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
She wanted to sleep and wake up to morning. In the morning she could sort things, get a grip on this mess. But sleep eluded her and time became a sludge, barely moving; she was adrift in the small hours, when dread can clutch.
Perhaps she slept a bit, she didn’t think so, but then she was fully alert, sitting up in bed and her eyes straining in the darkness. A sound. What was it? Yes, it was Liam’s phone ringing again, ringing at one in the morning. Jude stumbled from the bed and into the other bedroom, turned on the light. In the sudden dazzle, she unzipped Liam’s bag, pushing her hand deep to find the phone before it stopped ringing.
“Hello,” she said. “Hello. Who is this? Who’s there?”
“Hello,” said a woman’s voice. “Who am I speaking to?”
“What?”
“Who am I speaking to?”
Jude sat on the bed. Her heart was pounding unnaturally fast and hard. Should she answer this question? She couldn’t think clearly enough to decide the right thing to do.
“Jude Winter,” she said, then, ridiculously, amended this. “Dr. Jude Winter. Who are you?”
“I’m Inspector Leila Fox. I’m a police officer. Where are you?”
“What?”
“Can you tell me where you are?” repeated the voice patiently.
Jude gave the address.
“Stay there. Don’t leave the property. Don’t call anyone. Someone will be with you shortly.”
“Someone? What do you mean, someone?”
“A police officer.”
“I don’t understand. There’s been a mistake.”
“This is Liam Birch’s phone?”
“Yes.”
“We’ll see you soon.”
When the call was finished, Jude thought furiously. The police. What could it be? She wasn’t sure whether the panic she was feeling was for Liam or for herself.
Upstairs, she contemplated once more the inside of Liam’s bag. She rumpled the clothes a bit. She unzipped the sponge bag and took out the bottle of scent. She sprayed her wrist and sniffed jasmine and green tea. She liked it. She replaced the bottle. After she had closed the bag once more, she noticed that while she had been rearranging the clothes, the necklace with the little wooden wishbone had fallen on the floor. She picked it up and held it in the palm of her hand. It was so delicate it weighed almost nothing. Reflexively she put it round her neck. She would consider it as payment for a favor.
Eight
It was over half an hour before Jude saw headlights approaching and a police car pulled up. She opened the door and stood watching as two officers, a man and a woman, got out and walked toward her. She stepped back into the house and the officers followed her. They stood in the front room looking around.
“What’s this about?” asked Jude. “What’s happened?”
“We were just told to come here,” said the woman.