Judy remembers Clough saying, that morning on the beach: 慔e抣l pull through.?For those few minutes, Clough抯 certainty had carried her, the way the waves sometimes do when she抯 bodyboarding with the kids. But as soon as he roared away in his smart Land Rover Discovery, the doubts and fears came flooding back. Everyone says that Cathbad is tough, immortal, etc, etc. But what if he isn抰？
Judy checks her phone. Abbas has her number and has said that he will call if there抯 any change. Deep down Judy knows that change can only be for the worse. Instead there抯 a text message from Tina Prentice抯 daughter, Denise, thanking Judy for her condolence card. Judy thinks of the family preparing for the funeral. She is sure that Tina had many friends but none of them will be able to pay their last respects. She will be shown to her grave by her daughters and their husbands, even her grandchildren won抰 be able to attend.
A winged creature appears on the screen, to general dismay amongst the goodies, and ?clear as day ?Judy hears Tina抯 voice, as she busied herself making lunch for children and dogs.
I went round to Avril抯 at eleven as usual. I remember it was a lovely day and there was a heron by Avril抯 pool. I took a picture of it.
Judy texts Denise. Know this sounds odd but is there a heron pic on your mum抯 phone? If so, cd you possibly forward? ty As she presses 憇end?another message flashes up.
It抯 from Abbas.
Chapter 39
慙ooks like someone抯 at home,?says Tanya. 慖s that where you抮e staying, Janet??
慛o,?says Janet, still clasping her stout stick. 慖t抯 the house behind. I抳e got a key to it though. I抳e got keys to all the houses in the alley.?
慙et抯 get it then,?says Tanya.
Janet leads them back to Steward抯 House and into the shop on the ground floor. There, amongst leaflets extolling the wonders of Norfolk, she opens a safe and takes out a key. Ruth and Tanya wait by the door. Tanya still looks calm, almost bored, but Ruth notices her checking her phone. Is she wondering why she hasn抰 heard from Nelson?
Armed with the key （and the stick） they make their way back through the alley and round to the road on the other side. There are more Tudor houses here, bulging out into the street. Janet goes up to a small oak door.
慣his is the one, I think. Yes.?The door creaks open, with full Hammer House of Horror sound effects.
慡hall we go in??says Tanya, as if offering a great treat.
Ruth almost asks to stay behind but the thought of being left alone in the silent street is almost worse than climbing the stairs and facing whatever entity will be revealed by the flickering candlelight.
Tanya goes first, holding out her phone, its torch app illuminating low ceilings and heavy beams. Janet follows. Ruth wishes she wasn抰 at the back.
It抯 almost nine o抍lock when Nelson reaches the centre of Norwich. Tanya said that she was parked by the cathedral, so he drives through the gateway and stops in front of the huge wooden doors. He抯 never given much thought to the church before and has never been inside. 慞rotestant,?his mother would say, before adding, 慴ut it was ours once.?In the dark it seems rather ominous, such a solid edifice of wood and stone. A fitful moon spotlights battlements and leering gargoyles. Nelson gets out of his car. Where is Tanya and, more importantly, where is Ruth? 慡teward抯 House,?Tanya said in her message. Nelson remembers Eileen抯 postcard. Augustine Steward抯 House, Tombland, is haunted by the Grey Lady. This tormented ghost from the sixteenth century hides a terrible secret. Where the hell is this cheery place?
He walks back through the gateway and surveys the street opposite. The lopsided house with its parallelogram of beams is unmissable. It抯 leaning in towards its neighbour, squashing the windows inwards. The place is clearly unsafe. Surely it should have been knocked down years ago?
Nelson crosses the road and sees that the ground floor is a shop, one of those tourist centres. 慛orfolk,?declares a poster, 慛elson抯 county.?Nelson smiles thinly and knocks on the window, wondering if he抣l set off an alarm. But there抯 nothing but an echo, amplified by the silence. Then he sees a door with bells for several flats. He rings them all. No answer. Nelson walks around the corner, through a small alleyway. It抯 even darker here and there抯 a soapy scent, both familiar and rather unpleasant.