CHAPTER ELEVEN

DO YOU TAKE ME?

Alec was getting lost in the memories of finding Pippa's freezing, water-soaked body as he showed Ellie the very site. Gesturing to their surroundings, he distracted himself with telling her about the area, "There's a narrow lane about 500 yards in that direction. This footpath and the lane were both examined by Forensics for tire tracks and footmarks, but they never got anything useful."

"It's a long way to carry a body without being noticed," she observed, hands in her pockets.

"This stretch was never used much, even by the dog walkers," he told her.

She pursed her lips, "So, the killer had enough local knowledge to realize the chances of being spotted were low."

He nodded, "Other access points are through those woods there. What time's Tom due in the box?"

Bonnie picked at the pilling of her father's knit sweater she wore as she stood with Mark and Beth, waiting for the day in court to begin. With her other hand, she chewed at her thumbnail. She was very nervous. Alec told her that morning that he'd scheduled the procedure for tomorrow. And he wanted her there. She told him there was nothing he could do to keep her away. She just hoped she didn't have a heart attack waiting for him to come out and wake up.

She was brought out of her thoughts when she noticed Tom. She still couldn't believe he was testifying. His Aunt Lucy kept hold of his hand as Abby walked them through the courthouse to the courtroom.

"Why have they called Tom?" Beth asked.

"Son's love for a father – that sort of thing, I expect," their junior barrister guessed aloud.

"We could have got back in time," Alec mentioned as they trekked through the woods.

Ellie averted her eyes sadly, "Tom said if I was there, he'd ask from the witness box for me to be removed."

"God, I'm sorry," he murmured.

After a pause, she asked, "Are you all right?"

He looked around, still haunted, "I walked through here just before I found Pippa."

"So how far are we from where the Gillespies live?" she asked.

He thought on it, "Err... Just over three miles."

"And you think Pippa's body could have been brought through here?" she wondered aloud.

"That's what I always thought but it was impossible to know," he said. "It was spring so this whole area was covered in bluebells."

"And Claire Ripley's being sent bluebells through the post," she observed.

"Or she's sending them to herself," he theorized. "Hiding it in a wardrobe in a guest room, where it might be found."

"Why would she do that?" Ellie didn't understand the motive in such behavior.

"To screw around with us," he sniped. "It's what they all do – her and Ashworth, even the Gillespies. I don't think any one of them told the whole truth."

"The stress they've put you under, do it to them and start with Claire," she suggested before her mobile beeped in her bag. She pulled it out and read the text from her sister with a sigh. "It's from Lucy. Tom's going in the witness box."

"Do you get along with your dad, Tom?"

Even questioning the young boy, Bonnie thought Bishop was being curt. But she didn't care. She just wanted to move through his testimony and get on with the real trial. She didn't want Tom to be so dragged into it all.

It was sad to see Tom looking longingly at his dad. "I love him."

"Has he ever made you do anything that made you feel uncomfortable?" Sharon asked.

"No."

"Were you aware of any contact between Danny and your dad?" she interrogated.

"No. Danny was my friend, not his," Tom disputed.

"The day Danny's body was found; how did your dad behave?" she carried on.

"Normally," Tom shrugged. "I got home from school and he made me tea."

"How was he the days after?" she added.

"He was upset... like we all were," he qualified.

Sharon then changed subjects entirely, "Now, how did you get to know Susan Wright?" confusing everyone.

Even Tom looked confused. "Erm... Right, I met her in the arcade. I liked her dog, Vince. She let me visit her caravan."

"Have you ever met anyone else in that caravan?"

Bonnie heard and felt Mark tense on the other side of Beth as he quickly tried to whisper to his wife, "Beth, listen..."

But he couldn't finish before the Judge gave him a silencing look and Tom answered. "Yes. Danny's dad, Mark."

Beth looked at her husband, completely shocked, "What's he talking about?"

"Nothing," Mark whispered.

"He said that... we could meet, and other people don't have to know," Tom said. It made it sound almost parallel to Joe and Danny – but Bonnie knew that wasn't the case.

"What did you do with Mark?" Sharon asked.

Tom shrugged, "We played FIFA on the PlayStation."

"Did you ever talk about Danny?"

"Yes. He said he was guilty," Tom revealed.

"Guilty of what?" Sharon prompted him.

Tom stared between Mark and his father, "He said... Danny's death was his fault."

She gaped, her jaw falling to the floor. Beth was gaping too. Even Mark's jaw fell open in disbelief as he whispered, "What?!"

Mark and Beth hovered in the stairwell. Beth looked up at him, seeing him about to fall apart. "That's where you were all those times I was calling."

"It made me feel close to Dan," he whispered, tears cascading down his face. Beth immediately leaned up to hug his neck and hold him close, letting him cry into her shoulder. "I'm sorry."

They pulled apart when they heard Jocelyn's echoing steps approaching. She didn't look impressed by the recent development, more frustrated. "It doesn't help me if I don't know these things."

Mark wiped at his face, "I never thought it would be a part of this. I'm sorry."

"Everything's a part of it, Mark," she insisted.

"What are you gonna do?" he asked, wondering where this left them.

Jocelyn sighed, "Try and take Tom Miller apart... kindly, precisely, so... the jury don't hate me... or you."

Alec listened to the phone start to ring out as he waited for Claire to answer. "Hello?"

"It's me," he greeted her in clipped tones. "I think – we are done."

"What?" Her voice piqued.

"I was protecting you from Lee, you don't want that anymore," he told her. "You keep changing your story about what happened. This isn't working, I need you to move out."

She started breathing quicker, sounding desperate, "Alec, where are you? Let's talk about this face-to-face."

"No, I'm giving you 48 hours."

"What's going on? You can't do that!" she yelled.

"I can. It's over, Claire. Okay?" He didn't wait for an answer before he hung up. It was probably best to get rid of her quickly whether this made her slip up or not. Claire was baggage he wanted to drop before he started his new life with Bonnie.

Jocelyn Knight kept her voice soft and gentle while talking to Tom. She couldn't be the bad guy and she didn't want to destroy this young boy who just wanted his family back together. "Tom, you know, don't you, that when someone is found guilty of murder they go to prison for a number of years?"

"Yes."

"You love your dad very much, don't you?" She tried to give him a gentle smile, make him feel safe.

Tom picked up that she was trying to get him to incriminate his father somehow, even if he didn't understand how. "He's a great dad."

"But you know that telling lies, even to protect someone you love, is wrong?" she told him more than asked him.

He frowned, "I'm not lying for my dad."

"Tom, I'm suggesting that that's exactly what you are doing," she said softly.

He shook his head, "No."

"Mark Latimer didn't say he killed Danny, did he?" she told him.

"He said he was guilty," Tom insisted with a whimper.

"Did he say he 'was' guilty, or he 'felt' guilty? There's a big difference," she asked him to qualify the truth, trying to get him to admit he was lying.

"My dad wouldn't have killed Danny," Tom hedged around the question, looking desperately to his father in the box.

She nodded along, "So let me ask you... has every single word you've said to this court been absolutely, 100% true? Tom?"

He averted his eyes, face red and eyes welling up, "I think so."

Jocelyn frowned as kindly as she could, "I'm sorry, 'I think so' isn't good enough. The court needs you to be certain. This isn't about your dad. This is about your friend Danny. Because Danny can't speak up for himself any more. So, our job is to find out what Danny would say if he was here. You see that, don't you, Tom?"

"Yes," he whimpered.

"We all want justice for Danny," she added. "So, let me ask you again. Has every word you've said here been 100% true? Did Mark Latimer say he 'was' guilty?"

Tom took a moment, struggling, staring at his father, at Jocelyn, at Sharon, at Mark. He finally caved and whispered, "No. I'm sorry," with a crack in his voice.

Quietly, Jocelyn nodded to him with a kind smile, "Thank you, Tom."

Alec's heel bounced on the floor of the small deli as he sat across from his ex-wife, channeling his DI persona. "I want the details of the stalker that was seen around the estate in the weeks before the girls disappeared."

She grinned, pulling out a flash drive and handing it over, "And against my better judgment I put all the statements – four sightings in the week before – on here."

"Thank you," he accepted it and put it in his pocket. "Plus, all CCTV collected from the case. And there's a company – Thorp AgriServices. If we could send a forensics team-"

She cut him off, "Uh-uh. Stop. No forensics teams, nothing official. I'm pushing as it is. Do not drop me in it."

He nodded, averting his eyes to the counter. "Erm... I'm going into hospital tomorrow – pacemaker."

Her face dropped, "Bloody hell. Are you all right with that?"

He nodded, "If anything happens, I've made a will."

"You are worried," she realized. "Have you told Daisy?"

He nodded. "Bonnie's agreed to keep her updated on things. And take care of things – should it be necessary."

"You two really are serious, aren't you?" she guessed. "She seemed like a wonderful woman. Daisy sang her praises after dinner."

He nodded again, fighting an awkward smile. "I've asked her to marry me."

Tess gaped at him, "You what? That was quick."

"No time to waste, is there?" he posited with a shrug, leaning back in his bench. "And this way she can be at the hospital with me without fuss. It's... time. It's right."

"I'm glad for you," Tess murmured. "Well erm... good luck."

"Right, these are the accounts for the last seven years," Ricky said as Ellie and Cate sat in the living room of the Gillespie house, dropping a pile of binders on the coffee table.

Ellie thanked him quietly before turning to Cate, "Oh, do you remember ever doing any work for a company called Thorp AgriServices?"

"I don't think so," the woman mumbled from the chair, glass of wine in hand.

Ricky looked at the dark red drink, "I'm surprised you remember anything, the amount of that you put away."

She looked up at him lethargically, "Are you still here?"

Sensing the tension mounting, Ellie looked around and grabbed a framed picture of Pippa, "Oh, that's a beautiful picture."

Cate smiled minutely, "It's my favorite one of her."

"And that pendant, is that the one that was found in Ashworth's car – the missing bit of evidence?" she asked.

"Yeah," Ricky said.

Knocking from the backyard door startled them to look over and see Alec there. "The side gate was open. Sorry, I got a bit delayed."

Ellie quickly stood, "Ah. Don't worry, I was just about to... go outside anyway." As the former detectives walked into the backyard, Ellie pulled her mobile out and clicked through it. "No texts, Lucy's not answering her phone, and Olly's not tweeting court updates."

"Well, maybe the court's still sitting," he told her, but he was worried to. He hadn't heard from Bonnie since the morning, and felt the case was spoiling their post-engagement bliss.

"I need to get back. I need to know what's happened," she murmured.

"Did you ask Cate about Thorp AgriServices?" he distracted her.

"Yeah, she denied all knowledge." Ellie watched as Alec walked to the gate separating Gillespie's yard from Claire and Lee's and felt along the wood. She asked, "What are you doing?" She understood when part of the gate gave way and opened like a door. She stepped up, peering into the next-door backyard. "Ah. Do all the gardens have those?"

"No, it was put in by Lee Ashworth. With Ricky and Cate's approval," he said, looking around.

"Why did they never have it removed? It's for kids to go in and out of each other's gardens, not grown-ups," she observed. "Lee and Claire didn't have any kids. Why have they got that?"

Ellie and Alec felt eyes on them and turned to see Cate standing in the door, just staring with her glass of wine in hand. Something weird had gone on. They were all lying.

It was late when Alec got home, seeing Bonnie curled up on the bed. Like she had some sort of radar on him, she instantly blinked her eyes awake when he walked in. She smiled when she saw him, "Hey. I wasn't sure you'd make it before morning."

"Got an early start on the road," he murmured lightly, sitting at her side on the bed. "How was court today?"

She sighed, "As well as it could've gone, I guess. Tom was trying to incriminate Mark – but Jocelyn stopped it. The jury knows he was lying. But now she's got to call Mark on the stand to explain his side. Apparently, he's been meeting Tom secretly in Susan's Wright's caravan."

"No bloody way," he reacted. "Why would he go and do that?"

"Beth said it made him feel closer to Danny, to be there for his best friend," she explained. "I get it. But I don't think it was a good idea. It looks bad at trial. I'm sure Bishop will be jumping for joy."

He sighed, laying his hand on hers, "You should go back to sleep."

"Only if you join me," she squeezed his hand with a smile. "You need your rest for tomorrow."

Bright and early, Ellie started on her way to Claire's house to see what she was doing. She pulled over when she saw Claire standing in the middle of the fields outside the little house. "Are you all right? What are you doing?"

"Has he told you what he's done?!" Claire shouted across the field.

Ellie nodded as she approached the other woman, "Yeah."

"Oh, right," the woman spat spitefully. "So, he's sent you along, has he? His pet, Ellie."

"I just came to see how you were doing," Ellie ignored her tone.

Claire scoffed, "I put my life in his hands and he dragged me here to this shithole – hid me away! I put my trust in him. I've done nothing wrong and he just drops me like that." She let out a huff, staring out at the grass before turning to Ellie and asked, "Can I come and live with you?"

Ellie grimaced, "That wouldn't work – I live in a tiny little studio flat near the station in Devon."

"What about your house in town?" Claire asked.

"No," Ellie denied her.

"Why not?" Claire asked selfishly.

"I don't want you living there," Ellie said.

"I thought we were friends," Claire rebutted. Like she couldn't believe Ellie wouldn't help her.

Ellie gave her a look of disbelief, "Really? I think you've been playing all of us."

Claire frowned, wounded, "Why would I do that?"

"I don't know," Ellie shrugged. She wasn't protecting Claire anymore – or believing in her.

"Well, I haven't done that," Claire denied. "I swear, I have not done that. And he's just jealous because I've slept with Lee."

"Why would he be jealous?" Ellie chuckled. "He's got Bonnie."

"Who?" Claire asked, eyes narrowing dangerously.

Ellie frowned curiously, "His girlfriend. He met her here in Broadchurch. They're living together."

Claire gaped, "He never mentioned her to me. This whole time."

Ellie changed the subject, "Look, either you want protecting from Lee or you don't. You can't have it both ways."

Claire looked away, "I said, when I see him, I just lose myself. It's... it's the sex, Ellie. It's just... something happens when we're together."

Ellie scoffed, "Oh, please. Have a little self-control." She shifted on her feet and said, "Look, if you want to be my friend, you tell me everything – the truth, past and present – and then maybe I'll have a little word with Hardy about you."

Claire nodded reluctantly, "Fine. I will. You come over and we'll talk. And maybe I can do your hair."

"What?" Ellie hadn't expected that request.

"Well, it's... I-I haven't done anybody's hair in a long time. Please?" she pleaded.

"All right," Ellie hesitantly agreed.

Bonnie was slightly surprised to feel Alec spooning her when they woke up. Often, she made to cuddle with him while they fell asleep, but they'd separate sometime overnight. But this morning, he was still close to her, clutching at her like a security blanket. As he groaned, she turned in his arms and gave him a sleepy kiss. "Are you ready for today?"

He sighed through his nose, cupping her cheek, "Are you?"

She held back her tears, "I love you. I believe this is the right choice. But I'm still scared."

"Oh, don't be. I'll be okay," he tried to assure her, voice still gruff. "Wish I could marry you first, but we don't have time."

"We'll have our wedding when you're better," she promised, giving him another kiss. "Let's get ready."

Alec and Bonnie got out of the cab and went their separate ways when Bonnie went to catch up with Beth, since Mark was going on the stand. Before she did, she gave Alec a squeeze and long kiss. "I'll meet you in the lobby when it's time to go, okay?"

"Don't worry about me," he agreed. "Give my love to Beth."

Bonnie nodded and caught up with Beth, walking with the other woman through security. "You know no matter what gets dragged up in there, it's down to Joe. Not you guys."

"I just don't want anything else to go wrong," Beth whispered as they made their way up to the courtroom. She and Bonnie clasped hands as they climbed the stairs with Nige coming up behind them. Beth stopped short when she felt the hard metal ring on Bonnie's finger and brought their hands up to investigate. Her eyes widened when she saw the ring. "What is that?"

Bonnie tried to wedge her hand back, "We don't have to talk about this now."

"Nuh uh, you're not getting away with that if it's good news," Beth said, trying to distract herself from everything she was going through. "Is that what I think it is?"

Bonnie smiled and blushed, "Yes. Alec proposed."

Beth let out a happy sound and hugged her friend, "I'm thrilled for you."

Bonnie hugged her back, "And he's getting the pacemaker today. We're leaving early for the operation."

"I hope everything goes well," Beth said as they finally walked into the courtroom and took their seats as Mark took the stand and said his affirmation.

"What the living fuck," Bonnie heard Beth curse and looked to see Becca Fisher taking a seat with Paul the Reverend. She sure did have some gall showing up.

"Mr. Latimer, how well do you know Nigel Carter?" Jocelyn jumped right in.

"Very well. He's worked with me four years now," Mark answered.

"Do you trust him?" Jocelyn asked.

Mark nodded without hesitation, "With my life. And my son's life."

Jocelyn nodded, "So, what do you say to the accusation that Susan Wright saw Nigel Carter carrying your son's body the night of his death?"

Mark hid a scowl, "She's obviously got two bald blokes mixed up, cos it wasn't Nige."

"Since Danny's death, have you been meeting Tom Miller?" Jocelyn switched subjects.

"Yeah, I have," Mark admitted, trying to reign in his overwhelming emotions. "I was trying to help him through this. But I should have thought it through a bit more. It... It looks a bit odd."

"Did you tell Tom Miller... that you were guilty of killing your son?" Jocelyn questioned him.

Mark shook his head sternly, "No. I said I 'felt' guilty... because I wasn't there for Dan."

"Where were you on the night of your son's death, Mr. Latimer?"

Mark paused, seeing the blonde woman in the stands, "I was with Becca Fisher – the owner of the Traders Hotel."

"Were you having an affair?"

"No," he shook his head. "It was the first time anything had... happened."

"Did you have sex that night?"

It was awful that all this dirty laundry had to be aired not only in front of police, friends, but strangers.

"Yes."

"Where?"

"In her car."

"Then what did you do?" Jocelyn questioned.

"Then she drove me back to the cliff-top car park. I picked up my car and... we went our separate ways," Mark described.

"And did you go home immediately?"

They still had to account for the missing hour of his alibi. Jocelyn hoped that whatever it was wouldn't hurt their case.

He shook his head, answering honestly, "No, it was... about an hour, an hour and a half later."

"Where did you go during that time?" she asked. But Mark averted his eyes, hesitating. "Mr. Latimer, where were you?"

Mark took a deep breath, "I drove through the vale. And I parked up on the hill. And I started writing this – I dunno – note, letter."

"A letter to whom?" Jocelyn asked. She hadn't known this before.

He took a moment before answering, "To Beth, my wife." He didn't want to talk about this. It didn't matter anymore. But even Beth told him just to tell the truth. This was for Danny. To get justice for him.

Jocelyn pursed her lips, "Why would you be writing a letter to your wife at that time of the morning?"

Mark almost cried as he revealed, "I was saying it was over."

Bonnie held in her gasp of surprise as she saw the complete devastation on Beth's face and reached over to wrap her arm around her shoulders. "It's okay. It didn't happen."

"That I'd met someone else, that our marriage was done. I'd gone a bit mad. I was like... like a kid of 14, giddy with a fling. I'm not proud."

Beth couldn't take it anymore and clamored off of her seat, rushing for the door. Bonnie quickly followed after her, cushioning the new mother's fall as she collapsed in the stairwell, leaning heavily against the glass of the window-wall next to her and sobbing loudly.

Bonnie put her hands-on Beth's knees and tried to comfort her, "Beth, honey, it's all right..."

Ellie raced down the stairs and instantly sat down next to Beth, acting as if they had never fallen out. She readily took Beth to cry in her arms, "Come on, Beth. Come here. Beth, come on. Come here. Come here. It's all right. It's all right." Beth didn't even seem to realize that she hated Ellie at the moment, sobbing and screaming. "It's not Mark. This is not Mark. This is Joe doing this to us. We won't let him win, okay?"

During recess, once Beth had calmed down, Bonnie was reluctant to say her goodbyes and run off to meet Alec. But Beth said, "You need to hold onto your happiness and be there for him, because he's being that for you," and waved her off.

Alec asked, "How is she?" when she found him waiting outside with his bag all ready.

"She's really torn up," Bonnie sighed. "This is the worst thing." She took his hand as they made their way to the curb to flag down their cab. "But we need to focus on you now."

"I'll be fine," he told her as they climbed into the cab and headed off.

"I'm just being a worry-wort, I know," she kept her hand in his unwaveringly. "I'm supposed to be annoyingly optimistic – but this is your life we're dealing with."

He hugged her shoulders with his arm as they neared the hospital. Bonnie felt more and more anxious as they got closer. She suddenly turned to Alec, "Look at me."

He turned to her, seeing the change in her face and asked, concerned, "What is it?"

"Alec Hardy, do you take me, for better or worse, 'til death do us part?" she asked, staring into his eyes.

He let his smile spread far enough to crinkle his eyes, "Yes, I do."

She gave him a look, "Now you ask me..."

With a low chuckle, he obeyed, "Bonnie Irving, do you take me, for better or worse, 'til death do us part?"

"Hell yes, I do," she whispered with a large smile on her face as the cab pulled up to the hospital loading area. She lifted her head up to give him a searing kiss, pouring all her love, worry, and well-wishes into it before she pulled away. "I love you, now my unofficial husband. So, you have to fight to make it through all of this and come back to your unofficial wife. So, we can make it official as soon as possible."

"I promise you I will," he whispered, kissing her again.

After Alec and Bonnie left, Ellie walked Beth over to Nige and Jocelyn before storming into the lobby where Tom and Lucy were waiting around.

Lucy tried to impede her, "Now, Ell, before you say anything-"

But Ellie was a woman on a mission. "I don't want to talk to you." She marched right up to her son, "Sit down." When he didn't do anything, she shouted, "Sit down!" startling him enough to obey her and sit on the bench behind him. Overcome with grief, frustration, and ultimately painful disappointment, she started lecturing him the way only a mother could, "Do you see what you put Mark and Beth through?! He wouldn't be up there if it wasn't for you. I know you want to protect your father, but he is a murderer and a shit, and he deserves none of your feelings for him. Look what you ended up doing! You lied, on oath, in a court of law and I hope you're ashamed! Are you?" She only paused a moment before bellowing, "ARE YOU?!"

Ashamed, Tom answered her meekly, "Yes. Yes, Mum."

Ellie sniffed loudly and spoke quieter, but still angry and still without any room for argument in her voice, "You are coming home with me tonight back to the house."

Tom immediately tried to deny her, "No, we're not cos-"

But she was done taking orders from her son, "Yes we are because I am your bloody mother! If I have to drag you kicking and screaming, I will! Your father has done enough damage and I will not let him destroy us! Do you understand?!"

Tearful, but seeing his mother so determined to have him back did touch him. "Yes, Mum."

Ellie held back her tears, "Right, that's... good." She shared a look with Lucy, her older sister giving her a smile, and walked off back towards the courtroom.

...

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