by Anita Waller
‘They are, but that in itself worries me. When Jenny went – no, when I threw Jenny out – they became good. That sounds strange, but I think they made some sort of pact to protect me, to look after me. Don’t get me wrong, I’m not complaining, I just don’t want to take their childhood away from them and turn them into adults before their time.’
‘So, what do you think about Grace’s possible sighting of Jenny?’
‘I don’t know what to think. But, if she does come back, those letters go straight to the police. She said she wrote them to protect me, as you know, and maybe I could eventually have forgiven her for taking out Ray, but the other two people she killed to make it look like a serial killer …’
Mark finished loading the dishwasher and switched it on. ‘Let’s take a coffee into the lounge.’
As they moved into the other room, Michael glanced down the corridor towards the door that had a sign on it saying Nanny’s Flat, and knew it would stay like that, until maybe one of the children decided they would like it for their own.
They sat, and Michael looked around him. ‘I like this room, despite the memories it holds of that awful day. And it’s so different to mine. It’s time you brought the children over to see me. I am only ten minutes away, you know.’ He smiled. ‘My home is full of antique furniture, very cosy, and yet, it’s such a good atmosphere in here, despite it being modern.’
‘You want my children amongst antique items?’ Mark chuckled. ‘Why do you think this is so minimalistic?’
‘As if I care,’ Michael said. ‘These kids have become very important to me, as you well know, and you’re all very welcome in my home.’
‘That’s kind of what I want to talk to you about. You can say no at any point to what I’m throwing in the ring, but how would you feel about seeing more of them, and helping me out at the same time?’
‘I’m listening.’
‘Since Jenny left for pastures new, I’ve had to cut down my input into the business – I don’t start work until after the school run, and I finish work before the afternoon school run. I’ve managed so far, but the business is growing, and we’ve picked up a massive contract for a town centre job that’s definitely going to require me to be more hands on. And I’ll be honest; I’m looking forward to it.’
‘So, how can I help?’
‘By taking over the school runs for me. And I’m going to offer you the use of Anna’s little apartment we did for her, for whenever you fancy staying over, if you’d like that. It would make it easier if you stayed over during the week, because there’s going to be some early starts for me … am I explaining this right?’
Michael laughed. ‘Would it help if I stayed here Monday to Friday? Do the school runs; I can even work from here whenever I need to. I know I don’t do much now, but I still have a couple of long-term clients who need auditing occasionally. Of course I’ll help, Mark. And will you leave the sign on the door to Anna’s apartment?’
Mark laughed. ‘You’re a proper softie. I wish I’d known you from the beginning …’
‘Oh, so do I, but your mum thought she was doing everything for the best. And until Jenny had that test done, Anna had no definite proof you and Tim were my children.’
‘I know.’ Mark sighed. ‘It just seems like wasted years. I thought I loved Ray, but I didn’t know him at all, did I? I knew he knocked Mum about, but I don’t suppose I ever knew the full extent of that. I can’t feel anything for him now. He’s dead to me.’
‘And how does Tim feel? He had cut himself off from Ray, anyway, he said.’
Mark smiled. ‘Tim is a law unto himself. We look alike, but that’s where it ends. I don’t think he’ll ever move back to England, and when I last spoke to Steve, he said he was going to propose to Tim, so I think they’ll just settle down in Florida and make it their permanent life. I miss him, and I’m sorry you’ll not really get to know him. Ray treated him so badly …’
Michael waited. He was still getting used to having a son who confided in him, especially one who was normally quite reticent. Maybe, just maybe, he was starting to get over the shock of finding out his wife was a triple murderer, and had caused such a major upset on that awful day Anna, his mother, had driven, blinded by blood, straight into a truck.
Mark shook his head, as if to clear his thoughts. ‘So, I haven’t put you in Anna’s place tonight; I’ve put you in the guest bedroom. I’ll ask Joanna to give the apartment a good clean first, because nobody has been in it since Mum ran out of it that day. I cleaned up the blood, but that’s been the extent of it. It’s a Joanna day tomorrow, so I’ll have a word. Her name is Joanna Levy, by the way. I don’t believe you’ve met her yet. I’ll introduce you tomorrow, because obviously, you’ll be seeing a lot more of her, once you start staying overnight. She works Mondays and Thursdays, four hours each day.’
‘Is next Monday soon enough? Or do you need me before that?’
‘You’re a star, Dad. I was so nervous about asking you. Next Monday will be great.’
‘Mark, don’t ever be nervous about asking me anything. I can always say no, if I can’t do it. You’ve asked me this, and I’m saying yes. We’ll only have a couple of years anyway, because they’ll both have moved on to their next schools by then. In fact, Adam moves in September, doesn’t he? How does that work for timings with dropping Grace off?’
‘You’ll have both just until the end of July. From September, it will only be Grace. Adam will be catching the school bus.’
‘Do you feel nervous about this person Grace thought was Jenny?’
Mark hesitated. ‘Extremely. Despite everything she did, Jenny loved her kids. She never truly totally bonded with Adam. But, in view of the circumstances of his birth, I imagine she battled with that constantly. But, Grace, she adored. And that bothers me. The children think she left to go off with another man, but I believe if she spoke to Grace, Grace would respond.’
‘Well, I’ll never be late picking them up, I promise. I’ll keep a look out, but I’m not sure I would recognise her; I only saw her once. If it is her …’
‘I go straight to the police with the letters.’
‘You’ve had them six months, Mark. The police won’t look kindly on that.’
‘You’ve just turned over the mattress in Mum’s place in Sheffield, and found them under that. If we stick to that, they can’t prove any different. In fact, to make doubly sure, we’ll still keep the photocopies at your place, and we’ll take the originals back to Sheffield and put them under the mattress. That way, if there is any evidence to be picked up from the underside, it will transfer to the envelope.’
‘You’re sounding like a criminal.’ Michael laughed. ‘But, you’re right, that does seem sensible. We can “find” them whenever we want, then. I take it we’re still the only two people, apart from Jenny, who know about the letters? You haven’t brought Tim and Caro into the equation?’
‘Definitely not. I couldn’t take the risk they would do the right thing and go to the police. If there had been no Adam or Grace, I would have taken the letters myself and handed them in, but I must protect the children. No, Dad, these awful facts are just known to the two of us. And her, of course.’
Michael finished his coffee, stood and carried both cups to the kitchen. Life suddenly felt better – more time with his grandchildren, and football on television. He smiled and walked back to join his son, once again pushing the letters into the background, hoping they would never have to surface.
3
Sebastian West sat in the car and waited while Jenny walked across the road to the shop. He smiled as he remembered the previous night; they hadn’t had much sleep, but that didn’t seem to matter.
He knew he was falling for her, but she seemed to show very little emotion in return. Three months of being together was a pretty permanent relationship to him, but clearly not to Jenny.
She walked out of the shop carrying a newspaper and a bag of mints. She sank down into the luxuriousness of
the car and sighed. ‘This is so comfortable. Want a mint?‘
He smiled and shook his head. ‘No thanks. So, where shall we go? You choose.’
She thought for a moment. ‘Back to yours? We could go back to mine, but it doesn’t quite have the same ambience.’
He laughed. ‘I thought we were heading out into Derbyshire. A pub lunch seemed to be the words I clearly remember.’
‘You hungry?’ She was clearly flirting with him, and again, he laughed.
‘Not for food. I’ll drive up here and turn around. Back to mine?’
Jenny had never invited him back to her tiny flat, a place she couldn’t afford to decorate, or buy anything to make it look a bit smarter. The flat was part of the plan, and she wanted its location to be a secret.
The only thing she had kept when Mark had told her to leave had been her car, and it cost so much to run it, she had to be careful. Working in the tea rooms was a job that enabled her to claim benefits to top up her salary, but it still wasn’t really enough to live on.
Sebastian’s arrival in her life had proved to be a godsend; they saw each other every day and eating was no longer a problem. She was finding it easier being with him, now, easier to act out her feelings she recognised as being non-existent; easier to act out being false. Committing multiple murders tended to kill emotions.
Seeing Grace at school had strengthened her resolve. She was going to take her back. Money would be an issue, and Sebastian West would be her provider.
That she enjoyed his company was a bonus; it wouldn’t be a lifetime commitment. Once she had finance in place, she would take Grace, and it would be bye-bye Sebastian.
Adam would stay with his father – or his half-brother, as the true relationship between Adam and Mark really was. She had now reached the point where every time she thought about Adam, it brought back the disastrous afternoon when Mark’s father, Ray, had raped her and destroyed her life. Adam’s birth, nine months later, had forced her to constantly relive that memory, but Grace was hers and Mark’s, and she would take her from him.
Her plans were simple; she would stay in her current flat over a shop in Newark, while finalising the details of taking Grace. Once she had Grace with her, she would mother her, make her feel safe, talk to her, and gain her trust.
And she had every intention of using Grace as a lever to come to some sort of arrangement with Mark for the return of the incriminating letters she knew Mark still held, which outlined and detailed the three murders she had committed to disguise the only murder she needed to commit, Ray Carbrook. If Mark handed the letters to the police, she would leave for Europe, with Grace. If he handed over the letters to her, she would give Grace back to him.
Her thoughts constantly roamed and amended her plans, and she was jolted out of her planning when they arrived outside Sebastian’s home.
‘You’re very quiet,’ he said, as he smiled at her. ‘Something on your mind?’
She shook her head. ‘No, just deciding on what colour paint to get to try and brighten the lounge. I’m hoping the owner will say I can do it.’
‘Don’t,’ he said. ‘Forget that place. As far as I can see, you have a couple of options here. Either move in with me, or let’s look for something a lot better for you. I hate to think of you in that grotty little hole.’
And it was as simple as that. A planned beginning.
4
Michael waited at the school gates, leaning against the railings. His eyes never stopped moving, as he watched the arrivals and departures of the parents, scanning every car in the locality for a glimpse of Jenny. It had been clear Grace believed it was her mother she had seen, because she had mentioned it a couple of times on school journeys since.
Michael had tried to reassure her he didn’t think it could possibly be Mummy, but asked her to tell him or Daddy if she saw her again, and not to go across to her, just in case it really was a strange lady who just happened to look like her mother with short, dark hair.
Even Adam had tried to tell Grace it couldn’t have been her; he had seen nothing.
Michael straightened himself as he saw the school doors opening, and searched through the pupils as they ran out into the playground. Grace was one of the first children out, but she stayed at the bottom of the steps, waiting for her brother. When Adam joined her, Michael saw them immediately begin a conversation as they walked across the asphalted yard to find him.
And then, he saw her. She was still driving the same black Fiesta. It stopped a little further down the road, away from the road markings banning parking outside the school. He exhaled slowly, watching for any sign of the car door opening.
Hesitantly, he removed his phone from his pocket and took a photograph of the number plate. The doors remained closed. Grace ran up to him and threw her arms around him; Adam strolled up, far too grown up to show affection. Michael grinned at them both, planting a kiss on Grace’s head. From the corner of his eye, he saw the black car begin to move.
‘Okay, kids,’ he said, trying to hold their attention on him and away from the car driven by their mother. ‘Dad’s not home until late tonight. How do we feel about a McDonald’s and the cinema, after I’ve taken some flowers to Nan’s grave?’
They both cheered, and he was relieved to see the brake lights on the Fiesta briefly flicker, before the car moved out of their sight. He felt sick. What the fuck was Jenny playing at?
He shepherded his grandchildren towards his car and waited until they fastened their seat belts, before going around to his side of the car. He scanned the road once more, in case the Fiesta had only temporarily moved, but there was no sign of it. He breathed a sigh of relief. He wasn’t fazed by the thought of confrontation with the woman – she had been a contributory factor in Anna’s death, after all – but he wanted no problems while the children were there.
He put the car into drive, steering smoothly away from the kerb, his eyes checking everywhere for a small black Fiesta. She had disappeared.
A short time later, he stopped alongside the path that ran parallel to Anna’s headstone. Both children got out and walked with him. Grace carried the flowers – this time, a bouquet of yellow roses. They reached the grave, and Michael’s brain froze. The pink roses he had brought the week before had disappeared and had been replaced with white ones, clearly very fresh so had obviously been in the water only a day or so. He stared, without moving.
‘Granddad Michael?’ Grace looked at him and held out the flowers.
‘Has Daddy been, Grace?’
‘No, he usually brings me.’
Michael picked up the spare glass vase they kept behind the headstone and went and filled it with water. He glanced in the waste cage and saw the pink roses, now looking very bedraggled.
Grace arranged the new yellow roses, and they all stepped back and stood looking at the flowers.
‘So pretty,’ Grace said. ‘Nan would have loved them.’
‘Yes, she would, sweetheart,’ Michael said. ‘Come on, let’s go and leave her in peace.’ He reached forward and touched the headstone. ‘Sleep well, my love.’
They walked back to the car, and while the children were buckling into their seat belts, Michael sat, deeply contemplative. Finally, he put the car into drive, and headed off back to town.
Within ten minutes, he was holding a heavy door open so the children could pass through into the fast food restaurant. They moved to get a table, but he stopped them.
‘No, wait at the counter with me,’ he said. ‘We’ll find a table once we have our food.’ He felt paranoid, but he was in charge of these two very precious individuals, and seeing Jenny had rattled the equilibrium. Had she been the one to bring the new roses? Every instinct said it was her.
Finally seated, they chatted about which film to go and see. Michael sent a text to Mark telling him what he and the children were doing, and they would all be home before eight o’clock.
The response was swift. Have a good time, don’t eat too much popcorn,
and don’t let them bully you. Thanks, Dad, you’re a star.
‘Music or TV?’ Mark was looking in the newspaper for anything worth watching.
‘Neither. We need to talk.’
Mark heard the quiet tone of his father, and looked up. He folded the paper and placed it to one side. ‘You’re fed up,’ he said flatly.
‘What?’
‘I knew I was expecting too much of you, you staying here all week – and look at you, it’s Friday night; you could be going home, but you’re still here. I ask too much of you, Dad.’
Michael gave a short bark of laughter. ‘I’m here, because I want to be here. That’s definitely not our problem. These last three months or so have given me a new lease of life, a new reason to exist. I thought I had lost that when I lost Anna, but here, in her little apartment, I find peace. And the kids … well, they give me joy, Mark, total joy.’
Mark’s face showed different emotions, as he took in what his father was saying. ‘Then …’ His internal light bulb glowed. ‘It’s Jenny, isn’t it?’
Michael nodded. ‘It’s Jenny.’
‘Do we need to “find” the letters under the mattress?’
‘Not yet. Once we have to do that, the children will know their mother is a murderer. No, I saw her, today.’ He picked up his phone from the coffee table, flicked through until he found the picture he had taken and handed it to his son. ‘Is that her registration?’
Mark felt the blood drain from his face. He nodded, unable to speak, and handed it back.
‘Whisky?’ Michael moved across to the drinks cabinet. He poured them both a hefty measure and carried it back to his troubled son.
‘What do we do, Dad?’
‘At the moment, I don’t really know. I think the first thing, Monday morning, we both take the children to school, go in to see that new head teacher, and tell her the only people allowed to pick up Grace and Adam are the two of us. We really must stress that, Mark. We don’t want Jenny turning up with some fictitious dental appointment and spiriting them away. Do we tell the kids?’