He’d lain in bed, his heart thudding so loud under the covers he was sure his mum would hear it. He knew that he had to keep calm, just act as if nothing had happened. He would tell the truth when they asked him if he’d seen Jenny at the shop. He’d have to say yes – that old man behind the counter never missed a trick and then the police would get suspicious. There was more hammering on the front door, even louder than before. He heard his mum swear as her swivel chair scraped across the wooden floorboards in her office. He lay still with his eyes squeezed shut, listening to see who it was.

‘Police. We need to talk to you.’

He smiled as a wave of calm washed over him and he knew exactly what he had to do. He thought about John in prison and how he’d smiled at him when he’d acknowledged that they were both the same. I’ll make you so proud, John, you watch and see. He heard the front door open but he couldn’t quite catch the muffled conversation between the coppers and his mum. He did hear her say, ‘He’s not well; you can’t talk to him for long.’

Then she came up the stairs and into his bedroom. ‘I need you to come down and speak to these policemen. Then you can go back to bed.’

He took a deep breath, then climbed out from underneath the covers and went downstairs with her. Catching sight of his reflection in the hall mirror, he made an effort to keep a straight face. His hair was sticking up and his brow was all sweaty; his cheeks were flushed. He looked as if he had some contagious infection. The two coppers stared at him, then glanced at each other, but kept their distance.

‘Did you speak to Jenny Burns at the shop earlier?’

He nodded.

‘Did she tell you where she was going?’

He shook his head. ‘I was going to play outside, but I got the worst stomach cramps and had to run straight home before I had an accident. I don’t feel well.’

‘Son, this is really important: did you see anyone hanging around by the shop or in the street when you left? Did you see which direction Jenny went or if anyone was following her?’

He screwed his eyes up whilst he thought about it, then looked at them and shook his head.

‘No, sorry. I came straight home and had to lie down.’

His mum nodded her head.

‘He did – look at the state of him. He’s burning up. He went to bed and hasn’t moved until now.’

She smiled at him. ‘You get yourself back to bed, lovey.’

He looked at the two men towering over his mum, but they didn’t object. So he turned around and began to walk up the stairs. He paused to speak to them again. ‘I hope you find Jenny soon – she’s my friend.’

‘So do we.’

He got upstairs and climbed back into bed. If there were an award for acting he would surely have won first prize. He was bloody amazing. He could hear the muted voices of the two men as they spoke to his mum, but he didn’t care. He had her as his witness, and – what did they call it in the movies? An alibi, that’s right. He had the best alibi in the world because if his mother were one thing, it was stubborn and protective.

He stayed in bed for two days. It killed him because he so badly wanted to be out in the thick of it with the teams who were searching for Jenny. In a way, it would be good to see what happened if they found her. He knew that they wouldn’t, though; the drainage hole he’d hidden her in was well off the paths. He’d found it the previous year and had used it to put next door’s yapping dog Susie in when she had followed him into the woods one day. He’d strangled her with his bare hands just to see if he was strong enough; then he’d dropped the dog in the hole and covered it back up again. For days after, he’d gone back to see if he could smell it; he’d heard that dead things stank. But he’d never got a whiff of any bad smells; there were so many overgrown bushes surrounding the hole that, unless you knew about it, you wouldn’t ever find it.

Once they’d stopped searching the woods he’d go back one night and pull her out. He’d bury her in a deep grave that only he knew about. As long as he dragged some weeds, twigs and a couple of rocks across the top they’d never know. He couldn’t wait to see what she looked like now; the weather had cooled down and it had been raining the last two days. He couldn’t move her until it was night-time, though, because she might smell and he didn’t want to risk anyone walking their dog finding him burying a dead body.

He felt bad about Jake, who wasn’t allowed out to play any more. He missed him; he was his best friend. He’d been to call for him as soon as he’d told his mum that he felt better, but the policewoman who’d answered the door had sent him away. Jenny’s picture was in all the papers. He kind of missed her cheeky smile, even though she’d been a nuisance when she’d followed them everywhere.

He was sitting at the dining table, staring at her picture, when his mum caught him.

‘It’s so sad, isn’t it? Are you okay?’

He nodded.

‘Some pervert has bloody taken her, you mark my words. There’s too many of them wandering the streets and no one has a clue about their dirty little habits and what they get up to. Except me – I’ve written books about some of the vilest people in this country. I know what humans are capable of; look at what happened to your poor mum.’

She stopped herself and her hand flew to her mouth as she gasped at the words she’d just spoken out loud. ‘Anyway, what do you fancy for tea?’

He knew she was hoping he’d misheard her, but he hadn’t. He stared at her.

‘What did happen to my mum?’

To give her credit, she didn’t bother trying to lie to him. She came and sat on a chair opposite him, ashen-faced.

‘Your real mum was murdered, by that piece of shit John Carter. He killed three young women, including your mum. All of them were beautiful, beautiful girls with their whole lives ahead of them.’

He knew everything about John Carter; he’d read her books by now. But they didn’t mention anything about Linda being his mum and he couldn’t tell her he’d read them either because she’d go crazy with him for snooping in her office.

‘So who are you?’

‘I’m your aunt, your mum’s sister. But you can still call me Mum. I’d like it if you did. I’ve brought you up since the day your mum brought you home from the hospital. That night she went out to the carnival dance and never came home.’

He got up and crossed the room, bending down to wrap his arms around her and hold her close. She hugged him back and he wondered how she’d feel about him if she knew that he was just like John.