‘It goes in for a service tomorrow. Christ knows how much that’ll cost. I think the exhaust is fucked.’
‘Watch your language,’ Hailey said quietly, inclining her head towards the back seat.
‘She’s asleep,’ Rob said, glancing in the rear-view mirror. ‘She has been since we left the fair.’
He could see Becky safely strapped into the rear seat, the panda he had won for her still clutched in her arms. She was breathing slowly and evenly.
‘I’m glad we went,’ Hailey said. ‘It was a good idea. Becky loved it.’
‘So I do have my uses, then?’
‘Sometimes.’
As he swung the Astra into the drive, Rob glanced at the dashboard clock: 7.38 p.m.
He brought the Astra to a halt next to his own Audi, peering briefly across at the other vehicle.
‘Jesus Christ,’ he snarled.
Hailey turned to look at him, at his angry expression.
Rob switched off the engine and swung himself out of the car.
‘Rob, what is it?’ she asked.
‘Come and look,’ he told her, standing back from the Audi to examine it.
Hailey slipped out of the passenger side and wandered around to join him.
‘Oh, no,’ she murmured, looking down.
Both offside tyres had been slashed.
No, that was an understatement. They had been shredded.
Huge lumps of rubber had been cut from them. The now exposed inner tubes, looking like pieces of protruding intestine, had been gouged and ripped with incredible savagery.
The Audi was listing to one side, its chassis sloping down at an angle, the car’s frame resting on the offside axles.
Rob walked around the vehicle to look for more damage.
The other two tyres were untouched. He could see no harm to the bodywork itself.
In the back seat of the Astra, Becky began to stir.
‘You get her inside,’ Rob said wearily. ‘I’ll sort this out.’ He walked back round and looked down at the slashed tyres, shaking his head.
Hailey lifted Becky from the rear seat of the Astra and carried her towards the front door.
The little girl stirred and opened her eyes.
Hailey put her down as she fumbled for her front door key.
Becky stood motionless, the panda still held firmly in her grip.
‘Soon be in bed, darling,’ said Hailey, pushing the key into the lock.
It was as she did so that she first noticed the smell.
Foul, noxious – and horribly familiar.
It clogged her nostrils as she eased the front door open, the sound of the alarm soon filling her ears.
Hailey thought she was going to vomit.
She put out a hand to hold Becky back, not wanting her to step into the hallway.
The vile smell was even stronger now, and Hailey saw why.
She put one hand to her face, covering her nose and mouth.
The dog excrement had been loosely wrapped in clingfilm, then pushed through the letterbox. The several reeking parcels had burst open to spill their fetid load all over the carpet. There were half a dozen of the rancid packages lying all around.
Hailey stared at them with disgust, the stench filling her nostrils.
She felt her stomach contract.
The alarm continued to ring.
‘Fucking kids,’ snarled Rob, gazing at the ceiling.
Beside him, Hailey rolled over in bed and moved closer to him.
‘I’d like to get my hand on the little bastards who did it,’ Rob continued.
‘Why would kids do something like that?’ she wanted to know.
‘They probably thought it was funny. Ha-bloody-ha. Those tyres are going to cost me seventy quid apiece. Still, I suppose it could have been worse. At least they didn’t break into the car.’
Hailey nodded slowly.
‘Kids,’ she murmured distractedly.
She hoped he was right.
61
CAROLINE HACKET GAZED at the screen of the word processor, then down at her fingers as they rested on the keyboard.
She reread the words on the screen, then leaned back in her chair, stretching.
There were several books spread out on the desk around her.
Pieces of paper, too, with notes scribbled in biro and pencil.
She worked in one of the spare bedrooms, as she always had done. The room looked out onto her back garden, but her desk was arranged so that she had her back to the view. Some days she found it difficult enough to work anyway, without the distraction of something to look at.
It had been easier in the office when she’d been a journalist. She had always found the seething chaos around her there more conducive to work than the silence and loneliness of this small bedroom. Strange, she thought, how easy it had been to shut herself away mentally in the middle of a newspaper office, surrounded by others of like mind. Easier than this. Easier than the silence she had now.
It was a peculiar paradox. But, she reasoned, not the only one in her life.
She got up from the WP and headed for the stairs. She couldn’t think straight anyway. Perhaps a coffee would help. Some caffeine might kickstart her creative juices. She smiled to herself as she reached the bottom of the stairs.
In the kitchen she flicked on the small music centre that was perched on top of the fridge. The CD began to fill the room with the strains of Celine Dion.
During a break between tracks she heard the doorbell.
Caroline hesitated. She wondered for a second if she should ignore it. Her concentration was wavering enough already, without further interruption.
In the end she decided to see who was calling.
In the kitchen the kettle began to boil.
She pulled open the front door.
Adam Walker smiled at her.
She returned the smile.
‘I hope I’m not disturbing you,’ he said.
‘Not at all. I was having a lousy day anyway. Come in.’
He hesitated.
‘The kettle’s just boiled,’ she told him. ‘Can I tempt you to a coffee? I was making one anyway.’
‘Thanks.’
He followed her through into the kitchen.
‘It’s a nice house,’ he told her, seating himself on one of the high stools beside the breakfast bar.
She smiled again and pushed a coffee mug towards him.
‘Sugar there,’ she informed him, nodding towards a bowl close by.
There was a brief silence, finally broken by Caroline.
‘If it’s any consolation, Adam, I think Hailey was wrong.’
He looked puzzled.
‘What are you talking about?’ he wanted to know.
‘She told me what happened. Said you’d been phoning her. I know she hasn’t returned your calls. So, if it’s any consolation, I think she’s wrong. I told her she should at least speak to you.’
