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Back The Woman in the Wood Save as PDF
Chapters (62)
  1. Cover
  2. Also by M.K. Hill
  3. THE WOMAN IN THE WOOD
  4. Copyright
  5. Dedication
  6. Contents
  7. Epigraph
  8. 1
  9. 2
  10. 3
  11. 4
  12. 5
  13. 6
  14. 7
  15. 8
  16. 9
  17. 10
  18. 11
  19. 12
  20. 13
  21. 14
  22. 15
  23. 16
  24. 17
  25. 18
  26. 19
  27. 20
  28. 21
  29. 22
  30. 23
  31. 24
  32. 25
  33. 26
  34. 27
  35. 28
  36. 29
  37. 30
  38. 31
  39. 32
  40. 33
  41. 34
  42. 35
  43. 36
  44. 37
  45. 38
  46. 39
  47. 40
  48. 41
  49. 42
  50. 43
  51. 44
  52. 45
  53. 46
  54. 47
  55. 48
  56. 49
  57. 50
  58. 51
  59. 52
  60. Acknowledgements
  61. About the Author
  62. An Invitation from the Publisher

‘I can’t even remember. It’s not like we were ever close, even as kids.’ She twisted one of the laces of her DMs in her hand. ‘And we were separated within a year of going into care.’

Sasha smiled gently. ‘That’s a shame.’

‘It was a crazy time, we were kids, and stunned and scared by what was happening. Ma was held on remand and then went to prison. The judge sent her down for the maximum term when he ruled that Alan’s murder was premeditated. We dropped with a thud into the system. I was an angry little thing, as you can imagine. I had never been a happy child on account of, you know, my own mother refusing to love me. Despite our shitty home life and the men who came and went every few months, I excelled at school, I loved learning and I was good at it – but then everything fell to bits, and I… I suppose I took it out on Jez.’

‘What happened?’ asked Sasha.

‘He was so bloody quiet and timid, he sucked everything in, just bottled it all up, and one day I came into his room and found him…’

She let out a long, steadying breath.

Sasha waited. ‘Found him what?’

When Lore glanced away, Sasha saw a muscle tighten in her jaw. ‘It doesn’t matter, I got angry and gave him a hiding, and I shouldn’t have done it. I was just a wee little girl, but I had a rage in me, and I gave him such a hiding, and the care workers – well, you can imagine what they must have thought, she’s a chip off the old block. And so they sent Jez to another home.’ She shook her head. ‘I was the one with the brains, the one with prospects, but Jez has always fallen on his feet, and now he’s sitting on a pile of money thanks to a wealthy wife. Funny how life goes, ain’t it?’

Someone came into the room without knocking, and Lore shouted, ‘We’re talking in here. Can we have some privacy just for one bloody minute, please?’

When the guy made a quick retreat, she said angrily, ‘Bloody squatters, they never bother to knock.’

Sasha’s mind whirled with the possibility that it was Rachel Weston’s DNA that was found in Tony Gardner’s home. Jez Weston’s mother – a convicted murderer. ‘When Rachel got out of prison, do you have any idea where she could have gone?’