Читать книгу Schoolgirl Missing: Discover the dark side of family life in the most gripping page-turner of 2019 - Sue Fortin, Sue Fortin - Страница 11

Having dropped Poppy at St Joseph’s and spoken to the pastoral care teacher about the incident at the bus stop that morning, Neve drove back to Ambleton. She had tried to talk it through with Poppy in the car, but she had clammed up, refusing to enter into any sort of dialogue. Neve had been reduced to talking into the empty space between them, reinforcing the fact that Poppy could and should speak to an adult she trusted so bullies like Ben Hewitt could be dealt with, with no real gauge of how much Poppy was taking in.

Neve had been a little sketchy recalling her part of the confrontation. It had all happened so fast, at the time she hadn’t even considered the consequences of her actions. She had seen the proverbial red rag and proceeded to lose it. Neve was pretty sure she had sworn at Ben Hewitt and, at the time, hadn’t even realised she was brandishing a hockey stick. It wasn’t until she had got back in the car she registered it in her hand.

Now as Neve tried to recall the incident again, the clarity still wouldn’t come. She had a strange sense of feeling removed and watching the argument play out, as if she had been a bystander herself. A feeling she wasn’t so unfamiliar with. It was often a symptom of stressful situations, a coping mechanism, a counsellor had once told her. But then what the hell did that counsellor know?

She wiped each sweaty palm in turn on the fabric of her dress, as memories of people and places from darker days filled her mind.

‘Megan,’ she whispered.

The sudden sound of the blast of a car horn shook her from her thoughts as she realised she had allowed the car to drift over the white line in the middle of the road. She yanked hard on the steering wheel, swerving the car back to the correct side of the road just in time to avoid a collision with an oncoming vehicle.

‘Concentrate!’ she scolded herself. It wasn’t until she was turning into her own driveway that Neve allowed herself to think of what lay ahead of her that day, specifically, her meeting with Ash, or Lee as he was calling himself these days.

Her stomach gave a small roll of anxiety. His reply showed he was obviously expecting to hear from her at some point. He must have somehow known she was living here but had that been before or after he had started work at The Forum? Had he come here on purpose or had The Forum job been a pure coincidence? Neve wasn’t sure she believed in coincidences.

She let Willow out into the back garden with promises of a nice walk later and then made herself a cup of tea which she took out onto the patio with a magazine. Maybe she could distract herself?

It turned out she couldn’t. She read the words but had no idea what they said, unable to concentrate for more than a few seconds before her mind raced back to Lee, her past, and in turn, to Megan. Usually she did a good job of compartmentalising her life, her thoughts and her past, but today she just couldn’t keep those memories under control. And, as always, when she thought of Megan, it hurt in the most brutal way. Whoever said time was a healer was a liar.

Neve leant back in the chair and closed her eyes, allowing the warm July sun to heat her face. Even today, after all this time, Neve still felt the pain as raw as if it were yesterday. She remembered how she’d felt – so utterly devastated. She remembered how everything that happened that August had changed her life for ever. She missed Megan dreadfully but no matter how much she wished she could go back and change history, she knew she couldn’t.

The emotional exhaustion of the last twenty-four hours hit Neve without warning. One minute she was resting in the garden chair, the next minute she woke up and realised it was midday and a couple of hours had passed.

She rubbed her eyes and peered at the clock on her phone and then her wristwatch by way of confirmation. Fortunately, clouds had passed over and she had been saved the indignity of a sunburnt face.

Twenty minutes later, she had freshened up, repaired her make-up and changed into a fresh white shirt, which she teamed with her skinny jeans and Converse trainers. She looked at herself in the mirror, vainly wondering what Ash would make of her after all this time. Suddenly, it mattered that she looked good. She didn’t want him to think she’d let herself go since moving away. She frowned at her reflection as she tidied up her hair. It annoyed her that she cared. He should be the last person she cared about. The absolute last person in the world.

‘Come on, Willow,’ called Neve from the hallway as she took the lead off the peg. ‘Time for that walk.’

The yellow Labrador skidded across the laminated flooring in anticipation, her whole body wagging with undiluted excitement.

Neve gave a laugh. ‘You are a silly dog,’ she said, hooking the lead onto the D-ring of the collar. ‘Please try to look a bit fierce and menacing when we get to the river. I need you as my bodyguard.’

A small footbridge ran parallel to the old stone bridge which crossed the River Amble, a later addition to the landscape after pedestrians complained of near misses with traffic squeezing between the narrow stonework to cross the river. Effectively, the bridge acted as the village boundary, crossing the tidal River Amble which was prone to breaching its banks every so often and flooding the land beyond. Every cloud had its silver-lining Kit had said. The floodplains would never be built on and as a consequence, Ambleton would avoid a ring of modern housing estates like those that had circled other villages in the county. The greedy amongst them, and Neve had to admit that Kit was one of those, were delighted as it pushed property prices up in the village and kept it relatively exclusive. Of course, there was the local council estate, but that was nothing more than twenty houses in a small cul-de-sac where the majority of homes were privately owned these days anyway. Something else Kit declared a bonus.

Neve reached the other side of the bridge. The old ramshackle boathouse was about fifty metres along the bank to the right and beyond that, around the bend in the river was the small marina where Kit had his office.

Neve cut across the road and down the stone steps to the riverbank. She paused at the foot of the steps, looking towards the boathouse, and took a steadying breath.

From around the corner of the wooden building, stepped the man she had hoped she would never have to see again. Despite seeing his picture on Jake’s computer, seeing him in the flesh again was still a shock. She heard herself give a small gasp and she gripped the handrail tighter as a small shot of adrenaline raced through her.

‘Hello, Neve,’ he said. ‘Long time no see.’

His voice was as she remembered, casual, confident, maybe a little deeper, a little huskier. He drew on a cigarette which Neve suspected was the cause of the change. She noticed small creases around his eyes and his mouth, another consequence of smoking. But despite that, he hadn’t really changed, only aged. Neve let go of the handrail and unhooked Willow from her lead, moving away from the steps.

‘Hello, Ash,’ she said. ‘Or Lee, as you seem to be going by these days.’

‘Busted,’ said Lee, with an apathetic look. ‘Had to leave Ash behind. He caused me a lot of trouble.’

‘And Lee, what’s he like?’

‘Reformed. Works with young adults. Member of Greenpeace. Loves children and animals. Wants to save the world.’

‘Regular Mr Nice Guy,’ said Neve.

‘Oh, nothing regular about me, Neve.’

They eyed each other for a moment, before Neve spoke first. ‘What exactly are you doing here?’

‘Working at The Forum. Helping the kids get their lives back on track. Everyone deserves a second chance. Including me.’ He held out his arms and smiled almost as widely. ‘Come on, Neve, give us a hug. I’ve missed you.’

Neve held up her hands, to try to push him away but he was too strong, and her hands were squashed against his chest as he pulled her in for a bear hug. He kissed the side of her face, for longer than necessary, his whiskers scratching her skin.

‘It’s good to see you again,’ he said, ignoring her struggles.

‘Ash, let me—’

‘Lee. It’s Lee, not Ash,’ he said.

‘For God’s sake. Lee, let me go!’

He released her from his hold and grinned at her. His trademark grin, Neve and Megan used to call it. He hadn’t lost it over the years.

‘Sorry,’ he said, taking a step back. ‘I got carried away. Just suddenly felt all nostalgic.’

‘Don’t worry about it,’ muttered Neve, fiddling with the dog lead.

‘Maybe we could go for a drink sometime. You know, for old-time’s sake.’ He looked at her left hand. ‘Ah, married. Will he mind? It’s only like catching up with an old friend. Nothing in it.’

‘Yes, I am married and no, he wouldn’t mind. Not that it’s up to him, anyway,’ Neve found herself adding onto the end, although blatantly aware that Kit would mind, it suddenly seemed important that she assert herself to him. In truth, she just wanted Ash to disappear back to wherever he’d come from. Her past form with Ash scared her. She didn’t want to find herself revisiting those times again.

‘So, that’s a yes to a drink.’

‘No! It’s not.’ Neve gave a sigh. ‘Look, Ash … I mean, Lee, this isn’t an old pals reunion, as well you know.’

‘Do I?’

‘Yes, you do. When I messaged you, you said you had been expecting me. How? Why? How did you know I lived here?’

‘Ahh, well, that will be my powers of telepathy,’ said Lee, accompanying his words with a ghost-like noise.

‘Stop! Can’t you just be serious for one minute? I thought you said you were all grown up now and mature?’

‘Spoilsport,’ said Lee. ‘I see you’ve really taken growing up to the next level. What happened to Neve Tansley or Neve Howells?’

‘Neve Howells grew up and Neve Tansley got divorced. It’s Neve Masters now.’

‘And a new persona by the sounds of it. Or is it? I’m not sure you can really change.’

‘Can we quit with all this beating around the bush? It’s boring,’ said Neve, her patience finally wearing out. ‘How did you know I lived here?’

‘It was pure luck,’ said Lee. ‘I got this job at The Forum and I was on my way over to the art studio with a couple of the residents the other day and I caught a glimpse of you through the windows. You were just leaving and by the time I got there, you were driving out of the car park. This OAP was still packing up and I asked her if she knew you.’

‘That was fortunate,’ said Neve. She thought back to who it might have been. Probably Edith. She always took ages to set up and pack her stuff away and wasn’t averse to a good old chat about anything and anyone. ‘Did she say anything else?’

‘Oh, I learnt quite a lot about you,’ said Lee, grinding his cigarette out with the heel of his boot. ‘Married to a local businessman. Stepdaughter.’

‘Daughter, actually,’ corrected Neve.

‘As you wish, daughter,’ said Lee, before carrying on. ‘You live in the big house down, now where did she say, oh yes, that’s right … Long Acre Lane. She’s right. It is a big house.’

‘What?! You’ve seen where I live?’

‘I just happened to be passing. I saw your car in the drive. No law against that.’

And he was right. There was no law against it, but Neve was now on high alert. She had no idea what Lee was playing at, but she was sure he was messing with her. He’d always liked to tease her, but she knew from past experience, the teasing was just a breath away from danger. Ash liked living on the edge of life and pushing people past their comfort zone. In the past, she had quite liked that element, it had been exciting and frightening all at the same time. Now, though, having experienced the consequences, it just frightened her. ‘How long are you here for?’ she asked, folding her arms, aware she was glaring but didn’t care.

‘I’ve got a month-long contract,’ said Lee. ‘Which can be extended if I want. Such a shame you don’t seem happy to see me. I thought we could relive some of our youth.’

‘Get lost,’ said Neve. ‘I’m not into all that anymore.’

‘Does your husband know about it?’

Neve’s heart thumped against her chest. ‘What does it matter to you?’

‘Just curious. You know, I have actually met him. And your daughter. I thought that’s probably why you wanted to see me.’

Neve closed the space between them, only just managing to hold onto her rage. She jabbed her index finger hard into Lee’s shoulder. ‘You stay away from my family. Do you hear?’

The amused look on Lee’s face dropped immediately, replaced by a glare equal to Neve’s. He snatched at her hand, grabbing hold of her finger and bent her arm over. Neve cried out, twisting her body to relieve the pain.

Lee bent his head down, so his face was once again level with hers. ‘It’s rude to point.’ He pushed Neve away, letting go of her hand and she stumbled backwards. ‘That wasn’t very nice,’ he said. ‘Now, you listen to me, Miss-High-and-Mighty. You may think you’ve come a long way but it’s all bullshit. You can’t escape who you really are.’

‘What exactly do you want from me?’ said Neve.

‘Nothing. Well, not yet anyway,’ said Lee, the casual innocent tone back in his voice. ‘I’m just here doing my job. Helping young people. A bit like I helped Poppy the other day.’

‘Stay away from her!’ Neve found herself practically growling.

‘You know what I’ve found since I’ve been working with kids? It’s often the parents who cause the most problems. Kids like to talk to me. They can relate to me. It’s not my job to be friends with the parents. I’m there for the kids. I told Poppy that. I told her I was her friend now. Nice kid. Pretty.’

Neve flew at Lee, her fists clenched as she tried to pummel him. The first two connected with her target, but he was strong and grabbed her wrists. Spinning her around and pinning her up against the boathouse, his body pressed against hers.

‘You stay away from her,’ repeated Neve. She hoped she sounded convincing because, in truth, he scared her and what he could do to her family scared her even more. ‘If you don’t, I’ll tell them what you’re really like. I’ll report you for attempting to groom a minor. That won’t go down well in your line of work.’

Lee laughed and threw his head back before bringing it down and bumping his forehead against Neve’s and then leaning into her. She tried to move, but the pressure of him was too great.

Lee gave a snort and moved his head back, but still kept her arms pinned against the boathouse. ‘No, you won’t,’ he said. ‘Because if you do, then I’ll have to tell your husband a few home truths about you.’

Neve gulped. ‘There’s nothing to tell.’

‘No smoke without fire. Just planting the doubt would be enough.’

‘Likewise. I could plant a few doubts about you with the police. And I’m not just talking about Poppy. I haven’t forgotten anything. You’ve got more to lose than me.’

‘Oh, I don’t know about that.’

In one swift movement, Lee yanked both Neve’s arms above her head and held them with one hand against the planks of wood. He traced his free hand down the side of Neve’s face, along the edge of her breast, down her side and gripped the waistband of her jeans between his fingers and thumb.

Neve considered her next move. A swift knee in the balls should do the trick. As if reading her mind, Lee moved his body to one side and then without warning, let go of her.

He laughed out loud. ‘Oh, Neve, you should have seen your face. It was a picture. Honestly, I got you there, didn’t I?’

‘And you reckon you’ve grown up,’ spluttered Neve. ‘Hardly.’

‘Sorry. I was just messing with you,’ said Lee. He held his arms out towards her.

‘Piss off,’ she snapped, tucking her shirt back into her jeans. ‘You may think you’re funny, but you’re not. You’re an idiot. And I meant what I said, you so much as speak to Poppy again and I’ll report you. I don’t care what you think you have over me, I can repair any damage you think you can do. You, however, won’t have the opportunity. You’ll be beyond repair. And don’t forget, you owe me.’

‘Ooh, fighting talk,’ said Lee and proceeded to hold his fists up and dance around, shadow boxing.

Neve called to Willow and hooked her onto the lead, before heading up the steps to the bridge. Lee called after her.

‘I do love you, Neve! I’m so glad we’ve found each other again!’

‘Go to hell!’ she yelled without looking back. If she looked at him now, he’d be sure to see the fear on her face.