The squid broke your fall.’
‘He’s hissing.’ Ella stopped crying in order to listen. ‘Ican hear him making a funny noise.’
‘That’s because he’s a hero,’ Janey replied gravely. ‘He saved you from being hurt, and punctured a tentacle in the process. Don’t worry, we’ll stick a plaster on it when we get home.’
By the time they reached the car, Guy had come to a decision. He didn’t want to risk rocking the boat whilst Janey was looking after the children. But Maxine would be back on Sunday, and it would be perfectly in order for him to take Janey out to dinner on Sunday night by way of thanking her for having stepped into the breach. This meant he had two days in which to plan what he was going to say .. .
The traffic was nose to tail along the high street where the fair had set up, so he took a left into the road which would take them past Janey’s shop and up out of the town. He would take her somewhere really special on Sunday, he decided; maybe the new restaurant in Zennor that everyone was talking about. Would vintage champagne impress or alarm her? Should he take the car or would a cab be better? Or how about flying to Paris, would she think he was being flash?
Was that too overthe-top for—?
‘Stop!’ shrieked Janey. ‘Oh my God, stop the car!’
So wrapped up in his own thoughts that for a fraction of a second it seemed as if she had read his mind, Guy slammed on the brakes and screeched to a halt at the side of the road. Janey, white-faced, was staring back at the darkened shop. Guy followed her gaze; something was evidently wrong but he didn’t know what. The windows were still intact, the door hadn’t been smashed down, the building wasn’t going up in flames .. . What is it?’
He put out his hand but she was already struggling out of her seatbelt, still staring and apparently unable to speak. As she fumbled for the door handle he saw how violently her hands were shaking.
‘Janey, what’s the matter?’ He spoke more sharply than he had intended. In the back seat, Josh and Ella were craning their necks in order to see what was going on.
‘Is it a burglar?’ Josh sounded excited. He had glimpsed a figure sitting in the shadows of the recessed entrance to the shop, but burglars, he felt, didn’t usually stop for a rest.
‘It isn’t a burglar.’ Janey’s voice sounded odd, as if she hadn’t used it for a long time.The handle of the passenger door having defeated her, she said numbly, ‘Can you open this for me please?’
‘Who is it?’ Guy had already figured it out for himself but he asked the question anyway.
‘My husband. Alan. It’s ... my husband.’
She was evidently in a state of deep shock. Guy hesitated, wondering what he should do. At this moment he doubted whether Janey could even stand upright, let alone cross the road unaided.
He was also seized, quite abruptly, with the almost overwhelming urge to cross the road himself and batter Alan Sinclair to a pulp. Because he wasn’t dead, he’d never been dead, and he had no right to put Janey through two years of hell and still have the nerve to be alive.
‘Why don’t you wait here?’ He spoke in soothing tones,as if she were a child. ‘Just stay in the car and let me speak to him.’
But Janey turned to stare at him as if he had gone irredeemably mad. What?’
Josh and Ella, in the back seat, listened in dumbstruck silence.
‘I said, let me just—’
‘I heard you,’ she replied through gritted teeth. ‘And ‘I can’t believe you have the bloody nerve to even think of such a thing. If you saw your wife, Guy, what would you do? Sit in the car and let me go and have a word with her?’
As a counter-attack it was horribly below the belt, but Janey didn’t even stop to consider what she was saying.
‘Veronique is dead,’ Guy murmured. ‘Your husband is alive.’
‘Of course he’s alive,’ shrieked Janey, almost beside herself with rage. ‘That’s why I’d quite like to see him, you stupid bastard, except that I can’t bloody see him because you won’t switch off the stupid child-lock on this stupid bloody door!’
He flicked the switch.
‘There. Janey, all I’m saying is be careful. Ask yourself why he left and why he’s decided to come back.’
But it was too late. She was already out of the car.
‘Oh Dad!’ wailed Ella, as he put the car into gear. ‘This is exciting! Can’t we stay and watch?’
‘No.’ Guy’s jaw was set, the expression in his eyes unreadable. ‘We can’t.’
Chapter 37
‘My God, I don’t believe it,’ sighed Maxine. ‘What is this, some kind of sick joke? Did they move April Fool’s day?’
Bruno put his hand out to steady her glass, which was tilting alarmingly.
‘Careful,’ he said, at the same time admiring her cleavage. ‘Didn’t you read the government health warning on the bottle? Red wine on a white dress can seriously damage your night.’
The dress, which had cost a scary amount of money, was an Azzedine Alaia. Moreover, it belonged to Cindy, who had threatened her with certain death if anything untoward happened to it. Mindful of the warning, Maxine placed the glass on a table out of harm’s way.
‘My night’s already been damaged,’ she said rudely. ‘What the hell are you doing here?’
Bruno grinned. ‘Just one of those fateful coincidences, I suppose. Jamie Laing’s an old friend of mine. When he called last week and invited me to the party I didn’t even think I’d be able to get up here, but my new assistant manager was keen to work this weekend, so ...’ He shrugged and gestured around the room. ‘It seemed likea nice idea. Now why don’t I ask how you came to be invited to this party? Or maybe it isn’t a coincidence at all. Maybe you’re following me.’
