Page 101 of On the Edge

Nel was standing at her car boot, changing after a surf, when she spotted Trent Donohue walking across the car park with a surfboard under his arm.She gave him a tentative smile.

‘I didn’t know you surfed,’ she said when he got closer.

He shrugged.‘Bit of a stretch to call it surfing.Paddling and falling off would be more accurate.I usually stick to Kiddies Corner.’

Nel laughed.He had an honest face, a warm smile.It was strange now to think she’d felt so threatened by him.He was just doing his job, after all.

‘I … ah … I owe you an apology.’

‘What for?’

‘For not trusting you.’

‘I’m a journalist, I’m used to that.Occupational hazard.’

‘I just have to deal with people showing me rashes at parties.’

He laughed.‘I’m not sure which is worse.’

She slammed the boot shut.‘Enjoy your surf.’

As he started walking away, she thought of something.‘Trent?’He turned back to her.‘Have you worked out who tipped you off about the ring?’

He shook his head.‘No idea.It was an email.’

‘Do you still have it?’

‘Yeah, why?’

‘Can I see it?’

‘Sure.’She followed him to his car where he took his phone from the glove box.He opened the email and passed the phone to Nel.

The address was random numbers and letters.‘Oh my god.’

‘What?’

‘I need to check something.’Still holding Trent’s phone, she hurried back to her car and reached for her own phone.She found the screenshots Poppy had sent her and held the phones side by side.

Her heart raced.‘Snap.’

Trent looked on.‘I don’t get it.’

‘These emails were sent to Poppy.Someone was sending her weird messages.’She spoke slowly, thinking out loud.‘Jimmy traced the IP address to the Warners’ house.We thought they were from Ryan, or possibly their son Charlie.’She could see his mind whirring like her own.‘But there’s no way Ryan would have sent this to you.It wouldn’t make sense for him to tell anyone about the ring, and Charlie wouldn’t know about any of this.He’s only twelve.’

Then suddenly, a jolt of insight.‘It was Sophie.’

‘But …’ Trent frowned.‘Why would Sophie do that?’

‘To escape.Ryan’s controlling and abusive.She told me she could never leave him because he would follow her.’

Trent’s eyes widened, following her line of thought.‘And he wouldn’t be able to follow her if he was in jail.’He shook his head in disbelief.

Nel replayed their conversations through this new lens.‘She played us.She used me to stir things up and she tipped you off for the same reason.’She shook her head, astonished.‘I thought I was rescuing her, but all this time she was rescuing herself.’

They stood in stunned silence, grappling with the thought of Sophie pulling strings like a master puppeteer.

‘It doesn’t change the fact that justice has finally been done for Maddie,’ Trent said.