Sorry it's been so long for this update! My computer stopped charging so I had to take it in for repairs. But I had everything backed up and hopped onto a relative's computer to post. Enjoy!

CHAPTER FIVE

LIZZIE

In the morning, Bonnie actually smiled when she heard the sound of the waves lulling her out of sleep. She slightly frowned when she saw the empty side of the bed, but as usual he was up earlier than her. She got up and slipped into a sweater dress and padded in her bare feet to the front of the house where he was predictably sitting on the front steps with an open file, papers, and photos laid out.

She made to sit down next to him when she noticed one of the photos was of the blonde girl she had seen following Alec around when they first met. She knelt down next to him as he was telling her, "Good morning, love."

"Alec."

The tone in her voice made him turn over his attention to her very serious face. "What is it?"

She pointed to the photo of the blonde girl and said, "That's her. The girl I saw following you around when you first came out to Broadchurch."

"That is Lisa Newbury," he said with a dumbfounded slack jaw. "She's been officially missing since we found her cousin Pippa."

"She's not missing, Alec," she responded slowly. "She's dead. I'm sorry."

He let out a harsh sigh and put his arm around her shoulders, "It's all right. I knew he couldn't be keeping her somewhere." He gave her a curious look, "Is she... all right? I mean to say – she's not suffering anymore?"

Bonnie gave him a soft smile and took his hand that rested on her shoulder, "I haven't seen her since before you arrested Joe. But when I did, she was always very peaceful, and I could tell that she cared about you and your well-being. You know what that tells me?"

He pursed his lips at her, "What?"

"It tells me that she knows the truth of what happened with the trial at Sandbrook," she told him. "She knows you did nothing wrong. That it wasn't your fault. And she doesn't blame you."

He didn't verbally respond, just turned his attention back to the file. He wondered if what she said was true. With a small breath, he pulled out a small photo of little Pippa and held it out to her, "Have you ever seen her?"

Bonnie took the photo and studied it. The girl was smiling, sweet looking, with long dark hair and freckles on her nose. "No, I've never seen her before. She probably already moved on. Sometimes kids move on quickly when they didn't experience too much trauma. It's easier on them. I think it's because they're more innocent."

He made a non-committal sound as he gathered his things and brought them back into the house before he started getting ready. He moved quickly, wanting to be in court promptly. "What are you going to do today since you know you're not going to be called?"

"Work," she replied simply. "I have a couple second interviews with people, including discussing the lease on the apartment. It should be pretty straightforward. Hopefully, I'll be able to decide on who to hire and Denise will be able to move on not worrying that she's leaving me in a lurch. Beth will still come in as well after she's recovered from birth a little more."

"Right," he murmured. "Do you want to meet Daisy?"

A bit startled, she turned to him and just said with a smile, "Of course. She seems like a lovely girl. Were you thinking of skype or in person?"

"Depends on how things go," he said. "If I can get her on the phone for more than five minutes."

She smiled and kissed his cheek, "Don't worry. You'll talk to her, we'll all meet up some time, and I am sure we'll all get along."

They both wished each other to have good days before shoving off. Alec climbed into a cab for the courthouse while Bonnie jumped on her bike to wheel herself down to her store. She was biking passed the Trader's Hotel and Becca waved at her with a big smile, "Good morning, Bon! I've just met your mum. Very lively gal, ain't she?"

Bonnie almost toppled off of her bike as she stopped short in front of the hotel owner and said, "Wait, what? She's staying at your place?"

Becca grew confused, "Um, yes. You two look alike. Beautiful."

"Listen, Becca," Bonnie started, "I'd appreciate it if you didn't tell her anything about me. We're not close. We're the opposite of close. I don't want her feeling welcome to hang around and mess with my good life here. You understand, please?"

Becca looked startled, but still nodded. Who was she to pry into Bonnie's life with her shoddy past? "Of course. Strictly hotel business. I'll let you know when she's checked out?"

Bonnie shrugged and started walking her bike across the street, "She's been checked out for years." She quickly set to work, getting ready for her second interviews. One of which was a lovely young woman named Megan who wanted to look at the apartment as well. She was working diligently when alone at first when the bell rang, and she looked up to see a tall, lanky pale man with dark hair walking in. He seemed to smirk a little when he saw her before he spoke.

"I'm sorry. I was looking for the Echo. It used to be next door, right?" he asked.

Bonnie nodded, "They've downsized recently to a new location. If you go down the street and keep right, you'll find it a block back from the water on your left."

"Brilliant," he smiled. He cast a glance around, "This looks like a nice place. I'm headed to the paper to put in an ad for handy man work. So... let me know if you need any help around here."

"If I dare go to another handyman I think I'll be condemned to Hell for an eternity," she said with a kind smile back to him. "But I'm sure plenty of people around here with hire out your help. Pass on my good mornings to the Echo."

"Right..." he muttered, sort of lingering in the empty doorway until one of the teenagers who worked at the bookstore awkwardly made their way in for their shift. Bonnie didn't like the way he seemed to look at her as he left.

"Is that the phone the defendant was holding on the day you arrested him?" Jocelyn asked as Alec was presented with a plastic bag containing the mobile phone he'd arrested Joe with.

He nodded, answering to her and the jury members, "Yes. It belonged to Danny Latimer. Danny had two phones. This one was given to him by Mr. Miller."

"What did you discover from the call history on that phone?" Jocelyn asked.

"Only one number had ever called or sent texts to Danny's phone. A mobile number belonging to Mr. Miller," Alec stated.

"When you took possession of Mr. Miller's computer, did you find further evidence of communication between the defendant and Danny Latimer?"

"We found an email account under a false name. Only used to send emails to Danny," Alec spoke, hoping beyond hope that the jury would see what he already knew. He was trying to keep it to the facts.

Jocelyn turned her attention to the jury as Alec was handed a stack of papers, "You're being handed an exhibit. Exhibit MJC735 from your jury bundles. Could you confirm that these are printouts of the emails sent from this account?"

"I can," he said as he fished on his glasses.

"And would you read the email sent to Danny Latimer on the 29th of May?"

Beth and Mark flinched in pain as they listened to him read the emails. "'Great seeing you last night. Sorry things aren't going well at home. Wanna meet again Thursday? It can stay between us.'" There was no other way for that to sound worse.

"And on the 25th of June, from Danny to the defendant?"

"'Why does nobody understand me like you do? Have a great holiday. I miss you.'"

"Thank you."

Once Jocelyn took a seat, Sharon stood with no ceremony and said, "And the transcript of 16 May, please."

As Alec stared at the words, he chewed them out reluctantly, "'I know your dad will be sorry for hitting you. You can talk to me any time.'" These words made Mark want to die.

Sharon was smirking on the inside, "What evidence do you have to prove that Mr. Miller was using his phone at the time the calls and messages were sent?"

"They were sent from his private number," Alec answered her, knowing where she was going.

"Someone else could have picked up the phone and used it," she pointed out.

Alec spoke as calmly as he could, "We believe it was Mr. Miller."

She gave him a look, peering up through her forehead, "You believe rather than you are able to prove?"

He cleared his throat, "Phone mast records have placed the phone at Mr. Miller's house."

"The computer with the email account used to correspond with Danny, was that a private computer?" she asked, her eyes averted as if she were speaking to an audience.

"It was Mr. Miller's home computer," he spoke carefully. He didn't want her seeding in the doubt that she was trying to. It was making him angry just thinking about her spinning some tale rather than helping the justice system get something right.

"It was the family computer, wasn't it?" she emphasized.

"Yes."

"Was it password protected?"

He answered quickly so she couldn't interrupt, "No, but we believe Mr. Miller was the main user of the computer."

"But not the sole user because it was the family computer. Accessible to anyone who lived in or visited the house," she illustrated.

"Well, I doubt the baby used it," he joked in a deadpan voice.

The jury did let out some chuckled, but the Judge didn't seem amused. "I'm not keen on sarcasm, DI Hardy. Stick to the facts, please."

"Course, my lady," he said.

Sharon looked at him as if she were scolding him, "Mr. Miller's wife, DS Ellie Miller, an investigating officer, also had access to the computer long before it was seized, didn't she?"

And this was the doubt she was trying to seed into reality, "Yes, but-"

"So, anyone living in that house including Mr. Miller's wife, your colleague, would have been able to use the computer right up until the time of Mr. Miller's arrest. Yes or no?" she powered through his speaking.

"Yes."

It was like that word was a nail in Ellie's coffin as Sharon said, "Thank you," looking very pleased with herself.

Once he was free to leave the courtroom, he stormed out, passed Ellie sitting outside, "Those barristers, who are they? They've never done anything of worth. They are just sniping."

"What's been going on in there?" Ellie asked as she quickly got up to follow after him.

"The whole system stinks. This is how people like Ashworth get let off while decent people get aspersions cast on them," he ranted on more.

"Aspersions about who?"

He sobered up, "I can't. Not till you've given evidence."

Ellie blanched, "Shut up, then. You're making me nervous."

"I need you to be Claire's best friend right now. Otherwise Ashworth will work his way back in. Find out is he contacting her or she him. Are you listening?" he rattled off at her.

They paused when they noticed one of their PCs at the top of the stairs. Ellie greeted him, "Bob. What are you doing here?"

He looked awkward, "I'm not here for that." He looked at Hardy, "There's been an allegation made against you, sir. For harassment, from a Lee Ashworth. Said you imprisoned, illegally recorded and physically attacked him. You need to come with me."

"I can't believe you are making me do this," Alec hissed as he and PC Bob trekked through the grass towards Lee as he hammered in posts for a fence in his tank top.

"It's this or internal affairs," Bob said as they met with Lee. "It's a fraught time for everyone at the moment. See if we can work this one out."

Lee leisurely smoked a cigarette out of the side of his mouth, "He took me to a house, recorded me in private, then tracked me down and attacked me."

Alec glared at him, "You attacked me."

Lee looked at Bob, "See? This is what he's like."

Bob turned to Alec, "What have you got to say for yourself?"

Rather reluctantly, Alec spoke in measured tones, "I'm under a lot of pressure currently. With the court case. I should not have done what I did."

Bob nodded, satisfied, "Okay."

"Say sorry," Lee cut in unexpectedly.

Alec gaped, "What?"

Lee blew out a puff of smoke at him, "Say... sorry."

With clenched teeth, he did what he had to do, "I'm sorry."

"What's that?" Lee leaned in closer mockingly.

"I'm sorry. I apologize for any error of judgment," Alec ground the words out.

"Right, so we'll say no more about this," Bob quickly lead Alec away towards his car. "Are you coming?"

"I'm gonna walk," he snarled and continued out the path.

"Suit yourself."

Alec loped as he walked, breathing heavily. He needed to get this all done. He needed to solve Sandbrook, he needed Joe to go to jail. He needed it all to be over. He needed to enjoy life.

Bonnie walked leisurely to the Latimer household once she was able to hand over operations to Denise. She had met with Megan and shown her the apartment. She and the younger woman had gotten along so well that she hired her on the spot. Megan was very excited to take the apartment and practically run the store for her. But Bonnie was still lost on what she really wanted to do with the free time it would give her. Should she really settle for substitute teaching? Or should she try to finish her teaching credentials? Or should she do something entirely different? She didn't know.

Paul was being walked out by Mark when she ambled down the walk up to their front door. Things seemed tense there, but Mark had been tense with anything religious since Danny died. But Mark smiled when he saw her, "Hello there Bon," as Paul bid her adieu on his way out.

"Hello there, how's the new mum again?" Bonnie smiled as she walked in to see Beth cuddled on the couch with a little baby girl in her arms.

Beth seemed completely at ease for the first time since Danny died. "Hey."

Bonnie took a seat next to her, "What's the cutie's name? She's beautiful."

"Thank you," Beth smiled. "We're calling her Lizzie. For my mum."

"I'm sure Liz would be thrilled," Bonnie said, stroking the infant's back.

"Would you like to hold her?" Beth asked, already holding the baby out to her.

Bonnie accepted Lizzie with ease, holding her close and secure as the baby made sighing noises. She loved the feeling of the little being in her arms, "She's so precious."

"Look at you," Beth said quietly, looking at her friend with a smile, "you're a natural. It's a shame you don't have any of your own." Bonnie grimaced, and so did Beth immediately after saying it. "Oh, damn, Bon. I'm sorry. I haven't got my brain back yet."

"It's okay," Bonnie quickly reassured her, cuddling baby Lizzie. "I actually have been giving it some thought. I don't know about the biological aspect yet. But with Alec in my life, there are other ways to possibly have a family of my own. Alec actually brought the subject up himself the other night."

Beth's eyes widened comically, "What?"

Bonnie nodded with a blush and abashed smile of her own, "Yeah. Totally took me by surprise. I think he's worried that I really want kids, and he isn't sure if he wants more. He has a teenager he doesn't get to see much already."

"Well, that would be something to worry about, wouldn't it?" Beth mused aloud, glad to have something else to talk about other than the baby's sleep schedule or the trial.

Bonnie nodded, "He doesn't want me to give something up to be with him. He doesn't think he'd be worth it. But he also said he's not opposed."

"To another child?" Beth questioned.

"I think so," Bonnie said as she cradled Lizzie in her arms. "He's always been concerned with how older he is than I am. He's felt like sloppy seconds or something since he's already been a husband and father and he's kind of starting over with me now, and I haven't done the marriage or kids part of life before."

"If he feels like that, then why'd he even bring it up?" Beth asked curiously, settling into the cushions of the couch more to relax while Bonnie held her daughter. "You've been together less than a year. No offense."

Bonnie cooed as Lizzie gurgled on the inner crease of her elbow. "Ellie called, mentioned that you had Lizzie. Got him thinking, I guess."

"Wow," Beth murmured. "He's never seemed the type to open up those kinds of conversations."

"He surprises even me sometimes when he does," Bonnie smiled, thinking of him. "It was him who asked me to move in with him."

Beth's eyebrows shot up to her hairline, "Get out! I almost forget you're moving in with the grumpy DI!"

Bonnie blushed, "Actually, I've just finished moving myself in. I've hired Denise's replacement and she's going to start a lease on the apartment. I've never been certain about these kinds of things – relationships, futures. I had nothing but poor examples from my parents' relationship. But I'm certain about him."

"That's lovely," Beth patted her baby's head with a smile. "We owe him a lot. If things don't go completely wrong in court, we'll get justice because of him."

"Things will go just right in court," Bonnie assured her. "No one in this town is going to let him get away with what he's done."

Beth watched her friend handle her baby and smiled, "I think you'll make a great mum."

"There you go, ladies."

Ellie couldn't believe she was at a bar with Claire Ashworth. Lights were flickering all over the place and it was playing some standard pop song she'd never heard of. Luckily the other people were age appropriate and she didn't feel like somebody's mum.

Claire had no reservations as she took her drink, "Whoo!"

"I haven't been out drinking in Weymouth for years. Like a teenager," Ellie remarked, leaning against the bar.

"Tell me about court," Claire requested, spinning her straw in her fruity beverage.

Ellie sighed as she took another sip, "I have to sit there waiting. I'm not allowed to be told what is happening, so I keep looking at people's faces trying to read clues. I just keep thinking of Joe, my husband sitting there in the dock. It's just... just a nightmare, it won't stop."

Claire frowned, "I'm so sorry." She took another drink and asked more lightly, "Was it always Joe? Or did you ever have a thing for someone else?"

Ellie turned to the bar thoughtfully, "There was this bloke at work once. Years back. I really fancied him." She smiled remembering the moment the meet and how happy and peaceful he'd made her feel, how comfortable. "No, it wasn't that. I really wanted to marry him. I just knew first time we met, bam, really strong."

"So, why didn't you?" Claire asked almost frustrated.

But Ellie shrugged, "He was ten years older than me. Already had a wife."

Claire frowned, "Did you ever tell him?"

She shook her head, "No. I nearly told him at his leaving do. But I thought, what's the point?" She paused as she remembered his last day, fondly. "Funny thing was as he was leaving that night last thing he did, turned around and looked at me and he gave me this smile. Of all the people in there he turned, and he looked at me. I think about that quite a lot now."

"Why didn't you do something?" Claire asked, sounding exasperated, as if it was her own failing.

She shrugged again, "Just what happens, isn't it? Life sweeps by, and before you know what is going on, it's too late."

Claire smacked the bar and declared, "I need the loo," before wondering off towards the back of the bar.

As soon as the other woman was out of the way, Ellie started digging into her coat thrown over the chair and pulled out her mobile. She searched through her contacts and recent calls, taking them down in her own phone, before looking at her search history. It was all about Lee and the Sandbrook case. She quickly replaced the mobile back in the pocket, cursing when she almost dropped it to the ground before shooting back up in time for Claire to return.

The woman was none the wiser as she gave Ellie a secretive smile and whispered to her, "Um... Two blokes eyeing us up over my left shoulder."

"No," Ellie couldn't believe it, but followed Claire's head nod to two men standing at another table and checking them out rather obviously. Ellie led out an incredulous, "Oh, my god, you're right."

"Which one do you prefer?" Claire asked with a salacious smirk.

Ellie gaped and shook her head, "No, I can't. I've never done that before."

"Listen," Claire took her hand, "The world is screwing you over right now. You owe yourself something. When was the last time you had sex?"

Alec was just getting home and settling into his living around what was left of Bonnie's boxes on the floor when he looked out to see Lee Ashworth loitering outside. He got up to open the door. "We've got nothing more to say."

"I've got plenty to tell you," Lee stepped in with a bag of folders and papers that he pulled out and slapped on the table. "Notes, interviews, people's movements on that night. I knew you'd never want to clear my name, so I started working on it myself. Talking to people."

"And they spoke to you?" he asked skeptically.

"Well, I told 'em I was you," Lee replied.

Alec stopped short, "What?"

Lee only looked smug, "Yeah. I know what it's like to be you now. Suspicious all the time. Must be really... eating away at you. Especially when you are wrong." He spoke slowly and lowly, taunting Alec with every word.

"I should charge you with impersonating a police officer," Alec threatened. But not wanting to make a mess, he simply goaded the other man. "Go on, then."

Lee opened a file and held it out to him. It was information on Pippa and Lisa's fathers – brothers. "Ricky and David Gillespie. Dads of the two girls. Two dads, two brothers. You barely even looked at them."

"I did," Hardy contradicted him.

"Not far enough," Lee insisted. "Lisa told me Ricky made a move on her driving her home after baby-sitting."

"Made a pass at his niece?" Alec questioned.

Lee handed him another file, "What about this guy seen hanging around the estate?"

"Never even proved he existed," Alec argued with him. He knew Lee would do anything to pushed suspicion off of him.

"Reported by four separate women," Lee insisted.

"None of this is new," Alec pointed out, tossing the file back on the table.

Lee stared at him, eerily quiet now. "Why would I kill a 12-year-old girl?"

Alec stared right back. "Why was her pendant found in your vehicle?"

"We used to give her a lift to school, as a favor to Cate. So, it must have come off then," Lee explained.

Alec wasn't put off a bit. "She was wearing it the day she died."

Lee backed away, "You missed things."

Alec pointed to the door. "You need to go. Go on. Get out."

Lee pointed to the filed, "Look at that stuff. Look at the Gillespies. Look at that bloke hanging around the estate."

As Lee was making his way through the door, Alec made him pause when he asked, "Why did you send Claire a bluebell?"

Lee looked genuinely taken aback by the question, "What? How'd I do that from France? Do bluebells even grow in France?"

Ellie felt empty inside late into the night, watching her 'date' from the bar slink off to his car from the window of the guest room in Claire's house. She couldn't believe that she had asked him to say he loved her in the middle of it. Luckily, he hadn't heard her, way more concerned with his own pleasure than taking notes. He had been done with it all before she even felt a tingle, just frustration.

She was sitting up in her little bed when Claire peaked in with a couple mugs in her hand, whispering, "Hi."

"Hey. He's just gone," she whispered back.

"Lucky. Mine is still snoring." They shared a chuckle as Claire climbed into the bed with her and handed her the other mug of tea, "Here you are. Feel better?"

Ellie sighed, "No, it just sobered me up." She took a grateful sip of her tea and set it on the window sill before turning back to Claire who had laid down, "Claire, what happened that night?"

"I don't know," Claire tried to say.

"Claire."

Claire frowned into her tea, "Lee drugged me. He used to have that stuff Rohypnol. Got a little bottle off someone and he drugged me, and I woke up halfway through the night."

Ellie frowned at her, "That isn't what you told the police."

Claire tapped her fingernails against the mug, "No. I can just feel myself being pulled back into him, now that he's back..."

"Claire, tell me the truth. Where were you both the night those girls disappeared?"

"He drugged me. I woke up at 5:00am. He was cleaning. He was cleaning the whole house."

Things are moving along. I'll reward your patience with quicker updates now that my ducks are in a row.

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