The One You Love E-Book

Paul Pilkington

• Herausgeber: Fast Paced Fiction
• Kategorie: Gesellschafts- und Liebesromane
• Serie: Emma Holden Suspense Mystery Trilogy
• Sprache: Englisch

Seitenzahl: 414

Veröffentlichungsjahr: 2021

Beschreibung

Experience the gripping first instalment of the bestselling Emma Holden suspense mystery trilogy, full of twists, turns and page-turning cliff-hangers.

Why do you hurt the one you love?

Enjoying her Hen Night in a busy London West End bar, Emma Holden receives troubling news. Her fiancé Dan hasn’t turned up for his Stag Party, and isn’t answering calls.
Rushing back to their flat, Emma and best friend Lizzy find Dan’s brother Richard beaten to within an inch of his life, and Dan gone.
Struggling to process the horrific events, Emma soon fears that her troubled past has returned to haunt the present.
But the truth behind Dan's disappearance is more shocking than she could ever have imagined.
And her nightmare is only just beginning…

Long-buried family secrets, sinister motives and fractured friendships await in this addictive, page-turning trilogy from best-selling author Paul Pilkington. Perfect for fans of fast-paced, twisting and turning mystery fiction with an emotional heart, from authors such as LJ Ross, CL Taylor, TM Logan, Lisa Jewell and Harlan Coben.

Leseprobe

The One You Love

Emma Holden Trilogy Book 1

Paul Pilkington

First published 2011

This edition published 2022

Copyright © 2011 2022 by Paul Pilkington

Published by Fast Paced Fiction

ISBN: 978-1-915367-00-6

All rights reserved

No part of this book may be reproduced in any form or by any electronic or mechanical means, including information storage and retrieval systems, without written permission from the author, except for the use of brief quotations in a book review.

This novel is written in British (UK) English. British English words, spelling (favourite, colour, etc.) and grammar are used throughout.

Cover design by Jeanine Henning.

For my family and loyal readers

Also by Paul Pilkington

Detective Paul Cullen Mysteries:

Long Gone

Fallen Angel

Dead Ahead

Deep Sleeper (preorder)

Emma Holden Trilogy:

The One You Love

The One You Fear

The One You Trust

Standalone Mystery Thrillers:

Someone to Save You

I Heard You

For Your Own Protection

Contents

Prologue

Part I

Chapter 1

Chapter 2

Chapter 3

Chapter 4

Chapter 5

Chapter 6

Chapter 7

Chapter 8

Chapter 9

Chapter 10

Chapter 11

Chapter 12

Chapter 13

Chapter 14

Chapter 15

Chapter 16

Chapter 17

Chapter 18

Chapter 19

Chapter 20

Chapter 21

Chapter 22

Part II

Chapter 23

Chapter 24

Chapter 25

Chapter 26

Chapter 27

Chapter 28

Chapter 29

Chapter 30

Chapter 31

Chapter 32

Chapter 33

Chapter 34

Chapter 35

Chapter 36

Chapter 37

Chapter 38

Chapter 39

Chapter 40

Chapter 41

Chapter 42

Chapter 43

Chapter 44

Chapter 45

Chapter 46

Chapter 47

Chapter 48

Chapter 49

Chapter 50

Chapter 51

Chapter 52

Chapter 53

Chapter 54

Chapter 55

Chapter 56

Part III

Chapter 57

Chapter 58

Chapter 59

Chapter 60

Chapter 61

Chapter 62

Chapter 63

Chapter 64

Chapter 65

Chapter 66

Chapter 67

Chapter 68

Chapter 69

Chapter 70

Acknowledgments

About the Author

Prologue

He watched from the boat as they sailed past the sights of London – the thrusting steel spires of Canary Wharf, the domed O2 Arena, then Tower Bridge and, finally, the London Eye and Westminster. The sky was deep blue and the sun’s heat intense, so the cooling river breeze was heaven.

After disembarking, he headed for the tube. The day in the capital had been enjoyable. But now the holiday was over, and the real business was just beginning.

It was time.

Soon she would know just how bad it felt.

Part I

1

‘Em, it’s Will. Where the hell is that fiancé of yours? He didn’t turn up at the meeting place, and he’s not answering his phone.’

Emma Holden pressed her mobile into one ear and cupped her hand over the other, but still struggled to hear what her brother was saying over the chatter of the busy London pub. The Irish theme bar was heaving with twenty- and thirty-somethings – mostly City workers celebrating the end of the working week and the beginning of a long, sunny August Bank Holiday weekend. Emma, however, was celebrating something far more important – her wedding, due to take place in just over a week’s time. And while this place wouldn’t usually have been her first choice for a night out – it was so busy that it was difficult even to turn around –somehow it seemed perfect for a hen party.

‘Hang on a minute,’ she shouted into her phone, reaching around a group of people and handing her drink to her friend, Lizzy. She nodded and smiled as Emma gestured that she was going outside. ‘I’m going somewhere quieter,’ Emma shouted into her mobile as she began to weave her way through the crowds. ‘Can’t hear anything in here.’

After a monumental effort she reached the door and exited into the sultry night air, leaving the rest of her ten-strong hen party inside. The distinctive central London summer smell hit her: a mixture of fast food, beer and exhaust fumes. For the first time that evening she felt the alcohol going to her head, somehow ushered on by the waning sunlight.

‘Sorry about that,’ she said, stepping out onto the crowded pavement – the heat wave that had baked the country for the past two weeks had really brought out the revellers. ‘That was my fault – Lizzy persuaded the barman to turn the music up. Now it’s so loud my eardrums feel like they’re about to burst. I only noticed your call because I had my mobile out, showing Lizzy and the girls some photos from last week.’

‘Em,’ Will said. His serious tone made Emma check herself, as though he’d just issued her with an order. ‘Where’s Dan? He didn’t turn up in Covent Garden, and he’s not answering his mobile or your home phone.’

‘What?’ Emma absorbed the news as she watched a garish, white stretch limo cruise past. A group of laughing girls, heads out the window, toasted passers-by with glasses full of champagne.

‘Yee ha, cowgirl!’ one of the girls shouted from the limo window. For a second Emma was confused, before remembering what she was wearing. The Wild West outfits had been Lizzy’s idea. And dressing up was compulsory, especially for the bride-to-be. She took off her cowgirl hat and held it under her arm.

Will was out with a group of Dan’s friends – a mixture of university mates and colleagues from the web company where Dan worked. ‘We even went over to your flat,’ Will continued. ‘Thought he might be running late, but he’s not answering the intercom. We’re all standing outside there now. I also tried to reach Richard, but he’s not picking up either. They’re not with you lot, are they?’

‘No.’ Emma raked her fingers through her shoulder-length, brown, glitter-sparkled hair. Richard, Dan’s brother, had been due to rendezvous with the group in the centre of town later that evening. Why would they both be out of contact? ‘Last I saw of Dan was when I left to go out, about two hours ago. You sure you didn’t miss him in Covent Garden?’

‘Positive. We stuck around there for over an hour. All we needed was a tambourine and collection basket and we’d have made a fortune.’

‘I don’t understand,’ she said, beginning to pace up and down outside the pub, suddenly forgetting the party going on inside. ‘He was about to go out when I left to come here. He wouldn’t have been more than a few minutes behind me.’

‘It’s a bloody mystery, then.’ Will paused. ‘You don’t suppose he got cold feet, decided to head off to LA with Cameron Diaz?’

‘Screw you, William.’

‘Just joking,’ he said with a laugh, breaking the tension. ‘The man would be mad to turn down the chance to marry my little sister.’

‘That’s better.’

‘Seriously though, Em. What if he’s had an accident or something?’

‘An accident?’

‘He could have been in a road accident.’

‘Aren’t you being a bit melodramatic?’

‘Probably, but these things can happen.’

‘Do you have to be such a pessimist?’ said Emma, watching as two police officers attempted to cajole a homeless man from a shop doorway opposite: a sad but familiar London sight. ‘He’s probably stuck on the tube – that’s why he can’t answer his phone. You know what the Underground’s been like this week. I was stuck on the Northern Line for half an hour on Wednesday. Signal failure or something.’

‘Maybe,’ he replied. ‘I was thinking of breaking your door down, though, just in case.’

‘Don’t you dare! You’d hurt yourself. Anyway, I’m the black belt, not you.’

‘Okay, Bruce Lee.’ Will feigned disappointment. ‘I’m just looking out for my little sister.’

‘I know. And you always have done.’

‘Hey, that’s why older brothers were invented. Tell you what, I’ll wait here and see if he turns up.’

‘No,’ Emma said, moving away from the pub door as what appeared to be another hen party pushed inside; this group was dressed as cheerleaders, with ultra-tight tops and mini-skirts. At least Lizzy hadn’t gone for that idea. ‘Go back to Covent Garden in case he turns up there. I’ll try and call him myself.’

‘The others can go back, but I’d rather stick around here,’ insisted Will. ‘This is all pretty strange, Em. You don’t think—’

‘Don’t even say it,’ Emma interrupted. ‘Just don’t.’

‘You’re right. This is totally different from last time.’

Once Will had rung off, Emma tried several times to contact both Dan and Richard. But it was no good – neither was answering their phones. She returned inside, the party spirit in her having been completely wiped out.

‘Hey, there you are!’ said Lizzy, throwing a semi-drunken arm around her as she returned to the group. ‘Wondered where you’d got to. Thought you might have sneaked off for a crafty last snog with some hunky stockbroker before it’s too late. After all, you’re still twenty-eight, free and single – for the moment.’

Emma didn’t meet Lizzy’s smile. Instead, she looked down at her mobile phone, still grasped tightly in her hand, hardly hearing what her best friend was saying. All she wanted to do was get out of there as quickly as possible and find out what was going on.

‘Get this down you,’ Lizzy ordered, forcing a cocktail into Emma’s free hand. ‘You’re far too sober for my liking. I’m in charge tonight, and whatever I say, goes. And I say drink! Cheers!’

‘Cheers,’ Emma said half-heartedly, clinking glasses.

She watched as a beaming Lizzy took a swig of her drink. She’d met the ever-cheerful Lizzy, a pretty strawberry blonde with a big heart and even bigger voice, at an audition three years ago. Since that initial meeting the two had become good friends and had flat-shared for a time, until eighteen months ago when Emma had moved in with Dan. A classically trained singer, Lizzy was now plying her trade on the West End stage, where she had a role in Like We Did Last Summer, a new romantic musical based around popular tunes from the Swinging Sixties.

‘You okay?’ Lizzy finally noticed that Emma seemed distracted.

‘I’m not sure.’ Emma played with the straw and ice cubes in her drink. ‘It’s Dan. He’s gone missing.’

‘What?’

‘That was Will on the phone. He said Dan didn’t turn up for the stag party. And now no one can get hold of him. I just tried to call him now. His mobile sounds like it’s turned off, and there’s no answer on the home phone.’

‘But wasn’t he about to leave when I arrived at yours?’ Lizzy said.

‘Yeah. That’s what worries me.’

‘Maybe he’s stuck on the tube?’ Lizzy raised an eyebrow.

‘That’s what I thought. But it’s been two hours, Lizzy.’

‘I’m sure he’s fine,’ Lizzy offered, lightly touching Emma’s arm.

‘You don’t think he’s had second thoughts, do you?’ Emma’s hitherto buried insecurities found a voice. ‘You know I said he’s been acting weird over the past few weeks. Maybe he’s decided that I’m not what he wants.’

‘Don’t be silly. Dan’s a great guy, and he’s crazy about you, Em. Anyone can see that.’ Now Lizzy squeezed her arm. ‘Men act weird now and again – it’s genetic. He’s probably just sitting on a park bench somewhere, feeding the ducks and contemplating his final days of bachelorhood. Trust me, my brother was the same before his wedding – had some kind of crisis and thought about travelling around Australia for a year instead. And this is the guy who can’t stand insects or heat.’

‘I sound hysterical, don’t I?’ Emma smiled, taking a nervous sip from her drink. It wasn’t like her to get worked up – she was usually calm and controlled. But tonight was different. The thought had been weighing on her mind for months – whether this wedding was really the start of something much better, or the point where everything fell apart at the seams.

Just like last time.

‘You’re under a lot of pressure,’ Lizzy said. ‘You’re getting married a week on Sunday, for heaven’s sake. Plus, you’ve got the biggest audition of your life coming up next week. Big things are happening, girl!’

Lizzy was right. An up-coming wedding would be enough to unsettle anyone, but adding a potentially career-making movie role audition into the equation really cranked up the tension. Emma was desperate to get the part in the new British romantic comedy – it would be a major step up from the daytime soap she’d spent two years on and her recent appearances in a variety of London stage plays. It was the break she’d been working so hard for, and had never dared hope one day might arise.

‘I know it’ll turn out to be nothing,’ she said, ‘but why disappear tonight, of all nights?’

‘You want to go back to the flat, check if everything’s all right?’

‘Would you mind?’

‘Not at all.’ Lizzy took Emma’s drink off her and handed it to Sarah, another one of the hen party, who was sporting not just a cowgirl outfit but also a holster complete with water pistol, that she was using to fire vodka into the other hens’ drinks. ‘We can leave this lot here. We’ll catch up with them once we’ve found that fiancé of yours. Bloody men, eh?’ She wrapped an arm around Emma’s shoulders and gave her a motherly hug. ‘Always want to be the centre of attention.’

‘Yeah,’ Emma said, trying her best to smile. ‘Bloody men.’

During the taxi ride to Marylebone, Emma tried Dan’s mobile another three times. Each time the phone went straight through to voicemail. She also called Will, who confirmed that Dan still hadn’t appeared or answered the intercom.

As the taxi twisted and turned through the bustling streets of the capital, a sickening feeling of loneliness swelled inside her, refusing to go away. ‘Please, God,’ she whispered to herself, resting her forehead against the taxi window, trying to stop her mind from racing. ‘Please don’t let it happen again.’

2

‘Still nothing?’ Emma asked, as she climbed out of the taxi and approached Will.

Will was sitting on the apartment block steps with his arms folded. He was wearing black Calvin Klein trousers and a bright, white shirt that contrasted dramatically with his thick, dark hair. He shook his head. Although he was only a few months short of thirty, he looked like a little boy waiting for Mummy to come home.

‘I’m sure there’s a perfectly reasonable explanation, Em,’ Lizzy said, joining them as the taxi drove off.

Emma looked up at the top window of their rented flat, which overlooked Marylebone High Street. For a second she thought she saw a figure looking back at her, but decided it was just a trick of the light. She’d calmed down a lot during the taxi ride – the circular breathing taught to her by her karate instructor when she was a youngster had helped her refocus away from those overly negative thoughts. Okay, it was weird, Dan not turning up. But, as Lizzy said, the likeliest thing was that there would be a perfectly reasonable explanation.

‘She’s right.’ Will got up from the steps and dusted himself down. ‘I was thinking about it while you were on your way over here. I’m over-reacting. And if it wasn’t for that bloody intercom security system, I’d have been able to go up there and check for myself.’

‘Couldn’t you have sneaked in when someone came out?’ Lizzy suggested.

‘That was the plan,’ he replied. ‘But no one’s come in or out since I got here. Bloody annoying. I also pressed all those buttons’ – he pointed at the intercom on the wall – ‘but nobody answered.’

‘It’s deserted in there at the moment,’ Emma explained, searching in her bag for her keys. ‘A lot of people are on holiday, I think – I’ve hardly seen anyone on the stairs in the last couple of days, and the post is building up.’

‘Someone’s in there, though,’ Will countered. ‘You can hear music when you open the letterbox.’

‘Really?’ Emma found the keys. ‘We’d better get inside and take a look.’ She pulled out her keys but as she did so, they slipped from her grasp and fell into the gutter, narrowly missing a drain.

Will picked them up. ‘That was lucky. Hey, Em, your hands are shaking – are you okay?’

‘I’m fine,’ Emma lied, taking the keys. Although mentally she had recovered her composure, her body was still in overdrive. ‘I’m just a bit on edge, that’s all.’

‘Come on,’ Lizzy said briskly. ‘Let’s get up there and sort this out. He’s probably flat out on the bed and has slept through the calls.’

They could hear the music as soon as they entered the foyer to the building. It seemed to be coming from one of the upper floors, travelling down the wooden staircase. Judging from the bass vibration, it sounded like it was set on maximum.

‘U2, if I’m not mistaken,’ Will said. ‘Sounds like the band is actually up there rehearsing.’

‘Dan was playing that album when I left,’ Emma said, beginning to hurry up the stairs, with Will and Lizzy following close behind.

She took the steps two at a time; with each step the swirling music from above got louder. Something definitely didn’t feel right about this. Her imaginings flooded back, but now they weren’t about whether Dan had got cold feet – they were of something more sinister, more tragic. Maybe Dan had fallen and hit his head, and he’d been lying on the floor while she’d been out partying?

As she reached the middle floor, Mr Henderson, her elderly downstairs neighbour, blocked her path. Judging by his expression, it seemed he had been waiting for her. ‘What do you think you’re playing at?’ he asked, poking a wrinkled, liver-spotted finger in Emma’s direction.

‘Excuse me?’ Emma was taken aback by his unusually aggressive tone: normally he was so placid. He and his wife had been living in the flat below theirs for over twenty years, and had welcomed them with offers of help when Dan and Emma had first moved in. Emma hadn’t seen much of Mrs Henderson in recent months: some time ago, while looking out of the window, she had seen her being helped into an ambulance, but she didn’t know what had been wrong and felt it might seem overly nosey to ask.

‘That music,’ Mr Henderson said angrily, gesturing upstairs. His face was blood red and his eyes burned in a way that Emma had never seen before. ‘Your boyfriend’s had that on full blast ever since I got back from the shops. Edna’s trying to get to sleep in here; she’s not well, you know. She gets distressed easily. She was crying when I got back home, sitting in the corner of the room, covering her ears. People think just because you’ve got dementia that you don’t matter. But she matters to me. I love her.’

Tears welled up in his eyes as his anger faded. ‘Doctor says she’s dying,’ he added. ‘Please let her rest. Please get your boyfriend to turn the music down. He won’t even answer the door for me. I’ve been up there three times, but it hasn’t done any good.’

Emma looked at Will and Lizzy, who returned anxious glances.

‘Sorry,’ she said, feeling desperately bad for the old man but also wanting to get to the top floor without delay. ‘I’m sorry,’ she said again, side-stepping him and heading for the next set of stairs, almost launching herself at the first step.

‘I’ll call the police if you don’t turn it down,’ Mr Henderson shouted, before breaking into a bronchial cough. But Emma had already turned the corner at the top of the stairs.

She reached her front door, fumbling with the keys. Dan never played music that loud, and the thought only intensified her sense of foreboding about what lay inside.

‘Dan!’ she shouted. ‘Are you in there?’ The key wasn’t going into the lock, so she began banging on the heavy wooden door with her fists. ‘Dan!’

‘Come here, Em,’ Will said, taking the keys gently from her. ‘Let me do it.’

Emma stepped back, surprised to find that she was crying.

Lizzy hugged her. ‘Everything’s going to be all right,’ she said. But she didn’t sound convinced any more.

Will unlocked the door and a crescendo of guitars and drums swept out onto the landing. ‘Danny, you in here?’ he shouted, moving into the flat. He turned left towards the living room from where the music was coming, while Emma and Lizzy headed for the kitchen.

‘Dan?’ Emma neared the kitchen. ‘Where are . . . oh my God!’

‘What is it?’ Will shouted, his voice sounding even louder in the silence after he’d turned off the stereo.

‘Something’s wrong,’ Lizzy replied.

Emma stood next to her in stunned silence, taking in the scene. She placed a steadying hand against the fridge-freezer. The kitchen was smashed up: broken plates and dishes littered the floor, the bin had been overturned and emptied, the blinds were half torn down, and the water was running in the sink.

‘My God,’ Will said, as he appeared breathlessly at their shoulders and surveyed the damage.

‘What the hell’s happened?’ Lizzy asked, of no one in particular.

‘The other rooms,’ Emma said, pulling herself out of her shock.

She turned and headed for the bedroom, flinging open the door, expecting to find something horrible inside. But there was nothing. The bed was immaculately made, just as she had left it; everything was in its right place. A faint hint of Dan’s aftershave hung in the air. Emma turned to head for the bathroom, the last remaining room of the flat.

‘Oh, shit!’ she heard Will shout from behind her. ‘Shit! Call an ambulance! Somebody get an ambulance!’

‘What’s wrong?’ Emma rushed out into the hallway.

Will appeared from the bathroom, his hands covered in blood.

‘Oh, no,’ she said, covering her mouth and shaking her head. She backed against the wall. ‘Please say he’s okay.’

‘It’s not Dan.’ Will’s face was pained as he held his blood-soaked hands out in front of him. ‘It’s Richard. I think he’s dead.’

3

‘Do you think Dan did that to Richard?’ Emma asked, as the three of them sat in the hospital waiting area.

Ever since they had found Richard, Dan’s brother, unconscious on the bathroom floor, his head and face bloodied and battered, Emma had been desperate to ask that question. But she had been afraid of what the other two might say.

Lizzy hadn’t said anything, either in the flat while they waited for the paramedics to arrive, or in the taxi on the way to the hospital. Will hadn’t commented either, but Emma knew him well enough to sense that something was troubling him.

‘No, no, of course not,’ Lizzy said, snapping out of her reverie. ‘Dan couldn’t have done something like that.’

Will sat with his head resting in his hands, staring blankly into space.

‘Will,’ Emma said, noticing his silence. ‘You don’t think he did it?’

‘I don’t know what to think,’ admitted Will.

‘Dan would never hurt Richard!’ Emma said, turning on him. ‘Dan always says they’ve never fought in their lives. They couldn’t be closer.’

‘Could you try and keep the noise down, please,’ said a passing nurse. ‘We’ve got patients who are trying to sleep.’

Emma apologised, feeling suitably chastened.

‘I’m sorry, Em,’ Will said, ‘but it doesn’t look good, that’s all.’

As much as Emma hated to admit it, Will was right – it didn’t look good. The paramedics had made it pretty clear to the arriving police that they believed Richard had been attacked, rather than just falling and hitting his head. The injuries indicated that someone had used a blunt instrument, and had smashed it into his head more than once. It was no accident. And Dan had now disappeared. It was little wonder that most of the police questioning at the scene had centred on Dan’s likely whereabouts, and the relationship between him and his brother.

‘He couldn’t have done it.’ Emma refused to believe that the man she had fallen in love with could be capable of carrying out such a violent attack. ‘I can’t believe you’d ever think he could.’

‘I hope you’re right,’ Will said. ‘I really do.’

‘I am right. I believe in him.’

A tense silence descended for a few seconds.

‘Do you think the police will want to talk to us again?’ Lizzy asked.

‘They’ll definitely want to talk to us in more detail,’ Will said. ‘Those were just preliminary questions before. We’re talking about possible attempted murder here – or even murder.’

‘I really thought he was dead back there,’ Lizzy said, reflectively. ‘When you couldn’t find a pulse, and there was all that blood, I thought that was it.’

‘I can’t get those images out of my head – of Richard lying there against the bath,’ said Will. ‘The way his head was twisted. I thought he’d broken his neck. You never expect to experience something like that. Thank God the paramedics got there so quickly.’

‘You saved his life,’ Emma said, ‘doing the first aid.’

‘I’m not sure I did anything, really.’ Will deflected the compliment. ‘But at least he’s got a chance now.’

Emma touched Will’s arm. ‘Sorry I shouted at you just now. None of us are thinking straight.’

‘Don’t worry about it, Em. I probably deserved it. Look’ – Will got to his feet and exhaled – ‘I’m going to nip outside, call the others and let them know that the celebrations are on hold. They’ll be wondering where we’ve got to.’

‘What are you going to say?’ Emma asked.

‘I don’t know,’ Will admitted. ‘That there’s been an accident?’

‘Just don’t tell them where we are. I don’t think the hospital would appreciate cowgirls and stags descending on the ward. And, anyway, I couldn’t handle it, not yet. Not until I’ve had time to let this all sink in.’

‘Understood,’ Will replied. ‘I’ll be suitably vague.’

Emma nodded her thanks.

‘I won’t be long,’ he said, ‘and hopefully you’ll have had some good news by the time I get back.’

‘I hope so,’ Emma replied.

‘Will’s been gone a while.’ Emma watched a team of medics wheel past an elderly man, an oxygen mask held over his face. The man seemed to look right at her, as if trying to communicate something with his watery eyes. The smells and sounds of the hospital took her back again to a time she had tried to forget, and she shivered.

‘Twenty minutes,’ Lizzy confirmed. ‘Maybe he’s having trouble getting in touch with the others.’

‘Maybe,’ Emma said, as the man on the trolley disappeared around the corner. She looked at her friend. ‘I really hate these places. It just brings back all the bad memories.’

‘Of what happened to your mum?’ Lizzy asked gently.

Emma nodded. ‘This is the hospital where she died. I came here every day for four weeks, watching her change from being the most energetic person I ever knew into an empty shell.’ She swallowed away the lump that had come to her throat. ‘It’s hell what breast cancer can do. When she died, I said I’d never come back here. I guess I thought it would be too painful.’

‘I can understand that. It’s always painful being reminded that someone you love is gone, no matter how long after the event.’

‘It’s her birthday tomorrow.’ Emma gave a painful smile at the thought. ‘She would have been fifty.’

‘Oh, I’m so sorry, Em.’ Lizzy reached over and put a hand on her back. ‘No wonder this is all bringing back bad memories. If there’s anything I can do – tomorrow, that is – let me know. You need to be with people at a time like this.’

‘Thanks,’ Emma replied. ‘Back when Mum was dying, Dan was a massive help. When Dad sank into his depression and didn’t want to know, Dan stuck by me. It helped me realise just how special he is. He carried me through it all. But where is he?’

‘He’ll be back.’

‘I’m really scared, Lizzy,’ Emma said, lowering her voice. ‘What if Dan and Richard did have a fight, and Richard fell and hit his head?’ She looked at Lizzy. ‘What if Dan killed Richard by mistake? I mean, I don’t even know what Richard was doing there – he wasn’t supposed to be going to the flat.’

‘Emma,’ Lizzy said, reaching across again to comfort her. ‘We don’t know that Richard is dead. We’ve got to hope for the best. And you’ve got to believe that Dan couldn’t have done this. You said it yourself.’

‘But if he didn’t do it, then where is he?’

‘I don’t know,’ Lizzy admitted.

‘Emma Holden?’

Emma looked up and saw a fresh-faced man, dressed in a blue shirt, tie and smart trousers. He didn’t look much older than she was. It was only the stethoscope around his neck that told her he was a doctor.

‘Yes, that’s me.’

‘Dr Chantler.’ He held out his hand. ‘I’m the registrar looking after Richard.’

Emma shook his hand, her heartbeat quickening in anticipation. ‘Is Richard . . .?’

Dr Chantler maintained his poker face. ‘I think it’s better if we talk in private,’ he said, leading the way to a small room.

‘There is some good news,’ he began, once they had all sat down. He was perching on the very edge of his chair, leaning forwards and glancing at the door every few seconds, as if readying himself for a hasty departure.

Emma scrutinised him for clues, but his expression gave away nothing. She and Lizzy waited for a painful moment while Dr Chantler gathered his thoughts, steepling his fingers so that the point they formed touched his top lip. The air in the room was stiflingly hot and stale, and the orange plastic chairs were sticky.

‘Well, Richard is alive,’ announced the doctor, without a hint of celebration. ‘It was touch and go for a time, but the team worked very hard and, fortunately, Richard also did his fair share of fighting, which always helps.’

‘And the bad news?’ Emma prompted, not really wanting to know the answer but desperate to find out everything and get it over with. She watched the doctor ready himself.

‘I’m afraid the bad news is that Richard has slipped into a coma.’

‘Right.’ Emma wasn’t surprised by the revelation. Although she’d hoped they wouldn’t be that serious, the extent of Richard’s injuries and the fact that he had remained unconscious throughout the journey to hospital had pointed to possible coma. At least he was still alive.

‘The CT scan showed that Richard has suffered a subdural haematoma – a bleed between the surface of the skull and the brain. The pressure that this puts the brain under can lead to coma.’

‘But he is going to be all right?’ Lizzy asked in an anguished voice. ‘He’ll come out of it?’

‘We’ve operated to remove the clot and deal with the bleeding, but we’ll just have to watch and wait,’ stated the doctor. ‘I’m afraid it’s impossible to predict what’s going to happen with any certainty. But it’s worth saying that a large proportion of patients recover well from coma.’

‘But some never do,’ Emma said flatly.

‘Some never do recover, that’s true,’ he admitted. ‘But a lot do. I know it’s difficult, but you must try and be as positive as possible. The first few weeks are crucial, really.’ He looked at Emma. ‘I hear that Richard has no immediate family, apart from his brother?’

Emma nodded. ‘His parents died when he was young.’

‘Well, it’s good that he’s got friends to be by his side. There’s plenty of research that shows patients in a coma respond to external stimuli: familiar voices, smells. You could help greatly in his recovery. As I said, just try and stay positive, even if you don’t feel like it.’

‘We’ll be there for him,’ Emma said. ‘Can we see Richard?’

‘Not just yet. He’ll be in recovery for a few hours at least. But as soon as we move him, we’ll let you know.’

Will watched from the hospital car park as an ambulance swung into the drop-off area. The back opened and a young woman was rushed into the hospital on a stretcher – yet another human being with their life in the hands of strangers.

He took a last, long drag on his cigarette before dropping it to the ground and stamping it out. He hadn’t had a cigarette in over a year, but he’d needed one tonight. Looking up at the clear night sky, he tried to spot the Orion constellation. His father had shown him it when he was little, during a camping trip in the Lake District. But here in the city, light pollution obscured the celestial view.

He thought back to the item he had found next to Richard’s body.

What the hell am I going to tell her?

Pulling out his mobile, he pressed the speed dial button and took a steadying breath, feeling light-headed and nauseous.

The phone was answered on the second ring.

‘Hi, it’s me – Will,’ he said, leaning back against the wall of the hospital for support. ‘Something terrible’s happened. And I don’t know what the hell I’m going to do about it.’

4

He had watched from across the road, sunk down in his car seat, as the ambulance arrived. Emma had looked so vulnerable, tears flowing down her cheeks, as she was comforted by that back stabbing brother of hers. How he had longed to move closer. But he knew that now wasn’t the right time. Things had to be planned carefully – they couldn’t be rushed.

Now, back in the house, he entered the living room and picked up the photograph. ‘Don’t worry, Em,’ he said to the image. ‘Everything is going to be okay.’

‘Will, where’ve you been?’ Emma said, as her brother appeared from around the corner of the hospital waiting area. It had been over an hour since Will had left. He looked exhausted.

‘I went for a walk.’ Will slumped into the seat beside her with a thud. ‘I didn’t plan to, but I just ended up walking off down the road. Before I knew it, I was up near Euston Station. You know, I never realised just how many really strange people there are around the streets of London – maybe I’m just on edge, but it didn’t feel safe out there. If it wasn’t a homeless guy, it was a potential drug dealer or mugger. Then, on the way back, I nearly walked under a bus – think I was in some kind of trance.’

‘You do look pretty rough,’ Lizzy commented.

‘Thanks,’ he said, deadpan, staring at the ceiling.

‘Have you been smoking?’ Emma asked, sniffing the air.

‘Busted. I only had the one, though – I succumbed to temptation but then threw the rest of the packet in the bin. Promise.’ He did a mock Cub Scout salute.

‘You got hold of the others okay?’ Emma said, letting the cigarette issue drop.

‘Yeah,’ he replied, still looking up at the ceiling. ‘It took me a while to get any sense out of them – both groups are pretty drunk, of course. They thought it was all a big wind-up at first. Sorry, Em, but I ended up having to tell them the truth. Well, as much as we know, anyway.’

‘That’s okay,’ Emma replied. ‘They had to find out sometime.’

‘They wanted to come to the hospital, but I told them there’re enough drunks here already in A&E. Now everyone’s going home.’

‘You did the best thing,’ Emma said. ‘We can keep them up to date with what’s happening from here.’

‘No news about Richard, then?’ Will rubbed his eyes as if he was trying to scoop out his eyeballs.

‘There is,’ Emma replied. ‘The doctor came along before. He’s alive, but he’s in a coma.’

‘Shit.’ Will shook his head. ‘Is he going to be okay?’

‘They said they’re still doing tests and won’t know how bad it is for a while yet. The doctor said something about a bleed on the brain.’

‘Bloody hell.’ Will blew out a gust of air from deep in his lungs. ‘You know, even though it didn’t look good, I thought he was going to be all right. I thought we might have done enough.’

‘The doctor said there was every chance,’ Lizzy said.

‘I hope so,’ Will said. ‘I really do. And I assume you haven’t heard from Dan yet?’

Emma shook her head.

‘Come here, sis.’ Will put an arm around her and pulled her close. ‘No matter what happens, we’ll be here for you.’

‘Like last time,’ Emma muttered.

‘Yeah,’ he said. ‘Like last time.’

‘Emma, wake up,’ Lizzy said. ‘They’ve brought Richard back from recovery.’

Emma opened her brown eyes. It took a few seconds for reality to break through. She glanced around, first at Lizzy; then at the hospital reception desk opposite, where a couple of nurses were filling out forms. Realising where she was, and why, was a terrible feeling.

‘What time is it?’ she asked, kneading her stiff back.

‘Nearly one o’clock in the morning,’ said Will, flattening down strands of hair at the back of his head – a sure sign that he, too, had been unable to stay awake.

‘By now, we should officially have been completely plastered in one of London’s tackiest nightclubs, dancing to Kylie,’ Lizzy said. ‘I had it all planned.’

‘I know,’ Emma said, ‘you worked so hard. Where’s Richard?’

‘A nurse just came by,’ Lizzy replied. ‘She said we can go in and see him. They’ve put him in the private room over there.’ She pointed to a door quite close to where they were sitting.

‘Did they say how he is?’ Emma stood up.

Lizzy shook her head. ‘She didn’t say anything.’

But the nurse hadn’t had to say anything – just one look at Richard lying in the bed, hooked up to a ventilator that controlled his breathing, told its own story.

In many ways he looked more ill now than he had done back at the apartment: his head was bandaged, hiding the injury and subsequent operation, and his face was ashen.

‘Can he hear things?’ Emma asked the nurse, a rather rotund lady in her fifties with a kindly face and a Scouse accent.

As Emma approached the bed, she half expected his closed eyes to snap open like in a horror movie. But of course they didn’t.

‘We don’t know, really,’ the nurse admitted. ‘But people who have come out of coma do say that they remember things from when they were unconscious, so it’s always better to assume that they can hear everything you say. We recommend that all conversation in the room includes everyone, don’t we, Richard?’

‘Sorry,’ Emma said. ‘I didn’t realise.’

‘It’s okay,’ the nurse said. ‘You’ll find it strange at first, but you’ll get used to it.’

‘How long have we got with, um, Richard?’

‘You can have five minutes, but then I’m afraid the doctor will need to come back in. Sorry.’

‘That’s okay.’ Emma stepped close to the bed and grasped the handrail that ran all the way around it; Lizzy paused just behind her, while Will stood at the foot of the bed, his face solemn. ‘It’s just good to see him.’

‘I’ll leave you to it,’ replied the nurse, leaving the room.

‘Thanks,’ Emma said, keeping her gaze on the motionless figure in the bed. ‘Hi, Richard,’ she said. Despite talking to someone who was unconscious, she didn’t feel at all self-conscious. It was as if Richard was awake and alert, listening to every word, making eye contact. ‘It’s good to see you. We thought you might be—’

Suddenly, unexpectedly, she broke down.

‘It’s okay, Emma,’ Lizzy said, but her voice was also cracking with emotion and she had tears in her eyes.

‘Maybe this isn’t such a good idea,’ Will said, still keeping his distance at the bottom of the bed, as if Richard was infectious. ‘Maybe we should come back tomorrow. It’s been a tough day for all of us.’

Emma turned to look at Will and held his gaze. He was right. There was too much going on in her head, too many thoughts swimming around.

What happened to Richard?

Where is Dan?

Did Dan . . .?

‘You’re right,’ she agreed. ‘We’ll go.’ She turned back to Richard. ‘We’ll see you first thing tomorrow,’ she promised. She placed a hand on his cheek and held it there for a few seconds. His skin was worryingly cold.

Richard was going to be Dan’s best man.

What the hell has gone so wrong?

‘Thanks for letting us see him,’ Emma said, as they walked back past the nursing station.

The nurse who had accompanied them into Richard’s room looked up from the desk. ‘That’s okay. It was the least you deserved after waiting there for so long.’ She smiled kindly. ‘It’s not as bad as you think. I’ve been working here for nearly twenty years and I’ve lost count of the number of people who weren’t really given a chance, but then recovered against all the odds. I always used to wonder why people who had the worst injuries recover, while some who don’t seem as badly hurt don’t make it. And do you know what I realised?’

‘What?’

‘That love can make the difference between life and death. I realise it sounds sentimental, but I know. I’ve seen how powerful love can be. And that’s why having you there is so important for Richard. It’s just a shame that his brother couldn’t be here, too.’

Emma kept quiet, wondering whether the police had told the nursing staff about the circumstances surrounding Richard’s condition, and Dan’s possible role in it.

‘He called about five minutes ago,’ the nurse continued, ‘to ask how Richard was. Must be hard for him being so far away from home at a time like this.’

‘Far away?’ Emma queried, confused. She was having trouble grasping this sudden turn in events.

‘He’s out of the country on business, isn’t he?’

‘Are you sure it was Dan who called?’ Emma asked, desperately.

‘That’s what he said.’

‘Did he say anything else? Did he pass on any messages to us?’ Emma’s head was spinning with possibilities.

‘He just told me to tell you that he was sorry,’ said the nurse. ‘He was sorry that he couldn’t be there with you all.’

5

‘Thanks, Lizzy,’ Emma said, as her friend handed her a cup of tea. ‘It’s lovely of you letting me stay here. I just can’t face going back to the flat. Not yet.’

‘It’s no problem, really,’ Lizzy replied, sitting down on the sofa next to Emma. Lizzy brushed back her own hair around her ear. The new, shorter, bob cut suited her, Emma thought. It made her look older, but in a good way. ‘It’s nice having you back here. Pity it’s under these circumstances, though.’

‘I know.’ Emma stared into the tea and let the steam drift up into her face.

It was Sunday morning, more than twenty-four hours since they had found Richard nearly dead in her flat. They had returned to the hospital on Saturday, as promised, and Emma had stayed there for most of the day, watching Richard. They had also spoken to the doctors – thankfully there hadn’t been any further internal bleeding. And although they still couldn’t say whether he was going to be okay, their tone seemed more positive.

‘Sleep any better?’ Lizzy asked.

‘Not really,’ Emma admitted. ‘I must have woken up over twenty times – I probably slept for about three hours or so in total. Every time I woke up, I just kept replaying seeing Richard in the flat and the hospital. In the end I came in here and watched some telly.’

‘I didn’t hear you,’ Lizzy said. ‘You should have woken me. I’d have kept you company.’

‘I didn’t want to ruin your sleep as well.’

‘Nonsense. Next time, wake me up. I’ll expect you to make the hot chocolate, though.’

They smiled at each other, the kind of smile that only happened at times of anxiety.

‘Emma,’ Lizzy said, tucking her legs under her body, ‘what do you think really happened?’

Emma shook her head. ‘I really don’t know. But I still can’t believe that Dan would hurt Richard. Like I said, they’ve always been more like best friends than brothers. I just can’t imagine any way they’d fight.’

An uncomfortable silence fell.

‘I’ve been thinking about what the nurse said,’ Lizzy mused. ‘About Dan calling the hospital to see how Richard was. Why doesn’t he just get in touch with us, if he really is innocent? I don’t mean that I think he did do it,’ she added quickly, ‘but it just doesn’t make sense.’

‘Maybe he’s afraid of what we might be thinking,’ Emma offered, not admitting that she had thought the very same thing ever since the revelation that Dan had called the hospital.

‘Or maybe he’s hiding from the person who really did that to Richard?’

‘I’ve thought that, too,’ Emma said. ‘Maybe they’d got into some kind of trouble – I don’t know, gambling or something, and someone came looking for them.’

‘Dan was a gambler?’

‘No, but maybe Richard was. Oh, I don’t know.’ Emma shook her head in exasperation. ‘I still can’t believe that this is happening.’

Lizzy shifted on the sofa; she clearly had something more on her mind. ‘Emma, just tell me to back off for being insensitive, but I was wondering what you’re planning to do about your second reading, your second audition, tomorrow.’

Emma exhaled. ‘I can’t go. Not while Dan’s still missing and Richard is in hospital. I just couldn’t do it; it would be so selfish.’

‘I understand,’ said Lizzy, taking a sip of her tea.

‘You think I should go to it?’ Emma asked, reading her friend’s face.

‘Well, it’s a fantastic opportunity,’ Lizzy said, slowly. ‘After all these years of hard work, it’s what you’ve always wanted, always dreamt of – having Guy Roberts, the famous casting director’ – she rolled her eyes and waggled her hands in a showbizzy fashion at Emma, who gave a weak chuckle – ‘call out of the blue and ask you to come for an audition for a potentially blockbusting movie. And to think that someone actually recommended you to him for the part! It’s amazing! So it’s a real shame to turn your back on something that could change your life.’

‘But—?’

‘But,’ Lizzy continued, ‘I think that you’re doing the right thing.’

‘Thanks, Lizzy.’ Emma smiled gratefully. ‘I don’t know what I’d do without you.’

Will woke up with one hell of a hangover, courtesy of a bottle of Jack Daniels. He’d spent the evening drinking in front of the TV and had fallen asleep fully clothed on the sofa. Although he’d woken up several times since, he hadn’t had the balance, energy or inclination to make his way to the bedroom. Now, he struggled to his feet and staggered towards the window. Pulling open the curtains, the shock of early morning sunlight set off what felt like a nuclear bomb in his head.

Turning back towards the living room, grimacing at the sour taste in his mouth, he focused on the photograph lying on the table.

Why didn’t I tell her about it when I had the chance?

Somehow he’d managed to regain his composure in the hospital, even joking with Emma and Lizzy. And the phone call from Dan had seemed to indicate that maybe it wasn’t all as he feared.

But who was to say that the person calling really had been Dan?

He moved over and picked up the photo.

‘If you had anything to do with this, I swear I’ll kill you,’ he said, his eyes burning at the man in the shot.

Will showered, dressed and headed outside into the sunshine, needing to escape the stale smell of alcohol that seemed to have soaked into every part of the flat. He decided to head towards Regent’s Park – maybe amongst the crowds of picnickers and sunbathers he could try and forget about the mess he had got himself into, if only for a couple of hours.

‘What did he say?’ Lizzy asked, as Emma replaced the handset. ‘Was he okay about it?’

‘Surprisingly nice,’ Emma replied, not quite believing what the casting director Guy Roberts had just said to her. ‘He said he understood why I’d decided not to go, but he was really disappointed as I’d been the standout candidate from the first reading. He also said that I have real talent.’

‘Wow, Emma, that’s great! And you said there were loads of people going for the part.’

‘He probably says that to everyone.’

‘No way. Why would he? People like him have got enough wannabe actors bothering them without encouraging people who aren’t good enough. I’m so proud of you!’ Lizzy enveloped Emma in a congratulatory hug.

‘Thanks,’ Emma said, ‘but it’s not really important now, is it?’