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Back The Missing Wife Save as PDF
Chapters (64)
  1. THE MISSING WIFE
  2. PRAISE FOR SAM CARRINGTON
  3. Dedication
  4. 1
  5. 2
  6. 3
  7. 4
  8. 5
  9. 6
  10. 7
  11. 8
  12. 9
  13. 10
  14. 11
  15. 12
  16. 13
  17. 14
  18. 15
  19. 16
  20. 17
  21. 18
  22. 19
  23. 20
  24. 21
  25. 22
  26. 23
  27. 24
  28. 25
  29. 26
  30. 27
  31. 28
  32. 29
  33. 30
  34. 31
  35. 32
  36. 33
  37. 34
  38. 35
  39. 36
  40. 37
  41. 38
  42. 39
  43. 40
  44. 41
  45. 42
  46. 43
  47. 44
  48. 45
  49. 46
  50. 47
  51. 48
  52. 49
  53. 50
  54. 51
  55. 52
  56. 53
  57. THE EPILOGUE
  58. ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS
  59. Prologue
  60. Chapter One
  61. Chapter Two
  62. About the Author
  63. By the same author
  64. About the Publisher

There was a certain melancholy to the scene – the culmination of Tiff’s life stacked in cardboard boxes. Louisa stood staring at them and a sadness engulfed her. It had been one of the things Tiff had mentioned once – the fact that she had no children meaning that her things wouldn’t be ‘passed on’ to another generation when she died. It had frightened her, Louisa realised. The knowledge she would completely cease to exist, and that there would be no evidence – not in a lineage kind of way – that she’d once walked this planet.

Louisa had laughed at the time, saying that of course there would be evidence, and even with no children, her family and friends would continue to talk about her, share their memories of her. She’d be alive in people’s minds.

Now, sitting among her possessions, Tiff’s response to that came back to her.

‘Yes, Lou. I have lovely friends, but eventually, their memories will fade, the reminiscing, the daily thoughts about how terrible it was to lose me, will diminish. I may be thought of on anniversaries – like my birthday, day of death – but soon enough life will move on. My friends will remember me less and less. I’ll be a random thought one day when something else sparks a memory. It’s not the same for you. Your kids will always remember you, will think of you often, not just once in a blue moon. And you will continue on in them, your bloodline. I won’t.’

‘I won’t forget you, though, Tiff. I’ll think of you every day, I promise,’ Louisa had said.

‘Oh, fab – so you’re assuming I’ll go before you then!’

And they’d both collapsed into fits of laughter. The dark, sombre moment broken.

‘I promise, Tiff,’ Louisa now said aloud in the silent bedroom, ‘I won’t stop thinking about you. And I will find out what the hell was going on before you died.’

Because Louisa had a terrible feeling she’d missed something important.

43

THE FIND

Having spent considerable time looking through Tiff’s possessions, trying to decide what she might’ve wanted Louisa to keep, what she’d have liked to go to charity, then placing them carefully into the designated boxes, Louisa felt drained. The thought of searching through the kitchen seemed an impossible task now. She was exhausted and would no doubt do a poor job. But, if she put it off, it would mean returning tomorrow, or Wednesday – and that thought was equally tiring.