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Chapters (82)
  1. Cover
  2. Praise for The House of Whispers
  3. Title Page
  4. Note to Readers
  5. Transcript of interview with Mr Rohan Allerton, husband of Abigail Allerton: 20 December 2019
  6. One
  7. Two
  8. Three
  9. Four
  10. Five
  11. Six
  12. Transcript of interview with Mr Rohan Allerton, husband of Abigail Allerton: 20 December 2019
  13. Seven
  14. Eight
  15. Nine
  16. Ten
  17. Eleven
  18. Transcript of interview with Mr Rohan Allerton, husband of Abigail Allerton: 20 December 2019
  19. Twelve
  20. Transcript of interview with Mr Rohan Allerton, husband of Abigail Allerton: 20 December 2019
  21. Thirteen
  22. Fourteen
  23. Fifteen
  24. Transcript of interview with Mr Rohan Allerton, husband of Abigail Allerton: 20 December 2019
  25. Sixteen
  26. Seventeen
  27. Transcript of interview with Mr Rohan Allerton, husband of Abigail Allerton: 20 December 2019
  28. Eighteen
  29. Nineteen
  30. Twenty
  31. Transcript of interview with Mr Rohan Allerton, husband of Abigail Allerton: 20 December 2019
  32. Twenty-One
  33. Twenty-Two
  34. Twenty-Three
  35. Twenty-Four
  36. Transcript of interview with Mr Rohan Allerton, husband of Abigail Allerton: 20 December 2019
  37. Twenty-Five
  38. Transcript of interview with Mr Rohan Allerton, husband of Abigail Allerton: 20 December 2019
  39. Twenty-Six
  40. Twenty-Seven
  41. Twenty-Eight
  42. Twenty-Nine
  43. Thirty
  44. Thirty-One
  45. Thirty-Two
  46. Thirty-Three
  47. Transcript of interview with Mr Rohan Allerton, husband of Abigail Allerton: 20 December 2019
  48. Thirty-Four
  49. Thirty-Five
  50. Thirty-Six
  51. Thirty-Seven
  52. Thirty-Eight
  53. Transcript of interview with Mr Rohan Allerton, husband of Abigail Allerton: 20 December 2019
  54. Thirty-Nine
  55. Forty
  56. Forty-One
  57. Transcript of interview with Mr Rohan Allerton, husband of Abigail Allerton: 20 December 2019
  58. Forty-Two
  59. Transcript of interview with Mr Rohan Allerton, husband of Abigail Allerton: 20 December 2019
  60. Forty-Three
  61. Forty-Four
  62. Forty-Five
  63. Forty-Six
  64. Forty-Seven
  65. Transcript of interview with Mr Rohan Allerton, husband of Abigail Allerton: 20 December 2019
  66. Forty-Eight
  67. Transcript of interview with Mr Rohan Allerton, husband of Abigail Allerton: 20 December 2019
  68. Forty-Nine
  69. Fifty
  70. Fifty-One
  71. Fifty-Two
  72. Fifty-Three
  73. Fifty-Four
  74. Fifty-Five
  75. Fifty-Six
  76. Fifty-Seven
  77. Fifty-Eight
  78. Fifty-Nine
  79. Sixty
  80. Priory Hospital North London: 20 December 2019
  81. Acknowledgements
  82. About the Publisher

I shook my head. ‘Not at the moment.’ I paused but he waited, as if he expected me to say more. I swallowed down the lump in my throat. ‘She was with someone when she went to Australia, but it didn’t work out.’ I had to stop myself and take a couple of breaths as my heart banged, too large, in my chest. ‘Now she’s focusing on settling herself here, and her work. No doubt she’ll find someone, though. She always does.’ I pinged my fork up and down with my finger, hoping Rohan hadn’t noticed how the words fell flat onto the table, like dead flies.

Rohan chuckled. ‘And what have you told her about me?’ he sucked in his cheeks and struck a model pose. ‘That I’m clever, suave, handsome, sophisticated? That you’re lucky to have me?’

I laughed. ‘All of that.’ I took a deep breath. ‘I’m going to be stronger with her, by the way. I’ve drawn up a housework rota.’

‘Okay…’ Rohan said carefully.

‘I admit, she can be a user. But I’m onto it, and I need her for now. I have a plan, and you have to trust me.’

‘If you’re sure.’ He didn’t sound convinced.

We lapsed into silence as we ate. Rohan must still have been thinking about Grace, though, because after some time he looked at me with his head tilted sideways.

‘Do you remember in the summer when we were having dinner with Mum and Mili, and Mili asked if you had a muse?’

‘Mmm-hmm,’ I said.

‘Can I ask you something? Is Grace your muse?’

I sighed. ‘I guess.’

Rohan nodded. ‘Okay. Interesting. So, it’s hashtag complicated?’

I nodded. Rohan waited for me to elaborate but I didn’t even know where or how to start.

‘In what way would you say she’s your muse?’ he said finally.

‘I seem to do my best work when she’s around.’

‘Okay.’

I played with the food on my plate, suddenly not hungry now Grace was back in my head. ‘It’s hard to explain,’ I said. ‘It’s something to do with how she looks at me – I don’t mean “looks” at me – I mean, how she views me; what she expects of me, I suppose. It’s like she looks inside me and pulls out something from within, even when I don’t know it’s there myself.’

‘And I don’t do that?’