Chapters (78)
- Title Page
- Dedication
- 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
- Sixty-Five
- Sixty-Six
- Sixty-Seven
- Sixty-Eight
- Sixty-Nine
- Seventy
- Acknowledgments
- About the Author
- Remarkable Praise for Nicci French
- Also by Nicci French
- About the Publisher
As Jude was putting her phone back in her pocket, she saw someone emerge from the house and start walking along the street toward her. It was Erika, but she looked different. She was moving slowly and staring in front of her like someone who was sleepwalking. She stepped off the pavement without noticing and staggered slightly but she didn’t stop or look concerned. She just kept walking.
As she approached the barrier, the female officer intercepted her and said something that Jude couldn’t hear. It wasn’t clear whether she was trying to stop her or offering help but after a moment she stepped back and Erika walked past her and edged round the barrier. She noticed Jude without any apparent surprise.
“They said I should get some air,” she said in a deliberate, detached tone.
“What’s happening?”
Jude had the uncomfortable sensation that Erika was looking at her but not seeing her. Her eyes seemed focused on something far behind Jude’s head.
“They’re all working on her,” she said dreamily.
“What? Who?”
“I wasn’t meant to see. The kitchen door was open. They’re surrounding her on the floor. I could see the blood.”
“Who’s on the floor?”
Erika looked puzzled. Jude wasn’t clear if Erika was even hearing what she was saying.
“He was shouting and shouting and smashing things. Picking things up and throwing them at the wall. He had a knife.”
“Was it Dermot?”
Erika seemed surprised by the question, as if her chain of thought had been interrupted.
“Yes, Dermot. He was shouting that she had used him and that she had destroyed him. He was just shouting and shouting and waving this knife. I couldn’t believe it was really happening. It was more like some kind of a dream. You don’t expect anything like that in real life.”
“What did he do?”
Erika looked at Jude blankly.
“Alfie was there. I picked him up and ran upstairs, up to my bedroom. I shut the door and pushed things against it so that it wouldn’t open. I left her to it. Do you hear that? I thought I was saving Alfie but I left Danny to it. I was trying to keep Alfie calm and sing songs to him. All the time I could hear the smashing sounds downstairs. I was hoping that someone would do something, go and help. Nobody did. Irina stayed where she was, and Doc and Vin weren’t there. Nobody could help. And then the smashing stopped and the screaming started.” She looked more directly at Jude. Her eyes were staring, bloodshot.
“You should be saying this to the police, not to me,” said Jude, who wasn’t sure if she could bear to hear any more “You’re a witness; they must be wondering where you’ve got to.”