Contrived Fate — Robert Appleton

The police investigation into the tragic death of a popular local school girl leads to the arrest of Bladdington Academy teacher, John Wilkes. DCI Dick Starr, who was initially convinced of the teacher's guilt from the gathered forensic evidence, eventually finds himself battling to save him from a seemingly unstoppable evil force determined to wreak havoc and death across Bladdington in its crazy pursuit for vengeance. During the wider investigation a chance remark made to DS Cora Grey by a disgruntled sixth former led to the stark discovery that all was not as it seemed with the deceased school girl, Esme Fellows. This turn of events would have dire repercussions for many at the school and terrifying consequences for both the Fellows and Wilkes families.