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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

‘Evan? Evan, it’s Rachel Naylor, from the police. I just came to say hello.’

There’s the sound of bedsprings as he moves. She waits a minute or two, but there’s nothing more.

‘I have to go now, but I’ll be back in the next day or so. I’ll see you then, OK?’

Back downstairs, Claire’s waiting to show her out.

‘What’s he doing in there?’ asks Naylor.

‘Sleeping, I think,’ says Claire. ‘They’ve given him something in place of the other stuff, but he’s still very tired. Apart from that, I don’t know. He’s not saying much.’

‘Just give it time,’ says Naylor, squeezing Claire’s arm. ‘He’s been through a lot.’

Outside, as she gets into the car, Naylor looks across at the Ferrerses’ house. All seems normal, but for one thing: it’s broad daylight, but the curtains at Evan’s windows are drawn.

FIFTEEN

FIFTEEN

27 June

‘Evan?’

Rose Yazici is in the interview room as an appropriate adult. Naylor likes Rose very much – she’s motherly but not mumsy, with an ability to connect with almost anyone, even Campbell. She’s pretty too, dark and petite in jewel-coloured clothes and bold jewellery which reflect her Turkish heritage. Her prettiness has to be a plus with a boy Evan’s age, surely? Naylor thought if anyone could get Evan to open up, it would be Rose. Turns out she was wrong.

Evan’s been in here with them almost an hour now, a book of photofits and photos of known offenders open on the table, with Rose slowly turning the pages and encouraging him to take his time, see if he spots anyone he recognises. Some of the faces are the stuff of parental nightmares – ugly, dirty old bastards with a lifetime’s offending behind them, obvious criminals you wouldn’t let anywhere near your child. And then there are the others: respectable, even attractive-looking men, some only in their twenties, far more dangerous in Naylor’s eyes than the old-timers. These younger men look friendly, trustworthy, like your next-door neighbour or your sister’s boyfriend. These are men you’d talk to, be pleased to find leading a scout group or after-school club, who you’d let join you and your kids in a Happy Meal without a second thought, but you’d shudder at the appetites they were stoking while they were watching your six-year-old eat her chicken nuggets.