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Back The Dead Line Save as PDF
Chapters (87)
  1. Cover
  2. By the Same Author
  3. Dedication Page
  4. 1
  5. 2
  6. 3
  7. 4
  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. 35
  39. 36
  40. 37
  41. 38
  42. 39
  43. 40
  44. 41
  45. 42
  46. 43
  47. 44
  48. 45
  49. 46
  50. 47
  51. 48
  52. 49
  53. 50
  54. 51
  55. 52
  56. 53
  57. 54
  58. 55
  59. 56
  60. 57
  61. 58
  62. 59
  63. 60
  64. 61
  65. 62
  66. 63
  67. 64
  68. 65
  69. 66
  70. 67
  71. 68
  72. 69
  73. 70
  74. 71
  75. 72
  76. 73
  77. 74
  78. 75
  79. 76
  80. 77
  81. 78
  82. 79
  83. 80
  84. 81
  85. Acknowledgements
  86. Also Available by Holly Watt
  87. The Hunt and the Kill

Casey dropped to the ground, edging through the hedge. Twigs tore at her hair. Now she was just a few yards from the back of the house, flat against the ground. She could see two figures at a big kitchen table. Then she froze at a sudden movement by the window: a man jerking the curtains closed. She caught the taut cheekbones, the sharp eyes.

The man from the airport.

The curtains snapped shut.

Here.

61

61

Miranda and Casey sat in the car, staring across the rainswept fields.

‘He was going to kill us, wasn’t he?’ Casey spoke quietly. ‘If we had walked into that house with Poppy, he would have . . .’

‘And you didn’t see Dominic and Emily?’

‘No,’ said Casey. ‘But they could be upstairs somewhere if they’re in the house. It’s impossible to tell.’

Cellars below the kitchen, she had read in the particulars. Attics.

‘Damn.’ Miranda thumped the steering wheel.

‘They must have worked it out when we checked out of the hotel in Chittagong,’ said Casey. ‘When the people they thought were Dominic and Emily disappeared at the same time as the raid on the ship . . . It must all have been too suspicious. We were so stupid.’ Casey slammed her fist into the dashboard. ‘Naive.’ Her worst criticism.

‘Why is he here?’ Miranda scrubbed her hand across her face. ‘What does he want?’

‘I don’t know.’

‘That man waiting at the airport, he could have been meaning to bring you back here too. We hadn’t published anything then. I suppose they might have thought they could stop it all. But now . . .’

An elderly man squeezed past the car, tugging an old black cocker spaniel along in the pouring rain. He peered disapprovingly at the two women.

‘We need to move,’ said Casey.

‘But where?’ Miranda sounded almost despairing as she rattled the car keys. ‘We have to call the police now . . . This is a kidnap, Casey. It’s too serious for us. We need to get Dominic and Emily out of there right now.’

‘If we call the police, whoever is behind Greystone will get away with it,’ said Casey. ‘The police won’t know what to do with all this. Not in the timeframe. They’ll catch the man down in Tilney Cottage, probably. Possibly. But then what? They won’t have seen any of the evidence we saw in Bangladesh. They’ll never catch up.’

‘But we can’t leave Emily and Dominic just trapped in that house,’ said Miranda. ‘Not like that. Not with him.’

There was a pause. ‘We have to,’ said Casey reluctantly. ‘Poppy Naomi, that’s what Emily said. She was trying to warn me that something had gone wrong. Naomi was the name of the surrogate who kept the Burton-Smith baby a few years ago. Emily would never have named this baby Naomi. She was warning me.’

They sat there in silence for a minute, car headlights flashing past hypnotically. Then Casey sat forward.