The Life You Left

by Carmel Harrington

  ‘You’re sounding a bit like Bill Clinton there.’ Johnny said jokingly. ‘I did not have relations with that woman,’ he drawled in his best American accent.

  Mal gave him a dirty look, clearly not enjoying the comedy routine.

  ‘Mal, how many mobile phones do you own?’ Roger asked.

  ‘One.’ Mal replied quickly. ‘Why?’

  ‘It’s important that you realise that I know how many phones you really do have Mal. So for your own sake, take a sec and rethink and then answer my question again.’ Roger said firmly.

  Mal thought about this for a moment, then stated nonchalantly, ‘Well now that I come to think of it, I have a second phone for emergencies. I don’t use it very often, so that’s why it slipped my mind.’

  ‘That wasn’t hard, was it?’ Johnny said sarcastically to him.

  ‘Now you’re going to have to help me out here.’ Roger said to him. ‘Why would a guy like you need a second phone?’

  ‘I have it for personal use. I don’t like to mix up my work with pleasure. That’s all. It’s not a crime is it?’ Mal said to them.

  ‘No, of course not.’ Roger replied calmly. ‘Don’t worry; we’ll not arrest you for owning more than one phone, of that I can assure you!’

  Mal smiled in relief. He could get out of this yet. They’d nothing on him; they’d have arrested him immediately if they had.

  ‘Out of interest, does Marie know about the second phone?’ Johnny asked.

  ‘I can’t remember.’ Mal replied tetchily. ‘Probably, I’m sure I’ve mentioned it.’

  ‘Oh that’s good. Not great to have secrets in a marriage, I think.’ Johnny said.

  ‘Out of interest, which phone is your business one and which one is your personal one?’ Roger asked him. He showed him both numbers written down on a piece of paper. ‘It’s just that the second phone doesn’t have a record of you ever calling Marie on it or receiving a call from her either. And as she’s your wife, that seems a bit strange. So, I’d say that must be your business phone, so.’

  Mal nodded.

  ‘Maybe I’m a bit slow here.’ Roger continued. ‘We’ve established that the second phone is your business phone, that’s why Marie never calls it. But why would Rachel text and call you on it for months? Were you in business together?’

  Mal didn’t know how to answer. He felt his hands start to get clammy and sweat begin to form in a pool on the small of his back.

  ‘No answer to that?’ Roger said to him. ‘OK, let’s get back to Rachel Finch again. When did you start your affair with her?’ Roger asked again.

  ‘I told you, we weren’t having an affair!’ Mal almost shouted back.

  ‘Oh I beg to differ.’ Roger responded. ‘Mobile phones are great things aren’t they? What would we do without texting? I must send about a dozen texts every day to my girlfriend. Big problem with mobiles though is that all the data is recorded. All the numbers you called, all the numbers that called you, all held together in your history, waiting for someone like me to come along and have a nose through. What do you suppose we found when we looked through your phone records Mal?’

  Mal reddened, as the realisation hit him that the texts sent were incriminating. ‘Ok, I’ll put my hands up guys. I was having a fling with Rachel. She was a good-looking woman and damn near threw herself at me. What man could refuse?’ He held his hands up in the air, feigning a look of innocence.

  ‘Now, that wasn’t so hard was it? So now that we’ve finally all agreed that you were having an affair with Rachel, maybe you can clear a few things up for me.’ Roger said amiably.

  ‘Sure. I’m happy to.’ Mal replied in a tone that left no doubt that right now he was far from happy.

  ‘When was the last time you saw Rachel before she died?’ Roger asked.

  ‘Let me think.’ Mal said, looking up to the ceiling. ‘About a week before she died I should think.’

  ‘Really?’ Roger replied opening a manila folder in front of him. He started to leaf through the papers that were in the folder.

  ‘Yes I think that’s about right.’ Mal said again smiling broadly.

  ‘It’s just I have a witness who says that you were with Rachel on the day she died.’

  Roger enjoyed watching the colour drain from Mal’s face.

  ‘Who is this witness?’ Mal demanded.

  ‘You’re a fan of the club sandwich in the Seafield Hotel aren’t you?’ Roger said still looking down into his file. He glanced up and enjoyed the startled look that had appeared on Mal’s face. He was clearly beginning to get rattled.

  ‘What day was Rachel murdered on again?’ he asked Roger. ‘Maybe I’ve gotten my days muddled up.’

  ‘That seems very likely Mal. You see we know that you were in Gorey on the 3rd October, that you withdrew €30 from the AIB bank link machine on the main street. We also know that you then went to the Seafield Hotel and met Rachel in the bar there, and ate your usual club sandwich and fries. So again I’ll suggest that you rethink your answer. Were you with Rachel Finch on the day she was murdered?’

  ‘So what if I was!’ He shouted back. ‘There’s no crime with two people having a bite to eat is there?’

  ‘Absolutely not.’ Roger replied. ‘Calm down, Mal. If you’ve done nothing wrong, then there’s nothing to be afraid of. What time did you and Rachel leave there?’

  Mal knew that there was little point in making anything up. The staff there obviously remembered him and had landed him right in it.

  ‘We left there at about 5pm.’

  ‘And where did you go from there?’

  ‘I went home.’ He said defiantly. ‘I said goodbye to Rachel in the car park and that was the last time I saw her.’

  ‘So you’re having an affair with a hot woman and you just have something to eat, then say your goodbyes and that’s it?’ Johnny asked incredulously.

  ‘Yes. That sounds about right.’

  ‘I find that hard to believe, Mal.’ Johnny said with a wink. ‘If I was going to risk my marriage by having an affair, I’d at least like to see a bit of action. Don’t think a sandwich and a chat would be worth the risk for me!’

  ‘I’m not an animal.’ Mal said indignantly. ‘We had a sandwich together then we said our goodbyes.’

  Roger looked at Johnny and shook his head indicating that they should stop the interview.

  ‘Interview suspended at 1.51 p.m.’ Roger said.

  ‘Suspended?’ Mal said with irritation in his voice. ‘What do you mean suspended? Does that mean I can leave?’

  ‘I’m afraid not, Mal. Let’s all just take a break for a short while. Someone will bring you in a coffee. You need to have a good think about what happened the night of the 3rd October. We all know that the last time you saw Rachel wasn’t in the Seafield Hotel car park. Don’t have me embarrass you again as quite frankly it’s getting boring catching you out every five minutes in lies.’

  Roger enjoyed seeing the look of panic fleet across Mal’s face. He quickly covered this with another broad smile.

  ‘You don’t have anything on me!’ He said quickly. ‘This is actually pathetic watching you guys trying to act all CSI Wexford.’

  ‘He’s a funny guy.’ Johnny said to Roger, shaking his head in mock disbelief. ‘CSI Wexford. I must tell the missus that tonight. She’ll enjoy that!’

  ‘And Mal.’ Roger said, pausing for a second as he was leaving the room. ‘You’d be surprised what jokers like us two have up our sleeves!’

  Chapter Twenty Four

  Sarah was standing in her local Centra supermarket, admiring her handiwork.

  ‘It looks great.’ Colm said walking up behind her.

  Sarah turned around to the supermarket manager. ‘Do you really think it’s ok?’

  ‘Absolutely. I’m tempted to go grab one of those chocolate lads myself!’

  ‘Go ahead.’ Sarah said with a broad smile. ‘They’re delicious, I can promise you!’

  ‘I don’t doubt it! And by th
e way you have your first order already!’

  ‘You’re kidding me? Oh that’s wonderful.’ Sarah said delightedly.

  ‘Yes, Bridie rang earlier to place an order for more logs and I told her we were now stocking the cupcakes, so she has ordered three to be delivered with her fuel!’ He laughed as he told her.

  Sarah started to giggle. Thank God for Bridie.

  ‘That stand is a great yoke altogether.’ Colm said. ‘Reminds me of one my granny used to have when I was a little fella. She’d take it out every Sunday when we called to visit.’

  ‘All things retro are very in now.’ Sarah replied. ‘I wanted to show you something if you have a minute to spare.’

  ‘Fire away.’ She opened up her handbag and pulled out some snapshots she’d taken of the christening cupcake she had done for Ella. Colm looked impressed as he looked through them.

  ‘They look great.’

  ‘Cupcakes have been popular for weddings for a good while now. I decided to give them a go for Ella’s christening and they went down a treat. All the children at the christening spent ages standing in front of the cake stand, choosing their favourite cupcake. It was hilarious watching them. And I think the adults all enjoyed eating them too!’

  ‘I’m sure they did.’

  ‘So, I was thinking that I’d like to advertise that I can do Angel Cupcakes for special occasions. I’ve put together some pricing. I thought that for every order you secured I’d pay you commission. I’ve typed up the details for you to look at.’

  ‘It’s not a bad idea at all. Tell you what, let’s see how the cakes go over the next few days. If we sell them all in the next forty-eight hours we can then think about this idea of yours.’

  Sarah beamed at him. ‘Thanks a million. Here’s hoping that everyone is hungry for cake!’

  She walked back to the car practically floating on air. She just had to hope and pray that the cupcakes sold for her. If they did well at least she had a chance at making a go of her new enterprise. Who needed Paul now?

  ‘Right, time to get home to Ella now’.

  Tommy and Katie were in school, although it had been touch and go as to whether it would open or not. The snow was continuing to fall every few hours. Art had sent a text earlier saying that it was possible that school would be closed if it got worse. Paul was with Ella at home. He was leaving for the airport in an hour and called in unexpectedly just as Sarah was about to head to Centra, so she left Ella with him while she made her delivery.

  She wondered why he had called in. He’d already said his goodbyes last night to the children when he dropped them home. She’d soon find out she supposed.

  Just as she was getting into the car, she stepped on a really bad slippery patch of ice and before she could right herself her legs went from beneath her. She went crashing down to the ground quite hard, winding herself in the process.

  As she hit the cold ground and felt the wet, icy snow on the back of her head she saw the strangest thing. Lying beside her in the snow was Paul. She looked at him puzzled. When had he gotten there? What a coincidence that he fell at the same spot as her. Then she quickly thought about Ella. If he was there, where was Ella? She tried to get up and started shouting her name.

  ‘Ella, Ella.’ She felt panic rise through her body.

  ‘Are you ok, Sarah?’ A voice interrupted her shouts. ‘Let me help you up.’

  Sarah looked up and saw Colm standing there. He grabbed her hand and pulled her to her feet.

  ‘Ella.’ Sarah said again, looking around for her. ‘Where’s Ella?’ She looked down to the ground to ask Paul. But he wasn’t there anymore.

  ‘Where’s Paul gone?’

  ‘I haven’t seen him in months.’ Colm replied looking around him, half expecting to see someone standing there.

  She looked around and there was no sign of him.

  ‘But he was lying here beside me just now.’ Sarah said panicking. ‘You must have seen him too. And he has Ella. Where’s Ella?’ She was getting hysterical now.

  ‘Paul wasn’t here I promise you. I saw you fall and came straight out. Honestly. You must have bumped your head harder than I thought. Come in and I’ll make you a cup of tea.’

  ‘I have to ring him.’

  ‘Come on in and we’ll ring him inside. You’re wet through. This bloody snow, I’ll be glad when the thaw comes in.’

  Once inside the store she picked up her mobile phone and quickly dialled Paul’s number.

  ‘What’s up?’ He said cheerily.

  ‘Where are you? Where’s Ella?’ she demanded.

  ‘She’s at home waiting for you!’ he answered, sounding exasperated. ‘Where else would we be!’

  ‘Oh, ok. That’s great Paul. I’ll be home soon.’

  ‘Are you ok?’ he asked.

  ‘I fell on the ice, that’s all.’ Sarah explained. ‘I’m fine. I’ll be home in a few minutes.’

  She sighed with relief and turned back to Colm. ‘He’s at home.’

  ‘That’s good. Now come on, have a cup of coffee.’ He’d made one for her while she made the phone call. ‘Get warmed up and then I’ll drive you home.’

  ‘No, I’m fine, honestly.’ Sarah assured him. ‘I’ll drink the coffee but I’m fine to drive. I just got a scare that was all.’

  ‘Did you bang your head?’ He enquired. ‘You must have done if you were seeing things. Should I call the doctor?’

  ‘Don’t call the doctor, Colm. I’m so sorry for causing all this fuss. I’m fine, I promise you.’

  She drank her coffee and after a few more minutes of reassuring him that she was fine, she made her way home.

  ‘Were you checking up on me?’ Paul asked her when she got home. ‘Did you not think I could cope with Ella on my own for even one hour?’

  ‘No I didn’t think that for one moment.’ She replied quickly.

  He saw how wet her clothes were. ‘You’re soaked through.’

  ‘I told you, I fell in the snow outside Centra.’

  ‘You ok?’

  ‘Yep, nothing wrong except for feeling like a complete fool!’ She answered. ‘I’m just going to get changed. I’ll be down in a sec.’

  What was that all about? She thought to herself. It was so strange. She’d have sworn that Paul had been lying beside her in the snow. Maybe she had banged her head? But it had seemed so real.

  She changed quickly and ran downstairs to Paul and Ella.

  ‘So have you two had fun?’ She asked them, giving Ella a big kiss on her lips.

  ‘She’s just the most amazing little baby.’ He said with pride. ‘I can’t believe how much she’s grown in such a short time.’

  ‘I know. A few months is a long time in a baby’s world, they change so much so quickly.’

  ‘When she waves at me and says Daddy, it just melts my heart. You’re doing a wonderful job with her. With them all.’

  ‘They’re good kids.’

  ‘I made some tea.’ Paul said, indicating the pot on the kitchen table.

  ‘Thanks.’ Sarah replied.

  ‘I want to talk to you about the children. I’ve just had the best time these past few days. Thank you for making it so easy for me to spend time with them.’

  ‘You’re their father. No matter what happens between us, I’ll never use them as a weapon. It’s very important to me that you are in their lives.’

  Paul was silent for a few minutes. ‘I’ve told Michelle last night that I’ll be coming home once a fortnight to see them.’

  ‘Good.’ Sarah replied.

  ‘She wasn’t very happy about it.’ He said.

  Why didn’t that surprise her? Sarah thought.

  ‘She thinks that every two weeks is too often. She wants it to be once a month.’

  ‘I don’t believe this.’ Sarah said; the annoyance in her voice unavoidable to miss.

  He put his hands up in the air. ‘Hold your horses. I’ve told her that no matter what she says, I’ll be coming home to the children ever
y fortnight.’

  ‘When the new baby comes it might be a bit tricky for a few weeks to get away.’ He added.

  ‘That’s fine. I’m reasonable and I’ll make sure the children understand that you need to be at home then.’

  ‘I don’t want to miss out on any more.’ Paul said pointing to Ella, who was happily playing in her playpen.

  ‘There’s no reason why you should. I’ll not stop you seeing them.’ She said truthfully. ‘They need you.’

  ‘I’ve been thinking too that I’ll look into transferring back to Ireland again in a year or so. Michelle and the new baby will come with me; that way I’ll be closer to the children.’ Paul continued.

  Sarah was surprised and thought that it was unlikely that he’d actually do that. ‘Sounds like a good plan.’

  ‘And as I said the other day, I’ll make sure that the maintenance is sorted quickly.’

  ‘Well, I’ve sent my schedule of expenses to my solicitor. They should be talking today about them I think.’

  ‘I’ll ring my solicitor tomorrow morning, Sarah. I promise to not drag it out. You’ll have your first maintenance payment in your account by the end of the week.’

  ‘That would be great. I’ve included how much Christmas presents will cost too. Speaking of which, will you be home for Christmas?’

  ‘I’m not sure yet.’ Paul said going red slightly. ‘I have to talk to Michelle about it.’

  ‘Well, if you are home for Christmas, you are welcome to come and spend it here with the children and me. But I’m not asking Michelle too. The kids aren’t ready for that complication yet. And nor am I.’

  ‘That’s decent of you. And if I’m honest, I’m not sure I’m ready for the complication of spending Christmas Day with my ex-wife and pregnant girlfriend either!’ He started to chuckle and looked at Sarah, expecting her to be doing the same.

  ‘I’m not ready to joke about this, Paul.’ She said quietly. ‘If I seem okay about it all, it’s because I am doing everything I can to make this transition as easy as possible on the children. But this is very hard for me. I’ve not yet accepted the fact that you’ve gotten a new family.’ She couldn’t believe that Paul thought that she could just snap her fingers and forget about what he’d done to her during the past year.