Tell That to My Heart

by Eliza J Scott

  His reference to Aidey made her blood boil, but now wasn’t the time to defend him. ‘I didn’t mention it—’

  ‘I’m disappointed in you, I expected more loyalty from my girlfriend.’

  Girlfriend? Is he for real? ‘And I had no idea you considered me to be your girlfriend. I thought we were just a fling. Why else would we have to keep us secret?’

  ‘I thought I’d explained that to you clearly enough, it’s because it wouldn’t go down well with Catherine and Kenneth, and I didn’t want to cause any trouble for you with them, we both know what they can be like. And I think they have plans for me and Clarissa, not that that’s ever going to happen.’

  ‘Oh, really?’ Mim fished around her backpack for her phone, hurriedly scrolling through it until she found what she was looking for.

  ‘Really; she’s not my type.’

  ‘And there’s me thinking you were “publishing’s golden couple”. Seems I’ve got it all wrong.’ She thrust her phone under his nose, giving him an eyeful of the image that had spoilt her Saturday night.

  He looked shocked for a moment, before pushing her hand out of the way. ‘I can explain.’

  ‘There’s really no need.’ Where was this fearless version of herself coming from?

  ‘The photos were staged; it was all Catherine and Kenneth’s idea, to attract attention to the magazine. I can assure you, I’m not in a relationship with Clarissa; much as she’d like there to be.’

  ‘Well, that’s not my problem anymore. What we had was nothing serious, it’s run its course.’

  ‘You know you don’t mean that.’

  ‘I actually do.’

  ‘Let me make it up to you tonight when I drop you off, we can spend the evening together, get things back on track, and maybe have another think about that favour; I can explain how it’s totally risk-free for you.’

  ‘Caspar, there’s absolutely no chance. And I won’t be needing a lift from you anymore.’

  A muscle twitched in his cheek. ‘You really are a silly little girl, aren’t you? You’ve no idea what you’ve turned down. But I won’t ask you again, you’ve had your chance.’

  ‘I don’t feel silly, not anymore, at least. And I think I’ve got a very good idea of what I’ve turned down, and I know I’ve absolutely made the right decision.’

  Caspar was livid. He pressed his lips together and pushed his foot hard down on the accelerator. The car increased speed effortlessly, the scenery soon nothing more than a blur. Mim was terrified, her heart beating faster as adrenalin surged around her body. Memories of their near-miss the week before flashed through her mind. She resisted the urge to scream at him to slow down, there was no way she’d let him see he had this power over her. She closed her eyes, telling herself they’d be parked up and out of the car soon. Now there was another reason for her to look for another job; the sooner she got away from him, the better.

  Once the car had come to a halt in York, Mim climbed out and, without a backwards glance, ran off in the direction of the Yorkshire Portions office. Though her legs felt like jelly after that ridiculous journey, she pushed herself on, stopping only when the building was within sight.

  ‘You okay, Mim?’ Aidey looked up from his work, taking in her wild, bedraggled appearance.

  Still gasping for breath, she nodded. ‘I am now. Honey?’

  ‘Not here yet.’ The concerned look in Anna-Lisa’s eyes matched Aidey’s. ‘What’s up? Have you told him?’

  Mim nodded and spoke quietly. ‘Yes, I wasn’t expecting to first thing, but he kind of forced the situation.’ The sound of the front door closing with a loud bang and someone thundering upstairs made the three of them jump. Mim pressed her hand against her chest. ‘Jeez! That’ll be him, he was furious, drove like a bloody maniac on the way here. Don’t let on you know anything.’ She pressed her fingers to her lips until Caspar’s footsteps could be heard heading towards his office, the door closing firmly behind him.

  Mim blew out a sigh of relief.

  ‘Am I right in guessing it didn’t go down well?’ asked Anna-Lisa.

  ‘Not well at all.’ Mim spoke in a whisper. ‘He’s actually quite scary when he doesn’t get what he wants.’ Her heart was still thudding, her voice a little shaky.

  Aidey’s expression was like thunder. ‘What kind of man sets out to scare a woman? He’s nothing more than a thug in expensive clothes. Promise me you won’t get in that car with him again, Mim.’

  ‘Trust me, there’s no way I want to experience that again, it was terrifying.’

  ‘He’s a hideous bully. I’m so glad you can see him for what he is,’ said Anna-Lisa.

  Before they could say anything further, Honey came into the room. ‘What have I missed?’

  Despite the tension in the air, the friends got their heads down and got stuck into their work. Mim had prepared herself a new to-do list and had managed to get through a couple of things on it by lunchtime, her mind occasionally drifting to Caspar before moving on to the items that had gone missing the previous week. There’d been a shouty email from Catherine, asking if she’d booked a table at the White Swan for later in the week for the planned feature. Though Mim had told her boss she had, she hadn’t actually got round to it; the prospect of having to tell Julie that she’d be expected to provide her wonderful food for free was just too humiliating and insulting, and Mim hadn’t had the courage to mention it.

  Her thoughts turned to Clarissa’s notebook and Caspar’s paperweight, wondering if they’d turned up. Surely if they had, someone would have said something. At least nothing else seemed to have gone missing. In any event, they’d been careful not to leave Honey on her own recently, which seemed to be a source of frustration to her.

  ‘So aren’t you three going out for lunch together today?’ Honey asked.

  ‘Not today, we’ve each got different plans.’ Anna-Lisa didn’t bother to look up at her.

  ‘I’m going to nip out for a short time before the heavens open,’ said Mim, looking out of the window at the grey sky that hung above the city. The wind was picking up, making her glad she’d brought her warm coat.

  ‘And I’m going to get this finished before I head out,’ said Aidey.

  Their responses didn’t seem to suit Honey, and she flounced out of the office on the pretext of having some idea to run by Catherine. The three friends looked at one another and rolled their eyes. Mim did her best to quash the feeling of unease Honey’s question had triggered.

  Before long Honey returned, a jubilant glint in her eye. ‘Auntie Catherine’s not very happy; she says her ring’s gone missing again and what with everything else that’s happened, she’s getting very suspicious. Says she last remembers taking it off in the bathroom, where she’s convinced she left it by the sink at around ten this morning.’

  Mim groaned inwardly. ‘Is she sure? I mean, she’s lost it before but it’s turned up.’

  Honey glared at her. ‘I don’t think Auntie Catherine would be very pleased to hear you say that. She sounded pretty certain about things to me, but if you doubt her, why don’t you go and have a word with her, tell her yourself?’

  ‘Don’t be so childish, Honey. You know as well as the rest of us Catherine’s always losing stuff, that ring included. I’m sure it’ll turn up like it did last time.’

  ‘Okay, keep your hair on, Anal Lisa.’

  ‘Honey, that’s enough.’ Aidey shot her a stern look which seemed to do the trick.

  ‘Right, I’m going to take my lunch break now. Can I get anyone anything?’ asked Mim.

  With no one taking her up on her offer, she pulled her coat on, slung her backpack over her shoulder and headed out, glad to be away from the intensity of the office and into the fresh air, cold though it was. Her first stop was the florists where she picked up a bunch of brightly coloured pink gerberas; her favourite flowers always made her feel cheerful and she had a feeling she was going to need all the help she could get with that this week. Next was the sweet shop w
here she bought a double-sized bag of Dolly Mixtures. Mim nibbled on them as she walked towards the Nutmeg Tree where she stood in the queue for takeaway sandwiches. This morning in the car with Caspar seemed like a different day. Had she really stood up to him? Confronted him about Clarissa? A wave of nerves rippled in her stomach. What they’d had was very definitely over now, there was no doubt about that. But it still surprised her that she didn’t feel as wrecked as she’d thought she would, that her feelings for him had been superficial. Was her heart getting hardened to love? Only time would tell.

  33

  ‘So, Honey hasn’t had chance to be on her own in our office over lunch?’ asked Anna-Lisa. It had been an hour since Mim had returned from her lunch break. Anna-Lisa had been out when she’d first got back which was when Aidey quickly took his turn to pop out. None of them had been away from their desks for long.

  ‘The only time the room was empty was when you were both out and I nipped along to grab my printing. I was only got a few minutes but Honey was out herself; I would’ve waited for one of you to get back otherwise,’ said Aidey.

  ‘Fair enough,’ said Anna-Lisa. ‘She can’t get up to no good when she’s not here.’

  ‘Who are you talking about?’ Honey bowled into the room.

  ‘Oh, no one important.’ Anna-Lisa arched her eyebrows at Mim.

  Honey glared at Anna-Lisa before she delivered her news. ‘Auntie Catherine’s on the war path and she wants to speak to you all individually in her office, straightaway.’

  ‘Why, what’s the matter?’ asked Mim.

  ‘Well, as you know, her ring’s gone missing.’ Honey was clearly enjoying delivering this news. ‘She’s convinced it’s been stolen since Caspar’s paperweight’s vanished and there’s money missing from the petty-cash tin, too.’

  Mim’s heart started galloping, panic making her breathing shallow. Honey’s been up to something.

  ‘Oh, here we go again,’ said Anna-Lisa.

  ‘That can’t be right,’ said Aidey. ‘Nobody here would steal anything; she’ll have just misplaced her ring like before. And none of us have ever seen the petty-cash tin.’

  ‘True. All I’ve ever known about it is that it used to be kept by Dennis in accounts when he was here. I wouldn’t have a clue where it’s kept now. And as far as Catherine’s ring’s concerned, she’s always taking it off when she washes her hands. I’ve lost count of the number of times I’ve found it by the sink in the loo or the kitchen,’ Mim said, trying to hide the concern in her voice.

  ‘And you’ve given it back?’ asked Honey.

  ‘Of course, I have! And I haven’t seen it today, if that’s what you mean.’

  ‘What do you think, Honey?’ Anna-Lisa looked daggers at the girl. ‘Before you go any further, don’t even think about accusing anyone here, okay? We’ve all worked here a long time, and as you know full well, it’s not the first time Catherine’s lost that bloody ring – though why she doesn’t leave it at home somewhere safe is beyond me if it’s worth so much – and it’s always been found exactly where Catherine left it.’

  ‘Don’t talk to me like that, I wasn’t accusing anyone.’

  ‘That’s not what it sounded like to me.’ Anna-Lisa glared at her.

  Aidey splayed his hands. ‘Look, I think we should all calm down. Like Anna said, it’s not the first time this has happened and I’m sure it’ll turn up. Did Catherine say who she wanted to see first?’

  ‘Mim.’ Honey was struggling to keep herself from smirking.

  Shit! ‘Well, I really don’t know what she’s expecting me to say since I haven’t got a clue where any of the missing stuff is.’

  ‘That’s all you can say, chick,’ said Anna-Lisa.

  Mim’s heart was pounding as she made her way along to Catherine’s office. Though she hadn’t done anything wrong, an inexplicable feeling of guilt had started churning in her gut, no doubt triggered by Honey’s accusatory words.

  As she approached the door she could hear her boss’s voice barking at some poor soul. Mim knocked before walking in. Catherine was at her desk, glowering at Tamsin. Mim’s heart went out to the young intern whose face was crimson, her eyes swimming with tears. There was no such thing as getting broken in gently at this place. It was a baptism of fire; sink or swim. ‘And don’t let me catch you making the same mistake again, girl. Got it?’

  Tamsin nodded vigorously. ‘Yes, Mrs Pallister-Biggs. I’m really sorry. I promise I won’t do it again.’

  ‘Right, get back to work. Start from scratch and send it to me as soon as you’ve finished. And don’t take all afternoon about it. Go on, go.’ Catherine waved her hand, her ring conspicuous by its absence.

  Tamsin barely had chance to scurry through the door before Catherine turned her beady eyes on Mim. ‘Right, Jemima, I’m sure Honey has already informed you of my reason for wanting to see you all.’

  Mim nodded. ‘Yes, but I—’

  ‘I haven’t finished. You’ll get your chance to speak in a minute.’

  ‘Sorry.’

  ‘My ring has gone missing. I last remember seeing it on my finger this morning at around ten-thirty or so. If I’ve taken it off to wash my hands, there are only two places it could be: the kitchen or the bathroom. It’s in neither place. Since there are several items which appear to have gone missing recently – as of this lunchtime fifty pounds from petty cash can be added to that list – I’m afraid it leaves me with no choice but to think that it’s been misappropriated.’ She put heavy emphasis on the last word.

  Mim’s heart picked up its pace. Why was Catherine talking to her like this? ‘Misap—'

  ‘Stolen! I don’t need to tell you that the ring is not only worth a small fortune but it is of great sentimental value to me, having been passed down to me from my much beloved grandmother.’ She paused for effect, pinning Mim with a piercing glare. ‘I’m going to give it until the morning and if it hasn’t turned up then I’ll have no alternative but to involve the police. Do I make myself clear?’

  Mim could feel her anger rising. Catherine had no right to speak to her in this way! ‘Loud and clear. From your tone, it sounds to me like you’re accusing me of stealing your ring, which is something I have not—’

  ‘Don’t take it so personally, girl. Let me tell you that I have spoken to everyone else in this tone; there’s only Anna-Lisa and Aidey left and I’ll be saying the very same things to them in exactly the same way. However, I felt it was important that I speak to each of you separately.’

  And we all know why, don’t we? You live by the motto “divide and rule”. A bully like you wouldn’t have the first clue about staff morale.

  ‘I’m simply asking that if you know of the whereabouts of my ring you let me know, or at least make sure it’s on my desk by the morning.’

  You toxic old bag! How dare you accuse people in this way? Mim was struggling to bite her tongue; it wouldn’t take much for her to lose her temper and let her boss know what she really thought of her. She did her best to steady herself before she spoke. ‘I’d just like to stress, Catherine, that I have absolutely no idea where your ring is and I can’t even remember the last time I saw it or noticed it on your finger. And the same applies to the other items that appear to have gone missing; I’ve had nothing to do with it and I have no idea where they are.’

  ‘That’s all I needed to hear.’

  ‘Good. Is that it?’

  ‘Yes, send Anna-Lisa in next.’

  It took every ounce of Mim’s strength not to slam Catherine’s door shut as she left her office, her anger propelling her down the hall and into the room she shared with her friends. And Honey. If Honey hadn’t been there she would have felt able to properly vent her feelings, instead, she dropped heavily onto her chair and mimed doing a silent scream.

  ‘That bad?’ asked Anna-Lisa.

  ‘Worse.’ Mim felt tears welling in her eyes. She looked across at Honey whose eyes were glinting with pleasure. Mim was sure she was behind all of this;
it made her blood run cold.

  ‘Are you okay, Mim?’ asked Aidey.

  ‘Oops. You don’t look very happy. Did you get a bollocking?’ Honey asked, smiling.

  ‘Not exactly.’ It was hard to put into words what had just happened. Catherine hadn’t accused her directly, hadn’t given her, as Honey put it, a “bollocking” but nevertheless, Mim had been left feeling like both of those things had happened.

  ‘What, you’re not “exactly” okay or you didn’t “exactly” get a bollocking?’ Honey was looking at her like she was an idiot.

  ‘Both. And I’m afraid she’s asked to see you next, Anna.’

  ‘Bring it on.’ Anna-Lisa pushed out her chair and left the room.

  She returned five minutes later looking furious, her normally pale skin burning crimson. ‘That bloody woman’s got a nerve the way she talks to people. It’s a wonder she’s got anyone left to work for her.’ She started moving things around her desk angrily. ‘I’m afraid you’re up next, Aidey. Don’t take any of her crap.’

  ‘Great. Just what we need on a Monday afternoon.’ With a sigh he headed out of the room.

  A cloud of gloom sat over the Yorkshire Portions office for the rest of the day. It didn’t help that the heavens had opened and rain was now lashing against the windows, making them rattle in their frames. Wind howled eerily down the old disused chimney making Mim shiver. She hadn’t seen anything of Caspar since this morning; from what she could gather, he hadn’t ventured out of his office which she was glad about. Mim didn’t like being on bad terms with people and, as a rule, did her best to avoid anyone she’d had words with until she’d had the chance to put things right – something that wasn’t going to happen with Caspar.