Long Weekend

This is the one and only time we will tell Emma’s story in this level of detail. Although we understand that the press and public are keen to learn about the events that took place during those four days, we hope that by presenting Emma's story in this way, we can have the space and time to process that weekend privately.

We understand that by releasing this book we will no doubt inspire further headlines but at least they will no longer be guesswork. Or, let’s be honest, at times slander, to those who died during those nightmarish four days. Hopefully, this will satisfy your appetite for this case and the world will eventually lose interest in this story. I'm sure there will be one or two true crime podcasts out there that will feature Emma's story as an episode but other than that we truly hope that her name and experiences disappear into obscurity. We don't want to think of her in that way, living through that experience, any more than we have to.

To assure you we have cooperated with the police throughout their investigation, and that we take our responsibility to this case seriously, all of the text that follows in this book has been scrutinised by them. They have allowed us to publish it in the belief that it may help in the eventual arrest of the culprits of these appalling crimes. We will not publish any of the photographs taken on Emma’s camera from that weekend. The police have returned the memory card to us and we're currently discussing how and when to dispose of it. There are images on there that certain families never need to see; that no living person outside of a courtroom ever needs to see. The card is being kept secure in case the police require further copies for evidence for any possible future investigations. This is the only reason we haven't shredded it yet. Once convictions have been made though, we will make sure that those photographs never see the light of day.

You are about to read Emma's first-hand account of that long weekend, written as she lived it. I'm sure some will disparage this as being the truth, but that's for them to decide. We're not here to convince anyone one way or another. We just need to share Emma's story. We need her words to mean something. Writing has always been therapeutic for her. Since she was old enough to hold a pen she made it a habit to keep a diary. Everyday occurrences from the mundane to the dramatic, were recorded in her handwriting for posterity. Her mother used to joke she was always working on her biography and now that gentle parental teasing has come to fruition.

We all need emotional crutches to survive, especially those who have experienced trauma. If Emma hadn't had her notebook during those four days I truly don't believe she would have remained sane. She would have been driven mad by the horror she witnessed. The terror she heard. The grief she felt.

But I'm getting ahead of myself here.

I'm sure you, dear reader, would love to skip ahead to the final chapters but please resist the urge. This story is about so much more than death. Racing ahead for the gory details might lead you to miss all the nuanced moments that happened during that time. You'll miss the memories of the people she met and their legacies. The moments of kindness and solidarity. The secrets that were unearthed.

So please, I implore you, allow Emma to guide you through this story as fate guided her through reality, and then, hopefully, when it's over we can part ways as old acquaintances. A face whose name you can't quite place. A fuzzy memory of a time long ago.