Devious intention, p.17
, page 17
Ellie glanced Louise’s way, willing her to remain strong and hoping that she would stick to what they’d rehearsed while in the car.
Louise cleared her throat and held her head high. “Well, I need to know when you knew of my husband’s intentions to leave the country.”
“I’m not sure I understand,” Jackie replied, mystified.
“Gosh, just a second. I knew I shouldn’t have had that extra cup of coffee before we left home. Mind if I use the loo?” Ellie asked.
Jackie’s eyes rose to the ceiling then quickly returned to Ellie. “If you must. The toilet can be found down the corridor, the last room on the right.”
Ellie left the room, and while the receptionist was distracted on the phone, she swiftly walked down the corridor. She stopped at every door she came to, opened it, and stuck her head in. The first door led to a storage room, but the second one belonged to Matt’s office. She quickly slipped inside and walked over to his desk looking for something small that only Matt was likely to have used. Not believing her luck, she saw the Mont Blanc fountain pen, picked it up with a paper tissue and popped it in her jacket pocket, then she exited the room before either of the women working in the building discovered her. When she returned to Jackie’s office, she found Louise crying and shouting at her husband’s associate.
“What’s going on here?” Ellie demanded. She knew that Louise was only pretending to be upset, but her client’s reaction seemed very real, which unnerved Ellie a little.
Jackie looked Ellie in the eye, her face pink with embarrassment. “I have no idea. One minute, we were chatting, and the next, Louise started to cry. To my knowledge, I didn’t say anything to upset her. I promise.”
Louise buried her head in her hands and sobbed loudly. Ellie crouched beside Louise’s chair and rubbed the top of her arm. “I knew this would be too difficult for you, Louise. I’m so sorry for putting you through this.”
“It’s not you who has driven me into this depression—it’s Matt. Why? Why has he done this to me?”
“Let’s get you home. I’ll call the doctor, see if he’ll up your medication.” Ellie and Louise stood and walked towards the door. Ellie looked over her shoulder at the astounded woman and said, “Maybe you can pass on to Matt how upset his wife is about the situation he has thrust upon her, the next time you speak to him.”
“Oh, I will, you can be sure of that. Goodbye, Louise. I hope this painful experience is rectified for you soon.”
“We hope so too,” Ellie replied as she guided Louise out of the building and into the car park.
Once inside the car, Louise blew her nose and wiped her eyes on a couple of tissues. “How did I do?”
Ellie smiled at her. “Well, you bloody convinced the hell out of me. I was cursing myself back there for a second, for making you go through with the plan. Anyway, I got what we needed.”
“Excellent news. We make a good team, Ellie.”
“We do indeed. It’s a shame you don’t live closer to Worcester. I’d have no hesitation in giving you a job with us.”
“Wow, really? I’d love to dip my toe into your line of business. To catch all the cheating husbands out there. Let’s be honest—there’s nothing much keeping me around here.”
“Let’s not be too hasty about sorting out what to do about your future just yet. You’ll have Sophie to look after when we bring her home, and mark my words, Louise: we will bring your daughter back to the UK and into your loving arms again. I promise you that.”
Louise reached over and hugged her. “I’d be suicidal if you weren’t helping me, Ellie. I’ll never be able to repay your kindness and generosity.”
Ellie’s eyes watered. “Nonsense. Come on, let’s get back to the safety of the flat. Just a sec—I should ring Jim first.” She dialled Jim’s mobile. “I’ve got it, Jim. It was a breeze. Do you want me to post it to you?”
“What is it, Ellie?”
“Matt’s expensive fountain pen. I doubt he’d want anyone else using it, so the fingerprints should be clear.”
“Excellent. Would you mind posting it before you go back to the flat? Send it by special delivery to the station.”
“Sure, remind me of the postal address. I think I still have the old station’s address in my mind.”
Jim gave her the address, and Ellie noted it down on a scrap of paper she had in her handbag. She said goodbye to her brother and asked Louise where the nearest post office was. Getting out of the car, she told Louise to lock herself in and ordered her not to open the door to anyone, even if they were dying in the road in front of her.
Ellie bought a special envelope, wrapped the pen up in a few grubby tissues she found sitting at the bottom of her handbag, inserted the pen in the envelope, and addressed it to her brother at Worcester police station. She exhaled a relieved sigh when she handed the parcel over to the assistant behind the counter. When Ellie returned to the car, she checked all around her before she jumped in and slapped the button down to lock the door. “That’s on its way. Let’s hope forensics can find something on it.”
“Do you think they’ll find his prints connected to another crime? Is that why Jim wanted it?”
“You never know what my brother has up his sleeve. He’s a good copper, very thorough in his job.”
They drove back to the flat and parked the car nearby. After going through the ritual of checking the coast was clear, they left the car and ran into the flat.
Hearing a noise in the kitchen, Ellie placed a finger to her lips and armed herself with an umbrella from the coatrack. She pointed for Louise to remain by the front door. “If I get attacked, just run, scream, bring attention to yourself in the street.”
“Be careful, Ellie,” Louise whispered.
Ellie crept into the lounge, her heart beating intensely. The sound grew louder the closer she got to the kitchen. Ellie poked her head around the doorframe and quickly withdrew it again before the person noticed her. She sucked in a deep breath and showed herself. “What do you want? The police are on their way.”
The woman held a hand to her chest, her eyes widened in shock. “What the hell are you talking about? This is my home. Who in God’s name are you, and what are you doing in my bloody flat?”
“Your home?” Ellie dropped the umbrella.
Louise joined her in the doorway. “Georgina! Why didn’t you tell me you were coming home today?” Louise rushed forward and hugged the bemused woman.
Ellie eyed the embrace with interest.
“And who is she? When I said you could stay here a few days, Lou, I didn’t know you’d be inviting a friend to stay with you.”
“Sorry. This is Ellie. She’s a private investigator. I can explain it all over a coffee. You two are going to get on; I can tell.”
“Why don’t I help Georgina make the coffee while you go and relax in the lounge, Louise. Here, take this back to where it belongs, will you?” Ellie handed the umbrella to Louise, who left the room. Ellie reached over and switched on the kettle. “It’s nice to finally meet you, Georgina. I’ve heard nothing but nice things about you from Louise.”
“She and I go back years. She’s a real sweetie.”
“She is, which begs the question, why the hell are you screwing her husband?”
CHAPTER EIGHTEEN
“I haven’t got a clue what you’re talking about. Has Louise told you that?”
Ellie took a step closer to the woman and shook her head. “No. The thing is, I’ve just returned from Spain, and there’s no point denying something that I saw with my own eyes. What I want to know is, why? How could you do the dirty on your best friend like this? Was it your idea to kill Louise?”
Georgina sighed heavily. “No, it was not. I was appalled when Matt told me what he’d done.”
“Really? But you weren’t appalled enough to break it off with him, I take it?”
She bowed her head in shame. “I’ve tried several times to end our affair over the past few months, but he assured me that he wanted to spend the rest of his life with me.”
“So, to me, that’s sounding like you agreed with his plans. How could you do that to your best friend?” Ellie’s voice rose, and she lowered it while taking another step nearer to Georgina. “I’ve been here to pick up the pieces of that woman’s life—your best friend’s life! And you stand there, looking as if none of this is down to you. You’re despicable! Telling dreadful lies about attending your aunt’s funeral.” Ellie gasped as something struck her. “Is he here as well?”
Georgina shook her head. “No, please, you don’t understand. I’ve left him. Ended our relationship…”
“What relationship, George? I had no idea you were seeing anyone,” Louise said from the doorway.
Ellie saw Georgina silently pleading with her and shook her head. “I can’t be a part of this. Either you tell Louise, or I will.”
“I don’t understand. What should you be telling me, George? Ellie, why are you being so harsh to my friend when she’s grieving? Will someone please tell me what the fuck is going on?” Louise took a sharp intake of breath and leaned against the doorframe. “No! You wouldn’t?”
“I’m so sorry, Lou. It’s finished. I went out to Spain to end it with him.”
Tears dripped off Louise’s nose as she shook her head. “No… Ellie, did you know about this?”
Ellie walked towards Louise, but she backed away. “I had my suspicions, love, but needed the proof before I presented you with the facts. I had no idea the woman I saw Matt with in Spain was Georgina, until a few seconds ago.”
Louise’s legs crumpled beneath her. Ellie ran forward and caught her. She lowered Louise to the ground and tried to comfort her, but Louise shrugged her off. “Leave me alone. I thought you were both my friends, people I could trust in this world, and all you’ve done is stab me in the back.”
“I hardly think you can point the finger at me in that way, Louise,” Ellie said, feeling wounded.
Louise buried her head in her hands. Suddenly, she struggled to get to her feet and stormed across the kitchen to stand nose to nose with Georgina. She poked her friend in the chest, making Georgina wince. “How long? How long has this affair been going on? Sleeping with my husband? How long?” With each question she fired, her voice rose in anger, her tears and feeling sorry for herself long forgotten.
Georgina looked Ellie’s way for help. Ellie shook her head and lifted her shoulders. Louise had every right to know how long Georgina, and more importantly Matt, had been deceiving her. Georgina gulped loudly and replied, “Since before your miscarriage. He told me that your pregnancy wasn’t planned and that he didn’t want another baby.”
Alarm bells rang in Ellie’s mind. Had Matt caused the miscarriage? Could he really have killed an innocent unborn child just because he wanted to get out of his marriage?
Louise shook her head. “He lied to you from day one then, because he very much wanted another child. We’d planned it for years. You look shocked to hear that, Georgina.”
“I swear that’s not what he told me.”
“Even if he had told you that, would that have made it all right for you to fall in love with him, my husband?”
Georgina turned her head to the side and mumbled, “No. But we can’t help who we fall in love with, can we?”
Louise sighed heavily, placed her thumb and forefinger either side of Georgina’s chin, and forced her friend to look at her. “Can’t we? Is that how it works with you, George? You’re unable to hook a man of your own with your sultry looks and supersized breasts, so you have to sink so low and steal another woman’s husband? Your best friend’s husband, at that?”
“No, that’s not how it was, Lou. He came on to me. He needed someone to talk to at a bar one night, and he opened up… things went on from there, really.”
“So out of sympathy you led him home to your bed? No wonder you told me to sleep on the couch—you thought I’d smell him on your sheets, didn’t you?”
“No, not at all. Oh, I don’t know. Perhaps you’re right. If you must know, he was concerned about a work matter, said that he couldn’t speak to you about it.”
“Did he say why?” Ellie jumped in and asked.
Georgina turned to look at Ellie. “He said that Louise wouldn’t understand.”
Louise growled. “Do I seem thick to you? Obviously, I have been guilty of it where you and my husband’s underhandedness is concerned, or maybe you’re the thick one around here. Do you have any idea who my husband’s clients were?”
“I’m not sure what you’re getting at, Louise. His clients vary, don’t they?”
Louise tilted her head back and laughed. “Are you hearing this, Ellie? How bloody naïve can one person be, eh?”
“I’m anything but naïve, Louise. You’re the one who had no idea her husband was cheating on her. Not me.”
Whack!
Ellie sensed the slap was coming but was too slow to prevent Louise from striking out.
Georgina rubbed the left hand side of her face. “Do that again, Lou, and I’ll call the police and throw an assault charge at you.”
Louise raised her hand, but Ellie’s reactions were quicker this time. “Louise, she’s not worth it. Get the answers to your questions, and then we’ll get out of here.”
Louise glared at Ellie, who released her grip. “Okay, answer me this: do you have a conscience, Georgina? Do you sleep at night?”
“Of course I have a conscience, but I haven’t slept for months, hence my need to change jobs. If you must know, I got the sack for not being on top of my game enough. I lost my old firm a big client.”
“How did you manage to find a job so quickly after being fired? Oh wait—don’t tell me. Let me frigging guess. Matt had a contact, and he found you the job?”
Georgina’s head slumped against her chest. “Yes, that’s right.”
Louise faced Ellie. “It’s not just who you know but apparently whom you sleep with that can get you a good job nowadays. Did you know that, Ellie?”
Neither Ellie nor Georgina could find the words to argue.
Louise turned back to her former best friend. “Do you really detest me that much? To go behind my back for months and still treat me as your best friend to my face. How exactly does that work?”
Georgina shook her head. “I don’t hate you. I never have. You’ve been like a sister to me, Lou.”
Louise snorted. “Don’t you see how ironic your reply is? Are you saying that it wouldn’t have mattered if we were blood sisters, you would have still cheated with my husband? I don’t know you at all. Over the years, I’ve told you every intricate detail and secret I’ve ever had, only for you to use it all against me. You’re despicable. And what about Sophie? Have you ever had the decency to consider her in your evil plans?”
“I’m sorry, Louise. What else can I say? For your information, it was seeing Sophie over the weekend that made my mind up.”
“Made your mind up?” Louise asked swiftly.
“Yes, if your friend here had stuck around in Spain long enough, she would’ve seen me leave the villa with all of my luggage. I’ve spent the last two days in a hotel room in tears.”
“And I’m supposed to feel sorry for you, sobbing your effing heart out? Why were you staying in a hotel?”
“Because I’ve finished it with Matt,” she repeated, exasperated.
Ellie was the first to respond. “You’ve truly ended the relationship? Why? How did Matt react?”
“I couldn’t take it any more. I suppose to answer one of the earlier questions you fired at me, my conscience suddenly got the better of me, and yes, it might have been being in the same room as Sophie that finally tipped the see-saw. She deserves to be with her mother.”
“What are you saying? That Matt isn’t caring for her properly?”
“No, he dotes on her, but sometimes, she just looks lost. I’m sure that’s because she’s missing you.”
“Do you know what Matt has told her about my absence? Has he told her I’m… dead?”
Again, Georgina’s head dropped.
Louise screamed and flew at her former friend, striking her with clenched fists until Ellie stepped in and dragged Louise away.
“Please, Louise, try and remain calm,” Ellie pleaded.
Louise spun around, tears cascading onto her cheeks. “Could you remain calm, Ellie, if Cally thought you were dead and you were still walking this earth? And Cally isn’t even your child to begin with.”
“No. Please, I can understand how upset you are, but let’s give Georgina the chance to explain her decision. Okay?”
Louise nodded. “Go on then, George. So what was Matt’s reaction to your grand gesture?”
“He wasn’t best pleased. Matt said that everything he’d done over the past few weeks had been for my benefit. I never wanted any of this to happen, Lou. I swear. It was like a runaway steamroller starting at the top of a very steep hill. There was just no way to prevent it from crashing. The responsibility of knowing what he’d done to you prompted me to end it with him. Who knows what he’d have done with me once the novelty of having me in his bed daily wore off?”
“You’re deluded and selfish. It was your self-preservation in the end that spoke out, not your guilt. You disgust me.”
“If that was the case, why would I have opened my home to you? I had to have time to think, to work things out for myself. I had to be cagey with Matt, Lou. Fear guided my actions. I still have a feeling that he’s going to come after me. In fact, I’ve arranged for an estate agent to come round this afternoon to list the flat. You didn’t see the anger in his eyes. It scared the hell out of me.”
“I think Louise is right. Your fears are more from self-preservation than guilt. Otherwise, you would have ended your affair when he told you about the accident… unless you were part of that scheme too. Were you, Georgina?”
“No. Not initially. The plan was all his. He had a friend down in Falmouth in the police force who owed him a favour from years back. This copper set the whole thing up, for a cost of course.”
