He's After Me

Chapter FORTY-SIX



I must be the dimmest person in the world. It had simply never occurred to me that Livi was with Jem.

Even when the squad car arrives, I still don’t get how serious the situation is. They’ve already checked out Ferret and confirmed that he hasn’t seen Livi for days. Apart from being an annoying little shit, he seems to be harmless.

‘We’ve got an alert out for Jermaine Smith,’ says the officer. It’s DC Blane, the one I spoke to at the station.

‘He’s got her,’ says Jude. ‘I know he has!’

Mum nods in agreement, trying not to cry.

I stare at them blankly. It’s obvious when you think about it, she’s with him. They all look terrified.

‘Don’t worry.’ I say. ‘He hasn’t kidnapped her, if that’s what you’re worried about.’

‘You don’t know that,’ says Dad.

‘She’s run off with him!’ I say. ‘She’s mad about him.’ The world and his wife could be against Jem but Livi would be there for him through thick and thin.

‘I think she’s right,’ whispers Mum.

‘Nevertheless, we’ll put a Missing Persons out on her straight away.’

Blane walks outside to speak privately into his radio and Mum and Dad exchange anxious looks, afraid to speak.

‘What’s your concern?’ asks Dad when he returns.

The detective hesitates, like he’s not sure how much information he should be divulging.

‘Jermaine Smith has history.’

‘What sort of history?’

‘I’m afraid I’m not at liberty to say, sir.’

‘I represented him last year,’ Jude’s voice rings out crisply. ‘He had petty larceny on his record, that’s all.’

‘Really?’ says DC Blane, raising his eyebrows, and we know there’s more to it than that. ‘Then you’re obviously not aware that Smith has an obsessive, addictive personality. When he meets someone he likes he falls madly in love with them. Literally. He won’t take no for an answer.’

Jude flushes, like she’s been caught out not doing her job properly. ‘Now,’ he says, ‘if I could just take a few details.’

We give him all the information we can about Livi and he scribbles it down. Meanwhile my parents become visibly more distressed.

After a while my father says savagely, ‘If he harms one hair of her head … !’ and I say, ‘He wouldn’t do that, Dad!’ but my words are cut off as the officer’s radio crackles into life.

‘What are you defending him for?’ says my father through gritted teeth as Blane goes back outside to answer it.

‘I’m not! I just know he wouldn’t hurt Livi. He wouldn’t hurt anyone. Not in that way.’

‘You don’t know the first thing about him!’ says Dad furiously.

He’s right. Let’s face it, Jem has always been a complete mystery to me. That was part of his charm. But I am absolutely convinced, whatever else he has done, Jem would never deliberately harm my kid sister.

Then DC Blane returns to the room and clears his throat.

‘I’m afraid,’ he says, ‘there’s been an incident.’





When he told her where he was going next she’d said she’d come with him.

He’d actually hesitated. ‘It’s dangerous,’ he’d warned her, but she’d laughed. She was really up for it.

You could hardly blame her. Jude had messed up her life, just like she’d messed up his.