Home > Work > Only the Innocent (DCI Tom Douglas, #1)
1 " She searched her mind for a single day when it had felt good to be alive. There must have been one, surely? "
― Rachel Abbott , Only the Innocent (DCI Tom Douglas, #1)
2 " Today is the day after my wedding. And nothing is the way I expected it to be. "
3 " The quiet but inexorable breaking down of self-esteem is much more sinister - it’s violation of the soul. "
4 " Each time he came he would twist my defenceless body into a different pose, as if I were his very own doll "
5 " I would rather have been with one parent who was genuinely happy than with two who had so many axes to grind you could almost hear them being sharpened. "
6 " When shame is your own, it’s hard enough to bear. When other people are witness to it, it becomes intolerable. "
7 " Since we now know that the father’s death "
8 " The door opened and Bruce popped his head round. "
9 " to move "
10 " Can you explain to me why people constantly feel ashamed of the actions of people close to them? "
11 " Mum. I know you never liked Hugo, and whilst I "
12 " I once made a film about abuse, and somebody told me that I didn’t understand the subject at all. I now know exactly what she meant. It isn’t just about definable acts of terror, such as physical cruelty or demanding obedience with overt threats. It’s easy to recognise the difference between right and wrong then, even though many abused people don’t act on that knowledge. The quiet but inexorable breaking down of self-esteem is much more sinister—it’s violation of the soul. That’s what Hugo did to me. "
13 " things out about "
14 " The slow relentless destruction of self confidence is something that is impossible to explain”. "
15 " It’s strange; people say that when something bad has happened they often wake up feeling fine until realisation hits them. In my experience, it’s the exact opposite. You wake up feeling the pain, but it takes a while to remember what caused it. "
16 " Well I’m sorry, but I’m not prepared to leave it at that. I need to understand what you meant.’ Annabel sighed. This was evidently a story she "
17 " looked up from where he "
18 " that’s it. We’ll send one of the locals to the ex-wife’s "
19 " Buggeration. "
20 " If you’re apologising for your language, Tom, I wouldn’t bother. I myself have a fairly comprehensive range of expletives at my disposal, and I don’t hesitate to use them as you’ve probably gathered. What’s the problem? "
