Chapters (156)
- A DATE WITH DEATH
- Also by Mark Roberts
- A Date With Death
- Copyright Page
- Contents
- The Past
- 1977
- Day OneWednesday, 1st December 2021CatoptrophobiaFear of mirrors
- 1
- 2
- 3
- 4
- 5
- 6
- 7
- 8
- 9
- 10
- 11
- 12
- 13
- 14
- 15
- 16
- 17
- 18
- 19
- 20
- 21
- 22
- 23
- 24
- 25
- 26
- The Past
- 1979
- Day TwoThursday, 2nd December 2021OneirophobiaFear of dreams
- 27
- 28
- 29
- 30
- 31
- 32
- 33
- 34
- 35
- 36
- 37
- 38
- 39
- 40
- 41
- 42
- 43
- 44
- 45
- 46
- 47
- 48
- 49
- 50
- 51
- 52
- The Past
- 1980
- Day ThreeFriday, 3rd December 2021MonophobiaFear of being alone
- 53
- 54
- 55
- 56
- 57
- 58
- 59
- 60
- 61
- 62
- 63
- 64
- 65
- 66
- 67
- 68
- 69
- 70
- 71
- 72
- 73
- 74
- 75
- 76
- 77
- 78
- 79
- 80
- 81
- 82
- 83
- 84
- 85
- 86
- 87
- 88
- 89
- 90
- 91
- 92
- 93
- 94
- 95
- 96
- 97
- 98
- The Past
- 1982
- Day FourSaturday, 4th December 2021ThanatophobiaFear of Death
- 99
- 100
- 101
- 102
- 103
- 104
- 105
- 106
- 107
- 108
- 109
- 110
- 111
- 112
- 113
- 114
- 115
- 116
- 117
- 118
- 119
- 120
- 121
- 122
- 123
- 124
- 125
- 126
- 127
- 128
- 129
- 130
- 131
- 132
- 133
- 134
- 135
- 136
- 137
- About the Author
- An Invitation from the Publisher
‘I apologise for making you feel awkward. It certainly wasn’t my intention, Ms Maguire.’
There was something desolate in the air and Hendricks wondered if it was Ms Maguire or the large garage that radiated negativity.
‘Just as a matter of interest, do you own the house?’ asked Hendricks.
‘What kind of a question’s that?’
‘You might be a tenant. Your landlord might have a white van. I may need to talk to your landlord.’
‘I’ve lived here all my life. I own the house outright.’
‘Do you live alone?’
‘Yes. The house is customised for my needs. I know what you’re thinking, DS Hendricks. That’s an awfully big house for one woman.’
‘It’s none of my business. I was wondering if there was anyone else in the house because I’ve got questions to ask.’
‘Fire away.’
‘Have you seen a white van driving past your house, or on any of the streets around here?’
‘I’ve seen several white vans. People in the houses around here have workmen call to repair and decorate.’
Hendricks showed her the CCTV picture of the white van.
‘Have you seen this one?’
‘No. All the white vans round here have their owner’s name, trade and contact details advertising their services. There are no such distinguishing marks on the van you’re showing me. Can I close my garage up now, please?’
‘Sure. Thank you for your help, Ms Maguire.’
As she reversed herself out of the garage, Hendricks got the clearest sight of Norma Maguire’s face and her eyes were bloodshot and cloudy.
Hendricks walked down the path and felt sorry for her because it looked like she’d been crying for hours.
50
7.05 pm
Alone in the incident room, Clay looked closely at the first messages that Annie Boyd had sent to Richard Ezra, and the initial exchanges between Amanda Winton and Thomas Saddler.
Richard Ezra wrote: Hi, Annie. Thank you for winking at me. I love your profile.
Annie had replied: Hello, Richard. Great to hear from you. I love your profile too. You come over as a really fun guy.
Clay skipped over the short, initial exchanges, the polite yet probing messages, and came to Richard Ezra’s first substantial volley of words. She held the page under her desk light and read out loud, Hi Annie I’d be most grateful if we could have an initial dialogue with a view to getting to know each other better. Hopefully, you’ll be comfortable with…
She took the transcript supplied by Warrington, the exchange between Sandra O’Day and a man claiming to be Michael Towers, and picked out his first major line of attack.