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that she was going to find a snake and put it in Michael’s bed.
    Nicole found a tub of ice cream in the freezer and served it up for dessert with strawberry sauce and crushed almonds. When we’d finished eating we retreated to the living room with a box of chocolates and what was left of the champagne.
    Once I’d figured out how to work the television controls we settled down for a relaxing evening. Outside, the night had descended on the forest and we were all mesmerized by the unworldly silence of the moor. The moon had been swallowed up by gathering clouds and it was pitch black.
    We found ourselves watching a news programme and I was about to channel hop with the remote when I heard the newscaster mention the New Forest.
    ‘Listen up,’ I said, raising a hand to silence the others.
    ‘The girl’s body was found in a shallow grave close to the village of Burley,’ the newscaster said. ‘It’s believed she’d been stabbed to death. John Bradbury has just sent this report.’
    I could hardly believe it. A young girl had been found murdered not far from where we were. She hadn’t yet been identified but police believed her first name was Genna because of a tattoo on her right ankle. The reporter voiced over a video of Cranes Moor and there was a close-up of a small tent surrounded by people in pale blue overalls. The camera pulled out to reveal dozens of police officers searching the moor for clues and there was even a shot of a police helicopter.
    ‘That must be the one we saw,’ Michael said.
    As I stared at the screen I felt a chill creeping through me, making the gooseflesh rise on my arms. This was the sort of thing that happened back home in Texas, where gruesome murders are an everyday occurrence . But not here in these beautiful, peaceful surroundings.
    A middle-aged man identified as Detective Chief Inspector Jeff Temple was seen addressing the media. He had thin brown hair andwas wearing a suit. His voice was deep and gruff as he appealed for anyone who might know the victim to come forward.
    When the report was finished I muted the TV and turned to Nicole who was sitting on the sofa with her legs folded beneath her. Her face had suddenly become pinched and tense.
    ‘How far away is Cranes Moor?’ I asked her.
    ‘About two miles, I think,’ she said. ‘It’s over towards Burley.’
    I shook my head. ‘This is incredible. I thought we’d had our full quota of shocks for today.’
    I sat next to Nicole and topped up our glasses. I felt like getting drunk. How else could I hide my darkening mood?
    Predictably the news item had charged the atmosphere in the room and none of us felt much like talking afterwards. We desperately needed a distraction so I searched the channels for something to watch and found a movie starring Ben Stiller, which had only just started. Half an hour into the film I noticed that I was the only one still awake. Michael was lying on the floor in front of the TV and Tina was slumped in an armchair. Nicole was cuddled up to me and I could tell from her breathing that she was out to the world.
    My own eyelids were heavy and had begun to droop. I was surprised at how tired I was considering I’d slept for a couple of hours earlier. My senses were dulled and I suddenly felt floppy and listless.
    I hauled myself up off the sofa and woke the others.
    ‘Come on,’ I said. ‘It’s time we all went to bed. We can’t sleep down here.’
    All three of them protested but eventually I managed to herd them up to their bedrooms after switching off the TV and lights downstairs.
    Nicole was so drowsy she didn’t even bother to go to the bathroom. She just dropped her dressing gown on the floor and climbed quickly between the sheets. After cleaning my teeth, I checked that the kids were tucked up in their beds then shuffled back to the master bedroom and collapsed on the bed in a stupor of exhaustion. Nicole did not even stir. I switched off the bedside light and closed my eyes. The