The Moment She Left

by Susan Lewis

  Blake only wished he knew.

  ‘What are you supposed to do with the money?’

  Blake had no answer for that either. ‘Andee Lawrence was going to see Mum today,’ he said. ‘I should call to find out how it went.’

  ‘Will you tell Mum about the money?’

  ‘I’m not sure. I’ll find out how she is first.’

  ‘It’ll completely freak her out. How can it not when it’s freaking us out?’

  Blake was taking out his phone, then remembering Ellie he said, ‘I’m sorry if I interrupted something when I came in.’

  Matt shook his head. ‘It doesn’t matter. We were just talking about a gig she’s been offered in London that’s paying really well. She wants me to do it with her.’

  Feeling the clashing connotations of gigs in London, Blake said, ‘Are you going to?’

  ‘I’m thinking about it. It’s at a place in Kensington where I’m pretty sure Jess played once,’ Matt went on. ‘So I was thinking, if I did it, I might be able to ask a few questions, find out if anyone there remembers her.’

  Knowing it was a long shot, given how much time had passed and how transient that community was, but ready to grasp at anything, Blake said, ‘When is it?’

  ‘The end of the month. They’re prepared to put us up in a hotel for the night because of the late finish.’

  Blake nodded. ‘Before you accept, or before you start asking questions, I think you should talk to Andee to get her advice on the best way to handle it.’

  Chapter Fourteen

  It was the middle of the afternoon by the time Rowzee and Andee drove into Dartmouth with its quaintly cobbled lanes, medieval and Elizabethan buildings and of course the glorious estuary with all its romance and history dating back over ten centuries or more. Thankfully the sun had come out again following a heavy downpour earlier, and the way the light was playing on the water made it seem as though it was crackling with stars.

  Though Rowzee still couldn’t get Sean Griffiths and his tragic existence out of her mind, she was doing a much better job of holding it together now than she had just after the visit. Or at the café after Andee had left her.

  Luckily Andee knew nothing about the way a cup of tea had managed to slide right through Rowzee’s fingers to spill all over the table. She couldn’t think how it had happened. She was sure she’d been holding it firmly enough, but there was no denying the broken and empty cup with her hand still shaped as though it was around it. What a sweet girl the waitress had been, assuring Rowzee that accidents happened all the time and she wasn’t to fuss herself about it. Rowzee hadn’t fussed, at least not outwardly, but the failure of her grip had upset her. And the way her mind kept going off on panicked searches for what she should do next wasn’t helping, for she was getting all tangled up in ideas that would never work, and intentions that must be accomplished. Fortunately she’d remembered to bring her notebook so she’d jotted down lots of reminders, as well as other things that needed careful consideration before she acted. One such project was to seek spiritual counselling from Norma, if Norma provided that service, though she knew already that she couldn’t allow herself to become an additional burden for her new friend when Norma already had so much to cope with.

  It had occurred to Rowzee to tell Andee about her diagnosis in the hope that she might agree to come to Zurich with her, but she’d soon realised that swearing Andee to secrecy would be selfish in the extreme and grossly unfair. Andee would be sure to want to tell Graeme and Pamela, would probably feel duty bound to, while at the same time she’d be sworn to silence. So telling Andee wasn’t an option, and she couldn’t tell Norma either for the same reasons she couldn’t go to her for counselling. There was always Gina, of course, but Rowzee wouldn’t know whether that was a good idea until she had an idea of what was happening in Gina’s world these days.

  It was noted in her book that she must set up an appointment with her lawyer – she might already have one, if so she hoped to find it in her diary when she got back – to make sure Norma, Sean and Jason were properly taken care of as soon as she set off for the Elysian Fields (not that she considered herself heroic or virtuous, the qualifications necessary for entry into this mythological afterlife, it just had a nice ring). They couldn’t argue with the contents of a will and no matter what Norma said to the contrary, having the support of private nurses for Sean would be a godsend for his mother. At least that was how Rowzee was seeing it. She’d never dream of saying this to Norma, but the dear and very attractive (it had to be said) woman wasn’t getting any younger. She needed more freedom to go out and live her life while she still could, and who was to say, she might even meet a dashingly romantic kindred spirit to keep her company in her twilight years.

  All this was such a whirling confusion in her head as Andee drove them gingerly along a street so narrow that the wing mirrors had to be pulled in, that Rowzee had almost forgotten why they were there. What felt much more important to her quite suddenly was her longing to see Jenny and Blake reunited with their daughter before she, Rowzee, went on her way. What on earth could she do about that? If only she knew. And how was she going to get Pamela properly hooked up with Bill Simmonds, and Graeme rekindling a romance with Andee, before she lost her powers of subtlety and sent them all running for cover? There was so much to do and think about, and so little time, thanks to the devilish roadblock in her brain that was very soon going to stop letting the traffic through altogether.

  ‘Ah, here we are,’ Andee declared, slowing up outside a house with the number Gina had given them, then making no less than four attempts to get into the parking space alongside it before success was achieved.

  They were barely out of the car before Gina came running out to greet them, all delighted smiles, luxuriant auburn hair and dazzling movie-star looks. Think a sublime mix of Audrey Hepburn and Ginger Rogers, was how Rowzee often described her.

  ‘How are you, how are you?’ Gina cried, sweeping Rowzee into a lavish embrace, while holding Andee’s hand to show how thrilled she was to see her too. ‘I can’t tell you how excited I’ve been since Andee rang to say you were coming. It’s been too long, which I know is my fault, but we’re going to have some time to catch up now and I can hardly wait to get started.’ Leading them up a small flight of steps into the house, she said, ‘Can you stay the night, maybe? There’s plenty of room. We can go for dinner down in the town, or get fish and chips if you prefer. It’s OK, you don’t have to make a decision now. I just want you to know that the offer’s there. By the way, you know, I’m sure, that this is Anna Shelley’s house, and that I’m taking care of it and her gallery while she’s away?’

  ‘The Anna Shelley?’ Rowzee exclaimed, clearly impressed by the name-drop of an artist and actress most of the country had heard of.

  ‘No less,’ Gina laughed, squeezing her again.

  Once inside it was no surprise to Andee to discover that the nineteenth-century merchant’s house with its many crooked floors, polished oak beams and fabulous collection of art was one of the grander dwellings on the hillside. Nor had she expected anything less than the glorious panoramic views from just about every window, taking in the mesmerising waterway where hundreds of sailboats, river cruisers, canoes and ferries were going busily about their day. On the opposite bank with its magnificent harbour, steam railway station and meandering lanes of colourful cottages and town houses, Kingswear appeared almost as a reflection of the old seafaring town.

  The first hour or more of their visit was spent on the sitting-room balcony, soaking up the sunshine and inhaling the bittersweet scent of salty sea air as they indulged in one reminiscence after another after another. There were so many plays and projects that had come to fruition, and even more that hadn’t, dinners that had been made unforgettable by announcements or outrages or even disasters. Then there were the hilarious coincidences and wonderings of whatever had happened to . . . Rowzee laughed so hard she cried, and Andee found herself relaxing in a way she
hadn’t in far too long.

  ‘Did I already tell you how amazing you both look?’ Gina beamed at them, in her infectiously expansive way. ‘Do stay the night, please. We can drink champagne and eat what we like and tell stories until midnight.’

  Rowzee and Andee looked at one another with sparkling eyes. Why not? Neither of them had anything to rush back for, and being with Gina was already proving such a tonic for them both that they’d have been crazy to rush off before they had to.

  It was while Rowzee was inside calling Pamela to let her know that she wouldn’t be back until morning that Gina said gently to Andee, ‘Charles told me about you and Martin.’

  Having expected as much, Andee merely shrugged.

  ‘If I’m being honest,’ Gina went on, ‘I’m not surprised. You outgrew him a long time ago, but it still takes courage to move on.’

  With raised eyebrows Andee said, ‘Most people think I’m mad for leaving him. They see him as a great catch, which of course he is.’

  ‘But so are you, and you have to do what’s right for you. Does it feel right?’

  ‘It did when I first left, and it still does. I just hate being the cause of so much heartbreak.’

  ‘Sure you do, but he’ll get over it, and so will the kids if they’re giving you a rough time. This is something you have to go through in order to get to where you want to be. Any idea where that is?’

  Andee laughed. ‘Not a clue, but hopefully all will come clear in time. Now tell me about you and Charles. I’m getting a sense of things not being quite right with you two, or am I misreading it?’

  With a sigh, Gina stretched out her long legs as she said, ‘Charles has been unwell, as you know, which coming hard on the heels of my own health issues and of course the election defeat . . . Let’s just say that after all the pressure and stress it felt a good idea to spend some time apart.’

  ‘So when Anna asked if you’d be interested in taking care of things here, you jumped at it?’

  ‘Precisely. Not too far from Charles, but far enough to allow us some space to breathe. Sometimes I find observing things from a distance can give you a better perspective. Do you find that too?’

  Admitting that she did, whenever she remembered to do it, Andee said, ‘I guess you both miss Lydia.’

  ‘Oh we do. More than we’d ever tell her, that’s for sure. Charles has been finding it especially difficult, but I can’t get him to talk about it, so I guess I just have to wait until he’s ready.’ Though the shadows and misgivings were invisible, Andee could sense them darkening Gina’s thoughts while her words remained tender and light.

  Continuing, Gina said, ‘I think he’s done with politics. Something changed in him when he lost his seat. He’s never really known failure before, I guess, so I think it came as a far bigger blow than he was prepared for. He didn’t know how to deal with it. And there was a power struggle at the company, brought on, I’m sure, by his health issues. Josh Stevens, his number two, has been running things for the past year or so.’ She sighed sadly. ‘He’s been in a kind of shutdown since, at least where I’m concerned, which I know I’m to blame for . . . It was why I needed to get away. It’s very stressful living with someone who doesn’t communicate any more, or who’s hiding things.’

  Wondering if Gina knew about Charles’s ‘friend’ and the blackmail, Andee said, ‘So what do you think he’s hiding?’

  Gina’s lovely eyes came to hers. ‘Always the detective,’ she teased.

  Andee grimaced as Rowzee returned to the balcony saying, ‘Does that mean she’s told you she’s helping us to find Jessica Leonard?’

  Gina’s eyes returned to Andee. ‘You are?’ she said, seeming more concerned than surprised. ‘And have you come up with any new leads?’

  ‘Not that I can discuss at the moment,’ Andee admitted.

  ‘Meaning there is something?’ Gina prompted.

  ‘Possibly. I’m waiting to hear.’

  Clearly deciding not to press her, Gina said to Rowzee, ‘Charles tells me that he met Jessica’s father at your birthday party.’

  ‘It was Pamela’s party, actually, but yes, Blake was there. He’s been working for Graeme since they moved to the area, his wife did too until Jessica disappeared. It’s totally broken her, him too in its way.’

  ‘How could it not?’ Gina murmured. ‘Losing a daughter like that . . .’ She was quiet as she seemed to be visualising the fear and horror of Jessica’s parents.

  Rowzee said, echoing Jenny as though she’d been there earlier, ‘It’s possible, even probable that someone took her abroad.’

  Apparently intrigued, Gina said, ‘Why do you say that?’

  ‘Because it makes the most sense. You’ll have read in the press about the kind of parties she gigged at.’

  Gina nodded. ‘Of course. A lot of rich foreigners. You know, I’ve often wondered if Charles and I might have been at one of those parties. We used to go to a good many functions back then, thanks to Charles’s contacts in the City. I can’t say I remember seeing Jessica at any of them, but of course I didn’t know what she looked like then. Am I allowed to ask if our names came up during the police investigation?’ She turned to Andee.

  ‘If they had,’ Andee replied, ‘you’d have been interviewed.’

  With a mischievous twinkle Gina said, ‘But there are names that we’d know, I’m sure?’

  ‘There are names that most of the country would know, but they’ve all been questioned and cleared, so the question still remains: who was she on her way to see the day she disappeared? Or, put another way, who is Kim Yoder?’

  ‘The sixty-four thousand dollar question,’ Rowzee muttered.

  Andee was watching Gina. ‘Are you all right?’ she asked. ‘You’ve gone quite pale.’

  Dismissing it with a wave of her hand, Gina said, ‘A side effect of one of the drugs I have to take. I’m fine, honestly. So Rowzee, was Pamela OK about you staying here tonight?’

  ‘Actually, she said it was a lovely idea and that I should stay as long as I like. This immediately makes me suspicious, so I think I should go home right away.’

  Since it was clearly a joke, Andee and Gina laughed and after deciding they’d like more tea they went downstairs to the kitchen. The subject stayed with Pamela and how, Gina insisted, Bill Simmonds had had a thing for her for years. Seizing the chance of help with her plans to further the romance, Rowzee started coming up with various strategies that were actually more hilarious than feasible, while Gina and Andee’s suggestions only added more raucous merriment to the mix.

  By the time the topic of conversation changed it was clear that Rowzee was starting to flag, so it was no surprise when she said she hoped no one would mind if she sat in a shady part of the garden for a quick forty winks. ‘It’s been quite an exhausting day,’ she confessed to Gina, ‘but I’ll spare you the details of my new family until later.’

  ‘New family?’ Gina echoed in amazement.

  ‘Later,’ Rowzee promised.

  After settling her under a pergola on the patio Gina offered to show Andee to a guest room where she could freshen up, or lie down, or make calls, whatever she might need to do. ‘Or you can just drop off your things and we’ll carry on chatting,’ she added. ‘Everything’s possible.’

  Having not heard back from Leo Johnson yet, Andee said, ‘If you don’t mind, there is a call I need to make. I’ll come to find you in about ten minutes?’

  ‘Perfect.’

  Finding herself connecting to Leo Johnson’s voicemail, Andee tried her old detective inspector instead and got through straight away.

  ‘All we’ve been told so far,’ Gould informed her, ‘is that six months’ rent was paid up front on the Holland Park house, in cash, two months before Jessica disappeared. The agent didn’t meet Kim Yoder in person – she says it’s not rare for properties of that type to be rented sight unseen, usually by foreigners, or for the transactions to take place over the phone or Internet. Don’t let’s get into the mone
y-laundering issue here, that’s for the Met to deal with.’

  ‘Were no references taken up?’

  ‘My guess is they probably weren’t even asked for, but no word on that yet either.’

  ‘Does the place have any security cameras?’

  ‘Something else we’re waiting on an answer to. What I can tell you is that the agent didn’t come forward sooner because she and her company are big on safeguarding their clients’ confidentiality, so they took the decision that if the police didn’t come to them, they wouldn’t go to the police.’

  Appalled, though not surprised, Andee said, ‘It never fails to amaze me how some people come here and seem to think it’s OK to operate outside the law just because they have money.’

  ‘Indeed. I can also tell you,’ Gould continued, ‘that the place was rented to a Peruvian couple after the six-month prepaid period ran out. They’re still there, and are being quite helpful apparently, but obviously it’s making it a nightmare for forensics.’

  ‘I can imagine. Anything else?’

  ‘Not right now.’

  ‘What about the money Blake received?’

  ‘All I can tell you about that is the parcel was sent from a post office in Dorchester. Someone locally is talking to the staff there to try to find out what they remember.’

  ‘Do you think it’s connected to Jessica in some way?’

  ‘I do, but in what way . . . Well, there you have me. Where are you?’

  ‘In Dartmouth, back tomorrow, but if you hear any more on either issue I’d appreciate a call.’

  After ringing off Andee wandered back upstairs and found Gina in a spacious studio at the top of the house with a wide, low bed in one corner, a collection of easels and blank canvases, a large centre table and an entire wall full of garish landscapes.

  ‘No prizes for guessing this is where Anna does most of her work,’ Gina declared as Andee took in the bohemian surroundings. ‘She has another studio, above the gallery in town, which is generally rented out to visiting artists. Please excuse all the parcels over there. They’re about to head off to Anna’s dealer in the States. He’s in Dartmouth, Massachusetts, and does a roaring trade in works from here, it being the original so to speak. If you’re ever in that part of the world it’s worth dropping in if only to hear him talk about old Dartmouth’s fabulous history from the bloody crusades, to the Pilgrim Fathers’ brief stopover, to the part the naval base played in aiding the French Resistance during the Second World War. He’s a natural when it comes to bringing the past to life, has his listeners all rapt and no one ever questions how tall the tales might be, they just lap them up.’