‘I told you, Mitchy Boy. They know everything about everything. Do you want them to do some digging around?’
‘It’s just some background information, if we need it.’ Mitchell explained the situation further and told Graham he was accompanying Yvette to meet Victor.
‘Do you want the boys to come along, too, as back-up? Brute force?’ Graham asked.
‘Hopefully I won’t need that. And I’m sorry to ask you to do this.’
‘That’s what friends are for,’ Graham said. ‘Now what do you want to know?’
On the bridge, Mitchell saw Yvette’s eyes widen. He sensed her stiffening as he watched a small bald man walking a Pomeranian dog on a leash. He whistled nonchalantly as he approached them.
Mitchell frowned, thinking this couldn’t possibly be Victor. In his head, he’d imagined him to be big and muscly with tattooed arms, or maybe a slick guy in a pin-striped suit. But this man was now smiling. He wore jogging pants and a faded lilac T-shirt. ‘Is that him?’ he asked.
‘Yes,’ she murmured. ‘Appearances can be deceptive.’
‘It’ll be okay.’
She nodded at him and stuck out her chin. ‘We’ll see.’
‘Yvette.’ Victor picked up his small dog and held it to his chest. Though his tone was friendly, he didn’t acknowledge Mitchell’s presence. ‘It’s wonderful to see you. You look fantastic – well, maybe a touch pale. This is my new friend, Penny. I brought her to say hi.’
Mitchell studied the man. Although he smiled, his eyes were small and purplish like pomegranate seeds.
Yvette shrank like a caterpillar curling against touch.
Victor lowered his dog to the pavement. ‘Where’s Connor?’ he asked lightly, looking around.
‘He’s at home with my family.’
‘That’s a shame, I so wanted to meet him. You kept it from me that I was a father, but that’s not the only thing you didn’t tell me, eh? I only borrowed that money for us, you know, so we could have a better future together.’
‘You stole thousands, Victor. What did you expect me to do?’
‘Didn’t expect my own girlfriend to turn against me, that’s for sure. And you didn’t tell me you were pregnant, either.’
‘I didn’t know about it, until later.’
‘Would it have made any difference? Would you have kept your mouth shut? We could have been a family with nice cash to spend.’
‘No,’ she said firmly.
His eyes narrowed instantly. ‘I thought not, should have known you were a conniving cow.’
‘That’s enough.’ Mitchell stepped forwards. ‘Yvette agreed to meet you here as planned. Don’t abuse that.’
Victor’s lips twitched into a smirk. ‘Ah, you’re the new boyfriend I presume?’
‘Leave him out of it,’ Yvette ordered.
Victor raised an inquisitive eyebrow at her before he suddenly lurched forwards, squaring up to Mitchell.
Mitchell’s heart thumped. However, he was used to people reacting aggressively when he stopped them from hanging padlocks on the bridges and he was not going to let Victor intimidate him. He’d played a big part in bringing Yvette and her family back together again, and this angry man wasn’t going to taint that.
Mitchell got in Victor’s face. ‘I’m a friend of the family.’
‘And I’m supposed to be impressed by that?’
‘I don’t actually care what you think,’ Mitchell said. ‘I’m here for Yvette and the Bradfields. You’re a thief and Yvette was so worried about what you’d do to her, she ran away from you. She was protecting her unborn baby. A baby with a heart defect. Does that make you feel like a proper man?’
A flicker in Victor’s eye told Mitchell he wasn’t used to being questioned. He grabbed the front of Mitchell’s shirt. ‘Don’t you ever speak to me like that again,’ he hissed.
Mitchell jerked away and shoved the smaller man so he stumbled backwards. Mitchell reared up to his full height. ‘Yvette wants to start afresh. She acknowledges you’re part of Connor’s life, but you are not going to see him if there is any risk to the baby, or to Yvette. You need to speak civilly to her and prove you’re worthy of them both.’
‘I would never hurt my own child.’
‘Really? From my perspective, you look exactly like the kind of man who would do that.’
Victor’s eyes bored into him, but Mitchell stood his ground. ‘Yvette did what anyone with proper values would do when she found out you were stealing,’ he said.
Yvette inched forwards. ‘I’ll take steps for you to see Connor through the official, proper channels and you need to go along with that if you want to see him,’ she said.
Victor smirked at them both in turn. ‘What if I’m not an official kind of guy?’
‘Well then,’ Mitchell said. ‘A couple of friends of mine have told me a few more things about you… Very interesting things.’
Victor’s eyebrow twitched up. ‘Who?’ he growled. ‘What?’
‘Never you mind.’ Mitchell began to circle him, caging him in. He bent in close to Victor’s ear. ‘This is what I know about you…’
He reeled off all that Mason and Tony had passed on through Graham, about Victor’s other dodgy business dealings. They had uncovered several businesses he’d set up under a fake identity, where he had stolen funds from investors before disappearing. The information could easily land him with more months, even years in prison, if brought to light.
‘If you ever do anything to jeopardize Yvette’s and Connor’s happiness, I will be onto you,’ Mitchell threatened. His words made him feel stronger as he spoke them. ‘My friends will not let this go.’
Victor barked a laugh, but it sounded hoarse and unnerved. He picked up Penny again and gave her head a ruffle. ‘Hey, no need for that. I just care about my son. I’m a changed man since I got out of prison.’
Mitchell stared at him disbelievingly.
‘It’s true.’ Victor looked over at Yvette. ‘I’ve made bad choices. Had therapy for it, to understand myself better. I just want a second chance.’
‘I saw the letter you sent to her…’
‘If it’s any consolation, I’m sorry about that. It was a mistake. I’d found out I was a father through the grapevine, and I was angry at first. But now I can see why Yvette did what she did, and why she ran. She’s a decent person, and I’m not.’ He smiled at her. ‘I don’t blame you for any of this, okay? I brought it all on myself. Can we just talk for a while?’
Yvette eventually nodded. ‘Okay. But I want Mitchell close by.’
‘No problem. Anything you want. I apologize for how I spoke to you before.’
Mitchell paced up and down for twenty minutes. He watched, making his presence known, as Victor and Yvette talked together.
Eventually, Victor walked over to him. ‘Thanks for that,’ he said gruffly and held out his hand. Mitchell reluctantly shook it. ‘I’ll wait until Yvette gets in touch, okay? No trouble from me. I just want to get to know my son. You have stuff on me and I know it.’
Mitchell jerked his head in acknowledgment. He watched as Victor and Penny walked away, and he returned to Yvette. ‘Are you okay?’ he asked gently.
She nodded in reply before taking a deep breath. ‘I’ve done it. I’ve taken another step to returning to normal. I can look forward to everything being okay again. As much as it can be.’
‘I’m here whenever you need me,’ he said. ‘If you’re ready to go home, I’ll walk back with you.’
‘You don’t need to. I can do it alone.’
‘I want to make sure you’re back with your family safely.’
She smiled at him gratefully, and they started to move away from the bench. ‘I heard from Liza that people call you the Hero on the Bridge. And you really are,’ she said.
Mitchell took a moment to let this sink in. He hadn’t felt truly worthy of the label before, but reaching out to others had helped lift some of his guilty burden about not being there for Anita.
As he walked into the shadow cast by a tree, Mitchell’s face felt briefly cool. But when he stepped out of the grey chilliness, he felt the heat of the day again, warming his cheeks. He smiled as he walked into the sunshine.
27
Family
As Mitchell walked with Yvette through Upchester, he had a new bounce in his step, a pride in himself that he hadn’t felt for a long time. When he’d helped Yvette from the river, it had been a gut reaction, an impromptu act that he didn’t have time to consider. But this was different. It felt even bigger.
He and Poppy were a great team and they always would be, but it felt good to be a key part in helping the cogs of the Bradfields’ family life to start turning again.
Mitchell could already see that Yvette looked brighter, too. Her body seemed lighter and her steps more determined as they headed along the main road and past each of the bridges. She asked Mitchell about the opening ceremony for the new white bridge and if he was going to take Poppy along. She said she might try to take Connor, making even more effort to bring herself back into the outside world.
Their conversation together felt warm and natural, and Mitchell realized that he didn’t feel any attraction to her, other than the enjoyment of spending time with a friend.
When they reached Liza’s house, she opened her front door and reached out to take Connor. Her face was etched with concern. ‘How was everything? Are you both okay?’
Yvette nodded tentatively. ‘I think so. I feel so tired after seeing Victor again. We talked, though I’m not sure if he’s the changed man he says he is. When he first meets Connor, I’ll make sure it’s a supervised visit. I want to give him that chance, for Connor’s sake.’
‘You look worn out. Why don’t you call Mum and then go for a lie-down?’ Liza suggested. ‘She’s got herself all worked up, so I drove her home. Naomi had to get back for the kids.’
‘I’ll do that, thank you.’
‘Poppy is upstairs, too,’ Liza told Mitchell, avoiding looking at him. ‘She was reading a book, but dozed off about half an hour ago.’
As Yvette made her way upstairs, Mitchell could detect a coolness exuding from Liza, directed at him. He wondered if it was worry about Yvette. She walked into her sitting room and sat down heavily in a chair. He wasn’t sure if it was an invitation for him to follow her, but he did so anyway.
Over the couple of hours he and Yvette had been away from the house, purple shadows had appeared under Liza’s eyes. She sat with her body turned at an angle away from him. The air of worried tension in the house had gone, replaced by something more unspoken and unsettling.
Mitchell sat down in the armchair opposite her. ‘Has everything been okay?’ he asked cautiously.
‘With Poppy, yes.’ Liza folded her arms and directed a piercing glare at him for a split second.
‘Um, is anything wrong?’ he said.
There were footsteps on the stairs and the sitting room door swung open. It bumped against the arm of the sofa. Poppy bumbled inside, yawning.
‘Whoops, sorry. I fell asleep,’ she said. ‘I’ve got a crease on my cheek, see.’
‘Oh, yes.’ Mitchell looked closer. ‘It’s a crumple.’
‘Crumple?’ She laughed, as if hearing the word for the first time.
‘It is a funny word,’ Liza agreed.
He noticed that when she spoke to Poppy, she used her usual warm tone.
‘Liza and I read some of your letters, Dad. She helped me set up my PowerPoint presentation, and she had a brilliant idea, too. She said if there was a centenary website then people could leave their messages on there, instead of hanging padlocks on the bridges. She designed her own music lesson site and it’s cool. All shades of blue.’
‘It’s just an idea,’ Liza said.
‘I love it.’
‘It’s great,’ Mitchell agreed. ‘When the padlocks are removed, people can still share their love, but in a different way.’
‘It would take quite a lot of work to set up,’ Liza muttered.
‘Are we going home now, Dad?’ Poppy asked as she played with the end of her plait. ‘Do I need to put my shoes back on?’
He nodded, and she sped back into the hallway.
Liza stood up. She focused her eyes on the painting of cherubs above her fireplace. ‘Shall I call a cab for you both?’ she asked Mitchell flatly.
‘It’s okay. We’ll take the bus.’
Silence prickled between them, until Poppy carried her shoes into the room and fiddled with her laces. She looked at him suspiciously, and then at Liza. ‘Is everything okay?’
‘Sure,’ Liza said.
‘I think so,’ Mitchell said.
Poppy continued to study them both. ‘Um, okay.’
Liza reached up and toyed with her earring. ‘Perhaps you can check to see where Sasha has gone, Poppy. Can you see if she’s in the garden, or if she’s snuck upstairs? Perhaps you can feed her for me?’
‘Okay.’ Poppy tied her laces and left the room.
‘What’s wrong, Liza?’ Mitchell stood up. ‘Are you angry with me about something?’
Liza jutted her chin. ‘No, nothing.’
‘I think you are.’
Liza fixed her eyes on her handbag on the sofa for a long time before snatching it up. She unzipped then fumbled inside it. ‘When Poppy gave me the letters to read, the other night, this was among them.’ She spun to face him and held out an unsealed cream envelope.
Mitchell stared at it and a chill ran down his spine. He could already see a couple of lines of his own handwriting on the letter inside it. Poppy wouldn’t have taken one from inside his nightstand drawer. So, it must be one he’d written to Anita that he’d left next to his bed.
They both stared it as if it was a bug found in a restaurant salad.
Mitchell’s head whirred as he tried to recall the contents of the letter. No individual words or sentences came back to him, but he remembered how he’d felt when he wrote it, after he thought he saw Anita at the ice rink. He had been weary, and confused and downhearted. He had written about Liza and Yvette. ‘I can’t remember it properly,’ he admitted.
Liza pursed her lips and slipped the letter out of its envelope. ‘Perhaps I can remind you,’ she said. She started to quote his own words back at him. “‘She talks too much, and wears garish clothes, and I feel like I’ve stumbled out of a nightclub, woozy in the early hours of the morning, after I spend any time with her. She’s not calm and together, like you—’”
‘I write to Anita still,’ he cut in. ‘It’s something I do to help me to cope.’
She ignored him and continued to read. “I’m not sure I can ever move on. Being with anyone other than you would be a compromise too far.”
She stared at the paper and then at him. The look she gave him was loaded with so much disappointment, his insides shrivelled. ‘I thought you liked me,’ she said. ‘I didn’t know I was just some kind of rebound for you.’
‘I wrote it at a bad time…’
‘It’s here in black and white, Mitchell. Your true thoughts about me.’
‘Of course I like you.’
She lowered her eyes. ‘I’m not calm or together enough for you. You want Anita or someone like her, and that’s not me.’
Mitchell struggled to think of what to say. He had felt something for Liza, feelings of real warmth, but confusion, too. Anita was still very much in his thoughts and in his heart, and he couldn’t surrender her. ‘I said things clumsily. I apologize.’ He tried to take the letter from her, but she clutched it to her chest. Her lips were set in a fine line.
‘I looked after Poppy and we formed a bond. You and I held hands and really talked. I allowed myself to think that… oh, it doesn’t matter. I should be used to this by now.’
He reached out to touch her arm, but she jerked away.
‘You still love Anita. I was here as a distraction and I totally get that now. You enjoyed helping my family because it made you feel better
about yourself. None of this was ever about me or us.’
‘That’s not true, Liza,’ he pleaded. ‘I have felt things for you. It’s just that—’
Poppy re-entered the room. She carried Sasha under her arm. ‘She’s eaten all her food, and I gave her water.’
Mitchell and Liza’s conversation halted sharply.
Poppy eyed them. ‘Are you two okay?’
You two. It was a phrase she used to use about him and Anita. Mitchell lowered his eyes, uncomfortable.
‘Sure,’ Liza said lightly. She crumpled Mitchell’s letter into a small ball. ‘Now before you go, have you had enough to eat and drink?’
Poppy nodded and picked up her bag.
Connor’s cry rang out from the stairway and Yvette entered the sitting room, jogging him on her hip. ‘I’ve tried to get him to settle, but he refuses to go to sleep.’
Liza pushed a hand through her hair. ‘Okay, I’ll see Mitchell and Poppy out and give you a hand.’ She led them into the hallway. Poppy skipped towards the door and opened it. She jumped down the step onto the path.
‘I don’t know what I was thinking,’ Mitchell said quietly to Liza.
‘Neither do I.’ She pushed the balled-up letter into his hand. ‘I appreciate everything you’ve helped us with, Mitchell.’
Poppy fiddled with the strap on her bag. ‘Thanks for having me, Liza,’ she said.
‘You’re very welcome.’
Mitchell stepped outside, too. He tried to take Poppy’s bag from her, but she wouldn’t let it go. A pencil dropped out, and as he stooped to pick it up, his eyes grew watery.
‘Bye now,’ Liza said, and closed the door in his face.
Mitchell saw Poppy frown. She looked at him for an explanation, but he couldn’t give her one. He tightened his hand around the ball of paper. He had seen the letters he wrote to Anita as something that helped and supported him. But now his words had ruined something very special.
‘Come on, then,’ he tried to say cheerfully to Poppy as they walked down the path. ‘Let’s go home.’
The Secrets of Sunshine Page 22
