After the Accident: A compelling and addictive psychological suspense novel Read online

  After the Accident

  A compelling and addictive psychological suspense novel

  Kerry Wilkinson

  Books by Kerry Wilkinson

  Standalone novels

  After the Accident

  Close to You

  A Face in the Crowd

  The Wife’s Secret

  The Death and Life of Eleanor Parker

  Last Night

  The Girl Who Came Back

  Two Sisters

  Ten Birthdays

  The Jessica Daniel series

  The Killer Inside (also published as Locked In)

  Vigilante

  The Woman in Black

  Think of the Children

  Playing with Fire

  The Missing Dead (also published as Thicker than Water)

  Behind Closed Doors

  Crossing the Line

  Scarred for Life

  For Richer, For Poorer

  Nothing But Trouble

  Eye for an Eye

  Silent Suspect

  The Unlucky Ones

  A Cry in the Night

  Short Stories

  January

  February

  March

  April

  The Andrew Hunter series

  Something Wicked

  Something Hidden

  Something Buried

  Silver Blackthorn

  Reckoning

  Renegade

  Resurgence

  Other

  Down Among the Dead Men

  No Place Like Home

  Watched

  Available in Audio

  Close to You (Available in the UK and the US)

  A Face in the Crowd (Available in the UK and the US)

  The Wife’s Secret (Available in the UK and the US)

  The Death and Life of Eleanor Parker (Available in the UK and the US)

  Last Night (Available in the UK and the US)

  The Girl Who Came Back (Available in the UK and the US)

  Two Sisters (Available in the UK and the US)

  Contents

  Author’s Note

  Introduction

  Chapter One

  Chapter Two

  Chapter Three

  Chapter Four

  Chapter Five

  Chapter Six

  Chapter Seven

  Chapter Eight

  Chapter Nine

  Chapter Ten

  Chapter Eleven

  Chapter Twelve

  Chapter Thirteen

  Chapter Fourteen

  Chapter Fifteen

  Chapter Sixteen

  Chapter Seventeen

  Chapter Eighteen

  Chapter Nineteen

  Chapter Twenty

  Chapter Twenty-One

  Chapter Twenty-Two

  Chapter Twenty-Three

  Chapter Twenty-Four

  Chapter Twenty-Five

  Chapter Twenty-Six

  Chapter Twenty-Seven

  Chapter Twenty-Eight

  Chapter Twenty-Nine

  Chapter Thirty

  Chapter Thirty-One

  Chapter Thirty-Two

  Chapter Thirty-Three

  Chapter Thirty-Four

  Chapter Thirty-Five

  Chapter Thirty-Six

  Chapter Thirty-Seven

  Chapter Thirty-Eight

  Chapter Thirty-Nine

  Chapter Forty

  Author’s Note

  The Final Word

  The Girl Who Came Back

  Hear More from Kerry

  Books by Kerry Wilkinson

  The Killer Inside

  A Face in the Crowd

  The Wife’s Secret

  Last Night

  Two Sisters

  The Death and Life of Eleanor Parker

  Ten Birthdays

  Close to You

  After the Accident publishing team

  Author’s Note

  On a Friday night two years ago, British businessman Geoffrey McGinley was standing on a cliff, looking out towards the Mediterranean. He was on the island of Galanikos, a place he had visited numerous times in the past. A short while later, his unconscious body was found on the beach below.

  This book attempts to unravel what happened through the eyes of the people who were there.

  For reasons that will become apparent, some of the interviews for this book took place on the island close to the time of the incident. Others happened afterwards in the United Kingdom. Aside from minor edits to remove hesitations and repetitions, everything has been transcribed accurately and faithfully. Where participants opted not to give a response, this has been noted.

  All names have been changed to protect those involved.

  Introduction

  Emma McGinley (daughter of Geoffrey McGinley): Of course I know what happened the night Dad went over the cliff.

  Daniel Dorsey (business partner of Geoffrey McGinley): I’ll bet Emma already told you what she thinks happened to her dad. She did, didn’t she? Always full of opinions, that one. Full of herself, too. I wouldn’t be so opinionated if I’d done what she’d done. She told you about that, has she? Bet she hasn’t. Likes to keep it quiet. It’s her mum and dad I feel sorry for. Imagine having a daughter like that and knowing what she did. I can’t believe she has the brass neck to talk ill of others. I’d be keeping my head down if I were her.

  Emma: He’ll deny it forever – but that’s just the way he is. He’s never been good with telling the truth. Sometimes I wonder if he knows what truth is. It’s not just that he lies, it’s that he’s so good at it. He convinces himself that one thing is true, even though it isn’t. You read about people being able to pass lie detector tests – and I reckon he could pass one, even though we both know what he did.

  Sorry, what was the question? Do I know what happened that night?

  Yes. Yes I do.

  Chapter One

  Day One

  THE TRIO OF CABS

  Emma: Dad was shouting into his phone. He was like the stereotypical Brit abroad. The type of guy who bellows ‘English!’ to some waiter, even though it’s a Greek resort. I remember him talking really slowly, as if it was a child on the other end. He kept saying ‘three taxis’ over and over. Then he went: ‘Not two taxis, not four taxis, I ordered three taxis.’ I was so embarrassed. We were standing on the kerb outside the airport terminal. We’d been in the country for less than an hour and I already wanted to go home.

  Julius McGinley (son of Geoffrey McGinley, older brother of Emma McGinley): It was a right cock-up. The usual thing when you go abroad. Dad had ordered three taxis to pick us up at the airport and there were none there. Galanikos is an island: how much traffic can there be?

  Daniel Dorsey: Total cock-up.

  Emma: I’d started to walk away, then Dad shouted that the taxis would be about fifteen minutes. I think there were ten of us standing on the kerb with our cases. There was Mum, Dad, me, Julius and the twins – that’s six. Then there was Daniel and Liz, plus Victor and Claire. I still don’t know why Dad invited his business partner and wife, plus their grown-up kid. I was at the point where I didn’t ask too many questions.

  Daniel Dorsey: Geoff said he thought of Liz and myself as family, so he asked if Liz, me, Victor and Vic’s wife wanted to come along. I think it was Beth’s idea. Geoff always did what Beth told him. We could hardly say no.

  Emma: It was so hot. One of those days where there are no clouds in the sky and it doesn’t feel like there’s anywhere to hide from the sun. I
t had been wet in England – typical, I know – so I’d gone from that to feeling my skin tingling just from being outside. We’d been on a plane, so nobody was wearing sunscreen. I didn’t want to burn.

  Chloe McGinley (Aged 8. Granddaughter of Geoffrey and Bethan McGinley, daughter of Julius McGinley, niece of Emma McGinley, sister to Amy McGinley): I didn’t like that Grampa was shouting. It was really hot, so I asked Dad if we could go to the shop.

  Emma: There was a shop outside the terminal, selling the type of tat that you get in resorts. Julius said he wanted to get the girls out of the sun, so he took them over to the shop. I ended up following, mainly to get away from Dad.

  The best thing was the air conditioning. Going inside was like being punched in the face, but in a good way – if that’s a thing. A good punch in the face. That’s the only reason I spent any time inside the shop because I didn’t buy anything.

  Right by the door, there were three spinning racks dedicated to fridge magnets, plus an entire aisle where the shelves were full of dreamcatchers. I can’t believe anyone actually spends money on that stuff, but I guess they must. There were towels and plates, plus racks of booze, obviously. Chloe and Amy were dragging their dad around the shop and Julius was trying to stop them touching things on the shelves. You know what kids are like.

  Chloe: I didn’t touch anything!

  Emma: The twins had found this necklace on a shelf close to the counter. It was made of leather twine and had these little ivory horn-shaped things stitched into it. I don’t think they were actually made of ivory. I hope not. It was the type of thing I can imagine someone on a gap year wearing on a beach while they talk about how they’ve really started to get into Vonnegut.

  I think it was Amy who picked it up. I’d not seen the twins in a while and, even before that, I wasn’t always a hundred per cent about which was which. That sounds bad, doesn’t it? Sometimes, when you look at them, it’s obvious which is Amy and which is Chloe. Chloe leans forward a little more when she’s speaking and Amy has this way of smiling, as if she already knows what you’re about to say. I think it depends on the angle, or the light. Every now and then, I’ll see them together and I can’t tell who is who.

  Amy McGinley (Aged 8. Granddaughter of Geoffrey and Bethan McGinley, daughter of Julius McGinley, niece of Emma McGinley, sister to Chloe McGinley): Sometimes we pretend to be each other. Even Dad gets confused sometimes.

  Emma: Let’s say it was Amy. She had figured out that she could blow into the horns on the necklace and it would make this whooshing sound. It’s hard to describe. Julius put it on – I think as a joke – and, whenever he turned around, the necklace made the sound. Chloe and Amy thought it was hilarious.

  Julius: I don’t remember a necklace.

  Amy: The necklace sounded like a bird whenever Dad moved about. I wonder what happened to it.

  Emma: The twins were laughing, so Julius bought the necklace. It was twenty or thirty euros: a ridiculous price for what it was. I think the shop owner expected Julius to haggle – but he paid whatever the guy said. Julius has always been like that with money – make it, spend it.

  Julius was putting on the necklace next to the counter but, as he was straightening, he winced, like there was a pain in his side.

  Julius: Pain in my side? I don’t remember anything, but it was probably just a strain, or something. I’d have got it playing five-a-side, or maybe volunteering. I’m always helping out with something.

  Emma: By the time we got out of the shop, the first taxi had appeared. Dad was shouting ‘three taxis’ at the driver because, apparently, that makes things happen quicker. I told Mum she should get in the cab, what with her condition and everything. She said: ‘Don’t be so silly, I’m not dead yet.’

  She was quite defiant at that point. Mum never wanted to talk about the diagnosis and basically pretended it wasn’t there. She’d always been like that – putting everyone first, except herself. When we were growing up, she would always make sure that Julius and myself had eaten before she had something. I remember she once missed an Elton John concert because Dad had tickets to go to Silverstone. She loved Elton John and had always wanted to see him live – but then Dad said a mate had given him Grand Prix tickets, so they ended up going to that. She didn’t even query it.

  So it was no surprise that, even in the heat at the airport, she told Julius he should take the taxi to get the girls out of the sun. I thought he’d insist that Mum should go first, but he shrugged and then got inside with the girls.

  I remember looking across to Daniel and he seemed pretty annoyed by it all. He’s used to getting his own way and I can’t imagine him waiting for much.

  Daniel: I was worried about Liz. That sun was very hot. She should have definitely been in that first cab.

  Emma: Dad was marching up and down the pavement, muttering about when the next taxi would arrive. Daniel was busy doing nothing – because that’s what Daniel does. I don’t know what Liz and the rest were up to, but I was with Mum. It’s not a busy airport, but one of those big planes took off and there was a huge roar. It was so loud, it was like you could feel it, rather than hear it. Like the whole world was quaking. I remember Mum looking up, watching the plane go overhead, and she seemed so frail and small. It was her neck where you could see it the most. There were indents and dimples, almost like she was permanently breathing in. I think that was the first time where I really, really understood what was going to happen to her. After you get a diagnosis like she had, it’s all words at first. A doctor will say that something is going to happen, but it doesn’t necessarily mean much. Then I saw her like that and it was like everything was real.

  Liz Dorsey (wife of Daniel Dorsey): Beth was starting to look really thin by the time we got to Galanikos. She kept trying to say she was fine, so I didn’t push her. If she wanted to talk about it, then she would.

  Emma: I was trying to think of something to say – but then Mum started to talk. She goes: ‘Nine years, hey? I never thought we’d be back.’

  We both looked across to the terminal and the statue that sits in front. It’s this giant bird-thing. A gull, maybe? When I was a girl and we used to visit, I remember that I always wanted to climb on it. It seemed so big back then, but, as I got older, I guess I realised it wasn’t.

  After what happened the last time we were all on Galanikos, I never thought we’d go back. I was thirty-three by the time of this holiday and so much had happened in those nine years.

  It was probably the familiarity of that airport that brought it all back for Mum. We’d visited the island so many times when I was growing up – and then, after everything with Alan, we stopped.

  Mum goes: ‘It’s nice to all be together as a family.’ I suppose I’d not thought of the holiday like that until she said it. It’s probably because family has never meant as much to me as it did to her.

  I know that sounds bad. People will probably hate me for it – but I can’t pretend to be someone I’m not. Mum loved her kids and grandkids. She enjoyed having everyone around her – but I was always happier when it was just me and her. Or, when he was in a good mood, when it was just me and Dad.

  Mum once told me that she’d always wanted a huge family, five or six kids. I asked her why she’d only had two, but she never really answered. I think it was probably Dad…

  Then, later, she didn’t say it, but I know she’d have loved more grandkids. She adored Chloe and Amy, and she completely doted on them. She never said it out loud because that wasn’t her way, but I know she’d have wanted me to try for children again. I think… um…

  … Sorry, can you stop the recording? I need a minute.

  Julius: Mum couldn’t wait to be on holiday with the girls. She’d spent weeks telling them about the hotel, the pool and the slides. They were more excited about the all-you-can-eat buffet. Mum had told them there was unlimited ice cream and they couldn’t believe it.

  Emma: I didn’t know how to reply to her. I don’t know if she expected
a response, or if she was just talking. I was thinking that I shouldn’t have come, that the last thing I wanted was for everyone to be together again as a family.

  I didn’t tell anyone this at the time, but I deliberately chose a seat on the plane that was a few rows away from everyone else. When we all compared boarding cards, I shrugged and said it must have just worked out like that – but, really, I didn’t want to be with everyone else. I couldn’t stand it. I was embarrassed, if you want the truth. We used to have family get-togethers all the time – and then we didn’t. It was my fault, obviously – and everyone knew it.

  After all, we could hardly have had a big Sunday meal together while I was in prison.