Night School: Legacy

Looking away, she blinked back the tears that threatened never to stop. ‘Me too. I can’t get used to it. It doesn’t seem real. I miss her.’


Turning, she took a step and promptly lost her balance. As if he’d expected that, he caught her easily and directed her towards her room. ‘OK, Miss Sheridan, I think that’s enough exercise for one afternoon.’

She climbed into bed without argument. He pulled the covers up over her legs, and rolled the side table back into place. When she was settled, he walked to the door. For a minute she thought he’d just leave without saying goodbye.

But at the last second he turned back to look at her.

‘Keep breathing, Allie.’

Trying not to cry, she nodded. Then she counted his footsteps as he walked away.

When he was gone she whispered after him: ‘Always.’



ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS


No book I have ever written would be as good without long walks with my husband, Jack Jewers, who listens calmly as I freak out and then helps me find the solution, usually before the dog has jumped into the stream and soaked us both. Thank you, my love, for your patience, your thoughtfulness and your genius.

I want to hug everyone at Atom, especially my brilliant editor Samantha Smith, who reads my first drafts, cocks her head to one side and says, ‘How about …’ and then makes it all much better. Thanks also to Katherine Agar for keeping track of everything and sending me packages filled with books. And all hail Sandra Ferguson, who knows perfectly well I can’t spell really basic words, and quietly fixes them.

You would not be reading this were it not for my wonderful agent, Madeleine Milburn, who fights my corner like a tiger. Thank you for being my friend and champion. Together we will conquer the world!

Thanks are due to my muses Kate Bell and Hélène Rudyk and Laura Barbey, who read this book before anyone else did. Thank you for your time, your cleverness and your honesty. This book is better because of you.

To my good friends Mark Lacey and Paul (‘Harry’) Harrison, thank you for letting me borrow your names. They are very good names.

And finally … Special thanks to Blacks on Dean Street, London, for providing a haven for writers, and for letting me break The Rules and use my laptop after six o’clock. Chapter twelve is YOURS.



A former crime reporter, political writer and investigative journalist, C. J. Daugherty has also written several books about travel in Ireland and France. Although she left the world of crime reporting years ago, she never lost her fascination with what it is that drives some people to do awful things, and the kinds of people who try to stop them. The Night School series is the product of that fascination.


C. J. lives in the south of England with her husband and a small menagerie of pets – you can learn more about her at www.cjdaugherty.com