Page 113 of Don't Say A Word
‘What about his blood on the dishwashing gloves?’
‘It just so happened I never used the ones she wore. I rubbed a little bit of blood from Max’s wound on the inside of the cuff, just a tiny bit?—’
‘That’s so gross, Kate.’
‘—and then I put them back under the sink.’
She grins. ‘You and your spy movie ideas. Who would have thought?
I smile, then grow serious. ‘I’m worried about the phone,’ I tell her. ‘I turned it on. I wish I hadn’t.’
‘No, it’s fine,’ she says. ‘They think it came from her house. They think she turned it on.’
‘How do you know?’
‘They told me. Did you know that mobile phone mast technology is not precise enough to determine within a few feet where a phone is located?’
‘You’re joking.’
‘No. They can’t tell if it was our house or her house, but since they found the phone in her house, they think that’s where it was the whole time.’
‘Thank God for that.’
‘She’s going to prison for a long time, you know. That’s what the policewoman told me.’
I squeeze her shoulders again and kiss the top of her head. ‘Let’s hope so. Come on, let’s go back.’
48
3 months later.
I was going to sell the house and move with Holly to Hull, or Brighton, or maybe even back to London and be close to Jen.
But then we realised that now Max isn’t here, we actually love Brookford. Scarlett and Holly have become true best friends. Scarlett spends more time at our house than she does at her own, and her parents don’t seem to notice. But for Holly, it’s almost like having a sister.
Diana and I have had a coffee after all, and in fact we’re becoming good friends too. It turned out that all the pressure Diana was putting on me about Gregory actually came from her husband. They’re divorcing. Thank God, because he was physically violent towards her. He had delusions of grandeur when it came to Gregory. And Diana was just trying to keep him happy. And when she couldn’t, he beat her up. I understand her desperation to push Gregory so much better now.
So I asked for my job back, and Mike said yes.
We did sell the house, and we bought another smaller one with a large garden. Everything is new. The furniture, thepaintings, the photographs, even the plates. It was my idea. I wanted a clean slate.
Teri is in prison, the same one I was at, awaiting trial. The police are keeping us up to date, and they are confident she will be found guilty of murder. The evidence against her is, we’re told, overwhelming.
I am unpacking boxes when that song comes on: ‘Summer After You’.
I look at Holly. She doesn’t react. But this was the song that was playing the day she killed her father. The song which triggered this chain of events and almost destroyed us. But it’s so strange. That day, she had such a strong reaction to it. Now, she seems completely oblivious.
‘Are you all right, Holly?’
She looks up. ‘Yeah, why?’
‘No reason.’
…That was ‘Summer After You’ by The Daylights – feels like yesterday, but it was actually one of the biggest tracks of 2016. Ten years ago this summer…
I don’t feel well suddenly. I repeat the words in my head.One of the biggest tracks of 2016…
‘Holly?’
