by Sue Fortin
‘He was your drug supplier.’
‘You make it sound like the Bronx,’ muttered Neve. ‘When they carried out a post-mortem on Megan, they found traces of cocaine in her bloodstream. They said she must have taken it just before her death and they attributed that to her drowning. She was too high on drugs to save herself.’ Neve wiped tears from her eyes. ‘Lee supplied it. He was there that day on the beach. It’s what we argued about and why I wouldn’t come out of the sea. I didn’t want to be around them. Megan was coming in the water after me and I just kept going further and further out. The next thing I knew, I was caught in the riptide.’
‘Oh, Neve.’ Kit dropped to his knees in front of her. ‘How awful for you. What about Lee, didn’t he help?’
‘Lee had disappeared by the time I got out of the water and managed to get help. No one other than the three of us knew he was there. I didn’t tell a soul. I didn’t want to get him into trouble.’
‘You covered for him?’
‘He was my friend. I was only eighteen. I thought it was the right thing to do. He would have gone to prison if they knew he had supplied Class A drugs. He might even have been done for manslaughter.’
Kit screwed up his eyes as he processed all the information. ‘He was your supplier. The one you wouldn’t give up when your sister died. I’m guessing he probably supplied you with coke after what happened with Jasmine. And despite getting you caught, you wouldn’t give him up then either?’
‘I couldn’t. It felt disloyal to Megan. He was her boyfriend. She really loved him.’
‘And you kept all this from me.’
‘I couldn’t tell you. I was so ashamed. I didn’t want you to know what I was like back then.’
‘And when he turned up, your long-lost friend, it was a coincidence?’
‘Yes. Totally. But he’s not my long-lost friend,’ said Neve. ‘We fell out.’
‘How come?’
She bit down on her lip and brushed a tear away from her cheek. ‘After the court hearing, I told him I didn’t want anything to do with him again. I was getting myself straight. He came round to the house one night when Scott was out. He thought he could persuade me to change my mind.’
‘Persuade you?’
‘He was high. He didn’t know what he was doing or saying.’
‘Still making excuses for him, covering for him,’ said Kit, agitated by the remark.
‘He thought I could be to him what Megan had been. He tried it on, but I managed to fight him off. I threatened to go to the police, name him as the supplier and have him arrested for attempted rape if he didn’t leave me alone.’
She wiped more tears from her face, but Kit could see a steely determination in her eyes as she recalled the events.
‘And did he leave you alone?’
‘Yeah. Soon after that Scott and I separated and I came to West Sussex,’ said Neve. ‘When he turned up in Ambleton, it was like revisiting an old nightmare.’
Any anger Kit had felt towards his wife for the latest disclosure evaporated as a wave of empathy washed over him. Christ, she’d been through so much and he’d had no idea. ‘You poor thing,’ said Kit, holding her. ‘I wish you’d told me all this.’
‘It was too painful. It still is.’
He held her in his arms for several minutes, as his mind churned over the information and the implications. Gradually, it came to him what he needed to do.
‘Why don’t you go and have a nice long soak,’ he said. ‘Get into bed for a while. Mum’s going to pick Poppy up again and bring her home.’
‘We could get her ourselves,’ said Neve, composing herself once more.
‘Let Mum get her,’ said Kit. ‘Mum can stop for a bit of tea. I know things have been a bit tense between you two, but I think we’ve all been under exceptional strain. Things are bound to get a bit tetchy.’
‘I really don’t want to fall out with your mum,’ said Neve. ‘Like you say, it’s not exactly been easy around here lately.’
‘Right, you go and have a soak. I’ve got a few things to do. I’m going to speak to Edward and put him in the picture. Don’t be worrying now, I promise you everything is going to be OK. I’ll go run your bath for you.’
‘Kit,’ said Neve, as he reached the door. ‘What did Edward phone you about just now?’
‘He was letting me know that Jake had died,’ said Kit. ‘He didn’t want me on the back foot. I didn’t tell you because there wasn’t really time and I needed your reaction to be natural, not forced. I knew you’d be upset.’ Kit left the room. If he thought about Neve feeling upset about Jake too much, he’d end up saying something he’d regret.
Once Neve was submerged in a froth of bubbles, with the gentle tones of classical music playing in the background, Kit went downstairs. He scanned the living room and spotted what he was looking for down the side of the chair – Neve’s handbag.
He took out her mobile phone and checked the contact list but couldn’t see what he was looking for. Undeterred, he rifled through Neve’s bag until he found the small black pay-as-you-go mobile hidden in the inside pocket. He was pretty certain it was the one they’d first bought for Poppy before his mum had bought the smart phone for her. He looked at the contacts list. Only one number was listed. Kit made a note of it and replaced the phone in the bag.
Then going into the kitchen, from under the sink, Kit retrieved a Stanley knife. Making sure there was a blade in place, he slipped it into his pocket.
Lastly, he went into the living room and took a photo album from the shelf, where he selected a picture of Poppy taken earlier in the year. He slid it out from the place holder and put it in his pocket, along with the knife.
Taking his keys and jacket, he left the house, calling out to Neve that he was just taking Willow for a walk.
It had been a long time since Kit had used a telephone box to make a phone call but the one at the end of the village was still in use and hadn’t yet been turned into a book library or transplanted into someone’s garden. Although judging by the smell, some of the locals had used it as public convenience. He supposed he ought to be grateful no one had thrown up in it recently. Using the cuff of his sleeve he picked up the receiver and tapped in the number with the end of his pen.
It took two attempts before the call was answered.
‘It’s Kit Masters,’ he said.
‘Who?’
‘You know who I am.’
‘What do you want?’
‘I want to talk to you … before the police do,’ said Kit.
‘Why would I want to do that?’
‘Because it will be in your interest. Financial interest.’ Kit waited while his words were considered.
‘I’m not local.’
‘Tell me where you are and I’ll drive to you.’ Kit cast the details to memory. He didn’t want to write anything down. ‘See you in an hour,’ he said before hanging up.
It took less than an hour to drive to Brighton. As agreed, Lee was sitting on the shingle beach directly under the i360, the two hundred and forty foot high glass observation attraction situated on Brighton seafront.
‘What’s so important that you wanted to see me?’ said Lee, chucking stones at a discarded beer can ahead of him on the beach. ‘I got the distinct impression last time I saw you that you wanted to kill me.’
Kit remained standing, looking out at the grey-blue sea and the white crashing waves. The wind was blowing hard this afternoon and the tide was on its way in. ‘I may still want to,’ he said.
Lee got to his feet and stood next to Kit. ‘Nah, you don’t look like the killing type.’
‘Never judge a book by its cover.’ Kit checked his watch. He didn’t want to get caught in the traffic heading home. From his pocket, he took out the glass vial he’d found on the boat and held it out in the palm of his hand. ‘Recognise this?’ He studied Lee’s face for a reaction. There was the faintest glimmer of recognition, so fast that if Kit hadn’t been looking out for it, he may have missed it
completely.
Lee gave a shrug. ‘No. What is it?’
‘Know anything about GHB?’ said Kit, putting the vial back in his pocket.
‘There’s GBH and there’s ABH. I don’t know the difference between the two. But I’m not sure I’m familiar with GHB.’
‘Don’t piss me about,’ said Kit, his voice dropping a level.
‘You seem to know more about it than me,’ said Lee, bending to pick up his rucksack.
Kit grabbed the sleeve of the man’s coat. ‘This came from you,’ he hissed into Lee’s ear. ‘You gave this to Neve, didn’t you?’ It was a bit of a punt. Kit didn’t know for definite it had come from Lee, but in light of Neve’s confession earlier, he was inclined to take a chance on being right.
Lee tried to free his arm, but Kit held fast and spoke again. ‘All it will take is one phone call from me, and the police will be on your arse. Do you want that?’ He gave Lee’s jacket a shake. ‘They’re very interested in you, looking for you in connection with Poppy’s disappearance and Jake’s murder. Oh, sorry, didn’t you know about that? Shame. He died last night in hospital.’
It did the trick. The look of alarm on Lee’s face told Kit he now had him where he wanted.
‘Jake’s dead?’ Lee stopped fighting, his body slumping. And then he looked wildly at Kit. ‘I had nothing to do with his death. Nothing. You can’t make out it was me.’
‘I don’t have to. That’s the police’s job.’ Kit let go of Lee’s jacket. ‘Shall we start again? Did you or did you not give this to Neve?’
‘She asked me for it,’ said Lee. ‘Neve asked me if I could get her some.’
‘What did she want it for?’ Kit felt his world shifting under his feet. Every suspicion and fear was being realised. Neve was mixed up in Poppy’ disappearance. He somehow managed to quell the explosion of outrage inside him. He looked to Lee for a response.
‘She didn’t say and I didn’t want to know.’
‘Where did you get it from?’
‘I know people who know people. You can get anything you want at The Forum. You just have to ask the right person.’
‘I’m asking this man to man,’ he said, looking Lee straight in the eye. He paused, taking a moment to steady the adrenalin which was already surging through him at the prospect of what the answer might be. ‘Did you take my daughter from the boat?’
‘Me? No—’
Kit interrupted. ‘Think very carefully before you answer.’
‘Fucking hell,’ muttered Lee, rubbing the top of his head with his hand.
‘I’m not going to do anything. I just need to know.’ Kit took out his wallet and opened it, flashing a wad of twenty-pound notes he’d withdrawn from the cash point on his way over.
Lee gulped, his Adam’s apple bobbed in his throat. He looked up at Kit and then back to the money. He drew his hand across his beard and gave a low whistle. His eyes met Kit’s.
‘No. I didn’t. Why would I get involved with something like child kidnap?’
Kit didn’t believe him for a second. Lee was a lying scumbag. Kit maintained a poker face as he took out two hundred pounds and held it out to the Welshman, who went to snatch at it eagerly. Kit held onto the notes.
‘Not so fast,’ he said, taking a step closer to Lee so that his face was only inches away. ‘I suggest you fuck off away from here. Far, far away.’ He paused. ‘In fact, I think it would be in your interest if you disappeared altogether.’
Chapter 37
Her body slipped and water sloshed over her face, racing up her nostrils and filling her ears. For a split second, Neve had visions of Kit’s boat overturning and a scene not dissimilar to the movie Titanic flashed in front of her. The remainder of the second had her sitting up and spluttering as she spat bath water out of her mouth.
She must have nodded off. She had no idea how long she’d been lying in the bath, but the water temperature was several degrees lower now. She shivered not just from the chill but from the thought of Kit’s boat.
She padded through to the bedroom and sat down on the edge of the bed and once again unbidden thoughts of Blue Horizon were thrown to the fore of her mind like a ship being tossed by stormy weather towards jagged and dangerous rocks. Neve wasn’t sure who the rocks represented – Pearson or someone closer to home?
Snatches of memories breached the crested waves. Scenes that she would have once watched from her vantage point of being able to remove herself from her actions as her braver and bolder sister played them out.
Neve slipped down below deck, leaving Kit and Poppy sitting at the rear of the boat on the cushioned seats which lined the sides of Blue Horizon. She was going to make them all supper. A simple meal of cheese and crackers, some smoked salmon, and because Poppy didn’t like to deviate from her regular food groups, she had a tuna sandwich on granary bread for the fourteen-year-old.
Neve could hear Poppy and her father talking. They were watching the sun set and discussing the various shades of orange, yellow and pink which spread across the sky like a pastel colour palette, sloshed with water.
Neve’s hand shook a little as she dipped into her bag and retrieved a small vial with a cork stopper. It was an audacious plan, but the stakes were high and she was prepared to take the risk. It was her last chance to make Kit change his mind about a baby. If this failed then she would have to resort to plan b and plan b was in the form of Jake.
‘How’s that glass of wine coming along?’ Kit called down to her.
‘Just opening the bottle now.’
Neve poured two glasses of wine. She would wait until later before lacing the drink with the GHB. Lee assured Neve that she only needed a couple of drops to make Kit compliant and all she had to do was to get him into bed within a few minutes of taking it.
Neve took two glasses of wine and a lemonade up to Kit and Poppy. She sat beside Kit and they chinked their glasses together.
‘To happy days spent on the water,’ said Kit.
Neve echoed the toast and Poppy pulled a face but they both knew Poppy was in her element here on the boat.
Neve fetched the supper and watched as Kit tucked into the food and drank his wine. He was happy and relaxed. His guard was down, exactly how Neve needed it to be.
Neve closed her eyes at the memory. It had been such a risk but one she had been willing to take. A means to an end. Make or break. It had to be done.
Neve dried herself and picking up her watch she checked the time. She went to the top of the stairs and called out to Kit but was met by silence. He’d been gone a long time just to take Willow for a walk. Mulling over the various reasons Kit could be gone so long, Neve dressed and went downstairs to make herself a drink.
She tried watching the television for a few minutes, but channel hopped her way through every single station, not finding anything of any interest and ended up switching it off again. It was then she noticed her handbag at the side of the sofa where she had left it the night before. That in itself wasn’t unusual but what did surprise her was the fact that the zip was undone. She never left her bag open.
Absentmindedly she drummed her fingers on the arm of the chair as a small flutter of nerves gave rise in her stomach. Someone, i.e. Kit, had been in her bag. There was no other explanation.
The phone!
Neve sprang across the space between the armchair and sofa, snatching up her bag. Her hand dived between the opened zip and sought out the side pocket. Relief extinguished the nerves. Her phone was still there. She plucked it from its hiding space and checked for any missed calls or messages. There were none. She wasn’t expecting any. It was only Lee who had this number and they had agreed not to contact each other again unless it was an emergency. Neve replaced the phone, but still felt uneasy about her bag being open. It was bothering her and as much as she tried to reason or convince herself that she could possibly have left it open, the doubts just wouldn’t abate.
It was like a self-perpetuating emotion. The more she tried to ignore
it, the more anxious she became. The anxiety sending her straight back to the chain of events. She closed her eyes and shook her head. She didn’t want to revisit those thoughts. She was frightened if she went back there too often, her carefully constructed compartments of thought might start to bleed out into each other.
She tried to think of other things but the image of the boat that evening, just kept on coming back.
‘It’s getting a bit chilly now,’ said Kit. ‘Shall we go below?’
He stood and began folding his blanket without waiting to see what anyone else wanted to do.
Neve looked across at Poppy. ‘Want to go down into the cabin?’
‘No.’
Neve gave an inward sigh. Her mistake. She should know by now, never to ask Poppy a closed question when trying to cajole her into something. ‘Well, it’s getting cold and we should think about settling down for the night soon.’
‘Come on, Poppy,’ said Kit, lifting the blanket from his daughter’s legs. ‘Look, Willow is waiting by the door already. Even she thinks we should go below.’ Right on cue, Willow gave a whine and wagged her tail.
‘I’ll make you a hot chocolate,’ said Neve, knowing that would probably do the trick. She had never known Poppy to refuse a hot chocolate.
‘With marshmallows?’ asked Poppy.
‘Yep and whipped cream,’ tempted Neve. It was the deciding factor and with the possibility of an argument averted, they all went below deck to the saloon.
Willow immediately made herself comfortable in the sheepskin-lined dog basket while Poppy hovered behind Neve, observing the hot chocolate preparations taking place.
‘Sit down and I’ll bring it over,’ said Neve, looking directly at Poppy. She didn’t want an audience for what she was about to do.
With a sulk and a scuff of her feet, Poppy did as Neve asked and positioned herself on the edge of the bench.
Neve turned so her back was to the rest of the saloon. Kit was sitting on a two-seater bench, his feet on the little footstool and the newspaper open on his lap. From her pocket Neve discreetly took out the vial. She paused. There was still time to back out. She lined the notion up with her motive. No. She needed to do this. She needed to put Kit through this. He had to feel the pain that she felt. He had to feel the utter hopelessness that she did. She had to make him change his mind.