‘The murders of the East County Slayer are orchestrated by a man who calls himself Babysitter. He kidnaps children and demands their mothers commit murder to get them back. He then abducts another and forces their mother to kill the last woman he targeted, silencing one killer and creating another who stays silent for the sake of their child. I am one of those mothers, and my daughter Abigail has been taken. If I don’t murder Maggie Walsh, Abigail’s life has been threatened. Maggie and I have elected not to follow his instructions and are attempting to get Abigail back, and this video recording is a safeguard…’

Maggie looked across from the wheel and found Holly was biting her lip to hold back her emotions. She knew what sort of turmoil she was going through, but after her stand against Babysitter realised Holly had more resilience than she’d given her credit for. ‘Finish it.’

Holly gulped and relayed the specifics of the night to her iPhone before stopping the recording.

Maggie noticed she wasn’t wearing the surgical gloves any more. Did that signify she was no longer intending to murder her?

‘I’ll open my Hotmail account and send it via there.’

‘Who’s it going to?’

‘Myself. And you. We can’t include the cops yet. What’s your email address?’

Maggie told her. ‘So, if we don’t make it home have you got someone who’s likely to find it in your inbox?’

‘No. But I’m also shooting it off to a lawyer I know.’

‘Do it.’ Maggie shifted gear as the Scion struggled back up the hill they’d entered Astley by and turned on the wipers to clear the snow obscuring the windshield. She glimpsed in the rear-view mirror for anyone following. There wasn’t, and Penny was fast asleep. Maggie eyed the guns she’d put on the dash but didn’t feel reassured by them. ‘So how come you know a lawyer?’

Holly kept tapping the screen and didn’t answer for a few seconds. ‘It’s my day job.’

Maggie realised she had no idea who she was sharing a car with. Was Holly really a single mother Babysitter had randomly chosen? Or did they both have some connection to him?

The car levelled off.

‘I promise I’ll do everything in my power to keep Penny safe if you promise to do the same for Abigail.’ Holly finished typing.

Maggie nodded. ‘Deal.’

Holly jabbed the screen. ‘Gone. To Greg Weintraub at Link, Hooper and Pearce.’

‘You can rely on him?’

‘He won’t get it until Monday. I’ve told him to call me at home then. If he can’t reach me, he’s to open it. Now level with me.’

‘About what?’

‘Janet Braun.’

Maggie rolled them to a standstill at a fork in the road. ‘Which way?’

‘Did you kill her?’

Should she really tell her the truth? ‘No.’

‘Babysitter gave Penny back to you – just like that?’

‘Why wouldn’t he? He was sending you into my house right after.’

‘That’s the truth?’

‘That’s the truth.’ It wasn’t, but Maggie knew that now was exactly the wrong time to share it. ‘I’ve told you what happened.’ But the fact was she’d lied to Holly about that night, and wondered if she would have to become the person she’d been in Janet Braun’s home once again. She was still trying to build walls around that moment, but could still see herself slinking into the bedroom. Only keeping Penny safe and considering the time it had bought Maggie to spend with her could momentarily block out what she’d made herself do.

Holly sucked her lips, as if giving Maggie the opportunity to rethink her reply.

Maggie didn’t.

‘If we’re to work out who’s doing this we can’t afford to conceal anything from each other.’

‘I understand that but I don’t know how many different ways I can answer the same question.’

Holly sighed.

‘Which way?’ Maggie revved the engine to keep it turning over as snow scudded across the white road ahead. ‘We can’t sit here all night.’

Holly checked the phone. ‘Nothing.’

‘Maybe I should pull off.’

‘I’ll send him a message.’