Like This, for Ever

slowly, his eyes never leaving hers.
    ‘The blood makes all the noise, all the pain, just slide away,’ said Lacey.
    His head was saying one thing, his eyes another entirely. How much time had gone by? Enough?
    ‘You’re wondering how I know, aren’t you? I know because I do it too. Only I cut myself. I’ve never been quite as brave as you. Don’t you believe me? Untie my wrists and I’ll show you the scars.’
    His mouth twisted – he wasn’t going to fall for that one. But at least he wasn’t looking at the boys any more.
    ‘You’ll have to cut Barney’s wrists, you know,’ she said. ‘If he’s the one you’re planning to pin the blame on, you can’t cut his throat. They’ll never believe an eleven-year-old would cut his own throat. You’ll have to cut his left wrist first, because that’s what right-handed suicides always do. And you’ll have to get the angle right, or they’ll know. Will you remember all this?’
    ‘Shut up.’
    ‘And another thing you should know is that it takes a lot longer for people to die when you cut their wrists than when you do their throats,’ Lacey called out. ‘It takes longer to bleed out. And thewounds will start to heal themselves. The blood will coagulate. You may have to make more than one cut. It will take time. Won’t be pleasant.’
    ‘Shut up!’
    ‘You’ve never killed a friend before, have you? You hardly knew the other boys. Are you sure you can do this to someone you like?’
    Jorge looked from her to Barney, then to Huck. He stepped closer to Huck.
    ‘One last thing,’ Lacey called out. ‘It’s really important I tell you this.’
    ‘What?’
    ‘I have Huck Joesbury’s new mobile phone in my pocket.’
    As Jorge’s eyes opened wide in surprise, she turned quickly to Huck. ‘Your dad bought you a new iPhone,’ she said. ‘He lent it to me because the police have mine, but it’s yours. He hasn’t given it to you yet because your mum thinks you’re a bit young for it, but he’s got it all set up for you. The numbers of all the people you know are in it – your mum, your dad, DI Tulloch, your godmother.’
    ‘If this is about trying to make me think you’ve made a call, forget it,’ said Jorge. He dug his hand into his jacket pocket and held something out towards her. ‘It fell out of your pocket when I hit you.’
    ‘Is it damaged?’
    Unable to stop himself, Jorge glanced down at the screen and pressed the small round button that would activate the home page. Lacey saw the gleam of light and colour. The phone wasn’t damaged.
    ‘The reason it’s important,’ she said, ‘is that there’s a very useful app on that particular phone – you might have heard of it, it’s called Find My Phone. If two iPhones are connected by the same computer, then one phone always knows where its partner is. It’s done by GPS. So all Huck’s dad has to do to find us – and can I just say, he is one mean son-of-a-bitch when he’s mad, isn’t he, Huck? – all he has to do is open up the app, put in a password and his phone will tell him exactly where this one is.’
    ‘You’re lying.’
    ‘No, I’m not. I saw Huck’s dad just over an hour ago. That’s whenhe gave me the phone. He’s been tracking me ever since. It’s what he does. It’s his job. He knows exactly where I am.’
    ‘Liar!’
    ‘I’ll prove it. Activate the app. Take Huck’s gag off – oh, clever boy, he’s done it himself – and get him to give you the password. And I’ll bet you anything you like that it tells you Detective Inspector Joesbury’s iPhone is right outside that door.’
    ‘Dad!’ screamed Huck.
    Then everything happened at once, in a blizzard of noise and movement. Jorge ran for the door. He’d almost made it when the door fell off its hinges and crashed into the room. As Joesbury stepped inside, Jorge backed up and ran to the window, taking the rope with him. Joesbury ran after him. Jorge leaped. They heard a sharp cry, a loud clatter and then nothing. Joesbury had reached the window. He pulled out his radio. Lacey didn’t catch the words as he briefly spoke into it. She must have closed her eyes for a second, because when she opened them again Joesbury was leaning over his son’s prone body. He got Huck free and picked him up. With his son in his arms, he staggered across the room before collapsing beside her. She could feel the cold dampness of rain, the warmth of perspiration, the stickiness of tears. She felt as though their