by Jade Winters
Astrid had been more than naïve to even think the story would go to print once she handed it over to her editor. Little did she know at the time, but the proprietor of the newspaper was quite chummy with said business men. Once news reached the top she was onto their operation, suspected whistle blowers were fired or had their reputations tarnished so no one would believe their story. Astrid ended up being one of the casualties in the fall out. She was lucky that, despite her ex-boss trying his best to wreck her career, Ross took a chance on her. In this instance, she was grateful that he was such a stubborn man. If he hadn’t been, she would probably be working in Tesco stacking shelves.
The slamming of the front door shook her from her reverie. The door opened to the kitchen. She expected it to be the new guest, Elaine had told her about. A reporter. That was all she needed. Another competitor under the same roof. Following the same story, no doubt.
Taking a mouthful of tea, Astrid turned around in her seat.
‘Callie?’ she said trying not to choke on her drink.
‘Oh, you’re here,’ Callie said in a deadpan voice.
‘Still as polite as ever I see. So what are you doing here?’
‘Visiting my friend if that’s okay with you.’
‘Of course. Sorry. I forgot where I was for a minute.’ Astrid’s eyes dropped down to the bag Callie held in her hand. ‘Don’t tell me that’s beer.’
‘Um … yes it is,’ she muttered.
‘Fantastic.’ Astrid’s gaze roamed slowly over Callie’s face, enjoying the ticklish sensation that aroused within.
Ignoring her, Callie turned to Elaine as she entered the kitchen and handed the bag to her.
‘Everything all right?’ Elaine asked.
Astrid didn’t miss the pained look Callie gave her. Her gaze shifted from Elaine to Callie. ‘Hey guys if you need time alone I can go to my room,’ Astrid said.
‘No,’ Callie blurted out, then quickly covered her mouth. ‘I mean no, you’re fine where you are.’
‘If you’re sure.’
‘Positive.’
‘Now that’s settled, how about we crack open those beers?’ Astrid said with a smile.
‘I’ll get the glasses,’ Elaine said crossing the floor to the wall cabinet, while Callie took a seat at the table beside Astrid.
‘So …’ Astrid said leaning back in her seat.
There was a beat of silence before Callie answered. ‘So …’ She crossed her arms over her chest.
‘Is this what you guys do for fun at the weekend?’ Astrid said the first thing that came to mind but regretted it as Callie’s top lip curled into a snarl.
‘Are you being sarcastic?’
Astrid lifted her eyebrows at Callie’s tone but continued anyway, ‘What? Sarcastic? No, of course not. I think it’s great to chill out with your mates.’
‘Why don’t I believe you?
Maybe it’s because I don’t have any friends, only acquaintances. Not that she would admit such a thing to Callie. Never in a million years. Instead she said, ‘You really have got the wrong end of the stick with me.’
‘Have I?’
‘Yes, you have. I’m not the heartless villain you seem to think I am.’
‘You’re not.’ It was a statement not a question.
‘Nope. And if you give me a chance, you’ll find out for yourself.’ Seeing Callie’s expression relax, Astrid grinned. ‘Can I ask you something?’
‘You keep saying that, then asking anyway.’ The look Callie gave her was long and guarded. ‘Whether I’ll answer is another matter.’
‘Fair enough. It’s a non-emotive question anyway. I’m just interested to know why you chose your profession.’
For a moment, Astrid thought she’d put her foot in it again, seeing the flicker of discomfort in Callie’s eyes. So it took her by surprise when Callie uncrossed her arms and rested her elbows on the table.
‘When I was a kid, I fell in love with the mystery of mountains. The secrets they contain,’ she said a little dreamily. ‘There’s so much terrain, you can never look at a mountain in the same way twice. I’ve climbed mountains all over the world, nothing ever beats the feeling it gives you.’
‘You’ve nearly talked me into wanting to climb one now.’
‘You should.’
‘Who knows? Maybe you’ll take me.’
Elaine discreetly placed the beers and glasses on the table and retreated.
‘Maybe.’ Callie leant back. ‘Your turn. Why journalism?’
Astrid didn’t miss a beat. Without even thinking she said, ‘The truth. That’s what it’s about. Being a voice for those who are ignored.’
To her shock, Callie’s eyes brimmed with tears. She reached over and placed her hand on her shoulder.
‘Hey, are you okay.’
Callie cast her eyes downward. ‘I’m sorry. I heard some bad news today.’
‘If you want to talk, I’m a good listener,’ Astrid said gently.
Callie was silent for a few seconds. Finally, she looked up to face Astrid. ‘My mum disappeared when I was younger. I’ve been trying to find her. But … I just found out that it ain’t gonna happen.’ A sob caught in her throat. ‘She’s dead.’
Astrid instinctively stroked Callie’s head. ‘I am so sorry—’
Callie’s ringtone broke the intimate moment. Without taking her eyes off Astrid, Callie pressed a button and put the phone to her ear. ‘It’s Roxy.’ She mouthed to Astrid.
‘Let’s hope it’s good news.’ She whispered back.
‘Whoa slow down. I can’t understand you,’ Callie said into the mouth piece.
Astrid’s pulse was at the base of her throat. Had they found Lexi? Was she … Astrid couldn’t bear to say the word.
Callie’s spine snapped straight and she tilted her head to the side. ‘Oh my God, I can’t believe it.’ Her eyes narrowed and looked directly at Astrid.
This doesn’t look good. What could I have done?
‘I’m really sorry, Roxy. I don’t know what to say. Yes of course. I–’
Callie removed the phone from her ear and looked down at it. She had obviously been cut off. But why?
Callie stood abruptly and snatched her jacket off the back of her seat.
‘You really are a nasty piece of work, aren’t you?’
Astrid remained where she was, frozen. She just managed to force one word out. ‘Sorry?’
‘No, I’m the one that’s sorry for trusting you. For believing you.’
‘For?’ Astrid asked, genuinely perplexed. ‘What exactly have I done?’
‘Just keep the hell away from me and my friends.’ She jabbed the air with her finger. ‘Got it!’
Then she was gone, leaving Astrid none the wiser.
Chapter Eighteen
Callie felt the rage burning through every cell in her body. If it wasn’t for the fear of breaking the bones in her hands she would have pounded the steering wheel with her fists until the frustration was released. She drove to Seascale beach rather than return home to stare at the four walls. The thought of being alone in a room of silence was more than she could bear. Sitting in an empty carpark, she wound down the window to listen to the waves crashing against the rocks. Though soothing, it still wasn’t enough to temper her foul mood. What on earth was I doing, thinking that journalists weren’t all the same?
How could she have thought, for even a second, that Astrid wouldn’t have written about her suspicions? Yes, Robert’s behaviour had been a little strange, even she could admit that. But to print a story without any evidence to back it up was slander. To make matters worse, Callie felt the responsibility lay squarely on her shoulders. She had been taken in by the beautiful woman, despite her reservations. She had been the one to press Roxy into giving Astrid an interview. Just because she had been mesmerised by those stormy grey eyes.
The betrayal hurt way more than she would have expected.
‘You bloody stupid fool,’ she cursed, wiping away the sin
gle teardrop that slid down her cheek, all the while thinking of Robert. The kind, thoughtful man who had raised Lexi single-handedly. The man who wouldn’t harm a fly let alone another human being. But none of that mattered to the vultures who were looking for some dirt on the man whose daughter had mysteriously disappeared. The truth wasn’t sexy enough for the tabloids. They wanted to sell papers and if that meant tearing down the reputation of a respected man in the community, that’s exactly what they would do. Is Astrid so desperate to get her name noticed that she would blatantly lie about an innocent man? All that bullshit about the truth. The truth. Huh. She wouldn’t know the truth if it bit her on the arse. I can’t believe I opened up to her.
Callie closed her eyes and rested her head against the back of the seat. Roxy’s accusing voice as loud as the waves outside. ‘They think Robert’s got something to do with Lexi’s disappearance. Your “friend” wrote a pack of lies about him. Why would she do such a thing? Why?’
That was the very question Callie was asking herself.
Who was this woman she had let into her world? Into Roxy’s space at a time of uncertainty and fear.
I’ll soon find out. Callie withdrew her phone from her pocket. Opening a search engine, she typed in Astrid’s name. At the top of the search was her Twitter account. She clicked the link.
A picture of a smiling Astrid looked back at her. If she didn’t know better, she would have fallen for that trustworthy look in her eyes.
Insight journalist. Tea Tree Care Home scandal. What’s that about?
Callie returned to the results page, and scanned it until she found what she was looking for. It seemed that Astrid had been instrumental in exposing poor care and mistreatment at the care home in Manchester. The more she read the worse she felt. It was a heartfelt piece of writing and her findings broke Callie’s heart. It was unbelievable to think someone, another human being, could actually inflict such abuse on the vulnerable. She had to stop reading halfway because her anger was getting the better of her. Was that what the problem was? That Astrid saw signs of abuse even if there wasn’t any evidence? Maybe she wasn’t being malicious after all. Maybe the only thing she was guilty of was reading too much into things. Callie gritted her teeth. It was just her luck that she would be attracted to such a complex woman. Half angel, half devil. So what if I fancy the pants of her? It’s not as if anything’s gonna happen. Lexi will be found safe and sound, and hopefully Robert’s name won’t be dragged through the mud any further. Then Astrid will go back to Manchester and get on with her life. While I’m left wondering what could have been.
Chapter Nineteen
‘What the hell are you playing at, Ross?’ Astrid’s clammy fingers tightened around her phone. She was trying to keep it together. Try being the operative word.
‘What’s the problem?’ he asked in a deadly calm voice.
‘The problem!’
A hot spike of rage flared inside her. The more she thought about Ross’ under-handedness the angrier she grew. Why she mentioned her suspicions boggled her mind. She knew what he was like—write now, check facts later. Seems he really does want to go down the tabloid-titillation road. Her first inclination was to tell him the exact problem at the top of her voice. But she was a professional and he was her boss.
‘The problem is that you rewrote my story. I in no way implicated Lexi’s parents—’
‘But you have your suspicions.’
‘Suspicions that I expressed personally to you. I didn’t mean for you to splash it all over the front page. Parents not going out searching for their daughter doesn’t automatically mean foul play.’
‘I disagree. I’ve seen the news footage of them. Something’s not right. I want you to do more digging on those two. Lexi’s sixteen. I don’t believe she doesn’t have a boyfriend. He must be out there somewhere and if she has one, he will have an insight into the family dynamics.’
‘Finding the boyfriend would have been a lot easier if you hadn’t alienated the one source that is closest to them.’
‘You’re inventive. Find a way.’
‘I don’t have much choice, do I?’ she muttered.
‘No, you don’t. Especially if you don’t want to end up on social security.’
Silence.
Astrid let out a measured breath. Let’s think about this rationally. Callie isn’t going to be much help to me now. Not that I blame her in the slightest.
The sound of plates clattering in the kitchen below caused her head to turn towards the bedroom door.
But Laney might be.
‘Hey, do you need any help?’ Astrid asked moments later as she entered the kitchen.
Elaine put a dripping plate on the worktop and pulled off her marigold gloves. She gave her an easy smile. ‘I’m done. Do you fancy a cuppa? Or something stronger?’
The idea of alcohol wasn’t appealing. If she got drunk she would start thinking, and if she started thinking it would make her drink even more. ‘Tea will be fine, thanks.’
‘One tea coming right up.’ Elaine flipped the kettle switch and reached into a wall cabinet for a couple of mugs.
Astrid sank into the chair she had been sitting on barely an hour ago, making what she thought were inroads with Callie. All it had taken was one phone call to blow that out of the water.
Elbows on the table, Astrid ran her fingers through her hair. ‘I just spoke to my boss. He rewrote my story and implied Robert had something to do with Lexi’s disappearance. He doesn’t give a toss that he’s dragged the Palmers’ names through the mud.’
‘Oh no! Is that even allowed, you know making accusations like that?’
That’s what the public didn’t get. Papers didn’t care whether someone was innocent or not. They got a story, printed it, then moved onto the next thing. If they fucked up along the way, they’d print a retraction and bury it beneath all the other stories of the day. That was the world Astrid lived in. She tried her best to write honest, fair stories but sometimes, like this incident with Ross, things were beyond her control.
‘He didn’t exactly accuse him. He just raised a question and left the readers to come to their own conclusion.’
‘It’s a bit misleading though, isn’t it?’ Elaine looked at her expectantly.
Astrid pinched the bridge of her nose and sighed. ‘That’s the newspaper business for you.’
‘I hope you don’t think I’m overstepping the mark here, but you don’t seem the type that would sell their gran down the river for a scoop.’
‘I’m not. But I have no control over what happens to my copy once my boss gets a hold of it.’
Elaine poured boiling water into two cups and added a drop of milk. ‘Even if it’s under your name?’
‘Even if it’s under my name.’
Elaine let out a low whistle. ‘Damn that’s scary.’
‘He’s all right most of the time,’ Astrid reluctantly admitted. Just not this time.
Elaine removed the tea bags then carried the drinks over to the table. She laid one in front of Astrid and kept hers in her hand.
‘Callie isn’t going to believe that I didn’t betray her, is she?’
‘Yeah she will, once she sleeps on it. I’ll have a word with her. Relax.’
Astrid was too wired to relax not to mention totally pissed off with Callie for being so quick to judge her, instead of asking for her side of the story first. She rose from her seat and paced the room. She had to get back into reporter mode and stop letting Callie affect her so much. Astrid was there to do a job and her job was to find out information. So enough chasing after a woman who was emotionally unbalanced. I need to get what I came here for so I can get the hell out of here. ‘So do you know if Lexi has a boyfriend?’
Elaine’s expression faltered and her forehead deeply furrowed. ‘Are you on the clock twenty-four-seven?’
‘Afraid so. Besides, I want to do all I can to help find Lexi. From experience, kids tend to clam up talking to the police. A journalist on
the other hand is another kettle of fish. It’s cool, something to boast to their mates about. Don’t you think it’s worth a try?’
‘I suppose.’
Astrid wondered if the people in the village, Callie and Elaine included, actually knew more than they were letting on. How else could she explain why they all seemed so guarded? Getting information was like drawing blood from a stone. ‘So has she got one?’
Elaine nodded.
This cat and mouse game was starting to try her patience. Why the fuck did she even care? If they want to hide their pathetic little secrets, let them. Astrid needed to stop getting too emotionally involved with this drama. She had bigger fish to fry.
‘And Callie knows?’
Again Elaine nodded.
Astrid tried to keep the anger out of her voice. ‘So are you going to tell me who he is?’
Elaine sized her up. ‘I don’t know …’
‘Why the hell not? I’m only asking a few questions. I’m not the Gestapo. It’s not like I’m gonna waterboard the kid.’
Elaine’s shoulders dropped a fraction. For a fleeting moment sorrow flashed in her eyes. Like she would rather crawl under a table and hide than tell Astrid the truth. She understood. Elaine was a kind-hearted, decent person who didn’t want to hurt anyone’s feelings. Even Astrid’s. Someone she barely knew.
Astrid looked up at her, with her most empathetic expression and said, ‘Tell me what’s worrying you.’
Elaine’s lips twitched. ‘Not you. I know you won’t do anything bad, but what if your boss writes something horrible about him? It would be awful.’
