by Ruth Mancini
I think about this for a moment. ‘But what about Ellie? She’s supposed to be your friend. Did you even stop to think about her?’
‘Course I did. For a while, when El was inside, I felt really bad and I didn’t know what to do. But then you came along, you and that barrister, and you got her bail, and she seemed more positive after that. She said you were a really good solicitor and that she didn’t think she was going to go down for it. Obviously, I should have told her that Finn’s gran had been coming round to my house, that she had been paying me to stay with Finn, but I didn’t know for sure that Eleanor had done anything to hurt him. All I know is that I didn’t touch that kid, I swear. I never laid a finger on him. I wouldn’t.’
‘What about Darren?’
‘Nor him. I know he hasn’t got a good track record when it comes to hitting me. But most of the time we’d have a fight, he’d thump me one and storm out, most likely round to that bitch Tanya’s house. He never stuck around afterwards, and nine times out of ten, Finn just slept through.’
I fold my arms. ‘That’s not what your neighbour thinks.’
‘You what?’
‘Your neighbour, Mrs Cooper, says that Finn was always crying. She says that you and Darren would come home drunk from the pub, that you’d fight. She says when you looked after the children of families on the estate, she heard you telling them to shut up.’
Marie scowls and chews away at her gum for a moment. ‘She’s such a nosy bitch. She’s making it sound worse than it is.’
I look hard at her and purse my lips.
‘Look, I’m no angel,’ she says. ‘I know that. I have my moments, like everyone else. Yeah, I might have yelled at the kids I looked after a few times when they were getting on my nerves. Who doesn’t? And yeah, when I was with Darren we used to drink too much together. It was a bad relationship and I’m out of it now, I haven’t had a drink for weeks. But she’s making it sound like I’m a monster, and I’m not. I’m no different from anyone else on this estate; everyone left school with no qualifications, no one’s got any money. Everyone smokes and drinks, because you’ve got to have something to make you happy, and you ain’t got much else to do.
‘Most of us are just doing the best we can to get by. People like that Eleanor, they’ve got no idea what it’s like for people like me. She’s got everything, I’ve got nothing. She hasn’t even had to graft for it – she’s had it handed to her on a silver plate. She don’t ever have to lie awake at night, worrying about how she’s going to pay the rent, whether she’s got enough money for the leccy and if she’s going to get cut off. The leccy’s what you worry about because you need it to watch TV, and fuck knows there ain’t nothing else to do round here. The bailiffs come round, because you haven’t paid your leccy; first thing they go for is the TV and then the sofa. What does that leave you at the end of the day?
‘That rich bitch, she don’t have to worry every time her old man steps out the front door. She don’t need to be looking out for the dealers that hang around the estate, worrying if her old man’s going to end up a junkie, or even worse, a dealer like them, and whether he’s going to get into a fight and end up with a knife in his back.
‘The only person I know on this estate that’s ever had any money is El, and look what she had to do to get it. I’m not having a go at her, because that’s what it’s like for people like us. The only way most of the people round here can ever think of getting a foot on the ladder, getting out of this shit hole, getting a head start in life, is to sell their body, sell drugs or nick other people’s stuff. There ain’t no other way for the likes of us. There’s no magic wand that’s going to make all our dreams come true. Working in Costcutter for the minimum wage ain’t gonna cut it. And then you see people like her, that Eleanor, who’ve got everything. Everything. You can’t blame people for wanting a bit of what she’s got. You can’t blame them for getting angry from time to time, for kicking off or shouting at their kids or at each other. You can’t blame them for thinking life’s unfair.’
I listen to her in silence for a moment. ‘I do understand that, Marie. I do understand what it’s like. But a child got injured, possibly poisoned, while he was in your care. You admit you were drunk when you were supposed to be looking after him. And Darren, he had people knocking on the door, looking for drugs.’
Marie puts her head in her hands. ‘I know. But that’s in the past, I swear. I want to make a new start, now, do things properly. Doesn’t everyone deserve a second chance?’
I open my bag and take out my notebook. I root around in the bottom for a pen. ‘Well, that depends,’ I say.
Marie looks up at me. ‘On what?’
‘On whether they’re prepared to help repair the damage they’ve done. To do the right thing.’
Marie rolls her eyes towards the ceiling and looks out of the window at the sky that’s already darkening around us. She gets up off the sofa and walks past me to slide shut the balcony door. She walks across the living room and out of the door. ‘I’m going to put the kettle on,’ she says.
I get up and follow her into the kitchen. ‘I want you to give evidence for Ellie,’ I say.
Marie picks up the kettle and walks over to the sink. She turns the tap on and fills the kettle, then continues to make tea, taking cups and teabags out of the cupboard, her back to me all the while.
‘The trial starts on Monday,’ I say. ‘The prosecution have to present their case first, so you probably won’t be needed until later in the week. In the meantime, I’ll need to take a witness statement from you.’
Marie continues to ignore me for a moment. She places her hands on the worktop, takes a deep breath and sighs heavily.
Eventually she turns round and nods towards the kitchen table.
‘You’d better sit down then,’ she says.
20
The snow has gone by Monday, but the temperature has fallen to below zero. There’s ice on the pavements outside the Old Bailey and, inside, the stone and marble hallway is cold. There are butterflies in my chest as I push open the old wooden door to Court One and peer into the courtroom. At ten o’clock, Judge Collins will take his seat in the huge chair up in front of me, ready to hear last-minute submissions before the jury is sworn in and the prosecutor makes her opening speech. But the biggest item on the agenda for me and Will this morning is how we are going to deal with my relationship with Jay Barrington-Brown.
I find Will in the canteen, where he’s seated at a table talking to Carmel Oliver. As soon as I enter, they both turn to look at me, and I can see that Carmel knows. I glance around the room. Does anyone else know? Am I being gossiped about? I can hardly blame them; I know how it looks. I can just imagine what Matt and Lucy are going to be saying when they hear that I’ve been sleeping with my client’s ex-partner, the father of the victim in a major Crown Court trial.
Will ends his conversation with Carmel and walks over. He indicates that I should follow him back along the corridor to Court One and into an adjacent alcove. He sits down at the table and waves me into the seat opposite.
‘Are you OK?’ he asks. ‘You look pale.’
‘I’m OK,’ I tell him. ‘What did Carmel say?’
He presses his lips together. ‘Well, as far as you and Jay Barrington-Brown are concerned, she says that it’s a matter that’s between you and your client and that it’s none of her business, and actually she’s right. But she did tell me that Jay was released on bail on Saturday...’
I sigh. ‘Yes, I know. I spoke to the desk sergeant. He’s got a condition not to contact me and Ben.’
Will nods. ‘Well, there’s been a development since then.’
‘What development?’
‘He’s been sectioned.’
I look at him in shock. ‘What?’
‘Jay Barrington-Brown has been detained under section two of the Mental Health Act. It happened last night.’
I immediately feel a combination of relief and bewilderment. At least tha
t’s one thing to tick off my list of concerns this morning – I don’t have to stop myself from phoning the school every couple of hours to check that Ben’s still there. But, on the other hand, I’m surprised.
‘He must have gone downhill pretty badly,’ I say. ‘I mean, I knew from what he did to Ben that there had to be something not right with him, mentally, but if they had to have an urgent assessment, there and then, at the police station—’
‘It wasn’t the police,’ Will interrupts me. ‘It was his family. They organised it themselves, apparently, after the police let him go. They must have found two doctors to assess him and certify that he was unwell...’
‘Unwell enough to be locked up?’
‘It would seem so, yes. But in spite of what happened to Ben, Carmel says there’s no evidence that he harmed Finn. Also, he had an alibi for the twenty-fifth of July, when Finn’s dialysis line was removed. He was at the Ivy with his father all evening, until late. The club was full. He was seen by several staff members there, not to mention family friends. As far as the prosecution against Ellie is concerned, it’s business as usual, I’m afraid.’
I shake my head. ‘But it wasn’t him. It was his mother.’
Will frowns and takes his glasses off.
‘It was his mother,’ I repeat. ‘Eleanor Barrington-Brown. She’s Dr Kent. The Dr Kent. Will, I told you this already. Finn’s in danger; big danger. He’s being released from hospital tomorrow, to her. And if Ellie goes down for this, it will be case closed. They could move away, anything. No one might ever know if anything happens to Finn.’
Will rubs the inner corner of each eye with one finger. ‘But how do we know for sure that it was her?’ he says. ‘And more importantly, how do we prove it?’
‘With Marie,’ I insist. ‘We put her on the stand. Once the jury’s sure that Eleanor’s the one who injured and poisoned him, everything else will add up.’
Will heaves an enormous sigh. ‘And what’s her motive? Why would Eleanor want to kill her own grandson?’
‘Because she’s a nutcase! Because Finn’s Ellie’s son and – contrary to what she’d have everyone believe – she despises Ellie. Because Ellie and Finn are standing in the way of her plans for her son to marry into the best family they can find.’
Will sighs again.
‘Will?’ I look him directly in the eye. ‘You told Carmel about Marie, right? You told her that we have new evidence that Eleanor was with Finn the first time he almost died?’
Will looks uncomfortable. ‘Yes. But she doesn’t accept it.’ He pauses and his eyes meet mine. ‘The thing is, Sarah, Eleanor has been spoken to by the police and she denies that she ever visited Marie. She’s made a counter-statement to the police about Ellie. She’s going to give evidence against her. Heather Grainger’s statement looks positively benign by comparison. She’s accusing Ellie of everything under the sun – of being careless with Finn, emotionally detached from him, shouting at him – you name it, it’s there. She’s told the police that she didn’t come forward before out of loyalty to Ellie, but that she now feels morally obliged. Carmel says Marie will have to give her evidence and the jury will have to decide who to believe – Marie or Lady Barrington-Brown. She says Marie’s account is devoid of any motive to harm the child on the part of Eleanor Barrington-Brown, and that it’s just the kind of story that you’d expect the defendant and her best friend to concoct together out of desperation two days before the trial.’ He pauses. ‘Carmel’s right. The jury just aren’t going to believe that she’s done this, Sarah.’
I look at him in bewilderment. I try to think who else there is who might back up Marie’s story. Mrs Cooper and her dodgy ticker are out. Darren and his friends? No way. There is no one else. It was their little secret, after all. Even if there was someone else on the estate who witnessed Eleanor’s presence there, there’s barely any time left to find them – and even less prospect of getting them to give evidence against her if I did.
Will sighs heavily. ‘It gets worse, I’m afraid. Eleanor says that Jay is very unwell, that they’d suspected it for some time. She says she was shocked to hear that he’d been in a relationship with Ellie’s lawyer, but that she doesn’t believe you didn’t know who he was.’ Will pauses. ‘She’s blaming you. She’s accusing you of professional misconduct. I’m told that... that she’s going to report you to the SRA. She says that Jay is very vulnerable and she believes that you... well, she thinks you seduced him.’
My heart skips a beat. ‘She... she thinks that I... what?’
Will takes a deep breath. ‘She thinks that when you met Jay, you knew exactly who he was.’
‘But, why? Why would I...?’
‘She’s saying you were after his money.’
I gaze at Will, open-mouthed for a moment. ‘But Jay will confirm that...’ I tail off. Jay’s just been sectioned. Jay is deluded, mentally unstable. Nobody is going to believe anything he says. I put my head in my hands. ‘Oh God.’
I can hear the tannoy sounding outside the courtroom. There’s a tinny hum ringing in my ears at the same time, which makes the tannoy sound distant and surreal.
Will gets up. ‘Sarah, I’m sorry. I need to go into court. Why don’t you stay here for the moment? I’ll make our application to the judge for more time and I’ll come straight back.’
I look up. ‘What are you going to say?’
‘I’ll be discreet, don’t worry.’
I nod. He’ll be making his application in open court. There will be reporters there. I hope he doesn’t have to tell the judge too much. I hope the press don’t get wind of this.
I watch as he gathers his papers and steps out from behind the table and across the hallway.
‘Will?’
He turns to face me.
‘Do you believe me?’ I ask. ‘That I didn’t know that Alex was Jay Barrington-Brown?’
Will looks at me for a moment and then shakes his head. He says, ‘Do you really need to ask me that, Sarah? Of course I bloody do.’
I wait in the alcove with my head in my hands, the true weight of what I’ve just been told sitting like a brick inside my stomach. This has all worked out way too conveniently for Eleanor. Jay’s the only person who can verify my story and she’s had him taken out of the way, declared mentally unfit. In one fell swoop she has both made it difficult for him to tell anyone the truth of what happened between us, and has also ruined his credibility if he does. I’m not a doctor, but I’ve dealt with enough mentally ill clients to know the difference between those that need help and those that are so unwell that they need to be locked up and medically treated against their will.
The stark reality of what I’m up against is finally dawning on me. Marie’s words ring in my ears: She just twisted everything and turned it back on us, basically... if you cross her, it’s like she’s going to destroy you, annihilate you... She said she knew people in high places, judges and doctors and that, people ‘who could make things happen’. No doubt Eleanor knew two doctors who were prepared to help her remove Jay safely out of the way for the duration of Ellie’s trial. For the first time, I understand properly what it was that Marie was trying to tell me: that Eleanor Barrington-Brown is a dangerous woman who will stop at nothing to get what she wants.
A shadow looms over me and I jump out of my skin.
It’s Ellie. She looks sensational. She’s wearing a smart black trouser suit and a crisp white shirt. Her hair is coiled up on top of her head in an elegant French twist. Her lips are painted a delicate baby pink and she has black eyeliner round her eyes, but not too much.
She takes a step back. ‘You OK?’
I nod slowly, catching my breath.
‘Sorry I’m late,’ she says. ‘Where’s Will?’
‘He’s in court,’ I tell her. ‘Trying to buy us some more time. Come and sit down.’
She slides into the seat opposite me. ‘I’m really sorry, Sarah. I know you said to be here early. I got held up.’
‘That�
�s OK,’ I tell her. ‘In fact, it’s me who should be saying sorry to you. I have something important I need to tell you.’
‘I already know.’ She opens her handbag and takes out a tube of lip gloss. ‘Marie told me everything. And you don’t need to say sorry. I’m really glad you did what you did. If it weren’t for you, pushing her...’ She tails off and shakes her head, sorrowfully.
‘You must be pretty angry,’ I say. ‘That she had evidence all along that could have helped you and she kept it from you.’
Ellie purses her lips and runs the lip gloss over them before screwing the cap back on. ‘We spent all day yesterday talking it through. I’m still angry with her, and she knows it. But she was scared of Eleanor, and I don’t blame her for that. Look what that bitch has done to me. I often wondered if that had been her plan all along, to take Finn off me, but I never thought for one minute that it was her who tried to kill him and frame me instead. I’m scared now, really scared. What if she hurts him again?’
‘She’s not that stupid,’ I say. ‘She won’t do anything when she’s in the spotlight like this, especially now...’ I stop myself. I was going to say, ‘especially now that Jay’s been arrested for drugging my son’ but that’s not the best way to start the conversation I need to have with her next. I sigh heavily. ‘Ellie, I need to talk to you. There’s something more. Something important.’
‘What? What is it?’
The door to the courtroom opens and Will walks over. ‘Hello, Ellie. Good. We’re all here.’ He turns to me. ‘Fortunately, I didn’t have to make my application. There are some exhibits missing from the jury bundles and the prosecutor needs a bit of time to get them brought to court.’ I breathe a sigh of relief. At least, for now, my humiliation has remained out of the public arena. ‘The judge has given us an hour,’ Will says. He turns to me. ‘How far have you got?’