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  “Sure,” he says finally. “Whatever you want, boss. You know you can always count on me.”

  Chapter Forty-One

  Alex Roberts

  Today

  “I remember that call as if it happened yesterday,” Harry says, staring into space as we sit in his front room. “Your father sounded as if he was scared for his life. He made me promise to sit outside the house. He made it sound like a matter of life and death.”

  “Did he say why he wanted you to sit out there?” I ask.

  “At the time, I thought he was being paranoid. I mean, he started rambling on about ghosts too, and at the time I figured that whole thing was just laughable. It was only later that I...”

  His voice trails off.

  “That you what?” I ask after a few seconds.

  “It's my fault,” he mutters, slumping into a chair and putting his face in his hands. “Michael told me not to trust anyone else, he made me promise, but I was so naive back then.” He looks up at me. “You have to believe me, Alex. I did my best. I just made one mistake. One dumb mistake. If I'd just kept my promise to your father, maybe nobody else would have been hurt. Maybe he'd still be here today.”

  “What did you do?” I ask cautiously.

  “Please, don't hate me...”

  “What did you do?”

  “I sat out there for hours,” he explains, with tears in his eyes. “I did everything your father asked of me, for hours and hours, until well into the night. I would have stayed there too, except...”

  His voice trails off for a moment.

  “I thought I could trust him,” he adds. “Looking back now, I can't believe how stupid I was, but at the time I was young and I thought I could trust people. I thought the world was filled with good people. If I could go back to that night and knock some sense into my younger self -”

  “What happened?” I ask, trying to stay calm even though I can feel the fear bubbling up through my chest. “I won't blame you! I won't hate you! I just need you to tell me!”

  “I thought Lenny Johnson was a good man,” he replies. “I thought that of all the other people in Railham, he was someone I could trust. And because of my naivety, your father ended up dead. It's all my fault.”

  Chapter Forty-Two

  Sheriff Michael Blaine

  20 years ago

  We should have left by now. We should be hundreds of miles from Railham. But the only way to persuade Louisa to leave would have been to tell her the whole truth about what I did, and I never quite managed that. All day, I tried to think of some other way out, but I couldn't. And now, as I stand at the window and watch the dark street, I swear I can feel something bad coming this way. I need to figure out a way to persuade Louisa, without telling her the truth.

  For maybe the fiftieth time today, I check that my gun is loaded.

  “Are you going to stand there all night?” Louisa asks suddenly.

  Turning, I see that she's in the doorway, silhouetted against the light of the kitchen.

  “You're driving me nuts,” she continues. “I've got to say this, Michael. You're starting to seem a little bit like you're not quite okay in the head.”

  “I'm fine.”

  “There's a patrol car parked in the street outside.”

  “I asked Harry to keep an eye on the place,” I reply. “Don't worry. I trust Harry with my life.”

  “And you don't think that's a little excessive? Neil Bloom is dead, Michael.”

  “It's not Neil Bloom I'm worried about. Not anymore.”

  “Then who is it?”

  Watching the street beyond the parked patrol car, I can't help waiting in case something moves in the shadows. No matter how much I try to tell myself that I'm being paranoid, and that Tom Milford's warning earlier was just a spot of scaremongering, I can't shake the feeling that Lenny Johnson has got plans for me. He must realize that he can't trust me, that I'm not one of his players in this town, and I doubt he got to his position by leaving anything to chance. Again, I need to find a way to persuade Louisa to leave town with me, but I can't bring myself to tell her the truth about what I've done.

  “You're scaring me,” she says finally.

  “You're perfectly safe.”

  “Because of the gun you've got at your side? You've never been like this before, Michael.”

  “My wife was never attacked in my home before,” I point out, still watching the street. “My daughter was never abducted by a maniac before.”

  “A maniac who's dead now! I'm not going to let those events drive us from our home.” She pauses. “Is this linked to what happened to Mo Garvey? I keep thinking that you're not telling me everything. If you could just be honest, then maybe I can start to understand.”

  I watch the street for a moment longer, but deep down I know that I have to handle this myself. If Lenny comes, I'll deal with him. The time to run was earlier. Maybe I have to stand my ground. Or maybe, just maybe, I'm overreacting and Lenny's not going to come for me at all. These thoughts keep cycling through my mind, pushing me in one direction and then another, and the result is that I feel paralyzed by indecision.

  “You should go to bed,” I tell Louisa.

  “It's barely nine.”

  “Then watch TV. Read. Do something. I'll be along soon.”

  “And in the meantime you're just going to stand there like that? Watching the street with your gun close by?”

  “You don't understand,” I whisper.

  I stand in silence for a moment, and then I hear her walking away. I turn and look toward the door, but now I can hear her in the kitchen and I guess it's better if she's not bugging me the whole time. I can't even begin to explain what's going on, but now the thought of making a stand seems ludicrous, and I'm once again trying to think of a way to get us out of Railham. I just need to do that without filling Louisa in on every last detail of my actions, because I know she'd never understand why I made that original deal with Lenny. She'd think I'm a monster, and maybe she'd be right.

  Maybe II should just send my family away. Even if they hate me, at least they'll be safe.

  It takes a moment, but finally I realize that this is my only choice. I'll tell Louisa everything, including how I agreed to let Lenny deal with Neil, and how it was my fault Neil was loose and managed to come into our home. She'll leave, and she'll take Alex with her, and I might not ever see them again, but at least they'll be safe.

  I turn to go through and tell her.

  And then suddenly I watch as a figure walks over to the patrol car. I can't make the figure out, but somebody seems to be talking to Harry, and a moment later the car's engine splutters to life. I watch in horror as Harry drives away, and then the figure walks calmly along the street, disappearing into the distance. Harry must have run away, or he was paid off. Either way, he let me down.

  I check the gun again.

  This is it.

  Lenny's coming.

  “Louisa!” I call out, suddenly filled with panic as I hurry through to the kitchen. “I need you to take Alex and get out of here! Right now!”

  Finding no sign of her, I head to the stairs and run up to the landing.

  “Louisa!” I yell. “I'm serious! I'll explain later, but you have to go!”

  Reaching the door to Alex's room, I look through and see that Louisa is sitting on the side of the bed, reading our daughter a story. They both look up at me with fearful expressions, and to be honest I'm not quite sure what to tell them.

  “You have to go,” I stammer finally. “Please, both of you, you have to get out of here. I was wrong, I've made a huge mistake. I've made a lot of mistakes. I need you to leave.”

  “Is it because of the little girl?” Alex asks. “You did see her, didn't you?”

  “It's nothing to do with that,” I reply, hurrying to the master bedroom and grabbing the first bag I see, determined to fill it with a few clothes so they can leave right now. Grabbing some shirts and dresses from the wardrobe, I start throwing t
hem into the bag. Lenny'll let Louisa and Alex go. They've never done anything to hurt him. I'm the one he wants.

  A moment later, I see that Louisa is watching me from the doorway.

  “What the hell has gotten into you?” she asks.

  “Lenny Johnson's coming to the house.”

  “The mayor? Why would -”

  “Just trust me!” I hiss. “There's no time to explain right now!”

  “What are you so scared of? Michael -”

  “Neil Bloom killed Mo Garvey!” I shout, turning to her. “There, are you happy now? It wasn't some drifter. It was Neil Bloom and I knew all along!”

  “What are you talking about?”

  “I let Lenny cover it up,” I continue, grabbing some underwear from one of the drawers and stuffing it all into the bag. “I thought he was going to get Neil off the streets, but instead he just let him back out there. Don't you get it? It's my fault that Neil was free to hurt other people! It's my fault that he was creeping about at Graham and Connie Brown's house and watching Annie, and it's my fault that he came here and hurt you and took Alex!”

  “You let him go free after what he did to Mo Garvey?”

  “I thought Lenny was taking care of it!”

  “And how did you think he was going to do that, Michael?” she asks, as her anger finally starts to show. “Did you think he was going to take him out into the forest and put a bullet in his head?”

  She waits for me to reply, but after a moment I see the awful realization in her eyes.

  “That is what you thought, isn't it?” she continues. “You thought he was going to kill Neil, and you were willing to go along with that.”

  “It's complicated.”

  “So who was that man who got hit by a car?”

  “There's no time for this.”

  “Did Lenny have him killed? Is that it?”

  “I don't know about the drifter,” I reply, still struggling to keep from panicking. “I don't know about any of this, I just know that you and Alex have to get the hell out of here right now, because Lenny is coming for me and I have to face him.”

  “Who are you?” she replies.

  I open my mouth to ask what she means, but suddenly I understand.

  “The Michael Blaine I married was a good, honest man,” she continues. “That is not the man I'm looking at now. The man I'm looking at now is a coward and a liar, and a corrupt piece of human garbage!”

  “I made a mistake!”

  “You're damn right you did,” she replies, and now she's staring at me as if I'm the most disgusting sight she's ever seen. “Fine, we'll leave. I'll take Alex and -”

  Before she can finish, we both hear a clicking sound from downstairs, followed a moment later by the bump of the back door swinging shut.

  “Did you lock that?” I ask.

  “I thought you did, but -”

  She stops suddenly, and now there's a clear set of footsteps moving through the kitchen below this room. As we listen to the sound of someone making his way further and further into our house, I look at Louisa's face and see abject terror in her expression.

  “It's not you he wants,” I say cautiously. “I can fix this, I can talk to him, but you need to take Alex and get out of here. You're perfectly safe and -”

  “Alex!” she calls out suddenly, turning and hurrying out of the room. “Alex, honey, come to Mommy!”

  Hearing footsteps down in the hallway, I pause for a moment before heading out onto the landing, just as Louisa drags a distracted-looking Alex out of the other bedroom.

  “What's wrong?” Alex asks, turning to me. “I'm scared.”

  “Just go with Mommy,” I tell her, trying to stay calm. “Everything'll be okay, sweetheart, but you have to go with Mommy now.”

  “I want to stay with you!”

  “I'll see you later.”

  “But Daddy -”

  “Move!” Louisa hisses, pulling her toward the top of the stairs and then stopping, having clearly seen somebody down in the hallway. “Daddy's not coming with us.”

  “Hello Louisa,” I hear Lenny say, his voice sounding so calm and confident. “And hello there Alex. It's so good to see you again. I'm sorry for coming over so late, and I'm sorry we let ourselves in, but we need a word with Michael. I'm going to assume that he's up there.”

  “Leave them alone!” I call out, hurrying along the landing and stopping as soon as I see him. David Trelawney and Matt Beamish are with him too. I guess cowards don't like to show up without friends.

  “We're leaving,” Louisa says, quickly leading Alex down the stairs. “I don't want any part of this!”

  “That would be a wise move,” Lenny tells her.

  Louisa says nothing as she slips past him, but suddenly David and Matt stand in her way. When she turns and tries to lead Alex through to the back door, Matt steps around her and once again blocks her path. With fear in her eyes now, she turns first to me and then to Lenny.

  “Unfortunately,” he continues, “the wise option is no longer available to you. Thank your husband for that.”

  Louisa hesitates for a moment, before looking toward the front door.

  “Help!” she screams. “Somebody -”

  Before she can finish, Matt punches her in the side of the head, sending her clattering against the railing and then thudding down to the floor.

  “Stop!” I yell, running down the stairs as David grabs Alex and keeps her from fleeing. “If you touch her, I'll -”

  Suddenly something slams into me from behind and I crash forward, hitting the wall hard and then turning just as Matt Beamish grabs me by the throat and pushes me back against the door. I try to get free, but he's holding me too tight and a moment later Lenny steps up behind him, eyeing me with a hint of amusement.

  “Would your dear wife have simply run off into the night,” Lenny says after a moment, “and never mentioned any of this to anyone? I don't think so.”

  He wanders to the window and looks out, as if he's making sure that nobody is coming to check on the house.

  “Let them go!” I hiss, still trying desperately to get free.

  “I freely admit that I made a mistake,” he replies, turning to me again. “I trusted Neil Bloom, and that was a very serious error of judgment on my part. I fully intend to learn from that error. I mean, we all have to keep learning, don't we? That's how life works.”

  “Daddy, I'm scared!” Alex whimpers, still struggling to get free from David Trelawney's grip. “I want Mommy to wake up!”

  “Mommy's fine,” I reply, even though Louisa has remained motionless on the floor ever since she was punched.

  She'll be fine.

  I know she will.

  She has to be.

  “Keep the girl downstairs,” Lenny says suddenly, keeping his eyes fixed on me. “Michael, I want to talk to you in private. That means upstairs.”

  “Let my wife and daughter go first.”

  “I'll let them go when I'm good and ready,” he replies. “Right now, I want you to go upstairs with me so we can discuss some matters. Trust me, this is the quickest and easiest way to make sure that this mess ends quickly. You've made a lot of mistakes lately. Don't make another.”

  I want to grab him by the throat and wipe that smile off his face, but he reaches into his pocket and then pulls a gun out just far enough to let me see the trigger. I need to be smart about this, and I figure that maybe if I can get him alone, I can get a drop on him.

  “Upstairs,” he says firmly. “Now! I've had enough of this bullshit for one night! Move!”

  Chapter Forty-Three

  Sheriff Michael Blaine

  20 years ago

  “This is a nice house,” Lenny says as he peers out through the bedroom window, watching the dark lawn for a moment. “You've done well for yourself, Michael. Any man would be happy to live in a house like this, with a beautiful wife and a sweet little kid. It's the dream, isn't it? You had the dream. And now...”

  His voic
e trails off.

  “What do you want?” I ask, stepping toward him.

  “Not too close,” he replies, turning to me and slipping the gun from his pocket. At the same time, he smiles. “You should have been content with what you had, Michael. You should've taken the hint when I suggested there was no need for you to interfere with what was going on. I guess some people just don't know when to leave well enough alone. I mean, hell, I tried to be subtle.”

  “Neil Bloom was a monster.”

  “And I dealt with him.”

  “He should have been dealt with by the law.”

  “He's gone now. That's what matters.” Peering out the window again, he continues to watch the lawn. “The people of Railham don't want to know the ins and outs of how justice is served. They just want to know that they're safe. They want to go to bed and sleep soundly, and wake up to the same happy world they enjoyed the day before. They don't really want to know how we keep them safe, Michael. They're happy to trust us, but that doesn't mean they're stupid or naive or innocent. It just means that there's an unspoken set of rules that everybody knows about.”

  “And do those rules include letting men like Neil Bloom walk free?”

  “Of course not.”

  “Are there others like him?” I ask. “How many other people have gotten away with things, just because you decided to deal with matters yourself?”

  He sighs.

  “How many other monsters have you let walk free, Lenny?”

  “Do you know your trouble?” he snaps, turning and coming toward me with the gun still in his hand. “You think we all have to talk about everything. There's something to be said, Michael, for a quiet, unspoken understanding of how things work. A wink here, a nod there, and a kind of acceptance. People always want to yammer on in the modern world. I'm more interested in the complex subtleties. The unspoken undercurrents that really bind our little communities together.”

  “Let my wife and daughter go,” I reply, “and -”

  Suddenly he slams the gun against my face, sending a cracking pain through my cheek as I stumble back and fall to the ground. I can feel blood soaking under my skin, and although I instinctively reach up and touch my cheek, I pull my hand away as I feel a searing agony. I pause for a moment, before turning and looking back up at Lenny as he towers over me.