‘So,’ she said, looking up at the sky. It was one of those early winter days when the sun shone and the sky was an impossible blue. ‘What are you going to do?’
‘Dunno,’ Becca said vaguely. ‘I’ve got some plans.’
Kay opened her mouth, then closed it. Now was not the time to start a row. ‘Good,’ she said.
Becca sat with Kay on one of the stone seats built into the harbour wall. In summer, it was always busy along here, but now it was quiet, just a few people wandering around, and the shouts of the fishermen unloading the boats. The sea was calm, the movement of the water making the moored boats rock gently, bumping against each other and creaking.
The grey stone stood solid against the promise of winter storms. The waves could crash against it, but it wouldn’t break. Nothing could creep out of the sea. Nothing could cross it. Bridlington was safe while the sea wall stood.
She smiled.
Acknowledgements
There are always more people to thank for their help and support in the writing and production of a book than it is possible to name.
I want to thank my agent, Teresa Chris, for her belief in me and her determination that the books will be the best they can be.
To my editor, Anne Perry, who understands the books so well, and who cares about Becca and Kay as much as I do, and who helped me with the finishing touches that make book what it is.
To Bethan Jones for helping me to shape the final version from the original manuscript.
To Janet and Jenny, the members of my writing group, who saw this book through from the first, terrifying blank page, to the final, completed version.
I would also like to thank the people of Sunk island who answered my questions on the Sunk Island Facebook page, including Richard Makey for the images, and Matt Wright and Kay Barker for information about Spragger Drain sluice.
And finally, but most importantly, to Ken; my husband, my support, the man who brought me coffee when I was banging my head on the desk, and red wine after a tough day. This is the last book you will help me with, but, as Kay still has Matt in her head to help her, so I know you will be there for me. In fact, I suspect you are reading this over my shoulder, your eyebrows lifting, and I can hear the ironic inflection in your voice as you say, ‘Indeed.’
More from the Author
Life Ruins
About the Author
Danuta Kot grew up with stories. Her Irish mother and her Polish father kept their own cultures alive with traditional tales they shared with their children. For many years, she worked with young people in Yorkshire who were growing up in the aftermath of sudden industrial decline. She uses this background in her books to explore some of the issues that confront modern, urban society: poverty, alienation and social breakdown, using the contexts of the modern crime novel. She now works as a senior education consultant, work that involves travel to establish education and training in other parts of the world. She is a regular academic speaker at conferences and literary festivals, and has appeared on radio and television.
www.SimonandSchuster.co.uk/Authors/Danuta-Kot
Also by Danuta Kot
Life Ruins
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First published in Great Britain by Simon & Schuster UK Ltd, 2020
A CBS Company
Copyright © Danuta Kot 2020
The right of Danuta Kot to be identified as author of this work has been asserted in accordance with the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act, 1988.
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A CIP catalogue record for this book is available from the British Library
ISBN: 978 1 4711 7597 8
eBook ISBN: 978 1 4711 7596 1
This book is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places and incidents are either a product of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously. Any resemblance to actual people living or dead, events or locales is entirely coincidental.
Group (UK) Ltd, Croydon, CR0 4YY
