Hush (37 page)

Lily grimaced. ‘Probably not ones I want to hear.’

Richard nodded. They fell silent, and the sounds of the woods settled into the space around them; the whispers of the trees, the conversation of blackbirds overhead. In a distant world, cars rolled past, life moving around the stillness.

‘In the beginning was the word,’ Richard said, his hand stretching out until it found hers. ‘And the word was…?’

She was quiet for a moment. She thought of all that had happened the previous day; all that the afternoon might bring. Her voice, when she spoke, was soft in the gentle stirring of the morning.

‘Tomorrow,’ she said.

There are a huge number of people who have offered their support, guidance, advice and enthusiasm, and, quite apart from not having the space, if I try to list everyone I will inevitably forget someone important and feel hideously guilty. So please just take it as read that, if you have ever offered your support, I have appreciated it. However, there are a few people that deserve particular acknowledgement.

First and foremost, I owe massive thanks to everyone at Myriad Editions for all their support and enthusiasm, and for being so welcoming. Particular thanks to Vicky Blunden for her unfaltering guidance, and to Linda McQueen for exhibiting a pedantry which surpasses my own.

Although this novel didn’t require too much in the way of formal research, I would like to thank the Selective Mutism Foundation for providing information about current research and treatment, Sarah Agnew for passing on information about selective mutism, and Leanne McCreery for providing expert advice regarding the treatment of head injuries.

I’ve been lucky enough to have some truly brilliant teachers over the years, and at the top of that list is Jerry Hope, who will sadly never know how important his guidance proved to be. Thanks are also due to both the tutors and my fellow students at the University of Sussex – particularly those who first suggested, upon reading the prologue, that there might be something more to this story.

My colleagues have all been fantastically supportive, and I am extremely grateful for all the encouragement (especially that which comes in the form of pizza, biscuits, wine and Haribo), but particular thanks are due to Stuart Lewis, both for being so accommodating and for allowing me to work in exchange for printing credits.

Thanks to my early readers and fellow writers: Alex Adams for the years of feedback and creative swearing, Dan Cash for doing everything possible to stop me procrastinating (it didn’t work, but thanks for trying), Aleksi Koponen for inspiring and encouraging at every turn, Sarah Calvert for reading not only this book but also every passing thought I have throughout the day, Maria Holburt for simply being the most enthusiastic person in the universe, and Rosie Davis for being so wonderfully supportive.

Particular thanks are also due to the two people who are as close to sisters as I will ever get: Lexi Boyce, for putting up with me the longest and for providing one truly excellent mathematical joke; and Annie Rowling, for all the eggs.

And finally, massive appreciation to Mum, Dad, Paul, Daniel and Lee – for a lifetime of encouragement (or, in the case of my brothers, something that I’m sure resembles encouragement if you dig deep enough), and for always being there. I can’t thank you enough.

Sara Marshall-Ball has an MA in Creative and Critical Writing from the University of Sussex. An extract from
Hush
was shortlisted for the Writer’s Retreat Competition in 2012. She lives in Brighton.

Sign up to our mailing list at

www.myriadeditions.com

Follow us on Facebook and Twitter