BooksBarbecue
Back One Year Later
Chapters (49)
  1. PROLOGUE
  2. PART I
  3. 1
  4. 2
  5. 3
  6. 4
  7. PART II
  8. 5
  9. 6
  10. 7
  11. 8
  12. 9
  13. 10
  14. 11
  15. 12
  16. 13
  17. 14
  18. 15
  19. 16
  20. 17
  21. 18
  22. 19
  23. 20
  24. 21
  25. 22
  26. 23
  27. 24
  28. 25
  29. 26
  30. 27
  31. 28
  32. 29
  33. 30
  34. 31
  35. 32
  36. 33
  37. 34
  38. PART III
  39. 35
  40. 36
  41. 37
  42. 38
  43. 39
  44. PART IV
  45. 40
  46. 41
  47. EPILOGUEAMY
  48. ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS
  49. BOOK CLUB QUESTIONS

Amy nods. ‘He’ll have to. I’ll speak to Luca too.’

‘Luca?’

‘His family live in Italy. He might come for a few days, help with Lotte and Theo, so we can have a bit of a break, and then he could go and visit them. He should be with us anyway. He’s almost part of the family, after all this time.’

Luca is studying for an MSc in child psychology and helps them with the school run when he’s not at university. He used to look after Ruby-May while Amy is at work. Nick nods, although Amy wonders if her brother has spoken to Luca since last year. He might not even have talked to him when they were in Somerset for Ruby-May’s birthday. The police had already arrived by the time Nick turned up. She can see the top of Matt’s head silhouetted against the darkening sky. He’s sitting on a broken bench just below them.

‘You can ask Bethany. Just don’t mention it to Dad. I should check on the kids,’ she says.

‘I’ll go,’ says Nick, ‘seeing as I’m meant to be babysitting them.’

‘If Theo is still awake, don’t stay there chatting to him about spaceships,’ Amy says. ‘Or Star Wars, Star Trek or intergalactic space flight, in any way, shape or form.’

She watches Nick hesitate at the bottom of the stairs, as if bracing himself, and then he jogs heavily up. She goes to the window and stares down at her husband, wondering if they can resurrect this evening, maybe put a film on. Go to bed early and try and summon up some passion, or even some semblance of feeling for each other. She should go out to him. She wonders if he knows about the bottle of gin in the garden shed (that one’s from Tesco and tastes even worse). But as if he feels her watching him, he returns to the kitchen, walking with the slow, stooped hunch of someone much older, and starts stacking the dishwasher. She’s relieved she won’t have to pretend, and pours another large glass of wine. She drinks it fast, without tasting it.

ONE YEAR AGO, SOMERSET

2

NICK

As far as I know, it happened like this. To my shame, I wasn’t there when it mattered.

Of course you weren’t! Bethany would interject, if she were here now. You’re always bloody late!