Contents ( 71)
- THE
- DAUGHTER
- MICHELLE FRANCES
- PROLOGUE
- 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-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
- EPILOGUE
- AUTHOR’S NOTE
- ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS
‘What are you doing?’ asked Tim.
‘Calling him. I’m not letting him get away with this.’
Rob answered immediately. ‘Kate.’
‘Where do you get off, sending me bloody bullets in the post?’
‘What?’
‘It’s sick, that’s what it is. You’re a sick man, Rob Bolton. I’m not quitting this just so you can get your pay-off. There’s other people affected here too, and I will not be bullied. He’s not offering you enough anyway, it’s paltry what he’s trying to get away with.’
‘He’s not offering me anything because he’s dead,’ snapped Rob.
She reeled. ‘What?’
‘He had an accident. Fell into the grain silo. Would have been like quicksand.’
‘Oh my God.’
‘So, my “paltry” offer,’ continued Rob, ‘has vanished. Luckily, I’ve managed to borrow from Ian. And just for the record, I’ve not sent you anything. Bullets? You really think I’d be sending you bullets? I wouldn’t even know where to get one, even if I had the time to do such a thing, what with caring for my sick wife and daughter.’
‘I . . . I didn’t . . .’
‘Ever thought you’re losing it, Kate?’
‘I’m sorr—’ she started, but he’d hung up. Upset, she looked at Tim.
‘What’s happened?’ he asked.
‘Justin’s had an accident. At the farm. He’s . . . he didn’t make it.’
‘What? Another accident? And you’ve been sent a bullet. Will you listen to me now? You have to quit this.’
‘Tim . . .’
‘What if it is Greg? You can’t go and see him tomorrow.’
‘Excuse me, Iris,’ said Kate and she pulled Tim aside. Spoke under her breath. ‘Will you stop?’
‘I think it’s good Iris knows about all this. Maybe you’ll listen to her because you won’t me,’ said Tim, stubbornly.
‘I’ve told you: I can’t just not turn up. It’s the interviews. It’ll look weird. Suspicious.’
‘Tell him you’re sick.’
‘I’d just have to reschedule.’
Tim exhaled, his frustration threatening to boil over.
‘What’s he going to do? In broad daylight?’
Tim took her hands. Pleaded. ‘Look, Kate, this isn’t about me wanting you to stop for my own sake. It’s not about me wanting a family. I care about you.’
Kate looked across at Iris, who had tactfully turned away. ‘This whole thing has been about Becky,’ she said softly. ‘Doing something for my daughter and being the mother I’m supposed to be. Keeping my promises. I’ll take it to wherever it goes. I will not quit.’ She looked up at him. ‘And I’m not scared. I might have freaked out there, when I got that thing in the post, but I am not scared.’
FIFTY-ONE
Adam sat in the chair, his hands lightly clasped in his lap. His boss, Roger Harris, was sitting a few metres away, watching him. Roger’s boss was in another wide leather chair on the right-hand side of the room, also watching him. Adam glanced over at her; she was younger than Roger and dressed in a severe grey suit, which she wore with a tie. He’d only met her twice since she’d joined the company and he didn’t think she’d remembered who he was. And yet . . . here she was at this meeting. Neither of them said a word.