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Back The Secrets He Kept Save as PDF
Chapters (59)
  1. Cover
  2. Prologue
  3. Chapter One
  4. Chapter Two
  5. Chapter Three
  6. Chapter Four
  7. Chapter Five
  8. Chapter Six
  9. Chapter Seven
  10. Chapter Eight
  11. Chapter Nine
  12. Chapter Ten
  13. Chapter Eleven
  14. Chapter Twelve
  15. Chapter Thirteen
  16. Chapter Fourteen
  17. Chapter Fifteen
  18. Chapter Sixteen
  19. Chapter Seventeen
  20. Chapter Eighteen
  21. Chapter Nineteen
  22. Chapter Twenty
  23. Chapter Twenty-One
  24. Chapter Twenty-Two
  25. Chapter Twenty-Three
  26. Chapter Twenty-Four
  27. Chapter Twenty-Five
  28. Chapter Twenty-Six
  29. Chapter Twenty-Seven
  30. Chapter Twenty-Eight
  31. Chapter Twenty-Nine
  32. Chapter Thirty
  33. Chapter Thirty-One
  34. Chapter Thirty-Two
  35. Chapter Thirty-Three
  36. Chapter Thirty-Four
  37. Chapter Thirty-Five
  38. Chapter Thirty-Six
  39. Chapter Thirty-Seven
  40. Chapter Thirty-Eight
  41. Chapter Thirty-Nine
  42. Chapter Forty
  43. Chapter Forty-One
  44. Chapter Forty-Two
  45. Chapter Forty-Three
  46. Chapter Forty-Four
  47. Chapter Forty-Five
  48. Chapter Forty-Six
  49. Chapter Forty-Seven
  50. Chapter Forty-Eight
  51. Chapter Forty-Nine
  52. Chapter Fifty
  53. Chapter Fifty-One
  54. Chapter Fifty-Two
  55. Two Weeks Earlier
  56. A Letter From Jackie
  57. Acknowledgements
  58. About the Author
  59. Also by Jackie Walsh

‘I’m sure the boy will be all right, they give them all sorts of counselling now. It wasn’t like that in my day, you had to swallow your bad luck without any help.’

I turn and nod at her before returning my gaze to the window.

‘He visits him every week, apparently. So he can’t be too bad a man.’ Her words thump me in the heart. Tom has been visiting this kid every week and I knew nothing about it. Lifting my coffee to my lips I watch my hand shaking.

‘Jane told me.’

‘Jane.’

‘Yes, my friend, she lives on the same road as the woman – in number seventeen – the murder was in number twelve.’

My hand shakes, the coffee spills. That’s where I saw it. On the envelope in the suitcase under the bed.

Tom Cooper

c/o 12 Sycamore Gardens

Without saying another word. I jump up from the table and run for the door, pressure pushing down on my chest. My head is spinning.

Tom visited that boy every week.

Chapter Twenty-Four

I sit in the car for a while, forcing myself to relax. Deep breaths, like the doctor told me. I rummage for something to breathe into. I find an empty crisp bag and breathe in and out until I eventually calm my lungs and get the strength to drive home.

Amber is sitting on the sofa when I go inside. Her head bent over, reading the phone glued to her hand. Cian and Aaron are on the floor by her feet, eyes staring at the TV that’s blasting out a song from a Disney movie. They scrabble to stand when they see me.

‘Mammy, Mammy.’

‘Where’s your father?’ I say, hugging the boys before pulling Amber’s earphones from her ears.

‘What did you do that for?’ she groans.

‘I was asking you a question. Where’s your father?’

‘How the hell do I know? He said he had to go out, I didn’t ask him where he was going, I’m not his fucking mother.’

‘Amber! Don’t you ever swear like that again and especially not in front of the boys.’ Bending down, I pull Cian and Aaron into my grasp. ‘Mammy’s missed her best boys,’ I say kissing them both on the head. ‘Did they eat since breakfast?’

‘They had a sandwich.’ Dragging her feet off the sofa, Amber gets up to leave.

‘Did you go into Eason’s to see the…’