A Perfect Family by Sarah Sheridan

Author:Sarah Sheridan [Sheridan, Sarah]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Bloodhound Books
Published: 2022-08-21T16:00:00+00:00

Chapter Thirty

As I approached the large property, with a biting wind whirling round me, a nausea swept through me, making me weak at the knees. The police tape was still there, flapping in the strong gusts, but this time there were no longer emergency service workers swarming around everywhere. Flashbacks of finding the Bryant family’s bodies were now a constant in my mind, and my heart was pounding uncontrollably. Oh God, I thought. Maybe this was a stupid idea. I should probably go home. Or maybe go and see Mum again…

But I decided to make myself wait, and stare at the house for a bit. I was there to gain closure, I told myself. To try to move past the doubts in my mind about the suicide verdict. I mean, if professionals had decided that that was what it was, who was I to question their decision? But still…

I stared at the grey windows. The house looked dead now, too; no signs of life would be inside it for a long while. What a waste of a promising set of people, I thought, a fresh wave of sadness washing over me for their wasted lives, particularly for Sabrina and the younger children. They’d had their whole lives ahead of them, but they were all now extinguished, as though they’d never been here. It wasn’t fair. For ages, everyone had thought that the Bryants were amazing; such a perfect family. How deceiving looks can be. I still couldn’t get my head around it all. Maybe the house would go to Jack now? I thought. I mean, as the only surviving immediate family member, surely that’s how inheritance worked? At least having that kind of security would help him process his grief. Give him somewhere stable to live, a place where he could start rebuilding his life. But was he actually grieving? I couldn’t help wondering, immediately feeling guilty for having this thought. His behaviour was so erratic, so weird. But he was probably in shock, I thought. I mean, there was no right way to deal with such a tragedy, was there? It was something I found myself constantly wondering, as I’d watched his emotions flip from this way to that…

‘Ellen?’ a familiar voice behind me called. ‘Is that you?’

I turned to see Marjorie bustling towards me, pulling her expensive-looking cardigan tightly around her generous figure. The house that she and Patrick lived in was just up the road, in the same close as the Bryants’ one. They were all huge old piles round here, and must have been built at least a hundred years ago. Their gabled roofs, big stone fireplaces and old oak beams were the envy of many who lived in the smaller terraced houses at the back of the church in Buckingham town. I’ve always loved looking at them, and imagining what it must be like to live in them. Shit, I thought. Marjorie must have seen me walk past. I’m not in the mood to talk to anyone right now, least of all Jack’s aunt…

‘Hi Marjorie,’ I said, walking towards her.

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