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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

Anna took a breath. ‘Right. Yes, he smashed the rock on the boy’s head, and then the rest of us sort of came alive and we all ran up to him and … the boy was lying there on his back now, and we could see his face, and he was only about thirteen or fourteen and he was wearing a dress and he was deathly pale and … Seriously, it was like a dream. We were all drunk and a bit stoned and it was all so … unreal. He wasn’t breathing, and Kirsty tried mouth-to-mouth and pushing on his chest, and I was crying and Lucas had collapsed on the floor and was saying, fuck, fuck, fuck, over and over, and Gary was standing staring, and … Well, the boy or whatever he was – he was dead. He was dead and there was nothing we could do to bring him back.’ Anna wiped a tear roughly from her cheek and carried on. ‘Like I said, it felt unreal. How could the Pale Child be a boy? How could he be dead? Kirsty said, “We can’t tell anyone about this.” Lucas was no use, he kept rocking backwards and forwards saying, fuck, and Daniel was no better, and Gary was looking to Kirsty for what to do, and Bex hadn’t even woken up, and it was raining harder by then, coming down in huge blobs, and cold too, I just … I just kept thinking I was going to wake up. That was why Daniel ended up driving the car – to get Bex home because she was freezing and soaking … and drunk-driving seemed trivial compared to what we’d done. Only it turned out it wasn’t. Because Lucas died that night too. Lucas killed the Pale Child and later Lucas died.’

Was this real? Anna had seemed so helpful and reliable before, so solid in her views. Now she was unravelling before our eyes. I didn’t know whether to believe this story or put it down to the stress of Anna’s last few days. Surely she and her friends couldn’t have seen the Pale Child, and killed the Pale Child. But it tied in with the terrible secret, the little grave on the map. And with the four of them bound together, doomed to remain in Gritton, watching each other, too scared to leave in case one of the others told.

Jai was holding his mug tightly. ‘What did you do next?’