Lawful Duty – The new crime novel set in Devon
Set in the 1990s, this book features a much younger Tim Spiller, the detective from the Devonshire Mysteries.
I hope this snippet will whet your appetite.
Preorder Lawful Duty now to read it as soon as it launches on 26 April, 2024
or buy direct and read it now at: mcamplingbooks.com – my official store
Find it on all retailers at: books2read.com/lawfulduty
Excerpt From Chapter 2
1992
With an effort, Lynsey opened her eyes. The blindfold was tight, the fabric pressing hard against her skin, its edges digging into her cheeks and forehead. It flattened her nose and made breathing difficult, so she opened her mouth and gasped for air.
Lynsey tried to free her arms, but the ropes had left her wrists and ankles raw, and struggling only made the pain worse. She was tied to some kind of bed, and she could hardly move a muscle.
She thought of calling for help, but she’d tried that before, and he’d pushed her down and threatened to cut her throat. His voice had been little more than a whisper: a low, guttural growl intended to frighten her. Lynsey had tried not to react, but it hadn’t been easy. The man’s sinister, soft voice had sent a shudder of revulsion through her whole body. She’d been tempted to provoke him, to make him shout and yell. Anything would’ve been better than his insidious whispers. But she hadn’t dared. She’d heard the anticipation in his voice. He hadn’t been making idle threats; he wanted to cut her throat.
Lynsey almost wept, but she’d run out of tears some time ago. She had to make herself strong and focus on surviving. It was the only way she was going to come out of this alive.
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How long had she been here? It felt like forever. Her whole body ached from being held immobile, but she could deal with the pain; the fear was so much harder to bear. What was he going to do to her? So far, he’d touched her only to tie her up, and she’d only been dimly aware of that. He must’ve been giving her something, because she’d been dazed and confused ever since she’d been taken.
The last thing she remembered clearly was getting into the taxi on Saturday night. After that, her memories were shot through with holes.
What happened? How did he do this to me? Lynsey forced her mind to focus. She recalled standing by the water. A man had come out and tried chatting her up. He hadn’t been much to look at, but at least he’d been polite. He’d offered her a cigarette, but she’d said no. She’d told him she wanted to be alone, and he’d gone back inside.
There were other memories of that night, but they’d become twisted and disjointed. She’d tried to piece them together, but they seemed somehow unreal, as though they’d happened to someone else.
She recalled Tony making a fuss when she’d broken up with him, and she remembered heading home. The bouncer had said something about calling her a taxi, but she’d told him not to bother. A couple of minutes later, a minicab had pulled up alongside, the driver calling out her name, so she’d assumed the bouncer had phoned for a taxi after all. She hadn’t wanted to get in, but she’d felt unsteady, her thoughts sluggish, and she’d found herself climbing into the back seat. But what then?
Had somebody else got in the car with her? A dark memory lurked at the edge of her consciousness, but she couldn’t capture it. Something had happened. Something…
A sudden noise made Lynsey tense, her breath trapped in her chest. It had sounded like a shoe scraping across the floor. He was there, in the room with her. He must’ve been watching her while she slept.
Straining her senses, she picked up another sound. He was sniffing, blowing his nose.
“It’s cold in here,” Lynsey said with as much confidence as she could muster. “Why don’t you do something about it?”
There was no reply. The silence pressed down on her like a physical presence, smothering her with its weight, making her want to scream. But then came the same rasping whisper as before, the man’s voice almost inaudible: “It’s not that bad. Do you want a blanket?”
“What I want is to get out of here.”
He sniffed again. “Not yet.”
“Why do you keep sniffing? And why don’t you talk properly? Is there something wrong with you?”
He didn’t deign to reply, and the silence stretched out until Lynsey could bear it no longer. “How long was I asleep?”
“Hours. All night.”
“What? Did you put something in my water? It tasted funny.”
“I might’ve slipped you a little something. No sense in you getting upset, wearing yourself down.”
Lynsey let fly with a string of curses.
“Now, now,” he said. “That’s no way for a nice young lady to talk.”
“Piss off.”
“I’ll go when I’m good and ready, not before. We need to have a chat first.”
“If you’re telling the truth, I’ve been here for two nights, so it must be Monday. They’ll be missing me by now, wondering why I’m not at work.”
“Possibly. Let’s talk about work, Lynsey. You have something I need. Where is it?”
“Not this again. I told you, I have no idea what you’re talking about.”
“But that’s not true, is it? You were the last person to see that document, and now it’s missing. We want it back.”
“That’s tough because I don’t have it.”
“Then where is it?”
Through clenched teeth, Lynsey said, “I don’t know.”
“Yes, you do. You’ve taken it, Lynsey.”
“No. My boss thought I took it, but he was wrong. I tried to tell him, but he wouldn’t listen. I didn’t even know what it was. I’m just an assistant. I do admin.”
“Don’t play games. You’re not stupid, Lynsey. You work in the accounts department. You knew perfectly well what you were looking at.”
“No. There’s tonnes of paperwork, but I understand hardly any of it. You’ve got the wrong person. You may as well let me go.”
Footsteps. He was close now, standing over her. She could sense his nearness.
“Lynsey, why must you keep on lying like this?”
“I don’t… It’s not…”
He sighed, his breath washing over her cheeks.
“Please,” she said, her voice faltering. “Please let me go. I haven’t seen your face. I don’t know who you are or where I am. You could… you could take me somewhere and let me go. Please, I’m begging you.”
“There’s no need to beg. I’ll let you go eventually. But first, you need to tell the truth.”
Some spark of defiance kindled in her stomach. “I have told you the bloody truth. There’s no point going on, asking the same questions over and over. Let me go or my father—”
“Oh yes, your father,” the man interrupted. “He’ll be very distressed, won’t he? Did you give the document to him? Is that why we couldn’t find it in your flat?”
“No. I haven’t given anything to anybody.”
“I don’t believe you.”
“That’s your problem. Whatever it is you want, I haven’t got it.”
“That is a shame,” the man murmured. “This isn’t going to get us anywhere. Maybe we need to pay a visit to your dear daddy.”
“Go ahead. He’s not frightened by the likes of you. And when he finds out what you’ve done, he’ll hunt you down. He’ll find you and make you pay.”
“I don’t think so.” Footsteps again. The man was moving away from her. He paused and she heard the jangle of metal, the sound of a key sliding into a lock.
“We’ll be sending a message to your father soon, and we’ll be giving him a little something; something to prove you’re still alive.”
“What… what do you mean?”
He chuckled darkly. “Don’t worry, I’m not going to start chopping off fingers. Nothing so messy. I’m going to give him a photograph, that’s all. I took it this morning while you were still asleep. Just you and today’s paper. That ought to get the message across.”
“Bastard,” Lynsey hissed, her voice rising as she went on, “You’re getting off on this, aren’t you? You’re sick, a filthy little pervert. You’re…”
Lynsey let her voice fade. The door had closed quietly, the lock turning with a metallic click, the bolts sliding home with a grim finality.
“This can’t go on,” she whispered. “They’ll be missing me already. Someone will come looking, and they’ll find me. They have to.”
——
Want more?
Preorder now to read Lawful Duty as soon as it launches on 26 April, 2024
or buy direct and read it now at: mcamplingbooks.com – my official store
Find it on all retailers at: books2read.com/lawfulduty
