The Fake Date

by Lynda Stacey

  ‘Morning,’ she called out as she picked up her bra. ‘Will, are you there?’ She padded around the bedroom, slowly retrieving her articles of clothing that seemed to have been thrown in every direction. ‘Will, could you call Millie? She really needs to go out and I’m having a bit of a problem here finding my knickers.’ She listened for an answer, but when one didn’t come she threw on her clothes and made her way down the stairs, one at a time. Her ankle still hurt, and she hopped down them on one foot using the bannister for support.

  ‘Come on, Millie, find Will.’ Millie scrambled past the door, through the kitchen and into the lounge, where she doubled back and ran to the back door, waiting. Ella opened it. ‘Will, where are you? Come on, stop hiding, this really isn’t funny.’

  Ella took in a deep breath as the realisation hit her. The cottage was small and it was more than obvious that it was empty. She stood for a moment and just stared out the front window at where Will’s car normally stood.

  Okay. So, he’d gone out. He’d left without telling her. Why would he do that? She tried to be rational. Tried to think of the places he could have gone and the reasons why, but she felt abandoned, alone and disappointed. A thought sprang to mind. Milk? She quickly opened the fridge, but a full four-pint carton stared back and her disappointment turned to anger. Why had he left her alone? Why hadn’t he been there, to wake up with her, especially after the night they’d spent together?

  Ella once again looked at her watch. It was just after eight; it was still early. Would he have left her a message, a note? She smiled. ‘Of course. He’ll have left a message. He always sends messages.’ She began searching for her mobile and finally found it down the back of the settee, where they’d sat the night before, eating, feeding one another and laughing until they’d cried. She immediately swiped the screen and checked it for messages. Excitement seared through her and she smiled when she saw the red indicator show the number two. ‘I knew it,’ she said, but her words were premature.

  Darling. Don’t forget, your new cooker comes at nine. I tried to call but you’re not home. Where are you? Mum x

  Morning. It’s Michelle Everett’s funeral today. Midday. Any chance you could cover it? I wouldn’t ask but Sally phoned in sick. Alan.

  Two messages. Both wanting her attention. Neither of them from Will.

  Ella glanced at a calendar that hung on Will’s wall. ‘Friday. It’s Friday.’ Relief spread through her. ‘He’ll be at work,’ she thought as she called his mobile. It went straight to voicemail. Not to be defeated, she tapped on the office number he’d given her last night.

  ‘Hello, Will Taylor’s phone,’ a female voice at the Star sang out. ‘Can I help you?’

  Ella stumbled on her words. ‘Will … Will Taylor, I’d … I’d like to speak to him, please?’

  She listened as the woman at the other end chuckled. ‘Yeah, you and half of Scarborough, dear. He hasn’t shown up yet. Shall I get him to call you when he comes in?’

  Ella put down the phone and stared at it. ‘Something’s wrong. But what?’ Her mind spun as she continued to gather her things, knowing that Will wouldn’t be so cruel. He wouldn’t walk out on her like this. She was sure that he wouldn’t leave her to wake up on her own, not unless he couldn’t help it. He was a reporter, after all. Maybe he had been called out on a job, but then his office would have known about it. Deep down, disappointment took over her senses and she had no choice but to leave, go back to her own cottage and hope that he got in touch soon.

  ‘Come on, Millie. Let’s go home.’

  Ella stamped around her kitchen. Her mother’s text saying that the new cooker was coming today had reminded her that she still had things to do. Which meant putting all the decorating trays and brushes in the shed and all the smoke damaged items that were still piled up next to the conservatory in the boot of her car. Like it or not, no one was going to do it for her and they were becoming unsightly and needed taking to the tip. The old cooker had already been dragged outside and Ella tried tugging at it some more, but failed. It was simply too heavy. She resorted to pulling open the oven door and emptying it of its shelves, baking trays and the grill pan. After the fire, it was all covered in a thick black carbon that dirtied everything it touched and she dug around for a bin bag and placed them inside. She then began pushing items from the pile into the bin bags. She picked up her old hockey stick. It wouldn’t fit in the bag and was the last thing she wanted to throw away. It reminded her of school, of times when she’d been happy and part of a team, but it had been burned in the fire and with a heavy heart she placed it in the boot, ready to go.

  Satisfied with her work, Ella walked back to the front window and looked out. Will’s car still hadn’t returned. Her heart felt heavy with disappointment. Today should have been a happy day. Today should have been full of fun, of more love-making and of her and Will getting to know each other properly.

  A tear fell down her face. ‘Where are you Will? What made you leave?’

  Chapter Thirty-Four

  Nina stood motionless, looking down at the dry, arid earth. It had been a while since she’d been to this exact spot and she stood with her back against an old oak tree. The leaves created a canopy over the woodland and the light twinkled through the spaces as the sun broke through like shiny diamonds. It was the same tree she’d stood against years before, but now it stood much taller and broader than it used to.

  Nina closed her eyes and tried to remember how the woodland had looked seven years before, and then she opened them wide to scan the terrain. Everything was different. Everything had grown randomly and nothing seemed at all familiar. She strode forward, taking twelve strides from the tree. Saplings, bushes and weeds had grown haphazardly and where once she’d had a direct route, she now had to step to the side, over and around the growth that had sprung up before her. She tried to ignore them. They were not important, not today and she moved around them as though they hadn’t grown at all, as she continued to count her steps.

  It was early, just before nine. The sun was already warm, and the promise of heat brought a haze that surrounded the woodland. Nina watched as the sun rose between the trees, but then she noticed the black clouds far in the distance. Deep inside, her stomach fluttered with nerves as she paced nervously up and down. ‘Where else could I hide?’ She cursed under her breath and kicked at the ground.

  She looked to her right, to the lake. She stared at its fertile edge that rippled as tiny fish came up to eat bugs that hovered around at its surface. The last time she’d been here had been seven years before after a week of torrential rain. The ground had been soft, spongy and easy to dig. She thought of the sound that the spade had made as it had hit the ground. The way the mud had squelched as she’d dug deeper and deeper. With each spade of earth that she’d dug, another had slipped back into the hole, making the night long and arduous, but satisfying.

  Nina looked around. She hated herself for what she’d done here. She hated every image that her mind still created and gazed longingly at the woodland’s beauty, feeling grateful for its protection.

  Nina looked over her shoulder as a truck sped past, making her duck behind the tree. She held her breath. The new road was now located just a few yards from where she stood, much closer than it used to be. Years before it had been a dirt track, only used by the locals. A simple, yet private place where she’d been able to hide for hours, totally uninterrupted. But now, since the diggers had been to work, a new road had been constructed that was used as a short cut from one village to the next or as a through road to the motorway.

  Nina glared at the ground and breathed a sigh of relief. If the road had been created just fifteen feet closer to the lake, the diggers would have exposed her twisted secret and everyone would have known what she’d done.

  She kicked at the earth and stamped her feet as tears began to fall.

  ‘I hate you so much. It’s all your fault.’ She continued to kick at the tufts of grass that grew above where her st
epfather had been buried deep below. Nina took in gulps of air, steadied herself against a tree and then inched her way down, until she lay on the parched woodland floor as though listening for signs of life beneath its surface. ‘They all think you’re still alive, do you know that?’ She laughed, a deep hysterical laugh. ‘I pretend you see. I pretend you call me when I’m at work. Rick tells me off all the time. But at least it gets his attention. At least on those days he knows that I exist. I tell them how cruel you are, how awful my life is.’ She nodded and then kicked out at the tree. ‘I told them how you’d throw me out if I didn’t pay more rent.’ Her hand went up to her dark, greasy hair and pushed it back from her face. ‘But it was all a ruse, you see, I just wanted more hours at the gym, more hours to spend with Rick.’

  ‘This is your new daddy, Nina.’ The memory of her mother’s voice rang out and Nina remembered her five-year-old self looking up to see a big man who wore jeans, but no shirt.

  ‘I certainly am,’ Pete had said. ‘You’ll be fine with me, poppet. I’ll look after both you and your mammy from now on. Don’t you worry.’ He’d looked at her with a smirk, a leery tone that even at such a young age had immediately made Nina feel afraid and awkward.

  Nina turned onto her back and looked up to where the canopy of trees stood above her. She wiped away the tears that ran down her cheeks. She could see his face, the smirk, the sparkle in his eyes and the joy he’d taken in hurting her, abusing her.

  Again her head shook from side to side. Nina closed her eyes as tight as she could. It helped her remember, helped her hone in on the memories of her mother, her childhood and the time before Pete. She liked to remember the time when both her mother and father had been alive, a time when she’d felt loved and protected and that she belonged. Life had been simple back then. She’d been allowed to be a child. But then her mother had died, she’d been left alone to live with Pete and everything changed.

  And now, now she had to cover her tracks. This was a day she hadn’t planned. She had to think on her feet but she was good at that – she’d had to be. Her mouth was dry and she desperately needed a drink. But there wasn’t time. A sudden feeling of nausea hit her. She couldn’t remember the last time she’d eaten and she thought back to Will, to the sandwiches they’d shared. ‘You just had to interfere, didn’t you? Why? Why did you do that? I liked you. You were nice. But now, now I’ve had to get rid of you too.’ She closed her eyes as she waited for the feeling of nausea to pass and then opened them wide to listen and watch the road beyond.

  ‘So many people speeding past, all with someone to go home to. Do you hear them?’ Nina stood up. Her sobs turned to a hysterical cackle as she began to trace the ground with her steps. Four steps in one direction, two steps the other. She traced the edges of the grave with her foot, tried to recall the exact position her stepfather had been in and the way he’d looked when she’d pushed him over the edge and into the hole she’d dug. He’d been drugged, bound and gagged, but his eyes had lit up like candles in the darkness. They’d stared at her, pleaded with her and had filled with tears as she’d thrown the first shovel of dirt over his body. He’d been terrified, just as she’d wanted him to be. But she’d felt no remorse. She’d wanted him to suffer. She’d wanted him to panic, to pray for mercy, to wonder when the torture would end and she’d wanted him to feel that sensation of suffocation as the last of the dirt had fallen on top of him. Just as she’d felt on so many occasions in the past, when he’d drugged her, forced himself upon her, held pillows over her face while she’d gasped for breath and then, once it had been over, he’d promised her the world, if only she kept quiet.

  Nina sat back down and stamped her foot at the ground and thought of all the people she’d killed. ‘If only he’d loved me. If only he hadn’t loved the others. They’d all be alive and me, I’d be happy. Someone would love me.’ She began to shake. She’d known that using the car as a weapon had been a mistake, that it would only be a matter of time before the police or the reporters would put one and one together, before they matched the paint, the car and the fragments from the hit-and-run. She’d known they’d come for her but hadn’t realised that today would be that day. She began to laugh nervously. ‘But I have no regrets … her death was justified.’ She once again stamped on her stepfather’s grave. ‘And you … you were my first, in so many ways, and you got exactly what you deserved.’

  Chapter Thirty-Five

  Ella stood at the gate with Millie in her arms. She watched the deliverymen pull away, just as Bobby pulled into the farm opposite on his tractor. He lifted a hand and cautiously waved, making Ella feel guilty as she waved back. Will had explained what had happened, that Bobby felt lonely. That he was upset and confused that she’d shouted at him. He’d been trying to be helpful. Besides, Ella had noticed that since that day he’d looked very sad, lost and alone.

  She walked across the road with Millie in her arms. ‘Hey, Bobby. Are you okay?’ She still felt a little nervous, as she did of all men. Will leaving without a word had proved to her that all men were capable of anything, even the ones she thought she could trust. But Bobby had done nothing wrong except for in her own imagination. She was sorry she’d shouted and felt the need to try and move forward. If nothing else, she felt the need to apologise.

  Bobby looked excited. He jumped down from the tractor and ran to where Ella stood. ‘Hi, Miss Ella. Can … can I see the puppy?’ Ella nodded and watched how he carefully lifted Millie from her arms and gently hugged her to him. ‘She’s so pretty, isn’t she?’ He snuggled her close to his face and kissed the top of her head, while his fingers tickled her under the chin. ‘She’s grown, haven’t you?’ he said to Millie as he continued to tickle her, the look on his face one of pure love. ‘I’d like a dog. I’d like one to run around with me on the farm.’ He passed Millie back to Ella. ‘But I can’t. I’m the only one here, there’s too much to do and I don’t have time to train one.’

  Ella smiled. ‘Well, if you promise not to sneak up on me, you can come and see Millie sometimes if you like.’

  Bobby almost bounced on the spot with excitement. ‘Can I? Can I really?’ He paced back and forth. ‘I didn’t mean to scare you that day, I was—’

  ‘I know.’ Ella reached out and touched his arm. ‘I know you were trying to help, Bobby, and I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to shout at you.’

  He smiled, reached out and stroked Millie one more time. ‘I saw Will this morning. He went out really early.’

  Ella looked back at the spot where Will’s car had been parked, just as a police car pulled up in its place with Sarah, in uniform, in the driver’s seat. ‘Hey, Sarah, what’s up? I was just going to work.’ Ella saw the stern look on her face, and ran across to meet her.

  ‘Is Will home?’ Sarah asked and began making her way down the side of Will’s house, scanning the gardens.

  ‘Sarah, what’s wrong?’ Ella knew that something wasn’t right. Sarah’s tone was all official, she was in work mode and not her normal bubbly self. ‘Sarah, you’re frightening me.’

  Sarah shook her head, tried the back door and walked in. ‘Will, are you home?’ She walked from kitchen to living room and then doubled back and made her way up the stairs, all the time shouting.

  Ella just stood, watching and wondering what Sarah was up to. ‘Do you want to tell me what’s happening?’ she asked when Sarah reappeared.

  But Sarah shook her head. ‘I don’t know what’s happening. All I do know is that at 7.45 a.m. I had a call from Will and just as I picked up the phone, I heard a noise and then … then it went dead. All attempts to reach him since then have been unsuccessful.’

  She thought about what Bobby had said. ‘He went out really early. Have you traced the call? Looked into where he is, or was?’ Ella felt her legs begin to shake. ‘Could … could he be in trouble?’

  Sarah took her friend by the shoulders. ‘That’s why I’m here. I need to decide if he’s in trouble or not. He might have just called by accident. Can yo
u tell me how he was last night?’

  Ella shook her head, then sat on the settee and told Sarah everything about the night before, including how she’d got up to find Will gone, the messages from her mum and from work, and then she repeated what Bobby had said while Sarah made notes.

  ‘Ella, look. It’s probably nothing and I probably wouldn’t have even looked into it, but Josh said he hadn’t turned in for work, so now …’ She tipped her head from side to side. ‘No worries. Did you say you had to go work?’

  Ella shuffled on the spot. ‘I did. But … but I can’t go … not if Will’s in trouble, can I? I … I need to call him.’ She picked up her mobile and began searching for his number.

  ‘Ella. Don’t. If he’s in trouble, the sound of the phone ringing might make it worse. If I have any news at all, I’ll call you.’ Her eyes caught Ella’s. ‘Now, you go, go and work, and by the time you get home, all will be sorted.’

  Chapter Thirty-Six

  It was midday. Rain had begun to pour relentlessly and showed no sign of stopping. Globules of water bounced like huge gobstoppers from the dark grey sky. They made it difficult to see the other side of the cemetery, never mind recognise anyone that stood more than a few feet away, and Ella found herself holding her hand up to shield her eyes from the water as she peered between the gravestones.

  A priest stood at the head of the grave and, regardless of the weather, was speaking calmly and slowly to a congregation that appeared to be shuffling their feet in anticipation of leaving, going to the club and drinking away the afternoon, all courtesy of Michelle’s parents. Hundreds had turned out to mourn, some who knew Michelle, many who probably didn’t. Most had been members of the gym and had felt the need to attend as a mark of respect. All were dressed in black, all drenched by the rain, and almost everyone appeared to be sinking into the mud with every second that passed.