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Back The Dead Line
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

And Casey saw that he did. It was for Emily that he had rammed together the pretty little jigsaw pieces of their lives, although he knew they would never quite fit.

‘You promise?’ Emily turned to Casey. ‘You promise that if we do this, you will protect us for ever? Never give up our names? Never tell anyone about our baby? We can just live our lives, and forget this ever happened?’

‘Yes.’ It was the only promise Casey could make. ‘I promise, I will keep your involvement a secret.’

‘But you can’t tell a soul either,’ Miranda warned them. ‘Especially while they’re abroad. Anything that endangers Casey risks the baby too.’

Casey saw the shudder run right through Emily’s frame.

‘I promise you,’ Casey said to Emily again. ‘We will keep her safe, your baby girl.’

‘Poppy,’ Emily whispered. ‘We are going to call her Poppy.’

‘Poppy,’ said Casey. ‘I promise you I will bring Poppy home to you.’

25

25

‘Ed?’ Miranda asked. ‘Can you work with him?’

Will he work with you? she didn’t quite ask.

They were back in the office.

Casey looked up. ‘I have no idea.’

A few years earlier, Casey had been packed off to chase pirates around the Indian Ocean.

The Ministry of Defence allows journalists to ‘embed’ with armed forces around the world. Hacks fly all over the world, right alongside British troops. Over the years, Casey had travelled to Afghanistan and Iraq, deep among the fighting units.

Then piracy around the Horn of Africa became a story.

For years, a plague of international trawlers had systematically stripped Somalia’s coasts of all marine life. Finally, furiously, the locals started to retaliate. Desperate Somalis began to set sail on tiny, inadequate boats, bobbing around the coast until they tracked down one of the slow-moving tankers cruising through the Red Sea.

Then somehow, madly, they fought their way on to the huge ships.

Kidnap and ransom, K&R. A booming business, quite suddenly. Billions of dollars of goods forced to cat-and-mouse through one of the busiest shipping lanes in the world, from the Indian Ocean to the Mediterranean, only to be snatched, one by one.

A bottleneck, just where the world couldn’t afford it.

Cash ransoms – millions and millions of dollars – were parachuted onto the decks of vast supertankers.

It was the spiralling insurance premiums that finally caught the attention of the international community. That, and the rage of the shipowners who dotted Eaton Square. The government listened to that, fast.

British Navy ships were dispatched to the Indian Ocean, to police thousands of miles of ocean. Casey was dispatched too.

Ed had been the captain of the group of Royal Marines, on board the HMS Apollo. By the time Casey joined the ship, from a scruffy port in Oman, his team had been at sea for almost six months.

Having joined the ship in Salaleh, Casey found herself stuck on board for three weeks.