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Back The Cottage Save as PDF
Chapters (82)
  1. Cover
  2. Dedication
  3. ONE
  4. TWO
  5. THREE
  6. FOUR
  7. FIVE
  8. SIX
  9. SEVEN
  10. EIGHT
  11. NINE
  12. TEN
  13. ELEVEN
  14. TWELVE
  15. THIRTEEN
  16. FOURTEEN
  17. FIFTEEN
  18. SIXTEEN
  19. SEVENTEEN
  20. EIGHTEEN
  21. NINETEEN
  22. TWENTY
  23. TWENTY-ONE
  24. TWENTY-TWO
  25. TWENTY-THREE
  26. TWENTY-FOUR
  27. TWENTY-FIVE
  28. TWENTY-SIX
  29. TWENTY-SEVEN
  30. TWENTY-EIGHT
  31. TWENTY-NINE
  32. THIRTY
  33. THIRTY-ONE
  34. THIRTY-TWO
  35. THIRTY-THREE
  36. THIRTY-FOUR
  37. THIRTY-FIVE
  38. THIRTY-SIX
  39. THIRTY-SEVEN
  40. THIRTY-EIGHT
  41. THIRTY-NINE
  42. FORTY
  43. FORTY-ONE
  44. FORTY-TWO
  45. FORTY-THREE
  46. FORTY-FOUR
  47. FORTY-FIVE
  48. FORTY-SIX
  49. FORTY-SEVEN
  50. FORTY-EIGHT
  51. FORTY-NINE
  52. FIFTY
  53. FIFTY-ONE
  54. FIFTY-TWO
  55. FIFTY-THREE
  56. FIFTY-FOUR
  57. FIFTY-FIVE
  58. FIFTY-SIX
  59. FIFTY-SEVEN
  60. FIFTY-EIGHT
  61. FIFTY-NINE
  62. SIXTY
  63. SIXTY-ONE
  64. SIXTY-TWO
  65. SIXTY-THREE
  66. SIXTY-FOUR
  67. SIXTY-FIVE
  68. SIXTY-SIX
  69. SIXTY-SEVEN
  70. SIXTY-EIGHT
  71. SIXTY-NINE
  72. SEVENTY
  73. SEVENTY-ONE
  74. SEVENTY-TWO
  75. SEVENTY-THREE
  76. SEVENTY-FOUR
  77. Suggested topics for reading-group discussion
  78. Keep Reading …
  79. Lisa Stone also writes under the name of Cathy Glass.Don’t miss her latest book …
  80. About the Author
  81. Books by Lisa Stone
  82. About the Publisher

Ian paused for a moment longer, took another sip of his coffee, and then moved the cursor on his laptop to go online. He doubted the Mollers’ computer was well protected from hackers, so it shouldn’t be too difficult to access. And while using the public Wi-Fi came with its own security concerns, it also meant Ian’s laptop couldn’t be so easily traced. But just to make sure, he’d use a VPN – virtual private network – as he did sometimes at work.

Ian glanced around. The nearest person was sitting far enough away not to be able to see his screen. Even if they could or someone walked past, he was just another customer with a coffee and a laptop. Before he lost his nerve and changed his mind, Ian logged into the VPN and began.

FORTY-FIVE

Five minutes later, Ian had identified the Wi-Fi router the Mollers were using at the clinic. It was only a short step from there into their computer. As he’d thought, it wasn’t well protected, but he’d make sure he didn’t stay for long. The less time he spent hacked into their computer, the less chance there was of being caught.

Ian looked at the dozens of folders and remembered Edie Moller’s exasperation when she’d told him over the phone how they’d had to go from paper record-keeping to digital. The records were a mess.

There appeared to be little logic in the way the folders were listed. Ian opened and closed a few, looking at the files they contained and trying to work out if there was a system, and if so, what it was. Some of the folders bore recent dates while others hadn’t been opened for years. All of them seemed to be work related, with no folders or files containing personal material like photographs and music downloads. It was impossible to know if all the paper files had been stored digitally, but Ian thought many had as the oldest was dated thirty years before. Plugging a USB stick into the side of his laptop, Ian began copying over the folders to examine them offline.

When he thought he had them all, he logged out. Using the paper napkin that had come with his croissant, Ian wiped the sweat from his forehead. It was warm in The Coffee Shop, but that wasn’t the only reason he was perspiring. He’d just committed a crime, and now, with a mixture of dread and anticipation of what he might find, he began studying the folders and the files contained within them. Only some of the patients’ folders were stored alphabetically by surname, as if Edie Moller had given up halfway through and had then just entered them in any order.