TOYL

darkness. Would somebody be calling at such a late hour? Maybe it had been her imagination.
    But there was a definite knock this time.
    Margaret Myers rose from the sofa and moved into the corridor, edging slowly towards the front door.
    ‘Hello. Who’s there?’ There was no answer. She grasped the door handle – but then she stopped herself. Maybe they had returned for her, to take her away to their place, and evict her forever from the family home.
    They thought they were so clever.
    ‘Go away; I’m not coming with you. Leave me alone.’
    Something was pushed through the letterbox. It fell onto the carpet, and she bent to pick it up.
    It couldn’t be –?
    She cradled the object in her hand, tears swelling in her eyes. ‘It can’t be.’
    Then she grabbed the door and pulled it open.
    ‘It’s you,’ she said, breaking into a broad smile. ‘It’s really you.’ She threw her arms around him. ‘They said you were dead, but I always knew you’d come back to me.’

One week later

PART ONE

1

    Emma Holden woke in a sweat, her head damp against the pillow. At first she didn’t know where she was. Then she remembered. She was in a luxury apartment a few miles outside the small Cornish seaside town of St. Ives, down in the far south-west of England. Dan had surprised her with the news that they were going away for a few days, from Friday until Tuesday. They’d both needed to get away from London for a while, just four weeks after the terrible events of Dan’s kidnap at the hands of Peter Myers. It had felt so claustrophobic in the capital, surrounded by all the raw, painful memories, so Emma was overjoyed at the chance to escape for a few days and release some of that pressure.
    ‘Are you awake, Dan?’
    There was no reply. She reached across the double bed but Dan wasn’t there – the covers had been pulled back and, raising her head off the pillow, she saw that the bedroom door was ajar. She sat up and only then remembered the nightmare. It had been the same dream again, the third time in two weeks. Again it was her wedding. She and Dan were standing at the front of the congregation, filled with excitement and love. For a split second she turned away, and when she looked back, it was Stuart Harris next to her, smiling warmly. The service continued and when they reached the vows, first Stuart’s voice and then his face began to change. Suddenly it was Stephen Myers beside her. He looked older, but still had the same vacant stare and delusional smile. The priest announced, ‘You may now kiss the bride’ and Stephen Myers lunged at her, thrusting his mouth towards hers as she tried to fight him off.
    Each time she had woken at that very same moment.
    She got out of bed, went into the hallway and through into the main kitchen and living room. It was certainly an amazing apartment. The kitchen was full of top spec appliances, all of which were new – washing machine, dishwasher, oven, and espresso maker – which, by the smell of it, had just been used. The manager, who owned the majority of the apartments in the block, had met them on their arrival the previous day and explained that they had a refit in the spring.
    Bright early-morning late-September sunlight was streaming through the patio doors at the far end. Dan was sitting outside on the small decking area, staring out to sea and over towards the town of St. Ives to the west. On the table in front of him was the freshly made coffee.
    Dan didn’t seem to notice Emma’s approach – he was still staring into the distance as she reached him. ‘Morning,’ she said, taking the seat next to him. She noticed there were two cups of coffee on the table.
    Dan smiled at her. ‘I woke up early and thought I’d try out our new machine.’ He gestured towards the cups.
    ‘I’m impressed,’ Emma said.
    ‘You haven’t tasted it yet,’ he joked.
    ‘Well, it looks great.’
    ‘Actually it tastes great too, but I’ve got to admit, it was my second attempt. The first time I burned it. It was revolting so it went straight down the sink.’
    ‘Then top marks for perseverance,’ Emma quipped, taking a sip. ‘Lovely.’
    ‘It’s such an amazing view,’ Dan said, as they both looked out across the sea. A small fishing vessel was making its way from St. Ives towards open water. It looked so fragile, bobbing up and down on the waves like a toy. Even though it was a spectacularly sunny morning with a flawless blue sky, there was a keen wind