Contents (83)
- ONE
- TWO
- THREE
- FOUR
- FIVE
- SIX
- SEVEN
- EIGHT
- NINE
- TEN
- ELEVEN
- TWELVE
- THIRTEEN
- FOURTEEN
- FIFTEEN
- SIXTEEN
- SEVENTEEN
- EIGHTEEN
- NINETEEN
- TWENTY
- TWENTY-ONE
- TWENTY-TWO
- TWENTY-THREE
- TWENTY-FOUR
- TWENTY-FIVE
- TWENTY-SIX
- TWENTY-SEVEN
- TWENTY-EIGHT
- TWENTY-NINE
- THIRTY
- THIRTY-ONE
- THIRTY-TWO
- THIRTY-THREE
- THIRTY-FOUR
- THIRTY-FIVE
- THIRTY-SIX
- THIRTY-SEVEN
- THIRTY-EIGHT
- THIRTY-NINE
- FORTY
- FORTY-ONE
- FORTY-TWO
- FORTY-THREE
- FORTY-THREE
- FORTY-FOUR
- FORTY-FIVE
- FORTY-SIX
- FORTY-SEVEN
- FORTY-EIGHT
- FORTY-NINE
- FIFTY
- FIFTY-ONE
- FIFTY-TWO
- FIFTY-THREE
- FIFTY-FOUR
- FIFTY-FIVE
- FIFTY-SIX
- FIFTY-SEVEN
- FIFTY-EIGHT
- FIFTY-NINE
- SIXTY
- SIXTY-ONE
- SIXTY-TWO
- SIXTY-THREE
- SIXTY-FOUR
- SIXTY-FIVE
- SIXTY-SIX
- SIXTY-SEVEN
- SIXTY-EIGHT
- SIXTY-NINE
- SEVENTY
- SEVENTY-ONE
- SEVENTY-TWO
- SEVENTY-THREE
- SEVENTY-FOUR
- SEVENTY-FIVE
- SEVENTY-SIX
- SEVENTY-SEVEN
- SEVENTY-EIGHT
- SEVENTY-NINE
- Acknowledgements
- OUT NOW IN PAPERBACK
‘HIRST!’ Michael’s voice broke the silence like a siren. ‘STOP HIDING, HIRST! YOU WANT ME, I’M HERE!’
Michael fell quiet. Listened. As intently as he could.
He did not know what he expected to hear. A response, perhaps? The sound of footsteps on grass? Of a bullet being chambered? Michael could not say. All he knew was what he did not expect to hear.
‘HELP! HELP US!’
The words were faint but they were clear. Whoever screamed them was a distance away. Too far to make out a sex. But that did not matter. It meant that someone was alive.
It meant that there was hope.
Michael closed his eyes to block out distractions. To triangulate his position. The voice called out again. It sounded like it came from the right.
Michael did not hesitate for a moment. He began to run.
The direction of the voice took Michael off the path. Onto unsteady ground and unseen grave after unseen grave. They slowed his progress, causing him to stumble time and again and to collide with statues. With headstones. Still Michael pushed on, ignoring his pained lungs and his rampant heart. He concentrated only on the screams.
Until those screams suddenly stopped.
Michael slowed and then came to a standstill when he realised he could no longer hear the sound.
He knew he must be close now. Close enough that he thought he had been able to make out Jenny Draper’s voice. Or perhaps that had been wishful thinking.
Michael dropped to one knee, taking advantage of the cover of the headstones. It made him a more difficult target, he hoped. More importantly, it gave him the opportunity to get his breath back. He heaved in lungfuls of air, preparing himself for whatever was going to happen next.
Still catching his breath, Michael looked again at his watch. Ten more minutes had passed. The need to recover quickly would test Michael’s fitness.
If they’re close then Hirst’s close, he reasoned. I need to be ready.
Seconds passed. Michael counted them off. Calculating them against his own heart rate. It was falling. Coming back to where it should be. His breathing was doing the same.
He gave himself another minute. Long enough for his legs to feel refreshed. For his head to feel clear. Finally ready, Michael rose to his feet.
‘HIRST!’ Michael’s voice boomed. It echoed off the huge mausoleum he now saw outlined ahead of him. ‘I’M HERE, YOU BASTARD. COME AND FACE ME!’
Michael looked all about him as he called out, spinning on his heel. The attack could come from anywhere. From any direction. Michael would at least try to be ready.
But again, no attack came. Nothing disturbed the eerie stillness of the graveyard.
‘HIRST!’
Michael waited for the sound to reverberate. For his reflected voice to wash over him. Only when the echo had died did he open his mouth to shout again.
A familiar sound stopped him before he could call out. A sound he had heard many times before. It was unmistakable. Here or anywhere else.