by KERRY BARNES
Rocky squeezed Kara’s hand, winked, and said, ‘I’ll be back tomorrow.’ He wanted to make the most of the time he had with her, and the officer outside the room couldn’t and wouldn’t stop him. Melanie Brent was allowed to stay at George’s request. As Rocky closed the door, he looked her over. ‘What’s ya favourite drink, love?’
Melanie was slightly embarrassed and blushed. ‘Oh, no, it’s fine. I want the best for that woman. She’s a good person.’
‘Yeah, she is, ain’t she – a real gem. Did you want a sandwich or something? Coffee? I can grab ya something, while I’m ’ere.’
Melanie shook her head. ‘No, honestly, I’m good, but thank you.’
He winked, and she watched him take confident strides down the corridor. For a moment, she wished she had someone like him – a broad-shouldered man, with a sexy magnetism that oozed charisma. Kara may be posh and sweet, but she could do a lot worse than Rocky. She sighed and went back to burying her head in her book.
* * *
Justin drove like a madman back to his home. He didn’t know who he was angry with the most: Kara for not falling into his arms, or Lucy and her unknown history, or even, of course, the two officers who appeared to have mocked him. Then there was Carl, the so-called hardman, arrogant to boot, thrown into the mix, and Lillian, his sweet neighbour, found dead, hit around the head.
He could only conclude that Carl was far more dangerous than anyone was prepared to admit. He was convinced that Carl was the culprit, and there he was, being allowed to walk around free. He thought about setting up CCTV cameras in case this rapist and murderer should come calling. It niggled him that Lucy didn’t seem afraid of the man, and it concerned him more that there was another side to her that he’d yet to meet.
He reversed into the drive and slowed his irate breathing down. It was ridiculous how his life seemed to be spiralling downwards. What was supposed to be a happy marriage was now filled with constant jibes and tensions.
Lucy was holding a roll of wallpaper covered in bright in-your-face swirls of black and silver feathers.
‘Now, don’t you think this will look lovely in the living room?’ She smiled, as she turned to greet him.
He stood with his hands on his hips, his hair flopping forward, and his lips pulled tight.
‘What’s the matter, Justin? I thought you would have a smile on your face, seeing you’ve just met your daughter.’
He wasn’t sure if she was being sarcastic or not. ‘Put the bloody wallpaper roll down. You and I need to talk and no more fucking bullshit, or that paper and you will be out that bloody door.’
Instantly, Lucy dropped the roll and flopped onto the new grey velour sofa. Something was seriously wrong. Racking her brains, she couldn’t imagine what was going on in his head.
He didn’t sit down but stepped closer and looked at her squarely in her eyes. ‘I want to know about you, about who the fuck you really are!’
As she dropped her fake smile, Justin continued. ‘Straight talking or fuck off!’
She knew then she couldn’t put on the tears; he was definitely not going to comfort her.
‘What do you want to know, exactly?’ Her tone was just as sharp.
‘Why the police know who you are, for starters.’
Her eyes widened, and her brain raced through every possible explanation as to why he would know she had a past. She wasn’t about to admit that to him, not a man with a high and mighty moral standard.
‘I told you I was in foster care. Well, I was left pretty much to my own devices, and as teenagers do when they have no family to guide them, I shoplifted, and I got caught a few times.’
Justin paced the floor, running his hands through his hair. ‘No, Lucy Lou, it wasn’t for shoplifting, was it?’
Her hands trembled as soon as he said her nickname. What did he know? Had Carl spoken with him? She had to hedge her bets.
‘Oh my God, you haven’t been talking to that bastard rapist Carl again, have you? Because he will string you a long line of bollocks!’
Justin gave her a weary smile and shook his head. ‘No, not Carl.’
‘Then, who has said what?’ she demanded, her eyes searching his face for a clue.
Justin changed tactics. ‘Look, Lucy.’ He tutted and sat down in one of the new armchairs. ‘We all have a past, some more troubled than others. I’m not bothered about what you did in your previous life, but I want to know, so that it’s not a shock to me, when, like today, the police told me they knew you. So just tell me, love. I won’t hold it against you. I’m more broad-minded than you think.’
She tried to gauge if he was genuine or not, but even if he was, how could she tell him the truth? She had to tell him something or she would be out on her ear. Or would she? They were married now; she owned half of everything, and she was the mother of their baby, so she would get the house.
‘Do you know what, Justin? I’m fucking sick of you judging me. It’s the way you look at me with disgust sometimes and the way you treat me like you have to question everything. Well, for your information, my past was not pretty because, unlike you, I didn’t have a fucking family, so either we move on and you allow me to put my miserable past behind me, or I go my own way, with my child, I might add, because I’m not going over that sad ground again.’
Just for a moment, Justin felt that he wasn’t looking at Lucy; he was probably facing this other woman, Lucy Lou, whoever the hell she was. ‘So, I take it, Lucy, if you won’t tell me about your past, then I’ll have to find out for myself, because I also want to know who you really are. At the moment, though, I don’t flaming well know you at all.’ He jumped up to leave and then turned to face her one more time. ‘Oh, by the way, the police want to talk to you. The old lady in the downstairs flat is dead.’
For a split second, Justin discerned panic on Lucy’s face. ‘What’s the matter, Lucy?’
She shook her head. ‘Nothing. Why do they want to question me? I mean, I never went down to her flat, so it couldn’t have been me.’
‘I never suggested that the police are regarding this as suspicious. I just said they want to question you about whether you saw anyone coming or going.’ He raised his eyebrow and sneered.
Unexpectedly, the phone rang, to Lucy’s obvious relief.
It rang again but Justin made no move to answer it. Lucy got up from her seat and placed the phone to her ear. An exaggerated gasp left her lips. Justin snatched the phone from her. ‘Hello!’ he said, rudely.
The nurse from the intensive care unit answered. ‘Your son has taken a turn for the worse. I think it’s best that you both come along as soon as possible. I’m very sorry.’
As he replaced the receiver, he studied Lucy’s grief-stricken expression and immediately felt the need to place an arm around her shoulders. ‘Come on, let’s go.’ His voice cracked, as he held back the cry waiting to escape. None of the past mattered now. Lucy was right: they had more pressing issues to deal with.
* * *
The neonatal unit was immaculately white, bright, and clean, and set up with state-of-the-art facilities. There, lying in the see-through acrylic cot, with every tube and wire imaginable, was their frail, sickly baby. Justin peered down and allowed a tear to trickle down his nose and land on the baby’s bare arm. He wiped it away and stroked the soft dark down on his son’s head.
Dr Khalid, the child’s paediatrician, who had been overseeing his care, pulled Justin away and allowed Lucy a moment alone with her son.
‘He has a lung infection and we have given him antibiotics, but I’m afraid he’s not responding as he should.’ His eyes looked downcast, as he waited for Justin to speak.
‘It may be that he will pick up, but he may not, and it’s only right that you know the situation. A cuddle always helps.’ He looked over at Lucy staring out of the floor-to-ceiling window with a view across to the park. ‘I know she’s taking it hard and finds it difficult to see him like that, but perhaps you could encourage her to hold him
.’ He patted Justin’s shoulder and returned to the cot to check the baby’s vitals.
Justin looked at Lucy and saw an expression he’d never seen before. Her face was pale and her eyes were pulled down at the sides. She was sad and lost.
He felt an overwhelming sense of sorrow for her and decided to let the past be just that – the past. He pulled her close, as they both looked down at their helpless little boy. Justin felt her body trembling and her silent sobs building up until she became weak in his arms and cried uncontrollably. ‘No, no, please, not my baby, he is all I have,’ she wailed.
‘It’s okay, babe. Come on, we’ll get through this together and be strong for him.’
She slowly stopped the tears and wiped her nose with a tissue, leaning in to his chest. ‘Oh, Justin, I couldn’t bear it if he died. I feel terrible. I just couldn’t keep visiting him, not seeing him like that and me helpless. But I know it was wrong. I can’t forgive myself.’
‘Hold him now, Lucy. Let him know you love him.’ His voice cracked again, and he coughed, unable to speak. The nurse lifted the baby from the cot and gently placed him in Lucy’s arms.
Justin watched with a heavy heart. Of course, Lucy must have been hurting as much as him; she was the baby’s mother, after all. As Lucy rocked him gently, she turned away from Justin and whispered to her baby, ‘I’m so sorry, little one. I do love you so much. I guess I just never knew it before.’
The door opened and the woman standing there caught Justin off-guard. His mother’s arms dropped by her sides. ‘Justin, I didn’t expect …’
The nurse smiled. ‘Hello, Mollie.’
Justin blinked hard. How did the nurse know her name?
She approached her son. ‘I come at this time most days. I don’t like to get in the way.’
‘You’ve been visiting my son?’
Tears welled up in Mollie’s eyes. ‘Yes, I know we have our differences, but that isn’t the baby’s fault.’
Her face expressionless, too consumed in her own world of despair to care, Lucy slowly turned to face her mother-in-law.
‘He’s very sick, Mum, he may not …’ He couldn’t bring himself to speak.
Mollie grabbed his arm. ‘Now, you listen to me. You need to be brave and positive. It will do him no good to give up on him now.’
Justin nodded. He needed his mum; she always knew the right thing to say.
‘Go on, Son, give your wife a break.’ She smiled at Lucy who was still glazed over.
Justin tried to take the baby, but Lucy pushed him away. ‘No, leave him,’ she whispered.
Mollie winked at her son, letting him know it was okay. ‘Let’s get a coffee.’
Lucy was still in a trance and didn’t even notice them leave.
Outside in the corridor was a coffee machine. As Mollie searched in her purse for change, Justin asked, ‘What are you really doing here, Mum?’
She straightened up and gave him a resigned look. ‘I’ve thought about you a lot lately and this awful situation. That young nurse in there is my friend’s daughter. She told me about little Ben, and so I asked if I could visit. She said you always come in the mornings or afternoons but never in the evenings, so I come at night, just to give him a cuddle. I know what I said, Justin, and it was all in the heat of the moment, and what with Kara having a baby too, I just think it’s unfair that I only see Denise Rose. I just want to treat both little Denise Rose and Ben the same.’
‘You know, then, she had the baby?’
Mollie nodded. ‘Yes, love, she called me straightaway.’
‘I went to see her in the hospital. She wouldn’t let me hold her. She doesn’t want me to have the baby.’ His eyes narrowed. ‘She said you would have her for the last few months of her sentence.’
Mollie averted her eyes, clearly embarrassed that her actions had caused friction between herself and her son. ‘Well, yes, she asked me, and of course, I accepted the offer. After all, she is my grandchild.’
Justin sighed heavily. ‘But she is my daughter. I can’t have her brought up in that bloody prison, not when I can give her a good home.’
Mollie looked shocked. ‘What do you mean?’
He paced the floor with his jaw set and his hands clenched into fists. ‘You just don’t get it, Mum! She burned the house down because she was angry! What would she do to my daughter, if she lost her temper? And another thing. She’s not the sweet, innocent Kara you once knew. She even talks differently. She swore at me.’
‘After what you’ve done and said, and yes, I know what you told her, do you honestly expect her to let you take her baby – the only real family she has – because you think you’re a better person to look after baby Denise Rose? I know she lost her temper and damaged your home, but I don’t believe she’d ever hurt her child.’
‘I think, Mum, it’s better that you leave. You really don’t understand, and I won’t allow my daughter to grow up in a prison. I have a home, a wife, and a son. Denise Rose will be better off with us, in a loving, safe environment. End of.’
Mollie shook her head. ‘What’s got into you? This isn’t you, Justin, you would never do this.’
‘She looked at me as if I were dirt. She hates me, and …’
‘I know she may have hurt you, Justin, but that’s no reason to want to take the baby, really, is it?’
With flared nostrils, he growled back, ‘If you are not going to help me fight my case, then go and leave me in peace to see to my son.’
As Mollie went to walk away, she stopped and turned to face him, and a bitterness swept through her body, making her cringe. ‘A loving home, eh? What with your wife who never comes to visit her own son? I don’t think so.’
‘Yes, she does. Not often, because she can’t handle seeing him, but she does occasionally,’ he snapped back.
Mollie shook her head again. ‘No, Son, she doesn’t. She hasn’t been here for two weeks. I know this for a fact because I have been here almost every night.’ As soon as she said it, she regretted it. This wasn’t who she was, but it was certainly what her own son was turning her into.
‘It’s better that you leave and don’t come back. We don’t need you.’
Heartbroken, Mollie left, with the fervent wish that her son would see sense and soon. How he had changed. She’d once been so proud of him, with his boyish fresh looks, which she knew turned many a head, and his polite sweet-natured ways. To see him like this – a broken and almost unkempt man with a bitterness in his words –was a travesty of Olympic proportions.
Chapter 19
Three weeks after Kara had settled into her new cell, in the baby unit, a letter arrived from Justin. She stared at it, with her hands trembling, in total disbelief. Denise Rose began to whimper, and in a flash, Deni was there, lifting her from the cot. ‘There, there, little one,’ she whispered, as she rocked the baby back to sleep. ‘What’s it say, babe?’
Kara shook her head. ‘He’s going to court to get custody, and he will win, Deni. There’s nothing I can do.’
Deni gently put the baby back in the cot. ‘Don’t give up, just yet. That Stuart fella, surely, he can help?’
Slowly, looking up from the letter, Kara gave a desolate smile. ‘I’ve already spoken with Stuart, and he said that I don’t really stand a chance, but he’ll work away to assign temporary custody. He says he wants to help because he feels he has let me down with regards to my mother’s death. They can’t seem to find any other leads. I don’t bloody understand it. They should be out there trying to find this Lucille woman, who was supposed to be my mother’s carer. She has obviously stolen my mother’s money and probably killed her in the process.’
Deni could feel the woman’s pain and sat next to Kara, placing her arm gently around her shoulders. ‘Don’t let all this business about ya mum get in the way of making a clear decision. I know it’s hard to think of anything but holding on to your baby. Maybe this Justin and his wife will be a good option? I mean, she has a baby, and so she will be very mot
herly. Little Denise Rose will obviously want for nuffin.’
‘I just can’t bear the thought, Deni. He has changed. The way he spoke to me and that cocky look in his eyes – it’s like he’s turned into a stranger.’
‘Why don’t you send out a VO and talk to him? This letter business can be so cold. Maybe in person, he can put your mind at rest? I mean, babe, he loved you once, and you did him no lasting harm.’
Kara put her hands to her face and sobbed, her heart breaking.
‘Now, now, babe. Come on, you’ll have a lifetime with ya girl. It’s something I never had.’
Kara swallowed back the tears and remembered the story of Deni’s daughter and accepted the fact that if Justin did get custody of their baby, it would only be until she was released from prison. Maybe she would have to sacrifice a few months of seeing her baby grow up. But then after that, she would always be there for her.
‘What’s Rocky say about it all, anyway?’
Kara smiled. ‘Look in that drawer. There are photos of our new home. He’s even had a castle bed built for Denise Rose. It does look lovely. He’s been a rock …’ She laughed. ‘Rocky the rock, eh? Who’d have thought it?’
Deni patted her knee. ‘A right decent fella. So that’s good for you, ’cos you’ll have a lovely home for the baby, and there’ll be no reason why the judge won’t grant you custody when you get out.’
Kara nodded. ‘That’s what Rocky said.’
‘Kara, Deni!’ called Vic, who was nearly out of breath, running down the corridor.
Jumping to her feet, Kara went to the door and peered down the wing. ‘In here!’
It was obvious to anyone that Vic was about to announce good news. Her face was beaming with excitement. ‘They’ve only gone an’ fucking granted my parole!’ She jumped up and down like a child. ‘I’m going home!’
The three were like girls in a school playground, hugging and hopping around with excitement. Denise Rose cried, the noise having woken her, and all three rushed to her side. Vic held the baby, and Kara wanted to cry again; her new-found sister was leaving, and all she would have was Deni, and her baby of course.