Catch Your Death (17 page)

‘
Oh Jack, you’ll have such a great time. Auntie Miranda told me that you’re going to go horse-riding and strawberry picking, and you can play in the sprinkler every day. Your cousins can’t wait to see you.’

‘
Well, I can wait to see them,’ he huffed in reply, but Kate could tell that he was slightly mollified all the same. She shot a guilty look at Paul, who was driving. Yes, it was undoubtedly far less boring for Jack to be with his cousins than trailing round the countryside with her and Paul – but she couldn’t help feeling as if she was off-loading him for her own more selfish reasons… Paul smiled back at her, and she dismissed the guilt. Jack would be fine.

‘
Are we nearly there yet, Mummy?’

‘
I think we must be, honey. We have to come off this motorway at Junction Ten, and we’ve just passed Junction Nine.’

‘
Good. Because I’m bored and Billy’s thirsty…. Mummy?’

‘
Yes, Jack?’

‘
Can I call Dad?’

Kate glanced at Paul again, in panic this time. She’d been dreading this request since they arrived in England. ‘Um, honey, I think Daddy’s on holiday too at the moment.’

‘
I can call his cellphone. I know the number.’

‘
I know you do. Well… I don’t think his phone will work outside America. And anyway, it’s only ten o’clock here, which means it’s the middle of the night where Daddy is.’

‘
I want to leave him a message. Why didn’t he take me on vacation? If he’s not in America it won’t be the middle of the night, will it? Where has he gone, anyway?’

Not the British Isles, please, Kate thought, although without much hope. She knew him well enough to suspect he’d jumped on the first available plane when he realized what she had done. She had texted him to say Jack was safe, and not to look for them – but it wouldn’t have made any difference. Since then she had kept her phone firmly switched off and hadn’t even turned it on to check her messages. Her fear that Vern would snatch Jack back again was so deep and overpowering that she couldn’t even allow herself to think about it. She might lose Jack for good. Hopefully, Vern would calm down, given time, and they could sort out access then. Just not now, when it was pride and spite that would be motivating his every action.

‘
Oh, honey, I’m not exactly sure. And you know what? I think his cellphone is broken, because I tried to call it yesterday but it didn’t even ring.’ She winced at the blatant lie. ‘Anyhow, look, here’s the signpost for Junction Ten! We must be almost there. Let me just check the directions, so we don’t get lost on the way to the house.’

Miranda and her husband Pete’s house was a rambling, ramshackle Victorian pile on the edge of Churchill, a very picturesque Cotswolds village, with amazing views out over open countryside. Pete was a vet, and had just taken over the village practice, and Miranda was a self-confessed ‘professional home-maker’. Kate noted that her sister still appeared to live in the same old green wellies and shabby cardigan she’d had for years. Nobody would ever have guessed that they were sisters. Kate’s hair was chestnut brown and curly, and Miranda’s light brown and straight. Miranda’s eyes were brown, Kate’s blue. Kate was four inches taller and two stone slimmer. Miranda had absolutely no interest in science, but knew everything about how to grow perfect tomatoes; whereas Kate couldn’t even keep Busy Lizzies alive.

As they walked into the kitchen, Kate noticed Paul looking incredulously between her and her sister, and she grinned. Luckily she had forewarned Miranda on the telephone that she’d be turning up with Jack, and a man who was not her husband, in tow.

‘
We’ve only been here four months. I’m so glad you managed to see it before we start renovating. It’s what you Yanks call a ‘fixer-upper’, isn’t that right?’ said Miranda, proudly gesturing to high-ceilinged rooms which flaked plaster as if suffering from psoriasis. ‘Lord knows when we’ll get around to it, with Pete working the sort of hours he is. I hope you’ll be able to stay for lunch, so you get to see him too? He said he’d try and pop back after his morning surgery.’

‘
We’d love to – but we might have to make tracks soon. We’ve got a lot to do in a couple of days. Oh, and by the way, I’m not a bloody Yank!’ said Kate, jokingly. She was privately wondering how on earth Miranda could bear to bring up children in a dump like this. Yes, it would be incredible when it was finished – but it was going to take years. ‘The house is great, Manda. And thanks again so much for having Jack to stay. He’s been so excited about seeing his cousins.’

Another lie, thought Kate. All these little tiny lies knotting together in a ball. She pictured it like a ball of rubber bands, the lies getting bigger and bigger, stretching further and further around the ball. How many more times was she going to have to lie to Jack about his dad, and why he couldn’t speak to him?

‘
Gosh, I haven’t been called Manda for years!’ Miranda exclaimed, smiling. ‘It’s so good to see you, sis. I’m sorry I haven’t been better about keeping in touch.’

‘
Don’t worry. I know you’ve had your hands full.’

Later, Paul went out to play Swingball in the garden with Jack and his cousins, and Kate and Miranda were able to have a more private chat on the terrace, sipping Miranda’s homemade elderflower cordial; ice-cubes in the shapes of strawberries clinking around in the tall glasses. It was a beautiful summer’s morning, and the sounds of the countryside were all around – birds singing, cows mooing in a field nearby, a tractor rolling down the lane by the side of the house. For the first time, Kate envied her sister’s uncomplicated family life.

‘
So it’s all over between you and Vernon. Is it because of - ?’ Miranda gestured towards Paul, who was rolling around on the grass with three small children squealing and romping on top of him.

‘
Oh, no, definitely not! I’ve only just hooked up with Paul – he’s the twin brother of my old boyfriend, Stephen, from ages ago, you know, the one who died… We literally bumped into in each other in London the day after I got here. There was nobody else involved in me and Vernon splitting up – not from my side, anyway. Just Vernon, being a big fat bully. I’m sure he was cheating on me, though. And I didn’t even care, things had got that bad. I just wanted out.’

‘
You could’ve rung me, you know, Kate. I didn’t realize you were in such a state... So you’ve only known Paul for four days?’

There was an unmistakeable note of disapproval in Miranda’s voice, and Kate couldn’t really blame her for it. When you thought about it, it was unbelievable that she’d only known Paul for such a short time. It seemed foolhardy in the extreme that the two of them were traipsing off around the country on what was probably a wild goose chase. She opened her mouth to tell Miranda that, no, of course she’d known Paul ever since she and Stephen had been together. But then she thought – no. That’s another lie. Stop worrying about what other people think of you. You don’t have to defend yourself to anybody.

Fortunately, Miranda didn’t wait for an answer, so Kate was spared having to tell the truth.

‘
Does Jack know?’ Miranda asked instead.

‘
About me and Vernon splitting up? No. I haven’t told him we aren’t going back.’ The reality of the situation hit Kate again, full force, and her face fell. ‘Damn. I know I’m going to have to sort something out eventually; some sort of access for Vernon, but I just can’t face it yet. He’d snatch him back, I know he would.’

‘
And that’s why you brought him to England, because you think Vernon would try to get custody?’

‘
I know he would. He tried to take him from me before. And I know if it went to court he could make me look bad. He forced me to go to a shrink who put me on anti-depressants…that won’t look good. And he’d tell them about all the nights I spent in the lab, being a bad mother. Plus he’s a goddamn pillar of the community and I’m a resident alien.’

‘
Poor you. Poor little Jack,’ said Miranda, putting her hand on top of Kate’s, her eyes full of tears.

Kate got up abruptly. She desperately wanted to know what had really gone on at the CRU, but a small part of her wondered if some of that was because she needed distraction – a way of not having to think about the consequences of taking Jack away from his father.

‘
We’d better go, Mand. Perhaps we could stay for lunch when we come back to collect Jack again?’

‘
Of course. And don’t worry about him – he’ll be fine. Take as long as you need to. What was it you said you had to do, again? I couldn’t quite understand on the phone when you were telling me.’

‘
It’s a long story. Paul needs my help to find out the truth about what happened to his brother. There are some unanswered questions around the way he died.’ She didn’t know what else to say really. It was too complicated to get into.

‘
Crikey,’ said Miranda doubtfully. ‘That sounds very dramatic. You will be careful, won’t you?’

‘
Don’t worry, we’ll just be making a few enquiries, and it’d be boring for Jack, that’s all. We aren’t going to be hunted down and assassinated by any underworld gangsters, because “we knew too much”.’

Her accompanying laugh sounded forced, even to her. She had an image of Sarah, lying on the grass outside the burning CRU, no longer a survivor in her memory, but a corpse. And she thought of Stephen’s letter and the weird message. Again, she had the feeling that she and Paul were moving into treacherous waters. Jack would be far better off here, even though it would hurt her to be apart from him.

‘
Jack!’ she called, and he came running up the garden towards her, panting, the colour back in his cheeks. ‘Mummy’s off now. Be a good boy for Auntie Miranda, won’t you? I’ll see you really soon, I promise. Come and give me a kiss goodbye.’

CHAPTER 23

‘
He’s a great kid, your Jack,’ Paul said later, as they stopped at a service station just south of Birmingham, for a drink and a loo break.

After leaving Miranda’s, they’d driven straight on up the country towards Staffordshire, heading for the village near Stafford where Leonard Bainbridge’s widow lived. Finding her address had not been difficult – the article they’d read in Starbucks, about Leonard’s death, had mentioned that the couple retired to Hednesford. She was ex-directory, but Paul found her on a website that allowed users to check the electoral roll for a small fee. There was only one Bainbridge listed in Hednesford, and it was a small place, so they were fairly confident they had the correct details - even without a telephone number to be able to double check.

‘
I know,’ Kate replied wistfully, dunking a large cookie into a mug of coffee.

Paul gave her hand a squeeze, and she nearly dropped the cookie in. ‘You’ve been really quiet since we left your sister’s place.. Are you worried about him?’

Kate bit her lip, and laid the soggy cookie back on the plate.

‘
No, not worried, not exactly. He’ll have a wonderful time with his cousins, and Miranda will really look after him – it’s not that. It’s just… I suppose I feel guilty, that’s all. Dragging him away from his dad, and now dumping him on my sister….’

‘
Hey, come on,’ Paul said, leaning over the table and rubbing the side of her arm. ‘You’re a great mother, and you’ve done absolutely the right thing. You couldn’t stay with Vernon just for Jack’s sake, you know.’

‘
Yeah. I know all that. But still…’

‘
But nothing. And as for coming with me, well, you are doing me the most enormous favour, and I’m extremely grateful. This is really, really important to me and my family, and I couldn’t do it without you. So - thank you.’

‘
I’m not only doing it for you,’ she said.

‘
I know. But…’

He stood up and kissed her forehead, and Kate felt tears prickle. ‘I’m probably just tired,’ she said, managing a watery smile. ‘We had such an early start this morning, and I don’t think I’m even properly over the jetlag. This has all happened so fast. Plus, I keep waiting for Vernon to somehow turn up, shouting the odds. I don’t even dare switch on my cellphone in case there are dozens of furious messages from him – but now I’ll have to, won’t I? I told Miranda to let Jack call me whenever he wanted.’

‘
Well, that’s easily fixed. Just call her now and give her my mobile number instead. Jack can reach you on that.’

Kate looked grateful. ‘OK. Good idea. We should get to Mrs. Bainbridge’s by noon – time to have a chat to her, if she’s in, and then go and get some lunch afterwards. Then… um… where do we go next? Will we be staying up here?’

Paul blushed, very slightly, and Kate realized his train of thought was along the same line as hers: two rooms, or one?

‘
I suppose it depends on what leads we get out of Mrs. B, if any. And maybe we should stay for a night anyway, to give ourselves a break. We could ask Mrs. B if she knows any cheap and cheerful B&Bs nearby. If the worst comes to the worst, we’ll have to sleep in the car.’

‘
Great,’ said Kate, rolling her eyes. ‘You certainly know how to show a girl a good time.’

‘
You bet I do, honey,’ Paul replied, winking at her, and Kate felt herself growing hot in all kinds of places.

‘
Come on,’ she said briskly, ‘let’s hit the road.’ Otherwise, she thought, I’m going to march over to the motel next door to this service station and book us into a room right now, and forget Mrs. Bainbridge…

Two hours later, Kate and Paul had parked the car in the car park of a small tennis club, across the road from a pretty thatched cottage which – hopefully – belonged to Leonard’s widow. On the courts next to them some elderly people were playing doubles in a fairly desultory fashion, and Kate inspected their faces carefully, in case she recognised Mrs. Bainbridge. She had wracked her brains, but couldn’t remember anything about her, although she’d met her once or twice as a kid.