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The Reservoir Tapes
Jon McGregor
As broadcast on BBC radio 4: the fifteen ‘prequel’ stories to the Costa Award-WinningReservoir 13.‘He leaves behind all other writers of his generation’ Sarah HallMidwinter in the early years of this century. A teenage girl on holiday has gone missing in the hills at the heart of England. The villagers are called up to join the search, fanning out across the moors as the police set up roadblocks and a crowd of news reporters descends on their usually quiet home.But the aftershocks of Becky Shaw’s disappearance have origins long before then, and those in the village have losses, and secrets, and stories of their own…A woman remembers a son’s inexperience – and a father’s rage; a young wife pushes against the boundaries of her marriage, whilst an older one finds ways to ensure the survival of hers. A hunt for a birthday present takes an alarming turn, and a teenage game grows serious.Fresh hurts open old wounds, salvation comes from unexpected quarters and chance encounters release long-buried memories.First broadcast as a series of specially commissioned stories on BBC Radio 4, The Reservoir Tapes returns to the territory of the Booker-longlisted Reservoir 13, revealing the web of connections that bind us, and the many layers on which we all build our truths.
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Copyright (#uf337ae0c-ca6e-52ce-ba66-0b2125be437f)
4th Estate
An imprint of HarperCollinsPublishers
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This eBook first published in Great Britain by 4th Estate in 2017
Copyright © 2017 Jon McGregor
Cover photographs © Shutterstock.com
Jon McGregor 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 collection 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, down-loaded, 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.
Source ISBN: 9780008235635
Ebook Edition © December 2017 ISBN: 9780008235642
Version: 2018-06-26
Contents
Cover (#ubd719f5f-1b4f-55a6-80f0-19e12b700eeb)
Title Page (#uc82dafc4-1f05-5a60-88be-f0975f0e3d40)
Copyright (#ud03cba9b-4209-5df6-8ddc-d67725b7d354)
1: Charlotte (#u3e196de1-14dd-5008-b016-f95c9f367897)
2: Vicky (#u5a91f35e-2252-5565-9700-621b8297be79)
3: Deepak (#u3360d916-ae3b-5d09-93b6-ed6d5ad204fa)
4: Graham (#ube842b76-0687-5730-b69c-cc71e5be14e4)
5: Liam (#litres_trial_promo)
6: Claire (#litres_trial_promo)
7: Clive (#litres_trial_promo)
8: Martin (#litres_trial_promo)
9: Stephanie (#litres_trial_promo)
10: Donna (#litres_trial_promo)
11: Ian (#litres_trial_promo)
12: Irene (#litres_trial_promo)
13: Ginny (#litres_trial_promo)
14: Jess (#litres_trial_promo)
15: Joe (#litres_trial_promo)
Acknowledgements (#litres_trial_promo)
Also by Jon McGregor (#litres_trial_promo)
About the Author (#litres_trial_promo)
About the Publisher (#litres_trial_promo)
1: Charlotte (#uf337ae0c-ca6e-52ce-ba66-0b2125be437f)
Could you
I’d like to hear about that day, before anything happened.
Just, from the beginning.
You’d been staying in the village for how long?
And you’d come back because the previous visit had gone so well, last summer?
And you knew the Hunter family. You got on with them.
So it was an easy decision, to come back for a winter break.
Was it warm enough, in the cottage? I mean, the weather had been wet.
It’s quite small, isn’t it, the cottage. Lovely. But small.
Sorry, barn conversion.
Had you been on any excursions? Had you gone for any walks?
So you were maybe starting to feel a bit cooped up.
Tell me about that morning.
Did you all have breakfast together? Who was up first?
This might sound trivial, but what would Becky have had, if she was eating breakfast alone?
I know
But these details. They help to build a picture.
If you could
Okay. And then did you come downstairs before she finished her breakfast?
And was that when the idea of going for a walk was discussed?
It would be fair to say that Becky’s response wasn’t positive, would it?
Is it okay if I call her Becky?
She wasn’t enthusiastic about the walk. And the weather wasn’t great, at that point.
So you let the matter rest for the time being. To avoid a conflict.
And then the two of you had your breakfast together, you and your husband? Something more elaborate, because you were on holiday, because you wanted to treat yourselves?
But this wasn’t a special occasion. Other than being a holiday morning. You weren’t celebrating anything.
No.
You made a start on your breakfast, you made some coffee – maybe you read the paper? You were having the newspapers delivered while you were staying in the cottage, is that right?
Barn conversion.
Which newspaper?
And Becky – she’ll have gone back up to her bedroom? Or put the television on?
Could you
could we
if we could just talk a little bit about Becky. If you could describe her for me. In your own words. What she was like when she was younger. How she’s changed from being a child to being a young teenager. What her – gifts are, if you like. Any challenges there have been. Anything she has found difficult. Anything that comes to mind.
I know
I know this is difficult
this must be very hard for
of course.
So, just to pick up again.
This was the third day of your stay in the village; the idea of a walk had been raised but the weather was looking unsuitable. Becky had got up early, and had breakfast before you. What did she do during the rest of the morning? Had she brought any homework with her?
She was friendly with the Hunters’ daughter, I understand. Did she spend any time with her that morning?
Do you know if she was friendly with any of the other young people in the village?
And you knew about that at the time?
Had you met any of those young people when you were staying here last summer? Had you seen them when they came up to the Hunters’ property?
There was one boy in particular who Becky became quite close to, wasn’t there: James?
I know she’s only thirteen, yes.
I wasn’t implying
But he wasn’t someone you were aware of.
Not at the time.
So, that morning, Becky went across to the Hunters’ house, and you assumed she was spending some time with their daughter, Sophie.
And she’s someone who makes friends easily, would you say? Back at home, is she sociable, does she have a range of friends?
Are there any you’ve been uncomfortable about her associating with? Have her friendship groups changed recently?
Does she spend much time on the internet?
Do you monitor that, at all?
So she was with Sophie, and by late morning she still hadn’t come back. But you had no cause for concern, you had no reason to think they’d gone far. The weather was still wet at that point, wasn’t it?
And the original idea for the walk had been to get out before lunchtime, but with the weather you’d put that on hold.
And late in the morning you went across to fetch Becky, from the Hunters’ house. Did you speak to either of Sophie’s parents?
