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Chapters (62)
  1. Title
  2. Copyright
  3. Contents
  4. About the Author
  5. About the Book
  6. Dedication
  7. Your Worst Nightmare
  8. ONE
  9. TWO
  10. THREE
  11. FOUR
  12. FIVE
  13. SIX
  14. SEVEN
  15. EIGHT
  16. NINE
  17. The Answer to All Your Prayers
  18. TEN
  19. ELEVEN
  20. TWELVE
  21. THIRTEEN
  22. FOURTEEN
  23. FIFTEEN
  24. SIXTEEN
  25. SEVENTEEN
  26. EIGHTEEN
  27. NINETEEN
  28. TWENTY
  29. TWENTY-ONE
  30. TWENTY-TWO
  31. TWENTY-THREE
  32. TWENTY-FOUR
  33. TWENTY-FIVE
  34. TWENTY-SIX
  35. TWENTY-SEVEN
  36. TWENTY-EIGHT
  37. TWENTY-NINE
  38. THIRTY
  39. THIRTY-ONE
  40. Somebody Else’s Child
  41. THIRTY-TWO
  42. THIRTY-THREE
  43. THIRTY-FOUR
  44. THIRTY-FIVE
  45. THIRTY-SIX
  46. THIRTY-SEVEN
  47. THIRTY-EIGHT
  48. THIRTY-NINE
  49. FORTY
  50. FORTY-ONE
  51. FORTY-TWO
  52. FORTY-THREE
  53. FORTY-FOUR
  54. FORTY-FIVE
  55. FORTY-SIX
  56. FORTY-SEVEN
  57. FORTY-EIGHT
  58. FORTY-NINE
  59. Sunlight on Water
  60. July
  61. September
  62. Acknowledgements

‘I was just wondering, we haven’t heard from you in a while, and I was wondering . . . Well, you know. Whether there have been developments, whatever you call them. I’m sorry, developments sounds a bit Sherlock Holmes.’

There have been developments at Ashridge, but Naylor doesn’t want to tell Claire what they are – that they all relate to other cases, and the resources they piled into Evan’s case have been re-assigned elsewhere.

‘To be honest, there’s not much to report.’ That much, at least, is true. ‘I’ve been looking into leads from the car, and DS Hagen’s pursuing another line of enquiry relating to some photographs of known offenders Evan reviewed.’ But that was six weeks ago, she thinks. Since then we’ve done next to nothing on Evan’s case, thanks to staff shortages and Campbell’s ever-changing priorities.

‘Did he identify someone, then?’ asks Claire. ‘I didn’t know that.’

‘Not exactly,’ says Naylor. ‘We’re just playing hunches and making routine enquiries. No stone unturned.’

‘So nothing to report?’

‘I’m afraid not. But we only need one good lead, and the dominoes will fall. In the meantime, what do you think about us trying to talk to Evan again? Do you think there’s any chance?’

Claire sighs.

‘Not unless things have changed in the last couple of days. He’s still said barely a word.’

‘Do you want to have another go with the psychiatrist? Or I could ask Rose to get in touch, see if he’ll respond to her. She’s got a bit of a magic touch in difficult cases.’

‘Maybe,’ says Claire vaguely. ‘I was just thinking if there were any chance of arrests being made, Evan might feel better. If they weren’t still out there, he might begin to feel safe.’

‘That’s an excellent suggestion, if only we could deliver. Believe me, Claire, we’re doing our absolute best.’ The lights change again, and Naylor moves slowly forward. ‘As soon as we have anything, you’ll be the first to know. And let me know if you think Rose can help.’

Finally moving and heading home, Naylor thinks about Claire, about how different she is from the woman she first met, about the effect this crime has had on the whole family. They need results so they can move on, and the constant reallocation of resources isn’t fair. How can there be results when they have no manpower?

A Tesco juggernaut pulls up two cars behind her at a roundabout, and Naylor looks at the driver in her rear-view mirror, wondering if she might see Lee Bryant at the wheel.

When she found Bryant in the interview room, she thought they were home and dry.

Something’s got to be done. Something which could cost her job if Campbell finds out.

To hell with it.

She reaches for the dashboard phone, and puts in a call to Ron.