BooksBarbecue
Back The Game
Chapters (68)
  1. Cover
  2. Dedication
  3. NOW
  4. One
  5. BEFORE
  6. Two
  7. Three
  8. Four
  9. Five
  10. Six
  11. Seven
  12. Eight
  13. Nine
  14. Ten
  15. Eleven
  16. Twelve
  17. Thirteen
  18. Fourteen
  19. Fifteen
  20. Sixteen
  21. Seventeen
  22. Eighteen
  23. Nineteen
  24. Twenty
  25. NOW
  26. Twenty-One
  27. BEFORE
  28. Twenty-Two
  29. Twenty-Three
  30. Twenty-Four
  31. Twenty-Five
  32. Twenty-Six
  33. Twenty-Seven
  34. Twenty-Eight
  35. Twenty-Nine
  36. Thirty
  37. Thirty-One
  38. Thirty-Two
  39. Thirty-three
  40. Thirty-Four
  41. Thirty-Five
  42. Thirty-Six
  43. Thirty-Seven
  44. Thirty-Eight
  45. NOW
  46. Thirty-Nine
  47. BEFORE
  48. Forty
  49. Forty-One
  50. Forty-Two
  51. Forty-three
  52. Forty-Four
  53. Forty-Five
  54. Forty-Six
  55. Forty-Seven
  56. Forty-Eight
  57. Forty-Nine
  58. Fifty
  59. Fifty-One
  60. NOW
  61. Fifty-Two
  62. Fifty-Three
  63. Fifty-Four
  64. Fifty-Five
  65. AFTER
  66. Fifty-Six
  67. Acknowledgements
  68. About the Author

Let them deal with the huge lummox. He was someone else’s problem for the time being.

Thirty-Six

Mark wasn’t sure what more could be found, but it had been decided a thorough search of the house was the next port of call. Julie had given permission, which Mark guessed was probably done through a fugue state. He’d left Charlie with his mum and sister, hoping he’d go back to being the quiet teenager he usually was, rather than the one he’d discovered in the comfort of his bedroom.

Something he’d said was gnawing away at him. A memory which refused to make itself known. One of those things that would annoy him while he was trying to sleep. Whenever that would be.

A makeshift investigation team had been put together to search the house, which now suddenly seemed the best chance they had to find any more evidence towards Rich’s possible involvement. Mark had been tagged on, DS Cavanagh the obvious lead. A couple of other DCs and a uniform or three. It was quite the party. He’d considered leaving them to it, going back to the office and continuing his search for other answers. But he wanted to know what could be hiding in the house. Each previous search had been done with the family over their shoulders. This would be different. No questions, no awkwardness. Just a blank canvas, ready to be filled with anything Emily may have left behind.

The house wasn’t a crime scene – yet – which meant he didn’t have to don the obligatory white forensic suit he hated so much. Still, if they found anything, that would change in an instant. Mark held back, allowing the others to move ahead of him, waiting to see the rooms they would decide to search first.

‘Okay, here’s what the plan is,’ Cavanagh said, speaking to the team in the living room. ‘Ash and Jill, you take the downstairs rooms. Go through everything you can, remove all furniture away from walls, check the back of cupboards, you know the score. Me and Hale will take the upstairs rooms.’

‘And what’ll Mark be doing?’ Ash said, a DC Mark had never really got a handle on. Ash was a hard-eyed, hard-headed bloke. ‘Sticking him on post duty?’

Mark looked at DS Cavanagh, ignoring the sniggering that floated his way from one of the others in the room.

‘He’s been in and out of here for days,’ DS Cavanagh said, not rising to the bait, it seemed. ‘He knows the layout. I want him checking places he couldn’t easily do with the family here.’