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Back The Family Next Door Save as PDF
Chapters (117)
  1. Also by
  2. Title Page
  3. Copyright Page
  4. Epigraph
  5. PROLOGUE
  6. 1
  7. 2
  8. 3
  9. 4
  10. 5
  11. 6
  12. 7
  13. 8
  14. 9
  15. 10
  16. 11
  17. 12
  18. 13
  19. 14
  20. 15
  21. 16
  22. 17
  23. 18
  24. 19
  25. 20
  26. 21
  27. 22
  28. 23
  29. 24
  30. 25
  31. 26
  32. 27
  33. 28
  34. 29
  35. 30
  36. 31
  37. 32
  38. 33
  39. 34
  40. 35
  41. 36
  42. 37
  43. 38
  44. 39
  45. 40
  46. 41
  47. 42
  48. 43
  49. 44
  50. 45
  51. 46
  52. 47
  53. 48
  54. 49
  55. 50
  56. 51
  57. 52
  58. 53
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  61. 56
  62. 57
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  70. 65
  71. 66
  72. 67
  73. 68
  74. 69
  75. 70
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  77. 72
  78. 73
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  80. 75
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  102. 97
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  106. 101
  107. 102
  108. 103
  109. 104
  110. 105
  111. 106
  112. 107
  113. 108
  114. 109
  115. 110
  116. Teaser chapter
  117. ABOUT THE AUTHOR

A scream, long and loose. Swollen with the kind of horrors that no one should witness. Another thump. A series of breaths, fast and ragged. A wet sound like meat on a chopping board.

And then nothing, except the sound of footsteps walking away and the hiss of the still-rolling tape.

Aster and Evan locked eyes, falling into the well of each other’s shock, frozen and unable to move. A few seconds later, just as it occurred to them to switch off the tape, they caught a sound, like a sack of potatoes dragging itself across the floor.

Evan squeezed his sister’s hand.

And then the voice was up close again, a thickened, halting mumble, telling them that it was bleeding and it hurt so much and it was scared of dying but it might be better than living. That it was going to turn off the tape and take it out of the Walkman and hide it inside a cushion. That it hoped someone would find it. That the person who had done this was—

The Lockwood siblings leaned forward, desperate to help this stranger, this voice from the past, but the Walkman stopped playing, the abrupt pop and click of its buttons making them jump.

The tape had run out.

70

70

Tuesday 31st July 2018, 4:38 P.M.

26 The Avenue

Five minutes, sometimes less.

That’s all it takes to turn a life inside out. A moment of inattention changing lanes on the motorway. A shortcut down an alleyway on a rain-dirty night. The discovery of illicit texts. A luxury hotel on an itemized credit card bill.

A newspaper story.

Dessie stared at the computer screen without blinking until her eyes swam and she had to rub at them with her knuckles to clear her vision.

Finally.

Now breathe.

A part of her wished that she had never begun this journey down the rabbit hole, filing her discovery under Forget as Quickly as Possible and burying her head in the sand.

But that had never been Dessie’s way. She did not shy away from uncomfortable truths. That was why, two hours after opening her laptop, she had found what she was looking for.

After multiple references to multiple Benjamin Turners, she had narrowed her search to include Lincolnshire. The newspaper story was dated six years previously, and she had known it was he because the photograph, although the size of a thumbnail, was as clear as the estuary skies.

A pharmacist caught spying on women with a telescope has escaped jail.

Benjamin Turner, 27, from Lincoln, spent hours at a time watching his victims in their own homes without their knowledge or consent.

Turner set up a telescope in the spare bedroom of his parents’ home to observe women as they undressed.

Prosecutors told Lincoln Crown Court he had “waged a sustained campaign on the vulnerable women in his street, including a young mother and a pensioner.”