I Found You Read Online Free Page A

carefully enunciates the word Frank .
    ‘Frank,’ says Alice, appraising him thoughtfully. ‘Yes. Frank. Perfect. Clever girl.’ She touches the girl’s curls. ‘Well, Frank ’ – she smiles at him – ‘I reckon your bath’s run. There’s a towel on your bed and soap on the side. By the time you’re done, the pizzas should be here.’
    He can’t remember choosing a pizza; he’s not sure if Frank is his real name. This woman is making him dizzy with her officious certainty about everything. But he does know that his socks are damp, his underwear is damp, his skin is damp, that he is cold from the inside to the outside and that he wants a hot bath more than anything in the world right now.
    ‘Oh.’ He remembers something. ‘Dry clothes. I mean, I’m happy to put these back on. Or I could . . .’
    ‘Kai can lend you some joggers. And a T-shirt. I’ll leave them by the back door for you.’
    ‘Thank you,’ he says. ‘Thank you so much.’
    As he stands to leave the room he sees her exchange a look with her teenage son, sees the mask of crisp nonchalance slip for a moment. The boy looks worried and annoyed; he shakes his head slightly. She responds with a firm nod. But he can see fear in her eyes, too. As if she’s starting to doubt her decision. As if she’s starting to wonder why he’s in her house.
    After all, he could be anyone.

Four
     
    ‘Tell me a little about your husband,’ says the policewoman called Beverly. ‘How old is he?’
    Lily pushes down the hem of her top, flattening the fabric against her skin. ‘He’s forty,’ she says.
    She can see the WPC’s eyebrow arch, just a fraction. ‘And you’re?’
    ‘I’m twenty-one,’ she says. It’s no big deal, she wants to shout. Nineteen years. In a life of maybe ninety years. So what?
    ‘And his full name?’
    ‘Carl John Robert Monrose.’
    ‘Thank you. And this is the address where he lives?’ She indicates the small living room of the purpose-built flat where she and Carl have lived since they got back from their honeymoon on Bali.
    ‘Yes,’ she says. ‘Of course!’ She knows as she says it that she has been rude. She is aware that sometimes her manner can be quite harsh for British people’s tastes.
    The policewoman gives her a look and then scratches words on to a form with a noisy pen.
    ‘And tell me about yesterday. What time did you last see your husband?’
    ‘He left at seven o’clock. Every morning he leaves at seven o’clock.’
    ‘And he goes to work where?’
    ‘He works in London. For a financial services company.’
    ‘And have you spoken to his company?’
    ‘Yes! It was the first thing I did!’ This woman must think she is an idiot, to call the police before calling his office.
    ‘And what did they say?’
    ‘They said he left work at the normal time. Just as I expected they would say. Carl takes the same train home every day. He can’t leave work late or he would miss it.’
    ‘OK. And did you speak to him at all? After he left work?’
    ‘No,’ she said. ‘But he sent me a text. Look.’ She switches on her phone and turns it to face the WPC, the text already there, ready to be displayed.
    You know what’s crazy? This is crazy: I love you more now than I did this morning! I’ll see you in an hour! If I could make the train go faster I would! xxxxx .
    ‘And look,’ she says, scrolling up through their text exchanges. ‘This from the day before.’
    How can it be true that I have a wife like you? How did I get so lucky?! I can’t wait to be holding you in my arms. Fifty-eight minutes to go!
    ‘See,’ she says. ‘This is a man who wants to come home every night more than he wants to do anything else. Do you see now why I know that something bad has happened?’
    The WPC passes the phone back to Lily and sighs. ‘Sounds like he’s got it bad,’ she says, laughing.
    ‘It’s not a joke,’ says Lily.
    ‘No.’ Abruptly, the policewoman stops smiling. ‘I didn’t say it