Patrick smiled and patted his mother’s hand gently so he wouldn’t wake her. ‘She’s always had that effect on people. I know I’m biased, but yes, she is special.’
‘All this trouble about the hit-and-run incident, it’s been hard on her.’ Lexie raised her hands to prevent him from interrupting. ‘She’s loyal to you, but this worry isn’t good for her.’
‘I know, and I certainly wouldn’t have chosen for any of this to happen, now or any time. I wasn’t involved in any way with the car incident.’
Lexie shrugged; his denial was what she’d expected. ‘All I know is what I’ve read in the papers. A young woman was knocked down and killed, and the driver didn’t stop. A passer-by tried to help her and rang for an ambulance. When the police arrived, he told them he recognised you as the driver. I try not to believe everything newspapers say, but the case against you does look pretty convincing, especially as you didn’t refute any of it but simply disappeared.’
Patrick nodded. ‘I can’t argue with that, but the police and papers don’t have the whole story.’
‘If they’ve got it wrong why don’t you tell them your side?’
‘Someone stage-managed this and implicated me in such a way I doubt anyone would believe me. If I saw the police at the moment, I wouldn’t get a chance to prove I was set up.’
‘I don’t understand what you’re implying. How can you set up a hit and run?’
‘Let’s say you have a reason to want rid of someone, but you want to make it look like an accident. A hit and run is one way to do it. However, if you want to pin the blame on another person, then you need a convenient witness who can identify the supposed perpetrator.’
Lexie had never bought into conspiracy theories and her reaction must have shown.
‘Someone had a reason for wanting Caroline out of the way. Because of our relationship they must have assumed she’d mentioned something to me, and so they set me up as the driver. I’m not evading justice because I’m guilty or scared. I need to get proof of what happened.’
‘Who would want to do this?’
‘That’s what I’m trying to find out.’
Now would be a good time to go, but questions still burned inside her. ‘So tell me your side of the story.’
Patrick stared at her as if he could see right inside her head. She couldn’t help giving a snort. Why would he tell her anything? She was a stranger to him, an uptight female who visited his mother and poked her nose in where it obviously wasn’t wanted.
‘Mum has always been a good judge of character. She said I should talk to someone and suggested you.’
‘Whatever for?’ She must have looked shocked because Patrick managed a smile.
‘I need to prove I’m innocent. Mum is upset because she’s not well enough to do anything. That aggravates her as she’s always been a whirlwind when it came to sorting out things. While we were talking she suggested people who might be able to help. Not a detective kind of help. Well, to be honest, I’m not totally sure what she had in mind, but don’t worry, I’m not taking her up on it.’
‘She suggested me?’
‘She said you have a strong moral compass and an innate sense of fairness. I’m quoting her now.’
Lexie stared at Evelyn, still dozing in her chair. Despite all her moans to Evelyn about what had happened, and how she worried about not being a good mother to the girls, this was how Evelyn saw her. She swallowed hard.
Patrick shook his head slightly at her unease. ‘I’ve never been the type to bear my soul, and I doubt I’ll start now.’
‘You don’t have to bear your soul, and I really doubt I can be of much help. Your mother has been good to me. I only hope I’ve helped her in some small way. I really value her friendship. If you want to talk about what happened, I’ll listen and keep an open mind.’
Despite her concerns about him, she must have given him the impression she could put aside her prejudice and listen.
‘Where to begin?’ He pulled a face and stared beyond her, as if seeing people and scenes dancing before him in the air.
After a moment or so, Lexie couldn’t stand the silence any longer, especially as she had so many questions herself. ‘Why would someone want to kill Caroline and frame you? Evelyn said you knew her, but the papers haven’t picked up on that. Actually they haven’t even named her.’
‘Peter Webber’s got a lot of influence.’
‘Who’s Peter Webber?’
‘Webber Media.’
Lexie hadn’t heard of Webber Media and Patrick must have guessed that from the look on her face.
‘Webber Media owns The Day.’
‘The newspaper you write for?’
He nodded.
‘Were you going out with Caroline?’
Patrick’s face moved into what might be the start of a smile. ‘I was in love with Caroline, and yes, we were going out, although we kept it quiet.’
‘Why?’
‘Caroline worked for Webber Media as well. There’s no policy about going out with other staff members, but we both preferred to keep our personal lives private.’
‘So Caroline worked for the newspaper?’
‘No, she worked for Amazing Homes magazine. As well as the newspaper, Webber Media owns several magazines and a couple of radio stations. If you’re interested, Peter Webber also has interests in a number of other businesses.’
Lexie glanced at Evelyn. Her eyes were closed and her head had slumped to one side, resting against a cushion.
‘What about the hit and run?’ Lexie couldn’t bring herself to call it an accident.
Patrick’s mouth thinned and straightened. ‘I don’t know anything about the incident itself.’ He looked Lexie straight in the eyes. ‘I wasn’t there.’
She didn’t know what to say and for once kept quiet. Again, it was the protestation she’d expected, and yet somehow, Patrick’s low, vehement tone made it believable. Surely she wasn’t starting to believe this ridiculous story.
‘Caroline and I are, were, normal people. Sure, my job takes me to some out-of-the-way places and it has been dangerous, but since I met Caroline I haven’t done as much travelling. She never tried to stop me investigating any of the stories, but after I met her exposing corrupt foreign governments wasn’t the lure it was before. Part of that could have been finally realising the futility, that for every corrupt foreign official you expose there’s another one waiting to take his place. But mostly I didn’t want to be away from her for months on end.’
‘So that’s the long-winded way of saying you weren’t going to places like Africa, the Middle East, and South America, or at least not as much.’
Patrick smiled at her and for a moment Lexie had a totally different impression of the man.
‘Direct and to the point. You’re not a romantic then, Lexie?’
What kind of question was that? He was doing a damn good job of acting like an innocent in love, rather than someone who’d accidentally run over his girlfriend, or possibly someone who’d planned and carried out a murder.
What on earth was she doing sitting in the same room as a possible murderer? If Patrick had planned it, then he couldn’t have reckoned on the long odds of someone recognising him.
Lexie looked from son to mother. She couldn’t believe Evelyn knew anything more than Patrick had told her. There was a softness around his mouth and eyes as he looked at his mother, but he could still have killed Caroline.
He didn’t wait for her to answer. ‘I was still working on stories. It isn’t just foreign governments and companies that are corrupt. There’s plenty of it closer to home. I was travelling but only around Europe. I was actually in Berlin for a couple of days immediately before Caroline died.’
‘But not the day of the… accident?’
Patrick smiled grimly. ‘It wasn’t an accident.’
Lexie’s glance wandered around the room. Something niggled her. ‘The papers haven’t mentioned anything about you two going out, an
d you said it wasn’t general knowledge.’
Patrick nodded.
‘But,’ Lexie stared at Patrick. ‘You said, or at least implied, Caroline knew something and because you were in a relationship they’d assume she would tell you. That means, if it was a set-up, they knew about you and Caroline.’
Evelyn stirred and sat up. ‘What time is it?’
Patrick glanced at his watch. ‘Good thing you’re on to it or I’d be in more trouble than I am already. The nurse will be here any time now.’
‘You’d better go upstairs.’
Patrick turned to Lexie. ‘If you’re interested in hearing more, then come back and we’ll talk again. If not, I’ll understand. Most people are only too happy to believe the worst of others.’
He didn’t give her a chance to reply but slipped out of the room.
Evelyn reached across the space between them and patted her hand. ‘It might sound outrageous, like something you’d read in the papers, but Patrick wouldn’t hurt Caroline.’
Lexie was relieved to hear the back door open and the nurse calling out as it saved her having to reply. She didn’t know what to believe.
She squeezed Evelyn’s hand gently. ‘I’ll go now.’
As she walked down the path towards the wreck of the garage, she couldn’t help glancing back at the house. There was a slight movement at the window, but she might have imagined it.
7
At the school she waited in the car. She had got into the habit of wandering along to the school gate and standing with Helen, but after meeting Patrick she didn’t think she could chat about inconsequential stuff without telling Helen that Patrick was at Evelyn’s house.
Patrick sounded sincere, but what he suggested was outrageous. What kind of knowledge got people killed, and how would Caroline find out something like that? The whole thing was ridiculous. She couldn’t break her promise to Evelyn, but she wished she hadn’t gone back to the house and seen Patrick.
When her father’s car pulled up across the road, she got out to meet them. Fiona and Ruth talked over each other about their day out with Nana and Grandad.
Her parents sauntered along the road with her and the twins, and when Helen joined them her mother talked to Helen and Jake.
Back at home, she busied herself getting the meal ready and was grateful when Nathan came home. In the general noise and confusion of the house and children, nobody appeared to notice she didn’t say much.
As soon as Nathan closed the bedroom door that night, he turned to her. ‘What’s up?’
‘Nothing.’
‘You can’t fool me. Have I done something? I know it’s not your birthday or our anniversary. Have I forgotten some other important date?’
She smiled at his expression and put her arms around his neck. ‘No, there’s nothing wrong. I went to see Evelyn today.’ She stopped for a heartbeat. Truth and honesty were important to her, and she had never lied to Nathan. But she had promised Evelyn. ‘She wasn’t looking too good, but as she never complains it’s difficult to know how bad things are.’
Nathan looked relieved but also concerned, and she loved him for that. ‘I’m sorry. I know how much you like Evelyn. It’s been good for you to talk with her.’
‘Yes, I like her a lot. If wishing could make her better…’
Nathan tipped up her head gently and kissed her.
The following morning, Jean suggested they go to Dorchester once they’d dropped the children off. Lexie wanted to make sure Evelyn was all right, and if she was honest, she also wanted to hear the rest of Patrick’s tale. However, her parents weren’t staying for long so she said she’d go with them.
‘I’ll drive,’ Alistair said to Lexie. ‘You can enjoy being the passenger today.’ When Jean went to get her handbag, he added in a lower tone. ‘She was talking about Lyme Regis. If we’d gone there, we’d have been given the full version of The French Lieutenant’s Woman and Persuasion.’
Lexie laughed at her dad’s put-on anguished expression. If there was one thing she had never doubted, it was that he adored her mother. She suddenly felt better and gave him a hug.
‘Did Mum mention anything about meeting up with that sculpture woman?’
‘Lexie, your mother talks about a lot of things. Sometimes I listen and sometimes—’
She poked him in the ribs. ‘Men. Can’t live with them. Can’t shoot them.’
While Dorchester hadn’t been Lexie’s choice, the market town looked pleasant in the warm sunshine.
‘Did you know that Thomas Hardy based The Mayor of Casterbridge on Dorchester?’ said Jean, as they walked from the car park. She was a little ahead of Lexie and Alistair, and they raised their eyebrows at each other and grinned.
‘Not getting away with it entirely then,’ said Lexie.
She enjoyed looking at the familiar high-street shops in older buildings with their original facades, but she couldn’t seem to find the opportunity to talk to her mother about Dominique Santos.
They had a good lunch in the garden of an old pub, and when her father went off to pay the bill Lexie took her opportunity.
‘Had you met Dominique Santos before we visited her exhibition?’
‘What makes you think that?’
‘Mum, can’t you ever answer a question without asking another one?’
‘It’s a useful skill. I’m surprised you haven’t discovered it yourself.’ The warm smile lit up her mother’s face.
Lexie sat back in her chair. Tilly and the twins considered that looking after them was her only role in life. Was she guilty of that with her mother?
‘So what’s the topic of conversation?’ Alistair sat in the chair he’d vacated a couple of minutes earlier.
‘Lexie’s just realised we don’t all fit into her little boxes. Or at least if we do, sometimes we leap out of them, much to her consternation.’ Jean stood and picked up her handbag.
Lexie followed her parents through the pub garden. Her father touched Jean’s arm lightly to point out something and they laughed together.
Her parents had a life of their own. A life without her. In an abstract fashion she knew that, but now it felt more important. She shoved her sunglasses on top of her head. As her parents strolled back to the car, Lexie studied her mother. Jean was about five-six, a couple of inches shorter than Lexie. She had always been slim and looked as though she was still the small dress size she’d always been. Her mother was intelligent but never appeared to need a career. She did a lot of volunteer work and ran women’s groups. Lexie realised that was all she knew. Her mother never really shared much of her thoughts and opinions, in contrast to her father, and Lexie had always been too busy with her own work and the children to consider things too deeply. What had her mother meant about people not fitting into boxes?
As they reached the car, she hurried to catch up with her parents and gave her mum a quick hug. ‘I’m sorry if I seemed rude. I was just interested.’
Jean smiled, her expression still enigmatic.
They got held up at some road works, and Alistair dropped Lexie off at home for her car so she could pick up Ruth and Fiona while they went to collect Tilly.
Tilly was indignant that Lexie had chosen the twins over her and ignored Lexie when she came home.
‘I need to go to the supermarket and get some things I forgot. You girls are eating lots more than you used to.’
‘I’m not coming with you,’
Lexie was shocked to recognise her own tone in Tilly’s voice.
‘That’s okay, Tilly,’ said Lexie’s dad. ‘I’m not too keen on shopping either. We can go to the park. See if Ruth and Fiona want to come.’
Nathan arrived home in time to go to the park with them.
In the supermarket, Lexie piled fresh fruit and vegetables into the trolley. As they were manhandling it down the aisle to find the shelves of cereal she saw Miriam.
‘Hello. Miriam, this is my mother.’ Lexie turned to Jean. ‘Miriam lives not far from us.’
Jean smiled and spoke to Miriam. For a second Miriam stared at Lexie, and for the first time Lexie realised what it was like to be on the receiving end of one of her glares. Then Miriam turned her head towards Jean and managed a nod and a word of greeting through tight lips.
‘What do you make of my neighbour?’ Lexie asked, as they put the supermarket bags into the boot of the car.
Faint lines appeared on Jean’s forehead as she considered. ‘I think she’s in pain.’
Lexie stood still, a bag in each hand. ‘In pain? She’s just plain rude.’
‘I don’t mean physical pain. Something has hurt her badly in her past. She certainly needs help, even if she won’t ask for it.’
Lexie shook her head. What the hell.
Jean glanced across the car at Lexie. ‘I could be wrong.’ She paused. ‘But I don’t think so. That girl needs help.’
Lexie pushed the trolley back to the entrance. Her mother was certainly coming out with some strange things, or was she noticing it because she felt so unsettled. Lexie shoved the trolley into the line of parked ones. Miriam in pain? Mad.
As they unpacked the shopping at home, Jean suggested that Lexie and Nathan go out for dinner that night. ‘You might as well make the most of having us here to babysit. I’ll cook dinner for us and the girls.’
It hadn’t been an issue in London with Astrid, but it wasn’t so easy now. Lexie rang Helen and asked for recommendations on where to eat.
Parking was easy in town, and as they strolled away from the car Lexie realised they were early for their reservation. ‘Shall we go and have a drink first?’
There was a small garden at the back of the pub and Lexie wandered through to find a seat while Nathan got their drinks. Although the evening was pleasantly warm, there was only one other person in the garden. Dominique Santos looked deeply immersed in her book. There was a mouthful of wine left in her glass and an empty plate to one side of the table.
Still Death (A Lexie Wyatt murder mystery Book 1) Page 6