Chapter 53

I heave over the toilet bowl, saliva dripping onto my chin. Liam is dead. Murdered. How is that even possible? Who could've done this to him?

‘Are you okay, Bella?' I shake my head at Zelda as I get to my feet. ‘How did it happen? Did Linda say?'

‘No,' I manage, staggering back into the kitchen.

‘But who could've killed him? It doesn't make sense.' Zelda turns the tap on.

I roll up my sleeves and notice that there's a bit of drool on the right-hand cuff. ‘I've no idea,' I say, rubbing it with my finger.

‘Here, drink this.' Zelda hands me a glass of water. I don't usually drink tap. Daisy said it's polluted. Tom insists it's perfectly fine to drink, meets the water quality standards. The liquid shakes as I draw it to my lips.

‘Is Linda certain? He's not the only Liam Cooper in north London. I bet there are dozens of them around.' Grabbing her phone, she starts jabbing at the screen.

‘It's him,' I say, voice barely audible. ‘Linda's sure. There was a photo online. She said they'll be updating the story throughout the day. God, I hate to think what his wife and kids are going through.'

Zelda stares at her lit-up screen, lips parted, and then chucks her phone onto the table and steps away from it, her expression confirming Linda's story. She's taking this a lot worse than I expected. It's terrible news, but she was never a Liam fan.

‘It's a lot to take in, isn't it?' I say. ‘Look, I need to go up and change. I got a bit of sick on Daisy's hoodie.'

I go to move but Zelda grabs my arm, digging her nails into my flesh. ‘Oh, God, Bella. I've done something stupid.'

‘Zee, what is it? You're shaking.'

She looks at me, eyes full of unease. ‘I haven't been completely honest with you.'

My stomach clenches. ‘Why do I get the feeling I'm not going to like this?'

‘Because I don't think you will. Sit down.'

‘Whatever it is you've got to say can't be worse than finding out my ex has been murdered.'

‘Sit,' she demands, chest heaving.

I do as I'm told, feeling numb. Zelda pulls out a chair and sits down next to me. Legs wide apart, elbows on knees, hands pressed together against her mouth. ‘Daisy told me something at the barbeque last Saturday.'

‘Daisy?' Pulling a face, I scratch the side of my neck.

‘Yeah,' Zelda confirms.

‘Go on.'

Zelda shakes her head. ‘You're not going to like it, Bells.'

My phone buzzes on the table with a WhatsApp message. I quickly read it before it disappears. It's from Maggie.

Guess what? Mum has agreed to babysit.

The screen goes black. I go to look away but then another message pings through.

Can come back to work as soon as. x

‘It doesn't matter whether I'm going to like it or not' I flip the phone over to avoid any further distractions. ‘I need to know what's going on.'

‘Who just messaged you?' Zelda nods at my phone. ‘Was it Tom?' I shake my head. ‘Daisy?'

‘No,' I snap, ‘it was Maggie if you must know. She wants to come back to work. Look, I'll ring her later. Come on, tell me what Daisy said.'

‘Promise me you won't freak out.' There's a warning edge to her tone, which I don't like. ‘No, I can't tell you, you're already freaking out. You're doing that thing with your lips.'

‘What thing?' I say, annoyance bubbling in my chest.

‘Sucking them in and then covering the top half with the bottom and then switching over and biting the bottom one.' God, she makes me sound like Les Dawson.

I purse my lips. ‘I promise I won't freak out,' I say calmly, even though I know I probably will. ‘Or do the lip thing. Come on, Zelda, this is serious.'

Zelda shoots to her feet and starts pacing, rubbing her lips with her fingers. ‘Daisy told me something about Tom, something very serious.'