Little Girl Gone

by Stephen Edger

  ‘You need to let this go, Alex, and focus on what’s right in front of you. Not many people get a second chance in this life.’

  Behind the counter, one of the baristas dropped a tray of plates, the erupting cacophony causing everyone to turn and stare. Everyone except Alex. She was too busy watching Carol-Anne gnawing on the gingerbread biscuit.

  ‘Do you think she’ll remember any of this?’ Alex asked after a moment.

  Ray considered his daughter and pulled a face, which she instantly giggled at. ‘Kids are resilient. You heard what the doctor and nurses who examined her said: they could find no evidence of injury. And you say she hasn’t cried out in the night since her return – that’s a good sign that she isn’t suffering any kind of trauma. At most I reckon she’ll remember a period of days when she didn’t see either of us. I doubt she’ll remember Simone at all.’

  ‘Someone should arrange a funeral for Simone,’ Alex said, unable to look at him. ‘I don’t think she had any relatives who would do that.’

  He stared at her for a long moment. ‘You know, you amaze me. After everything she did to us, you can be empathetic.’

  Alex straightened and met his stare. ‘She was a troubled woman, more so than either of us will probably ever know. I’m not relieving her of any blame or responsibility for her actions, but on some level she must have thought that she wasn’t doing anything wrong.’

  ‘She had one of her rooms soundproofed. That’s pretty twisted if you ask me.’

  ‘Even so, she still deserves to have her remains laid to rest. When will her body be released?’

  ‘I haven’t checked to be honest.’

  ‘Can you find out for me? Is there someone you can speak to?’

  Ray shook his head, incredulous. ‘I’ll see what I can find out.’

  Alex sipped her coffee, quickly lowering the cup as the beverage was still too hot.

  ‘Isla and her son have been ruled out as persons of interest in the enquiry too,’ he continued. ‘She doesn’t bear a grudge and was pretty devastated she wasn’t at the house when the gun and bunny were delivered. She’s taking an extended leave of absence so she can help her son get properly rehabilitated. There will, of course, be an investigation into her behaviour through the course of what happened, but I’d be surprised if it amounted to anything more than a slapped wrist.’

  A new FLO had been assigned the evening Sophie had died. She’d offered even less information than Isla had in the days she’d spent in their lives.

  Ray leaned forward and spread his palms flat on the table top, separating his fingers. ‘There’s something I’ve been meaning to ask you.’

  She sensed what was coming, but she wasn’t about to let him off easily. ‘Go on.’

  ‘Well … I’m not sure how to say … what I mean is …’

  ‘Spit it out, Ray.’

  ‘What about us?’

  ‘Us?’

  ‘You and me; our marriage. I know I screwed up in the biggest way imaginable, but I don’t want this to be the end.’

  She took no pleasure from seeing him squirm, and she didn’t doubt his sincerity, but she would never be able to trust him again. ‘It was the end the moment you slipped your tongue into Noemi’s mouth and allowed yourself to forget about the sacred vows we exchanged in front of our friends and family.’

  ‘I get that – I really do – is there nothing I can say or do to change your mind? I know I was stupid, and I have no right to ask for your forgiveness—’

  ‘So don’t.’

  ‘For the sake of our daughter I think we need to try and find a way through this. If I’ve learned anything from this horrific experience, it’s that I love my daughter more than life itself, and I want to be in her life.’

  Alex gently rubbed a hand over her abdomen. ‘I won’t stop you seeing her; either of them. You have as much right to play an active role in their lives as I do, but I can’t have you living under the same roof as me. There are too many memories in that house, and not many of them are good. I’m going to search for somewhere a bit smaller. We can sell up and put the proceeds towards that. Whatever’s left you can use to fund a place of your own. I don’t mind you being nearby, and I won’t ever stop you visiting. I just can’t have you in my bed anymore.’

  Ray closed his eyes, nodding. ‘I understand. I don’t agree, but I understand.’ He took a long gulp of his cappuccino. ‘Are you still planning to return to work?’

  The truth was, Alex hadn’t decided what her future held. She knew she didn’t ever want to let Carol-Anne out of her sight again. In fact, since mother and daughter had been reunited, the only time Alex hadn’t seen Carol-Anne was when she had been asleep, and even then she’d kept the two-year-old in the same room, the door secured by a carefully angled ironing board.

  ‘Because if you are,’ Ray continued, ‘perhaps we could work something out where I have them both while you’re working. I’m sure I could sort some flexible hours with work.’

  ‘We’ll see,’ Alex said, as her attention turned back to the little angel she’d feared she would never see again.

  There was no way of knowing what the future held for any of them, but she was just grateful that they still had a future to look forward to.

  A Message from Stephen

  Thank you for taking the time to read Little Girl Gone. If you did enjoy it, I’d love it if you would post a review on Amazon or Goodreads and share the story with your friends. If a book is written to entertain, then the reader is the target audience, and I feel honoured that you chose one of my books to read.

  If you’d like to keep up-to-date with all my latest releases, you can join my mailing list (www.stephenedger.com). Your email address will never be shared and you can unsubscribe at any time. Alternatively you can contact me through Facebook and Twitter. And I really do respond to every message.

  Thank you again for reading my book. I hope to hear from you soon.

  Stephen Edger

  Website: www.stephenedger.com

  Facebook: /‌AuthorStephenEdger

  Twitter: @StephenEdger

  Acknowledgements

  I’d like to say special thanks to the following people, without whom Little Girl Gone wouldn’t be in existence today:

  First mention has to go to my wife, who has been my biggest supporter since day one. She is the one who gets me through when the roller-coaster of writing hits a dip. She’s also the one I run crazy plot twists past, and the one who lies in bed at night, terrified by the darker side of my imagination.

  As always, I’d like to thank Parashar Ramanuj, my best friend for more than twenty years and my first port of call whenever I have questions on medical procedures or body parts.

  I’d also like to express my gratitude to Joanne Taylor who has been proof-reading my work since the beginning, and to Elaine Emmerick, who is also one of the first to review my work, and shout about it from the rooftops.

  Finally, I’d like to thank my brilliant editor Kathryn Cheshire for giving me the chance to work with HarperCollins, and the incredible team of editors, cover designers and marketers who’ve helped bring this book to life.

  Final thanks must go to every reader of my books for encouraging me to follow my dream and never to give up.

  Also by Stephen Edger

  The DI Kate Matthews Series

  Dead to Me

  Dying Day

  Cold Heart

  The PI Johnson Carmichael Series

  Trespass

  Fragments

  Downfall

  Standalones

  Snatched

  Blackout

  Then He Was Gone

  About the Author

  Stephen Edger has been writing crime thrillers since 2010. An avid reader, Stephen writes what he likes to read: fast-paced crime thrillers with more than a nod to the darker side of the human psyche. In all, he has published over a dozen novels – four trilogies, and the rest standalone psychological thrillers.

  T
he one common location to each of the novels is the city of Southampton, where Stephen has lived since attending the university there. This local knowledge gives each of the stories a unique and edgy realism that few can match.

  Stephen was born in the north-east of England, but grew up in London, meaning he is both a northerner and a southerner. By day he works in the financial industry using his insider knowledge to help shape the plots of his books. He also has a law degree, which gives him a good understanding of the inner workings of the UK justice system.

  Stephen is married, and has two children and two Westie dogs. He is passionate about reading and writing, and cites Simon Kernick and Tony Parsons as major influences on his writing style.

  Website: www.stephenedger.com

  Facebook: /‌AuthorStephenEdger

  Twitter: @StephenEdger

  About the Publisher

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