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
‘It ignited an information storm from his end. He didn’t want to get hurt again because death had stolen his wife. The last thing he would ever do was hurt another human being because he had been through so much. He had previously claimed he was single. Annie wanted to know why he hadn’t told her he was a widower. He didn’t want to make emotional capital out of his misfortune. He wasn’t playing the sympathy card. She gave him her number and he called her back.’
‘We’ve got his number?’ asked Clay.
‘Sorry, Eve, no, we haven’t. We haven’t got an IP address and we haven’t got a phone number. She gave him her mobile number. The plan was for him to call her.’
‘Did he give any reason why he couldn’t leave his number with her?’
‘The gentlemanly thing to do is for me to call you. Which translated into: It was his suggestion that they speak one to one, it was his responsibility as a gentleman to call her.’
‘The sly bastard. He must’ve planned well in advance for this day coming. Whose was the parting shot? Him or her?’
‘Him. After the practical arrangements, Annie asked him if he minded her asking a question about the death of his wife and his grief.’
‘What did she ask, Poppy?’
‘Is it possible to die of a broken heart?’
‘What was his reply?’
‘It is better to have loved and lived and to learn to love again.’
‘Screenshot everything Annie had with these two characters and send it to me and everyone else in the investigation. Liaise with Barney Cole. We need to get on to Pebbles On The Beach. We need everything they’ve got on Danny Guest and Richard Ezra. It’s one man playing as a tag team. Danny does the dirty on Annie and Richard comes in on a white charger.’
‘No problem, Eve. Do you want me to unlock the rest of Annie’s internet history?’
‘You’ve just saved me from issuing an instruction. Thank you, Poppy. I know what I’m looking for now if this man gets in touch with one of us. We’ll all know what we’re dealing with.’
33
10.33 am
Detective Sergeant Barney Cole looked at the image that the killer had sent to Annie Boyd, the one forwarded to him by Clay.
Mr Handsome.
He pulled up Google Reverse Image Search and clicked on Copy Image URL.
When Google Images filled the screen of his laptop, he clicked on the camera icon.
Richard Ezra. The name the killer hid behind as he lured Annie Boyd to her death.
He clicked Post to URL and Search by Image.
Rain fell down in sheets on the windows that surrounded the incident room in Trinity Road police station, flattening the world outside the building.
Blue letters appeared at the top of the screen.