Page 232 of The Silent Appeal

Did you check on Harley? Is he safely in bed?

5:08 a.m. Kevin wrote:

Yes.

5:09 a.m. Sarah-Jane wrote:

But how closely did you look? He might have stuffed his duvet with pillows and be running round the streets with gangsters or lying dead in a gutter.

5:10 a.m. Kevin wrote:

It was really him. Is Sammy in with you?

5:10 a.m. Sarah-Jane wrote:

Snoring.

5:11 a.m. Kevin wrote:

Thank God. Are you thinking what I’m thinking?

5:12 a.m. Sarah-Jane wrote:

That if something so terrible can happen to Father Josh, then it can happen to anyone?

5:13 a.m. Kevin wrote:

That and what do we do now? Do we cancel the play?

5:14 a.m. Sarah-Jane wrote:

Absolutely not. He wouldn’t have wanted that.

5:14 a.m. Kevin wrote:

But Elizabeth and the children. It doesn’t bear thinking about.

5:16 a.m. Sarah-Jane wrote:

We’ll dedicate the final two performances to his memory. The show must go on, because in the cracks of a ruin, the most beautiful wildflowers grow.

5:16 a.m. Kevin wrote:

The mindfulness app?

5:17 a.m. Sarah-Jane wrote:

I’ll send you the screenshot.

Message exchange between Sarah-Jane MacDonald and Carol Dearing on June 6, 2025:

7:51 a.m. Sarah-Jane wrote:

Is Nicky-Rose ok? Not replying to my texts.

7:57 a.m. Carol wrote:

My darling first-born daughter. How wonderful that you’re so keen to know how my stage debut with the Mendham Players went. Thank you. The play unfolded like a dream, the audience were darlings, and I rediscovered exactly why I love this hobby with all its late nights, long hours, and hard work.