Page 102 of Vengeance is Mine

‘Good morning,’ Dawn replied.

‘Is your grandfather all right?’ she asked in a soft voice.

‘Yes. Why?’ Dawn replied, concerned.

‘The press were hounding him last night. They were outside here for ages. Knocking on the door and ringing the bell. I phoned him and asked if he wanted me to call the police, but he said he was ignoring them.’

‘Oh. He didn’t call me or anything.’

‘He probably went to bed early or something. I’d have been scared witless if it had been my door they were knocking on.’

Dawn was rummaging around in her bag for the key she had for emergencies. ‘I’m sure he’s fine.’

‘Tell him I was asking after him.’

Dawn nodded. She unlocked the door, stepped in and closed it behind her.

‘Grandad, are you up?’

The house was in darkness. It was colder than her flat. She needlessly pressed her hand against the radiator in the hallway. The heating was off. She went into the living room and turned on the light. The curtains were drawn and the room empty.

‘Grandad? Is everything all right?’

Back in the corridor, she turned to his bedroom. The door was closed. She hoped he’d put in a pair of earplugs, gone to bed early and was having a lie-in. She placed a hand on the cold handle and leaned in to check for any noise coming from behind the door. All she heard was her own heartbeat thumping loudly.

She knocked lightly. ‘Grandad. Are you in there?’

She waited. There was no movement.

She took a deep breath and pushed open the door.

The bedroom was in full darkness thanks to the blackout curtains. She couldn’t see her hand in front of her face. She fumbled on the wall for the light switch, and the room was suddenly lit up in a brilliant glow.

On the bed lay Anthony Griffiths. He was wearing the suit Dawn recognised from his wedding photograph in the living room. Next to him was Carole’s wedding dress. They were lying side by side, and the cuff of the wedding dress sleeve was in Anthony’s hand, as if they were holding hands.

Dawn leaned back against the wall. A tear rolled down her cheek. Her grandfather’s face looked peaceful, content, and there was a slight smile on his lips. She had never seen him look so happy before.

Chapter Forty-Five

Dawn was sat on an uncomfortable sofa in the police station at Forth Banks. Her mother was beside her. Dawn hadn’t stopped crying since she had called the police from Langdale Close and told them about her grandfather. She hadn’t wanted him to be alone, so when DI Terry Braithwaite arrived at the bungalow, he had found Dawn sitting by the bed next to her grandfather, holding his hand.

Terry had been surprisingly sympathetic. He hadn’t rushed her as he gently eased her up and walked her slowly to a waiting car where he told a PC to take her to the station, sit her in the family room and call her mother.

An hour had passed, and Dawn hadn’t said anything to her mum. Rita had made the right placatory noises and hugged her daughter, but Dawn seemed to be in a state of shock.

The door opened, and Terry breezed in with Kyra Willis behind him. They closed the door and sat on a matching sofa opposite.

‘Dawn, how are you?’ Terry asked in a quiet, soothing tone. ‘Are you up for answering a few questions?’

She gave a brief nod in reply.

‘When was the last time you saw your grandfather?’

Dawn’s face was blank. She looked to her mother.

‘It was the third of January,’ Rita said. ‘We were due to go around on the second as that was Carole – his wife’s – birthday, but, well, with everything that had happened, neither of us felt like it. We went the following day.’

‘How did he seem?’ Terry asked Dawn.

---