WOULD YOU BELIEVE HER?

2013

Melissa Slade had it all: beauty, money, a successful husband and beautiful twin babies. But, in the blink of an eye, her perfect life became a nightmare – when she found herself on trial for the murder of her little girls.

PRESENT DAY

Jonathan Hunt covered the original Slade Babies case for the local newspaper. Now that new evidence has come to light, Jon’s boss wants him back on the story to uncover the truth.

With Melissa’s appeal date looming, time is running out. And, as Jon gets drawn deeper into a case he’d wanted to forget, he starts to question Melissa’s guilt.

Is Melissa manipulating Jon or telling him the truth? Is she a murderer, or the victim of a miscarriage of justice?

And if Melissa Slade is innocent, what really happened to Ellie and Amber Slade?

About the Author

DIANE JEFFREY grew up in North Devon, in the United Kingdom. She now lives in Lyon, France, with her husband and their three children, Labrador and cat.

Diane’s debut psychological thriller, Those Who Lie, was a Kindle bestseller in the USA, Canada and Australia and spent several weeks in the top 100 Kindle books in the UK.

He Will Find You, set in the Lake District and Somerset and published in August 2018, is her second novel. The Guilty Mother is Diane’s third book.

Diane is an English teacher. When she’s not working or writing, she likes swimming, running and reading. She loves chocolate, beer and holidays. Above all, she enjoys spending time with her family and friends.

Readers can follow Diane on Twitter @dianefjeffrey or on Facebook.com/dianejeffreyauthor

Praise for Diane Jeffrey

‘Tense and compelling, a genuinely thrilling read’

Elizabeth Haynes

‘Brimming with tension, riddled with doubt and suspicion, insidious and compelling with a terrifying ending that had me catching my breath’

Sue Fortin

‘A tense, gripping domestic noir that shows just how fast the dream of a new life can turn into your worst nightmare’

T.M. Logan

‘A scorchingly good thriller’

Lisa Hall

‘This is a must read for anyone who lives to delve into psychological thrillers!’

Linda Strong

‘With brilliant main characters and a wonderful plot, this book is a real page-turner. I would highly recommend this book.’

Stephanie Collins

‘I absolutely adored this book.’

Lu Dex

‘Great book … keeps you guessing!! If you love twists and turns then this book is for you!’

Diane Merrit

‘With twists and turns that will wrong-foot you all the way, a dash of dark humour and a strong emotional punch, this is an excellent debut that more than earns its place within the genre.’

S.J.I. Holliday

Also by Diane Jeffrey

Those Who Lie

He Will Find You

The Guilty Mother
DIANE JEFFREY

HQ

An imprint of HarperCollinsPublishers Ltd.

1 London Bridge Street

London SE1 9GF

First published in Great Britain by HQ in 2019

Copyright © Diane Jeffrey 2019

Diane Jeffrey asserts the moral right to be identified as the author of this work.

A catalogue record for this book is available from the British Library.

This novel is entirely a work of fiction. The names, characters and incidents portrayed in it are the work of the author’s imagination. Any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, events or localities is entirely coincidental.

All rights reserved under International and Pan-American Copyright Conventions. By payment of the required fees, you have been granted the non-exclusive, non-transferable right to access and read the text of this e-book on-screen. No part of this text may be reproduced, transmitted, downloaded, decompiled, reverse engineered, or stored in or introduced into any information storage and retrieval system, in any form or by any means, whether electronic or mechanical, now known or hereinafter invented, without the express written permission of HarperCollins.

E-book Edition © August 2019 ISBN: 9780008297619

Version: 2019-07-05

Table of Contents

Cover

Blurb

About the Author

Praise for Diane Jeffrey

Also by Diane Jeffrey

Title Page

Copyright

Dedication

Prologue: Melissa

Part One

Chapter 1: Jonathan

Chapter 2: Melissa

Chapter 3: Jonathan

Chapter 4: Melissa

Chapter 5: Jonathan

Chapter 6: Melissa

Chapter 7: Jonathan

Chapter 8: Melissa

Chapter 9: Jonathan

Chapter 10: Melissa

Chapter 11: Jonathan

Chapter 12: Melissa

Chapter 13: Jonathan

Chapter 14: Melissa

Chapter 15: Jonathan

Chapter 16: Melissa

Chapter 17: The Redcliffe Gazette

Chapter 18: Melissa

Chapter 19: Jonathan

Part Two

Chapter 20: Kelly

Chapter 21: Jonathan

Chapter 22: Kelly

Chapter 23: Jonathan

Chapter 24: Kelly

Chapter 25: Jonathan

Chapter 26: Kelly

Chapter 27: Jonathan

Chapter 28: Kelly

Chapter 29: Jonathan

Chapter 30: Kelly

Chapter 31: Jonathan

Chapter 32: Kelly

Chapter 33: Jon

Chapter 34: Kelly

Epilogue: Melissa

Acknowledgements

Extract

Dear Reader …

Keep Reading …

About the Publisher

For my mum and dad,

with much love and many thanks.

Prologue

Melissa
October 2018

The screaming inside had stopped. But the thoughts in my head still clamoured for attention. I studied my hands, turning them over to examine my palms. Perhaps my future was written on them, along my lifeline. I started to twist an imaginary gold band around the third finger on my left hand. One, two, three times. The smooth skin here, where previously there had been a wedding ring, proved that I was once married. No, not once. Twice.

The nausea came in waves every time we went over a bump in the road. I wanted to tell the driver I thought I might throw up. The taste of fear was foul in my mouth and I needed some fresh air. But the driver couldn’t have heard me even if I’d shouted. You’re supposed to look out of the window when you’re carsick, but the one in here was small and too high. When I craned my neck, I could just make out flashes of grey sky between bare branches, or occasionally the upper floors of tall buildings we passed. Looking up made me dizzy. Lowering my head, I stared again, in shame, at my hands. Gnarled and dry-skinned, they might have been a sweet old lady’s hands rather than those of a cold-blooded killer.

I felt as though I was retracing my steps, travelling back in time. Five years ago, I’d been taken away in a white van just like this one, and now I was being taken back again. It wasn’t the same place, it wasn’t even the same city – this was London, not Bristol, but people here would scrutinise me and judge me and determine my fate, just as they had done before. At least this time there would be two or three friendly faces among the sea of hostile ones. Two or three people who believed in me.

I hoped it would be three. It was my lucky number.

When I’d been taken away last time, my only thought was that I’d never see Amber and Ellie again, never again hold them in my arms. This memory forced itself on me now. It still seemed so fresh and was so physically painful that I gasped.

Just as I was wondering how far we had left to go, we stopped. I was helped out of the van. We’d reached our destination, but my journey was far from over. I took in my surroundings. It was early and there were only a few people milling around in this side street. Maybe they weren’t even there for me.

I inhaled deep breaths of air as if I’d been starved of oxygen and gradually the queasiness abated. It occurred to me that I was more appropriately dressed for a funeral service in a church than an appeal in a court of law. I smoothed down my black skirt as best as I could with my right wrist now handcuffed to the female officer’s left one. Then, my legs feeling weaker with each step downwards, I was ushered to the holding area beneath the majestic court buildings.

PART ONE

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