‘Hey!’ A security guard at the club next door steps away from his post. ‘Do you want a taxi?’ He gestures to a cab idling near the kerb.

She turns back to Bowman, who clasps her shoulders briefly. ‘My gut says this story is a dead end, Ms Groves. But at my age, perhaps they all are.’ He laughs, though he seems sad. ‘Look after those little girls.’ He dips his head, looks her hard in the eye, and walks off into the night.

CHAPTER TWENTY-SEVEN: SATURDAY, 12 SEPTEMBER 2015

CHAPTER TWENTY-SEVEN

SATURDAY, 12 SEPTEMBER 2015

OLI SLEEPS LONG AND DEEP. WAKES TO A SILENT HOUSE. SHE FELL asleep reading Isabelle’s diaries, and they lie on Dean’s side of the bed next to her. She’s almost gone through every page now, but it’s impossible to know which details matter, which clues had kept Isabelle up at night as she tried to make sense of the housemates. Oli gets up and slides the diaries into her satchel and flicks on the radio in the bathroom, ducking her head in and out of the water to listen as she showers. Charges are going to be laid against O’Brien: his latest accuser allegedly told a family member about the incident all those years ago, and they are willing to back his claims. Oli rubs the mirror with her hand, staring at her cloudy reflection as she combs her hair and applies moisturiser. She dresses and heads to the garage before remembering her car is at the office.

She waits out the front for her cab. Kicks a few stones from the driveway back into the garden bed with the tip of her boot. Her insides feel mushy, as if she’s about to get on a plane.

In the cab she texts Dean, who calls her immediately. ‘You didn’t sleep at the office, did you?’ he says, teasing.

‘What? No, why?’

‘I just know how hard you work.’

‘I actually slept pretty well last night,’ she says. Dean’s voice has triggered the uncertainty she felt after she left Bowman outside the pub. Has he told you what she’d decided?

‘Maybe I should go away more often, then,’ he jokes.

They fall into a brief silence. A couple in the adjacent car are arguing. Oli asks about the girls.

‘They’re loving it here,’ replies Dean. ‘We’ll probably go to the beach today. It’s not hot but it’s warm enough.’

Oli looks up at the grey sky. ‘Sounds nice.’

‘How was Bowman?’

‘Not particularly helpful in the end,’ she says.

‘I’ve always thought he was a fraud. And what’s on for today? More work?’

‘Just a bit. I’m heading in now. I left the car there anyway, but I’ll probably be in the studio for a few hours sorting out the next podcast episode. And I need to get petrol. Go to the shops.’

‘The studio sounds cosy.’