“What?” I said again. “What on earth is he doing there?”
“I spoke to Steven again. Apparently he’s not replying to any messages from the family. Steven admitted that he knew about the affair but not the extent of it all. I bet they’re gambling through our money as we speak. Damn it, Emma, why did you have to be pregnant right now? I need a stiff drink.”
“Hey, I won’t judge you.” I smiled. It felt good to talk about any other topic than the investigation with Aiden. “This all seems so out of character, though. Has he taken off like this before?”
“That’s the thing,” Josie said. Her eyes lit up with the glitter of anger. “Steven said that he has done this before, not that I knew about it. He took some receptionist to Cornwall for a dirty weekend.” She uncorked a bottle of Malbec and began to pour.
“Fuck.” I glanced around the kitchen searching for evidence with how Josie was coping. Most people would be relieved that there weren’t any Chinese takeaway cartons or dirty dishes in the sink. The place was pristine, which was somewhat disconcerting. Had the weight of her husband’s activities truly hit her? “I’m so sorry, Jo.”
She shrugged. “I knew it was coming. Deep down, I honestly think I’m relieved.” She took a gulp of the Malbec. “Don’t look at me with those big puppy-dog eyes. I know you think I’m going to go off the rails, but there’s nothing to worry about.”
“Are you sure, because—”
“It’s all in the past.” Josie set her wine glass down on the kitchen side with a finality that warned me not to delve into the murky past I was about to bring up. “Now, what can I get you? Herbal tea? Sparkling water?”
I groaned. “What I’d give for a nice gin and tonic. Or a measure of whisky.” I lifted my fingers and pinched them together. “I was this close to opening a bottle of vodka the day Aiden came home. And then this week has got worse and worse. Did you see they’d arrested the duke?”
“Arsehole,” she said with real venom. “Do you think he…” She swallowed, uncertain whether to say it or leave the implication hanging.
“I honestly don’t know, and that’s the worst of it. I just want the person who hurt Aiden to be behind bars. I want all of this to be over.”
She nodded. “Well, I always thought he was a shifty fucker. Don’t worry, Em. If he did it, the police will find the evidence and they’ll put him away. What are they doing for the investigation now?”
“Well, apparently they’re searching the surrounding area for any suspicious outbuildings or old shelters that could have been converted into a prison. But DCI Stevenson told me that there aren’t always records for some of these old buildings, and the woods are really dense so it’s hard going. Most of their resources have been taken up looking into the duke. It took them ages to search Wetherington and they’re going through all the images on his computer.” What I didn’t say was that they were looking for images of Aiden on his computer. I didn’t say it because it made me feel ill.
“They’ll find him, Emma. I know they will.” Josie reached across and took hold of my hand. She squeezed my hand and then leaned away, frowning. “Is there something else wrong? You seem a bit peaky.”
“It’s going to sound really stupid.”
She laughed. “I bet it won’t. Remember that time I thought Argentina was in Europe?”
“Oh yeah, that was pretty stupid.”
“Can’t be worse than that, can it?” she offered.
“It’s Aiden. He’s been acting really strangely recently and I’m worried.”
“How do you mean?”
I settled into the stool at Josie’s breakfast bar. “Well, I never expected him to be fine after everything he’s been through. Of course he will have been affected by the trauma of what he’s been through, but I’m starting to wonder whether I’m going to need help with him. Whether I can’t cope. His behaviour has gotten a little… out of hand. First he decided to cut up the curtains with scissors. Then he cut up the mobile for the new baby and threw red paint into the crib.”
“Oh shit, Emma. That’s scary.”
“I know. Jake thinks it isn’t safe to bring a newborn home with Aiden here, but I just can’t bring myself to send him away.”
“Well, that’s understandable. He was taken away from you.”
“But I’m beginning to think that maybe Jake is right. Maybe I can’t cope with Aiden and maybe I’m being selfish by pretending I can.”
“Being selfish about what? Emma, you are the least selfish person I know.”
“If I’m putting Jake and my unborn child in danger because I can’t let go of my son, then that’s selfish, isn’t it?”