Page 77 of Vengeance is Mine

‘So, everyone at work knew him as Rupert Griffiths, not Dominic?’

‘Yes. It’s not a crime, is it?’

‘No. No, it’s not. And nobody at work twigged his real identity?’

‘If they did, he didn’t tell me about it.’

‘Were there any incidents at work, anything that you can think of which might have led to someone wanting to kill him?’

‘I thought you said it was a burglary gone wrong?’ Dawn said, as she opened the Twix.

‘That’s one theory. Obviously, given Dominic’s past, we can’t rule out the possibility of a vigilante.’

Dawn closed her eyes and shook her head. When she opened them, a tear rolled down her cheek.

‘At the back of my mind, I always feared something like this would happen.’ Her voice was softer. ‘Whenever we went out anywhere together, I’d constantly be on my guard, looking around for people who might recognise him. I got a bit paranoid about it at times. I wanted him to live a normal, happy life. I didn’t want anyone ruining it for him.’

‘And did they?’

‘No. It didn’t stop me worrying though.’

‘How did he manage to get the house on Atlantic Road?’

‘His dad found it for him.’

‘His dad?’ Terry looked confused. ‘I was led to believe Anthony Griffiths didn’t want anything to do with his son.’

‘He didn’t, but that halfway house Dominic was staying at wasn’t ideal. Also, a few of the people there took against him, who he was, despite them being murderers themselves. A couple of them attacked him. Anthony saw the house was for rent and told me about it. I set the wheels in motion.’

‘It’s nice to know he had people around who were there for him,’ Terry said, though it stuck in his throat to have any sympathy for someone who had murdered and cut up his best friend.

‘I was disgusted at first, when I discovered my dad was a killer, but I could see he was sorry for what he’d done. He genuinely wanted to repent. I think he did.’

‘Despite always maintaining his innocence?’

‘Despite being unable to remember the truth,’ Dawn corrected him.

‘The compensation claim,’ Terry said. ‘The amount was never disclosed in the press.’

‘No. We all discussed it and thought it was best to keep as much of it private as possible. We didn’t want Harry and Barbara getting more upset.’

‘How much was it?’

Dawn paused. ‘It was a million pounds. Obviously, Dominic didn’t get that amount. His solicitor took a cut and there were fees to pay.’

‘Huh. But he must have received a substantial amount.’

‘He did,’ she said, her face impassive.

‘Yet he was still living in a rented semi on Atlantic Road.’

‘Yes. He liked it there.’

‘Forgive me, but I’ve been in Dominic’s house. Apart from the big TV, there’s nothing there that screams luxury.’

Dawn sighed. ‘When you’ve been in prison for twenty years, simply having a door on the toilet is classed as a luxury. There was nothing Dominic wanted beyond a decent-sized TV and a few books.’

‘What was he planning to do with the compensation payout?’