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

‘Yeah, that’s what they all keep saying to me,’ Julie said, leaving him in the hallway and returning to the living room.

The photographs of a happy family stared down at him from the wall.

He wondered what kind of friends Emily had made online. That seemed like a good place to check, he thought. He drained the last of the tea, shuddering at the aftertaste, and wondered how many more cups he’d have to drink before he admitted he didn’t even like the stuff. It seemed wrong to refuse though. He stared at the photographs a little longer, then made his way back to the kitchen.

As Mark put his cup in the sink, he glanced up to see the big fella outside, through the window. Pacing the small yard, rolling a cigarette as he did so.

He made a decision.

Mark breathed in deeply and started walking.

Seven

Mark stepped out into the back yard, thrust his hands in his pockets and walked across the limited space, looking towards Rich, wondering if he’d grown since the last time he’d seen him.

He could feel the clouds above them threatening rain.

‘Any news?’ Rich said, patting his pockets looking for a lighter for the rolled-up cigarette dangling from his lips.

‘Not at the moment, no,’ Mark replied. Not since you last asked, five minutes ago, he decided not to add. He realised he was now at the other end of the yard, with no other way back into the house, except past Rich. He considered taking a running jump at the fence and going next door, but thought it might be an overreaction. Besides, he’d walked out here to talk to him. ‘That’s not to say we’re not getting anywhere. There’s a number of possible routes in this investigation to go through yet. And there’ll be a more detailed search of the area soon.’

‘It’s not far from the water. If someone has put her in there… could be a long time until we find her.’

‘Let’s hope that’s not the case,’ Mark said, still trying to look for any signs of something being hidden. ‘It’s early days. We haven’t exhausted all the possibilities yet.’

‘The first coppers that turned up couldn’t find her phone,’ Rich replied, taking a drag on the cigarette and blowing a large plume of smoke in Mark’s direction. ‘Means she took it with her. I thought you could trace the last place someone was from that alone.’

‘That’s true, unless the phone has been destroyed, or the SIM card has been removed, things like that. It doesn’t mean anything though. She could’ve just lost her phone…’