Scarlet Women

and that had always been a bit of a lost cause, anyway; Annie loved Kath, she was family, but even she was prepared to admit that Kath would probably always be a bit of a sloppy mare. Ellie was going to be madam of the Limehouse parlour now, and she wouldn’t have to kowtow to the Delaneys any more. Already, it was starting to give her confidence.

‘Hi, Ellie.’

Ellie smiled faintly. ‘Thought I’d come and put these on the grave.’ Ellie looked ahead, saw Chris crouching down. ‘Oh.’ Her face clouded. ‘I’d better come back another time.’

Annie glanced over at Chris, then back at Ellie.

‘No, don’t,’ she said. ‘Go and see him. I think he could do with some company.’

Ellie shook her head, uncertain. ‘I wouldn’t know what to say.’

‘Say what you feel,’ said Annie.

Ellie looked at Chris. She straightened her shoulders, clutched more tightly at the bouquet. ‘Okay,’ she said, and started walking towards him.

Annie stood there and watched her go. Then she turned away, got into the car with Tony.

She glanced back at Aretha’s graveside. Ellie was there, touching a tentative hand to Chris’s shoulder. He looked up at her. Ellie was talking to him. Maybe, thought Annie. Just maybe…

Tony started the engine and swung the Rover out through the church gates. Aretha’s Aunt Louella was just coming through them.

‘Stop the car, Tone,’ said Annie, and she got out and stood in front of the woman, blocking her path.

‘Hi, Louella,’ she said. ‘Um…Chris is at the graveside. I don’t know if you want to talk to him…?’

‘What, an’ say sorry?’ Louella sighed. ‘I thought he done it. I believed he done it.’

‘Well, now you know he didn’t. The police have got the one who did. And Chris is out. All charges dropped.’

‘You believed in him,’ said Louella.

‘I knew him better than you.’

‘That’s a fact.’ Louella said, standing there looking at the ground. Then she bit her lip and looked up at Annie’s face. ‘You know, I wasted a lot of time being angry with my baby girl, but now I wish…I wish I’d just accepted her, whatever she was, whatever she did, and been happy for her so long as she was happy.’

‘It’s not too late to accept Chris. He made her happy.’

Louella looked at Annie’s face. ‘No, it’s not. You’re right. Maybe I will. Some day.’

But not yet, thought Annie. The pain of grief was still too raw for Louella to reach out and say sorry.

‘I’m going away soon,’ said Annie.

‘Oh yeah? Well…you have a safe journey.’

Louella gazed at her keenly, almost in puzzlement. Annie knew she’d blotted her copybook more or less for good with Louella. She didn’t expect a fond farewell or any of that crap. But there was a tiny hint of a smile playing around the woman’s lips.

‘You know,’ said Louella at last, ‘that policeman told me how you helped to straighten this whole thing out. He said how you put yourself at risk to make sure the evil people who hurt my girl—and those others—were made to face up to their sins. So maybe you’re not all bad, after all.’

Which wasn’t too shabby, coming from Louella. Not all bad, after all, thought Annie. Not exactly praise, but it would do.

Annie got back in the car. Louella stomped on up the gravel drive to the church door, bypassing the grave, Chris and Ellie for now. Later, she might come to it. Annie really hoped she did.

Time heals all wounds, she thought. Tony restarted the engine and pulled away. She didn’t look back again.

Epilogue

Constantine Barolli’s private Gulfstream 111 jet was sitting on the tarmac at Heathrow Airport, the engines running, ready for takeoff.

Annie Carter fiddled with her seatbelt, leaned over and checked that Layla’s was secure. Constantine’s minder was up the front of the cabin, out of earshot but close enough. Annie smiled across at Constantine.

‘You a nervous flyer?’ he asked, putting aside the newspaper and looking at her. Blue, blue eyes. He had to be the sexiest, most gorgeous man on the planet.

‘No,’ she said. ‘But it’s a big change for me, all this.’

‘You’ll love New York.’

‘I love you.’

‘That’s a start.’ He leaned over and lightly kissed her lips.

‘Urgh,’ said Layla.

‘Can’t beat kids for puncturing that romantic moment,’ he said with a grin.

‘Are we doing the right thing?’ Annie asked, and her eyes were serious now as they looked into his.

Constantine nodded slowly, his eyes holding hers. ‘The only possible thing,’ he assured her. ‘I tried doing without you, remember? It drove me nuts.’

The plane started to move, taxiing along the runway.

Constantine sat back, perfectly relaxed. He closed his eyes.

‘And it’s too late for second thoughts now, Mrs Carter,’ he pointed out. ‘We’re going.’

‘Shit,’ muttered Annie.

‘Shit, shit, shit,’ sang Layla.

‘Don’t say that.’

The throb of the engines was deafening now, growing in pitch to a roar. Suddenly the plane shot forward, zipping along the runway.

‘Wheee!’ shouted Layla.

Annie held her hand. Constantine grabbed Annie’s. All at once they were up in the air, Annie’s stomach dropping like a stone as they soared up into the blue sky, London falling away beneath them.

‘New York, here we come,’ said Constantine, opening his eyes and looking out of the window as the city shrank in size.

Annie looked at him. Mobster. Mafia. Dangerous. Alluring.

Oh Jesus, I’m really out of my depth here, she thought. It was frightening. But exciting, too. And so what if his family hated her? Annie Carter had never yet backed away from a challenge.

‘There’s something here you might want to see,’ said Constantine, passing her the paper. ‘Page four, bottom right.’

Annie took the paper. She opened it, found the right place, and sat there staring in disbelief. The headline shouted: THREE PEOPLE MISSING AFTER PLANE CRASH. She caught her breath. For a moment the words danced meaninglessly in front of her eyes. Then she gathered herself and read the story. Three people are missing believed dead, among them London entrepreneur Redmond Delaney and his sister, Orla, after airtraffic controllers at Cardiff Airport lost contact with a light aircraft shortly after an unauthorized takeoff. It was believed the Cessna may have been heading for Dublin, but never arrived. Accident investigators believe it crashed into the Irish Sea. Despite extensive searches, no survivors or wreckage has been found.

Feeling limp with shock, Annie looked at Constantine. ‘Three people. Redmond, Orla and the pilot. Did it crash into the Irish Sea? I mean, did you…?’

Constantine held her gaze steadily. ‘You really want the details?’ He glanced at Layla. ‘I told you. Anyone who goes against you goes against me. It’s done now. It’s finished.’