Showing results by author "Nicole Trope" in All Categories

I never thought I would end up here. Alone, in a cold one-bedroom apartment, only seeing my precious daughter once a week. Another woman is living the life that was once mine. I wish I was still married to my ex-husband, the love of my life. I dream of tucking my five-year-old child into her ballerina bed sheets every night. I miss living in a beautiful house, the perfect family home, with a winding staircase and a sprawling garden. I’d do anything to be with my family again. To start over and prove to them that I’ve changed, that I won’t lose control like before.

They find her just as the sun is beginning to rise in the early morning mist. They had begun at dawn, the group of searchers keen to get going. A missing child spurred everyone on. In the end, it was a flash of color, a bright neon pink that caught her eye. They had been looking for pink. Nothing tests your faith like being a mother. The first time your children walk to school alone, their first sleepover, when they finally fly the nest. As a parent, you have to believe that everything will be ok.

You tell him everything. The husband you adore, the father of your child, your best friend. He knows, just by looking at your sage green eyes, when something is wrong. The two of you can communicate with a glance or a touch of the hand. Except what if you can’t? What if your happy marriage has plastered over one huge lie? A lie you have even started to believe yourself in order to survive?

"Your son is missing," they say, and life as I know it is over. "Where would he go?" the police ask. "Where would he be?" my daughter begs. My heart races as images flash in my mind. The cabin we rent every autumn, surrounded by fiery-red maple trees. Voices raised. Tears falling. A marriage falling apart. And worst of all my husband telling our child, Theo, to run. The rest is a blank in my memory. If I close my eyes I can almost see it. A betrayal that has left me alone, in tatters, grieving for what we had.

All Malia needed was a single litre of milk, and now she's surrounded by police and Zach has disappeared. Detective Ali Greenberg knows that this is not the best case for her - not with her history, but she has to get back to work at some point. Edna is worried about the new residents at the boardinghouse. She knows Mary would turn in her grave if she knew the kinds of people her son was letting in. And then there is someone else. Someone whose heart is broken.

Katelyn smiles around at her husband and friends, gathered to celebrate her 36th birthday in their beautiful home decorated with fairy lights. But the next day Katelyn wakes up shaken and terrified in a hospital bed. She doesn’t remember the sweet taste of birthday cake icing, or how angry her best friend was at midnight, or the terrible things her husband said. She doesn’t remember the party at all. When she asks her husband what happened the night of the party he says "nothing". But her blood runs cold at the way his voice lilts slightly. The way it always does when he is lying.

Caroline twitches aside her curtains to see the new family moving in. A mother – beautifully dressed in expensive clothes – and two young children. Where is her husband, she wonders? And why are they moving in to the smallest house on the street? They really don’t seem the type. But Caroline believes it’s important to be welcoming. It’s important to know everything that’s happening on West Street.

Arriva la polizia. Non riesce a guardare il marito. Studia invece l'intreccio di linee sulle sue mani tremanti. Poi il suo telefono suona con un messaggio vocale. "Ascoltalo in vivavoce", dice il detective. Una voce di donna riempie l'aria. "Presumo che si tratti di Andrea Gately indicata come contatto sul sito web dei bambini scomparsi nel mondo. La chiamo per dirle che ho fornito i suoi dati alla polizia. Perché state usando una foto di mio figlio su un sito web di bambini scomparsi? Perché la state usando e dove l'avete presa?

A short story for fans of Jodi Picoult and Anita Shreve. Step into the fragile domestic world of Roar and discover the unforgettable voice of Nicole Trope, best-selling author of The Secrets in Silence, Three Hours Late and The Boy Under the Table. The baby sleeps peacefully, filled with milk and contentment. The man on the bed breathes his way into the darkness, filled with rage. Was there ever really a choice?

In ihrem Ferienhaus direkt am Strand, wählt Elizabeth mit zitternden Händen die Notrufnummer. »Mein kleiner Junge, er ist weg.«Elizabeth ist die Pflegemutter von Joe, aber sie liebt ihn wie ihren eigenen Sohn. Der Fünfjährige ist das Kind, von dem sie immer geträumt hat. Beim Blick in den leeren Garten, wo er gerade eben noch gespielt hat, fühlt sich ihr Herz an, als würde es ihr aus der Brust gerissen. Sie sollte Joe vor seiner leiblichen Mutter retten, die ihm beinahe die Chance auf ein Leben genommen hätte. Die Frau, die verzweifelt versucht, ihn zurückzubekommen.

Tout le monde veut vivre sur Hogarth Street, une jolie avenue bordée d'arbres avec ses maisons blanches. La famille qui vient d'emménager est parfaite : Katherine et Josh West semblent vraiment amoureux et leurs magnifiques jumeaux de 5 ans courent en poussant des cris de joie autour de leur belle pelouse fraîchement tondue. Mais tout à coup, les voisins s'étonnent. Pourquoi, lorsque vous frappez à la porte, se débarrassent-ils de vous au lieu de vous inviter à entrer ? Chaque famille a des secrets, et au moment le plus chaud de l'année, la vérité est sur le point d'éclater.

Corro a casa e scopro la mia bambina dagli occhi azzurri scomparsa e il mio cuore strappato dal petto. Quando arrivano gli agenti di polizia, la storia di Shelby comincia a disfarsi. Poi ricevo un messaggio che dice: "Tuo marito non è chi pensi che sia." All'improvviso, la mia famiglia sembra composta da estranei. Ognuno ha un segreto, persino io. Quando la verità verrà a galla e tutte le nostre bugie saranno svelate, sarà troppo tardi per salvare la mia preziosa bambina?

Alle wollen in der der hübschen, von Bäumen gesäumten Hogarth Street wohnen. Die frisch zugezogene Familie West passt perfekt hierhin. Katherine und John wirken wie ein harmonisches und verliebtes Paar, und ihre fünfjährigen Zwillinge spielen ständig lachend in ihrem makellosen Vorgarten.

Die dreijährige Millie Everleigh verschwindet an einem kalten Wintertag, und nichts ist, wie es scheint ... Es ist der Anruf, vor dem sich jede Mutter fürchtet. Ich steige nach dem Einkaufen ins Auto als mein Handy klingelt. Es ist meine Stieftochter Shelby, die auf meine dreijährige kleine Tochter Millie aufpasst. »Ich bin nur kurz nach oben gegangen«, sagt sie mit schluchzender Stimme. »Sie ist weg.« Ich rase nach Hause und stelle fest, dass mein kleines Mädchen tatsächlich verschwunden ist, und spüre, wie mir mein Herz aus der Brust gerissen wird.

Vorrei poterla stringere forte. Sentire se indossa ancora lo stesso profumo di sempre. Ma mia figlia mi incolpa per la morte di suo padre. Non vuole nemmeno parlarmi… So solo che non è davvero al sicuro con il suo fidanzato, Garth. Starò a distanza e la osserverò. Per ora. Ma tremo di paura quando la polizia bussa alla sua porta. Garth è scomparso. E mia figlia è accusata del suo omicidio. Non ci sono prove che io abbia mai fatto del male a qualcuno… o sì? La polizia sa del mio passato – e di cosa ho fatto veramente? Solo una cosa è certa. La mia bellissima bambina è in grave pericolo.

Tutti vogliono vivere in Hogarth Street con il suo bel viale alberato e le case bianche. La famiglia West è la quintessenza della perfezione: Katherine e Josh sembrano la coppia perfetta, i loro splendidi gemelli riempiono di allegria il verde prato di casa. Ma qualcosa non quadra. Perché non invitano nessuno ad entrare, rifiutano le offerte di babysitting e i bambini non si sono ancora visti? La curiosità degli abitanti di Hogarth Street aumenta e, nel giorno più torrido dell'anno, una tragedia scuote le loro vite tranquille.

Ava Green ha un lavoro di successo, due splendidi bambini e un marito che fa arrossire le altre donne. Ma ora che sto lavorando nella sua casa impeccabile, so che non tutto è così perfetto… Sento le discussioni sussurrate a tarda notte. Finn riceve telefonate a orari strani – e quando parlo con i bambini, è chiaro che il loro papà sta mantenendo dei segreti. Ora che so cosa si nasconde in questa casa, sono solo felice che Ava non abbia controllato troppo accuratamente le mie referenze. Perché Ava pensa di aver scelto me. Ma sono stata io a scegliere lei.

CZASAMI NAJBARDZIEJ IDEALNE RODZINY SKRYWAJĄ NAJOKROPNIEJSZE SEKRETY. Wszyscy chcą żyć na Hogarth, ładnej, wysadzanej drzewami ulicy z białymi domami. Nowa rodzina, Westowie, pasują tam idealnie. Katherine oraz Josh wyglądają na niesamowicie zakochanych, a ich śliczne pięcioletnie bliźniaki biegają po zielonym trawniku, krzycząc wesoło.

THEO SOMERTON MA JEDENAŚCIE LAT I JEST DZIECKIEM ZE SPEKTRUM AUTYZMU. NIE MÓWI, MOŻE TEŻ NIE WIEDZIEĆ, ŻE SIĘ ZGUBIŁ. NIE ZAREAGUJE NA SWOJE IMIĘ. – Twój syn zaginął – mówią, a życie, które znałam, właśnie skończyło się. – Dokąd mógł pójść? – pyta policja. – Gdzie może być? – pyta z błaganiem w głosie moja córka. Serce łomocze mi w piersi, gdy w mojej głowie pojawiają się obrazy. Domek, który wynajmujemy każdej jesieni. Podniesione głosy. Łzy. Rozpadające się małżeństwo. I najgorsze z tego wszystkiego – mój mąż, mówiący naszemu synowi, Theo, żeby uciekał.

DOCIERA DO NIEJ PRZECIĄGAJĄCA SIĘ PO DRUGIEJ STRONIE SŁUCHAWKI CISZA. SERCE ZACZYNA JEJ SZYBCIEJ BIĆ. – KOGO ZNALEŹLI? – PYTA, POWOLI, OSTROŻNIE, Z UWAGĄ WYPOWIADAJĄC SŁOWA. – ZNALEŹLI DANIELA. Megan czeka przed bramą szkoły na swojego sześcioletniego syna, Daniela. Gdy plac pustoszeje, zaczyna panikować. Nigdzie nie może go znaleźć. Jej syn zaginął. Po latach nieprzespanych nocy i tęsknoty za synem, Megan w końcu odbiera telefon, o którym marzyła. Odnaleźli Daniela.