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Chapters (86)
  1. Title Page
  2. CONTENTS
  3. Love
  4. Before
  5. One
  6. ONE
  7. Two
  8. TWO
  9. Three
  10. THREE
  11. Four
  12. FOUR
  13. Five
  14. FIVE
  15. Six
  16. SIX
  17. Seven
  18. SEVEN
  19. Eight
  20. EIGHT
  21. Nine
  22. NINE
  23. Ten
  24. TEN
  25. Eleven
  26. ELEVEN
  27. After
  28. One
  29. ONE
  30. Two
  31. TWO
  32. Three
  33. THREE
  34. Four
  35. FOUR
  36. Five
  37. FIVE
  38. Six
  39. SIX
  40. Seven
  41. SEVEN
  42. Eight
  43. EIGHT
  44. Nine
  45. NINE
  46. Ten
  47. TEN
  48. Eleven
  49. ELEVEN
  50. Twelve
  51. TWELVE
  52. Thirteen
  53. THIRTEEN
  54. Fourteen
  55. FOURTEEN
  56. Fifteen
  57. FIFTEEN
  58. Sixteen
  59. SIXTEEN
  60. Seventeen
  61. SEVENTEEN
  62. Eighteen
  63. EIGHTEEN
  64. Nineteen
  65. NINETEEN
  66. Twenty
  67. TWENTY
  68. Twenty-One
  69. TWENTY-ONE
  70. Twenty-Two
  71. TWENTY-TWO
  72. Twenty-Three
  73. TWENTY-THREE
  74. Twenty-Four
  75. TWENTY-FOUR
  76. Twenty-Five
  77. TWENTY-FIVE
  78. Twenty-Six
  79. TWENTY-SIX
  80. Twenty-Seven
  81. TWENTY-SEVEN
  82. Twenty-Eight
  83. TWENTY-EIGHT
  84. Eleven Months Later
  85. ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS
  86. Copyright

Look at that guy Dev and I reaped in the library – Charlie Graham. He was just doing research for his essay on the Domesday Book and BOOM. He was gone. The same thing could happen to Poppy. The shock of all this could trigger some secret heart defect she doesn’t know about. The sky could fall or the sea could rise up over the railing and snatch her away and how am I going to stop it?

How am I going to save her?

Poppy waits for the lorry to pass then darts across the road. I try to do the same, but the lorry is there and I feel Esen’s hand on my arm again as I wait for what feels like forever for it to pass. When it does, Poppy is on the other side of the road and I run towards her as she heads for Chichester Terrace. I follow, knowing now where she’s going – home – just like I did the night I woke up on the sofa in the bookshop. But before I reach her, a woman walking a small, fluffy black and white dog approaches and I stop before I trip over its lead.

The woman apologises, then apologises again when the dog starts barking fiercely. ‘They sense evil.’ Esen nods at the dog as it struts away, taking the owner with it, but I ignore her, looking for Poppy who is almost home now. I start running, reaching her as she’s putting her key in the front door. I don’t hesitate and follow her up the steps, stopping as she nudges it open with her hip. She leaves it open and I take it as an invitation to come in as she turns on the light and tosses the keys on the table under the mirror.

‘Is this where you live?’ Esen asks when she wanders in.

Poppy doesn’t look at her. ‘Where my parents live.’

‘Holy shit,’ Esen mutters. This is a house? A whole house?’

She just shrugs.

Esen raises her eyebrows and whistles. ‘Oh, so you’re rich, rich.’

‘My parents are.’

‘Are they home?’ I ask, wondering how we’re going to explain all of this to them.

‘How would she even know?’ Esen laughs. ‘This must be at least three storeys.’

‘Four, actually. And the flat downstairs.’

‘Fuck-ing hell.’

‘I’m glad you’re impressed. It’s a waste. They’re never here. Like now, they’re in Paris for my father’s fiftieth.’

‘When do they get back?’ I ask and wonder if she’s thinking the same thing.

If they’ll be back in time.