BooksBarbecue
Back Cut to the Bone Save as PDF
Chapters (71)
  1. Cover
  2. Praise for Cut to the Bone
  3. About the Author
  4. Also by Roz Watkins
  5. Note to Readers
  6. Dedication
  7. 1
  8. 2
  9. 3
  10. 4
  11. 5
  12. 6
  13. 7
  14. 8
  15. 9
  16. 10
  17. 11
  18. 12
  19. 13
  20. 14
  21. 15
  22. 16
  23. 17
  24. 18
  25. 19
  26. 20
  27. 21
  28. 22
  29. 23
  30. 24
  31. 25
  32. 26
  33. 27
  34. 28
  35. 29
  36. 30
  37. 31
  38. 32
  39. 33
  40. 34
  41. 35
  42. 36
  43. 37
  44. 38
  45. 39
  46. 40
  47. 41
  48. 42
  49. 43
  50. 44
  51. 45
  52. 46
  53. 47
  54. 48
  55. 49
  56. 50
  57. 51
  58. 52
  59. 53
  60. 54
  61. 55
  62. 56
  63. 57
  64. 58
  65. 59
  66. Extract
  67. Prologue
  68. Chapter 1
  69. Author’s note
  70. Acknowledgements
  71. About the Publisher

She could feel his arm creeping round the back of her, trying to draw her in, and suddenly it struck her as funny. ‘No, Daniel,’ she said, and pushed his arm away. ‘Why would I want to do that?’ She laughed in a stupid, hysterical way, knowing it was the drink making her like this but unable to stop.

Daniel wrenched himself away from her and stood. ‘You’re a stuck-up little cow!’

‘No, Daniel, I didn’t mean …’ She reached towards him but she was still convulsed with laughter. Daniel turned his back and marched off towards the woods.

Gary leaped up and took Daniel’s place. ‘Try this.’ He waved his hand in Bex’s direction.

She reached for the firefly spark of orange light.

She’d only smoked a couple of times. She’d hated the taste of it in her throat. But she took the joint, tried to hold it in a cool way, stuck it between her lips and sucked in. Didn’t cough. Felt the spinny unworldliness overcome her.

Bex passed it on to Anna. A fizzy feeling rose up inside her and she didn’t care any more that she’d upset Daniel. She laughed at the craziness of everything and nothing. She rocked back onto the mossy ground and giggled like a five-year-old.

‘I like her when she’s stoned.’ Gary was speaking from miles away. She could feel his gaze. On her body, not her face. Her dress had ridden up her thighs. That was funny too. She laughed some more.

‘Yeah,’ Lucas lowered his voice but she could still hear him at the edges of her consciousness. ‘Wouldn’t kick her out of bed.’

Bex knew that should bother her, but she couldn’t find it in herself to care.

She let her head drop sideways, and caught sight of a figure in the dark woods. A girl. Pale, thin, wild-haired, dressed in white. Fear surged through her. The Pale Child. And she was looking right back at her.

Bex scrambled into a sitting position. The world spun and she clutched the ground with curled fingers and tight toes, as if she might fall off. She pointed and said, ‘It’s the Pale Child.’ But when she looked again, the girl was gone.

She collapsed back onto the soft earth.

27

Meg – Present day

Wednesday

‘It’s quickest to go into the valley,’ I said. ‘Past the abattoir.’

Fiona accelerated down the hill. The air was dense with the heat, shimmering over the rocky moors around Gritton, and smoke from the wildfire sat low above the trees. It was the kind of weather that could turn a body into a seething, seeping mass of maggots and flies within days.

‘What do they know?’ Fiona asked.

‘No detail,’ I said. ‘Just that they found a body in the woods and we should get there.’

Fiona studied me from the corner of her eye. ‘Are you okay?’