Chapter 44

Mr and Mrs Lockedon sat quietly as the family liaison officer explained the situation. It was possible, the officer said, that their son had been found. Their minds raced with images of his his lifeless body. They both rejected such thoughts in absolute, defiant disbelief. There was no way that this had happened to their son. The police were mistaken and some other unfortunate soul was currently occupying a shallow grave after being murdered. It was a terrible circumstance, but not their concern. James was still out there somewhere, and it was the police's job to find him. All of these thoughts filled their heads, but their mouths remained closed. The officer finished explaining things and talked about mortuaries, identification and post-mortems.