Where the Memories Lie
By: Sibel Hodge
‘Who else would it be? How many other people do you think he’s murdered? ’ I hissed the word, glancing around me to make sure none of the other customers could hear us. ‘It’s got to be her.’
I chewed on my lip. ‘But I think I can count on one hand the number of times I’ve ever seen Tom lose his temper in all the time I’ve known him. I know sometimes Tom and Lucas don’t see eye to eye about things, but Tom never gets angry with him, does he?
Whatever happened, it must’ve been pretty bad for him to have killed her.’
‘He only ever used to get angry with things, not people.
Frustrated, more like – if the vacuum didn’t work, or some tool or other went wrong, or he was fixing the car and it wasn’t going right.
But he was never angry with us or anyone else.’
‘Yes, but he did hit that man once in that car park in Weymouth, didn’t he?’
‘That was different! The man had already punched his wife in the middle of the street and was going to do it again if Dad hadn’t intervened. He was just protecting her.’
I looked at my watch. ‘We need to get back home. I want to be back in time to meet Anna off the school bus in case the crime scene people are still there. I’ll have to explain something to her at least.’
Nadia stood, squaring her shoulders. ‘We’ll have to be strong for the girls. I think it will be best if I bring Charlotte back to yours and we can tell them together. That will be easier. At least it’s the last day of term and they won’t have to go back to school while this is all still fresh in people’s minds.’
As we headed out the door, my mobile phone rang.
‘It’s Chris,’ I said to her, looking at the name on the display.
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‘What the hell is going on?’ he said when I answered. ‘I’ve just had the police up at work to talk to me, saying Dad killed someone and buried them under your garage!’
‘It’s true. It’s unbelievable, but it’s true.’
‘And he just confessed this to you?’ he asked dubiously.
‘Yes. I don’t know why, but, yes. I wish he hadn’t.’
‘I just don’t believe it.’ He sounded exactly like Ethan and Nadia.
‘Look, Nadia and I are going back to the house. I’m hoping the police have finished there by now. But we need to say something to Charlotte and Anna. Why don’t you meet us there?’
‘OK. I’m on my way back. Where’s Ethan? I’ve been trying to get hold of him but his phone’s turned off.’
‘Maybe it’s run out of battery, or sometimes the signal at Durdle Door is not that strong.’
‘Has he taken Dad up there?’
‘Yes.’
‘What, in the middle of all this shit?’
‘Look, just come to ours, OK? We can talk more then.’
‘All right. I’ll see you soon.’
I held my breath as Nadia’s car approached my house. The gates were shut now, which was hopefully a good sign that the police had finished collecting whatever evidence they needed. I didn’t exhale until I got out of the car to swing them open.
The garage doors were closed, too, and there was no sign that anything untoward had even happened inside them earlier that day.
No white suits. No crime scene tape. No officer stationed at the entrance. Thank goodness for that. I didn’t want Anna to see it.
Nadia pulled in behind my Mini as I walked to the front door.
I was opening it just as Chris swung in behind her.
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Where the Memories Lie He jerked his pick-up truck to a stop and shot out of the car, his face pale, eyes wild. ‘What is this? It’s got to be some kind of joke.
The Georgia thing wasn’t true. This can’t be, either.’
I tried to hug him but he stepped away.
‘Come inside.’ Nadia tugged his arm.
In the kitchen, the only telltale sign of what had been discovered earlier was DI Spencer’s business card on the oak table. I picked it up and shoved it in a drawer, wanting it out of my sight.
‘Do you want a drink?’ Nadia took charge, filling the kettle with water and turning it on to boil.