All Fall Down: A gripping psychological thriller with a twist that will take your breath away Read Free Page A

“blooming” stage, but I just feel knackered all the time.’
    ‘It’s because there’s no rest with the second one. Is Leo all right?’
    ‘Yeah, he’s good. Tim’s on bedtime story duty tonight.’ She grinned at Rob. ‘He was disappointed you couldn’t make the bike ride.’
    ‘Petworth and back?’ Rob said in mock horror. ‘I like cycling, but not that much.’ And then he thought: Maybe if I’d known what lay in store for us today . . .
    After a little more small talk, Wendy said, ‘We did wonder if you’d be assigned to this.’
    ‘Actually, I’m not. DS Husein knew we were friends because I recommended your guys to quote for a central heating system.’ Looking slightly embarrassed, she added, ‘The fool went for someone cheaper, and he’s had them back twice to fix leaks.’
    ‘Oh, well.’ It wasn’t the first time he’d heard something like this. Rob was just grateful that Tim and Dawn, like many of their friends, had done their bit to promote his business after its troubles.
    They moved into the living room, which offered a perfect view of the activity taking place on the lawn. There seemed to be at least a dozen officers in attendance, including a team from the Scientific Services Department, clad in the ominous white suits that Rob recognised from many a TV drama.
    ‘It’s actually a mercy for you that the victim died en route to hospital,’ Dawn told them. ‘If his death had occurred on the lawn, the body wouldn’t have been moved till a full forensic examination had been conducted.’
    Spotting DS Husein, Dawn went out for a chat, leaving Wendy to offer Rob an encouraging smile. ‘Makes such a difference to have a friendly face, doesn’t it?’
    ‘Absolutely,’ Rob agreed, though he wasn’t sure how convincing he sounded.
    They’d come to know Dawn well in the ten years she’d been with Tim, who was one of Rob’s oldest friends. To begin with it had been slightly awkward, because they’d been similarly close to Tim’s first wife, Jill. That marriage had foundered on a disagreement over children – to Tim’s dismay, Jill was always adamant she didn’t want them – and Rob and Wendy had never seen him as happy as when Dawn announced she was pregnant with Leo. Now there was a second baby on the way, and Tim seemed undaunted at the idea of becoming a parent again in his late forties. Rob couldn’t imagine anything worse.
    He stood and watched Dawn and the other detective in conversation. There were frequent gestures towards the common, and once or twice, when DS Husein glanced back at the house, Rob had to steel himself not to duck out of sight.
    Dawn moved on to greet a couple of her colleagues: a spot of workplace banter, judging by the wide smiles and her playful attempt to slap the head of a short, thickset man in an Iron Maiden t-shirt. It reminded Rob that, as horrific as this afternoon’s events had been, to the officers here this was simply another job.

    R eturning to the house , Dawn accepted a glass of cranberry juice, and told them that attempts would be made to search at least part of the common before darkness fell.
    ‘Poor DS Husein got lumbered as Deputy SIO, and he has actions up to his eyeballs. It’s a tough ask to gather enough bodies on a Sunday evening – I only got spared because I have to be in London for a trial tomorrow.’
    The other priority, she told them, was house-to-house enquiries. ‘Far more likely to catch people at home on a Sunday night than we will in the morning.’
    Rob perked up at this. ‘Do you think he was seen, making his way here?’
    ‘It’s possible, though we’ve had no other reports that fit the bill.’
    Without intending to blurt it out, Rob said, ‘And are we being considered as suspects?’
    Dawn gave him a sideways glance. ‘Why’d you say that?’
    ‘Just the impression we had. The first officer on the scene, PC Clark—’
    ‘Ah, you don’t want to worry about Don.’ Her smile was brief, and slightly