As a last resort, she’d called his mum, Karen. Pete wasn’t close with his mum at all and Kate didn’t really know her that well. A single mum, she had raised Pete and his brother David on her own and Kate knew from what little Pete had told her that they didn’t have much money growing up. He didn’t talk fondly of his childhood. David had apparently never been interested in school or making much out of his life, whereas Pete had been the complete opposite – driven to the point of obsession, as if he had something to prove. He never spoke about his family and although he had often stayed with Kate at her parents’ house in the university holidays, whenever she suggested that she visit him at his mum’s he’d always made an excuse.
She met his mum for the first time at graduation and the minute the ceremony was over, he’d practically manhandled Karen away from Kate and her family, saying that they were going out for lunch together before she got the train home. She’d always felt that Pete was ashamed of his family but whenever she brought it up with him, he refused to discuss it. In the end she’d given up trying. The years had gone by and she’d all but forgotten he even had a family because they had never been in their lives. When Lily was born and she became a mother herself, she had felt a new, overwhelming sadness for Karen. The poor woman had all but lost her son and wasn’t being given the opportunity to be in her granddaughter’s life either. Whatever had happened between Pete and his mother, surely it wasn’t completely insurmountable? So she had suggested that Pete get in touch with her and arrange for her to meet the baby but he’d frowned and told her that it wasn’t going to happen. When she’d probed, he’d got angry and ordered her to leave it and that was the last time she ever brought it up.
She’d had to dig Pete’s phone out and look through his contacts to find the number. As she dialled from the home phone, she realised that she was terrified of speaking to her and when the phone started ringing she nearly hung up. But before she could change her mind, Karen picked up.
‘Karen, hi, it’s Kate. Pete’s wife.’
The silence that followed went on for so long that she wasn’t even sure if Karen was still there but eventually she answered. ‘What’s happened?’
Her response threw Kate and for a second she couldn’t find the words to reply. How had his mum known something was wrong straightaway? But then she realised that there was no other reason why her daughter-in-law would be calling her out of the blue after so many years.
‘It’s Pete, he’s– erm, well I just wondered if you’d heard from him at all?’
Karen laughed so hard that she started coughing. ‘Love, I’m the last person to have heard from Pete. He hasn’t done a runner has he?’
This whole conversation was making her feel extremely uneasy and she wanted to finish it as soon as possible. It had been a stupid idea to call. Of all the places where Pete might have gone, it was never going to have been his mum’s.
For want of anything better to say she replied with the same frankness. ‘Yes, he has.’
‘I’m sorry to hear it, I know you’ve got young children too, but what can I say? He’s always been a selfish one him. Like father like son.’
She knew there was no love lost between them and it was clear she wasn’t going to get much further with his mum. ‘Okay, well thanks anyway, Karen, I’m sorry to have bothered you.’
The older women relented a bit. ‘Look, give me your number and if I hear from him, I’ll let you know.’
She read out her number and hung up. It wasn’t until later that she realised Karen hadn’t even asked after her grandchildren.
After a few days of trying other avenues, and her emails to Pete still unanswered, she had got back in contact with Dan and told him that she’d exhausted all her other options and he was the last one left – it was time for him to talk. They had arranged to meet for coffee at a place in the City, near his work. She felt a mixture of anticipation and fear about what she was going to hear. She was desperate to know the whole truth, yet she knew that she would hate it. She found the café immediately and paused for a second before she went in, steeling herself. Dan was inside waiting for her. He stood up and gave her an awkward hug and as they both sat down, he glanced at her nervously. This was just as hard for him and she knew she was putting him in a difficult situation, but she hadn’t been left with much choice.
They made small talk until the waitress came over to take their order, with Dan asking after the girls and Kate enquiring about his family. As soon as the waitress had gone, Kate went straight to the point. ‘Dan, thanks for arranging to meet me, I know this is difficult for you but I need you to tell me what you know.’
He nodded, already resigned to his fate. He’d obviously decided to tell her everything and she was grateful to him for it, he was a decent guy. Perhaps he’d discussed it with Laura, Kate thought, and she had urged him to do the right thing. Despite the fact that she hated everyone knowing about their personal life, she had to get to the truth.
‘Her name is Claire. She worked on reception for a few months. I don’t know much about her, she kept herself to herself and didn’t socialise much. I’ve asked around in the office to see if anyone is still in touch with her but no
