Till Death Do Us Part

by Stephen Edger

  Faye’s mum was waiting patiently just inside her door, and although her face initially bore no sign of emotion, the moment their eyes met her face screwed into a ball and her arms reached out as though she might fall if not propped up. Alice sprinted the remaining steps and caught the woman, and for five minutes they just stood there, supporting each other and allowing the pain to course through them.

  ‘Have you seen her? Is she okay?’ the older woman asked once they were inside.

  ‘I stayed with her last night,’ Alice said, ‘and I was there when they took her to the police station this morning. I never realized just how bad things were between her and Johnny.’

  Although Alice had met Faye’s mum at Faye and Johnny’s wedding and at Isabella’s christening and birthdays, they had never really been formally introduced. The woman’s name was Dorothy, but everyone called her Dotty, even Faye. Born in Senegal, she was proud of her African heritage, and although her thick hair was now the colour of a raincloud, the skin beneath the hair remained as dark as ever. Dotty had moved to the UK with Faye’s dad, a British-born sergeant in the army, and they had lived together happily until he had been killed in service on the eve of Faye’s sixth birthday. So if anyone understood the pain and grief Isabella was yet to face, it was her mum.

  Dotty dabbed the corner of her eye with a fresh tissue from the box on the kitchen table between them. ‘I should have known. She claimed she was just clumsy. I saw her less and less this last year, but now that I look back on it, I don’t remember the last time I didn’t see her with a bruise or bandage of some kind. I should have asked – no, I should have demanded – to know what was going on, but she never liked to talk about her personal life, only ever about Isabella and school.’

  Alice’s phone vibrated loudly on the table, but she didn’t recognize the number. She was going to ignore it, let the messaging service take it, when Dotty stood and headed over to the kettle.

  ‘I’ll make us some tea,’ she said. ‘Isabella is playing in the garden, but she’ll be needing some lunch soon.’

  Alice put the phone to her ear. ‘Alice Goodman speaking.’

  ‘Is now a good time for you to talk? Is Ben in the room?’

  She recognized Liam O’Neill’s voice and a shiver ran the course of her spine. ‘What do you want?’ she said, leaving the kitchen so Dotty wouldn’t overhear the spite in her voice.

  ‘I wanted to check you were okay?’ O’Neill replied. ‘After what we told you yesterday, I hoped you’d have had time to think about Mary’s warning and would be ready to help us.’

  It was all Alice could do to stop herself shouting. ‘Help you? Help you with what exactly? Framing my husband for something he didn’t do? Why do you have such a vendetta against Ben?’

  His voice sounded uncertain. ‘It’s not a vendetta, and you’re not safe if you stay with him. You heard what we had to say: Ben killed Mary’s mother. He got her to take out a huge life assurance policy and then pushed her down the stairs.’

  ‘How dare you!’ she shouted. ‘How dare you wage this war against me and my husband? I told Ben everything you had to say, and I told him how you’ve been stalking me since Sunday. He paints a very different picture of his doomed relationship with Mary; how she took advantage of him—’

  ‘Of course he’d say that,’ O’Neill interrupted, ‘but I have it on good authority that he was the one who chased after her.’

  ‘Whose authority? Mary’s? Right now it’s her word against his, and I for one know whom I’d rather believe.’

  ‘You’re not safe, Alice.’

  ‘Why? Because Ben’s bitter ex-wife and some kid he used to bully say so? Ben’s admitted he was a shit when he was younger, but that doesn’t give you the right to hound him – and me – now!’

  ‘If the police didn’t think he pushed Mary’s mum, the case never would have made it to trial.’

  ‘If he was guilty the jury would have found him so.’

  ‘What about the fact that his was the only DNA found on Kerry Valentine’s body?’

  ‘He’s explained all that and I think you should get your facts straight before you go accusing him of anything else. The police now think they know who killed her, and the perpetrator is dead.’

  O’Neill didn’t respond, and Alice suddenly became aware of just how loud her voice was.

  ‘Do you know what?’ she continued in a loud whisper. ‘If you continue to pester us, I’ll have no choice but to tell the police and your editor what a vindictive little man you truly are.’

  She disconnected the phone and blocked the number before he’d had chance to respond. Taking several deep breaths, she tried to lower her pulse to a steadier beat before returning to the kitchen, ready to apologize for her outburst. Dotty seemed oblivious that Alice had even left and returned to the room. She was standing by the back door out to the patio, watching Isabella happily playing on the swing apparatus.

  Alice wrapped a gentle arm around Dotty’s shoulders, but didn’t say anything as she too watched the little girl lost in her own world of daydreams and adventures, unaware of the pain and grief before her.

  ‘I’ll make that tea,’ Dotty said eventually, turning away from the door and filling the two cups.

  Alice retook her seat at the kitchen table. ‘Did you pack a few things in a bag for Isabella? I don’t know how long the police will keep Faye in, but hopefully she’ll be back out with Isabella soon enough.’

  ‘I left a bag by the front door,’ Dotty said as she lowered the cups to the table. ‘Do you think they will let her out?’

  Alice’s heart ached at the possibility that the next time she saw Faye it could be within the confines of a prison. She could see the look of longing in Dotty’s eyes, begging for anyone to tell her everything would be okay, but Alice couldn’t offer any such reassurance.

  ‘The police don’t lock up innocent people,’ Alice said through the pain.

  Thankfully that seemed enough as the first flicker of a smile appeared on Dotty’s lips. ‘I know you’ll take good care of Isabella. You have a kind face and a warm heart. I just wish there was more I could do, but with my arthritis and the medication I take for the pain in my hip … I just wouldn’t be able to guarantee her safety.’

  Alice squeezed Dotty’s hands and made a silent promise to anyone who would listen: she would protect Isabella until the end of her days.

  FORTY-NINE

  It was hard to know what was going on in the little girl’s head. Alice used the vanity mirror in the sun visor to watch as Isabella stared out of the window, not speaking, in awe of her surroundings.

  ‘She’ll be fine,’ Ben muttered, just loud enough for Alice to hear.

  Alice looked over at him and tried to smile, but she could see it wasn’t convincing. When Dotty had told Isabella that she was going to stay with Alice and Ben for a few days, the little girl had nodded without speaking, somehow sensing that something like this was going to happen, yet unable to understand why. She didn’t make a fuss or ask why her grandmother wouldn’t be watching her any longer.

  Dotty had tried to give Alice some money, but she had refused to accept it. ‘There’s really no need.’

  Dotty had given her a stern look – she was a proud woman who had never accepted charity and wouldn’t allow any living relative of hers to accept it either. Alice had eventually agreed to put the notes in her handbag, but made a promise to herself that she would try and get the money back to Faye somehow.

  The radio was playing pop songs in the background, but Alice wasn’t really listening to them as she continued to try and read Isabella’s look and actions. If the little girl was scared, she was giving no sign of it.

  ‘What do you fancy for your dinner?’ Alice tried, turning around in her seat to speak to Isabella, but a gentle shrug was the only response she received.

  ‘What’s your favourite food?’ Alice tried again, certain Faye had mentioned it before, but unable to recall exactly what she’d said.

/>   This time Isabella made eye contact, but the shrugged outcome was the same.

  ‘Well, you don’t have to decide now,’ Alice said reassuringly. ‘Have a think about it and you can let me know later.’

  She turned back to face the front as Isabella’s stare returned to the window.

  There was still no word from Faye, and that couldn’t be good. Nearly three hours had passed since Hazelton had come to collect her from the hospital. Surely that was enough time to establish the facts and release her. There was no doubt in Alice’s mind that Faye’s actions were done in self-defence. Had she not kicked out, God only knew what Johnny would have done. Would Faye have ended up just another lifeless victim in some river?

  The gated entrance and men clad in black came into view ahead of them, and Alice suddenly wished she’d thought to ask Ben to give the guards a break for their return. As it was, she thought the place looked like a compound – what would Isabella think? If her first impression of this new home was muscly men with vicious dogs, would she feel safe or terrified? Had they made a mistake bringing her back here when goodness knew who was out there watching and leaving those letters.

  Ben opened the gates and pulled up alongside one of the men, who confirmed nobody had been seen in the vicinity since he’d left. Alice hadn’t asked how much this private army was costing, and in truth she didn’t want to know. It made her feel safer having them there, and she just hoped their presence wouldn’t be needed indefinitely. Hopefully once the police formally announced Johnny as Kerry’s killer, the Goodman name would simply fade from the spotlight.

  Ben parked the car outside the garage and fished Isabella’s small satchels from the boot – one containing clothes, and the other some toys Dotty had found lying about her small flat. Hopefully Isabella’s stay with them would be short-lived and she wouldn’t need anything else.

  That still left a question of where Faye and Isabella would end up if Faye was released, though. She would be unlikely to want to return to the house where Johnny had died, and Dotty certainly didn’t have room to put them up, so maybe Isabella’s stay in Chilworth would be longer than originally intended.

  Dave was sitting in his car near the entrance waiting for their return. As soon as he saw them leave Ben’s car, he immediately jumped out and walked over.

  ‘I need to speak to you, Ben’ he said in a stern voice. ‘Alone.’

  Ben gave him a look that Alice couldn’t quite read, but Dave nodded quickly, and that was enough to make Ben lean closer to Alice and whisper, ‘I need to sort this out. Why don’t you take Isabella down to the pool for a swim?’ He looked down at Isabella and smiled. ‘You’d like that wouldn’t you, Isabella? If Auntie Alice took you for a swim in our pool. It’s nice and warm and we’ve got some balls and toys down there you can play with.’

  Isabella smiled for the first time since Alice had collected her, and as the young girl bounced excitedly, Alice had little choice but to take her by the hand and lead her inside. From upstairs, Alice heard Ben and Dave talking quietly as they closed the front door and headed for the living room, closing that door behind them too.

  Alice did her best to keep her paranoia in check. What was so urgent that Dave had waited for them to return, and now needed to discuss with Ben alone? Was it to do with Johnny and the fact that the police would soon realize the stag party had misled them? Had Ben and Dave known all along that Johnny was responsible and had done what they could to cover it up?

  Ben couldn’t have known, she reasoned silently, as she searched through Isabella’s bag for anything resembling a swimming costume. He’d shown no concern or worry when Faye had called them into the hospital – upset, yes, but not concerned. Nor had he expressed any worry or anxiety when he’d arrived to collect her this morning. He was a smart guy; he’d have known their alibis would be in danger now that Johnny’s true nature had been revealed.

  Unless that wasn’t the reason Dave had come over.

  ‘Is this your room?’ Isabella asked absently, as she sat peacefully on the king-size mattress and watched Alice pulling clothes out of the satchel.

  It was enough to snap Alice’s attention back. ‘What’s that, sweetie?’

  ‘Is this your room?’

  Alice stopped what she was doing, unable to find a bathing costume, and sat down next to Isabella. ‘That’s right. This is where me and your Uncle Ben sleep.’

  ‘Will I sleep in here too?’

  Alice plastered on the widest smile she could manage. ‘No, you won’t sleep in here. Believe me, you’d never be able to sleep with Uncle Ben’s snoring. Would you like to see the room you’ll be in?’

  Isabella nodded eagerly.

  Alice led the way out of the room. ‘You have a choice of three rooms to be honest. Why don’t we look at all three and then you can choose the one you’d prefer to stay in.’

  They entered the room directly across from the master bedroom first, and Isabella rushed over to the window which overlooked the gates and guards below. The room had a double bed – they all did – a television hung from the wall, a built-in wardrobe and a chest of drawers. It was more than big enough for two to live comfortably for several weeks, with enough floor space to allow for an inflatable mattress either side of the main bed.

  ‘I like this room,’ Isabella declared. ‘Is it okay if I sleep in here?’

  ‘Sure, but don’t you want to see the other two rooms first?’

  Alice shook her head. ‘It’s close to your room in case I get scared, and I can watch and wait for Mummy and Daddy from this window.’

  Isabella’s words were like a cold dagger to the heart, and it took all of Alice’s restraint to hold it together. ‘Then it’s settled. You can sleep in here. If you do get scared during the night, we’re a short walk away, but I’m sure there’ll be no reason for you to get scared.’

  Isabella moved back to the front window and raised the net curtain. ‘Do you know when Mummy will get here?’

  Alice crouched at Isabella’s feet. ‘Hopefully not too long, sweetie, but if you need anything in the meantime, you only have to ask. Okay? Anything you want or need, just tell me or Uncle Ben and we’ll do what we can.’

  Isabella looked her straight in the eye. ‘Is Mummy okay?’

  Alice desperately wanted to break eye contact, but forced herself not to look away. ‘Why do you say that?’

  Isabella’s face contorted into confusion and suddenly Alice could see the anxiety she’d kept so well hidden from her, from Dotty and from Ben. ‘Something bad has happened, hasn’t it? That’s why she isn’t here.’

  Alice didn’t want to lie, but she’d promised Faye she wouldn’t break the news about Johnny, and in that moment she was grateful Faye would bear that burden.

  ‘She’s sick, isn’t she?’ Isabella said, when Alice’s answer wasn’t forthcoming.

  ‘No, she’s not sick, poppet,’ Alice battled to say. ‘She just has to help someone with something. She’s doing really important work, and that’s why she needed your grandma and now us to look after you. She loves you more than anything. You know that, don’t you?’

  Isabella nodded, but the worry remained etched into her face.

  ‘Hopefully she’ll finish her work soon and then she’ll be able to come and be with you again.’ Alice wiped a tear from the edge of her eye. ‘She asked if you would teach Ben and I how to be good parents. We’re hoping to start a family of our own, and your mum said you’d done such a good job of teaching her how to be a good mum that you’d be an expert in teaching me and Ben. Can you do that for me?’

  Isabella’s face brightened a fraction, and she nodded before putting both arms around Alice’s neck and pulling her closer.

  Alice exhaled a small sigh of relief. ‘I don’t think your grandma packed a bathing suit for you, but that’s okay. You can swim in your pants and then we’ll put some clean ones on after, and I can wash the wet ones. How does that sound?’

  Isabella sniffed, but her head bobbed in a
greement.

  ‘Good. Then let’s head down to the pool now and we can get changed down there.’

  Isabella broke free of the embrace and rushed back into the master bedroom, snatching the teddy bear from the bed. ‘Can Mr Squiggles come too?’

  Alice nodded. ‘He can’t get in the water, but he’s welcome to sit in one of the chairs at the side if you like?’

  Isabella grabbed Alice’s hand and the two headed down the spiral staircase. Reaching the bottom step, Alice could hear Ben’s and Dave’s muffled voices behind the living room door, and gave in to curiosity. Miming for Isabella to stay put by the front door, Alice tiptoed back towards the living room and listened.

  ‘For fuck’s sake, Dave!’ Ben’s muffled voice yelled. ‘You screwed up big time!’

  ‘I know, and I’m sorry,’ Dave mumbled back, further away from the door.

  ‘Have you spoken to Abdul yet? Is everything still in place?’

  ‘I can’t get hold of him.’

  ‘What’s that supposed to mean?’

  ‘He’s not answering his phone, and I don’t want to leave a message. I’m using a burner phone so they can’t trace it back to me, but …’

  ‘You need to sort this! If Alice finds out, we’re both toast. You hear me?’

  There was movement beyond the door and Alice bolted back to Isabella, grabbing her hand and running from the property towards the pool enclosure.

  FIFTY

  ‘Make sure you keep to the shallow end, sweetie,’ Alice cautioned Isabella as the young girl splashed about in the pool.

  An inflatable swan floated past Alice’s feet as she dangled them in the cool, refreshing water. It was probably warmer than it felt between her toes, but the climate inside the enclosure was stifling, with the sun beating in through the large glass windows that faced the main house. She would have got in and engaged more with Isabella but she couldn’t concentrate on anything except what she’d heard from behind the living room door.