. ‘You can say it, John. There’s no point pretending it’s just the Porboski case. At the heart of it and the all-important part is the murder of Neil. It won’t break me if you say it. I’m not going to collapse in a heap simply because you’ve mentioned his name. Or what happened to him.’
John sat forward on the bench, resting his arms on his knees, bringing his hands together. ‘Yes, you’re right. Sorry.’
‘What’s happened, then? I’m guessing you didn’t come and see me personally purely to tell me that.’
‘Off the record, we think there’s a strong possibility Pavel Bolotnikov is back in the UK. We don’t know why but I wanted to give you the heads up, just in case.’
Now she looked at him. ‘Just in case what? Are we in some sort of danger?’ Her eyes flitted to Hannah and back to John.
John placed a hand over hers. ‘No, I don’t think that at all. We’re working on tracking him down right now, but I didn’t want you to hear it from somewhere else, especially if the press get hold of it.’
‘You could have just phoned. You didn’t need to make a special trip out to the backwater of Berkshire.’
‘I wanted to see you both. See how you were doing. Do you need anything? What about Ella? Is she okay for everything?’
Hannah moved her hand away. ‘You don’t have to do this, you know.’
‘Do what?’
‘Protect me. Look out for me. For Ella.’ She turned to face him now. ‘We’re not your responsibility. No. Don’t say anything. Listen, you were Neil’s partner. I was his wife. Ella his daughter. The most awful thing happened. Neil was killed. You’ve been great to us, John, you really have and the first few months, I’m sure I would have died myself had it not been for you. And for that I am truly grateful. But, you know what? We’ve come out the other side and Ella and I are doing great. You need to look after yourself, so you can come out the other side too.’
At that point Ella skipped over. ‘Can we go home, mummy? I’m hungry.’
‘Yes, come on, let’s go.’ Hannah rose from the bench and took her daughter’s hand.
‘Is John coming?’ said Ella. ‘He can meet Dan.’
John’s eyes snapped up to look at Hannah. A look of unease swept over her face. ‘Who’s Dan?’ said John.
‘Mummy’s friend. He bought me the bag,’ said Ella, running her finger and thumb up and down the strap.
John stood up. ‘Why didn’t you just say?’ His voice was cold despite the hot ember of anger igniting inside. Was he angry that she hadn’t told him about another bloke or was he angry because she was no longer the proverbial grieving widow, which ultimately meant she didn’t need him?
‘It’s none of your business, really,’ said Hannah, she raised her eyebrows. ‘The Met, the unit, my life as a widow are in the past, John. It’s been five years now. I can’t pause time any longer. If there’s something good that’s come from Neil’s death, it’s that more than ever I value my future, Ella’s future.’
‘With this … Dan.’
‘Maybe. Who knows? But I deserve some happiness and so does Ella.’ Hannah began walking away, she paused and looked over her shoulder. ‘You should be happy for us. Neil would want us to be happy.’
John didn’t say anything. He stood and watched Hannah and Ella walk away. What was there to say? He didn’t want the burden of Neil’s memory to carry on his own. He thought it was a load he shared with Hannah. How could he have closure and move on when Neil’s killer was still out there? When John’s own guilt ravaged his mind
