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
‘Like you say, it was before you were born, Philip. I was much younger, and he seemed to have given up on being a free man. It was like he wanted me to arrest him, like he’d had enough of the terrible things he was doing to people, like he was tired of the life he was living.’
‘What…?’
‘You know the rule, Philip. What happens out there stays out there. There’s no need for us to discuss the details behind our front door. This is our sanctuary. But I will tell you one thing. The building wasn’t burning when I entered it. The fire broke out when I was inside, and the only way out was through that fire.’
‘You didn’t get badly burned?’
‘A few scorch marks and some singed hair. The word miracle flew around the papers for a few days and then it was all forgotten when the next, bigger, better story came along.’
Anxiety crossed Philip’s face.
‘Philip,’ said Thomas. ‘You’ve nothing to worry about. Your mum wouldn’t take an unnecessary risk. She can’t. She’s got you to think about now.’
‘Of course I wouldn’t take any big chance.’ She squeezed her son tightly. ‘So you get rid of your sad face. OK?’
‘Promise?’ pressed Philip.
‘I promise you.’ She changed the subject in a heartbeat. ‘Are Everton at home this weekend?’
‘Oh, yeah,’ replied Philip. ‘Me and Dad are going. We’ll be in the Lower Bullens, cheering the lads on, like we always do. It’s a shame you can’t come with us, Mum.’
Inside her coat, Clay felt the vibration of an incoming call on her iPhone. She connected and said, ‘Bill, what’s up?’
She stood up and walked into the hall, looked at herself in the full-length mirror on the wall.
There was silence at the other end and she rechecked the HENDRICKS on the display.
‘Bill, are you there?’
‘There’s been another body found. Same MO as Annie Boyd. On the public footpath between Allerton Towers and the golf course, off Menlove Avenue.’
‘I’ll be there in ten minutes.’ She disconnected and said, ‘Philip, Thomas…’
‘I know,’ said Thomas, following Philip from the living room into the hall. ‘You’ve got to go.’
As she opened the front door, she felt Philip’s hand on her back. She turned and looked at him.
‘Don’t take any risks. You promised.’
17
4.05 pm
The basement.
The Ghoul.
The Ghoul’s eyes opened slowly under a naked red light, and in a room full of shadows, there were only two sounds that mattered. The constant rhythm of the skipping rope hitting the floor and the slap of bare feet that followed the connection of skipping rope to floor.
Eyes closed, The Ghoul blocked out the noises in the room and focused on something superior. The sounds inside, the beat of a huge heart and the blood pumping inside.