How to get home was the next problem.
In the end Erin decided she’d have to play the highly strung daughter card, but not straight away. Instead she wandered over to the far corner of the lobby, away from the ticket desk and out of sight of most of the other cinema-goers, where she sat on the lurid purple carpet, killing time.
It was a lonely wait, punctuated by the scraps of other people’s conversations as they drifted past in waves, a steady ebb and flow. The waiting gave her plenty of time to think about Cassie being with Leah – which she tried to do, but her imagination failed her. She simply couldn’t comprehend why her sister was voluntarily choosing to be around someone so different, so unknown and, to be honest, so rough. Then there was the issue of the money. Cassie, her smart, strong-willed sister, seemed to have been totally taken in by Leah. She was lapping up her sob stories without question. Who knew whether they were even true? But Cassie didn’t seem to care, she was so wrapped up in the thought of them being together when she was little. A blood-bond stronger than family – couldn’t she see that Leah was playing her?
The more Erin thought about it, the more stressed she became, and the more worried. She looked at Cassie’s texts again, fretting. They didn’t sound like her sister, but there again, her sister wasn’t behaving like her sister any more. Her phone screen faded and the words disappeared. And why pick Freya, a girl from drama club that Cassie was barely friends with? Why not Jess or Anna? Erin tried to call Cassie again, but the message told her the phone that she was calling was switched off. Cassie never switched off her phone, never. The panic escaped from Erin’s chest and careered around her body.
She could think of only one person to call.
Chapter 48
THERE WAS no rush now. Cassie could sleep for as long as she needed.
It was such a pity she hadn’t been able to see Little Miss Serious’s distress. Leah had to make do with imagining Erin’s shock and hatred at the thought of her and Cassie spending time together. And Little Miss Serious would not have liked having to lie to her parents. Serve her right. Erin’s heart-shaped face and her puppy-dog eyes were imprinted on Leah’s mind. She’d seen her slavish devotion to Cassie in Subway the day of their first ‘meeting’, the closeness between them, the love – but that was before Leah.
One real sister.
One fake sister.
It was time people knew which was which.
Erin was just going to have to learn that sometimes life took away from you the very thing you relied on, the thing that anchored and defined you. Karma really was a bitch.
Leah sat back and watched over Cassie as she slept, hope stirring in her chest. The day didn’t have to be a complete disaster. If she played her cards right, things might still work to her advantage. All she needed – all she’d ever wanted – was time with Cassie, away from the bitch-mother and the wanker father and the imposter sister. And Naz’s actions, painful as they were, had gifted her that.
Leah got up and went into her tiny kitchen, taking Cassie’s phone with her. She flicked on the kettle. Tea would be good. Warming, reviving.
It was time for Cassie to wake up, but not for her to leave.
Chapter 49
‘YEAH?’ he was on guard straight away, but all Erin could feel was relief that he was working.
‘Ryan?’
‘Yeah.’ He sounded suspicious. Her confidence drained out of her. ‘Who is this?’
‘Sorry. It’s me. Erin. Cassie’s sister.’ This was met with silence. She tried to steady her voice. ‘I’m sorry to call you at work, but I wanted to know if you’d heard from Cassie tonight?’
‘How did you get this number?’
‘I Googled it.’ Not that it mattered. ‘Have you heard from her today?’
‘Why?’ Ryan’s suspicion ratcheted up a level.
‘Well. I’m…’ What to tell him? I’m paranoid… ‘I’m worried about her.’
‘Why?’
How could she even begin to explain? ‘She’s in Manchester, with Leah, says she’s staying over, all night.’ That was all she needed to say.
‘Ah, for fuck’s sake!’ Erin felt a rush of relief at his reaction. Ryan listened to her concerns and didn’t interrupt. ‘Okay. I’ll try and get hold of her, see if she’ll talk to me, but I wouldn’t hold your breath – we’ve not been getting on great recently.’
‘Oh.’ The relief evaporated.
Ryan sighed. ‘Yeah, well. Let me try and I’ll ring you back. Give me your number.’ Just before he rang off he said, ‘Hey. Don’t worry. She can look after herself, your sister. I’m sure she’ll be fine.’
Erin appreciated the sentiment, but didn’t believe it.
Chapter 50
CASSIE WAS still woozy, but she took the mug from Leah and managed to hold it level. ‘Sorry. I can’t believe I passed out.’ Her voice was slurred at the edges.
‘’Sokay.’ Leah had worked out what she was going to say, but first she wanted to see what Cassie remembered, and what sort of mood she was in. Embarrassment seemed to be the prevailing emotion.
‘I’ve never done that before, ever. I’m really sorry.’ She looked down at Leah’s duvet draped over her knees and seemed to feel even worse.
‘Not your fault. It was Naz. He’s a stupid prick sometimes. I think he put a massive slug of vodka in your beer.’ There was no need to say anything more. What good could come from it?
‘God, I feel rough.’ Cassie took a tiny sip of her drink. Leah watched her. She would be feeling awful – Leah knew.
‘Drink that, then I’ll make you some toast or something; that’ll help.’
‘No, Leah. Thanks, but I really can’t face the thought of eating anything.’ Cassie did, however, drink the tea, as instructed. When it was all finished, Leah took the empty mug from her.
‘I’ll make you another one.’
‘Thanks. I’m really thirsty.’ As Leah crossed the room, she heard the rustle of the duvet being pushed aside. She turned and saw Cassie make a move to get off the sofa, bracing herself against the arm, as if uncertain of her ability to stand.
‘Whoa! There’s no rush.’ Leah caught Cassie’s glance at the darkening sky and the distant lights of Manchester.
Cassie flopped back down. ‘Leah, do you know where my handbag is?’
The next hurdle.
Leah turned her face away. ‘Let me get you your tea, then I’ll have a look for it. It’ll be around somewhere.’ As she waited for the kettle to boil, she kept glancing back into the room, checking that Cassie hadn’t moved. She looked ghastly, but then that’s what roofies did to you. It would be another twelve hours, at least, before she felt completely back to normal. Armed with the tea, and a smile, Leah came back into the room. She passed Cassie the mug, handle side facing her, then made a show of looking around for her handbag. It was a charade; she knew full well that Cassie’s bag was underneath the armchair, because she’d shoved it there. The longer she hunted around, the more pinched Cassie’s face became.
‘I can’t remember when I had it last.’
Leah pushed the bag further under the seat; perhaps the problem with the missing cards would just go away by itself. A lost bag. No one’s fault.
But Cassie was starting to stress, and remember. ‘We bought the snacks. I’m sure I had it when we came up to the flat. I think I put it down on the floor.’ She tried to tip forward to look, but the sensation was obviously too much for her and she immediately swayed upright again.
‘You stay there. I’ll find it,’ Leah said. After another few seconds of fake searching, she dragged the bag out. Her back went into spasm as she straightened up, but she tried not to show that she was in pain. She needn’t have bothered. Cassie’s priority was her stuff. ‘Here it is.’ Leah brushed the crumbs off it and passed it to Cassie, who clung onto it as if it were an anchor.
‘It’s getting late. I really should be going.’ Yet Cassie made no effort to move.
‘Do you feel all right?’ Le
ah knew full well that she didn’t.
‘No. Not really. I’ll maybe give it another ten minutes, if that’s all right with you.’ She still hadn’t looked in her bag.
‘Course.’ Leah smiled. ‘You can stay here tonight, if you wanna.’ She watched Cassie trying to read her thoughts. All she saw was pure weariness.
‘No. I don’t want to put you out. I’m sure I’ll be okay in a bit.’ She drank another slug of tea, then put her mug on the table. Then slowly, as if moving hurt, Cassie opened her bag and started looking through it. She checked that her keys were there first. They were, clipped onto a pom-pom key-ring; then she looked for her purse. She took it out and put it on the sofa next to her keys. She carried on digging through her other stuff. Looking for her phone, Leah guessed. Maybe she wouldn’t check her purse. Why should she? Why should Cassie be suspicious?
The knowledge that she had every right to be wary made Leah act. ‘I really think you should eat something. I’ll do ya some toast.’ As she waited for the bread to pop up, she listened out for any sign that Cassie had realised her money and her cards were gone, but the room was quiet. There was no discovery, no accusations, nothing but the distant slamming of a door somewhere on the floor below and the metallic ticking of the toaster, softs sounds that were suddenly drowned out by the vibrating of Cassie’s phone across the kitchen worktop. Leah snatched it up, hoping that Cassie hadn’t heard it. Caller ID: Ryan – the boyfriend this time. Cassie had been away from home for less than a day and they were all panicking, like a flock of jittery pigeons.
Leah stepped away from the doorway and listened to the message. Hi. It’s me. Erin says you’re in Manchester – there was a pause – with her. She’s worried. I’m worried. Ring me. Please. After a pause he added, Love you. She deleted the voicemail. Ten seconds later he texted, saying the same thing. Jesus, they were persistent. ‘Her’ – the boyfriend hadn’t even used her name. Well, fuck him. They had Cassie all the time, and yet they couldn’t let Leah have her for one fucking day. She picked up the phone and started typing. Wreaking havoc in someone else’s life was getting to be quite addictive.
She was so absorbed in causing carnage that she didn’t hear the sofa creak and the sound of Cassie’s footsteps cross the room.
‘What are you doing?’
‘Nowt.’ It was too late to delete the text. Cassie held out her hand and Leah, slowly, reluctantly, laid the phone on her outstretched palm. Cassie immediately started scanning through the most recent messages. Leah stood her ground and waited, staring at Cassie’s bowed head. At last she looked up. The expression of shock on her face was almost too much.
‘Why?’
‘They were worrying about ya.’
Cassie gave a little head-shake, trying to rejig her tumbled thoughts. ‘But why not just tell them the truth? Why lie? Why be so…’ She didn’t supply the adjective.
Cassie and the bloody truth again, as if that solved anything. ‘What? Tell them that ya were crashed out on my sofa, pissed? I’m not sure they’d have been reassured by that.’
Cassie put her hand out to steady herself against the counter top. ‘She’s only thirteen. There was no need to be so nasty.’
Bloody Little Miss Serious again. After everything that had happened, that’s who Cassie was concerned about – her little bitch of a sister, and her lying, bastard family. Not Leah, who had taken a beating for her. Not her own flesh and blood, who was standing in front of her with a back that was fucked and a face that was smashed.
‘I need to ring Erin, and my mum.’ Cassie bent her head to her phone.
Leah felt a blast of fury. It was her who’d looked after Cassie. Her who’d stopped Naz doing whatever he’d been tempted to do. Cassie hadn’t a clue what a narrow escape she’d had! It’d been Leah who’d made sure she didn’t choke, kept her warm, brought her round with tea and sympathy, but that didn’t seem to count for anything, did it? It never had. Leah went on the attack. ‘And say what?’ Cassie didn’t respond, she just kept tapping away on her contacts. ‘You’re not telling them anything. I won’t let ya!’ Leah’s voice bounced off the tight walls.
Cassie swayed. ‘Let me?’ She blinked, as if trying to bring Leah into focus. ‘Leah, I just need to let them know I’m all right.’ She held the phone to her ear.
‘Well, be my guest. Don’t let me stop ya.’ But Leah did want to stop her, she wanted it more than anything at that moment. She wanted the control back, she wanted her sister back. ‘Don’t you dare tell them that you’re here. Keep me out of it.’ Leah rushed at Cassie. She snatched the phone away from her. Cassie stumbled and fell forward. She crashed into the counter, then ricocheted into Leah. They bounced apart, both of them in pain, both breathing hard and fast with shock.
The sound of smashing glass was unmistakeable.
But it was more than just the phone that was broken.
Leah watched Cassie slowly lower herself down onto her knees. She picked up her phone and cradled it in her hands, as if gentleness might make it whole again. The screen was fucked, a web of radiating cracks. Cassie let out a sob. Leah had to steel herself to walk past her, out of the kitchen.
She went and sat on the chair in the corner, waiting to see how the scene would play out. It felt beyond her now. She was tired of it all: tired of Cassie, tired of trying to wrestle with so many conflicting emotions, tired of being awake, of hurting – tired of being alive. She could still see Cassie crouched low on the floor, desperately stroking the screen, trying to connect with her family – the phone was obviously not responding. After five long minutes she finally gave up and rocked back on her heels. She looked through the doorway at Leah, pleading silently. Leah looked at Cassie, huddled in a pathetic heap, and thought long and hard about passing her her own phone.
But after careful consideration, she did nothing.
Slowly Cassie hauled herself up and walked into the middle of the room. She picked up her keys and her purse and put them in her bag. Then, silently and unsteadily, she walked out of the flat, pulling the door shut behind her.
Chapter 51
Can’t you leave me alone for one fuckin nite? Go find someone else to yank your prick. Im busy.
Ryan gave it ten minutes after Cassie’s ‘charming’ message before telling Len that he was taking his break. Len shouted that he was a lazy twat, but he couldn’t really do anything to stop Ryan ripping off his apron and walking out of the kitchen.
He went out into the cool evening air and called Erin. She picked up on the first ring. ‘Yes?’
Ryan cut straight to it. ‘Sorry. I rang and texted, but she’s not coming back.’
‘You spoke to her?’
‘No, she texted me.’
‘And?’
Ryan decided that a lie was a lot less hurtful than the truth – for both of them. ‘To leave her alone. That she was having a good time.’
They were silent for a second, as they contemplated the harsh reality of Cassie preferring to spend time with Leah rather than with either of them.
‘Right,’ Erin said.
‘You okay?’ Ryan felt responsible for her, though he wasn’t sure why.
‘Yep.’ She didn’t sound it.
‘Okay.’ Ryan felt bad. ‘Well, I gotta go work.’
‘Yeah. Sorry. Thanks for trying.’
‘Bye.’
‘Bye.’
Chapter 52
CASSIE STOOD in the entrance lobby and scanned the area outside the flats. The dark bulk of the buildings looked familiar, but no less threatening. The effort it had taken to leave the flat and get into the lift had sapped her strength. She felt sweaty and very unwell. She leant against the doorframe, thinking she was going to faint. She took a few deep breaths to steady herself. The reality was that she was miles away from home, alone, in a way she’d never been before. The thought of pushing open the heavy doors and venturing out onto the streets was daunting, but Cassie knew that hanging around where she was wasn’t a good idea, either. Every minute
she delayed was another minute that she’d have to spend on her own.
Her stomach shifted. All she wanted to do was lie down and curl up somewhere safe, but she wasn’t somewhere safe. She took another deep breath and told herself to stop being so dramatic. Determinedly she looped the strap of her handbag over her head and across her body, pushed open the door and set off in the direction of the shops. She wanted to walk quickly, but she couldn’t. She felt awful.
Why had Naz spiked her drink? Out of nastiness? To test her? If it had been a test, she’d failed it miserably. Or had he done it just because he could – because that was his attitude towards women in general, her included? The thought of being trapped in Leah’s flat, with Naz, unconscious and alone, brought on another wave of nausea. Cassie had to pause and lean against a wall for a few seconds to settle herself. She had been so vulnerable. If Leah hadn’t come back…
But Leah’s behaviour was incomprehensible as well. One minute, kind and protective – the next, wild and mean. It was as if there were two completely different versions of Leah fighting for supremacy within her, different impulses that made her impossible to read or predict. Being with her was exhausting. It was all too much.
Cassie’s head hurt and it felt like her body belonged to someone else, but she forced herself to keep walking. It was like being drunk and having the hangover at the same time. She wanted desperately to be home. A couple of lads were coming towards her, hoods up despite the heat, faces obscured. Her pulse flickered. She concentrated hard on walking straight and holding her head up high. Own your space. That’s what her mum and dad had always told her. Don’t be afraid of anyone or anything. It was easy to do at home, but not here, not in her current state. But the lads passed her without comment or incident.
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