I pull back, her words completely unexpected – even though it was something I had feared. I had assumed that Hannah’s fate would always remain a mystery, and the thought that she may have been found felt strange. I always suspected whatever had happened to Hannah, she couldn’t have been buried far away. Was it her body in the woods? What if it wasn’t? Maybe there were more skeletons in this town than anyone was prepared for.

Chapter Twenty-Four

Then

It was still unbearably warm outside and Jasmine had sweated through the shorts and T-shirt that she had worn to the beach so she picked out her indigo tie-dyed summer dress, with thin straps and a nipped-in waist. Lisa had bought it a few years ago in Honduras. A safety pin held the strap in place at the back, but Jasmine still loved it. She put her slouch boots on and looked in the mirror, tousling her hair so it looked full and framed her face. The sun had lightened the front slightly and so her golden brown hair was even more golden than usual. Her parents were still at work and she glanced into the back garden, which was empty apart from the neighbour’s cat Malcolm, perched on the roof of the guest house. She could see that the wall was finished now, and her mother’s geraniums were on a tiered wooden shelving unit. She was a little scared to go outside in case Tim came out, although maybe it wasn’t fear that she was feeling but excitement, anticipation. She pushed those feelings aside for now; they were friends, that’s all. She grabbed a new book from the shelf and braved her way downstairs and out into the garden.