realized Joe had done the same thing. No one seemed to want to speak. Even Millie was unusually silent. Alice hadn’t put her mobile away. She glanced at it again and Tom could see her thumb hovering over one of the keys. It looked as if his mother was getting ready to press 9.
‘Mummy, I’m scared,’ said Joe in a small voice.
‘There’s nothing to be scared of, sweetheart,’ replied his mother quickly, in a voice that seemed a bit shriller than normal. ‘We’ll be home in ten minutes.’
She set off again, more slowly this time, one step in front of the other. When Tom looked up he could see her eyes darting from side to side. They were in the midst of the trees now. Everywhere they turned, dark shadows surrounded them.
‘Tom, poppet,’ said Alice, without looking at him. ‘If I were to tell you to, could you take Joe’s hand and run as fast as you possibly can down the hill and find Daddy?’
‘Why?’ said Tom.
‘He’s probably still in the church,’ said Alice. ‘Maybe at home. Could you find him and tell him where we are?’
‘What about you and Millie?’
‘I’ll look after Millie. I just know how fast you are. I know you and Joe could get home really quickly. Can you do that for me, angel?’
Tom wasn’t sure. Run in the fog and leave his mother behind? They were almost through the trees now. The mist wasn’t quite so thick lower down the moor. The outlines of Heptonclough’s buildings were starting to appear. They could see further down the hill.
‘Oh, for heaven’s sake,’ said Alice, stopping and closing her eyes. ‘Oh, for heaven’s sake, Tom, you scared the life out of me.’
Tom looked at his mother. She didn’t look cross, she looked hugely relieved. He turned his head down the hill to see a figure a hundred yards or so away from them.
‘It’s Gillian,’ she said. ‘Out for one of her walks. Fancy being scared of Gillian.’
29
8 October
‘EVI, IT’S STEVE. IS THIS A GOOD TIME?’
Evi looked at her watch. She was on her way to a children’s home, to have her first meeting with a child who hadn’t spoken in the ten days since the police had used their special powers under the Children Act to remove him from his home. It was a ten-minute journey. Ten minutes either side of that to get herself in and out of the car. But her supervisor had rung on her mobile. She could talk on the move.
‘It’s fine,’ she said, gathering up her notepad and several pencils from the desk. ‘I have a couple of minutes. Thanks for getting back.’
‘Well, sorry it took so long, but we’ve been away. I only got back to the office this morning.’
‘Anywhere nice?’ Why did pencils permanently need sharpening? She leaned against the desk and fumbled in the drawer.
‘Antigua. And yes, it was very nice. Now, this email of yours.’
‘Any thoughts?’ She’d found the sharpener. But holding the phone against her ear with her shoulder was going to play havoc with her back.
‘You say the patient is making progress?’ She could hear Steve sipping his usual strong black coffee.
‘On the surface, yes,’ said Evi. Two pencils sharpened, that would have to be enough. ‘She’s managing to curtail the drinking, the medication I’ve prescribed is working well, she’s started to talk about the future.’ OK, writing stuff, phone – yes, she had that what the hell had she done with the car keys?
‘So what’s the problem?’
‘I just can’t help feeling there’s something she’s not telling me,’ said Evi. Her car keys were in her coat pocket. They were always in her coat pocket. ‘She’s very reluctant to talk about her early life, the death of her father, the appearance of a stepfather. There are times when it’s as though a curtain comes down. Subject off limits.’
‘You’ve not been seeing her that long, have you?’
‘No, only a few weeks,’ said Evi, wondering if she could get her coat on without falling over. ‘And I know these things can take time. It’s just that the Megan Connor business struck me as being quite a coincidence. I can’t help thinking it would have had an impact.’
‘You’re probably right. But I’d wait for her to bring it up. Let her talk about what she’s happy to talk about. You’re still right at the start of treatment. There’s plenty of time.’
‘I know. I thought that myself. Just needed you to confirm it.’ The coat was on, just. Evi hung her