by Mel Sherratt
Mum’s best friend owned the cafe so they could sit for an hour over one drink and a piece of cake. Esther had always opted for strawberry milkshake and a chocolate brownie. Even now, if ever she was offered cake, that was her favourite.
In a coffee shop like this one, she could blend into a crowd and yet still be part of life. More often than not, she could get away with a purse or two, maybe a bag but she didn’t mess on her own doorstep, so the clientele in here were safe.
She looked through the window again, an army of people still marching by. And then she saw her, taking slow steps towards the door, as if she didn’t want to come inside. As if she didn’t want to see her.
Esther had never been fooled by Tamara’s attempt to befriend her. She’d known, despite everything, that she’d always thought she was better than her. She’d often caught the odd glimpse of uncertainty; the seeds of doubt being formed in her mind.
But Tamara would do better to remember what part Esther had had in her success. It was she who had made people stand up and take notice of Tamara during the past three months. If it weren’t for her, Parker-Brown PR would have sunk without trace.
She sat up straight, ready for the fight ahead, ready to defend herself wherever necessary. The last meeting between the two of them had been awkward and Esther knew one slip up from either of them and she would be in a lot of trouble.
There was no shying away from this now.
Yet, she didn’t want to alert Tamara to how she was feeling right away. Because the mask that she wore was beginning to slip. Even though Esther was extremely used to hiding her feelings, it was a fine line to balance acting normal for so long. Especially after what had happened last weekend.
###
Steeling herself for what was to come, Tamara took a deep breath and entered the coffee shop. The steamer burst into life, making her visibly jump. Her eyes flicked around, but when they landed on one pair staring at her intently, there was no friendly greeting, no wave, no smile.
The coffee shop was busier than she was used to, even though the early morning rush had dissipated. There were a few groups of teenagers late for college, a couple of mums who had come in after dropping their children at school, and the odd person alone with their thoughts.
She wondered if her life would ever be that carefree again. How she wished she could go back thirteen years to when she was at university, and live her life over. She wouldn’t make the same mistakes, or make the wrong choices.
Forcing her feet to move once more, she made her way towards Esther, her hands tightening their grip around the strap of her handbag to hide the fact they were shaking. Fear washed over her, making her break out in a sweat.
Why had she come here? She should have gone straight to the police this morning, told them everything. Despite her family name, even if they didn’t believe her, they might have looked into what she would tell them. And it might have ensured her safety at least.
Tamara stopped in front of the table. She didn’t know what to say so waited for Esther to look up at her.
Esther spoke eventually, ‘I didn’t think you’d come.’
‘I don’t want to be here at all, but we have things to discuss.’ Tamara’s voice was sharp but there was a croak to it. She coughed, hoping for it to settle. She didn’t want Esther to get the upper hand.
‘Would you like a coffee?’ Esther went to stand up.
‘I’ll buy my own.’ She didn’t offer to get a refill for Esther. Instead, she turned and went to stand behind a man in the small queue.
As she waited to be served, she could almost feel Esther’s eyes burrowing into the back of her. She held on to the counter as she gave in her order, sweat building up on her brow and upper lip. That woman sitting down was supposed to be her friend. Tamara had trusted her. She had confided in her, thinking she was a kindred spirit. Knowing that she too had been hurt in the past, she had told her things she hadn’t told others, not even her own family. She thought she’d understood what Esther had been through, but now she wasn’t sure if what she had told her was all lies about her past.
Esther had fooled her. There had been no friendship on her behalf. Instead, there had been scheming and deceit, lies and misdirection. How could she not have seen through her act? She would never forgive herself for letting her guard down.
She turned as if to look out of the window, keeping Esther in her sight. But no, her head was down. She was tapping away on her phone. How could she sit there and act as if nothing had happened?
Her drink ready, she made her way back to the table. As she sat down across from Esther, she tried to meet her eye. It was time to get everything sorted.
CHAPTER THIRTEEN
Wednesday, 21 June
Tamara placed her hand on the back of her neck before moving her head from side to side. Her lower back was aching so she raised her arms in the air and stretched. She and Esther had been working flat out since they’d had their last meeting with Dulston Publishing.
The clock on the wall said it was nearing 6.00 p.m. It was officially the end of their working week as tomorrow they would be in Ascot and then she was taking Friday off. She’d given Esther the day off too. She was getting bogged down with so many things that she’d felt it necessary. Also, she wasn’t sure she’d be able to resist all the champagne tomorrow and didn’t want to work with a pounding headache.
‘Let’s call it a day,’ she said, closing the lid of her laptop. ‘I don’t know about you but I’m bushed.’
Esther looked over. ‘I haven’t finished the graph that you asked for.’
‘It can wait. Besides, we need to be fresh for tomorrow. Are you looking forward to it?’
‘Immensely.’ Esther shut down her laptop too. ‘It’s very exciting. I bet you’ve been to Ascot lots of times.’
‘Yes, I have, and obviously Jack grew up there.’
‘Oh. I didn’t realise.’
‘Don’t you know who his father is?’
‘No, should I?’
‘Reggie Maitland?’
Esther frowned.
‘He was one of the wealthiest and best-known horse breeders in Ascot.’
‘Really?’
‘Yes, he’s a multi-millionaire. I met him a few times when I was younger. He’s a bit of a tyrant though. Apparently, he’s got a nasty temper. According to my father, he expects everything done just so, and if it isn’t …’
‘Poor Jack,’ Esther sympathised.
‘Indeed.’ Tamara paused. ‘Are you doing anything nice this evening?’
Esther shook her head and sighed. ‘I have a date with the TV.’
‘Do you fancy a glass of something chilled before you leave?’
‘I don’t see why not.’
‘Marvellous. I won’t be a tick.’
Tamara rushed into the kitchen. There was always champagne chilling in the fridge, even if it was a cheaper brand than she’d been used to, so she pulled out a bottle and located two flute glasses. She took out a few small bowls and filled them with munchies: mixed fruit and nuts, cheese sticks and a few olives.
Stretching to the back of a cupboard, she retrieved the multi-pack of crisps that she had always got a stock of. There were two packets left.
With no sense of aplomb, she arranged everything on a tray and took it through to the sitting room.
Esther had moved over to the settee. As Tamara set down the tray on the coffee table, she reached over for a crisp.
‘I’m starving,’ she said, before popping it in her mouth.
‘If you have time, I have a fresh pizza. It would only take ten minutes to cook.’
‘Oh, please, ignore me. I don’t want to put you out.’ Esther put a hand to her chest.
‘I only have a date with the TV this evening too. It would be great to share it with you.’
‘Well, in that case, yes, please. I’d love to.’
Over pizza and champagne, they chatted amicably. Before long it was nearly 8.00 p.m. and they had move
d on to a bottle of wine. Even though the drink was making her feel tipsy, Tamara didn’t want the evening to stop. She couldn’t remember when she’d had a night in, or out for that matter, with a friend. So many of them had slipped away over the past few years.
When they got on to the subject of men and past relationships, Tamara became a little inquisitive.
‘So how come you’re single, Esther?’ she wanted to know.
‘Well, so far I’ve been engaged once, and lived with one man for three years. I thought we would marry and have children eventually but then he left me for another woman, said he didn’t want to marry or start a family and neither did she. They’re married now – with two kids.’
She grimaced. ‘Oh, you poor thing.’
‘No, no—’ Esther shook her head fervently ‘—I think I had a lucky escape. What he was trying to say is that he didn’t really want to be married and have children with me. I’m better off without someone like that.’
‘Would you like to have children?’
‘Yes, one day. How about you?’
Tamara nodded. A silence dropped on the room as they both thought about the question posed.
‘I’ve been on my own for a year now, and even though it’s lonely at times, I like my own company,’ Esther added. ‘The area I live in could be better but my neighbours are okay. I won’t be there for long though. I have my eye on a better place. What about you?’
‘Me?’
‘How come you haven’t been snapped up by some rich bachelor and swept off your feet? You must meet so many eligible men in your line of business.’
‘I suppose I do but I’m not actively looking. I was engaged to a man – Michael Foster.’ Tamara swallowed, trying hard to suppress memories that were bursting to the front of her mind. ‘We’d been together for nine years. We’d made plans to marry, and then, three months before, I found out he’d been having an affair with one of my friends for the past eighteen months.’
Esther gasped and covered her mouth with her hand.
‘I was so upset that I wouldn’t accept it was over, so I …’ Tamara looked away to hide the discomfort clear on her face. It was a few seconds before she turned back to Esther.
‘I kept turning up at the flat – ours at the time, although I’d moved out after I’d found out about his infidelity – and he would say I wasn’t welcome. I tried to get my belongings out of it but he said I needed to have someone with me because he didn’t want to see me on my own. He said he didn’t trust me.’
‘What?’ Esther looked outraged.
‘He wasn’t sure if I would set him up, take things that weren’t mine.’
‘But that’s ridiculous! You wouldn’t do that.’
‘It was all so petty at the time. He was the one who’d had the affair yet I was the one who had to leave the flat and everything I knew. He turned my friends, and most of my family, against me and in the end, I had no one to turn to. He told a pack of lies about me.’
‘That’s diabolical!’ Esther retorted.
Tamara nodded in agreement. ‘I’d never had a serious relationship other than with Michael, and after that I lost my confidence.’ She stopped before she said too much, choosing her next words carefully. ‘I didn’t socialise for a while. It felt good to opt out of society, while I straightened myself out.’
‘I can imagine,’ Esther soothed.
‘But when I was ready to emerge again,’ Tamara continued, ‘I found everyone had moved on. Michael was still with her so I could no longer be part of that circle and I didn’t know many other people.’ She paused, not wanting to tell Esther everything. Some of it was too embarrassing.
‘That’s when I decided to set up my own PR company. I thought I could combine my love of books with something creative. I wasn’t sure if it would work or not but at least I had something to concentrate on. My parents helped me out with funding initially so it wasn’t too much of a gamble. Now I have a few friends but no close ones, not like before.’
‘You have me,’ said Esther.
‘I do, thankfully!’ Tamara grinned. ‘Life is good at the moment. I get lonely at times too, but there is lots to look forward to.’
‘You don’t need a man if you have a good girlfriend to cheer you on.’ Esther prodded herself in the chest and giggled. ‘And doesn’t everyone say that love finds you when you least expect it?’
‘I guess. Maybe it will find me soon then, because I am way too busy to think about men right now.’
‘Hear, hear.’ Esther held up her glass. ‘Let’s hear it for good girlfriends!’
Tamara raised her glass too. ‘Good girlfriends.’
CHAPTER FOURTEEN
Esther had intended going home from work and then out again on the dip but spending time with Tamara had been pure gold. It would have taken her weeks to get all that information about her, lots of which she could use in the future.
Tamara had shown her weak side, her vulnerability. She was lonely and Esther needed to play on that. She had to be the best friend she could. Yet, being so friendly all the time wasn’t easy. It was hard to be around Tamara all the time and not want to snap at her. She was so used to having money that she floundered it, thinking nothing of spending a fortune on a lunch or dinner out. The champagne they’d drunk was over twenty pounds a bottle and it hadn’t even been a special occasion.
But Esther needed money, even though she’d wanted an early night to prepare for the trip to Ascot the following day. Sometimes she hated pickpocketing innocent individuals, but other times, like now, she was aware of the money that was bandied around in the circles she was mixing in and she had to fit in. She didn’t want to keep wearing the same outfits for work but equally she didn’t want to keep dipping into her stash of money or else she’d never have enough to get away.
She decided to hit the crowds for an hour, see if she could nab a wallet or two. It was a nice evening. People would be enjoying themselves, not paying as much attention. There might be some easy pickings to be had.
She walked along Victoria Street, towards Westminster Abbey, the Houses of Parliament, and Downing Street. There would always be pickings there, as long as she was careful. The tourists were still out in their droves. Most of them were looking at the sights, or taking photos, too preoccupied to watch where her hands would be.
Even the tacky stalls with their paraphernalia declaring ‘I LOVE LONDON’ emblazoned on them looked better in the summer. Up above in the distance, she could just about see the top of Big Ben on the horizon. It really was a magical place to live, if you kept your wits about you.
Because she hadn’t been living in the capital for long, Esther wasn’t well-known around the area. And even if she had been, there were plenty of smaller places she could choose from. She didn’t work a regular patch, not anymore. It was too risky.
It wasn’t long before she had what she needed. It was so much easier during the longer evenings in some respects as people were more relaxed. They didn’t have as many places to hide their belongings so would have them on show more. In the same vein, though, Esther didn’t have as many places to hide her pickings.
It had been much better when she had been working in a crowd. There were so many distraction techniques to use. If there were two of you, one could divert a victim while the other dipped into a pocket or a bag. Asking someone for directions, usually with the help of a printed map was a great distraction tactic. So too was dropping coins on the floor, a willing passer by stooping down to help while a partner-in-crime rifled through their bags.
Esther used to work with some of the other girls she’d known if she was desperate for a fix. If she was working with someone and heard a shout behind her, she could pass the stolen goods on to an accomplice so if she was stopped, the bootie was well gone.
Working on her own was more lucrative but twice as dangerous. She would go after easy dips, a jacket over her arm while she popped a hand in a pocket. Or she’d watch for someone on the tube, do the dip just
as they were about to board the train and then stay on the platform while the passenger was oblivious to the fact they’d been robbed.
Esther stopped at a stall selling purses and handbags, eyeing up the tourists who were wandering around unsuspecting of her. She noticed a group coming towards her, schoolgirls of around sixteen years of age. A few words in French wafted her way. She joined in behind them, acting as if she was with them.
Sometimes she had to work for her money, but others it was ridiculously easy. The aisles were so crammed with people that no one noticed her hand sliding into a woman’s open bag, nimble fingers clasping around a purse. She slid it under her arm for a moment, then slipped the strap of her bag off her shoulder and popped it inside.
Hearing no commotion, she let the girls move on, veered to the right, and into a bar. In the toilets, she counted the money. There was two hundred and twenty pounds and seventy-five in dollars. Why tourists walked around with that much money, she would never know.
Esther wasn’t interested in any credit cards. They would be stopped quickly enough, plus she wanted to work on her own. Selling them on would mean involving others. She would pawn anything decent but she much preferred to work in cash.
After dumping the purse in the toilet cistern, she left the bar. Outside there was still a bright and balmy blue sky, and everywhere was so busy because of it. One more hit and she would be done. She walked around looking for prey.
Despite the heat, a loud burst of laughter made goosebumps erupt over her body. She would know that sound anywhere.
Danny Bristol was sitting at a table outside a bar, in front of her. He was with a few other people she knew. They were laughing at something he was saying.
Esther hadn’t got her black wig on to hide behind so she put her head down and turned back, hoping no one would spot her. She quickened her pace, away from the group of people who knew her so well.