Getting a Life (New City Series Book 1)

by Simpson, Stefanie

  All his money, his success and reputation had given him comfort, but he didn’t care for it anymore, he’d give it up for her. He wanted to follow her in, to hold fast to her, but her grief wouldn’t let her hold on to him, not yet.

  Not yet was the story of their whole relationship.

  She and Arthur didn’t really talk after that, a few polite words, but she felt him withdraw. She wanted to put her arms round him and kiss him, but she was afraid. She had done the wrong thing, always the wrong thing, always the wrong choice. She was inept at making life choices, a sad reality to have.

  Over the days that followed, they sorted and packed up the house. Maddie and some of the cousins came and took things. Arthur had set aside the things he wanted, and even though Rebecca declined to take anything, he knew a few things she loved and put them with his. She hid in her room when they all came.

  She applied for a dozen or more jobs, got her CV up to date, scoured ads for flats, and having a little money in the bank upped her hope.

  The house was stripped bare when the vultures had left. Arthur was speaking quietly in the kitchen with Maddie when Rebecca came down, she heard their muffled voices and went back up. Arthur didn’t even say goodbye.

  She really had fucked up.

  She got up one morning and opened the living room curtains to see a for sale sign outside. Arthur hadn’t even told her. She had ruined everything again, another wasted opportunity, and now it was too late. Again. Maybe it just wasn’t meant to be, he was rich, successful, better than she was in every way. She had come from trash, she’d always be knocking on the ceiling, never breaking through.

  She was technically being paid, her last month, she rang HR and explained the situation to them. They sent her P45 in the post. She put Arthur down as a reference, and seeing as she had two interviews, he must have known. Yet she still hadn’t spoken to him.

  Two couples and a family came to view the house, the first she knew about it was when the estate agent turned up. She made herself scarce.

  The month came to an end, she packed her things, got a flat share on the other side of the city. She rang him at the beginning of her last week. She dithered for twenty minutes, hands sweating before she made herself dial his number.

  He sounded terse when he greeted her.

  “Arthur, I thought you should know I found a place, haven’t got a job yet, but it’s a matter of time.”

  “Okay.”

  She didn’t know what else to say.

  “Right then. Any news on the house?”

  “I accepted an offer.”

  “Well, good.” He didn’t say anything else and she struggled not to cry. “I’ll let you go then. Goodbye Arthur.” It felt like it was the last time she’d say it, it really felt like goodbye. He didn’t even reply, there was just silence, so she hung up.

  Arthur just sat in his home office, he was really angry, and he didn’t even know why. She sounded vulnerable and sad, but he couldn’t soften to her, to anything. She had been right. His mind was all over the place.

  He stood up and looked at the array of paperwork in front of him. He was sick of everything. He went for a run to clear his mind.

  He shook off his mood, he was being a stroppy idiot, it wasn’t Rebecca’s fault, he was being a dickhead. He’d put it right, sort it out with her, and help her move to her flat share, it’d be okay.

  As he ran, he thought of his mum, of the last eighteen months, how he had become close to her, felt like he had been a decent son, he could be proud of that. He’d always known he’d be young when his parents died. His dad had cancer, and it was horrible, for all of them, he saw the pain his mother went through, but as a reserved seventeen year old, he hadn’t known how to deal with it, how to help her, he’d never really talked about it.

  He could talk to Rebecca, she’d be there for him, she had been, through every step of it, and when she spoke sense, he pushed her away completely. His mind gradually cleared, once he made a plan, he sorted through the clutter of everything in his mind and threw the lot away. Fuck it, he needed to reprioritise his life, what was important, what he actually wanted.

  With that done, he saw it all. He smiled to himself, the cool day faded into dark, his skin was icy, but his body burned with the run. He pushed harder than he ever did. He needed to get to Rebecca.

  He reached his house late, his legs were spattered with mud, and he couldn’t feel his hands.

  As he walked up the drive, panting, he saw Maddie’s car, and he stopped dead. The security light blinked on and he marched to his door.

  He opened it, he could hear music and laughter.

  “Oh my God, Arthur look at the state of you.”

  “What are you doing here, how the fuck did you get into my house?”

  “I borrowed a key when we were up for the funeral.”

  “Give it back.” Sweat dripped off him, and his scowl made Maddie and Victoria look at each other. She gave him the key.

  “Right, what the fuck are you doing here, drinking my bloody wine?”

  “Arthur, calm down. Vick was telling me the other day, how you weren’t really coping, I’d thought it would be nice to surprise you.”

  He sneered. “Get. Out.”

  “No.” She looked shocked anyone would go against her.

  “Let me be very clear with you Madeline. I despise you. You are a malicious greedy snake. Now tell me what you actually fucking want before I physically remove you from my house that you broke into.” She swallowed, and her face hardened, all amusement gone.

  “Fine. Your mother’s diamonds weren’t in with the jewellery. They’re mine.”

  “No, they’re not. They are in my safe, they weren’t left to you.”

  “Yes, they were.”

  “Mother changed her will last year. They’re Rebecca’s.” There was a flash of something vicious.

  “That manipulative bitch, you can’t see it can you.”

  Arthur stepped close to her, his voice an angry sneer, it was amazing how that velvety voice could become so harsh. “Not everyone is like you. She doesn’t even know about it. Get out of my house, or I will cause a scene.” He took her wineglass and threw it against the wall, wine and glass went everywhere. At least it was white wine. Maddie looked shocked.

  Arthur couldn’t be manipulated anymore, and the petty nature of Maddie seethed beneath her brittle charm.

  “Fine Arthur, no need for violence.” She and Victoria left, the latter looking back briefly, tears in her eyes. They climbed in Maddie’s car and neither spoke, not until they reached Vicky’s townhouse.

  “I have a plan.” She pulled out her phone and dialled a number. “Craig sweetie! How are you, are you on duty? Excellent. I have a favour to ask.”

  Victoria frowned, to be honest, she just wanted to let the whole thing go. She felt bad, and sorry for Arthur, the man just lost his mum. She remembered how his dad’s death affected him, she could imagine what he was going through now.

  Rebecca had nearly finished packing, and she was eating what remained of her cereal out of the box, with a glass of milk. She didn’t care anymore.

  It was late, but she couldn’t sleep, all she could think of was how much she missed Alice, and how much she missed Arthur.

  The doorbell rang and she went about a foot in the air.

  It had to be Arthur, no one else would come here that late.

  She didn’t even think about how she looked in her pink pyjamas. She opened the door with a smile, which died and she froze.

  A tall intimidating police officer was in the doorway. Her heart lurched. She thought that Mark was coming for her.

  “Rebecca Silverton?”

  “Yes.” Her voice was small.

  “May I come in?” she nodded and stepped back, years of anxiety came back to her, she fussed the cuff of her robe. She didn’t even see Maddie come in behind him.

  “What’s going on?”

  “There’s been an accusation against you, the matter
of a pair of diamond earrings.”

  Rebecca blinked. “What?”

  Maddie stepped forward. “Alice had a pair of earrings, large teardrop diamonds, they are extremely valuable, and they’re mine.”

  “Arthur gave you the jewellery.”

  “They weren’t in the box. Where are they?”

  “I don’t know, I’ve never seen them, they’ve never been mentioned. I’m sorry if they’ve been lost…”

  “Lost? A skank like you in this house, and we’re meant to think they’re ‘lost’, you have them, don’t lie.”

  “I'm not, I swear, I haven’t seen them.”

  “Miss, I think it might be prudent to look in the house for them. Can you show me your things, I understand you’re leaving the property soon.”

  “Don’t you need a warrant or something?”

  “Miss, we could do that, or we could quietly search for them, and keep this quiet, if you understand.”

  “Why isn’t Arthur here?”

  Maddie spoke up. “When I told him about the earrings, he was shocked to think that you had taken them, but none of us could think of another explanation. They were there when he checked the box before the funeral. Here, call him if you like. He is furious. So disappointed, I’ve never seen him that hurt.” She unlocked and held out her phone, the contact for Arthur lit up on the screen.

  Rebecca looked at it. How could he think that of her, after everything? She could only think that Maddie had finally gotten to him, and he believed her. She didn’t want to speak to him, didn’t want to convince him, she shouldn’t have to. He had barely spoken to her earlier, she wondered if he already knew then, already thought she was a thief. She had pushed him away and now he hated her.

  She stepped back, and led the way upstairs. She stood in the corner and watched the policeman rifle through her cases. Maddie looking on. He searched through drawers, under the bed, and left it in a mess. He searched her bathroom, he even checked the cistern. She followed him about the house while he looked.

  “Well, they don’t seem to be here.”

  “Maybe she already sold them.”

  “I didn’t, you found no cash, and you can check my bank account if you want, I don’t have a pile of money.”

  “I don’t think she has them.” Maddie huffed at the fearsome man.

  “Fine, but I’d keep an eye on her if I were you. Arthur’s going to be furious with them not being here. I know you took them, and he knows it too, there has been no one else to take them. It has to be you. Don’t think you’ve got away with it, but understand, you’re not welcome anymore, you’ve taken enough from him don’t you think?”

  They left and Rebeca just stood there shaking. She went back upstairs and repacked her things. She had to speak to him. Even if she told him to go fuck himself, she had to say something.

  She looked for her phone, but couldn’t find it anywhere, she must have packed it somewhere. She got dressed, still in shock.

  She sat at her desk and wrote Arthur a letter. She told him how much Alice had meant to her, how much she loved him, and she had wanted to give him everything. She couldn’t begin to explain how betrayed she felt, how angry she was that he would think so meanly of her.

  But if it was a mistake, that if he didn’t think she was a thief, if she had been tricked, he had to come find her, and she gave him her address.

  Rebecca felt ill and like the subhuman crap that she really was as she waited for the taxi, how had things gone so wrong so quickly, if she had said yes, she’d be with him right now, this wouldn’t have happened, maybe he was still angry, and was taking it out on her. A large minibus of a taxi arrived and he nice driver helped load her up.

  They went via Arthur’s, and she dashed out and posted the note in the box at the end of his drive. The house was dark. She looked at the buzzer, fuck it, and she buzzed it twice. No lights came on, she looked back at the taxi, and left it. She looked back, and left Arthur behind.

  He’d see the letter, he could find her if he wanted to. She had a feeling she’d never see him again.

  Eleven. March on

  Rebecca was let into Stella’s flat, a group of cool obvious vain people, all in their early twenties were lounging about. Stella had said come whenever, if she thought it was odd that she turned up late in the night, she never said.

  She said hello and pulled her crap into her room. She just sat on the bed and stared at the walls. The room was smallish, the walls a dark blue, white furniture. She shook her head after a while and went out into the room, some of the guys had left.

  “Got any wine?”

  Stella, her large full lips and pretty face lit up. “Of course.”

  Rebecca drank her wine and listened to the conversation half-heartedly, the vacuous mind-set grew tedious, but this was her new reality. She didn’t like it, but she’d have to suck it up.

  Arthur woke up early. He still had clarity of mind, and he was still pissed with Maddie. He got up impatient to see Rebecca. He arrived just after nine, she’d be up by then.

  He rang the bell to no answer. He let himself in and called out.

  There was no furniture left in the living room, there was barely anything left anywhere, it must be horrible to live in the house like that.

  He called out to her. It felt quiet and empty. He called her phone, it was off. He went upstairs, and found her room was tidy and empty. All her things were gone. He stood for a moment, all the blood fell out of his head. He went to the wardrobe, it was empty. Her room was the only room with any furniture in, but there was no sign of her. The bathroom was clear of any sign that it had been used apart from a few neatly folded towels.

  He called her phone again, still off.

  He sent her a message, he didn’t have her email, why didn’t he have her email?

  She was gone. He closed his eyes and sat on the floor. She had left him. He’d been such an arse and she’d left because of it. He’d virtually cut her out of his life. He shouldn’t have waited.

  What had he said to her yesterday? God, nothing, he’d barely said a word. He made a frustrated noise.

  He got up and looked back at her room. He crawled onto her bed, it smelt like her, felt like her, he closed his eyes, bundling the duvet to him, and he just lay there.

  He left a few hours later, uncertain of where to start.

  He went home and started getting in touch with people she knew. Joe hadn’t heard anything, neither had Kate, or Mandy at the café.

  Victoria arrived just after lunch, looking sorry as hell.

  He didn’t let her in, just stood at the door.

  “I’m sorry.”

  “For what?”

  “We shouldn’t have come last night, Maddie was so angry about those earrings.”

  He didn’t say a word.

  “Look, I want you to be happy, and if that means it’s not with me, so be it. I am sorry Arthur, and Maddie is.”

  “She’s gone.”

  “Where?”

  “I don’t know. She’s gone.” He huffed a breath. “I have to try and find her, it’s my fault. I’ve been a shit, I went there this morning, and she’s gone.”

  “I’m sorry. Where do you think she went?” she looked pained, eyes wide.

  “No idea. But I’ll find her even if it kills me.” Victoria nodded and walked away, hoping he never did, he looked devastated, and he’d kill them both, her and Maddie.

  He went everywhere, every place he could think of that she might have gone. He asked at hotels, the shops she liked, employment agencies, taxi companies, and a dozen other places.

  He rang her endlessly, he even rang Sue in HR and asked if they had her email, which they didn’t. He began to panic, she had really gone.

  Two weeks later, trying to keep it together, he walked into the police station. He spoke with the sergeant who had dealt with her case before.

  He tried to report her as missing, he begged for them at least to find out where she was. She was at risk from Mark Crest
, surely they should make sure she was well and safe?

  The sergeant said he’d look into it. Arthur managed to wait a week before ringing. There was nothing to report, Arthur wasn’t next of kin.

  He stopped sleeping. He’d get up in the middle of the night, full of fear for Rebecca. He’d drive round endlessly looking for her. He’d rage and slam the steering wheel in the driveway when he didn’t.

  He withdrew from his life, from his friends. He went for a drink with Joe a few times, quietly checking every face looking for her. Joe was worried, but thought she’d be fine, Arthur couldn’t let it go, regret, anger, and frustration consumed him.

  He had been careless with her. He had been so wrapped up in himself, he hadn’t paid attention, hadn’t been there for her. He knew her, knew how she reacted to things, one of those was flight. Of course, she’d leave what else would she have done.

  It was just like before, she had vanished out of his life and he’d been miserable, but what he felt the second time around, in those first weeks and months, managed to tie itself up in his grief.

  He slowly became quiet and bitter. Arthur spent that Christmas alone, he sent Victoria away when she came to visit, and Maddie, even when she tried to apologise and asked for the earrings.

  He lay sprawled out on his bed, half-dead with exhaustion thinking about the last conversation they had. She had said goodbye then, it had sounded so final, he hadn’t even spoken to her, and he’d had his head up his arse. For the thousandth time, he cursed himself.

  In March, on his birthday, he got so drunk he passed out on his kitchen floor. He woke up and just lay there. He couldn’t feel anything anymore. He had nothing of value left, there was nothing he wanted, just her. Even she seemed unreal now. He wondered what his mother would think of him.

  He just lay on the cold tile and wallowed. He’d look for her tomorrow. He might find her tomorrow.

  He didn’t. Every time he went looking for her, he failed. March faded, April grew warm, Arthur lost himself, his only purpose was finding her, and he couldn’t do it. He caught up with himself, he knew something had to change, he had to accept she was long gone, and he’d never see her again. He was finally persuaded to rejoin the world, though he didn’t like it. He was quiet, terse, and bitter. The brilliant young businessman, once a rising star, had become a bitter lonely man, with nothing but money.