Take Two (A psychological thriller) (29 page)

‘She’s speaking for the network, that’s what it is. And the network is run by accountants. It’s all about the money.’

‘They’ve got enough to give her a 7 Series,’ said Day. ‘I was forty before I could afford a car like that, and what’s she, thirty-one, thirty-two?’

‘Twenty-nine, I think,’ said Laura.

‘Bitch.’  He looked at his watch. ‘Is Jenny still around or has she pushed off?’

‘She’s with Terry in props.’

Day nodded. ‘What do you think about Jenny?’

‘To play Diana, you mean?’  Laura pursed her lips as she considered her answer. ‘Yes, I think she could do it. She’s a bit heavier than her sister, don’t you think? Might have to put her in baggier clothes.’

‘Or we could put her on a diet.’

Laura frowned and then she realised he was joking. ‘Ha ha,’ she said.

‘But do you think she can act?’

‘Probably not, but this is a soap, not the Old Vic. If she screws up, Phillippa can reshoot. If necessary, we can lose most of the dialogue and she can just nod and smile. But I think she’ll be fine.’

‘Yes, you’re right,’ said Day. ‘And I like the way she stood up to that little shit Waites. He had it coming to him. ‘ He nodded. ‘All right, then, I’ll go and talk to her.’

Day left the office and headed for the Props Department. He pushed open the door and Jenny and Terry looked up, startled as if he’d interrupted them in the middle of something.  Terry was sitting in front of his computer and Jenny was leaning against his desk, her legs crossed at the ankles. ‘Hi, Paul, yes, something you want?’ asked Terry.

‘A chat with Jenny, actually,’ said Day.

‘Has Carolyn been in touch?’ asked Jenny.

‘No, sorry,’ said Day. He thought about asking her to go back to his office but realised there was nothing to stop him asking her in front of Terry.  Terry headed the Property Department but he worked closely with Wardrobe and he’d be helping to turn Jenny into Diana.  ‘This might seem a strange request, but we were wondering if you could possibly help us out?’

‘Sure,’ said Jenny.

‘Well, you’d best wait to hear what we want before you go agreeing to anything,’ said Day. ‘We’re shooting some scenes tomorrow and we’d like you to play the part of Diana.’

Jenny frowned. ‘What do you mean?’

‘We really need to shoot the scenes and you’re Carolyn’s twin. You’re probably the only person that can take her place.’

Jenny laughed. ‘But I’m not an actress.’

‘We can work around that,’ said Day. ‘We can keep your lines short, cut back on close-ups, you’ll be surrounded by some of the best actors in the business and they’ll watch your back.’

Jenny folded her arms. ‘I don’t think I can,’ she said. ‘Carolyn was always the actress. I was the nerd.’

‘A nerd?’ said Terry. ‘You were a nerd?’

‘I always had my nose buried in a book,’ said Jenny.  ‘We were twins but personality-wise we’re chalk and cheese. I can’t pretend to be someone I’m not.’

‘You did a great job reading the lines in there,’ said Day.

‘That’s true,’ said Terry. ‘There were times when you sounded just like her.’

‘And acting is just moving around while you say the lines,’ said Day.

‘God, don’t let the cast hear you say that,’ said Terry. ‘You’ll have a mutiny on your hands.’

‘You know what I mean,’ said Day.  ‘In the right clothes, with the right hair, the right props, you could do it. And it wouldn’t be for long, just until Carolyn comes back.’

Jenny looked pained.  ‘I just don’t think I can do it.’

Day walked over to her and put his hands on her shoulders. ‘I think you can, Jenny,’ he said. ‘In fact, I’m sure of it.’  He looked into her eyes, exuding confidence.  ‘Just try it, that’s all I can ask of you. Give it a go and let’s see how you get on. Just try, please.’

She nodded slowly. ‘Okay, I’ll give it a go,’ she said.

Day kissed her softly on the forehead. ‘You’re a lifesaver,’ he said.

‘Wait until you see how I do,’ she said. ‘You might not be thanking me tomorrow.’

Day released his grip on her shoulders. ‘Where are you staying? I’ll get a car to pick you up.’

‘I’m at Carolyn’s house.’

‘Okay, I’ll sort that out. Now, we start shooting at eight-thirty but we’ll need you in make-up by seven so the car will pick you up at six.’

‘Wow, you believe in the early bird, don’t you?’

‘We work long days,’ said Day. ‘It’s the nature of the beast.’ He turned to look at Terry. ‘Can you work with Jenny this afternoon?’ he said. ‘Go through wardrobe with her and get her sorted. Watches, jewellery, bags, shoes, get her fixed up for the week. And we need to get her hair colour closer to Carolyn’s. We can’t do anything about the length but I’ll talk to the writers and see if we can get a scene in the hairdressers.’

‘I’m on it, Paul,’ said Terry.

‘I’ve got to dye my hair?’ asked Jenny.

‘Just a bit,’ said Terry. ‘It won’t be permanent.’

‘If I’m in the hairdressers, why can’t I keep the colour the same? Diana might have dyed her hair.’

Terry looked at Day. ‘Okay with you?’

Day nodded. ‘Sure, why not. But let’s tidy it up a bit, give it the Rags To Riches look.’

Terry winked at Jenny. ‘It’ll be a hoot,’ he said.

CHAPTER 75

Halpin picked Richards up at precisely seven o’clock.  It had started to rain and the wipers flicked back and forth across the windscreen as they drove through the evening traffic. Richards lit a cigar and settled back in his seat. ‘Any joy with the birth certificate?’ he asked.

‘I’m on the case,’ said Halpin. ‘I tried to do it on line but didn’t get anywhere. I’ve got a pro on the case. It won’t cost more than a couple of hundred.’ He braked to allow a black cab to pull in front of them. ‘What’s your interest, boss?’

‘What do you mean?’

‘I’m guessing it’s not because you want to buy her a birthday present.’

‘Spit it out, mate. What’s on your mind?’

Halpin sighed. ‘You’ll only bite my head off.’

‘If you carry on like this, I’ll rip it off with my bare hands,’ said Richards. ‘What’s bugging you?’

‘Okay, boss. It’s this. We’re in the clear.  She’s at the bottom of the North Sea where no one will ever find her.  We’re alibied up to the gills. Even if the cops do come sniffing around about Cohen, there’s no forensics and no witnesses.’

‘There’s still the truck driver.’

‘I’m on that case, too. Looks like he’ll be away on Wednesday, so I’ll do it then. I’ll let you know in advance, give you a chance to get your alibi set up. But once he’s gone that’s it. There’s nothing to tie us in with Cohen. And no one can tie us into the disappearance of the woman. We’re totally in the clear.’

‘So?’

‘So why go and spoil it by making waves around the sister? It’s bad enough you went around to her house. You don’t want to be doing anything that puts your name in the frame.’

‘She’s her sister. She wasn’t even in the country when we…’  He grimaced, unable to finish the sentence.

‘Exactly, boss,’ said Halpin. ‘So why are you talking to her? Why are you checking up on her? She shouldn’t even be on your radar.’

‘She’s the spitting image, it’s like she’s back from the dead.’

‘Yeah, well I can tell you for sure that’s not true. Boss, can’t you just leave it alone?’

Richards took a long pull on his cigar and then blew smoke out of the window.

‘Boss?’

Richards turned to look at him. His eyes had gone cold. ‘Time for you to shut the fuck up, mate,’ he said, his voice flat and emotionless. ‘You ever question me again like that and you and I are going to fall out, big-time. Got it?’

Halpin nodded as he stared through the windscreen. ‘Got it,’ he said.

CHAPTER 76

Billy was outside Carolyn Castle’s house at six o’clock on Tuesday morning and this time when he rang the bell, Jenny opened the door bright-eyed and bushy-tailed. She grinned when she saw him. ‘Before we go any further, none of this Mrs Hall nonsense,’ she said. ‘Every time I hear that I think about my soon-to-be-ex husband and it gives me the heebie-jeebies.’

‘It’s company policy,’ said Billy.

‘The drivers wouldn’t stand for it in Oz.’

‘I understand that, Mrs Hall. But I have to do what the company says. If I don’t, I could lose my job.’

‘What does the union say?’

‘I’m not in a union,’ said Billy.

‘I tell you what, we’ll keep it as our little secret, shall we?’ said Jenny, closing the door.  ‘Either that or I could tell them you tried to put your hand up my skirt. I’m sure that’s against company policy, too.’

Billy groaned. ‘Please, Mrs Hall…’

She walked past him to the Mercedes.  She was wearing a Gucci suit that Billy had seen Carolyn wear several times, and carrying a Gucci shoulder bag. If it wasn’t for the hair and the accent, Billy would have sworn it was Carolyn getting into the front seat of his car. He hurried over and grabbed the handle before she could close the door.

‘You can’t sit in the front, Mrs Hall,’ he said. ‘We’re not insured for passengers in the front. You have to travel in the back.’

‘This is a joke,’ said Jenny.

‘It’s the way it is,’ said Billy. ‘I can’t drive you anywhere unless you’re in the back and strapped in.’

Jenny sighed. ‘This is like a fascist state, you realise that.’

‘I don’t make the rules, Mrs Hall.’ He held open the door.

‘Did my sister put up with this crap?’

‘She understood I had to follow the company’s rules, yes.’

‘And what did you call her?’

‘Miss Castle.’

‘Never Carolyn?’

‘Never.’

Jenny’s eyes sparkled with amusement. ‘I tell you what, Billy. How about this? When there’s no one else around, you call me Jenny. If there’s anyone else around you can call me …’  She shrugged. ‘I tell you what, you can call me Miss Castle. If I’m taking her place then we might as well go the whole hog.’

Billy nodded. ‘Okay,’ he said. ‘Now, please, if you would get into the back, we can head off. I’ll be well bollocked if you’re late on your first day.’

Jenny smiled sweetly and did as she was asked. Billy closed the door, climbed into the front and started the car.

‘Actually there’s more room in the back,’ she said as Billy drove through Notting Hill.

‘It’s designed around the passenger,’ said Billy. ‘It’s a car for being driven around in.’

Jenny looked around. ‘I could get used to this,’ she said. ‘So how long have you been driving Carolyn?’

‘Three years, give or take.’

‘And what’s she like?’

Billy looked at her in the driving mirror. ‘You sound like you don’t know her.’

‘We’re not that close, to be honest,’ she said. ‘We both left home when we were teenagers, she came to London to seek fame and fortune. I went backpacking in India and traveled through Southeast Asia and, after a very long story, I ended up in Brisbane with a drug-taking husband who thought knocking me around was a great way to spend a Saturday night.’

‘Sorry to hear that,’ said Billy.

‘You make your own bed in this life, Billy, no one forces you to lie in it. Anyway, it’s behind me now. He left five years ago and if I could only find the bastard I’d divorce him.’ She grinned. ‘Or have him shot. I’m easy either way.’

‘Never understood anyone who’d want to hit a woman,’ said Billy.

‘That’s because you’re a gentleman, Billy. But believe me, there’s plenty of men out there happy to take a swing at a member of the fairer sex.’

‘You know, Carolyn never mentioned you, not once,’ said Billy, looking at her in the rear-view mirror.

‘As I said, we weren’t that close. I don’t think anyone in Oz would know she was my sister.’

‘Do they see the show down there?’

‘Not really. It’s on one of the cable channels, but it’s not like I ever got stopped in the street or anything.’

‘Well, that’s going to happen here, that’s for sure,’ he said. ‘Especially with you dressing like her. Your hair’s a bit different, but the resemblance is…’  He laughed. ‘Stupid thing to say,’ he said. ‘You’re twins. Of course you look the same.’

CHAPTER 77

Jenny sat in the chair as Tracey busied herself applying make-up. ‘You really do look like her,’ said the make-up artist.  Jenny’s hair was covered in a clear plastic cap covering a dozen or so slips of silver paper to make it look as if her hair was being dyed.

‘That’s the thing about twins,’ said Jenny.

‘But even your skin. The texture. The colour. And this large freckle by your nose, Carolyn has one in pretty much the same place.’

‘It’s genetics,’ said Jenny. ‘But personality-wise we’re totally different. I tell you Tracey, I’m shitting myself here, I really don’t think I’m going to be able to do it. Does my sister get nervous?’

‘Carolyn? Never? She always joked she could do it in her sleep. She did stage work early on and that was difficult, she said, because there you don’t get to correct your mistakes, they’re out there for the audience to see. In TV-Land if you do anything wrong, the director shouts “cut” and you get to do it again. And even if the shoot doesn’t go well, they can fix most things in the edit.’

‘What do you mean?’

‘Say you get your dialogue wrong.  They can dub it. If you do something wrong, they can edit that bit out. And there’s all sorts of CGI tricks they can use. So, really, you don’t have to worry about a thing.’

Jenny took a deep breath. ‘I hope you’re right,’ she said.

Phillippa appeared at the door holding pale green sheets of paper. ‘Everything okay, Jenny?’ she asked.

‘I think so.’

‘You’ll be fine,’ said the director. She waved the sheets in the air.  ‘I’ve had the writers put together a short scene in a hairdressers. It’ll explain the lighter hair and give us a chance to do a scene where it’s just you talking.’ She gave one of the sheets to Jenny. ‘Basically you’re sitting in a chair at the hairdressers. You’re given a cup of coffee but you ask for champagne.’

‘Champagne? In a hairdressers?’

‘That’s the way Diana lives. Then you talk to your stylist. Then your phone rings and you talk to your lawyer.’

Jenny looked at the sheet. ‘So no one else speaks?’