How to use "his" in a sentence

He and his men stole horses and hid from the law during the last years of the nineteenth century.

But there was no sign of Aron or his bike

'Why didn't we just get his phone number?' Megan asked as they drove back to Moab.

Elliot, another friend of his, was moving into the house after Leona had gone

'He's probably still on his trip.'

If he's not back by then, I'll call his parents.'

He also wanted to know the model of his truck and the license-plate number

Did he tell any of his housemates where he was going?'

Perhaps Aron had sent an email to one of his friends saying where he was going?

Aron had an email address - but what was it? She found his name, but had to answer a secret question to read his emails

It was on his desk

Steve gave him the latest license-plate number for Aron's truck and Officer Ekker sent his men out to look for it.

The records showed his license-plate number as NM 846-MMY.

'It's his truck'

He holds my arms in his little hands and together we dance around the room

On Thursday, May the 1st, Kyle Ekker was looking at a map of the Canyonlands area on his office wall

Already that morning, his men had searched the top and centre of the area and found nothing.

His wife is Monique and his son is called Andy

'Keep him talking,' the pilot says to his partner.

Just then, I saw Ned Land, with his harpoon in his hands, climbing to the front of the ship.

I saw the harpoon leave his hand and hit the giant creature right in its back

The mysterious ship began to sink before Ned finished his sentence.

Ned screamed at the locked door, but no one answered his call.

The Captain and his crew were excellent hosts

He was a whale hunter and his life was above the water, hunting whales.

One morning, he asked Conseil and me to go to his room to talk.

He and some of his men went up and opened the outside door of the Nautilus

One tried to get in, but when his hand touched the ship, he screamed

The Captain had everything he needed lo protect himself and his men

He said something to one of his men, and the man went downstairs quickly

He came in with one of his men

He had white bandages on his head

He looked very sad and there were tears in his eyes.

Then he could cry for a member of his crew'.

I saw that his men carried something long and flat in a bag

When we returned to the Nautilus, I told Captain Nemo that his man was safe where he was.

He stayed locked in his room

He loves the sea, yes, but here is something missing from his life

Ned Land had his harpoon with him, but he was very busy trying to collect as many oysters as he could.

Captain Nemo swam away from the rocks, with his knife in his hand, and began fighting with the animal

Immediately, Ned Land attacked and killed the shark with his harpoon

I saw in his face that he did understand Ned Land

Conseil loved the sea, but I did not think he wanted to live his life there

Ned Land stayed in his room

He never took his eyes off the window

He thought nothing could stop him, his men or his ship.

We fought them with our axes, but the large one, the one with Captain Nemo's man in his tentacle, stood holding the man in the air

Captain Nemo attacked the giant squid with his axe

I thought Captain Nemo would save his man

Then I saw Ned Land with his harpoon in his hand

One of the smaller squid knocked the harpoon out of his hand and threw Ned down

He turned to help his own man, but it was too late

Captain Nemo stayed in his library

The same thing happened after the death of one of his men

Maybe Captain Nemo thought that soon all his men would die, and the Nautilus and his secret would be lost.

Ned Land lost his temper, and I thought Captain Nemo might listen to me and let us go.

I found the Captain in his library

Who was this woman? Was it his wife? My leg hit a table and Captain Nemo turned around.

I did not see Captain Nemo or any of his men

He had his best clothes on, and in one hand he had a white hat.

He ran out of the room and his hat fell from his hands

He sat for a long time with his finger in his mouth

'He's looking for his hat,' thought Alice.

Why am I bringing a rabbit his hat? Perhaps when I get home, I'll do things for Dinah

She started to walk to his home

The Mad Hatter opened his eyes very wide, but he said nothing

Then he took out his watch and looked at it

Then he put it in his tea

He took his teacup and put a little hot tea on the Mouse's nose

The King put his hand on her arm

Then he put his mouth near to Alice's ear

There was the King and Queen, and a man with a very long knife in his hand.

'Cut off her head! Cut off his head!' she shouted, every two or three minutes.

He had a paper in his hand and looked very important

He stood between two men and his head was down

It was his trial

'Cut off his head!' cried the Queen.

'Take his head off outside!' shouted the Queen

The White Rabbit looked at his paper and read the next name: 'Alice!'

A day or two later, after school in the afternoon, he and his friends came up to me and started pushing and hitting me

He had a strange look on his face, and he came and told me to put on my football suit

He crashed into the room with a wild look in his eyes

I found a young man who was sitting in his room playing the harmonica.

He broke his foot in football practice and couldn't play in the game

But his foot wasn't too bad for the army to get him - and here he was.

I pulled the machine gun from his hands, and shouted to Doyle.

There was blood all over him and he had two bullets in his stomach.

Every day for the next few weeks, I went with Mr Chi (that was his name) and watched him while he worked

Later, when we were back in the garden, the President said, 'You were hurt, weren't you, boy? Well, look at this...' And he pulled up his shirt and showed me the place on his stomach where he was hurt once

He was a little man, and he was sitting on the floor with his eyes shut when we got to Jenny's flat.

Rudolph didn't speak or open his eyes, but he put up his hand and smiled.

Next morning, when I got up, Rudolph was still sitting on the floor with his eyes shut.

So he waved at me with his hand, and I went back to the bus station.

Honest Ivan fell off his chair, and everybody started screaming and running everywhere

Take Sue back to Alabama with you, and start your shrimp business.' He shook my hand and gave me his address

And the next day he took Sue and me out in his little boat, to look for a good place to start the shrimp business.

He put his arms round me for a second, then went off to play with Sue again.

One hundred years later, the Negro is still languished in the corners of American society and finds himself an exile in his own land

And there will be neither rest nor tranquility in America until the Negro is granted his citizenship rights

I have a dream that one day, down in Alabama, with its vicious racists, with its governor having his lips dripping with the words of ''interposition" and "nullification" - one day right there in Alabama little black boys and black girls will be able to join hands with little white boys and white girls as sisters and brothers.

Fellow citizens of the United States: in compliance with a custom as old as the government itself, I appear before you to address you briefly and to take, in your presence, the oath prescribed by the Constitution of the United States, to be taken by the President "before he enters on the execution of his office."

And should anyone in any case be content that his oath shall go un kept on a merely unsubstantial controversy as to HOW it shall be kept?

The chief magistrate derives all his authority from the people, and they have conferred none upon him to fix terms for the separation of the states

His duty is to administer the present government, as it came to his hands, and to transmit it, unimpaired by him, to his successor.

Why should there not be a patient confidence in the ultimate justice of the people? Is there any better or equal hope in the world? In our present differences is either party without faith of being in the right? If the Almighty Ruler of Nations, with his eternal truth and justice, be on your side of the North, or on yours of the South, that truth and that justice will surely prevail, by the judgment of this great tribunal, the American people.

The Almighty has his own purposes

With malice toward none; with charity for all; with firmness in the right, as God gives us to see the right, let us strive on to finish the work we are in; to bind up the nation's wounds; to care for him who shall have borne the battle, and for his widow, and his orphan - to do all which may achieve and cherish a just and lasting peace, among ourselves, and with all nations.

A great lover of the British Empire has said that under the British constitution even a successful rebellion is perfectly constitutional, and he quotes historical instances, which I cannot deny, in support of his claim

I believe that a man is the strongest soldier for daring to die unarmed with his breast bare before the enemy

I ask further, is it unconstitutional for me to say to the British Government "I refuse to serve you"? Is it unconstitutional for our worthy Chairman to return with every respect all the titles that he has ever held from the Government? Is it unconstitutional for any parent to withdraw his children from a Government or aided school? Is it unconstitutional for a lawyer to say "I shall no longer support the arm of the law so long as that arm of law is used not to raise me but to debase me"? Is it unconstitutional for a civil servant or for a judge to say, "I refuse to serve a Government which does not wish to respect the wishes of the whole people"?

I ask, is it unconstitutional for a policeman or for a soldier to tender his resignation when he knows that he is called to serve a Government which traduces his own countrymen? Is it unconstitutional for me to go to the agriculturist and say to him "it's not wise for you to pay any taxes, if these taxes are used by the Government not to raise you but to weaken you?" I hold and I venture to submit, that there is nothing unconstitutional in it

In the field of world policy, I would dedicate this Nation to the policy of the good neighbor: the neighbor who resolutely respects himself and, because he does so, respects the rights of others; the neighbor who respects his obligations and respects the sanctity of his agreements in and with a world of neighbors.

For man holds in his mortal hands the power to abolish all forms of human poverty and all forms of human life

Despite his appearance, I disliked this man as soon as I saw him.

'I knew his reputation,' Mr Slinkton told me

'What a sad story it is! A young man like that suddenly gives up his business and retires from the world.'

'Have you heard why Mr Meltham left his business?' I asked.

There was something false about his expression of sadness.

He told me that Mr Slinkton had taken his two nieces to Italy for their health

He had returned to England afterwards with his other niece

The clerk searched through his files for a moment and then he brought me some papers.

He introduced me to her, explaining that she was his niece

As the carriage was passing us, he waved his arm at me

He, too, seemed very upset by his memories.

He was surprised that his niece had gone

'You will try to argue that I was responsible for Beckwith's condition - and for his eventual death

Beckwith suddenly picked up his brandy-glass and threw it at Mr Slinkton

The glass cut his forehead and blood began to flow down his face

Mr Slinkton took out his handkerchief and dried his face

You see, the last time you went to see Mr Sampson, I had already been to see him myself - I went to his house very early that morning

Then he found his courage

He spoke calmly, but his face was white.

Suddenly Slinkton lost his calm and his courage

Slinkton turned quickly away from us for a second and put his hand to his mouth

It was another carman, Robert Paul, also on his way to work

The manager, Walter Purkiss, and his wife were in their bedroom on the second floor

But nobody has ever discovered his true identity.

A carman, John Davis, occupied the attic at the front with his wife and three sons

On his way to work at Spitalfields market he often checked the passage because strangers sometimes came in

Then he sat on some stone steps and took off one of his boots, which was hurting his toe

On his left between the steps and the wooden fence lay the mutilated body of a woman

Louis Diemschutz was coming along Berner Street with his pony and cart

He lived with his wife at the club, which they managed together

When he drove his cart into the entrance to Dutfield's Yard, the pony turned to the left and refused to go on

Mr Diemschutz looked down to his right and in the pitch darkness he could just see a shape on the ground

He got off his cart and struck a match

Mr Diemschutz, anxious about the safety of his wife, went into the club to look for her

very probably disturbed the killer, so he only had time to cut his victim's throat

Although we do not know what time the killer arrived there, we know what his victim did and can follow her movements on the night of September 29-30th.

He wore a grey cap with a peak, a red handkerchief around his neck, and had the appearance of a sailor

In the darkest corner of the square he saw the body of a woman in the light of his lantern

He was afraid about anti-Jewish demonstrations, so he ordered his men to rub out the message

The killer evidently took it with him and cleaned his hands on it

'I'll take care of myself, and I won't fall into his hands.

He had a bottle of beer in his hand

'I hope it will be a fine day tomorrow,' Mary had told Mrs Prater the morning before, 'as I want to go to the Lord Mayor's Show.' At 10.45 on Friday morning Mary's landlord, John McCarthy, was checking his accounts in his shop at 27 Dorset Street

He noticed that Mary owed him 29 shillings in rent, so he sent his assistant Thomas Bowyer to her room to ask for the money

He walked to his right round the corner, where there were two windows of number 13

Bowyer put his hand in and pulled back the curtain

When McCarthy looked through the window, his face turned pale

Why had the Ripper burnt them? When Abbeline discovered only one small piece of candle in the room, he thought that the killer had made a fire with the clothes because he needed more light to do his terrible work.

This time Jack the Ripper had time to finish his crime without interruption

The man called Jack the Ripper was never caught, and his name will probably never be known

Mrs Darrell did not see his face, so her impression that he was a darklooking foreigner aged over forty is not certain.

The Ripper did not stay with his victims for hours before killing them.

On December 31st 1888 his body was found in the Thames near Chiswick

On Friday November 30th Druitt lost his job at a private school for some unknown reason

He explained his suicide in a note to his brother

He wrote that he was afraid of becoming like his mother and 'the best thing for me was to die.' His mother was in an asylum for lunatics

In 1902 Inspector Abbeline suspected a man called George Chapman, a publican who was arrested for poisoning his barmaid Maud Marsh

He had a morbid interest in the Ripper murders all his life, and it is possible that he sent 'Ripper' letters to the police

His gloomy paintings of murder scenes were part of his vision as an artist: he liked to paint the dark, squalid side of life

So perhaps he decided to kill his next victim indoors and chose Mary Kelly, knowing her room was safe.

The newspapers gave his age: 28

Inspector Abbeline, a very able and experienced detective, interviewed him on November 12th - and believed his story

He wrote, 'I am of the opinion his statement is true'.

When the police found a leather apron at the scene of the Hanbury Street murder, they hunted a man called John Pizer, a Polish boot-maker who always wore a leather apron for his work

They found him hiding with his family and arrested him on September 10th

But he had a very good alibi, which proved his innocence.

The crowd followed shouting, 'Catch him!' Squibby was terrified and finally surrendered to the police for his own protection.

Inspector Abbeline and his colleagues had to read all of them

Years later Detective Walter Dew wrote in his memoirs about the killer's 'amazing elusiveness'

He was in his late forties, of medium height, broad-shouldered and strong

A leather cap half-hid his face, which was sunburnt and shining with sweat

On his back was a heavy soldier's bag, and in his hand was a large wooden stick.

The innkeeper, who was also the cook, was busy with his pots and pans, preparing a meal for a group of travellers who were laughing and joking in the next room.

'I have money.' The stranger produced an old leather purse from his jacket.

The man rose without another word, picked up his bag and stick, and left

He knocked on the doors of people's houses, but news of his arrival had quickly spread and nobody would offer him shelter from the cold

He shook his fist at the church and then, cold and hungry, he lay down on a stone bench by the doorway.

The Bishop of Digne was a kind old man who, many years earlier, had given his palace to the town hospital

He lived a simple life with his sister, Mademoiselle Baptistine, and his old servant, Madame Magloire, and he was much loved by the people in the town

His doors were never locked, so that anybody who needed his help could find him easily.

'The man is in rags and has an evil look on his face

The bishop, however, looked calmly at his unexpected visitor.

'You really mean it?' he asked, his voice trembling with childish excitement

After dinner, the bishop said goodnight to his sister, picked up one of the two candlesticks and, handing the other to his guest, said, 'I'll show you to your room, Monsieur.'

The bishop showed his guest into the spare room.

In 1795, he had lost his job as a tree-cutter

At that time he was looking after his sister, whose husband had died, and her seven children

Now, at last, he was free, but he felt bitter and angry about his lost years

He sat up, swung his feet to the floor and slowly stood up

He turned back to the room, picked up his bag and took out a short iron bar, sharpened at one end

He then put his shoes into the bag and, grasping the iron bar in his right hand, he moved quietly towards the door of the bishop's bedroom

He grabbed it, hurried back to the spare bedroom, picked up his stick and bag, climbed out of the window, emptied the silver into his bag and threw the basket into the garden

Early the next morning, while the bishop was studying the flowers in his garden, Mme Magloire ran out of the house with a look of alarm on her face.

Later that morning, as the bishop and his sister were having breakfast, there was a knock on the door

Valjean raised his head with surprise

'Monseigneur,' said the sergeant, 'do I understand that this man was telling the truth? We found this silver in his bag, and

He moved his feet nervously, uncertain of what to say at first

A boy of about ten years old was coming along a footpath with a small box on his back and dirty knees showing through holes in his trousers

This time, however, he did not catch it and it rolled along the ground towards Valjean, who immediately put his foot on it.

Valjean lowered his head and did not reply.

The boy seized his collar and shook him

Valjean slowly raised his head and stared with a sort of amazement at the child

Then, reaching for his stick, he said, 'Go to Hell!'

He bent down to pick up his bag but, as he did so, he caught sight of the silver coin, half-buried by his foot in the earth.

The priest shook his head

Valjean looked for the boy for another hour, running along the path, calling out his name, but with no success

Then, his heart full of grief for what he had done, he buried his face in his hands and, for the first time in nineteen years, he cried.

'This money will be useful,'Thenardier said to his wife

'Without even intending to,' his wife replied.

Within a few months of his arrival, thanks to his new idea, the glass-making factory in Montreuil was making enormous profits

He became a very wealthy man but lived a simple life, using most of his money to build new hospitals and schools

But he kept his suspicions to himself, not daring to say what he really believed: that M

Inspector Javert walked into his office, and stood in silence waiting for him to look up from his work.

He'd changed his name to Champmathieu and had lived for several years in the village of Ailly-le-Haut-Cloche

If he's found guilty of stealing from the bishop - who, as you know, died a couple of years ago - and of robbing the small boy, he'll spend the rest of his life in prison.'

Madeleine looked down at his papers.

Madeleine rose to his feet.

He offered Javert his hand, but the inspector refused to take it

I cannot shake his hand.'

Madeleine to stare at the papers on his desk with an empty, puzzled look in his eyes.

He sat by her bed for an hour and then, having told the nurses to look after her, he returned to his home

He would also have to break his promise to Fantine about bringing Cosette from Montfermeil

Champmathieu, a large, simple-minded man, denied everything when his chance came to speak, but the crowd thought he was trying to be funny

He was preparing to announce his decision when M

When he had persuaded the court of the truth of his confession, he was faced with a shocked but respectful silence.

Everybody stood to one side to let him pass as he made his way towards the door

'He hasn't come for you.' Then, gently rising from his chair, he moved towards Javert

Madeleine said, despite his efforts to speak quietly, began to tremble.

Jean Valjean (as we must now call him) shook Javert's hand from his collar and ran to the bed

'You've killed her!' he cried angrily, turning to Javert with a fierce look in his eyes.

Valjean looked around the room, thinking for a second of making his escape

Bending down, he closed her eyes and pressed his lips against her forehead

Two days after his arrest, Jean Valjean escaped from prison

The bars of his window had been broken during the night

He looked very strange with his tall black hat and long yellow coat.

'This is a very heavy bucket for such a small child,' he said gently, looking down at her from his great height.

There was something about his eyes, tilled with a strange sadness, that she liked and trusted

She could tell from his clothes that he probably had no money.

'What's the matter?' the old man said, rising to his feet.

The old man left the inn and, minutes later, returned with something in his hands: the beautiful doll from the stall across the road.

'How much do you need?' the old man asked, taking an old leather wallet from the pocket of his coat.

'1500 francs,' Thenardier, who had already done his arithmetic, replied.

He took a key from the pocket of his long yellow coat and opened the old wooden door

He then carried Cosette, who was sleeping in his arms, along a dark corridor and up some stairs to the room he had rented since his escape from Montreuil

Nothing had ever touched his heart until he had rescued Cosette

After escaping from Montreuil, Jean Valjean had taken all his money from the bank and buried it in a forest near Montfermeil

His only neighbour was an old woman, who did his housework and kept his stove burning

Paying her six months in advance, he told her that he was a ruined Spanish gentleman, and that the little girl was his granddaughter.

The beggar raised his face and stared hard at Valjean for just a second, then quickly bowed his head

A few evenings later, while he was giving Cosette a reading lesson in his room, Valjean heard the front door of the house open and close

He sat in his chair with his back to the door and held his breath

A light was shining through a crack in his door

Someone with a candle was standing outside his room.

Valjean quietly lay down on the mattress on his floor, but he could not close his eyes all night

At daybreak, as he was falling asleep at last, he heard footsteps in the corridor outside his room again

Running to the door, he put his eye to the large keyhole and saw the back view of a man who was walking towards the stairs

A tall man in a long coat with a stick under his arm.

Cosette took his hand, and went with him down the stairs.

In the light of a lamp above a doorway, he saw four men moving along the street in his direction

Walking more slowly now, thinking he was safe from his pursuers, Valjean followed the alley until he came to a lane that seemed to lead away from the city

He walked along this lane for a long time until, to his horror, he discovered his way blocked by a high wall

Seven or eight soldiers were moving slowly along the lane in his direction.

He would be able to climb the wall on his own, but how could he carry Cosette? Suddenly, he had an idea

The robber took the ring but, as he turned to leave, the hand grabbed his jacket

The man had a terrible wound in his head, but he was still alive.

He survived the Battle of Waterloo but unfortunately, in the same year, his wife died

He thought that Pontmercy was no better than a beggar, a penniless adventurer who only wanted his money

When his daughter died, M

Pontmercy, wanting his son to have a good life, had sadly given him to M

Gillenormand and never saw his son or father-in-law again.

Marius grew up with his grandfather, and never knew his father

Gillenormand always told him that his father had been no good - that he was a poor soldier and a drunk who had abandoned him after his mother's death

His father, a brave officer who had fought for Napoleon and nearly died at the Battle of Waterloo, had really loved him and his mother very much

Without telling his grandfather, Marius tried to contact his father and finally discovered where he was living

A poor man, Georges Pontmercy had left his son nothing apart from a letter:

Marius returned to Paris, but continued to visit his father's grave regularly, without telling his grandfather

One day, however, his grandfather discovered what he was doing

Gillenormand ordered Marius to leave his house.

He gave up studying law and earned his living by working in a bookshop and helping to write dictionaries

He hated his grandfather for the unjust, cruel way he had treated his poor father

Life was hard for him, but he never forgot the promise he had made his father: that he would find Thenardier, the man who had saved his father's life, and help him in any way he could.

When girls looked at him and smiled, he thought they were laughing at his old clothes

In fact, they were attracted by his good looks, but he was not confident enough to realize this

As a result, he had no girlfriend, but he was happy with his books.

'You shouldn't stay alone all the time,' his good friend, Enjolras, said to him

Marius paid little attention to his friend, and continued his quiet life of work, study and daily walks.

While walking around his part of the city, Marius had noticed in elderly man and a young girl in the Luxembourg Gardens

Marius saw this couple frequently on his regular walks in the Gardens

Leblanc, because of his white hair, and the girl Mile Lanoire, because of her black dress,' his friend replied.

A second later she looked away and Marius walked on but, in a strange way, he knew his life had changed

Whatever it was, Marius sensed that, after that moment, his life would never be the same.

The next day, Marius returned to the Luxembourg Gardens wearing his best clothes

As he walked past, he kept his eyes fixed on the girl, but she did not seem to notice him

He felt his face go red and his heart beat loudly in his chest

He looked at the girl out of the corner of his eye

He suddenly realized that, in his feverish state, he had forgotten about the old man

What would he be thinking when he saw a strange young man walking backwards and forwards in front of his bench? Without another thought, Marius left the Gardens and went home.

Towards the end of the second week, while Marius was sitting in his usual place, he looked up from his book

And his face went pale

Leblanc and his daughter had risen from their bench and were slowly walking in his direction

Marius shut his book, opened it again and made an effort to read

He gazed after her until she had disappeared from sight, then rose to his feet and walked around, laughing and talking to himself

Leblanc had begun to suspect what was happening because often, when Marius appeared, he got to his feet and walked away, taking his daughter with him

Leblanc took his daughter to a different bench, to see if Marius would follow them

Leblanc became irregular in his visits and did not always bring his daughter with him

Leblanc and his daughter had just left

'Ursula.' Marius said the first name that came into his head

He kissed the handkerchief, breathed in its perfume, wore it next to his heart by day and kept it under his pillow at night.

Leblanc and had simply fallen out of his pocket, but Marius was unaware of this

He never appeared in the Luxembourg Gardens without the handkerchief pressed to his lips or his heart

The girl could not understand his behaviour at all, and looked at him with a puzzled expression.

Leblanc and his daughter did not come to the Gardens at all

Sometimes he saw a shadow pass in front of a lamp, and his heart beat faster.

Marius waited, his heart aching with pain, until finally going home

Marius felt the blood leave his face

Without 'Ursula', his life had become meaningless, work disgusted him, walking tired him, solitude bored him.

Enjolras and his other friends tried to cheer him up by taking him to exciting places, but these expeditions always ended in the same way: Marius would leave the group and walk around the streets of Paris unhappily on his own.

With a sigh, he put the package in his pocket and went on to dinner.

The next morning, while he was working, there was a gentle knock on his door.

Marius looked up quickly and saw that his visitor was a thin girl wearing just a skirt and shirt

Marius rose to his feet, sure that he had seen the girl somewhere before.

He now had five letters, all the work of one author: the man who lived with his family in the next room.

Marius looked up from the letter and watched the girl moving fearlessly around his room, studying the furniture and the mirror on the wall

Her eyes lit up when she noticed the books on his writing desk.

Picking up a pen that lay on the table, she wrote on a piece of paper, Be careful! The police are coming! She showed Marius her work and then, changing the subject quickly, for no reason at all, she gazed into his eyes and said shyly, 'Do you know, M

Approaching him, she rested a cold red hand on his shoulder and said, 'You never notice me, M

Marius took a five-franc piece from his pocket and handed it to the girl.

Now, after his conversation with the girl from the next room, he understood what real poverty was

He stood on a cupboard, put his eye to the hole, and looked through it into his neighbours' room.

I saw him with his daughter in the church, and gave him the letter

'You're a good girl,' the man said, rising quickly to his feet

Then, turning to his wife, he said, 'Quickly! Put out the fire!' While she poured water on the flames, the man broke the chair with his foot and told his younger daughter to break a window

'Excellent,' her father smiled, tearing a piece off his shirt and using it as a bandage

An elderly man and a young girl appeared in the doorway and Marius, still looking through the hole in the wall, could not believe his eyes.

In the bright mist that clouded his vision, Marius could hardly see the features of the sweet face that had lit his life for six months and had then disappeared, filling his life with darkness

When Marius had recovered some of his senses, he saw that she seemed a little paler than before

Leblanc and 'Ursula' tried to comfort her, Jondrette approached his wife and said in a whisper, 'Take a good look at that man.'

Leblanc and told him about his debts.

Leblanc took a coin out of his pocket and put it on the table.

He went into his room, pushing the door behind him, but the door would not shut

Marius sat down and buried his face in his hands, too overcome by emotion to think clearly

'I tell you I'm sure.' Jondrette was speaking to his wife

He told the two girls to leave the room and then, when alone with his wife, he said, 'And I recognized the girl too

Jondrette stroked his beard and laughed

'We'll know what to do about it.' And then, as he was going to leave the room, he turned to his wife and said, 'You know, it's lucky he didn't recognize me

With an ugly laugh, he pulled his cap down over his eyes and left the room.

When he told Javert his address, he noticed the inspector's eyes light up with great interest

Finally, he asked Marius for his door key and told him to go home and hide quietly in his room so that his neighbours would think he was out.

Back in his room, Marius sat down nervously on his bed

Taking off his boots, he quietly climbed on to the cupboard and looked through the hole in the wall

Jondrette, who had just come in, was shaking snow from his shoes.

'Yes,' his wife said.

'Good.' Then he turned to his daughters

Next, he opened a drawer, took out a long knife and tested its blade with his finger

'Welcome, Monsieur, 'Jondrette said, rising to his feet.

Jondrette quietly told his wife to dismiss the carriage, and when she had left the room, turned back to his visitor.

Leblanc asked Jondrette about his circumstances, and Jondrette smiled sadly as he invented lie after lie

Leblanc rose and, standing with his back to the wall, looked quickly round the room

Jondrette was on his left, his wife was standing on his right near the door

At this signal, which he had pre-arranged with his friends, three men armed with metal poles rushed into the room

Leblanc grew pale, and gripped the back of the broken chair with his huge hands

Marius, meanwhile, raised his right hand with the gun, ready to fire the warning shot.

Leblanc and repeated his earlier question

Leblanc trembled slightly, but still shook his head

But he would also have broken his promise to his father

He felt his knees grow weak

'No wallet?' Thenardier cried, having searched his pockets

Leblanc signed his name Urbain Fabre, which seemed to satisfy Thenardier, and wrote an address on the envelope

Thenardier then took the letter and gave it to his wife.

Thenardier seemed lost in his own dark thoughts

Thenardier sat on the corner of the table in silence for some moments, swinging his leg and gazing with a fierce satisfaction at the fire

Leblanc was standing by the fire, holding a metal bar above his head.

'Now cut his throat!' Thenardier called.

Then, in the moonlight, he saw the solution to his problem

On top of the cupboard, by his feet, he noticed the piece of paper that the elder daughter had written on: Be careful! The police are coming!

Thenardier was advancing towards his prisoner, knife in hand, when his wife cried, 'Something fell!'

Not wishing to give evidence against Thenardier in court, Marius made immediate arrangements to leave his room

Early the following morning, he paid the concierge his final rent and went to live with his friend, Enjolras

But the main reason for his unhappiness was that he was forced to live his life with no hope of seeing 'Ursula'.

One afternoon he was sitting in a field, looking down at a small river, when his dreams of 'Ursula' were suddenly broken by the sound of a familiar voice

Marius felt in his pocket

When Jean Valjean returned from his business the following day, Cosette told him about the noises in the garden

He told her not to worry, but she noticed an anxious look in his eyes

His dark clothes were almost invisible in the shadows, and his face shone softly in the fading light

Marius caught her and held her tightly in his arms without realizing what he was doing, lost in a mist of love

Cosette, feeling her body close to his, took his hand and pressed it against her heart

Then, as if by magic, her lips were next to his and they were kissing

When everything had been said, she laid her head on his shoulder and asked, 'What's your name?'

Now, for the first time, there was a cloud in the clear blue sky of his life

He could not speak, and Cosette felt his hand grow cold.

Marius rose to his feet and said coldly, 'Cosette, are you going?'

Marius turned his back to her and said, 'Then I shall have to go away.'

I wear a cheap hat, my jacket has lost half its buttons and there are holes in my boots.' He turned away from her and stood with his face pressed to the trunk of a tree, almost ready to faint

He fell on his knees in front of her and pressed her hand to his lips.

I'm living with a friend of mine, Enjolras.' Marius then took a knife out of his pocket and scratched his address on the wall - 16, rue de la Verrerie.'

He was unhappy about many things - about losing his teeth, about the political situation but, most of all, about the fact that he had not seen his grandson for four years, since their big quarrel

He was feeling depressed, because he realized that he would probably never see his grandson again

While he was gazing into the fire, thinking these sad thoughts, his old servant entered the room and asked, 'Will Monsieur receive M

Gillenormand's face, and the servant began to worry that his master was ill

But the old man finally raised his head and said, in a low voice, 'Show him in.'

The poor condition of his clothes could not be seen in the half-darkness of the room

Nothing of him was clearly visible except his face, which was calm and serious, but strangely sad.

Gillenormand stared at his grandson with disbelief

At last! After four years! Was it really him? He wanted to open his arms and hug him, but all he said was, 'What have you come for?'

'No, Monsieur.' Marius lowered his eyes.

The tone of his grandfather's voice robbed Marius of all hope

He rose and crossed the room slowly, with his head bowed

Marius told his grandfather all about Cosette and how much he loved her

Marius, too shocked to reply, shook his head and rose to his feet

'Oh my God,' the old man cried, burying his face in his hands

Marius left his grandfathers house in a state of despair, and returning to his room, fell asleep fully-dressed on the bed

Enjolras and his friends shook their heads with amazement at their friend's lack of awareness, and soon left the room

Putting them in his jacket pocket, he went out and continued to wander aimlessly around the streets, noticing only occasionally the strange atmosphere of excitement that was growing in the town

He could think of only one thing: his meeting later that evening with Cosette

This would be his last brief happiness; after that, there would be only darkness.

Unable to control himself, he beat his fists against the walls of the house.

Although this made him very unpopular, he thought that his opponents would be too weak to prevent him from doing what he wanted

The new king, Louis-Philippe, was a brave and clever man who loved his country

The ordinary people liked him at first, but he soon showed that he was more interested in power for his family than democracy for his people

The General had been very popular with the people of France because of his love for Napoleon

The day of his funeral was arranged for 5 June, and thousands of people saw this as a chance to make a public protest against the king and his government.

As soon as the fighting started, Enjolras and several of his friends started to build a barricade outside the Corinth wine shop in the rue de la Chanvrerie, a small street surrounded by dark alleys in the market district of Paris

Enjolras had been joined by many strangers as he and his friends had run shouting along the street

Having run to tell Marius that his friends were waiting for him, she was helping Enjolras and his companions to build the barricade

The barricades were finished in less than an hour and, with the sound of drums in the city growing louder, Enjolras brought a table out into the street and sat down with his friends for a drink.

When they found a letter in his pocket which proved that he had been sent to spy on them, they tied him to a post inside the inn,

He had only one thought in his mind: he wanted to die.

Marius pushed his way through the crowds of frightened, murmuring people that filled the streets until he reached the market area

'The French Revolution!' he heard a distant voice reply - the voice of his friend, Enjolras.

Marius took Javert's guns from his pockets and shot the soldier dead.

Marius, who had thrown away his guns and was now without a weapon, began to move towards a barrel of gunpowder he had seen near the door of the wine shop

He did not notice a soldier aiming his gun at him

Enjolras threw his arms around Marius's neck.

As he was walking by the smaller barricade, his thoughts were interrupted by a weak voice calling his name from the shadows.

'But I put my hand in front of his gun.'

She rested her head on his knee and said without looking at him, 'Oh, what happiness

She let her head fall back on his knees

She was going with her father to England, and his grandfather had refused to give his permission for him to marry

Nothing had changed, and he decided that he had one last duty to perform: he must send Cosette a final message and tell her of his death

I went to my grandfather, and he refused to give his permission

The boy scratched his head, thought for a moment, and then, with a sudden movement, took the letter and ran off into the night.

Cosette had brought her letter case and blotter with her, Valjean his box of child's clothing and the old National Guard uniform which all respectable men possessed, and which he had worn under a previous identity.

He murmured to himself, 'She's going to leave me,' and the pain of those words cut into his heart like a knife.

After a short time, he rose to his feet and looked again at the blotter

He stared at the blotter, coldness in his eyes, the darkness of the deepest night in his heart

He went out into the night and sat on the doorstep, his heart filled with a terrible hatred for the man who was trying to steal Cosette from him

He sat for a long time listening to the sound of distant gunfire in the city, wondering how to get his revenge, when suddenly he heard footsteps

Seeing Valjean on his doorstep, the boy stopped and asked, 'Do you live in this street?'

Jean Valjean went back into the house and tried to make sense of the words that danced before his eyes: I shall die..

This was enough to fill his hate-filled heart with sudden joy

So, the problem was solved! The man who threatened his happiness was going to die - was perhaps already dead.

If he kept the letter in his pocket, Cosette would never know what had happened to the other man, and life with her would continue the same as before

But his happiness had no sooner returned than it disappeared again in a cloud of despair

In his heart he knew he had no choice

Half an hour later he left the house, dressed in his National Guard uniform, with a loaded gun and a pocket full of gunpowder, and made his way towards the market district of Paris.

After a long discussion with his friends, Enjolras decided that the married men (there were five of them) had to leave.

He stared down at the four uniforms but, as he did so, a fifth uniform fell as if by magic at his feet.

He aimed his gun over the barricade at the leader of the gun crew, and fired

The gunner - a fair-haired, handsome young man - spun round twice with his head thrown back, and fell sideways across the cannon

Blood poured from the middle of his back.

Valjean untied the rope around Javert's feet and, taking him by the belt of his coat, led him outside

Only Marius, looking over his shoulder, saw them cross the stronghold towards the smaller barricade

Valjean, his gun in one hand, pulled Javert behind him over the barricade and into a narrow alley, where the corner of a house hid them from view

'Then, returning his attention to Valjean, he said calmly, 'I think you know me, too

Valjean, however, took a knife from his pocket and cut the ropes that tied Javert's wrists.

Javert buttoned his coat, straightened his shoulders and, with a puzzled look on his face, began to walk off in the direction of the market

Javert walked away slowly and Valjean, waiting for him to turn a corner, fired his gun into the air and returned to the stronghold.

He died in a rain of bullets with a strangely victorious smile on his lips.

When Marius had been hit, Valjean ran to him at once, grabbed him before he fell and carried his unconscious body into a small alley behind the wine shop

Valjean lowered Marius to the ground, stood with his back to the wall and looked around him.

Valjean leapt forward and, using all his strength, he moved the stones and wood, opened the grille, lifted Marius on to his shoulders and climbed down into the darkness.

He could just see, by the grey light from the grille above his head, that he was surrounded by walls

With Marius lying across his shoulders, Valjean walked forward into the darkness, feeling his way along the wet, slippery walls with his hands

He walked blindly downwards in this way for a long time, his clothes wet with the blood from Marius's wound, the faint whisper of the young man's breath in his ear

He walked in total darkness, the silence broken occasionally by the thunder of gun carriages and horses racing along the streets of Paris far above his head.

Suddenly, he saw his own shadow on the floor of the passage in front of him

He was being followed! He pressed himself against the wall, held his breath and waited

He continued his journey through the sewers

He laid Marius down gently at the edge of the sewer, and looked down at his face

Valjean tore pieces oft his own shirt and bandaged Marius's wounded shoulder as well as he could

Then, bending over the unconscious body, Valjean stared at Marius with hatred in his eyes.

Valjean repeated the address until he could remember it, returned the wallet to Marius's pocket, picked Marius up again and continued his journey downwards towards the river

The only thing he was sure of was that the light through the grilles far above his head was growing weaker, which meant that the sun was setting

At one point he had to walk waist-deep through water, and almost sank as the ground turned to sand beneath his feet

Finally, when even his great strength was beginning to fade, he saw ahead of him a light - the clear light of day

He was suddenly filled with new energy at the sight, at last, of his way of escape from the sewers

Forgetting the weight of Marius on his shoulders and his own hunger and tiredness, he ran towards the light

Then, moving to the gate, he shook it fiercely with both hands, trying to bend the bars with the last of his strength

Valjean turned his back to the gate and sank to the ground, his head bowed between his knees

While in this state of despair, Valjean felt a hand on his shoulder

Give me half of what you found in this man's pockets, and I'll unlock the gate for you.' He produced a large key from his pocket, and a piece of rope

Valjean took thirty francs from his pockets and showed it to Thenardier, who stared with disbelief

He took the thirty francs and, helping Valjean to lift Marius on to his shoulders, he put the key in the lock and opened the gate just wide enough for Valjean to pass through

Valjean laid Marius gently on the grass and stood up, surrounded by silence, enjoying the feeling of fresh air on his face

He looked round quickly and saw a tall man in a long coat, a large stick in his hand

Valjean told him his name and stood, without moving, as Javert approached and stared into his eyes.

He stared into Valjean's eyes for a long time, then, stepping back with a look of confusion in his eyes, asked dreamily, 'What are you doing here? Who is this man?'

Bending down, he took a handkerchief from his pocket, wet it in the river and bathed Marius's blood-stained forehead

Javert shouted to the driver who was waiting for him to bring his carriage close to the river

'We're bringing back his grandson

Go and wake his grandfather

While one servant ran to find a doctor and another looked for clean sheets, Valjean felt Javert's hand on his arm

Javert was silent for some moments, his chin sunk in the collar of his overcoat

At the end of the rue de l'Homme-Arme, which was too narrow for the carriage to enter, Javert paid the driver and accompanied Valjean to his front door on foot.

'Go in,' said Javert, with a strange, distant look in his eyes

Valjean went into his house and called, 'It's me!' Climbing the stairs, he paused for a moment to look out of the window to see what Javert was doing

The poor man, unable to understand the kindness and gentle nature of the man he had spent his whole life hating, had taken his own life by jumping from a bridge

It was the only way he knew to escape the confusion that was poisoning his heart.

Gillenormand saw his pale, lifeless-looking grandson lying on the sofa, he shook from head to foot

The old man walked to the window and, while he complained to the night about the pain and grief his grandson had caused him, the doctor arrived

After listening to Marius's heart, he organized his removal to a bed in another room, and returned to M

Gillenormand asked, his eyes wild with fear.

'The wound to his body is not serious, but there are deep cuts on his head

At that moment, Marius's eyes slowly opened and his gaze rested upon M

But he had to spend the next two months resting because of the damage to his shoulder

Gillenormand grew happier as his grandson's condition improved

He gave his neighbour, a pretty woman, a bunch of flowers, which greatly annoyed her husband.

All he knew was that he had been brought to his grandfather's house in a carriage

He noticed his grandfather's tenderness towards him, but he could not forget the old man's unfairness and cruelty to his father, who had died penniless and unloved

'There's something I have to say to you,' Marius told his grandfather one day.

He held Marius's head to his chest and they cried together.

Valjean, as her guardian, gave Cosette a large amount of money - half a million francs - but did not tell her that the money was his

Apart from preparing for his wedding, there were two people that he wanted to find

He was, without doubt, a bad man, but Marius had promised his father to find him and help him

The only thing they discovered was that Mme Thenardier had died, and that her husband had escaped from prison and disappeared with his surviving daughter, Azelma.

Second, there was the mysterious stranger who had saved his life

Marius's attempts to find him also ended in failure, and the true story of his escape from the barricade remained a complete mystery to him.

One evening, when Marius was talking to Cosette and Jean Valjean about the mystery and his unsuccessful attempts to solve it, he became angry with Cosette's guardian's lack of interest in his story.

He risked his life to save a dying man, and why? He was a total stranger

Jean Valjean, meanwhile, went home, lit his candle and went upstairs to bed

He was proud of having helped to bring her happiness with Marius, but another thing troubled his soul: the fact that nobody, not even Cosette, knew the truth about him

On the other hand, if he continued to lie about his past, he would lose his own soul

Marius hugged Valjean warmly, addressed him as 'father' and invited him to lunch, but Valjean shook his head and said, 'Monsieur, I have something to tell you.'

Marius listened quietly as Valjean told him everything about his life

He sank into an armchair and buried his face in his hands

Marius kept his promise about not telling Cosette, and Valjean visited her every evening in a small room on the ground floor

She pressed his hands in hers and held them to her lips.

He released his hands.

With these words, he picked up his hat and left.

Jean Valjean continued his evening visits, but the relationship between himself and Cosette became cooler and more distant

Over the next few days, his visits began to be interrupted by servants calling Cosette to dinner

When Valjean did not appear for the second evening, Cosette sent a servant to his house to ask if he was well

She did not realize that, every evening, Valjean would walk slowly from his house until he reached the corner of the street where she lived

He would then stare at the house for several minutes, tears rolling down his cheeks, before turning round and slowly returning home.

Apart from the details about his life that Valjean had confessed to him, he knew that Valjean had killed Inspector Javert at the barricade

Marius could not believe his luck

He had tried without success to find the man who had saved his father's lite at Waterloo, and now the man had come to him! He immediately asked the servant to show the man in.

He was wearing smart black clothes, and a gold watch chain hung from his jacket pocket.

The stranger explained in great detail how he used to work for the government in foreign countries and that, now he was retired, he wanted to move to South America with his wife and daughter

The stranger narrowed his eyes, trying to hide his disappointment and anger at Marius's calmness

'You're a completely rotten man, but I'll give you this.' Marius took a banknote out of his pocket and threw it in the stranger's face.

With those words, he removed his false nose, glasses and neat grey wig.

Pontmercy is absolutely right,' he said, changing his voice

Marius, meanwhile, was grateful for finally having the chance to help Thenardier, and therefore to keep the promise he had made to his father

Jean Valjean, who knew the mayor's background, reported him to the police and took advantage of his arrest to take over half a million francs from his Paris bank

'But he's a splendid man! The fortune was really his, and he's not a murderer or thief at all! He's a hero and a saint!'

He produced a muddy piece of cloth and showed it to Marius, who immediately went pale and rose unsteadily to his feet

Thenardier stared at the coat and the cloth in his hands, speechless with fear

He was even more surprised when, instead of chasing him out of the room, Marius ran towards him and pressed several thousand-franc notes into his hand.

When Thenardier had left, unable to believe his good fortune, Marius ran to find Cosette and told her everything immediately.

Jean Valjean looked up when he heard the knock on his door and called in a weak voice, 'Come in.'

'Father!' she cried, falling into his arms.

'Cosette, did you hear what he said?' Marius cried, tears of shame and guilt rolling down his cheeks

He carried me on his back through the sewers of Paris, to bring me to you

'And you can't refuse this time,' Cosette agreed, sitting on Jean Valjean's lap and kissing his forehead

Jean Valjean listened as she described the view from the room that would be his, the beauty of the garden, the singing of the birds, but he was listening more to the music of her voice than to the meaning of her words

Cosette, frightened, took his two hands in hers.

Valjean smiled, his eyes shining with love and happiness, but he was beginning to lose strength.

Then, taking Cosette's sleeve and pressing it to his lips, he said, 'Come close to me, both of you

As he spoke, Valjean's breathing became more painful and he had difficulty moving his arms

But as the weakness of his body increased, his spirit grew in strength

The light of an unknown world was shining brightly in his eyes.

He watches us all from above and knows what he is doing among his splendid stars

He lay back with his head turned to the sky, the light from the two silver candlesticks falling on his smiling, peaceful face.

The wolf cried out to her, softening his voice as much as he could, "Pull the bobbin, and the latch will go up."

His hair is blond, his eyes light, and I think that this is not the man who has Catherine

Maybe he is his friend, his partner, and I am about to run when I see the small gun in his hand.

And look, the blood behind his ear is where she hit him before she escaped."

We think she's his third victim this year."

But it is too late: Robin pushes him back into the bank and John follows with the ladders on his shoulders

I can see Robin's gun appear in his hand, and then I am inside too, and I pull the door shut.

We run up the stairs together, Robin with his gun at the guard's back

To my left I see the short fat man sit down on the floor with his hands on his head; then Robin runs to the office and kicks open the door.

Tall, arrogant, dressed in his expensive suit and with a watch that costs more than most people make in a year.

"You idiots! This is an investment bank! There's no money here! Everything is done by transfer." And he looks at us all like we are children, with that arrogant expression on his face

Beethoven fills the silence again, and I look at Robin and see that there is sweat on his face too, but Hastings does not move.

"No! Please! Look..." and Hastings enters his details.

Robin then puts his mouth to Hastings' ear

Emily?" But there is no answer, and Oliver Stern puts his mobile back into his coat pocket and looks around.

He is alone on the jetty, apart from the boat attendant at his chair twenty metres away, his feet on a boat and a cigarette in his mouth

Then he hears the sound of his wife's laughter from the terrace bar of the hotel, and he shakes his head.

But when his wife laughs, she sounds like a donkey.

The type of husband who is happy to go out on the huge, horrible loch, in the dark, with his monster of a wife.

He looks at the bag by his feet

The romantic picnic filled with all the food his wife loves

He pulls his cigarette packet from his pocket and walks over

He looks at Oliver for a moment, nods, pulls his lighter from his pocket and offers it.

She's only going to be one minute!" he shouts, and the attendant stops and gives him a long, hard look with his cold, blue eyes.

Then he looks at his monster of a wife.

And, perhaps more importantly, no more sharing his bank account with her.

Just one look back at the jetty to be sure no one can see, he thinks, and he turns his head.

Pain explodes at the back of his head, and his eyes go dark

As he tries to say something, he sees the broken champagne bottle at his feet

Then he falls from the boat, and the ice-cold water takes the words and the air from his mouth

For a moment he goes down, but then he kicks his legs, and he comes to the surface and looks up at Sylvia in the boat

He tries to swim, but his clothes and his coat are too heavy.

And on the small jetty on the bank of Loch Ness, the attendant hears, he takes the cigarette from his mouth and smiles

"About a crime." Branwell pulls his notepad from his pocket and places it in front of him on the table

He has a bad feeling about his pint in the Black Bull pub

Branwell opens his notebook and takes his pen out

His skin is pale and his eyes cold

Branwell feels a shiver run over his back

Branwell shakes his head

I know his name

"You mean," she continues, "that if I tell you his name, you can help me? You can stop this?" she says desperately.

"You know his name?"

"I know, Detective, because I am that driver." Then there is only the sound of her crying to fill the cold interview room, and Branwell sits down again and picks up his pen and notepad

He stops, his heart suddenly beating faster.

The man's dark hair is wet from the rain outside, his skin pale and his eyes cold and dead

Gerry pushes open the door of the small Australian pub and steps onto the terrace with a pint of cold beer in his hand

Gerry smiles, sits down at one of the small, wooden tables and places his bag carefully next to his feet

The rest of his luggage is in the pickup truck, but not this bag

He takes a cigarette from his packet, lights it and lets the hot evening sun shine down on his bald head.

And for the first time in a week, Gerry relaxes and lets his anxious, pale face smile.

He takes you to one of his old factories on the Thames, and then he shows you the boxes and the addresses of all the different locations in the world.

Gerry feels sweat run down his back

Well, Big Jones cannot chop me up if he cannot find me, he thinks, and he looks at the bag at his feet.

Gerry is not sure, but he thinks that the man looked at the bag by his feet.

And he thinks he sees one of the brothers look at his bag again

For half an hour he unpacks his things; then he sits down on the terrace with his bag at his feet and lights another cigarette.

But just to be safe he pulls his new gun from the bag and checks it

The box shuts in an instant, and then the gun is in his hand.

He picks the bag up and puts it on his shoulder.

Maybe they want to steal his bag

He raises his gun and is about to shoot when the dark shape moves again, and he laughs.

A tiny thing, no bigger than his arm

And that is when he feels the knife at his neck.

Gerry drops it and slowly turns, the knife still at his neck.

His face is bearded, and his eyes are full of violence and pain

But it is his teeth Gerry hates

And Gerry opens his mouth to scream...

But the scream he hears is not his own.

"Ha!" Gerry laughs, and he runs to his gun and points it at Big Jones, who falls to the floor and tries to kick the crocodile

And Big Jones looks up at him and is about to shout when suddenly he looks behind Gerry, and the colour disappears from his face.

Jake begins to feel sick again and looks down at his dirty old sneakers.

"How dumb are you?" his new friend says, and he looks annoyed

He sees kids his own age laughing and joking.

He has a camera around his neck

Sunglasses on his face

And a map in his hand.

Occasionally he just looks at his watch.

But the bag is by his feet

So Jake begins to move in his direction, casually

But then the man looks to the right, and Jake knows it is his best chance

Then he hears the man shout, and he looks up and sees his angry face running towards him through the crowd.

And then he is up and runs too, and he has the bag in his hands.

"Let me guess: they're rich, she wants his money?"

Peter nods his head, "Interesting, but a coroner will find traces of sleeping pills in the blood

And if they are detected, so what? They are his pills."

And so she goes to her husband as the flames spread over his body, and she watches

Normally Nick likes his job, but not today

It is better than serving drinks in a pub or helping out at his dad's office, but only if it is a short day, and only if the case is closed quickly

Still, he likes the title of his job

Then he pushes open a fire door to his personal smoking area at the back of the court next to the bins and lights his cigarette

The feeling of the sun on his face is good, and the taste of the smoke is even better

And then I get his money, and you and I can get the hell out of this city and out of this country."

Then he shakes his head and is about to turn.

Maybe there is something we can do to make you forget this? Maybe you can take me for a drink." Then she smiles and takes his hand

For a second he does not know what to say, but he knows what to do, and he pulls his hand away and moves to the door

So, he moves back to his desk, and he sits down in the seat and feels defeated.

You turn on the lights and swing the heavy statue in his direction, but you cannot see him now because the light is so bright

And then you can see his face, and you realise that he looks more afraid than you do, and he is stepping quickly backwards to the stairs

He smokes his cigarettes continuously and enjoys the taste of each one

And if he wants to keep his freedom, he has to be clever; he has to be patient.

His own parish church, the church of his childhood, Saint Anthony's.

How long ago was his last visit to this cold stone building? More than twenty years? Well, that is not important at the moment

The one thing he needs if he wants to keep his freedom and get the suitcase that is buried in his brother's old garage

The suitcase that can help him escape the country and live the rest of his life on a tropical island in the Bahamas.

He pulls the collar of his stolen coat up to cover his face, and he checks that no one can see the grey prison uniform that he is still wearing beneath it.

He finishes his last cigarette and stops to listen

And an old man who looks at Barry for a moment before returning to his prayers

As he does not want them to see his face, he pulls open the left door to the box and enters.

It is small, so small, and it reminds him of his prison cell back in The Joy

"Father?" he says, but there is no reply, and he can see no movement behind the grille that separates his small space from the other.

But after a few minutes he realises how tired he is, and he thinks that maybe he can close his eyes for a moment and even rest his head against the grille.

And he dreams of the suitcase buried under his brother's old garage, and he dreams of the money inside and the paradise in the Bahamas.

"Is that Father O'Connor?" he asks, remembering his old priest.

When I was in the van, it stopped, and I hit one of the guards, took his keys and ran

The roof is down, and Dan enjoys the feeling of the wind in his hair

He looks at his right hand on the steering wheel

Maybe it is time for the first drink of the day after all, and he takes the small flask from the pocket of his denim jacket, removes the lid and swallows.

But then the hot whiskey starts to fill him, and he smiles, puts his head back and laughs loudly into the desert.

His shirt has a little blood on it, and his hand is sore

No, this is his holiday, his escape from all those idiots back in California

He looks at his hand again and tries to make a fist, but it hurts.

He saw the blood, but there was only a little, and his hand hurt

And he thinks of all the times he watched his father hit his mother.

He puts his foot on the accelerator, and the car starts to speed along the old road

Its red and blue lights fill the evening, and the sound of the siren fills his ears.

The guy's eyes are covered by silver sunglasses, and there is something strange about his uniform, Dan thinks

But before he can decide what, the cop is at the door, and Dan drops his cigarette.

"I suppose it's this road: the desert makes it easy to forget to watch your speed," he says, and he thinks he sees the cop look at his hand.

Yours?" And his voice is slow.

Just routine? Maybe it is, and the shirt is in his bag, at the bottom where it cannot be seen

If the cop asks to look in his bag, he can reach in, grab the bat and take a swing...

But in the reflection of the red paint he sees the cop raise his hand, and in the soft evening light he sees the knife, and for a moment he does not understand.

The cop falls too, and there is a moment of confusion, but then Dan pushes himself up onto his feet and runs

Brandon tries not to think as he walks through the snow that reaches up to his waist

"You said it was easy!" Brandon calls out into the forest of silent trees that surround him, his voice full of emotion

His clothes are wet and his skin frozen

He wants to put his hand in his coat pocket, but he has to keep the grey pistol ready.

And then Brandon heard another gunshot, so he ran and left his brother in the snow to die alone.

"You said it was easy!" he shouts again and recalls the first time his brother had told him about the plan.

"Listen to me," his brother said at a dark table in the corner at the Lake Louise Inn

Brandon put his beer down

"What?" his brother said, his eyes full of anger: "You think I do? Idiot, we won't hurt anyone

He knew his brother was a criminal

"Brandon," his brother said, "I know you need the money

What does Sally say?" Brandon shook his head

Think about that." Greg drank some more of his beer and looked around the bar

On the third day his truck stopped on the highway

The kid screamed at first, but they gagged him and tied his hands

The next thing he knew he was holding his shoulder and walking confused and weak.

He feels warm and weak, and his shoulder hurts

He feels his legs shake and falls down onto the red and white snow by the waterfall.

Detective Smith is older, his hair a mixture of black and grey, his stomach large, and his expression usually unhappy

The other detective, West, is younger and thinner but with an empty look in his eye.

"Er, a grammar school, Sir." And Smith nods his head and says nothing.

Content with his job, his life, his expensive house and his two expensive cars.

The headmaster tells them to sit in the same voice he uses for his students.

Smith is about to speak when a loud hammering sound starts, and Bowen shakes his head

He takes his meals in the room

Smith sighs and shakes his head

"Politicians and doctors? They can't even dress themselves." And Smith puts the tie in his pocket.

Smith takes the tie from his pocket

And somewhere in the dark Mr Fletcher stops hammering his foot against the new wall

But then he felt school ties being wrapped around his hands and feet and mouth

Because after hours of struggling his foot is now finally free to move.

So he continues to hammer his foot against the wall.

What a beauty, hey, lad?" And he looks to his son, Owen Junior, and he wants to see a smile on the boy's pale face, but, like always, there is nothing but disinterest.

Owen shakes his head

He remembers when he came here with his father to poach a few rabbits as a child

Junior said that to walk there was stupid, because they had a car, and despite all of Owen's arguments, the teenager did not change his mind.

He lifts the two gun bags onto his shoulder and starts to walk

Junior lifts his head

"Oh, that." And the boy pulls something out of his pocket, and Owen sees that it is his mp3 player.

Just like his mother's

And dark hair too, just like his mother's.

Junior is short for his age

Short and thin with a pale and unhealthy complexion from hours of playing his computer games and watching television.

When Owen was a boy of fourteen, he played rugby or football every day, he ran to the school in the village just for fun, and he spent every Sunday in the forests with his dad.

Rhea says that it is just his age, and that all teenage boys prefer computer games and television to walks in the forest.

No, this time the sun is high and hot, and this time Owen has his old guns over his shoulder, and he remembers the way that Junior's expressionless face changed when he saw them the night before.

"What?" Junior says, a scared look in his eyes

Junior looks a bit happier now, and for twenty minutes Owen talks to him about how to hold the gun and how to walk with it, while his son listens carefully and asks sensible questions that show a real interest

Then maybe in a few years they can start to go for a pint like Owen and his father did.

"Right then, Son," he says feeling extremely happy and enjoying the excitement in his boy's eyes

"Exactly!" says Owen, and he feels full of pride and thinks what a wonderful day this is: out in the beauty of the Welsh countryside with his son.

There is a snap from behind the trees, and Owen thinks that maybe he should put his gun down, in a bush, nice and carefully like he told Junior to do

But before he can do this, Junior, who does not know what is making the noise, remembers his dad's words:

Owen feels an incredible pain in his behind, and he screams and falls to the floor.

As he lies there shouting and screaming and trying to pull the pieces of shot from his skin, he looks up at the beautiful blue sky and green trees and magnificent forest.

With a deck of cards in his hands, Jimmy was like a magician

He could cut and shuffle the deck like he had eight arms instead of two, and he could remember every card he saw in a split second and could use his fingers and little tricks to put the cards where he wanted them in the deck.

But worse than that was his next decision

But he entered my competition, and he used his tricks and his fast fingers, and he won every game until it came to the final."

Hank Wynn stops talking and puts his cigar back in his mouth

Some people say that the reason his casino is called Shark Pool is because Hank looks a little like a shark

He always wears a grey suit, he always walks in a slow manner, and his eyes are always cold and dark.

There is Hank Wynn and his assistants and bodyguards, Kenny and Clive, who stand patiently and listen to his speech

And his mouth is gagged.

Small cuts on his arms and chest, and he is naked apart from his trousers.

And Jimmy Lane shakes his head and tries to say something, and his blue eyes are wet.

Wait one moment," Hank says, and he puts his hand on Jimmy's head, and Jimmy tries to move away

"I don't want you to say anything stupid, Jimmy, because this is your last chance." He looks across the pool to his assistant

And Hank takes Jimmy's face in his hands

Hank shakes his head

"Idiot! I always take the aces out of the pack and make sure that I get the kings," he says, and he goes back into his casino to play another game

She cannot see his face because he has the hood of his sports jacket up, but he seems to be asleep, and there is something about his face that she does not like

He has a short beard and pale, unhealthy skin, and she thinks that his eyes are probably unkind.

The strange man, the man who looks like the evil character from her thriller; his eyes are open now.

Is he watching her? She looks again and, yes, his hood is still covering his face, but she is sure that his eyes are focused on her.

She gave Cham a package, then sat watching his expression as he slowly opened it.

"Nope." Cham smiled, his eyes shining

She wrapped her arms around him and buried her face in his neck

I love it." But his voice sounded strange..

"Is he looking for work again?" Cham smiled, and shook his head

Back inside the apartment, Sala found her nine-year-old brother Apat playing games on the ultranet in his room.

thinking." The color rose in his face

Climbing is thirsty work." But there was something odd in his voice again, and a strange expression on his face

"Well, yes." He bit his lip

Cham spread his hands

You have to remember that his situation is different from yours

Then she waited for his reply

Cham stood there, his arms open, and Sala rushed into a huge hug

Then he threw back his head and laughed

Sala studied his face

He asked her gently, but his words still came as a shock

Cham shook his head

Cham was already there, looking more gorgeous than ever in his silver suit.

"Here goes," said Cham, his eyes shining with excitement

I'll just finish this." Cham swallowed his drink hurriedly, and they waved goodbye to Zee.

As they passed the enormous hologram wall by the entrance, Cham put his arm around Sala

It was pouring with rain again, and his hair and clothes were wet when he arrived.

"I thought so." He played with her fingers, matching them against his

She touched his arm

"It's his work."

Cham's dad Tian knew how to fix the old equipment: that was his job

She wished she could be with Cham, but his family was in crisis; they all needed him more than she did right now

"Does this have anything to do with his dad's work?"

"What about his family?"

How could she ask Cham to keep a secret from his parents?

What more could she say? Cham's number one consideration right now was his family, and she couldn't stand in the way of that; but she wished that he would at least think about other possibilities.

Leti smiled, but the smile didn't reach his eyes

At last, Cham came back through the doors with Leti and his parents

He looked pale and tired, but a feverish excitement was burning in his eyes.

Cham looked at his parents

Cham cleared his throat

Cham moved stiffly forward, took the screen from his dad, and lifted his hand

"Sala! What happened to you?" He wrapped his arms around her

Cham shook his head

Sala wished she could see him on her own, but she knew that time with his family was precious

In the end, they had just an hour or two at his apartment before he left

"Make interface pictures for us, Cham," his two younger sisters begged

The whole family went to the pod center, with Cham's mom telling his sisters to be brave, and his dad pale and quiet

"Remember what we said," she whispered in his ear

His nose looked a little longer, and there was a different curve to his lips

Now he was in the pod, it was only his avatar

His eyes were harder, and his smile seemed false

It wasn't just his avatar

All that endless talk about his skiing..

he's fine." Sala described how enthusiastic he'd been, but she didn't mention his warning

She was at the kitchen table with Mom and Gran, but Apat was in his room, and she didn't want him to hear them.

"Hi, Cham!" Sala waved at his avatar eagerly

It was so wonderful to see his face again

Then his face clouded over

"What about his family?" asked Sala

The whole family was there - Cham's parents and both his sisters

"He's having lots of fun," said one of his sisters

"I think your mom and dad would miss you," Sala said to his sister

It's doing something to his mind."

Tian cleared his throat

Maybe his parents would be disappointed, but it was the only responsible thing to do; they'd thank her, in the end.

She needed to see the real Cham, not his avatar

But to Sala, his voice seemed high and feverish

He didn't ask her many questions; and although his avatar was looking at her, his eyes were glassy and unseeing.

She wasn't even sure if his family would give them time alone together - but she'd have to make sure it happened

Cham followed, but his steps seemed heavy and slow

in his eyes

Even when he took her in his arms, it didn't feel quite the same.

"What about your studies?" asked his mom.

She wanted to scream at his parents

"Actually, I'd really like to talk to Cham about his studies," she said

She kept on smiling as Cham showed his little sisters where his body was connected to the pod.

His sisters giggled as he ran his fingers over their heads

Normally she loved it when Cham was fooling around with his sisters, but now she thought she'd explode.

"Cham." Sala held his hand

"I've missed you so much." Cham smiled his lovely warm smile

As Sala held her breath, his eyes slowly hardened

Then his expression hardened again

"It's not his fault," said Mom quietly

Cham sat down and looked at the pictures that his sisters had drawn for him, then answered his parents' questions about the tests

What was that look in his eyes? A challenge or just a question? Whichever it was, Sala knew the moment had come.

As a huge smile of delight spread over his face, she felt suddenly weak all over.

"Oh! That's fantastic!" Cham got out of his chair and hugged her, burying his face in her hair

It was wonderful to feel his arms around her again

And somehow, she hoped, she would reach Cham, through his avatar, and find the real person inside once more

His face was pale and his dark eyes had a sad, lost look

After his moment of rudeness, de Winter listened to her politely

A waiter came in with a note in his hand

Then I saw that de Winter was already at his table

I felt that he did not want to talk about his home.

He had asked me to go out with him in his car.

There was a strange, faraway look on his face

He looked like a man walking in his sleep.

He did not talk about his life there, but about the house itself

I wanted to have something of his now that our day was over.

If he loved his home so much, why had he left it?

I could not tell Mrs Van Hopper that every morning I drove with de Winter in his car

Every day I had lunch with him at his table.

He was always waiting in his car, reading the paper

Then he gave me his handkerchief

'To hell with this,' he said and put his arm round my shoulders

I never saw his wife

I knew the number of his room

He was having breakfast at a small table in his sitting-room

I sat with my hands in my lap, watching him drink his coffee.

When I said this, Maxim laughed and put his hand over mine.

'I don't like young men.' I was still afraid that Maxim would change his mind.

I smiled at him and took his hand

He was going back to his own home

'Manderley at last.' I could hear the excitement in his voice.

Maxim looked up from his letters

'Mr de Winter gave very careful orders in his letter about this room

'Then this was not his bedroom before?'

Maxim put his arm round my shoulder

He put a cushion behind his head and lit a cigarette.

He went on reading his paper

He was comfortable, the master of his house

To my surprise, I found that Maxim had nearly finished his breakfast.

His eyes smiled at me from behind his thick glasses

'Maxim said in his letter that you were very young and pretty

As we stood in the hall, Maxim put his arm round my shoulders.

Jasper was silent now, with his nose to the ground.

He stood there, wagging his tail.

I held Maxim's arm and looked up into his face

When Maxim spoke, his voice was gentle and low.

Maxim turned to me, laughing and wiping the hair out of his eyes

I took his hand and held it tight.

Maxim was sitting in his usual chair, with Jasper at his feet

Maxim smiled at me and picked up his paper

I could not forget his words: 'I was a fool to bring you back to Manderley.'

It will make such a difference to his life

Frank turned away from me so that I could not see his face.

Maxim looked up from his paper.

Maxim threw his paper on the ground and got up from his chair

His face was dark with anger and his voice was hard.

Maxim took my face in his hands.

Maxim went back to his chair and picked up his paper

His whole body was shaking with fear and tears were rolling down his fat, round face.

Jasper had moved towards the drawing-room, wagging his tail.

He was a big, handsome man, but his face was red and his eyes were a hard blue

I did not want to look at his car

'I have enjoyed meeting you,' Favell said, standing by his car

But I could not stop thinking about Favell and his friendship with Mrs Danvers

His face was white and his mouth hard

I took his hand in mine.

I knew then that he was not going to tell me about his anger with Mrs Danvers

Maxim will love me as his wife and forget about Rebecca.

There was Giles in his white Arab costume

When Maxim answered, his voice was cold and hard

'Look into his eyes

'Every man likes to enjoy his honeymoon.'

Do you think his pain and unhappiness will bring Mrs de Winter back?'

'What do I care for his pain?' she said

'Mr de Winter deserves his pain, marrying a young girl like you - and only ten months afterwards

I could not see him, but I could hear his voice

I had heard his voice and he was down there in the bay

The coastguard looked at his watch.

He looked at me with his bright blue eyes.

I took his hand and held it against my face.

Maxim put his arm round me and held me closely.

I stood there watching his face, watching his eyes.

Then Maxim took me in his arms and began to kiss me

Maxim shook his head.

Maxim came up to me and held out his hands.

I held his hands against my heart

She was always going to his house and asking him to her cottage.

I held his hand tightly.

And you would never know who his father was."

I sat at Maxim's feet, my head against his knees

As you know, Mr de Winter identified the other body found in the sea as his wife

We all stood on the terrace for a moment and then Colonel Julyan looked at his watch.

They all said that Maxim had married his young, second wife within a year of Rebecca's death

'Mr de Winter has just finished giving his evidence

Oh God, I thought, don't let Maxim lose his temper.

We were in his car now and he was driving very fast.

I'm meeting Frank and Colonel Julyan at the church.' He left the room quickly and then I heard the sound of his car driving away.

Favell took a piece of paper from his pocket

Favell put the note back in his pocket.

Favell began to laugh, a high stupid laugh, as he twisted the note round and round in his fingers.

Favell got slowly to his feet, walked over to a small table and poured himself some whisky

Ben stepped into the room and stared at everyone with his small eyes

Ben shook his head and moved back against the wall

Frank took Ben out of the room as the Colonel nodded his head.

She knew her for years,' Favell said, with his unpleasant smile.

Maxim shook his head.

They gave me his new address

But our future was in his hands.

At nine o'clock exactly, Frank brought up Colonel Julyan in his car.

He waved when he saw us and started up his car

Favell whistled quietly under his breath.

We all stood watching his face.

'Do you remember the visit now, Doctor?' But Dr Baker was already searching his files

Moving quickly, he puts them into his bag and leaves

He leaves his car near the trees and waits

He stops his car and runs.

Suddenly, The Cat throws his bag at Natalie

Tina could see only the side of his face, but she gasped in painful recognition.

Unaware that she was staring at him, the boy put one hand to his mouth and bit gently on his bent thumb knuckle, which Danny had begun to do a year or so before he died

Now, as she watched this boy, his resemblance to Danny seemed to be more than mere coincidence

She held her breath as his face came slowly around

Pulling her gaze away from his, she studied her hands, which were gripping the steering wheel so fiercely that they ached.

Closing her eyes now, chewing the toast, Tina could still see him - three years old, peanut butter smeared all over his lips and chin - as he grinned and said, More neenut putter toast, please.

She closed her eyes and imagined herself lying beside him, reaching for him in the dark, touching, touching, moving against him, into the shelter of his arms

He had been seething with hostility, always seeking an excuse to vent his anger on her.

She took time off to carry and give birth to Danny, then to spend uninterrupted days with him during his first few months of life

She was able to think about the boy without crying, to visit his grave without being overcome by grief

Not long after his tenth birthday, the boy had asked for more space and privacy than was provided by his original, tiny quarters

Michael and Tina had helped him move his belongings to the den, then had shifted the couch, armchair, coffee table, and television from the den into the quarters the boy had previously occupied.

At the time, Tina was certain that Danny was aware of the nightly arguments she and Michael were having in their own bedroom, which was next to his, and that he wanted to move into the den so he wouldn't be able to hear them bickering

As she stared at the contents of the musky closet - the boy's shoes, his jeans, dress slacks, shirts, sweaters, his blue Dodgers' baseball cap, the small blue suit he had worn on special occasions - a lump rose in her throat

Somehow, the act of giving away his clothes would be even sadder and more final than watching his casket being lowered into the ground.

Unlike many boys his age, he'd been concerned about orderliness and cleanliness

Respecting his preference for neatness, Tina had instructed Mrs

Neddler, the cleaning lady who came in twice a week, to vacuum and dust his unused bedroom as if nothing had happened to him

As long as she left his things undisturbed, she could continue to entertain the hope that Danny was not dead, that he was just away somewhere for a while, and that he would shortly pick up his life where he had left off

Her inability to clean out his room suddenly frightened her; for the first time it seemed like more than just a weakness of spirit but an indication of serious mental illness

If she was ever to stop dreaming about the boy, if she were to get control of her grief, she must begin her recovery here, in this room, by conquering her irrational need to preserve his possessions in situ.

Danny, of course, had been writing about something else, and the dark interpretation that could be drawn from those two words now, after his death, was just a macabre coincidence.

As soon as the rehearsal ended, Joel sprang out of his seat, raced to the aisle, climbed the steps to the third tier, and hurried to Tina.

Six rings bedecked each of his hands, some with diamonds, some with emeralds, one with a large ruby, one with an even larger opal

He shifted from foot to foot as he talked about Magyck! Turned this way and that, gestured expansively with his quick, gem-speckled hands, virtually doing a jig.

He had plowed some of his substantial earnings into Las Vegas real estate, parts of two hotels, an automobile dealership, and a slot-machine casino downtown

He was so rich that he could retire and live the rest of his life in the high style and splendor for which he had a taste

He loved his work

She was aware of his reputation as a perfectionist who demanded superhuman efforts from his people

Joel had convinced her that she'd have no difficulty matching his pace or meeting his standards, and that she was equal to the challenge

She was in such an excellent mood that she didn't think even the sight of his room would be able to bring her down, as it usually did

Shattered by the loss of his son, Michael had been irrationally vicious with Tina for months after the funeral, accusing her of being responsible for Danny's death

She'd thought he had regained his perspective during the last few months, but evidently not.

Didn't he realize that her grief was as difficult to bear as his? What was he trying to prove?

She stood indecisively in the center of the small kitchen, trying to find the willpower to go to Danny's room and box his clothes, as she had planned

Joel Bandiri was with Eva, his wife of eight years, and two of their friends

Mainway carried and held himself as if he were an aristocrat, and his mane of silver hair and his clear blue eyes contributed to the image he wished to project

However, his features were large, square, and utterly without evidence of patrician blood, and even after the mellowing influences of elocution teachers, his naturally low, gravelly voice belied his origins in a rough Brooklyn neighborhood.

Helen Mainway, Charlie's wife, sat at his left side

"In one sentence he managed to flatter you, flatter me, and impress all of us with his modesty

He made no great show of being more than ordinarily interested in her, but the attraction she held for him was evident in his eyes

Beneath his cordial, witty, slightly cool exterior, his secret response was that of a healthy male animal, and her awareness of it was more instinctual than intellectual, like a mare's response to the stallion's first faint stirrings of desire.

On the other hand, he was handsome, and in his face was an appealing gentleness

Although Magyck! Excited the imagination and commanded the eye, Elliot wasn't able to give his undivided attention to it

She watched the performers intently, unaware of his gaze

No woman had affected him so strongly since Nancy, his wife, who had died three years ago.

Sitting in the dark theater, he smiled, not at the comic magician who was performing in front of the closed stage curtains, but at his own sudden, youthful exuberance.

Tina mingled, moving back and forth, upstage and downstage, through the crowd, thanking everyone for his contribution to the show's success, complimenting each member of the cast and crew on his dedication and professionalism

He finished his cake

He fingered his starched collar and the satin lapel of his tuxedo jacket

She heard his frightened voice calling to her, and she peered over the edge of the pit, and he was so far below her that his face was only a tiny, pale smudge

Then a man dressed entirely in black from head to foot, his face hidden by shadows, appeared at the far side of the pit and began to shovel dirt into it

She couldn't reach him, and she couldn't reach Danny, and the dirt was up to the boy's knees, and now up to his hips, and now over his shoulders

Danny wailed and shrieked, and now the earth was even with his chin, but the man in black wouldn't stop filling in the hole

She wanted to kill the bastard, club him to death with his own shovel

When she thought of clubbing him, he looked at her, and she saw his face: a fleshless skull with rotting skin stretched over the bones, burning red eyes, a yellow-toothed grin

A disgusting cluster of maggots clung to the man's left cheek and to the corner of his eye, feeding off him

Though Danny's screams were increasingly muffled, they were even more urgent than before, because the dirt began to cover his face and pour into his mouth

She had to get down to him and push the earth away from his face before he suffocated, so in blind panic she threw herself over the edge of the pit, into the terrible abyss, falling and falling-

And if Michael had slipped into the house like a little boy playing a cruel prank, if he had written that message on the chalkboard, then his hatred of her was far greater than she had thought

She decided to try his number again in half an hour.

She ate a light breakfast of grapefruit juice and one English muffin, then went to Danny's room to pack his belongings

The tubes of glue, miniature bottles of enamel, and model-crafting tools that had stood on his desk were now on the floor with everything else

When Tina squeezed into the narrow gap between the tables and caught Michael's attention, his reaction was far different from what she had expected

She'd thought the sight of her would wipe the smile off his face

Instead, his smile broadened, and there seemed to be genuine delight in his eyes.

She wasn't prepared for this pleasantness, nonplussed by the warmth of his greeting.

He glanced at his watch

Michael led the way, gently pushing and elbowing through the holiday crowd, and Tina followed quickly in his wake, before the path that he made could close up again.

Halfway across the long room, they stopped at a clearing where a middle-aged man lay on his back, unconscious, in front of a blackjack table

Two uniformed security men were performing first aid on the unconscious man, loosening his tie and collar, taking his pulse, while a third guard was keeping curious customers out of the way.

Nah, I don't think it's his heart

Shaking his head, obviously amused, Michael moved around the clearing and into the crowd again.

The blood drains from his head-bang! - And he faints dead away

If it's really a bad one, he finds out his pipes have blocked up

Anyway, when he finally gets hungry and realizes he hasn't eaten, he gulps down a huge meal, and the blood rushes from his head to his stomach, and he passes out in the middle of the restaurant

Michael kept up the friendly patter while he got his cone of ice cream

Her original intention had been to accuse him of ripping apart Danny's room; she had been prepared to come on strong, so that even if he didn't want her to know he'd done it, he might be rattled enough to reveal his guilt

After all, she'd lived with him for a long time, through years of happiness and years of misery, and she'd come to know the limits of his talent for deception and duplicity

There was something peculiar in his eyes, a speculative look, but it wasn't guile

He licked his ice-cream cone, studied her, and then he smiled

"I really do understand, Tina." His voice was reassuring, but his tone was condescending

He was happy being a blackjack dealer; his salary and his good tips were enough for him, and he was content to coast through the years

She had been determined that neither of them would have reason to feel that his importance in her life had diminished

She had tried to encourage him to seek advances in his own career - from dealer to floor man to pit boss to higher casino management - but he had no interest in climbing that ladder

She was shocked by his reaction, then confused, and at last deeply saddened

He didn't tell her directly, but his behavior said as much

He had adored only the showgirl, the dancer, the cute little thing that other men coveted, the pretty woman whose presence at his side had inflated his ego

As long as she remained a dancer, as long as she devoted her life to him, as long as she hung on his arm and looked delicious, he approved of her

That was why he'd smiled when he'd seen her at his blackjack table

The size of his ego astounded her.

Standing before her in the sunshine, his white shirt shimmering with squiggles of reflected light that bounced off the parked cars, he favored her with that self-satisfied, superior smile that made her feel as cold as this winter day ought to have been.

But he was so involved with his fantasy that he wasn't aware that she had no desire to be a part of it

He interrupted her before she'd said more than his name

When he paused to lick his ice-cream cone, she said, "Michael, that's not the way it's going to be."

She had never vented any of her black anger because, initially, she'd wanted to hide it from Danny; she hadn't wanted to turn him against his father

Later, after Danny was dead, she'd repressed her feelings because she'd known that Michael had been truly suffering from the loss of his child, and she hadn't wanted to add to his misery

His face was flushed, and there was a familiar meanness in his eyes

Turning away, she left him in the sunshine, with the ice cream melting down the cone and onto his hand.

He'll just add on an extra trip for his anniversary

This was a new thought: the possibility that his ultimate goal was to do something worse than torment and scare her.

She searched his face for any sign that he was lying, but his bewilderment seemed genuine

As he drew near, he opened his arms, as if it was the most natural thing in the world for him to hold and comfort her, as if he had held her many times before, and she leaned against him in the same spirit of familiarity

No one in his right mind would take boys as young as twelve into the deepest parts of the Sierras, no matter how well prepared, supplied, and trained they were, no matter how strong, no matter how many big brothers were there to look out for them."

Still sitting on the couch, Elliot shook his head and stared down at his cognac.

Kindness marked his eyes, a deep sympathy

He picked up his brandy snifter from the low table in front of the sofa, and he sat on the edge of her desk

Tina was disturbed by his analysis because it matched her own, and it led her into the same blind alley that she'd traveled before

Elliot raised his eyebrows

Elliot tasted his cognac

"You'll probably need professional help to catch him in one of his tricks."

"So you think you're - what, sleepwalking? In your sleep, you're writing a rejection of Danny's death on his chalkboard?"

Elliot cocked his head, studied her with those probing, dark eyes

"I never saw his body."

Elliot put his hand on her shoulder and squeezed gently

She stared deeply into his eyes

"Whoever the creep is, whatever his motivations are, he's not well-balanced

"Every great chef must be an egomaniac when it comes to his culinary art

He must be totally secure in his estimation of his talents if he is to function well in the kitchen."

As he dried his hands on the towel, he said, "Why don't we forget about going out to dinner? Let me cook for you instead."

She put a hand on his arm

His hands moved over her, testing the firmness and resilience of her, and she touched him too, gently squeezing his shoulders, his arms, the hard muscles of his back

He was not a particularly large man, but he picked her up in his arms as if she were a child.

She saw a longing and a need in his dark eyes, a powerful wanting that was only partly sex, and she knew the same need to be loved and valued must be in her eyes for him to see.

Without haste, with a breathless anticipation that lit up his face, he undressed her.

He quickly stripped off his own clothes and joined her on the bed, took her in his arms.

He explored her body slowly, deliberately, first with his eyes, then with his loving hands, then with his lips and tongue.

The amber light molded to his muscles.

He lowered his face to hers

As he entered her, she let her hands travel over his body, along his lean flanks.

Tina stayed the night with Elliot, and he realized that he had forgotten how pleasant it could be to share his bed with someone for whom he truly cared

To his surprise, her fear rapidly changed to desire

The malicious tormentor wanted her to suffer mental anguish and spiritual pain; but he didn't want her to die, because that would spoil his fun.

He spent an hour and a half in his library, paging through legal casebooks, boning up on precedents for the exhumation of a body that, as the court had put it, "was to be disinterred in the absence of a pressing legal need, solely for humane reasons, in consideration of certain survivors of the deceased." Elliot didn't think Harold Kennebeck would give him any trouble, and he didn't expect the judge to request a list of precedents for something as relatively simple and harmless as reopening Danny's grave, but he intended to be well prepared

At one o'clock Elliot drove his silver Mercedes S600 sports coupe to the New Year's Day party on Sunrise Mountain

Michael Evans hates his ex-wife."

In the process of trying to hurt his ex-wife, he'd waste several days of the court's time, and the end result would be exactly the same as if he'd never been given a chance to protest."

Kennebeck stood with his eyes closed and his face turned up to the warm winter sun.

"Ah." He pushed a curly strand of white hair back from his forehead

He was considerably more formidable than his associate: tall, rough-edged, with large, big-knuckled, leathery hands - like something that had escaped from a recombinant DNA lab experimenting in the crossbreeding of human beings with bears

In freshly pressed slacks, a crisp blue shirt, a patterned tie, and a gray sports jacket, he might have been a professional hit man uncomfortably gotten up for the baptism of his Mafia don's grandchild

Bob shook his head in agreement, frowning, as if he was dismayed to think that he could be mistaken for a common thief.

The tall man pulled a silencer-equipped pistol out of a shoulder holster that was concealed under his gray sports jacket

Elliot's mind raced through a list of cases that his law firm was currently handling, searching for some connection with these two intruders, but he couldn't think of one.

Vince scratched his concrete-block chin with his shovel of a hand and then reached inside his jacket

"Now," Vince said, "counselor, are you going to walk over to the table and sit your ass down, or am I going to have to motivate you with this?" He gestured with his pistol again.

A chill spread from the base of his spine, up his back, as he realized what the presence of these men implied about the accident that had killed Danny.

At this indication of imminent surrender, the tall man relaxed slightly, although his lumpish face was still flushed with anger

If someone has, then we gotta spike his ass to a barn door

"Yeah, well, that's ivory tower stuff," Bob said, nervously straightening his tie.

They wanted to gain his cooperation without violence because they were reluctant to mark him; their intention was that his death should appear to be an accident or a suicide