‘Has he been arrested?’

She pulled a chair over and sat down.

‘There was a police operation to arrest him. He’d been holding Rachel Walker in the old St Catherine’s building. She managed to escape after site security was alerted to unusual activity. Aaron was left inside the building and we sent our armed response unit in to try to locate him.’

I closed my eyes. Prepared myself for what she’d say next. I already felt it in my heart. Felt that he was gone. Properly this time. Not away to another country.

‘During the course of the police operation, our helicopter noticed movement on the top of the building,’ she continued. ‘We saw there was a man standing there. I’m very sorry, Elizabeth. We sent an officer up to talk to him and, we’re truly, very sorry, but before police could get to him, he jumped.’

‘He’s dead,’ I said.

For the second time, I knew this wasn’t a question but a statement of what I knew in my heart.

‘I’m afraid so,’ Constable King said. ‘He sustained catastrophic head injuries. Medical teams were at the scene and were with him in less than a minute, but there was nothing they could do. They believe he’d have died instantly. I’m so very sorry.’

The words swam over my head as if I were watching a scene in a TV show.

I took a breath. ‘And Rachel? Is she okay?’

‘She’s receiving treatment. Her injuries aren’t life-threatening, but I’m not sure I’d say she was okay.’

I nodded. ‘Thank you,’ I said to Constable King before turning my head away again.

‘Michael’s been released without charge. I thought you should know that. He’s back with the children. It would appear that Aaron used his name when signing up for the writing course. We obtained a copy of his student ID, which confirmed this.’

I couldn’t speak.

I just wanted to close my eyes.

Saturday, 16 June

Chapter Fifty-Five

Rachel

‘I’m not sure this is a good idea,’ Paul said as we turned the corner and waited for the lift.

‘I have to do it, Paul. So many of us are hurt now. If she wants to meet me, how can I say no? She’s a frail old lady. She’s had a stroke. She’s not a threat to me or us.’

He patted my shoulder. ‘Okay.’

The door of the lift opened and he pushed my wheelchair through it.