“Well, he bloody succeeded. Why the hell is he here in the woods talking about some poor murdered girl when his own sister just died? I don’t think he cares about Ellie at all. He’s probably glad she’s gone.”

“Tess Cooper,” Bella gasps, grabbing my arm and giving me a shake. “What a horrible thing to say!”

Tears are burning in my eyes as I stare at my sister. “It’s true,” I say, my voice breaking. “And I can’t believe you’re here with them joining in with all this morbid…shit.”

I turn and march away from her. Poor Julia. No wonder she’s spending so much time with Dad when her own sons are so awful.

May 2007

I wait for Bella outside the house, heart thudding, desperate to share the gossip.

“Guess what?” I say as soon as she opens the gate. “Julia’s gone.”

“What?” She’s frowning, looking down at her phone, not at me.

“Julia packed her bags and left! She’s left Greg, run off somewhere.” I can hear the tremble in my voice and I look at Bella, wanting her to reassure me or share my fear or…I don’t know what I want her to do.

“She left him? Jesus…are you sure?”

She sounds shocked but already she’s back on her phone, tapping out a text.

I clench my fists, feeling a surge of irritation. Doesn’t she believe me? Is she texting one of her mates to ask them about it? Who does she think is going to know more than us? Julia’s been coming round to our house more and more recently, but when I asked, Dad said he knew nothing about her leaving. No one in the village seems to know where she’s gone or why she left, but it’s all anyone is talking about.

Her phone dings and her face goes blank as she reads her text. “Wow,” Bella says, finally looking at me, her voice flat. “That is…strange. How are the boys taking it? And Greg?”

“The boys are both away, I think, and no one’s seen Greg.”

“Right.” She walks past me and I grab her shoulder.

“What’s going on? Don’t you even care that your precious Greg’s wife has walked out?”

She pushes me, two hands shoving me so hard I stagger. “Stop it, Tess. Bloody grow up. He’s not my Greg and of course I care. But she’ll be back—her and Greg…you’ve seen them together. Of course she’ll come back.”

“Wait,” I say, as she moves past me. I glance toward the house to check that Dad’s not around. I ignore Bella’s impatient sigh as she turns back to me, her arms folded.

“I think Dad knows,” I say.

She frowns. “Knows what?”