by Luca Veste
Mark nodded, then allowed himself to be led away. Now, it was over. There would be more to come, but he felt as if it were really over finally. That all the pieces had been discovered and now someone else could stand back and work out what the full picture was.
Every now and again, he remembered that brief moment of anger back in the park. That still kept him awake at night. The idea that he could have ended up just like all those other men and boys out there. All those who had been prepared to watch someone they professed to care for be killed by John. To revel in their deaths, as if they deserved it.
It didn’t matter that he had been able to ignore it. To know that John was wrong. To know that it wasn’t the truth. That Natasha didn’t mean anything she said.
For the briefest of moments, Mark had been no better than them.
The nervous feeling continued to build, trying to work out what he would say if John’s solicitor asked him about his thoughts that night.
What lies he would tell.
That’s all he had left.
Lies to allow him to sleep at night.
Acknowledgements
This book is in your hands thanks to the work and support of many, many people. My deepest appreciation to the following…
Steve Cavanagh, Craig Robertson and David Jackson, for all the friendship and support. Bethan Jones, my editor, who was instrumental to getting this novel right – no easy task! Thanks for the brilliant notes and believing in the idea. Also Jess Barratt, who is still the most amazing publicist. A huge thank you to the whole team at Simon & Schuster, who stuck with me for five books and turned me into a full-time writer back in 2014. You made a dream come true. Although this is the last book we’ll work on together, I will forever appreciate what you’ve done for me and will miss you all. For Jo Dickinson, who worked on this book all too briefly, but greatly influenced it. To Agent Phil Patterson, who continues to be an absolute rock. For all the readers, who continue to come back to read what’s happening in Scouseland. Thank you so much. To Liverpool F.C. for breaking that thirty year duck. It was our year. Finally to Mike Hale, Jemma Hale, Daniel Veste, Laura Veste, for being more than just family. Also, the rest of the Veste, Woodland, Hale, Kirkham, Brisk and Smith clan.
And the best for last, as always, Emma, Abigail and Megan. My whole life.
More from the Author
The Six
The Bone Keeper
Then She Was Gone
It Never Leaves You
Bloodstream
About the Author
Luca Veste is a writer of Italian and Scouse heritage, married with two young daughters. He studied psychology and criminology at university in Liverpool, and he is the author of seven novels: Dead Gone, The Dying Place, Bloodstream and Then She Was Gone are all part of the Murphy and Rossi series. His other novels, The Bone Keeper, The Six and The Game, are standalones. He is also the co-creator of the acclaimed podcast Two Crime Writers and a Microphone, which he records with fellow crime author Steve Cavanagh.
Follow @LucaVeste on Twitter and Facebook.
www.SimonandSchuster.co.uk/Authors/Luca-Veste
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First published in Great Britain by Simon & Schuster UK Ltd, 2020
Copyright © Luca Veste 2020
The right of Luca Veste to be identified as author of this work has been asserted in accordance with the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act, 1988.
Simon & Schuster UK Ltd
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A CIP catalogue record for this book is available from the British Library
Paperback ISBN: 978-1-4711-6818-5
eBook ISBN: 978-1-4711-6817-8
This book is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places and incidents are either a product of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously. Any resemblance to actual people living or dead, events or locales is entirely coincidental.
Table of Contents
Cover
Title Page
Dedication
1. Now Chapter One
2. Before Chapter Two
Chapter Three
Chapter Four
Chapter Five
Chapter Six
Chapter Seven
Chapter Eight
Chapter Nine
Chapter Ten
Chapter Eleven
Chapter Twelve
Chapter Thirteen
Chapter Fourteen
Chapter Fifteen
Chapter Sixteen
Chapter Seventeen
Chapter Eighteen
Chapter Nineteen
Chapter Twenty
3. Now Chapter Twenty-One
4. Before Chapter Twenty-Two
Chapter Twenty-Three
Chapter Twenty-Four
Chapter Twenty-Five
Chapter Twenty-Six
Chapter Twenty-Seven
Chapter Twenty-Eight
Chapter Twenty-Nine
Chapter Thirty
Chapter Thirty-One
Chapter Thirty-Two
Chapter Thirty-three
Chapter Thirty-Four
Chapter Thirty-Five
Chapter Thirty-Six
Chapter Thirty-Seven
Chapter Thirty-Eight
5. Now Chapter Thirty-Nine
6. Before Chapter Forty
Chapter Forty-One
Chapter Forty-Two
Chapter Forty-three
Chapter Forty-Four
Chapter Forty-Five
Chapter Forty-Six
Chapter Forty-Seven
Chapter Forty-Eight
Chapter Forty-Nine
Chapter Fifty
Chapter Fifty-One
7. Now Chapter Fifty-Two
Chapter Fifty-Three
Chapter Fifty-Four
Chapter Fifty-Five
8. After Chapter Fifty-Six
Acknowledgements
About the Author
Copyright