If you are a male law enforcement type who has been married for at least a decade, you can expect your wife to die or disappear pretty soon. If you have an only daughter, this will likely happen just after she goes to college. It might be an accident, a natural disaster, a mob hit, or a kidnapping gone wrong. Or else she will just walk out and disappear on her own, but turn up after a few years when you’re already involved with someone else. This applies to everyone from George Gently to Roy Grace to Jimmy Perez to Andy Taylor.
If you’re a female law enforcement type, you’ll just have a messy divorce and be left with 2-4 elementary-age children. Your mother will take care of them while you’re out catching murderers and sleeping with someone in your office.