by Val Collins
Robert wouldn’t let her into his car again. She’d been watching him and he never used the central unlocking any more. He wouldn’t let Eilis into his car either, and she couldn’t ask Laura to get involved. Laura couldn’t afford to lose her job. She would shortly be chairing a disciplinary hearing into Eilis’s actions. It couldn’t help if she knew Eilis had stolen Tom’s key and broken into the office. Smashing the car window terrified her, but what other option had she?
*
For the third time that day, Aoife walked past Robert’s car. It was parked in Hume Street and the street was rarely free of pedestrians. Anybody could be looking out the window of one of the many offices that overlooked the street. She could be arrested. Robert never worked late, so she couldn’t break in when the offices were empty and the streets quiet. She had checked houses in Sorrento Terrace on the internet and they all had garages, so she couldn’t break into the car during the night. She had to recover the USB during office hours. She guessed 3 p.m. would be the best time. Nobody left work that early, and people were more likely to be concentrating on work so they could leave on time. At 2:50 Aoife tucked a brick inside her coat, pulled up her hood and, waiting until the street was empty of pedestrians, put all her energy into throwing a brick at the windscreen of Robert’s car. The siren blared at the exact minute she realised the windscreen was the least likely window to break. The only damage she had done was a tiny crack in the glass. She hurried away before anyone saw her.
*
It took a full day for Aoife to recover from her disastrous attempt to break into Robert’s car. She couldn’t do that again. She had no idea how she was going to get into the car and her heart pounded every time she thought about it. She might have more luck retrieving the bug she had placed in Annette’s handbag. At 7 a.m., Aoife stood outside Annette’s local DART station and waited. At 10 a.m., Annette appeared. Aoife followed her onto the train. She had absolutely no plan whatsoever. She didn’t fancy her chances as a bag snatcher, and she could hardly ask Maura to repeat her earlier performance. The train would fill up soon, and Aoife was running out of options. She was about to give up when she remembered the get-well card she had bought for Karen. It would mean risking Annette recognising her, but she would have to take that chance.
Aoife sat on the seat opposite Annette, smiled and said hi. Annette returned the smile and the greeting without the slightest hint of recognition. Aoife waited a few minutes, then, as if something had just occurred to her, she rummaged in her bag and withdrew the large card. A few more minutes were spent rummaging in her bag and sighing. She smiled at Annette. ‘Could I borrow a biro?’ she asked.
Annette unzipped the centre pocket of her handbag and removed a biro. It was the wrong one. Aoife pretended to write, shook the biro several times and said, ‘I’m afraid it doesn’t work. Do you have another? I’m sorry to bother you, but my friend is meeting me on the platform and I completely forgot to write his card.’
Annette opened her bag. ‘I usually only carry… oh, I do have a second one. I wonder where I picked that up.’ She handed the biro to Aoife.
Aoife scribbled on the card and let the biro fall on the floor. While pretending to pick it up she slipped the biro up her sleeve. She removed a second biro she had earlier hidden in her other sleeve and returned to her seat. She scribbled her signature, thanked Annette and handed her the substitute biro.
Aoife was elated as she got off at the next stop. She had recovered one bug. She would find a way to retrieve them all.
*
Aoife brought the USB straight to Maura’s.
Maura’s eyes gleamed. ‘This is better than the soaps.’
An hour later she said, ‘It’s not a soap. It’s Big Brother. Doesn’t she do anything even vaguely interesting?’
‘I should have realised she’d take the bag to work. I texted Eilis. Annette works Monday and Wednesday. If only we’d planted the bug later in the week.’
‘It didn’t record anything when she was at home?’
‘She must keep her bag in a wardrobe or a cupboard, somewhere the voice activation isn’t triggered. I’ve had enough of this. I’ll finish listening to it tomorrow.’
‘Leave it with me. I’ll let you know if I hear anything useful.’
Aoife made dinner for two even though Jason rarely came home before ten these days. At 11:15 his car pulled up. She waited for him to come into the sitting room but he went straight upstairs. By midnight it was clear he wouldn’t be coming downstairs again, so she went to bed. Ten minutes later Amy woke screaming, and it was 4 a.m. before she settled. Aoife was jolted out of a deep sleep three hours later when her phone rang. Eyes closed, she fumbled for the phone but only succeeded in knocking the clock on the floor.
She opened one eye, grabbed the phone and mumbled, ‘Yes?’
‘I stayed up all night listening to the recording, Aoife.’
‘Huh?’
‘Wake up. Annette’s the murderer.’
TWENTY-SEVEN
Fifteen minutes later Maura was at her front door, handing her the USB.
‘What does it say?’
‘It’s mostly work, the supermarket and lunch with her friends. I nearly died of boredom, and the first time I listened to the interesting bit, it didn’t even register with me what she was saying. I was just dropping off to sleep when I realised the significance of it.’
‘What? Aren’t you going to tell me?’
‘No, I want you to listen to it yourself.’
Jason walked into the kitchen, looked at them and walked out. Maura pressed her lips together but said nothing.
‘He’s not talking to you either?’ Aoife said.
‘What else is new?’
The front door banged and they heard Jason drive away.
‘Don’t worry about that now. I’m dying for you to hear the recording. They’re in a restaurant, so there’s a lot of background noise, but Annette is quite clear. This is the bit.’
An unfamiliar voice said: ‘She threw him out.’
‘Oh dear,’ Annette said. ‘I hope she didn’t make a mistake.’
‘You think she should have carried on as if nothing had happened? I’d throw Mike out if he cheated on me.’
‘Your circumstances are completely different. You have more money than Mike. Mary’s sixty-two years old. What kind of a life will she have now? Her daughter is in Australia and her son’s in New York. She’ll spend her old age all alone. She certainly won’t find a new man. Men our age are looking for women in their thirties. And where will she live? They’ll have to sell the house. No matter how good a price they get, half the proceeds won’t buy any kind of house in this neighbourhood.’
‘You think she should stay with him for money?’
‘It’s not just money. Simon’s her future and that house is her home. Why give them up for something he’ll tire of in a few months?’
‘Are you saying you’d stay with Dan if he cheated on you?’
‘We’re still together, aren’t we?’
‘What! You caught him cheating?’
‘I had no interest in catching him.’
‘How can you be sure he had an affair?’
‘A few years ago he went to the office Christmas party. He rolled into the house at six a.m. I could smell her on him.’
‘It was a one-night stand, then?’
‘I think so. For about a year afterwards, he jumped every time his mobile rang. He was preoccupied, but not in a good way. I think he got himself into something he had major difficulty getting out of. I’d see him pacing up and down the garden, shouting into the phone. It’s amazing the things that man thinks I don’t notice.’
‘You never found out who it was?’
‘Eventually I checked his mobile and rang the number. It was a woman from work. She was younger than me, of course, but no great beauty.’
‘Does he know you found out?’
‘What good would that do? Dan never considered leaving me. Our li
fe is comfortable, and we have the kids and someday grandkids in common.’
‘Simon’s girlfriend is pregnant.’
‘Oh no! Well, that’s it, then. His life with Mary is over. A young child’s a stronger tie than two grown-up children.’
Maura hit pause. ‘See?’
‘So Dan was the lover. You think he’s the murderer?’
‘Weren’t you listening? Annette’s the murderer. Didn’t you hear her say a husband having a child with another woman would end the marriage?’
‘So?’
‘Aoife, are you still asleep? Dan’s the father of Delia’s child.’
‘He’s not. I can’t tell you how I know, but the father couldn’t possibly be a suspect.’
‘Is he dead?’
‘He might as well be.’
‘Okay, but Annette doesn’t know that. Her husband had an affair and a few months later she sees Delia pregnant. Of course she thinks the child is Dan’s.’
‘Annette’s in her sixties. She wouldn’t have the strength to string up Delia’s body, and can you see her trying to run me down?’
‘They say it’s not expensive to hire a killer in Dublin. Drug addicts would do anything for a few thousand. Maybe she hired someone to kill Delia. Maybe he was high. It would explain the locked door.’
‘Why would she hire someone to kill me?’
‘Dan or Robert must have mentioned you were investigating Delia’s death.’
‘What about the poison in my tea?’
Some of the excitement went out of Maura’s eyes. ‘I can’t explain that, but everything else fits.’
‘Nothing fits. It’s all guesswork.’
‘Okay, I’ll admit I don’t have any proof, Aoife, but I’ve found the murderer. It’s up to you to get the proof.’
*
Aoife had to work out a way to get the USB out of Robert’s car. Could she use Maura again? If Robert saw an elderly woman struggling with shopping, would he stop to help? No. He wouldn’t even notice her. What if Maura banged into him and pretended to sprain her ankle? When Robert helped her up, she could ask him for a lift. That wouldn’t work either. Robert would be so worried about being sued, he’d leave her lying on the ground. Maura wouldn’t even get a chance to speak to him. It would have to be somebody Robert wanted to speak to. Someone young and attractive. Orla! Why hadn’t she thought of that before? She wanted to get in touch with her friends again. Maybe this was the excuse she needed.
Aoife phoned Orla, who was shocked but thrilled to hear from her. ‘I’m finishing in Kings Inns next year and I need to find a barrister who’ll let me be his junior,’ she said. ‘My uncle arranged a meeting with someone he knows through work. I’m meeting him at two p.m. in the Westbury. Why don’t we meet at three? I’ll be in the lounge on the first floor.’
Aoife would rather have met somewhere cheaper. She spent an hour picking an outfit, eventually deciding on a short royal-blue tunic, black leggings and black boots. It was a pity she couldn’t afford a blow-dry, but whatever she did she would look shabby compared to Orla. She dressed Amy in a navy-and-red outfit she had received as a present. Orla had never met her daughter, and she wanted Amy to look her best.
As usual Jason had taken the car, so she had to walk to the train station. Thankfully her annual train commuter ticket was still valid and Amy could travel for free. A few yards from the house, Aoife felt a tap on her shoulder. She jumped.
‘Joe, what are you doing here?’
‘I got your address from your HR file. We have to talk.’
‘What’s wrong?’
‘Can we go back to the house?’
‘I’m going to the train station. We can talk on the way.’
‘I have my car. I’ll give you a lift.’
‘I don’t want Amy in a car without a car seat. What do you want to talk about?’
‘Aoife, I need that tape.’
‘I told you, there’s nothing to worry about. A friend is taking care of it.’
‘What friend?’
‘You don’t need to worry about it. It’s safe.’
‘It would be safer with me. Safer for both of us.’
‘What do you mean?’
‘I was wound up after the last time we talked. I went to the pub and ran into friends of my cousins. If I’d been sober I’d never have said anything, but I told them you had the tape. They wanted to know where you lived.’
‘You gave them my address?’
‘No, but I’d already told them your name. I said I didn’t want them to do anything, but you’d never know what they’d get up to, especially when they’ve been drinking. If I was arrested they’d blame you, and I wouldn’t be around to stop them doing something stupid.’
*
‘Are you threatening me?’
‘I’m trying to warn you, Aoife. For both our sakes, please give me the tape.’
‘Goodbye, Joe. Don’t come near my house again.’
Aoife didn’t look behind her until she reached the train station. There was no sign of Joe. Was he warning or threatening her? Had he told his friends about Delia as well? Had they decided to help him out by killing her? No, Joe wouldn’t do that. He was panicking because he believed the police wanted to pin Delia’s murder on him. He hadn’t even known about the tape until after the first attempt on her life. The murderer had to be either Robert or Dan. The sooner she listened to those USBs, the safer they would all be.
*
The Westbury lobby was a spacious area. At this hour, most of its tables were occupied, but Aoife didn’t wait for the waiter to assist her. She knew exactly where Orla would be—at a table by the window with the best view of the street below. Orla was always given the best seats in restaurants.
Orla jumped up as they approached.
‘Aoife! Oh my God! A baby!’ Heads turned in every seat and Aoife flushed.
‘This is Amy,’ she said, lifting her from the buggy.
‘Why didn’t you tell me? Oh my God! I can’t believe it.’ Orla touched Amy’s face. She was unused to babies and for once in her life looked uncomfortable.
‘Sit down and you can hold her.’
She placed Amy in Orla’s lap.
‘Oh, she’s so beautiful. How old is she?’
‘Eight months.’
‘I wish you’d told me.’
‘I should have. I’m sorry. I started to text you and Ciara when I found out I was pregnant, but I wasn’t sure you’d be interested, so I never sent it.’
‘Of course we’d be interested. I don’t know how we lost touch. We used to be so close. I thought we’d be friends forever. Now Ciara’s in London and you’re… where are you exactly?’
‘Kildare.’
‘Kildare! What on earth—I’m sorry. You have to make decisions for Amy now and I’m sure Kildare is much better for her than living in the city.’
‘I hope so. Where do you live now?’
‘Dun Laoghaire.’ She giggled. ‘I know. I never thought I’d live that far out either, but my apartment overlooks the sea and it’s quite nice. Darragh’s started college this year and Mum and Dad have enough expenses without trying to cover a city centre rent as well.’
Typical Orla. It would never occur to her to pay her own rent. It was a good thing her parents were well off.
‘How’s Jason?’
‘He’s fine. Working hard. You must come for dinner some evening and catch up.’
‘Would I be welcome? Jason never approved of me. I’m not sure he approved of any of your friends.’
‘Whatever gave you that idea? You were his friend too.’
‘I’d love to see him. What are you up to these days? Do you work or are you a full-time mum?’
‘I’m not working right now. I know it’s an awful cheek, Orla, and I swear I’ve wanted to get in touch with you for ages, but the reason I phoned you is I need a favour.’
‘Oh! Well, of course, if I can help.’
‘It’s a long story, but I thi
nk my life’s in danger.’
‘What?’
‘I might be overreacting.’ She gave Orla a brief synopsis of recent events. ‘What do you think?’
‘I’m not sure. You’re right about it being an awful lot of coincidences.’
‘That’s why I planted the bugs, but I need your help to recover the biro in Robert’s car. I have to have proof, you see. The police won’t listen to me otherwise.’
‘What can I do?’
‘The biro’s under the driver’s seat. I’ve no hope of getting into Robert’s car, but I think you could get him to give you a lift and find some way to get your hands on the pen.’
‘Okay.’
‘I’ll understand if you don’t want to, Orla. Robert doesn’t know the biro’s there, so you shouldn’t be in any danger, but I can’t guarantee it.’
‘I’ve never yet met a man I can’t handle, and it might be fun. I hope he’s old and fat. It would make it a lot easier.’
‘Actually, he’s thirty, very fit and quite good-looking.’
‘Well, that’s a whole different type of fun.’
‘No, Orla. He might be dangerous. Just get him to give you a lift, find the pen and get out of there.’
‘Spoilsport.’
‘This is serious, Orla.’
‘I know it is, but it’s the least I could do for you.’
‘What do you mean?’
‘I feel so bad that we didn’t help you more when your parents were killed.’
‘It wasn’t your fault. You were teenagers and neither of you had lost as much as a grandparent. You couldn’t understand how I felt. I know you tried. I remember the parties and the pub crawls you organised. You were too young to understand I couldn’t cope with crowds or parties back then.’
‘We didn’t even help you clear out your parents’ house. I can’t believe it never even occurred to us.’
‘Jason handled that. I didn’t want to ever set foot in it again. I’d have been lost without him.’
