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
Roger stood. ‘Well, that’s terrific. Glad to hear it.’ He went over to Adam, slapped him hard on the shoulder then left the room.
Adam stared after him. What the . . .? Why had he been left alone? He heard the dull thud of a knife in wood and turned to see the moustached man sitting back in his chair with his feet on the desk. In front of his shoes was the knife, sticking upright from the desk. Adam’s eyes flicked from the knife to the man.
‘You can go,’ said the man impatiently.
Adam turned and walked stiffly away.
Once he’d gone, Janković leaned back further in the chair, pulled his phone from his pocket and dialled.
‘Yes, it is all done.’ He surveyed his handiwork on the desk. ‘I’ve put a pretty bow on it and everything.’
FIFTY-TWO
It had been back-to-back interviews ever since she’d arrived. Every so often Kate snuck a glance at Greg, who was sitting to her right in the large conference room, and still found it hard to believe he could be in any way involved in Becky’s death. It seemed absurd, fantastical.
The last candidate, a young man from Wales, who had been offered a place at Exeter to read journalism, was just finishing up. As with all three of the bursary finalists, Kate had been struck by how passionate and determined each of them was, how each wanted to make their mark in the world.
Maddie, Greg’s PA, led the candidate away. The conference room suddenly seemed too big for just Kate and Greg. She looked over and realized she was nervous.
‘He was very impressive,’ said Greg, referring to the student they’d just interviewed.
‘He was.’
‘Do you have a favourite?’
‘I think I need more time,’ said Kate.
‘Sure. Do you want to email me? Maybe later this week?’
She nodded.
‘And are you still on for our little celebration next month? We can take a picture of you and the winner and have our PR department write a piece for the press.’
‘Sounds great,’ said Kate.
‘And talking of celebrations . . . I’ve got you a little present.’ Greg had a boyish grin on his face as he opened up his briefcase, then paused for a moment, with the gift hidden behind the lid. Then he brandished an envelope. ‘Happy birthday!’
It was totally unexpected. ‘Thank you,’ said Kate. ‘You shouldn’t have.’
He brushed away her embarrassment and waited for her to open it. She untucked the envelope flap and inside was a cardboard wallet emblazoned with the British Airways logo. Mystified, she lifted the flap and pulled out two first-class tickets to the Bahamas and details for a week’s stay in a hotel tantalizingly called Turtle Bay.
Her mouth dropped. She let out a small, incredulous laugh. ‘Oh my God . . .’
‘So now you get to try the lounge where they absolutely won’t let you get lost, although I can’t guarantee they’ll spray your feet with mineral water at the hotel,’ said Greg.