Read Dreamwalkers Book One - The Intruder. A Markland Garraway Paranormal Mystery Thriller Page 29

Markland & Joan Garraway’s home

  Bristol

  Tuesday 20th October

  11.45 a.m.

 

  Joan was at home alone. Since Markland had retired, she’d spent little time in the house on her own and enjoyed a few hours here and there when he wasn’t around. Today, he had taken a bus to Thornbury and was looking around second-hand book shops. Markland had difficulty adapting to retirement. Joan found it harder than she’d expected having him around so much of the time. He was unsettled and always looking for something to do. She loved him, but spending this much time with him wasn’t easy.

  In the five years that Markland had been Detective Superintendent he’d been hardly at home and Joan had come close to having an affair with Derek Munroe, a police officer who was a few years younger than Markland. Munroe had little ambition to rise through the ranks after failing to achieve his dream of becoming a detective. He was destined to remain on the beat until it was his time to retire. He was married, had three sons who had grown up and flown the nest. His marriage was stale and he found life to be a chore. One of the only things that really excited him, was the challenge of bedding Markland’s wife. He disliked Detective Superintendent Garraway and Markland had little time for Munroe. The two had joined Avon and Somerset Constabulary on the same day. Both men had been ambitious young constables, but it was Markland who was destined for promotion, which came early in his career.

 

  Joan was preparing a light lunch and was about to open the fridge, when the doorbell rang. Instead of going to the front door, she went into the back garden, along the path which led to the front garden, and saw a policeman standing at the door.

  “Derek, what do you think you’re doing?” whispered Joan.

  “Hi Joan, I was in the area and thought I’d say hello”, replied Munroe, with a glint in his eye.

  “You can’t be here. Markland could come back at any time.”

  “I doubt it, I just saw him on the seventy-nine heading up the A38.”

  “Even so, you shouldn’t be here, what if the neighbours see you?”

  “Tell them I was making ‘door to door enquiries’,” smirked Munroe.

  Joan sighed, and gestured to him to follow her around to the back garden. He followed her to the kitchen. She poured him a lemonade and slid it across the kitchen table.

  “Haven’t you anything stronger?”

  “You’re on duty, take it or leave it.”

  Secretly, Joan was thrilled by his flattery and tried her best not to show it, but Munroe noticed a spark about her when he was around. He knew she had feelings towards him. He left the lemonade untouched, walked over to her and placed his arm on her shoulder.

  “We could have had something you and I, we really could.”

  Joan smiled, but said nothing. Munroe looked his age, but she still found him alluring, even though he had a large moustache and his hairline was receding.

  “Markland won’t be back for hours. Why don’t we do something exciting?”

  “The most exciting thing you’re going to do is drink that lemonade, then get out of here before he returns.”

  Munroe pushed out his bottom lip to feign disappointment.

  “You don’t mean that do you?”

  Joan did love her husband, but was teetering on the edge of doing something stupid with Munroe that she would live to regret.

  Munroe took a step closer, but she pushed him away.

  “Come on Derek, get out before I call the police,” said Joan with a smirk.

  “You can call me, I’ll take down your particulars.”

  The two continued to flirt for another few minutes, before Joan convinced him to leave.

  “I’ll be back,” said Munroe, as he slipped out of the kitchen door and headed to his police car parked around the corner.