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Back Perfect Ten Save as PDF
Chapters (45)
  1. Chapter One
  2. Chapter Two
  3. Chapter Three
  4. Chapter Four
  5. Chapter Five
  6. Chapter Six
  7. Chapter Seven
  8. Chapter Eight
  9. Chapter Nine
  10. Chapter Ten
  11. Chapter Eleven
  12. Chapter Twelve
  13. Chapter Thirteen
  14. Chapter Fourteen
  15. Chapter Fifteen
  16. Chapter Sixteen
  17. Chapter Seventeen
  18. Chapter Eighteen
  19. Chapter Nineteen
  20. Chapter Twenty
  21. Chapter Twenty-one
  22. Chapter Twenty-two
  23. Chapter Twenty-three
  24. Chapter Twenty-four
  25. Chapter Twenty-five
  26. Chapter Twenty-six
  27. Chapter Twenty-seven
  28. Chapter Twenty-eight
  29. Chapter Twenty-nine
  30. Chapter Thirty
  31. Chapter Thirty-one
  32. Chapter Thirty-two
  33. Chapter Thirty-three
  34. Chapter Thirty-four
  35. Chapter Thirty-five
  36. Chapter Thirty-six
  37. Chapter Thirty-seven
  38. Chapter Thirty-eight
  39. Chapter Thirty-nine
  40. Chapter Forty
  41. Chapter Forty-one
  42. Chapter Forty-two
  43. Chapter Forty-three
  44. Chapter Forty-four
  45. Acknowledgements

‘As the other parent he can be. If he requests it. Look, I’ll explain everything when I see you. Don’t worry, Mrs Atkinson, it’s just an informal meeting. 2 p.m. OK for you?’

We agree and I end the call. Good. It’s underway. It makes me feel excited, but nervous. It’s a step forward, finally. What will they think of me? Laura must have missed me or she wouldn’t have asked to see me, would she? The only problem is that now I have less than a week to finish my mission. And six more women to track down. I just want to know who they are. Like Pam said, it’s gone too far and I feel genuinely guilty about what happened with Frances, but social networking is different. It isn’t real. Is it?

Chapter Twenty-two

It’s difficult, but I manage to stay in my office all day. I even switch off my phone and I don’t check the internet once. I finish off some research for the funding grant and go over the work I did on the psychopath test. I make sure that I leave the door open and log onto the university computer system so that, if necessary, I can prove I was here.

It’s teatime before my mind wanders to Pam and the house. I turn my phone back on and there are two missed calls from DS Percy. She’s left a message and I listen: ‘Have you thought any more about what I said? You might want to think about getting some counselling after what’s happened. Give me a call back so I can update you.’

I dial her number and she answers immediately.

‘Hi, Caroline. How are you feeling now?’

I almost laugh. She’s so concerned.

‘Well, I’m tired, obviously. But I had to go to work.’

‘OK. With the pictures on Facebook and everything. Have you thought about what I said?’

I have thought. About little else. But it isn’t time yet. She wants me to have you charged with harassment. To haul you in front of a poxy magistrate and have you bailed the same day. No. I want more. In that moment I realise that this isn’t finished yet. I’ve memorised the running order of your journal and Alicia Turnbull is next. While Lorraine is going on about the procedure to get you to court and what I would have to do, I look on your profile for Alicia, careful not to click anything. No one can sue me for looking at my ex’s Facebook profile, can they? She’s not there. Expensive tastes. That’s what it said in the journal. Must have an expensive-tastes job then.