by Alice Hunter
Epilogue
I’ve made my peace with God. I’m in here for the long haul, so no point licking my wounds like an injured bird forever – I must get on with prison life. There’s no outlet for my fantasies in here, mind. Unless I fancy sexual encounters with one of the lads. I guess I can’t rule that out. Life is an awfully long time.
The visiting order came as a shock. I was amazed when I saw the name on the paper. Curiosity has led me to the visits hall today. It’s humid, the air thick as I walk towards the table, eyes narrowed.
‘This is a surprise,’ I say, as I take a seat opposite her.
‘I can imagine.’ She sips from a bottle of water, her full, luscious lips curled around it. I close my eyes a second to picture those lips elsewhere.
I snap them open – now isn’t the time. I’ll save those images for later. ‘What do you want?’
She shifts awkwardly in the plastic chair. Her hot, bare legs against it cause a squeaking sound. Her hair is shiny; silky smooth. I have an urge to reach out and run my fingertips through it.
She lets out a shuddering sigh. ‘I’m … not sure I should be here, really.’ She casts a wary glance around at the other visitors.
‘Don’t be nervous. You’ve obviously got something important to say.’
‘I think there’s something you should know,’ she says, her voice no more than a husky whisper. She lays her hands flat on the table, her perfectly manicured, red nails splaying out in front of me. For a moment, I’m mesmerised by them. I imagine them clawing at my own hands, trying to fend me off; trying to stop me from strangling the life from her.
‘Go on,’ I say, my intrigue heightened.
‘Okay. You need to hear me out. I know this will sound … well, far-fetched.’
‘You’d be surprised,’ I say. ‘Just tell me.’
‘I believe that Beth planned to get together with Adam Knight. When you were first in custody, she told me how she felt about him.’
‘She told me, too,’ I say.
‘Did she? Did she mention Camilla?’
I have a feeling where this is going, but for now, I don’t respond.
‘I think she may have had something to do with Camilla’s death.’
I raise my eyebrows and let her continue.
‘The way Beth acted so devastated when you were arrested, but then began seeing more of Adam almost immediately – I get the feeling she was seeking more than a shoulder … and in hindsight, well – it’s all very suspicious.’
I nod slowly. It’s something I’d considered too – and from the look on Beth’s face when I brought up Camilla’s accidental death, I’d felt more certain. Now, hearing this, my suspicions are confirmed. I’d thought Beth was cutting off her nose to spite her face by handing over evidence. I couldn’t understand why she’d put Poppy’s future happiness in jeopardy. But she wasn’t, was she? She’d already figured out how to get rid of me and set up with Adam. She obviously saw me as too risky. She believed he was better than me. He was someone who could offer lifelong security for her and Poppy.
The perfect man.
Only he was married.
‘Thank you for coming here to tell me,’ I say, smiling.
‘The problem is, I don’t have any evidence.’
I swallow hard, then sit forward, ensuring I have Julia’s eye contact. She blushes. I still have that power. ‘We can work on that.’
Acknowledgements
Thanks to my agent, Anne Williams, and the team at Avon, HarperCollins for making the writing of The Serial Killer’s Wife possible. Huge thanks to my editor, Katie Loughnane, for her fabulous input, unwavering support, encouragement, and expert editing skills. I have thoroughly enjoyed working with her on this book. My thanks also to Phoebe Morgan and Sabah Khan for their input, Felicity Radford for her keen eye and helping with the timeline and aspects of police procedural, and all those people behind the scenes who work tirelessly to get books into the hands of readers.
The publishing industry and booksellers have had to adapt to new ways of working since the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic and I would like to thank them for continuing to ensure books find readership during such challenging times. The planning of this book took place prior to the pandemic, with much of the writing being done in the early months, therefore I do not refer to it, nor do any of the COVID-safe practices we have now become accustomed to, feature.
Thank you, as ever, to my family and friends for their ongoing support and to reviewers and book bloggers for their enthusiasm and the time they give to help promote new books. Most of all, thank you to those who read The Serial Killer’s Wife – I hope you enjoy it and that it offers some escapism.
About the Author
After completing a psychology degree, Alice Hunter became an interventions facilitator in a prison. There, she was part of a team offering rehabilitation programmes to men serving sentences for a wide range of offences, often working with prisoners who’d committed serious violent crimes. Previously, Alice had been a nurse, working in the NHS. She now puts her experiences to good use in fiction. The Serial Killer’s Wife draws heavily on her knowledge of psychology and the criminal mind.
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