Free The Triumph of Katie Byrne by Barbara Taylor Bradford

girls? Or only Denise? Was he a local? Or a stranger passing through? A serial killer on the loose? Who the hell is he? And where is he now?’
    ‘I wish I could answer all your questions, Dave, then we’d be in clover. But I can’t. Not yet. However, there is one thing…in my considered opinion, it’s a local,’Mac replied. ‘Maybe not from Malvern or any of the towns close by, but he’s from this area.’
    ‘What makes you rule out a stranger, Mac? The idea of a drifter wandering around doesn’t grab you?’
    Mac shook his head slowly. ‘No, Dave, it doesn’t.’
    Charlie said, ‘Three pretty maids in a row…that’s what Katie said.’
    ‘What do you make of the school bags being lined up the way they were, Mac?’ Dave cut in, and rose, walked over to the window, glanced out, then turned back to face Mac. ‘Weird, eh?’
    Mac lifted his hands in a futile gesture. ‘I don’t know what it means, if anything.’
    Dave said, ‘I kinda trust Katie’s judgement. If she says her friends wouldn’t have done that, then I tend to go along with her. Look, maybe the perp came back to the barn to check it out, to remove any evidence he’d left behind. Then he spotted the bags, lined them up.’
    ‘ But why ?’ Mac said.
    Dave shrugged. ‘Who knows? A message of some kind, if he’s a whacko?’ The detective sat down heavily in a chair as a thought struck him. He said, worriedly, ‘Could Katie be in danger?’
    ‘No, I’m sure not,’ Mac answered confidently, then wondered if she could be. ‘We’ll know more when we get the lab report on the bag.’ After a moment he added, ‘The perp wouldn’t stick his neck out, draw attention tohimself. He’s lying low, he probably thinks he’s gotten away with murder.’
    ‘Has he?’ Charlie asked, looking unhappy.
    ‘No, he hasn’t,’ Mac stated in a strong voice. He pushed himself to his feet and began to pace up and down. ‘Tomorrow, first thing, we’ll start a background check, talk to Denise’s school friends, her known associates, and especially her boyfriends –’
    ‘According to Katie, Denise didn’t have any boyfriends, ’ Dave interjected. ‘Except for her brother Niall, who dated Denise last year. Niall says it never went anywhere, never became a romance. I’m sure he’s telling the truth. And by the way, he accounted for his whereabouts today.’
    ‘So he has an alibi?’ Mac asked.
    Dave nodded. ‘Oh yes. He finished work in Roxbury at about four-twenty, or thereabouts. He’s working on a remodelling job over there. He then went to the hardware store in Washington Depot, where he purchased a special hook for a picture. Then he drove to Marbledale, where he met a pal at the pub. They had Cokes and a packet of crisps. He says he left the pub at about five-forty and drove home to Malvern, arriving there a couple of minutes after six. Apparently he turned around and drove Katie back to the barn only a few minutes after he’d arrived.’
    ‘So Niall’s not under suspicion. I’m glad to hear that,’ Mac muttered, almost to himself.
    ‘Even if the perp is from around here, he could be someone Denise didn’t actually know,’ Dave pointed out.
    ‘Yes, that’s true,’ Mac agreed, and went on, ‘Let’s go outside and see what’s happening. Then we should get back to base. I’d like to go over whatever evidence there is available. We must make the most of the golden hours left to us.’
    Dave and Charlie followed Mac across the barn, and Dave said, in a low undertone, ‘This looks as if it’s going to be a tough case. Let’s pray for a few breaks.’

Chapter Ten
    Maureen Byrne glanced around the family kitchen, trying to draw a measure of comfort and reassurance from the familiar.
    Everything was in its given place, as it had always been here. The old brass clock ticked away on the mantelpiece, the Victorian lamps cast pools of warming light, and the fire burned brightly in the great stone hearth.
    Even the air was redolent