Throw a Double for Spite

by Cherie Mitchell

  “You should have told me that you were sick.”

  Megan sat cross-legged on the couch, her bony knees sticking out at right angles. With her fresh, unmade-up face and casual clothes, she looked scarcely out of her teens. The faint red scars and pockmarks on her cheeks, a permanent reminder of the acne she’d struggled with all those years ago, were the only faults to mar her lovely features. “Were you worried about me?”

  “I was starting to get worried, yes.” Riley was reluctant to sit down. Megan seemed smug, almost self-satisfied that she was here, as if she’d just been waiting for her to turn up to check what was wrong. “It wouldn’t have hurt you to make a phone call and let me know that you were ok.”

  “I didn’t know you cared,” Megan said, lifting her chin provocatively, toying with her.

  “We’ve had to hire a caregiver to look after Bill. The arrangements took up most of yesterday.” Meanly, Riley wanted to shock Megan out of her taunting, teasing mood by insinuating that her father’s health situation was more dire than it was.

  The grin immediately dropped from Megan’s face. “Is he ok? I thought you said he was coping well with the treatment?”

  “The last one was bad. He’s very tired. Mom’s friend Dot has arranged for caregiver to go in a couple of times a week to help and to drive him to his appointments. Dot was marvelous – she found Lorraine and we interviewed and hired her all within a matter of hours. We needed someone to start right away because time is of the essence right now.”

  “I’m so sorry. Bill was always very kind to me.”

  Unable to keep up the charade any longer, Riley bent to pick up a cushion from the armchair, looking down in order to hide her face. She carelessly spun the cushion in a circle before holding it against her stomach. “He’ll be fine. I found out some concerning stuff about Briar though. That’s why I’ve been trying to get hold of you – to tell you about what happened.”

  Megan didn’t show the slightest amount of interest at the mention of Briar’s name. “You didn’t tell me how your date with Jack went. What’s he like?”

  “He’s a ditz. He told me he had laryngitis and that he couldn’t speak, and he turned up for the date wrapped up like the Michelin man. I don’t know why I keep the text relationship going for as long as I did.”

  “Did you get to see what he looked like?”

  “Nope.” Riley propelled the cushion through the air to land back in its place on the armchair. “About Briar...”

  Megan unfolded her long slim legs. “We should go out somewhere. I’ve been home all weekend and I’m starting to get cabin fever.”

  “Can you just listen to me?” Riley asked irritably. “I’m trying to tell you about what happened with Briar.”

  “I don’t care about Briar.”

  “Maybe not, but as my friend you should care about what I have to say.”

  Megan sank into petulant silence as Riley outlined the details of Briar’s deception. She stopped talking after telling her of Leonie’s visit to the office, annoyed that Megan was still gazing back at her with an attitude of studied boredom. “You haven’t seemed surprised by anything that I’ve said.”

  “Nothing that woman does could ever surprise me. I’ve never liked her and I haven’t tried to hide it.”

  “But she lied about everything! She knew I was going on a date with her twin, she told me that he was dead, and she never once indicated to me that she was bisexual!” Riley stopped short on the last word. That part might be debatable.

  “Oh, don’t be so naive. She flaunted her sexuality at every turn. You’d have to blind or weirdly obtuse not to have a few suspicions that she could swing both ways.” Megan hopped off the sofa. “Let’s go somewhere. Maybe we can see a movie?”

  “No, I’m not in the mood.” Riley forced a concerned best friend smile to her lips. “You probably shouldn’t go out if you haven’t been well. It’s cold out there. Stay here in the warm.”

  “You’re not leaving, are you?”

  “Megan, I’ve had a terrible week. I just need some time to sort it all out in my head. Maybe we can see a movie on Thursday night? Dinner and a movie?”

  Megan gave a non-committal shrug.

  “I’ll call you tomorrow and you can let me know.”

  Megan watched her leave, standing beside the sofa in stony silence, but Riley didn’t have the energy to try to coax her out of her funk. She would come right if left to her own devices. She always did.

  That evening in bed, Riley tossed and turned for hours, unable to get to sleep as the events of the past few days continued to plague her mind. She got up after midnight and walked out to the kitchen to get a glass of water. Her phone indicator light was flashing on and off, alerting her of a new text or a missed call. She pushed the button on the side of the phone and stared down in stunned disbelief at the message as her phone lit up, every molecule of her body frozen rigid as she read the words.

  ‘You’re not talking to me anymore. Ok. Be like that. I’ll guess I’ll see you at the office tomorrow. Jack x’

  Chapter Forty-Five

  Riley was waiting in Paul’s office when he walked in the next morning. She’d been at work since before eight, after spending the remainder of the night sleepless and seething. Naturally, she’d phoned ‘Jack’ back as soon as she received the text message but he didn’t pick up. She’d spent all night questioning herself, going back over all their conversations, their brief meeting under cover of darkness, and his final message and she was now certain that she had the repulsive answer. ‘Jack’ was Colin from the office. The glimpse she’d had of the orange vest as he ran away from the movie theater was a dead giveaway and his slip up in his last text, intended or otherwise, had confirmed it. Now she knew why he hadn’t spoken during their date – he hadn’t wanted her to recognize his voice. She’d always found him creepy and it made her sick to her stomach to think that he’d engaged her in his torrid little game. He might have managed to seduce Marjory Gordon but he stood no chance with her.

  “Riley, what are you doing in here?” Paul, dressed in a black duffle coat and wearing shiny black gloves, sat his briefcase on the desk and stared at her. “Is there something wrong?”

  “You could say that. I’m here to report a serious HR issue.” She walked over to close the door. She could hear Colin’s voice from the reception as he said a brusque good morning to Lucy. She shuddered and hurriedly shut the door before leaning back against it, blocking the rest of the office out. “Colin has been stalking me.”

  Paul didn’t seem fazed by her comment. He took his time removing his coat and hanging it on the coat stand in the corner, adjusting the sleeves until they met with his satisfaction. He finally looked at her as he peeled off his gloves. “What makes you think that?”

  “I had a text message from a wrong number several weeks ago. We started talking and he introduced himself as Jack.” She hesitated, embarrassed now. How was she going to tell Paul that even though she’d refused his offer to meet for a drink, she’d gladly agreed to meet a stranger? “He was involved in a car accident and I went to see him in hospital, but he wasn’t there.” It sounded crazy to her own ears now. Why hadn’t she taken more notice of all the warning signs and red flags? “Anyway, it all came to a head when...” She stopped talking, her attention now drawn by a new scar on the back of Paul’s hand. “What’s that?” She lunged in to get a closer look at the distinctive semi-circle of freshly crusted scabs. “Is that a bite mark?”

  Paul swiftly hid his hand behind his back. “It’s none of your business,” he said coldly.

  She stared at him as the only possible reason for the scar registered in her brain with a bone-chilling thud. “You’re him. The Condo Killer. It’s you.”

  “Don’t be ridiculous,” Paul scoffed, repugnance written right across his face. “As if I have the time to go out and lurk around apartment buildings.”

  “He’s not just lurking – he’s murdering innocent people.”

 
“I’m not the killer. Do you really think I could murder someone? Don’t be so dramatic. You women are all the same.” His lip curled into an ugly sneer. “You’re just like my mother.”

  Riley pulled her shoulders back, determined to see this through so she could get of here. “Can we get back to the subject of Colin and his improper conduct? I want an inquiry. I want him stood down from his job and barred from the office until this is sorted out.”

  Paul pulled his chair out and indicated with an imperious flick of his wrist the visitor chair on the other side of the desk. “Sit down. Let’s have a nice, adult conversation. I’ve always enjoyed our little conversations.”

  She looked out through the office window. Colin was in his own office now, taking off his coat and switching on his computer. At any minute now, he would make his 8.25 am trek across to the breakroom before returning to his doorway to stare around the office. She rubbed at her arms, feeling cold right through to her marrow. The man was a disgusting pig. How dare he think he might stand a chance with her? Had he tried it with anyone else in the office? He probably wouldn’t have made a move on happily married Heather, but what about little Lucy? How far and how wide had he spun his nasty, insidious web?

  “Come on.” Paul encouraged her with a smile and again he indicated the visitor chair. “Take a seat, beautiful Riley.”

  The world came to standstill as the noise of the office outside the door faded away to nothing. “What did you say?”

  His eyes glinted. “Come talk to me. Our little chats have become the highlight of my day.”

  Her eyes widened in horror. “You! It’s you! You’re Jack!”

  “Jack be nimble, Jack be quick, Jack jumps over the candle stick,” he parroted.

  “I’ve never given you my phone number. How did you get it?”

  “Don’t be dense, Riley. I do have unrestricted access to the HR file.”

  “Why did you ever think I would be interested in you?”

  Something shifted behind his eyes, something dark and untethered. He rubbed furiously at the side of his face, his blunt nails leaving a raw, red mark. “You flirted with me. You led me on.”

  “This is insane! You’re insane!”

  “You cared about me. You told me so.”

  Thud, thud, thud. Everything that had ever passed between them came home at once with sickening clarity. “The Japanese lessons – they were all a lie, weren’t they?”

  “Sayonara, baby,” he lisped. “It’s not as if you didn’t make your interest in that country transparently obvious. Such a cute screensaver. You’re not as deep and mysterious as you imagine yourself to be.”

  Click, click, click. So many unexplained events were now sliding into place with all the jarring finality of a prison cell door. “Did you come to my apartment? Were you outside in the hall? I heard someone out there. It was you, wasn’t it?”

  “Jack and Jill went up the hill to fetch a pail of water, Jack fell down and broke his crown and Jill came tumbling after,” he warbled, sounding like a deranged lunatic.

  “You’re mad! What about that bite on your hand?” She gestured wildly. “Who else have you been stalking? Did you attack someone? Was it you who hurt that girl at Briar’s construction site?”

  He looked directly at her, his eyes blazing with unfettered fury as he slowly raised his injured hand and sunk his own teeth into the soft flesh.

  Riley shrieked and yanked the door open before running out into the middle of the office. Heather jumped out of her chair and Michael spun around, poised to run. Lucy cautiously peered around the edge of the reception door, her face drawn and white.

  “Riley.” Colin’s large frame filled the doorway of his office as he called across the room to her. “What’s going on?”

  Paul’s hysterical laughter ricocheted around his office, followed by snippets of another nursery rhyme. “This is the maiden all forlorn who lay in the house that Jack built.” He bolted out of his chair and slammed his now bleeding hand hard against the window. His face leered through the glass at Riley, his features distorted and ghastly. “Why did the maiden all forlorn destroy the house that Jack built?”

  Colin swung into action, striding across the office to reach Paul’s door before Riley had the chance to draw another ragged breath. “Call the police. Quickly now. Make sure you say it’s a psychiatric emergency and ask for Officer Benson. He’s trained in crisis intervention. He’ll know what to do. I’ll take care of Paul until he gets here.” His voice was extraordinary gentle and calm as he spoke to the laughing, singing, rocking man. “Paul, you enjoy singing songs, don’t you? We all know that. What other songs do you have for me? Perhaps we can sing some together. You know the words to This Old Man. We’ve done that one before.”

  Riley backed away slowly, unable to produce any coherent thoughts as she stared at the wide, red smear of blood on the window.

  Heather, apparently as competent as Colin was when faced with an emergency, took Riley firmly by the arm and steered her out into the reception area. “Lucy, you heard what Colin said. Call the police now. Riley, you sit down there and practice taking deep breaths.” She lowered Riley onto the sofa before raising her voice for the benefit of Michael, who had remained frozen in mid-flight in the other room. “Michael, bring Riley a glass of water. Now.”

  Colin and Paul’s voices, joined in tuneful, joyful unison, floated through the office. “This old man, he played two, he played paddy-whack on my shoe...”

  Chapter Forty-Six

  “Are you sure you’re alright? Do you want me to call a friend or a family member for you?”

  A friend or a family member? Who could she suggest? She certainly couldn’t give him Briar’s name, and Megan had been acting so strangely lately. She couldn’t ask Bill to come when he was so ill, and Morgan and Ruth were always busy with their own lives. She stared dumbly back at Colin, unable to offer him any suggestions.

  “There’s no rush,” he said kindly. “Sit there and take as long as you need. It was a shock to everyone but I guess I should’ve seen it coming.” He shook his head, talking to himself now. “I should have seen it coming.”

  They were both in Colin’s office, which was where he had taken her soon after Officer Benson arrived to speak to Paul. She had seen both men leave, Officer Benson supporting the suddenly docile Paul as they walked out of the office, and then Colin had come in to join her a few minutes after that. “What’s wrong with him?” she managed at last.

  Colin sat back in his chair, the leather squeaking beneath his thighs as he crossed his legs and steepled his fingers in front of him. “Paul suffers from a form of schizophrenia. It’s an entirely manageable condition but recent upsets in his life have meant an increase in episodes. Unfortunately, what you all just witnessed was a particularly rough episode. We’ve dealt with Officer Benson before and he’ll make sure that Paul is given the care he needs.”

  “Paul has schizophrenia? Why were none of us told about this?”

  “As I said, the condition is manageable. The medications available these days are a godsend and he has an excellent therapist. There was no need for any of you to know. Paul’s mental health was always private matter. Angus made the decision to give Paul a position in the company and while I didn’t altogether agree with the decision, I certainly supported it. There was no reason for him not to enjoy a normal life.”

  “Was Paul by any chance receiving treatment at Our Lady of Benevolence Hospital?”

  “Yes, he attended a clinic there. I’ve dropped him off for an appointment a few times myself. Why?”

  She closed her eyes for a moment, struggling to get her thoughts in order. “Paul was stalking me. He was texting me, pretending to be someone else.” She swallowed hard and opened her eyes to meet Colin’s compassionate gaze. “I thought it was you.”

  Colin looked startled. “Me? Why would you think that I would be texting you?”

  “I don’t know. I don’t know what to think anymore.” She took a deep
breath. “Is Paul’s condition the same condition that his brother Jason suffers from?”

  “Whose brother?” Colin was now fighting against his own obvious confusion. He uncrossed his legs and leaned forward with his elbows on the desk. He reminded Riley of the kindly doctor she visited at her local medical center, the one who prescribed her birth control pills and asked if she was getting enough exercise.

  “Paul’s brother,” she explained patiently. “Paul said his brother suffers from debilitating physical and mental disabilities and the responsibility of caring for him poses a real burden to the family.”

  “He doesn’t have a brother. Paul is an only child. I should know – I’ve known the family for years.”

  “He lied to me.” Riley clenched and unclenched her hands. So many lies. Why had she taken everything at face value? Was she really as naïve as Megan had claimed? This is the maiden all forlorn...

  “So it seems.”

  “If Angus knows about Paul’s errrr... about his limitations, and I’m sure he does if you have so much information at your fingertips, why did he allow Paul to take over his position in the company following his recent departure?”

  “He didn’t. Paul moved himself into Angus’s office and I didn’t think it was my place to ask him not to. There’s no harm in it. Angus can take care of it as he sees fit when he gets back.”

  Riley shook her head, unsuccessfully trying to clear it. “Wait, Angus is coming back to work here? I thought he’d moved on permanently.”

  “Why would you think that? Angus is out of the country for a few weeks. His father in Scotland died suddenly and there’s an issue with the estate. Messy business. He’ll be gone for some time, but we’re in regular daily contact. He still has his finger on the pulse of the company business.”

  Riley pinched the soft skin on the inside of her cheek with her teeth, biting down hard enough for it to hurt. No, she wasn’t dreaming. “Paul told me that Angus left because of his continued shame over your affair with Marjory. He said his father was unable to bring himself to get over the betrayal and that he had called it quits on the business partnership.”