System Failure: A Detective Ryan Chase Thriller Short Story Read online

  “Bullshit. You’d been drinking all day.”

  He wedged the blade between the third knot. Snip.

  Three.

  “Argh! Stop! Stop it!” He was sobbing now. “Please, don’t do this. Show some mercy.”

  The remaining knot strained against the weight it held.

  Ryan’s heart froze over.

  “Like you showed my daughter mercy.”

  He didn’t need to cut the final knot. As he watched, it unravelled, and the rope gave way.

  Cole Fielding fell—down, down, down—and hit the rushing water beneath, vanishing into the dark.

  Ryan sucked in a breath then slowly blew it out again. He trembled all over, his heart beating wildly, but it was done. It was over.

  Almost.

  He left the rope where it was, tied to the railing, the end loose. The pieces he’d cut away had fallen into the river and would be long gone by now. He hoped, should someone find the body, they’d assume the ligature marks were caused by a failed hanging, and, when the hanging had failed, he’d let himself fall.

  Finally, he taped the note Cole had written to the railings.

  First thing in the morning, Detective Ryan Chase would drive the car to a local crusher who he knew would be happy to take cash and keep his mouth shut.

  He got in the car and drove until he spotted one of the few red telephone boxes that remained in this time of mobile phones. He’d kept some change in the cupholder for this purpose. He fished it out, then went into the phone box and called his ex-wife.

  Donna answered on the second ring. He’d known she wouldn’t have been able to sleep.

  “Hi, it’s me.”

  “Ryan? Is everything all right? Do you know what time it is?”

  “Yes, I’m fine. I’m sorry about calling so late, I just needed to let you know something.”

  He sensed her sitting up in bed.

  “Let me know what?”

  “That system that failed us... I finally made it right.”

  Want to read more about DI Ryan Chase? You can get a free book featuring Ryan Chase, Twice the Lie, from MK’s website: https://mkfarrar.com

  Kill Chase, the first novel in the Detective Ryan Chase Thriller series is out now!

  A TEN-YEAR-OLD MURDER is back to haunt him...

  When fishermen haul a bag containing a dismembered arm from the River Avon, a search ensues to find the rest of the body.

  Detective Inspector Ryan Chase of the Bristol Major Crimes Investigation Team is in charge of identifying the deceased and bringing the killer to justice.

  Dealing with grief from the death of his daughter, his broken-down marriage, and a worrying habit he can’t seem to break, DI Chase has his hands full.

  The mystery deepens when a second limb is found, and it doesn’t match the first.

  Who is dumping body parts into the river? Why are clues leading DI Chase back to a ten-year-old unsolved case?

  Has a murderer reignited their taste for death?

  Available from Amazon now!

  Author Bio

  M K Farrar had penned more than ten novels of psychological noir and crime fiction. A British author, she lives in the countryside with her three children and a menagerie of rescue pets. When she’s not writing—which isn’t often—she balances out all the murder with baking and binge-watching shows on Netflix. You can find out more about M K and grab a free book via her website, https://mkfarrar.com

  Also by the Author

  DI Erica Swift Thriller

  The Eye Thief

  The Silent One

  The Artisan

  The Child Catcher

  The Body Dealer

  The Gathering Man

  Crime after Crime series, written with M A Comley

  Watching Over Me

  Down to Sleep

  If I Should Die

  Standalone Psychological Thrillers

  Some They Lie

  On His Grave

  Down to Sleep

 

 

  M K Farrar, System Failure: A Detective Ryan Chase Thriller Short Story

 

 

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