Scope let him go and stood back up, concentrating on steadying his breathing, as he came to terms with the cold, hard fact that violence had come knocking on his door once again, and he’d responded in kind. He’d never gained any real satisfaction from killing, even when those he killed deserved everything that was coming to them, and he felt none now. Jock’s murder might have been avenged, but it wasn’t going to help him or his family, and Scope just felt empty.

Empty and confused.

The man he’d just killed had had no idea who Scope was, and Scope was sure he hadn’t been lying. There’d have been no point when he was that close to death. And yet he’d obviously tortured Jock to make him call Scope to get him back to the office so that he too could be killed. It didn’t make sense.

He sighed. He was missing something here. And where were the family of canoeists? Jock had claimed on the phone that they’d cut short their trip, but he’d been under duress then, and there was no way they’d have just got out and abandoned their canoes. And yet they’d never arrived in Tayleigh either. Scope thought about this. According to Jock, they were an ordinary local family, so it seemed unlikely they’d be targeted by a professional killer, like the man he’d just killed. But if Scope wasn’t the target, and neither was Jock, then they had to be. And it seemed the killer was determined to cover up any trace of their journey, even going so far as to kill the people who’d hired them the canoes.

Scope needed to locate the family, especially as they had kids with them. There was a chance they were dead already, of course, but he couldn’t assume that. Once again he contemplated calling the police. But things had changed now. He’d killed a man and, regardless of whether the killing was justified or not, he’d still be arrested and questioned, maybe even charged with murder. And all the time that family were out there somewhere. The police would have more chance of finding them, of course, but resources up here were scarce and it would be hours before they could set up a full-scale operation, particularly as Scope had no actual evidence that anything bad had happened to them.

He checked the killer’s pistol. It was a Browning with a ten-round magazine, and there were four rounds left in it. Crouching down, he searched the dead man, trying hard not to think too much about what he was doing. For Scope, there were few grimmer experiences than running your hands over a dead body, especially when it was still warm. The killer had no ID on him, which was no surprise, and he was carrying a spare magazine in one of his pockets, but the magazine was empty, making Scope think he’d already used the gun today.

And then he found the satellite phone.

He remembered the guy he’d seen on the bridge. The scar-faced one, who’d looked out of place, who’d also had a satellite phone. There was no way this was a coincidence. Whatever was going on here, it was a lot bigger than he’d originally thought.

He pocketed the phone, knowing it could prove highly useful where there was no mobile reception and, after rummaging round until he found a small lock knife in one of the kitchen drawers, he left the room and walked back through the house, stopping only briefly next to Jock to say a last goodbye, before emerging into the cool night air.

He didn’t return to the minibus, though. Instead, he walked down to the storage shed and pulled out a one-man kayak. The canoeists, he was sure, had never left the river.

So that was where he’d start looking for them.

Twenty

Today 18.05

THEY’D BEEN WALKING for a long time, hours probably; and now that darkness had almost fallen, and it was becoming harder to see where they were going, Jess’s unease was growing. She was trying incredibly hard not to think about what had happened that afternoon – the fact that she’d witnessed two murders, and almost died herself. Instead, she put all her concentration into encouraging Casey to keep going. Her sister was exhausted, freezing and terrified, but she hadn’t complained. Not once. She’d followed Jess because she believed Jess would protect her, and Jess would. She’d protect Casey with her life. No question.

The mystery woman, Amanda, had found a trail she recognized some time earlier (it was difficult to tell how long for sure, because the water from the river had made Jess’s watch stop), and it was now leading them up a hill. None of them had talked much during the journey, even though Jess was desperate to ask her why the men had been after her. But, for the moment, they were all too busy trying to save energy and put as much distance between themselves and the river as possible. Jess knew she was taking a chance by relying on Amanda to get them out of here, but for the moment she didn’t feel as if she had much choice, since she had no idea where they were, and at least Amanda did. While they stuck together, they had a chance.

Jess turned round and saw that Casey was beginning to lag behind. She was shivering, too, but still soldiering on without complaint. Jess had done everything she could to encourage her little sister, but she could see that Casey wasn’t going to be able to carry on for much longer.

‘How are you doing?’ asked Jess, slowing up to wait for her.

Casey managed a weak smile. ‘I’m really cold, Jess,’ she said, sounding so tired that Jess could barely hear her. ‘I don’t know how much more I can walk.’

‘We’ll stop soon, I promise.’ She turned to Amanda, who was still marching ahead. ‘How much further is it?’ she called out.

Amanda swung round quickly, and walked back to them. ‘Keep quiet for Christ’s sake,’ she hissed. ‘We don’t know who’s out here.’

‘Casey can’t keep going much longer,’ Jess hit back, looking the other woman in the eye to show she wasn’t intimidated. ‘She’s shattered, and she needs a change of clothes. So do I. I’m freezing.’

Amanda’s expression softened. ‘It’s still a good two hours to Tayleigh, but there’s a holiday home round here somewhere. I’ve passed it a couple of times on my walks. It’s always been empty—’

‘That doesn’t matter. We can always break in. How far is it?’

‘I’m not sure. I don’t know the area that well, and it’s hard to see where we are in the dark, but I’m pretty sure it’s off this trail. There’s a waterfall up here somewhere, and there’s a path near the top that leads down to it.’

They all stopped and listened, and Jess thought she could hear the sound of running water coming from further up the hill, but it might just have been the wind through the trees. She shivered and looked up at the sky where only a small piece of moon shone down through the thick canopy of trees, giving them just enough light to walk by.

‘Come on,’ said Amanda, starting off again. ‘We need to keep going. I don’t think it’s that far.’

Jess looked down at Casey, who was staring up at her forlornly. Even in the darkness, her big blue eyes gleamed with life. Jess gave a mock sigh and winked at her. ‘I’m going to carry you for a bit now, Case, but don’t get any ideas, okay? This is definitely a one-off.’

Casey’s face lit up and she fell into Jess’s arms. Jess hugged her tight, wanting to warm her up, then lifted her up like she had when Casey had been a little girl. Together they started after Amanda. It was hard work. Jess wasn’t as fit as she had once been. At school she’d been a promising middle-distance runner and had even competed for the local athletics club at 800 metres, but since she’d started sixth form and discovered boys, bars, and the fun of just hanging out and doing nothing, she’d let things go. Before today, the last time she’d run more than fifty yards was when she’d been late for the bus, and that had been a good three months back. But she was determined to help Casey, however exhausted it made her, and she trudged along in silence, forcing herself to imagine a nice warm fire and a cup of tea.