by Lee Weeks
Lisa’s gym was packed with people – it always was in January. They’d all be gone by March. New Year’s good intentions were hard to sustain. She managed to get away and phone Megan during her lunchbreak.
‘I failed to keep calm about it all. I just couldn’t do it. I realized when I looked at him that I really fucking hated him for what he’s done. I couldn’t be that two-faced, even though I tried. Sorry.’
‘Not to worry. It will work out, I’m sure. I’ll phone Paula and Emily and tell them that it’s important they keep on his good side.’
‘The thing is, Megan. I’m really thinking that we should go to the police about it all.’
‘I appreciate that you’re angry but we need to stick to our plan. As soon as the police get involved and charges are brought against him, the money becomes ring-fenced. You stand a good chance of losing it.’
‘I’m not sure if I care any more. My hate for him outweighs the desire to get my money back.’
‘Please, Lisa, just let the scheme play out. Give us a chance, all of us. We agreed we’d do this together, didn’t we?’
‘Okay, but I can’t promise.’
Megan came off the phone to Lisa and called Paula.
‘You have to keep him sweet, Paula, give him hope. Lisa is out of the equation.’
Chapter 41
Esme and Fifi were finishing their turn when Ellerman stuck his head around the door of the ballet class. Paula didn’t think she’d manage it, but she did – her eyes said it all – she was glad to see him but she was hurt.
She took her coat and bag from the seat next to her and waved him in. He walked in, grinning apologetically to the teacher, who smiled and looked as if she were delighted to see a dad in the ballet class. Esme and Fifi skipped over to say hello before being ushered back.
They sat in silence, watching the girls for five minutes, before Ellerman reached out a tentative hand and placed it on Paula’s. She gently removed it whilst still smiling at the girls. Ellerman leant forward in his seat and watched intently as the two girls hopped and skipped and pretended to be trees opening in spring and then, when the class was finished, they ran over, excited.
‘Come on, let’s go for pizza.’ Ellerman looked at Paula for approval. The girls shrieked with excitement. He knew there was no way that she could refuse now.
‘Okay then.’
She stood and picked up her belongings and sent the girls off to pick up theirs.
When they got outside they looked for his car.
‘I am driving that Kia four-by-four, the white one,’ said Ellerman.
‘New car?’ Paula asked.
‘Thought I could do with a change. Family car, really. Now I can fit the girls in the back. And I know it’s Saturday but I hoped you wouldn’t mind if I called in.’
The girls got in, thrilled.
Paula looked at him.
‘Did you get this car for us?’
Ellerman didn’t answer. He just smiled and looked pleased with himself. He’d been loaned the car whilst the Range Rover was in for a service.
After the pizza they went home. The girls were read a story and put to bed by Ellerman, and Paula stood awkwardly in the kitchen, pouring herself a glass of white wine. Ellerman came up behind her; he knew he’d done the best job he could possibly do at remaining credible in her eyes. He stood behind her, not touching, just being close.
‘The girls were so sweet today. Like little fairies, jumping around.’
‘Yeah – they love their ballet.’
‘We should take them to see The Nutcracker, or Swan Lake. They’d love it.’
‘Yeah, maybe.’
‘We could make a weekend of it in London.’
‘Yeah, perhaps.’
‘Paula – I want you to know that I really do love you and the girls. I wouldn’t spoil that for the world. You know that, don’t you?’
‘Talk is cheap.’
‘But not for me . . . I mean every word. I wouldn’t hurt you for the world.’
She turned round, her glass of wine in her hand.
‘I know that. I know you care about me – about the girls. But . . . I also know that I might not be all you want. I know I’m not the most intellectual person on earth. I don’t have a lot to say about certain subjects but I do my best and I feel a lot for you. I didn’t realize how much until I got the letter.’
‘That fucking letter.’
‘Yeah.’ She turned away and began tidying the kitchen. ‘It was a massive shock. At first, I thought it must be some kind of scam and then I saw my name, my address, all my numbers written on that sheet of paper.’
He reached out for her and she didn’t resist this time. ‘I cannot tell you how sorry I am, baby.’ He kissed her forehead. ‘I love you more than you know. I promise you that’s true. Paula, I thought I explained to you – I can’t say it any more clearly – I love you and someone has been trying to split us up. You mean the world to me.’
‘And all those women on the list?’
‘It’s all a pack of lies. I have no idea who most of them are.’
‘Really?’
‘Well, some of them I recognize – they are past girlfriends – well in the past – they were work colleagues or friends, friends’ wives even! It’s like someone has gone through all my contacts and picked out the women and decided that I’m having a relationship with them all. It’s absolute nonsense.’
‘I want to understand this, JJ. I know I contacted you on the Sugar Daddies site but I’ve always been honest with you. I am willing to give up a lot for you. I have turned down a lot of dates with other men for you.’
‘I know. I understand.’
She swung round, angry. ‘Yeah, but I don’t think you do. I have put up with so much – I can’t see you weekends, I can’t visit you in your home. I can’t even meet your son . . .’
‘Now you know why that is. It’s Craig.’
She laughed sarcastically. ‘I thought I did. The letter even said that he had died.’
‘You must understand: in my position there will always be jealous people. There will always be people who want to see you fail. One of those people has got hold of my personal information and has decided to stir up trouble. I am not what they have accused me of. I am not a philanderer – I promise – I swear – I love you, babe.’
She turned from him and shook her head.
‘I want to believe you.’
‘Then do. You should support me now, Paula. I think I’ve always been good to you and the girls. I’ve taken you on holiday, I’ve paid for the girls to do things they wanted to; I’ve always bought them presents. Don’t let some nutty woman come between us. Don’t let her spoil what we have – what we’ve built up between us.’
‘Not this Christmas, you didn’t.’
‘Didn’t what?’
‘You didn’t buy anything for the girls.’
‘It’s been a hard year for me. You know that. I told you, I’ve had a difficult time of it money-wise.’
‘The thing is, JJ, that’s not the only thing that’s been thin on the ground this year. You seem to have gone off me a bit, even in the bedroom. Every time I talk about a future with us, you change the subject.’
Ellerman’s phone rang. He tried to ignore it.
‘You’d better answer that.’ Paula turned and walked from the kitchen, sighing. ‘On your way out.’ She looked back at him and shook her head sadly. ‘I need more from you, JJ.’
‘Paula, I need you to have faith in me, that’s all.’
‘You can’t stay tonight, JJ. I still love you but I’m hurt. Come and see me again soon and we’ll talk properly.’
‘Okay – I understand. I will always want what’s best for us. I’ll go but I’ll be back soon, baby.’
He went across and held her and kissed her forehead. Her eyes welled up. She hated the deception but, right at that moment, she hated him more.
Ellerman got outside and took a deep breath before he looke
d at who was calling him. It was Emily. He declined the call and sent her a text message, telling her he’d phone her later. He had a text from Megan:
Hope you’re having a good day. Ring me when you get time for a chat. Miss you. M
Lisa had sent a text, saying that she was going to the police.
‘Bitch!’ he said out loud, and felt his anger ignite when he got back into the car.
Ellerman sat in a lay-by in his car and pulled his collar up. The temperature outside had dropped to freezing. Dee wasn’t answering the phone. Ellerman sat back in his seat and listened to the whoosh and spray of the passing traffic. He clenched and unclenched his hands on the steering wheel. He closed his eyes and sighed deeply from his diaphragm. He was boiling over with the feeling of injustice. How dare someone expose him in this way? His first thought was Lisa. She could have easily looked at his phone. He had been lax a few times now. He’d drunk a bit too much some evenings and didn’t remember the latter part of them. Not just with Lisa, with all of them. He could have left it unlocked. If one of them had got into his phone they could have also seen all his emails, transferred lots of data whilst he was asleep. Whoever did this, hated him. They wanted his blood. They wanted to ruin his life. It was all about the end gain. Nothing mattered but winning. When he was sitting in his Spanish home with Dee; when they were happy again and when money was coming in – after all, the deal for three yachts was so nearly signed – then all this would have been worth it. He needed to find more women with more money. The truth was that he couldn’t juggle all of them successfully without losing a few along the way. The ones that fell were casualties to the cause. It would all blow over and then he could regroup. If he lost some women along the way, then okay. But the money worried him. Lisa had been particularly vocal in her venom. Did the police know it all by now? He opened the glove compartment and took out his list. He crossed through Olivia’s and Gillian’s details. He circled Lisa and turned to the next page, ran his pen down the list until he came to Harding.
His phone rang.
‘JJ Ellerman speaking.’
‘Mr Ellerman, Inspector Carter here. I need you to come back into Archway Police Station again – we need to clarify a few things.’
‘Next week.’
‘Tomorrow morning, Mr Ellerman, at nine o’ clock. You know where to come. You’ll need to bring your lawyer with you this time, Mr Ellerman, and I want to see all your company accounts.’
Ellerman got out of the car and vomited. He held his stomach, tried to press in his guts as they heaved. He felt like he was vomiting up his insides. It took him three minutes to stop retching. He wiped his mouth as the traffic whizzed past and then he leant against the passenger side of the car as he took deep breaths and tried to calm himself. He opened his lungs, stuck out his chest and breathed in deeply through his nose.
Ellerman looked into the passenger footwell for some water and couldn’t find any. He rummaged round in the boot and found a plastic bottle half full of water. He drank it a few gulps at a time.
Back in the car he rang Lisa.
‘I just wanted to say I’m sorry for the way things have turned out.’
‘I don’t believe you. You’re a liar through and through.’
‘Well, if that’s the way you feel about things then there’s no altering it. I am sorry that you prefer to believe the words of a malicious trouble-maker instead of someone who has supported and loved you for the last year and a half, but I cannot stop you believing what you will.’
‘Give me my money back now.’
‘Yeah – that’s right – stick the knife in, why don’t you? You’re a petulant bitch. You can go and whistle for your fucking money. You bore me stupid anyway.’ He hung up.
Lisa took a few deep breaths. She felt so angry she badly needed to calm down. The letter shook in her hand. She picked it up and put it down several times before settling down to read the list of names again. When she was ready she picked up the phone.
‘Who is this?’
Dee Ellerman was in the kitchen when she answered the phone. She was watching the gardener pick up the rest of the debris he hadn’t been able to fit in his van the week before.
‘My name is Lisa.’ Lisa’s words stuck on her tongue. ‘Look . . . I just wanted to say that I’ve been seeing your husband but he told me that you knew all about it and that you were cool about it – you had your own life . . . hello?’
‘Yes, I’m listening.’
‘Look – I just rang to say I’m sorry. It’s not my style – married men. He told me he was separated, just stuck living in the same house as you. And he told me he had to stay because of your son.’
‘He’s dead.’
‘Yes. I heard. I’m truly sorry.’
‘Thanks for calling. Goodbye.’
‘No, please, please wait just a minute. I need JJ to give me back the money I gave him for the Spanish house we were supposed to be going to live in.’
‘I think you’ve lost your money.’
‘No, well, I’m sorry and all that, but that’s where you’re wrong, because I will take him to court if he doesn’t give me it back.’
‘How much is it?’
‘Twenty thousand.’
‘Why did you give him such a lot of money?’
‘I didn’t give it to him. It was a loan. He said the house needed urgent work before the winter; he said he’d pay me back and then it became an investment in our future.’
‘I can’t help you.’
‘Look – I don’t like to cause you more problems but I need you to impress upon him that he either pays me or I’m going to sue him and you, both of you. I’m sorry.’
‘Do what you must.’
Chapter 42
Later that day, Lisa was sick of thinking about nothing but JJ Ellerman. She needed a run. She needed to think about everything and decide what to do. She headed out of the house, back out through the alleyway. The weekend traffic was noisy as it drove over the wet road, the swish of tyres on Marine Drive – the coastal road that ran over the top of the cliffs from Black Rock to Saltdean. The cliffs shone luminescent as the last rays of sun fell across the Channel.
She got into a good pace and ran for further than she thought she would. It was dark when she doubled back along the top of the cliffs. As she ran she heard her own breath, her lungs beginning to burn with the cold air. Her legs were tiring on the homeward stretch and her sweat cooled ice cold on her skin as the air temperature plummeted. She glanced behind at the sound of another runner. The thud of trainer on tarmac. She felt reassured. She never liked running late and it was already gone nine. To her left the ocean was now a vast expanse of pitch-black. To her right a lonely stretch of road now, with just the odd car passing. In the darkness she was aware of the other runner gaining on her. Lisa sprinted a little. The coastal road was a long one. Her legs were already weary. She didn’t have a lot left in the tank. The other runner was now just a step behind her but just out of her vision. Lisa thought about stopping, pretending to have stitch, letting the other runner pass her, but they were alone on the road and beside them was the long cliff drop. Lisa put on another spurt. The runner caught up. Lisa turned to look again and she saw that the runner’s face was hidden beneath a hood. They were coming close now and matching her speed. Now the runner’s arm was brushing hers as her arm moved with the running motion. Now their breath was on her neck and she felt herself panic. She stifled a scream as she tried to run faster but the runner pressed even closer. She went to turn away but she felt her legs buckle and a pain in her shins as she fell over something hard and rolled towards the cliff edge. She was lifted and pushed and, screaming, she felt her body twist in the air as she fell.
Chapter 43
The next morning, Willis parked up in the car park at Fletcher House and, instead of taking the lift up to the third floor and MIT 17, she walked across to the staff entrance of Archway Police Station. She found Carter waiting for her outside an interview room
on the ground floor.
‘Everything okay?’ He asked, watching her walk towards him along the corridor. She nodded.
‘Good. Right then, let’s go.’
Carter opened the door to the interview suite. JJ Ellerman was sitting next to his lawyer Petron, deep in conversation. They stopped talking and waited whilst Carter and Willis sat opposite. Carter switched on the recorder and introduced himself and everyone in the room.
‘This is Detective Inspector Carter showing exhibit number 312, a typewritten letter three pages in length. Have you seen this, Mr Ellerman?’ Carter asked.
Ellerman glanced at it. His eyes flitted around the room. Panic registered on his face as his eyelids fluttered, his breathing quickened.
‘Yes, I’ve seen it. Where did you get it?’ Petron glanced his client’s way. Ellerman didn’t react to him.
Carter watched Ellerman play-act at being Mr In Control of the Situation, on top of his game. But Ellerman had a bloom of perspiration on his blanched face. He didn’t look well, thought Carter. There were bags under his eyes. Life was catching up with him. Carter could see Ellerman’s mind turning over. He would be working through the list of women, to figure out how Carter could have got the letter. He might come to Harding. That was a risk they knew they would have to take.
‘Did you receive it in the post?’ Carter asked, keeping his voice soft, taking his time, watching Ellerman all the time.
‘No. Someone showed it to me. I don’t understand what business it is of yours? This is a purely private matter.’
Carter tapped his forefinger on the letter. ‘It’s not private when two of the women on this list have been murdered.’
‘May I?’ Petron picked up the letter and looked it over. ‘I need a copy of this. This should have been shown to me first. I want to register my complaint.’
‘Registered,’ said Carter.
‘Where did you get this?’ asked Petron.
‘We are not prepared to disclose that information at this time. Does it matter where we got it?’
‘Yes, because you are confronting me with a document that I can’t defend against or advise my client about.’
