She then smoothed down her sandy-coloured bun with one hand and put the carrier bag of snacks and sandwiches on the back seat. She left the back door open –on her niece’s side- and waited for a short moment before asking, “Where is she?”
Right on cue, her niece came strutting out of the toilets.
Driver couldn’t look at her any more than a second as the weight of what was about to happen hit home. He got straight into the car and placed his hands heavily on the steering wheel. He didn’t turn his head, keeping it fixed straight ahead.
“You ready?” Erica called to her.
He listened to the sounds of Jaz’s approaching steps crunching against the stones scattered randomly on the tarmac. He closed his eyes. Those insignificant little sounds made his heart jump up to his throat. He swallowed hard, his throat so dry the lump got stuck there.
“Yep.” The car jolted a little as Jaz jumped inside. She shut the door and let out a sigh that was loud to his acute hearing.
He wanted to sprint out of the car as fast as he could, yet at the same time, he felt like he couldn’t bear to be away from her. It was a strange and new feeling that tore at his insides, unlike anything he’d ever felt before.
He held his breath as the others slid into their seats.
After mentally demanding himself to Get a grip, he turned on the engine, exhaled, and set off.
~Chapter 7 - Dupe~
Saturday May 7th, 1:04 p.m.
On the road
“Egg and cress; that would be yours, darling.” Aunt Erica handed the sandwich packet to Uncle Bo.
He took it without turning round. “Thank you, dear.”
“I’m the chicken salad. I got you a ploughman’s,” she said, addressing Jaz. “I remember you having that at some point.”
Jaz took the sandwich and as she leaned against the door, she gazed at her aunt. “You have a really good memory,” she observed.
Erica looked at her and let out a short laugh. “Years of crossword puzzles to keep my brain healthy, though I’m not that old.”
Jaz looked her aunt up and down. It was the first time she had tried to guess Erica's age. She'd never asked if Erica was an older or younger sibling, but had always assumed she was younger by appearance. Perhaps late thirties? Maybe mid?
She had a very rectangular face; a strong -almost masculine- jaw gave her face a sharpness that was more attractive than fierce. The bones of her cheeks were high and pointy, disguising any sagginess, bags or wrinkles that might have been very obvious if they didn’t have the support her cheekbones provided.
Her small, feline eyes that were now studying Jaz, had the habit of twinkling when she smiled or laughed. Her straight, white teeth grinned below her small, pointed nose that Jaz was sure looked very similar to hers, minus the bump on the bridge.
Jaz gazed down at the black, pointy, patent heels with the bright red soles her aunt was wearing and then looked back up at her face.
“I’m thirty six,” Erica said, guessing Jaz's thoughts.
Jaz nodded with a smile. That seemed about right.
Her aunt then grabbed a bottle from her lap and handed it to Jaz. “Orange juice.”
Jaz took it with a smile and twisted open the cap. She noticed that the seal had already been broken and looked down at it in puzzlement. “Huh,” she grunted to herself.
She wasn’t looking up to notice the momentary startled expression that flashed across her aunt’s face. Her uncle almost choked on a mouthful of egg, cress and bread. Driver gripped the steering wheel so tight his knuckles turned white.
“What is it, dear?” Aunt Erica asked, composing herself enough to sound believably unknowing.
“Oh nothing, just my bottle. The seal was broken.”
“Oh yes, silly me. I opened it for you and then when you didn’t come out the bathroom straight away I put the lid back on.”
Jaz bobbed her head in understanding and twisted the lid off. She smiled at her aunt before turning to gaze back out the window.
When Jaz was sure no one was looking, she slipped her hand inside her handbag and very quietly popped the lid of her pills’ bottle. To normal human ears it was quiet.
Driver, however, did hear it.
He flicked his gaze up at her reflection in the mirror. She was looking down, her chin angled towards the window, as if she was trying to hide her face from the others. This sparked his curiosity.
He watched as Jaz glanced at her aunt and uncle before popping something into her mouth, downing any trace of it with several gulps of orange juice.
Driver frowned -which to him wasn’t much different from his ordinary expression- causing the crease between his brows to deepen a little more as he watched her swallow. The curiosity was still brewing beneath the surface but the realization that there was no turning back now, blazed like a red hot poker in his gut.