Chapter 2

Paul, Paul Bartlett, officer.

Yes, I... I understand, yes. No, no lawyers...

How it started? Which part? Adam and Marcus started years ago, before we moved here, they've known each other since they were in infant school, I think. Once upon a time they might even have been friends... probably more than once. You know how little kids are — best friends one day, and best of enemies the next.

Thing really came to a head, though, probably last Christmas — that's not Christmas of last year, but the one before. That's the one, we had the bad snows.

No, no thank you, I'm fine. Why? I'm just not thirsty... oh, I see. Well that's when you killed T... um, I mean... that is...

Yeah, that's when Tim died. All sorts of things changed, then.

Adam? No, he didn't seem to react very much at all, really. Not surprising, they didn't get on at all. Brothers don't always, do they?

Me, no I only had a sister.

Amber, back in March.

Well, technically no — she committed suicide.

Marcus, without a doubt, and now he's dead too.

It probably is unusual, especially in a town this size. They must be linked, really, everyone knows everyone else.

If I had to pick a particular thing that sparked it all off, it would be September, when Morgan moved here. See Adam and Marcus both liked her. They'd not exactly been friends for a while before that, since they started senior school at least. Adam kept himself to himself for the most part. Did his stuff, went home when it was finished, and was down by the river a few minutes after that. He'd always be there first, and me and Amber'd find him there.

Nothing, really, we'd just sit and talk. Have you met Adam? He can talk for hours about just about anything. He reads so much, see, always reading. He's funny with it to, like he looks at things different to everyone else... not in a bad way, just different. You're gonna think that means he's mental aren't you?

It's not like that, he's... sarcastic, but he's got a point. He looks at all the bad things in the world and he explains where they're going wrong, and it makes sense. He's good at school-stuff, too, knows what he's talking about. And he's quick with a comeback, too. I remember him ripping a strip off Dickhe... erm... Mr Davis, our English teacher. His mouth was a little quicker than his brain, and he just snapped straight back before he thought to stop.

He did it a lot with us, but he kept himself to himself at school most of the time. Most people probably didn't know him at all — he seemed to like it that way. That was why it came as such a surprise to a lot of people.

To me? No, not really. I spoke with him a lot... he was getting angrier and angrier as time went on.

Well, look around — the world's a pretty shi... fuc... crap place, all in all. Pollution, global-warming, social breakdown. Adam thinks about all of that, reads about it. If the world listened to Adam, it'd be a better place. 'Course, to hear Adam tell it, if the world listened to anyone it'd be a better place.