by M A Comley
It was a tough one to call, and she felt the wrath of Ethan Romero when the conference aired. “How dare you make out that our son is with this woman and is out on some kind of jolly with her?”
“I’m sorry, it was the only thing I could think of to get Megan to respond. If I had told the public that she’d kidnapped Matthew, there’s no telling how Megan would have reacted. This way, I know I’m taking a gamble, but I’m hoping it’ll pay off. Family is everything to her, it’s unfortunate that her uncle and her brother have ended up in hospital, but I think that will work in our favour. All I’m asking is that you trust me on this one. There are many ways to skin a rabbit.”
“It’s cat,” he snapped back.
“I know, but I never like to think of a cat being skinned so I adapted the saying.”
Ethan grunted. “Whatever. If you screw this up, I’m warning you, you’ll be personally hearing from my solicitor, got that?”
“I’m doing my very best to ensure that doesn’t happen, sir. Was there anything else?”
“No. Keep me informed, if you don’t mind.”
“Of course I will. Have faith in my methods. I’m not guilty of doing things willy-nilly, I promise you.”
He responded by slamming the phone down in her ear. “Bloody charming!”
Charlie leaned against the doorframe of her office. “What a dickhead. If it’s any consolation, I think you’ve made the right call.”
The phone rang again and Katy answered it. “DI Foster, how may I help?”
“How are they?”
Katy shot a glance at Charlie and ordered her to take a seat, then she put the phone on speaker. “Megan, is that you?”
“Yes,” a timid voice responded. “How are they?” she repeated.
“I haven’t checked since they were taken to hospital. Do you want to see them?”
“Yes, but I can’t. You’ll arrest me if I show up there.”
“We won’t, I promise. Come and see them, I’ll meet you there. Your aunt could do with the support. She’ll be torn in two down there, not knowing who to sit with for the best.”
“Poor Auntie Gail. I never meant for them to get hurt.” Her voice trailed off.
“Who? The men or your family?”
“My family. We’ve all been through a hellish existence since the accident. Daniel appears to be getting worse, at least that was my perception over the last few months. I needed to right the wrongs that had been committed.”
“I totally understand the anguish you must have been carrying all these years, Megan. What about Matthew, where is he?”
“I haven’t hurt him, if that’s what you’re thinking. I wanted to see that man suffer, the way my family has suffered over the years.”
“The men were sent to prison, Megan. That was their punishment in the eyes of the law.”
Megan grunted. “A few measly years behind bars and you think that wipes out the memories of seeing my parents lying in the car, dead? And also living each day with the consequences of the crash that my brother has to endure? It doesn’t, nothing can make up for that, not even killing those bastards. I thought I’d feel better, but I don’t. All it’s done is compound my misery. My life is hell, but it’s nothing to what my brother has to contend with day in, day out. No one cares about him, except for my aunt, uncle and myself.”
“It might seem like that, but I assure you there are people out there who care about what matters to Daniel, I’m one of them. I was at the house, speaking with your aunt and uncle when they both fell ill.” Katy noticed Charlie had closed her eyes and was shaking her head slightly. Katy realised then what a mistake it had been to inform Megan of that fact. She braced herself for a tongue lashing.
“What? You were there? Were you harassing them? You caused them to take a turn for the worst.”
“No, it wasn’t like that at all, I promise you. Your relatives asked why we are looking for you, the truth had to come out. Once they heard what you were guilty of, it knocked your uncle for six.” Katy did her best to turn the tables on Megan, praying the guilt would make her drop her guard and surrender.
“In other words, you’re telling me all this is my fault.”
Katy rolled her eyes up to the ceiling. “No, I’m not saying that. I think it was a combination of things and the stress of the situation got to your uncle.”
“And Daniel. What’s wrong with him? I knew he was ill. I tried to tell my aunt and uncle, but they refused to listen to me.”
“He’s unwell, to what extent, we’re unsure; we’re waiting to hear back from the hospital.”
“I want to see him, but if I show up at the hospital, you’ll swoop, won’t you?”
“I would allow you to see your relatives and then ask you to give yourself up. Where are you, Megan? Why don’t you give yourself up? Or at least, hand Matthew over to us. He doesn’t deserve to be involved in this.”
“Doesn’t he? What’s his father saying, is he showing any sign of remorse yet? Because since the accident, it has been severely lacking, even during his time behind bars.”
“He feels guilty. He’s fearful you’re going to hurt his son, but I don’t think that’s your intention at all, is it, Megan?”
There was silence. Telling Katy that maybe the unbearable thought had filled Megan’s mind after all.
“Megan, please don’t do anything rash.”
“I know, I know, he’s an innocent child. So were we once upon a time before that damned crash. Before those men wiped out my parents and robbed my brother of any decent quality of life. Tell me why I shouldn’t hurt him the way Daniel and I have been hurt over the years.”
Distant sniffling caught Katy’s attention. “Is he there, listening to this conversation?”
“Where else would he be? Don’t worry, I’ve put him right on a few things. Did you know his father secretly told him about the incident, told him it was a simple accident? That he did nothing wrong stealing that car and driving it at over a hundred miles an hour?”
“He probably didn’t want to scare his son, all he was doing was protecting him from the truth, Megan. He kept the incident from his partner. Perhaps, he was ashamed for what he did? And no, that’s not me making excuses for him.”
“Ashamed my arse. Like I said, he’s never shown any kind of remorse. Never once reached out to us as a family to offer his condolences, neither have the others. Even when I watched the light fade from their eyes and they took their dying breath, those men didn’t have the decency to utter an apology. The world will be a better place without them.”
“Okay, there’s not a lot I can say in response to that. What’s your aim here, Megan?”
“My aim?”
“Yes, you have to have an ultimate goal? Why have you kidnapped Matthew if you have no intention of harming the lad?”
“That, Inspector, is for me to know and you to find out.”
Katy’s lip curled. She tried her hardest to remain calm, but the urge to shout at Megan was playing havoc on her tongue. “Megan, let’s open a dialogue on where we go from here, shall we?”
“You can try.”
“Do you even know? I’m begging you not to do anything rash, Matthew needs to be back with his family. You know how important that is, don’t you?”
“Yes, we used to have a family unit that was strong and filled with love, once upon a time, until his father stole it from all of us. Maybe I’ll break Matthew’s neck, see how his mother and father cope caring for him when he’s classed as paralysed. Maybe, just maybe, Ethan will find it in his heart to show some remorse then. What do you think, Matthew, shall I break your neck?”
“No. Please, don’t hurt me.” Katy’s heart went out to the tormented little boy.
“Megan, you’re better than that. Don’t sink to Ethan’s level. I doubt if you’d ever be able to live with the guilt. Answer me honestly, would you?”
“No. Maybe I have a get-out clause, an escape plan sorted to combat that particular issue.”
Charlie frowned and whispered, “Suicide?”
Katy nodded. “You’re talking about ending your life, aren’t you, Megan? Why? There are people here who love you and who are relying on you for your support.”
“Auntie Gail can carry on looking after Daniel, if he pulls through this. You know disabled people have a limited time to live, don’t you?”
“No, I wasn’t aware of that fact. Megan, we’re going round in circles here. Please, come to the hospital, meet me there and we’ll sit down and have a chat. Bring Matthew with you. I can get him home to his mother, think of her, of what this is doing to her. She’s as innocent as her son. Don’t make them suffer when your grievance is with Ethan.”
“I don’t want to get arrested. I did what needed to be done. People can’t rob a family of their relatives and only be punished with the minimal sentence. It’s not right.”
“I get that. Come on, let’s discuss how we can make things right.”
There was a click on the line.
“Megan? Are you there?”
Silence.
11
“Please, let me go. I want to go home.”
Megan slammed the phone down hard on the table and stormed across the room to stand in front of the quivering boy. “You want, you want. That’s all you kids ever say today.”
She raised a fist to thump him, and he shielded his head with his arms and screamed.
The ear-piercing noise brought Megan out of her fury. She stepped back and apologised. “I’m sorry. Forgive me. I shouldn’t take my foul mood out on you. That wasn’t my intention at all.”
“I need my Mummy and Daddy, please…” the boy sobbed. Snot running into his trembling mouth.
“You’ll see your parents soon enough. Stop bugging me. I have to think.”
It was imperative for her to change her plans. Her thoughts were all twisted, and she paced the floor in confusion. She needed to get to the hospital to see her brother and her uncle, but the risk would be too great to just show up there. An idea sparked in her mind.
Megan ran into her friend’s bedroom. Lizzie and her fella Jamie had gone away for a week to Ireland to visit her parents as they hadn’t seen them in over a year due to the pandemic. Lizzie was a student nurse, only started at the hospital around six months ago. She riffled through the rail in her friend’s wardrobe, but failed to find what she was searching for. She stepped back, her five feet three inches not enough to see what might be tucked away on the shelves above. Megan raced across the room to retrieve the chair in the corner and dragged it into position. A glimpse of blue fabric caught her eye. She smiled. See, it wasn’t such a daft idea after all, was it?
Yes, do it. Her mother’s distant voice encouraged her.
Rummaging some more, Megan smiled when she located a long black wig. She threw the two items on the bed and continued her search. A dark blue cape should complete her ensemble. All she needed now was to find some flat black shoes and tights and her outfit would be complete.
After locating the required items, she went back into the lounge to find Matthew still bawling his eyes out. “Stop it. You’re annoying me now, you wouldn’t want to see me when I’m really angry, I promise you.”
The boy instantly fell silent, apart from the odd sniffle. He wiped away the snot and the tears on the sleeve of his sweatshirt and stared at her. “What are you going to do with those?”
She grinned. “It’s none of your business. Right, I’m going to have to leave you here while I nip out for a while.”
“I don’t want to be left alone. I’m scared.”
She raced towards him, he flinched and shielded his face behind his arms. “Don’t hit me.”
Taking a step back, Megan stared at him. “Do they hit you? Your parents, do they hit you?”
His arms lowered and he nodded. “Sometimes when I’m naughty. I try not to be, but sometimes, I do really silly things.”
Megan traced a finger down his cheek. “I’m sorry they treat you so poorly. If you were my brother, I’d care for you properly. Maybe when this is all over, you should seek help, speak out about the abuse you receive from your parents. I’m sick to death of hearing dreadful stories about parents treating their kids like punching bags. The world needs to get rid of parents who treat their kids so appallingly.”
The loving way her parents treated her and her brother surfaced in her mind. A smile developed on her face. She shook herself out of her reverie and went into the kitchen to prepare the boy a sandwich. Cheese and pickle, that’ll do, with a can of coke, that’s what boys of his age crave for.
“Here you are, eat this. I’ll be back before you know it.”
“But I don’t want to stay here, can’t I come with you?”
“No, that’s impossible. I have an errand to run, I’ll be there and back before you’ve had the chance to say supercalifragilisticexpialidocious properly. Go on, give it a try.”
“Super…what?”
“Supercalifragilisticexpialidocious.” She almost broke into song. She didn’t have time for this, to pander to the boy’s whims. She needed to get to the hospital urgently. “Give it a try. If you succeed, I’ll buy you a cream doughnut while I’m out, how’s that?”
“Mum says I shouldn’t have too many sweet things, it’ll ruin my teeth.”
“And she’s right, silly me.”
He chomped on his sandwich and let out a satisfied moan. “This is yummy. You’d make a nice mummy.”
In spite of the anger bubbling inside, she smiled down at the boy. “One day, if that’s what’s in my future, I’d like to have a little boy, just like you. Now, I have to get changed. Be good.”
He took another chunk out of his sandwich, and she left the room. In Lizzie’s bedroom, she swiftly changed into the nurse’s uniform and admired the result in the full-length mirror in the wardrobe. Luckily, they were the same size. She tucked the cape around her shoulders, slipped on her shoes and nodded. “You’ll do. Let’s hope the transformation will be enough to get past any police presence at the hospital.”
She checked on Matthew one more time. He was trying to get his tongue around the long word she’d thrown at him; his attempt was poor, but he was having fun trying all the same. It would be a distraction for him in her absence.
“Wow. I didn’t know you were a nurse. You look cool,” he said through a mouthful of sandwich.
“It’s borrowed. I’m not really a nurse. I’m going to the hospital to visit someone, which is why I need you to stay here and be good. Can you do that for me?”
His brow furrowed. “I think so. I’ll do my best not to be scared. When my mum goes to the hospital to visit someone, she doesn’t get dressed-up or change the colour of her hair.”
“I like to look the part. Be good. I’ll be back shortly, I promise.”
Megan parked the car in a road near the hospital rather than pay their exorbitant fees just to have a space near the entrance. She entered the building and stopped at reception to ask what wards her brother and uncle were on.
“Are you new here? I haven’t seen you around before,” the redhead on reception asked.
“I work at another hospital, well, it’s more like a care home for the elderly.”
“Ah, is that Cedar Home?”
“Yes, that’s the one. I thought I’d pop in and see my relatives on the way home from a long shift. I started at three this morning.”
“I’m sorry, that’s tough. Let me check the system, see what I can find out for you.” She tapped the keyboard and then smiled at Megan. “Here we are, they’re both in ICU. Take a left, hop on the lift and go to the fourth floor. Follow the signs when you get out of the lift and you’ll soon come to ICU. Good luck, wishing your relatives a speedy recovery.”
“You’re too kind. Thank you.”
She walked quickly and followed the route the woman had given her, arriving outside ICU within eight minutes. As suspected, she found two uniformed police outside the unit. She dipped
her head, squirted on some hand sanitiser and pushed through the door.
Megan smiled at the nurse sitting behind the desk and drifted down the ward until she came to her uncle’s bed. Her aunt wasn’t there.
Her Uncle Sam’s skin was grey, and he was attached to several IV drips and a heart monitor. She muttered a silent prayer and moved on.
It wasn’t long before she located Daniel’s bed. The nurses had placed him by the window, Megan presumed at her aunt’s request. Daniel loved looking out of the window, watching the world go by from his chair. Tears welled and she placed a hand on her aunt’s shoulder, startling her.
“My God, is that you, Megan? Oh gosh, it is you. You can’t be here.”
“I had to come. I’m sorry, Auntie Gail, none of this was supposed to happen. Everything got out of control. How are Daniel and Uncle Sam?”
“They’re monitoring them both. The doctor thinks your uncle has had an angina attack. They’re carrying out further tests on him. I should be with him. You should be here, helping me. I can’t sit with both of them. I’m tired of caring for people. I’ve cared for Daniel for eighteen years now. I thought you appreciated what your uncle and I were doing for Daniel, but I was wrong. How could you destroy our family all over again?”
Tears surfaced at her aunt’s harsh words. “I never meant to do that. Daniel has been getting worse lately, I could see that, even if you couldn’t, and it got me thinking. The men who caused the accident are living life to the full and we’re still limping along, caring for Daniel who is declining rapidly.”
Disgust and confusion covered Gail’s face. “None of this makes any sense, Megan. The lion’s share of the caring falls on our shoulders, not yours. Why should it bother you to the extent it has done? How could you put us through this? Your actions reflect on this family. The police believe we’re harbouring you. They think we know where you are, I told them we didn’t and then you show up here, dressed like a damn nurse. I thought I knew you, I clearly know nothing about you or what foolish notions you have running through your head.” Megan opened her mouth to object, but her aunt raised a hand to stop her. “I don’t want to hear any excuses, I need to hear the truth. No more lies or deception, Megan.” She sighed and looked exhausted.