I turn the car around and head along the A5 through Little Brickhill. The garage is quiet and there’s no sign of Jenna’s car, or an accident. I turn off for Woburn. My only emotion now is fear. Where’s Lucy?
I loop around the back lanes to Woburn Sands and find Pikesleys garage on the High Street. There’s no evidence of a car crash here either. I pull into the nearby petrol station and get out of the car to look at Pikesleys forecourt and service area but the vehicle isn’t there. Where did Lucy go with Jenna’s car? Perhaps she realised the brakes weren’t working properly and slowed to a standstill. I hope so. I don’t want any harm to come to my sister.
I drive along the Leys towards Bow Brickhill and pull up in a queue of traffic. A diversion sign has been set up and vehicles are being sent down Theydon Avenue. Cold dread fills my veins.
A woman with red hair walks along the pavement towards me, three pugs tangling their leads around her legs. I lean across and unwind my nearside window.
‘Excuse me. Do you know what the hold-up is?’ I ask.
‘There’s been an accident. A car has ploughed into parked vehicles. It must have been going at quite a speed. Looks nasty.’ She shakes her head in disapproval and carries on walking.
No, no, no. This wasn’t meant to happen. I bury my hands in my hair and squeeze until the pain becomes unbearable and brings tears to my eyes. After a short wait the traffic begins to move so I inch the car forward, craning my neck to see what state Jenna’s car is in as I turn off the road.
There are too many emergency vehicles. Their lights burn my retinas and the policeman urging me forward stops me from seeing anything. Is Lucy still alive? Have I already lost her when I’ve only just found her? Will I have any family left soon?
I drive back to Mark’s house in a daze. I’ve ruined everything.
No, I haven’t ruined anything. That bitch Jenna has. I want to call my mother and tell her Lucy has had an accident but I can’t because she’ll wonder how I know. I suppose the police will go round there soon enough. They’ll check out the number plate or find something in Lucy’s bag or on her phone.
I’m relieved to see Mark isn’t home yet. I need time to sit in my bedroom and think through what has just happened and what I should do next. I let myself into the house and go straight up to the guest room where my clothes and shoes are stored. I must plan for my future but I can’t think straight. I can’t decide whether it’s safe to go back to Bow Brickhill or not. Will the police examine the car and discover water in the brake fluid?
God, why was I so stupid? Acting on impulse again. Now that Fiona and probably Jenna know my true identity they may suspect me of the attempts on Jenna’s life. Has Jenna told her mother about them?
I can’t go back. I double over as a wave of grief hits me. Yet again Jenna has stolen something from me – the right to be there for my mother’s last days. I desperately want to return but it’s too big a risk. Despite my earlier thoughts I really don’t want to go to prison now I finally have a glimpse of a positive future. I’m so bloody stupid not to have thought this through properly.
If Jenna had been driving, it would have been less suspicious because she’s a reckless driver so no one would have been surprised if she’d crashed. No one would have been surprised to hear there was water in the brake fluid either, because she’s so ditzy and could easily have mixed up the windscreen washer with the brake fluid reservoir. Lucy is the opposite. She’s a cautious driver who always sticks to the speed limits. People will wonder what happened. They’ll ask questions. And if the water-brake fluid mix-up is discovered, Jenna will be around to deny she had anything to do with it.
People might not believe her, of course. They might think she’s just trying to divert blame from herself. On the other hand, they might believe her because she’s so honest. I can’t rely on her being disbelieved and neither can I rely on the possibility of the car being too smashed up to examine properly. I need to get away.
I think of my mother hearing the news that Lucy has been killed or injured in a car crash, and my heart squeezes with pain. It wasn’t meant to be like this. All I wanted was to get rid of Jenna so I could care for Fiona in her last few weeks. I wanted time alone with her to bask in her love, not share it with that bitch. And when it was all over Lucy and I would have supported each other in our mutual grief. I’d have had the loving sister I’ve always craved. We’d have sold the barn and divided the wealth between us. I’d have bought a little house near Lucy and been an auntie to her future children. Now everything is ruined.
I hear a car pull onto the driveway and a quick glance out of the window confirms Mark is home. Damn. He can’t see me in this state. I dash into the bathroom to brush my hair and put a little make-up on.
‘Hello, beautiful,’ Mark says, as I force myself to walk slowly down the stairs. ‘Shall we go out for a meal? I want to talk to you about the plans for France.’
‘Perfect,’ I say, sketching a smile onto my face. ‘I want to talk to you too.’
‘Have you got a firm date yet?’ I ask Mark, as I twizzle a ribbon of pasta onto my fork.
I
