Chapter 58

CHAPTER FIFTY-EIGHT

S he should have told Beth, but it would have sounded so unlikely that Ana felt sure she wouldn't have believed her.

Ana sent the text. She knew the reply would be instant, and she knew he wouldn't resist. He was weak. Ana had picked up on that immediately. Part of her empathised with him, but only a tiny part. He should have been stronger. But everyone had a right to explain themselves, even him. The least she could do was give him time to do that before she reported it. She downed a glass of water and waited patiently.

It was funny how things come to you , thought Vanessa. After all this time, it took a television programme to bring it all back. Tim had brought home a curry. He did that sometimes if he worked late. So they'd finished it with half a bottle of wine from a few nights before.

‘Any news on who attacked that poor girl?' she asked Tim.

Tim broke a poppadum in half and shook his head. ‘Not yet.'

‘I wish they'd find that vigilante. It frightens me.'

‘They will,' he assured her.

Tim washed up, and Vanessa took the leftover poppadums and wheeled her chair to face the TV. Tonight was the last episode of a detective drama she'd been watching. She finished the poppadums while she waited for Tim.

‘I'm making tea,' he called. ‘Then I'll be in. You start watching.'

Tim wasn't interested in the drama. He'd pretended to be to please his mother. But he wasn't into detective programmes.

‘If you're sure,' said Vanessa, who had been looking forward to the final episode all day.

‘I'll watch it later on catch-up,' he called.

While Tim washed up and made tea, Vanessa wrapped a blanket around her knees and turned on the TV. The drama, as anticipated, had an exciting final episode. Vanessa became so entranced that she barely noticed the tea and bourbons Tim placed in front of her.

‘Good is it?' He smiled.

‘You're missing a great episode.'

‘I'm just going to print out a few invoices. You enjoy.'

She vaguely heard Tim tapping on the computer and talking on the phone, but his words didn't register.

Vanessa became so enthralled that her tea grew cold and she forgot the bourbons. As the show's final minutes ended, Vanessa gasped and yelled, ‘Tim, Tim.'

Tim hurried into the living room, almost tripping over the hall rug.

‘What's wrong?' he asked worriedly.

‘It was a woman,' she said excitedly.

He glanced at the TV screen, bemused. ‘A good ending then?' he remarked.

‘No. You don't understand. The person who hit me. I remember now. It was a woman. Something in the programme reminded me. Penny said she heard a squeak when the driver opened the door, but it wasn't the door. I remember it was a woman wailing. The driver was a woman, Tim.'

Tim's face lit up. ‘You're sure about that?'

Vanessa nodded. ‘Oh yes. Something in the programme brought it flooding back.'

Tim grabbed his mobile. ‘We should let Constable Rawlins know.'

He arrived on time. It didn't surprise Ana. She opened the door and immediately smelt his aftershave. She wanted to laugh but fought back the urge. It was typical of him to think there was something on offer. Such a fucking huge ego. As if she'd ever consider sex with him. The thought of it made her nauseous again.

‘You've got a fancy gaff,' he said, looking around. ‘Too fancy for a copper's wages.' She heard the suspicion in his voice.

‘It's not mine. I'm house-sitting for a friend,' she said, turning on the music player. ‘Until I find something I can afford.'

‘Rich friend,' he said, impressed. ‘Open-plan, nice. What does this friend do then?'

‘He's a property developer. A friend of my dad's,' she lied. It was almost laughable, considering she hadn't seen her dad in years and didn't for one moment think he'd have a property developer friend.

If only they all knew how she'd blown all her savings on this place for one reason and one reason alone.

‘I'd offer you a beer, but I'm all out,' she said, filling two glasses with fruit juice. It had only been a short time since she took the last lot of painkillers. It felt like a Zulu dance was going on inside her head. The more stressed she became, the worse it got.

‘I'm supposed to be on duty anyway. Quiet night, luckily,' he said, and she felt his breath on her neck.

He was close, too close.

She turned quickly, pretending she was unaware of his presence. He stumbled backwards, and she walked past him to a chair. There was no way she was going to risk sitting on the sofa with him.

‘Bit late for a chat,' he said, a half smile on his face.

‘I'm sure the station can cope.' She smiled.

From the satisfied look on his face, she knew he thought he was on to a good thing.

‘I had a drink with the boss tonight,' she said.

She saw his face cloud over slightly. He's wondering where this is going.

‘Harper or Miller?' he asked.

‘Harper, we went to the local. You'll never guess who we saw?'

He looked uneasy and began fidgeting in his seat. ‘No idea,' he said, trying to sound disinterested.

‘Your wife, with her friends. They're having a girlie night.'

He sighed with relief. Ana, horror-stricken, then realised Luke thought she had invited him over because his wife was out.

‘Yeah, she does that.' He smiled. ‘They like their little girlie night drinks.'

‘Beth asked me to drop the Vanessa hit and run,' she said, getting up to refill her glass. God, her head hurt.

‘Probably a good move.'

She stood in the archway that led from the living room to the kitchen. ‘The thing is, I can't,' she said.

He frowned. Ana could tell he fancied her but was wary of her at the same time. He placed his glass on the coffee table.

‘If Beth Harper said to drop it, then you should.'

She sighed and shook her head. ‘You see, I can't. The problem is I know who did it, and so do you.'

His expression changed in an instant. His face turned white as if an invisible paintbrush had stroked across it. His eyes narrowed, and Ana heard the crack of his knuckles. He stood up abruptly. ‘I don't know what on earth you're talking about.'

‘I have photos of the car.' Ana knew this was a huge bluff, and she couldn't be sure he would fall for it. ‘You missed a private security camera in Somerville Road with footage of the accident. Your wife was driving the car, wasn't she? Her fluffy pink handbag with her initials on it was on the passenger seat. I remember seeing her with it at the fair. You've been covering for her. The longer the cover went on, the harder it became to tell the truth because your job would have been on the line, wouldn't it?'

Luke slammed his glass onto the coffee table and started for the door. ‘I don't know what the fuck you're talking about.'

‘The CCTV camera in Bladon photographed your car. That's why you destroyed the evidence.'

He turned to face her. ‘This is bollocks, and you know it.'

Ana sighed. She needed to get to bed and take something for the blinding headache. ‘It's not bollocks, and you know it, Luke. I can understand why you'd want to cover for her. She's your wife. I didn't want to be the one to tell Miller. I thought it would be better coming from you. They'll understand you must have been under a lot of stress and–'

She stopped. He was glaring at her, and the anger in his eyes unnerved her.

‘If you'd kept your bloody nose out of it, everything would have been fine. You don't know what Lisa's been through since it happened or what I've been through. I had to protect my wife.'

At last, she'd got him to admit it. Ana put a hand to her head. She felt light-headed.

‘I'm begging you, don't tell anyone?' he pleaded.

Ana sat down before she fell. ‘You scrapped the car, Luke. You took it to Robbie Benson's, didn't you? I could tell from his face he was hiding something when we questioned him. Your wife left a crime scene, and you destroyed evidence,' she said wearily. ‘I'll let you tell your side of the story. It will look better for you.'

Ana was taken by surprise when he pulled her from the chair and shook her roughly. ‘Don't you understand, you stupid bitch?' he yelled. ‘I'll lose my job, my pension. We'll have to leave the village. All her friends are here and–'

It felt like pebbles were crashing around in her head. ‘Luke, please. I think you should leave.' She tried to pull away from him, but his grip was tight. His fingers dug into her arm muscles.

‘I can't let you tell them about Vanessa. Our lives will be ruined.'

The trilling of her phone silenced them both. Ana grabbed it before Luke could stop her, but he snatched it from her and threw it to the ground. Ana only hoped she'd managed to push the answer button and hadn't hit end call instead.

‘Hello, is that Constable Rawlins?' Tim asked.

There were sounds in the background, but he couldn't determine what they were.

‘Constable Rawlins, it's Tim, Vanessa's son. Mum has just remembered something that I think might be important.'

Still no reply, and then he heard a man's voice in the background.

‘What is she saying?' asked Vanessa.

He put a finger to his lips to silence her. The man had used his mother's name, and Ana wasn't answering the phone. Something was wrong.

‘Luke, I'd like you to leave, please.' The shake in Ana's voice was unmistakable, and she hated herself for it. She leaned down to pick up her phone, but Luke kicked it away.

‘The minute I leave, you'll tell Miller, won't you? In a split second, you'll ruin our lives.'

Ana realised that she'd made a terrible mistake. She hadn't thought things through. She had wanted to make things easier for Luke by letting him tell Harper or Miller. Now she could see that all she'd done was make him more desperate, and a desperate, bent copper was unpredictable.

‘In a split second, Lisa ruined Vanessa's life. She was over the limit, wasn't she?'

He sighed and rubbed his eyes. ‘We've had problems. You don't understand. It's not like Vanessa died. I mean, she still has a life and does things.'

Ana stared at him, stunned. ‘She's disabled for life, Luke. Her life will never be the same again, nor will her son's.'

He pushed her back onto the couch and clawed his fingers through his hair. ‘Just be quiet. I need to think.'

Had he heard right? He clenched and unclenched his hands. Adrenalin shot through his body. Now, it all became clear. The bastard had been covering for his wife. The whole time Tim had believed him to be looking for the hit-and-run driver, he had instead been covering up for them. Now Ana Rawlins had discovered the truth. The pounding in his ears was so loud that he barely heard his mother when she said, ‘What's wrong, Tim?'

‘Damn,' he cursed. ‘I don't even know where she lives.'

‘Who?' Vanessa asked, puzzled.

‘Ana Rawlins. I think she is in trouble.'

‘What kind of trouble?' she asked anxiously.

‘I'm not sure,' he lied. It was best not to tell her the truth – at least not yet.

‘Yes, we do,' Vanessa said, remembering. ‘It's on the back of her card.' Vanessa felt guilty then. She'd asked for the address to send biscuits and then, as usual, had forgotten all about it.

‘Ring the police, tell them I phoned Constable Rawlins at home and I think she is in danger.'

He grabbed the card and his rucksack and hurried to the door.

‘Tim, I don't think you should go,' Vanessa said anxiously.

Tim turned and said, ‘There's every reason I should go. Do you want me to call Penny?'

The landline phone sat on a small table beside her. ‘I'll phone her. Please be careful, Tim.'

‘Don't worry about me,' he said confidently. ‘Don't forget to call the police.'

Ana realised how foolish she'd been. Not only foolish but soft, which was unlike her. If she'd been sensible, she would have gone straight to Beth, but she'd felt she owed Luke some forewarning. Of course, now she could see how idiotic that had been. All she'd done, in his eyes, was put him in an even worse position.

‘Look, I'm pleading with you. I've got a son starting university soon,' he said, wringing his hands. ‘Lisa has depression. I've tried to get her to stop drinking…'

‘Luke, I think you should leave,' said Ana, standing up and making for the door, but he shoved her roughly before she could reach it.

‘No,' he said.

Ana wobbled; the effects of the painkillers mixed with the Valium had made her unsteady. She lost her balance and fell, hitting her head on the corner of the coffee table. For a few seconds, her head spun and then exploded into a frenzy of pain. Something wet ran down her cheek. She wiped it away then gasped at the bright red blood on her fingers. She frantically looked around for her phone.

Panicking, Luke hurried to help her up. ‘Ana, I'm sorry, I didn't mean to…'

‘Get away from me,' she cried, scrambling away from him, her hands grasping at the rug and feeling the stickiness of her blood.

‘Oh, why did you have to go poking your nose into things that don't concern you? Can't you see you've left me with this awful dilemma?'

Luke reeked of desperation, and too late, Ana realised she was in grave danger. She crawled backwards and using the arm of the couch as leverage, lifted herself to her feet, ready to try for the door again. But before she'd had time to steady herself, his fist crashed into her jaw. Ana found herself back on the floor, helpless, with her head throbbing unbearably and her ears ringing.

In that terrifying moment, it occurred to her that Luke Carpenter might be capable of killing her.