He shrugs. ‘But he’s my friend, I want to be here. Why don't you get some sleep? You’ve been travelling all day, if anything changes, I will call you.’ He looks around. ‘Where is Helen?’
Just then the nurse comes over and whispers something in Elias’s ear.
Oh no! Please, let James be alright!
He looks over and sees the look on my face. ‘No, the nurse said he’s stable for the moment, but you should get some sleep. Go back to the hotel, I’ll call you if there’s any change.’
I know he’s right, but will Helen agree?
I go to the ward and gently draw back the curtain. Helen’s talking quietly to James, I bend over and whisper. ‘The nurse says it’s best if we get some sleep, we need to be strong. They have our number. If there’s any change, Elias will call us.’
She nods, whispers something to James, and then follows me to the waiting room.
‘I’m staying at your hotel tonight, Beth, I’ll check to see if they have a room near you.’
On the way back she calls the hotel and the room next to mine is available, it has intercommunicating doors.
Elias drops us off, then drives back to the hospital, Helen collects her key and we go to our rooms.
With the intercommunicating doors open it’s like one huge room. We take off our coats and crawl into bed, I’m sure I won’t sleep but eventually I nod off.
7
BETH
Athens - Plaka Hotel
Early morning - 6.05 am
My phone’s ringing, for a minute I don’t know where I am, then I remember. James, the hospital, my heart sinks.
Helen’s sitting up in bed, a dazed look on her face.
‘Hello,’ I mumble into the phone while crawling out of bed.
‘This is Elias. You must come quickly.’
Helen sees the look on my face and leaps out of bed. We grab our bags and run downstairs to reception.
Within minutes, we’re in the back seat of a cab on our way to the hospital, Helen’s cursing herself for not staying with James. It feels as if everything’s running in slow motion, this isn’t happening, but I know it is. The streets are empty, it’s early in the morning, I sit grimly staring out of the window.
When we arrive, we leap from the cab and run inside. My heart skips a beat, Elias is standing there with tears streaming down his face.
Helen grabs hold of me. ‘No! Not James!’
This is the moment we’ve been dreading. We’re too late. We run past Elias to the room where James is. Helen lets out a moan when she sees him. I can’t breathe, tears stream down my face. The nurse comes in and asks us to go with her. After kissing James, we follow her to another room where Elias sits with his head in his hands. The nurse sits beside him, she speaks in Greek, she says she must call James's wife, to let her know what’s happened.
He nods and looks over at us. ‘Come, I’ll take you back to your hotel.’
Just a few hours ago we thought James would make it, that he would pull through, that he would be okay, none of us thought this would happen. We sit in silence as Elias drives us back.
As we pull up outside the hotel Elias turns and looks at us. ‘I now have to write a news flash...’ He hesitates then goes on. ‘It will be in the morning paper and on TV.’ He wipes a tear from his face and mutters. ‘If I can do anything to help, please call me.’
He hands me his card. I nod and take it. We silently get out of the car, he drives off.
Helen stands shaking her head. I gently pull her inside the hotel.
‘Let’s go to the café, I can’t face going to our room, can you?’
She nods.
The café’s empty, we sit in a corner away from the other tables, Helen buries her head in her hands, I hold onto her.
Nothing can take away the dreadful pain and emptiness we feel.
Suddenly a waiter appears, he knows what’s happened, he was the one who called the cab for us to go to the hospital. He murmurs his condolences and places two glasses of brandy on the table, then leaves.
‘I can't believe he’s gone, it’s like a terrible nightmare,’ Helen sobs. ‘Why would anyone kill James?’
We sit like this for well over an hour, drinking brandy and talking about James, trying to work out what happened.
Helen gets up, then curls up on a nearby sofa, her pale, tear-stained face is hidden by her long brown hair.
A few hotel guests come in and peer at us, probably wondering what’s wrong.
I shake her gently. ‘Let’s go upstairs, have a lay down, we need to sleep.’
‘I can’t,’ she mumbles. ‘I have an appointment with a lawyer, about my divorce and I...’ Tears well up in her eyes, she covers her face with her hands. ‘Oh Beth, it’s so horrible, who would do such a terrible thing.’
I don’t say anything, if I do, I know I’ll start crying, so I just shake my head.
‘I have to call James's wife, I must offer her my condolences.’ Her voice brakes, she shudders, then draws in a deep breath. ‘I must find out when the funeral is.’
She gives me a hug, then leaves.
I make my way to the terrace, it’s better to be with people, not talking to them but having them around me. The thought of going to my room fills me with dread. The sound of pots and pans from the hotel kitchen all sound so normal, its breakfast time - but nothing is normal, James is dead and nothing can bring him back.
I find a quiet corner away from it all and call Elias. It rings a few times then goes to voicemail. I leave a message to come to the hotel, around seven this evening, if he can. I sit holding my phone, staring ahead. The terrace is filling up with tourists planning their day ahead, they all look so happy.
I look over towards the Acropolis, the sacred rock, and in a strange way this makes me feel better, I always get a sense of peace when I’m near the ancient monuments of Greece. They’ve stood the test of time and witnessed more than their share of sadness, it’s early, so if I go now, I’ll have the place to myself.
The tiny streets of Plaka wind upwards, towards the Acropolis, I follow where they lead, past spotlessly clean blue and white houses with windows open, cats laying stretched out, basking in the morning sun, some are on windowsills, others lay curled up in flowerpots. Bougainvillea tumbles over them as if sheltering them while they sleep.
I don’t go to the main entrance of the Acropolis, I’m taking the old route to the sacred rock it makes me feel closer to the real Athens. The higher up I go, the steeper the climb and the hotter I get, I feel exhausted and sit on a small white wall with the Parthenon towering above me.
I sit like this for a long time, thinking of James. The February sun warms me, but it can’t take away my pain. Suddenly my throat feels dry. I need a drink.
The hum and buzz of waiters preparing for the day ahead, feels somehow comforting as I slowly walk down the tiny streets, past restaurants perched along the rocks. Strains of soft Greek music, the rustle of tablecloths being laid over small tables soothes my nerves. It’s not as empty as before, it’s still peaceful, but it won’t be for long. I decide to find a place to sit and have a drink.
A little café catches my eye. It’s not very busy so I find a corner table and order a fresh lemon juice.
When the waiter’s gone I sit looking at the Parthenon. The secret tunnels around and under the Acropolis have always intrigued me, maybe now’s a good time to find out exactly where they are. It will give me something to do, I must keep myself busy, stop thinking.
I sit hunched over my phone searching Google for information on the secret tunnels of Athens. There’s not as much as I thought there would be, but then I find a video. I’m just about to watch it when a shadow falls over me.
‘Do you mind if I sit here?’ a man asks, pointing to the chair next to me.
I wave my hand to the chair opposite, but he sits next to me. I glance around at the empty tables then directly at him, but he just ignores me and calls the waiter over.
He order
s a coffee then turns to me. ‘Are you here on holiday?’
I’m not in the mood to have a polite conversation with anyone so I just nod and start getting ready to leave.
He leans back in his chair and looks intently at me. ‘You don't remember me, do you?’
I have no idea who he is and suddenly feel very tired. ‘I think you’ve made a mistake,’ I mumble, searching for a few coins to pay for the drink. I push back my chair and go in search of a cab.
There’s one coming down the street, I frantically wave it down.
‘Plaka Hotel,’ I mutter, clambering inside the cab.
For some reason I turn and look out of the back window.
The man who sat next to me - he’s walking behind the cab - he looks up and smiles at me - it’s a nasty, weird smile.
With a screech of tires, the cab speeds away.
8
HELEN
Athens - Kolonaki Square
Next day
The walk from the Plaka hotel did me good, but as I approach my house, I start thinking of James. He knew I was near. I felt his fingers tighten ever so slightly in my hand, but at the end I wasn't with him, he was all alone. I’ll never forgive myself for not being with him.
I’m just about to open the door when I remember the other morning. Will Theo be here? His car isn’t outside, so I quietly open the door, tiptoe inside, and stand listening in the hallway, nobody’s here.
After a quick shower, I dress, get ready to leave, then go onto the balcony to see if Theo’s car is here, thankfully it’s not. The scent of jasmine from the flowers makes me think of James. He was so full of life and a wonderful friend, what a waste, what a terrible waste.
Biting down hard on my lip, I grab my bag and run downstairs. I’m just about to leave, when I think of the funeral. In Greece things move quickly. Then I remember Elias said he had to write a newsflash.
I run into the living room and switch on the TV. The news is on. A doctor is talking to a reporter about James, I feel dizzy so sit down, I need water.
I get up and run to the kitchen, gulp down a glass of water, then try to think. I don’t want to talk to James’s wife, but we need to know about the funeral. I take out my phone, tap in her number and wait. On the second ring she answers.
‘Isabelle, this is Helen, I just wanted to say how sorry I am, I...’
The phone goes dead, she’s hung up.
Then it suddenly rings. It must be her. She didn’t mean to hang up.
But it’s not his wife its Kostas. He’s in a terrible state. He’s just seen the news about James on TV. We talk for a while then I ask him if he can speak to James’s wife as she won’t speak to me, he says no.
‘But Kosta, you must, she won't speak to me. Maybe she's in shock. I know things move quickly in Greece, and we must find out about the funeral.’
He sounds near to tears. ‘I'll try, but I wasn’t very close to his wife, she may not talk to me.’
‘Kosta, you must try, we need to know when the funeral is.’ I hear a muffled okay, and then call Beth.
‘I just called James's wife, she won’t speak to me, I can’t believe it - she put the phone down.’
‘Maybe she's in shock. How long has he been married?’
‘A couple of years, he married her on the spur of the moment. Oh no, I’ve just remembered, James said she’s pregnant.’
‘Listen Helen, we need to know about the funeral, call her again or shall I try?’
I take a deep breath to stop my voice from shaking. ‘He was like a brother to me Beth, I can’t bear it...’
‘Helen, try not to think about it, shall I come over?’
‘No, I’m going to see my lawyer, I also have to see James’s friend, the one who’s helping me.’ She stops and takes a couple of deep breaths. ‘I must talk to him he needs to know what’s happened.’
‘Okay, we'll talk about it later. By the way, I’ve been thinking, you said he’s a friend of James so surely he can help us find out who did this? Can you arrange for us to meet, maybe tomorrow, at the hotel? Oh, and what's his name?’
‘I’ll try and arrange something, his name is Dev. Now I really must go, Beth. I’ll see you later at the hotel.’
I lock the door and leave the house, there’s a squeal of tires, a car races towards me, I jump back into a small recess of the doorway and the car just misses me.
Then it starts reversing back.
‘What the hell are you doing?’ shouts a voice from above me.
I look up. It’s my next door neighbour. He’s hanging over his balcony, waving his fist at the driver. It seems to work because the next minute, with a squeal of tires, the maniac drives off and disappears down the street.
My neighbour curses, then peers down at me. ‘Are you okay?’
‘Yes,’ I reply, stepping out onto the pavement and looking up at him. ‘Thank you so much, if it hadn’t been for you...’
‘Glad I could be of help; I only wish I had time to take his registration number down. If I were you, I'd be very, very careful, that was no accident, he did that deliberately.’
‘I will, and thanks again.’
He shakes his head, ‘No problem.’ Then he points to a cab coming down the street. ‘If I were you, I’d get in that cab, before that maniac comes back.’
9
BETH, HELEN & ELIAS
Athens - Plaka Hotel
Later that evening
After a quick shower, I dress, then make my way to the terrace. I order an ice-cold beer and sit looking around me. It’s strange, but even though Athens has been going through the worse crisis since the Second World War, the tourists keep coming.
A table at the edge of the terrace suddenly becomes free, so I quickly move tables and peer down at the street below. I can see Helen and Elias, they’ve just spotted each other.
A few minutes later they’re on the terrace.
‘How are you, Beth?’ Elias asks, trying his best to smile. He looks tired, his face is drawn and there are dark circles under his eyes. ‘Did you manage to get some sleep?’
I shrug. ‘No, I didn’t sleep. I went to the Acropolis then I had a drink.’
He looks at us sadly and nods. ‘Yes, it’s best to keep busy. I spent the day covering another protest against the government's reform plans.’ He stops and looks around the terrace. ‘Shall we eat here or find somewhere else?’
I shrug my shoulders. ‘I really don’t mind where we eat, I’m not very hungry.’
Raising his eyebrows, he nods and sighs. ‘You must try to eat something, Beth, keep your strength up.’
I’m just about to say something, but he carries on…
‘There’s a very good restaurant in the Psiri district of Athens, it’s not far from here. Shall we try it?’
‘I’m not hungry, but if everyone is going, I’ll come,’ Helen says, looking at me.
I nod and pull on my thick cardigan. ‘Good idea Elias, a walk will do us good.’
It’s February and the streets are full of tourists; it feels more like summer than the end of winter. We walk along in silence. Helen looks sad and tired, I link my arm through hers and give her a hug.
‘So, what did the lawyer say?’
She shrugs, then suddenly stops and looks at me. ‘Something awful happened today, before I met the lawyer.’
I stop dead in my tracks, imagining the worse. ‘What, another row with Theo?’
‘No, it wasn’t him, he wasn't there.’ She looks at Elias, then at me, as if wondering whether to tell us or not.
‘So, what happened?’ I ask, watching her closely.
‘It was really scary, I'd just opened the door and was leaving the house, a car appeared from nowhere, it came straight at me. I had to jump back into the doorway, I was lucky it just missed me, otherwise ...’
‘Why didn’t you call me?’ I splutter, staring at her in amazement.
‘I didn’t have time, Beth, it was so awful, the guy started reversing back into me. Tha
nkfully my neighbour was on his balcony. He shouted at him, so the guy stopped and drove away. If he hadn’t been there...’
Elias and I look at each other. He takes out his phone and walks a few yards ahead of us.
‘Did you get his registration number?’ I ask, thinking at least then we’d have something to go on.
‘No, it happened so fast.’
Elias shoves his phone back in his jacket and walks back to us. ‘I just called my friend Dev, he said try not to go anywhere alone, at least not until we find out who did this.’
Helen looks at him in surprise. ‘Dev, Dev Salter?’
He nods. ‘I met him through our mutual friend, James.’
At the mention of James’s name, we all seem to freeze. I’m thinking maybe we shouldn’t be walking along the streets of Plaka like this, what if this maniac is following Helen?
I look over at Elias, he’s deep in thought. ‘Look, we can’t just walk along like this as if nothing’s happened.’ I stop walking and look at them both. ‘We’re in a traffic free zone now, but it will soon change, so to be on the safe side, maybe we should get a cab?’
Helen looks surprised. ‘Why should we? I want to walk.’
‘Okay, but we must be careful. Anything’s possible in these small streets, just keep your eyes and ears open.’
They both nod in agreement and we carry on walking, but at least now we’re all keeping our eyes on the street ahead and listening for the sound of a car speeding towards us.
Ten minutes later, Elias stops outside a traditional looking restaurant on Platia Iroon. ‘This is the restaurant, it’s one of the oldest in Psiri and one of the best, come on, let’s go inside.’
At the back of the restaurant are trays of cooked food, left over from lunch. One tray contains giant broad beans cooked in a tomato sauce. Another contains lamb casserole with peas and potatoes. There are stuffed peppers and artichokes, sauté potatoes and pastichio – a type of macaroni cheese. Despite it looking like a buffet restaurant, this is the way many restaurants in Greece operate. The food usually tastes better as it's had time to rest and absorb all the flavours.
The Beth Papadakis Thriller Box Set Page 17
