The Best Friend

  ‘I thought you liked Tyler?’

  ‘No. He’s not nice to me now. He says mean stuff. And he sometimes tries to hurt me.’

  ‘He hurts you?’ My fists clench.

  ‘Only pinching and stuff, but it’s annoying.’

  ‘Pinching?’

  ‘Yes, and he does this other thing where if I go anywhere near him, he falls over and pretends I’ve pushed him. The teacher told me off, but I didn’t even do anything.’

  ‘Oh, Joe!’ I have to restrain myself from calling Tyler something I shouldn’t. ‘Do you want me to speak to your teacher about it?’

  ‘No.’

  ‘You sure?’

  He shakes his head, and I make a mental note to talk to Darcy about her son’s behaviour.

  Behind me, I hear footsteps coming up the front path. The doorbell chimes. Joe and I move away from the door so I can open it.

  It’s my husband. He’s standing on the doorstep wearing a sheepish expression, but I’m not in a forgiving mood.

  Chapter Nineteen

  ‘Hi,’ Jared says, stepping into the hall and closing the front door behind him. ‘I just saw Darcy driving off.’

  I turn away from my husband and walk into the kitchen as Joe starts chattering away to him.

  ‘Hang on, buddy. I just need to talk to Mummy for a minute.’

  ‘You’re always doing boring talking,’ Joe says.

  ‘I know, I know. Just give me a few minutes and then we’ll play, okay?’

  ‘O-ka-a-ay.’

  I hear our son thunder up the stairs. My stomach swoops and churns as Jared comes into the kitchen.

  ‘Something smells good,’ he says.

  I grit my teeth and restrain myself from taking the pie out of the oven and throwing it at him.

  ‘So, you got Darcy to pick Joe up from school?’ I say.

  ‘I couldn’t get away, Lou. I’m sorry.’ He rubs at his temple. ‘She stopped by the office and she offered. I was so busy I said yes without thinking.’

  ‘After everything we talked about last night. You thought it would be okay for her to help you out. What was she doing at the office, anyway? Is she going to be there every day?’ As I speak I can hear how the words sound. I know how much of a cliché this is. The jealous wife accusing her husband. But I want him to see how his thoughtlessness makes me feel.

  ‘She was just dropping off some paperwork – something to do with the fire regs. I didn’t think you were coming home. You didn’t return any of my calls or messages―’

  ‘But, hey, it didn’t matter if I came home or not, did it. Because you could just ask Darcy to fill in and look after your son and cook your supper.’

  ‘That’s not fair. You know how important this week is for me at work. It’s our first proper working day at Create. I should still be there now, but I came home early because I wanted to sort things out with us.’

  ‘I thought you said you didn’t think I was coming home?’

  ‘You know what I mean, Louisa.’

  ‘Do I?’

  He shakes his head and scowls. ‘What do you want me to do?’

  I sit down at the table and cover my face with my hands. I’m sick of all this anxiety and arguing. ‘You better go and see Joe. He’s waiting to play with you.’

  ‘Right,’ Jared says. ‘But then I’m coming back down and we’re going to sort this out. Whatever it is that’s making you upset, okay?’ I feel his hand on my shoulder.

  ‘Fine,’ I reply.

  * * *

  Half an hour later, I hear Jared coming back down the stairs. While he was playing with Joe, I tipped Darcy’s pie in the bin and made us both an omelette.

  ‘This looks great, Lou,’ he says, coming into the kitchen. ‘Shall I open a bottle of white? I think there’s one in the fridge.’

  I nod and take out a couple of wine glasses from the cupboard, setting them next to our plates. ‘Is Joe in bed?’ I ask, sitting down at the table, my throat tight with anger and nerves.

  ‘Yep. All tucked up. I read him a chapter of The Faraway Tree.’ Jared pours the wine and puts the bottle back in the fridge. Then he sits opposite me and tries to catch my eye, but I won’t look at him. I chew my lip and cut into my omelette, even though I’m not at all hungry.

  ‘Are you going to tell me why you’re so upset?’ he asks. ‘You’ve been acting strange for weeks, Lou. I’m worried about you.’

  I suppose this is where I should tell him everything, but I don’t know where to start.

  ‘We can’t sort this out if you won’t talk to me,’ he says.

  He’s right, I guess. I set my knife and fork down and take a sip of wine. ‘You’re going to think I’m crazy.’

  He doesn’t reply.

  I sigh and look up at him. His forehead is creased and he has dark circles under his eyes. He isn’t touching his omelette or his wine. Guilt pricks at me. I shouldn’t be angry with him. He’s launching a new business and now he has a messed-up wife to contend with. ‘Okay,’ I say. ‘Well . . . I’m worried about Darcy. About her involvement in our lives.’

  ‘Go on.’

  I tell him all my fears. Listing them out, one after another, like I did with Beth. This time, I also mention the fact that not only has Darcy taken my career, but now she’s also muscling in on my family.

  ‘I came home today to see Darcy in my kitchen, looking after my son, baking a pie for my family, while waiting for my husband to get home from work. Now tell me if that’s not just a little bit weird.’

  He shakes his head. ‘I don’t know, Louisa. When you put it like that, yes, it does sound weird, but―’

  ‘Creepy,’ I interrupt. ‘It’s creepy.’

  ‘Can’t you talk to her about it?’

  ‘And say what, exactly? That I think she’s unhinged?’ I push my hair back off my face.

  ‘Of course not. I don’t know . . . Maybe it’s all to do with Mike leaving. Maybe she’s just screwed up because of it.’

  ‘Maybe. But she was like it before. Remember Joe’s party, and how she left his name off the invitations? And what about my column? That all happened before Mike left.’

  ‘You should have told me you were worried, before,’ Jared says.

  ‘I have been telling you!’

  ‘You’ve mentioned the odd thing, but you’ve never put it all together like this before.’

  ‘Well, I’m telling you now, aren’t I.’

  ‘And why on earth did you say I’d go running with her if you felt this way?’

  I watch him cut into his omelette and take his first bite.

  ‘She was crying,’ I say, remembering back to how upset she’d been. ‘Mike had only just left her. But this is what happens. She does something dodgy, like taking my column, then she acts all vulnerable so people end up feeling sorry for her.’

  ‘So, shall I not go running with her anymore?’ Jared asks.

  God, he still doesn’t get it. It’s like déjà vu from last night. I can tell Jared’s trying to please me, but I’m still pretty sure he thinks I’m worrying over nothing. My blood is heating up and I feel like either screaming or walking out. I can’t do that again.

  ‘Do you think I’m overreacting?’ I ask through gritted teeth.

  ‘No, not overreacting. But you’ve got to admit, it does sound a bit strange. Why would she want to hurt you? She doesn’t even know us that well. You haven’t done anything to offend her, have you?’

  ‘No, I bloody have not.’

  ‘Sorry, I didn’t mean to―’

  ‘I don’t know why she’s doing what she’s doing, but she is.’

  ‘Why would she purposely want to take your job? It’s not like she needs the money.’

  ‘I didn’t say I knew why she was doing it.’

  ‘Maybe she acts that way with everyone,’ he says. ‘Maybe it’s not personal. It’s just how she is.’

  ‘So, does that make it alright?’

  ‘No, of course not. I’m just saying that she mi
ght not have a personal thing against you.’

  ‘Hm,’ I say, not buying it.

  ‘Thing is,’ Jared says, ‘we need to keep her on side with the business and everything. Mike’s gone AWOL so Darcy is basically my landlady. If we piss her off, I could lose everything.’

  ‘You’ve signed a lease for the offices. They can’t just kick you out.’

  ‘Yeah, but the Lanes gave me all my contacts. If they wanted to, they could take all my business from me. Blacklist me in the area.’

  My shoulders drop as I realise the precarious position we’re in. ‘Shit. I didn’t think of that.’

  ‘Look,’ Jared says. ‘I’ll tell her I’m too busy to run with her at the moment, okay? But I can’t stop her from showing up at the office. I still have to be nice to her.’

  I nod.

  ‘But, Lou . . . me being nice to Darcy – it means nothing, okay? Don’t start getting paranoid. I love you.’

  I bite my lip and nod again.

  ‘Does that make you feel any better?’ he asks. ‘Am I forgiven for being an insensitive git?’

  I don’t reply.

  ‘Am I forgiven just a tiny bit?’ He puts on his puppy-dog expression and I can’t stop my mouth from curling into a reluctant smile.

  ‘Mummy!’ Joe calls out from upstairs. He sounds upset.

  ‘I’ll go,’ Jared says, rising to his feet.

  ‘It’s okay,’ I say. ‘Sit and eat your dinner. I’m not hungry anyway.’

  ‘Sure?’

  I nod. Jared sits back down and I jog up the stairs to see what’s wrong with Joe. He’s in bed with the covers pulled up to his chin. The nightlight casts a cosy glow around his room, but his face is white and tear-streaked.

  ‘Baby, what’s the matter?’

  ‘I can’t sleep,’ he sobs. ‘I keep seeing horrible faces every time I close my eyes.’

  ‘Is it because of the film you were watching with Tyler?’ I sit next to him on the bed and smooth his fringe out of his eyes.

  Joe nods. ‘Some bits were good, but then it got really scary and Tyler was making fun of me because I didn’t want to look.’

  Bloody Darcy again, messing up my family life. ‘It’s not real, Joe. Don’t think about it. They’re just actors wearing funny costumes. Think about football instead. Think about all your favourite players, okay?’

  ‘What if I can’t stop thinking about the faces,’ he says. ‘They feel like they’re real.’

  ‘How about if I read to you until you fall asleep? Something lovely and friendly like Old Bear?’

  ‘That’s babyish.’ He pouts.

  ‘No, it’s funny and lovely and it will help you get to sleep. Okay?’

  Joe relaxes his expression and nods.

  ‘I walk over to Joe’s bookshelf and pull out the large hardback book. I haven’t read this to him since he was about five. But I know it will help him calm down and forget his fears.

  ‘Mummy,’ he says as I sit back down next to him.

  ‘Mm?’

  ‘I don’t think I like Tyler’s mummy anymore. I didn’t like it when she was here instead of you and Daddy.’

  ‘Why? What did she do? Did she say anything to you?’

  ‘No,’ he says, his brow creasing. ‘She says nice things and she smiles at me, but it’s not a real smile. It makes my tummy feel scared.’

  His words chill me. That’s exactly how I feel about Darcy. Maybe it’s not just my paranoia, after all. My throat is tight and I realise my hands are shaking. I need to get that woman out of our lives.

  Chapter Twenty

  Summer 1993

  Callum and Nicole ran towards the park, a fizz of excitement building in Nicole’s chest that wasn’t anything to do with the few sips of Fanta she’d just had. They’d get that Derek Mullins, and he’d be sorry he’d messed with her brother.

  ‘Down here,’ she cried.

  Callum followed her into the narrow alleyway that led to the playing field.

  ‘You wait here,’ she said.

  ‘Can’t I wait in the park?’

  ‘I told you to wait here, didn’t I.’ Nicole stuck her hands on her hips and glared at him. ‘God’s sake.’

  Callum thrust out his bottom lip but did as he was told.

  Nicole walked along the rest of the alleyway on her own, glancing back to check her brother had stayed put. Then, she jogged across the playing field towards the swing park. Pretty soon, she had to slow to a walk, her lungs burning with the exertion, her face hot. Through the railings, she saw the swing park was busy. Full of school kids of all ages, some from her year. Then, she spied some of the lads from Cal’s year group. They were spinning each other on the wooden roundabout, so fast it made her dizzy to watch. She stopped for a moment to get her breath back, suddenly a little nervous about approaching them. Nicole was older, but Derek was with about five others – all boys. Then, she remembered why she was here and so she stuck out her chin and pushed her way through the metal gate.

  ‘Oi, Derek!’ she called, shoving her hands in her pockets.

  A couple of his mates looked over. They nudged Derek who was gleefully pushing the roundabout, delighting in the cries of the other boys yelling at him to stop and slow down. He stopped spinning his friends, straightened up and looked over in her direction, frowning.

  His mates started elbowing him, teasing him; no doubt saying stupid stuff like she was his girlfriend. Nicole swaggered over, trying to appear friendly.

  ‘I need to talk to you,’ she said to Derek.

  His pathetic friends all laughed.

  ‘Why?’ Derek replied, scratching his mousey-brown hair and folding his arms across his skinny chest.

  ‘Come here and you’ll find out.’

  ‘Wooooooh!’ the other boys jeered, making out she fancied him or something.

  As if.

  His cheeks reddened. They pushed him in her direction and she gave him an encouraging smile.

  ‘You ever had a smoke?’ she asked when he was close enough to reach out and touch.

  ‘Yeah,’ he replied.

  Nicole bet he was lying. ‘You want one now?’

  ‘You got cigarettes?’

  ‘Yeah. Wanna come and have a smoke with me?’ Nicole could see him weighing it up in his mind. ‘Come and have a smoke, then I’ll give you some ciggies to share with your mates.’

  ‘Really?’

  She nodded. Nicole knew that would get him. The thought of showing off.

  ‘They in your bag?’ He tipped his head towards the schoolbag slung across her body.

  ‘Yeah.’

  ‘Let’s see.’

  ‘We’ll go over there.’ Nicole pointed across the playing field, back to where Cal was hidden in the alleyway.

  ‘Why can’t we have one here?’ Derek said.

  ‘Cos the older kids will nick them off us, stupid.’

  Derek flushed. ‘Oh, yeah, right.’

  ‘Come on. We’ll have a quick puff, then you can share the rest with your mates.’

  ‘Okay.’ Derek stuck his hands in his pockets and made his way out of the swing park with Nicole, his friends jeering as they walked away together.

  They trudged across the field in silence. Nicole loosened her school tie, her heart pounding ferociously. She’d get this cocky little shit back for picking on her brother. He’d be sorry.

  Once they neared the alleyway, Derek hesitated. ‘Where’s these ciggies, then?’ he asked.

  ‘Let’s go in there,’ Nicole replied, pointing to the entrance up ahead. ‘No one can see us, then.’

  It looked like he was about to object, so she linked arms with him and led him into the shady, grey alleyway. As soon as she saw it was clear of people, apart from Callum up the other end, Nicole let go of Derek’s arm and shoved him hard in the back so he went sprawling face down on the concrete. Next, she slid off her tie, jumped on top of him and yanked his arms behind his back, tying them together. He’d been stunned for a few seconds but now he was tryi
ng to wriggle out from under her, swearing and cursing, yelling and kicking out at her.

  ‘Get over here, Cal!’ she yelled, sitting on Derek’s legs.

  ‘What you doing?’ Derek cried. ‘Get off me, you mad cow!’

  Callum’s footsteps slapped the concrete as he ran towards her.

  ‘Gimme your tie!’ Nicole cried to her brother. ‘And help me pin him down.’

  Callum slipped his tie over his head and thrust it at Nicole. She snatched it off him, and yanked Derek’s legs together, slipping the ready-made loop over both of Derek’s feet, and tightening it around his ankles so he could no longer kick out at her.

  ‘Gotcha!’ she said triumphantly, rolling Derek onto his back and standing over him so he was now staring up at her, shock in his eyes.

  ‘Let me go,’ he said. ‘My arms . . . you tied them too tight. They’re hurting.’

  ‘Tough,’ Nicole snarled. ‘Say sorry to my brother for kicking him, and for saying he wets the bed.’

  Derek’s eyes wandered over to Callum. ‘That weirdo’s your brother?’

  Nicole planted a savage kick on Derek’s calf.

  ‘Owww! Okay, okay, I’m sorry. Now let me go.’

  ‘Not yet,’ Nicole said. ‘First, Callum’s got a present for you.’

  ‘I don’t want a present,’ Derek said, his bravado wavering. ‘I wanna go home.’

  ‘Callum,’ Nicole said, turning to her brother. ‘Remember I gave you that can of Fanta to drink?’

  Callum nodded.

  ‘Well, you probably need a wee now, don’t you?’ She grinned and then turned to look at Derek.

  Derek’s eyes flicked from Nicole to Callum and back again. She saw the confusion in his eyes, and then the disbelief as he began to realise what was about to happen.

  Her stupid brother still didn’t get it, though, his puzzled frown beginning to annoy her.

  ‘Oh, for God’s sake, Cal. Wee on him.’

  ‘Eurgh. That’s gross, Nic.’

  ‘I know.’ She smiled.

  Derek was shaking his head, trying to wriggle out of his bonds, but he was tied too securely. ‘Help!’ he yelled.

  ‘You shout out one more time and I’ll get Callum to piss in your mouth.’

  Derek clamped his mouth shut and squeezed his eyes closed, his whole body tensed, waiting.