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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

‘Please, Claire,’ says Naylor, and she places a contact card on the counter. ‘Please talk to Matt, talk to Evan, and ring me. The sooner the better, if you don’t mind.’

Back in the car, Hagen throws the folder on the back seat and starts the engine.

‘That could have gone better,’ he says.

‘You think so? It could have been a lot worse. She might have slammed the door in our faces, and I’d have understood that. We haven’t exactly been heroes in this case.’

‘Not so far.’ Hagen pulls away from the kerb. ‘But this is a long way from over. This is another chance, another bite at the cherry.’

‘We all need to stay positive, but I don’t think that’s how the Keslakes would look at it, Brad,’ says Naylor, and Hagen has to agree she’s right.

When the phone rings, Evan is on the sofa eating his fish fingers, watching a nature programme about grizzly bears in Yellowstone National Park. Jack is in the kitchen, dumping the uneaten remains of his own meal in the bin. He’s ready for a whisky, but won’t allow himself to open the bottle before the clock shows 7 p.m.

It’s cold at the foot of the stairs. Maybe the whole house is colder than it should be. His and Dora’s battle over the central heating thermostat was a running gag between them, her turning it up, him grumblingly turning it down. The place feels chilled, and before he takes the call, he turns it up a few degrees and blows a kiss for her into the air.

‘Dad? It’s me.’

Jack’s pleased to hear Matt’s voice. Matt will indulge him in his grief, giving him a chance to reminisce, to talk about Dora, which if the truth be known, in his hurting heart of hearts is, at the moment, all he wants to do.

‘How are you doing, Dad?’

‘Oh, I’m all right,’ says Jack, and as he says the words, tears prick his eyes. ‘Soldiering on. What else can you do? I was going through a few things this afternoon, having a bit of a clear-out, but I didn’t get very far. Everything I thought I should throw out, I ended up putting back in its place. Just like your mother would have done.’

‘It’s early days,’ says Matt. ‘Don’t go worrying about that yet. You and I can do a bit when we come up for Christmas.’

At the prospect of Christmas, Jack sighs.

‘She didn’t make it, did she, bless her. It’ll be a strange do without her.’

‘Yes, it will. But for Evan’s sake . . .’

‘Oh, yes, for Evan’s sake,’ says Jack. ‘I expect he’ll want a tree.’