His eyes darted to his house then floated across my face before drifting back to the narrow pavement we stood on. ‘I better go.’
‘What sort of dancing?’ It was the would-be journalist in me that prompted the question. The untrained instinct that told me where the story was.
‘Dunno. Just clubs. You know. Dancing.’
‘But Beth has never been to a club.’
He shook his head while pulling awkwardly at the straps of his rucksack. ‘Mum’s expecting me.’
Why wouldn’t he look at me? Was this your attacker?
‘I heard you were a bit sweet on Beth. Is that right?’ But I was addressing his back, and he didn’t pause in his stride into the dusk.
‘Did she meet you that night, Aleksy? Aleksy! Did you take her to a nightclub? Did something happen? Did something go wrong? How did she end up on the marsh, Aleksy?’
As he strode away, I felt more sure than ever that he knew something. But I had no earthly idea how I was going to find out what he knew about that night.
Wiggins gave me a hero’s welcome when I came through the door. Jumping up, whole body wagging with his tail, as though we hadn’t seen one another for hours rather than ten minutes. I pushed him down and flopped on the sofa, unsure of what to do. There was only one person who I could talk it through with: Glenn.
He answered my call within two rings, listening intently as I recounted what had happened.
‘You’re right; the kid may have taken Beth to a nightclub on a date, and somehow something went wrong.’
‘But what on earth led to her being on the marsh?’
‘God knows. But I think you should tell the police about this.’
I curled my fingers through Wiggins’s fur, uncomfortable at the thought. ‘I’m not sure. There’s no proof, only my gut instinct.’
‘Yeah, but if you tell them, then they can find the proof, can’t they? That’s their job, after all – not that you’d know it at the moment.’
‘You’re right. I’ll do it now. They’ve been useless so far.’
I called DS Devonport, but couldn’t get through. I left a terse message explaining that she needed to check if any cabs had been used by Aleksy and you that night.
‘The Jachowski kid knows more than he is letting on,’ I warned.
Exhausted, I slumped back and closed my eyes. Wiggins rested his head on one of the colourful patchwork cushions I had made to brighten up the brown corduroy sofa we’d bought in a sale a few years earlier and hated ever since. Within minutes, he was breathing heavily. Sleep didn’t come for me, though, Beth.
Twenty minutes later, the door slammed shut, making me jump. The dog jumped up with an instinctive bark that turned into a yelp of joy when he saw Jacob.
‘How’s your day been?’ I asked, getting up to give your dad a kiss.
He gave me a cursory peck, his stubble scraping my face – he hadn’t even had time to shave that morning. ‘All right. You ready to go to Leeds?’
‘Just give me a minute to get some stuff together.’
‘You’re not ready? What have you been doing today?’ Something sharp in his tone made it sound like an accusation.
‘Not much, but—’
‘No? I heard you spent the day with Glenn Baker. That you’ve been spending a lot of time with him, in fact.’
His jaw tightened. I blinked, confused. Then balled my fists.
‘If you’re accusing me of something, come right out with it.’
‘Not accusing, asking. But the way you’re reacting makes me wonder…’
‘Oh, come off it! He’s just moved back to the village, and he’s been helping me with—’
‘Helping you? If you need help, why not come to me? How much did he help you when you got drunk together the other night? You didn’t tell me you’d been with him.’
We stepped closer, eyeballing each other.
‘You didn’t ask! Are you seriously accusing me of something?’
‘Is there anything to accuse you of?’
‘Jacob! Don’t you think I have enough on my plate without adding an affair to the list?’ If he’d only shut up and let me explain…
‘What do you have on your plate? You don’t work any more, and you’ve stopped going to the hospital during the day. Why’s that? Have you stopped caring about what happens to Beth? ’Cos you only seem to go when I take you.’
How dare he! ‘It’s only been a couple of days, and I go every night with you. I don’t see you spending any more time there than me.’
‘I go to work, Mel! When I’m not working, I’m there, talking to our daughter. Letting her know she’s loved, and that she needs to come back to us.’
‘I do that too. I’ve been trying to work out who did this. That’s what I’ve been doing with Glenn. I need to tell you something.’
Wiggins barked, interrupting me. Just as well, because Jacob was glaring as if I were mad.
‘Quiet,’ I ordered.
But Wiggins was right: there was a strange noise. Row temporarily suspended, Jacob and I looked at each other quizzically.
‘Something’s going on outside.’
We moved to the window and peered out, but couldn’t make out much in the darkness of the winter night, lit only with pools of light from the street light in front of the school opposite, and the glow of the pub on our left and the store on the right.
There was definitely a lot of shouting, though. Sounded like quite a crowd too.
‘What’s happening?’ I breathed.
All three of us went to the front door. Jacob told Wiggins to stay, and shut him in before we went down the garden path together. Jill strode towards us.
‘I was just coming to get you. You need to come right now.’
Without explanation, she hurried away, walking full of purpose, arms swinging by the sides of her soft rectangle of a body. Her steel-grey ponytail bobbed jauntily. She was so used to everyone doing as she said that she didn’t wait to check whether we were following, just assumed we were. And it didn’t even enter our heads not to.
We hurried after her, bemused, but quickly saw where she was going. Beyond the café and the shop was a row of council houses that were now mostly privately owned – you know the ones I mean, Beth. Next to where Bob Thornby and Phyllis Blakecroft live; the neighbours who row about the overgrown hedge all the time. There, a crowd of villagers had gathered. Shouting. Angry. It seemed to be focused on the Jachowski family’s house.
Thirty-Seven
I grabbed Jacob’s arm, fearful and ashamed, pulling him back from the gate.
‘I don’t think we should get involved.’
He hesitated, looking from me to the crowd. Then we heard it. Your name, Beth. This was something to do with you. I blushed, wondering if somehow my confrontation with Aleksy had triggered it.
Snatches of some shouts became clearer over others as the calls rose and fell, as the wind picked them up and threw them in our direction.
‘Cowards! Come out!’
‘You’ll hit a girl, but don’t have the courage to tackle us lot, do you? Eh?’