Chapter Twenty-Nine
That evening Ros was still dwelling on the earlier conversation with Cameron. Sometimes she hated being logical but it was hard to be anything else – it was simply how she was hard-wired. She saw things in black and white. Granted she was a little fonder of Gazza now than she had been, but she didn’t feel she was his best option and having Cameron effectively volunteer her to be his owner long-term was not helpful.
However, there was now a more pressing matter as Darla had arrived in a fluster. Instead of responding to her ex with a lengthy reply containing mainly swear words, Darla was circling Ros’s sofa arguing the pros and cons of contact with The Wanker.
‘And what is The Wanker’s actual name?’ asked Ros.
‘Patrick.’
‘Really?’ queried Ros.
Darla nodded.
Ros was surprised. ‘I was expecting something more... I don’t know, villainous.’
‘If he’d been called Thanos, Loki or Doctor Doom even I might have clocked there was something off about him.’
‘I suppose.’ Ros thoughtfully sipped her coffee, her calmness in complete contrast to Darla’s anxious state.
‘What do I do?’ asked Darla, almost bumping into Ros as she paced.
‘Stop walking for a start – you’re making me dizzy.’
Darla halted abruptly in front of Ros. ‘But seriously, what should I do?’
‘Delete the message and block his number,’ said Ros.
‘You’re right. I know you’re right. But I’d quite like to give him a piece of my mind. After what he’s put me through.’
‘Or you could avoid him putting you through anything further by ignoring the message.’
Darla bit her lip. ‘But what if he means what he said in the text, that he’s sorry and he wants to put things right? Apart from the whole secretly amassed debts he was quite a nice guy. And if he’s got some of the money he owes me that would be useful. I could repay things quicker and get on with my life and properly focus on my new business, although I still don’t know what that would be, but that’s not the point. What do you think?’
‘Once a con man, always a con man,’ said Ros.
‘Blimey you are blunt sometimes. You don’t think there’s even the smallest possibility that he’s realised he needs to make amends and—’
‘I’m sorry, Darla, but that’s very unlikely.’
‘I am curious though. And before all this happened, I had really liked Patrick. We’d had fun together until it all unravelled. I find it hard to believe he is a completely bad person, and surely his message shows that he isn’t.’
‘I thought you wanted to, and I quote, “Batter him senseless and then batter him again to balance things up.”’
Darla flopped into a chair with an oof. ‘I don’t know. I was angry. I guess I thought I’d never hear from him again and now he’s back in touch. Shouldn’t I at least hear him out?’
‘Considering he ignored all the desperate messages you sent him when he left you to sort out the unholy mess he made, I don’t think you owe him anything at all.’
‘True. I know he doesn’t deserve a second chance but—’
‘I think a second chance would be extremely unwise,’ said Ros.
‘Don’t worry, I won’t let him swindle me again. How about I call him now and we both listen to what he has to say? What harm could that do?’ Ros was quiet. ‘Are you risk-assessing all the options and the level of harm Patrick is capable of?’ asked Darla.
Ros didn’t respond, she simply gave her a look. Even-tually she replied, ‘As long as you don’t provide him with any personal details and don’t agree to anything other than him returning what he owes, I think it might be okay.’
‘Great, let’s call him,’ said Darla, whipping out her phone. She paused. ‘For all the times I’ve had this conversation in my head I should know exactly what I want to say to him, or shout at him, but right now my mind has gone blank.’
‘Have you changed your mind?’ Ros was looking hopefully at her.
Darla visibly steeled herself. ‘No, I need to do this.’ She pressed Patrick’s number and waited.
‘Hello?’ He sounded unsure to Ros.
Darla took a deep breath. ‘Patrick, it’s Darla. I got your message. Given you have wrecked my life, how do you propose to fix it?’
‘Baby, it is so good to hear your voice. These past few months I’ve been—’
Ros feared Darla would be easily won over so she began miming cutting her throat in the hope that Darla got the message. Darla looked slightly alarmed at the gesture.
‘I don’t really care what you’ve been doing,’ said Darla into the phone. ‘I’m only interested in what you’re going to do now to put things right.’
Ros gave her a thumbs up.
‘Baby, I get that you don’t understand why I had to leave without warning but these people were—’
‘Again, not interested,’ said Darla. ‘If you don’t have anything that’s going to help reduce the shitload of debt you left behind, then I’m hanging up and blocking your number.’
There was a slight pause. ‘Maybe we should meet?’
Ros was frantically shaking her head.
‘Why?’ asked Darla.
‘Because I’ve got some of the money and I want to make things right between us.’
This was far too hard to mime so Ros grabbed a pen and paper and hastily wrote on it: You could pay the money into my bank account.
Darla read it out. ‘You could pay the money into my bank account.’
‘I could but I would really like a chance to explain and say I’m sorry,’ said Patrick, unhelpfully sounding sincere.
‘Thanks, but it’s only the money I’m interested in,’ said Darla, looking like she was trying hard not to be swayed.
‘But I really want to apologise so I guess that’s a stalemate.’
There was silence from both of them. Ros waved her hands about but Darla only looked alarmed by the gesture. ‘I’m away at the moment,’ said Darla. ‘So I couldn’t meet up even if I wanted to.’
‘Yeah, I heard that your mum seems to think you’re travelling around Europe but according to the last entry on our joint account you paid money in at a branch in Southampton two weeks ago.’
Darla covered the phone. ‘Shit! Now what do I do?’ she whispered to Ros.
‘Are you still there?’ asked Patrick.
‘Where? Southampton? No. You see what that was—’
‘Oh, it’s okay, I know you’re still in Southampton,’ said Patrick.
Darla gasped. This was not going well at all. ‘What makes you think that?’ asked Darla, her hands visibly shaking.
‘Let’s not get all testy with each other. I’d like to see you face to face and I’m happy to come to you. That’s not such a bad thing, is it?’
‘You tried to ruin my life!’ snapped Darla angrily.
‘No, I didn’t, and that’s why I want to meet, so we can sort this all out. Please let me put things straight. How about we meet somewhere of your choosing in Southampton, tomorrow?’
Ros was vehemently shaking her head. ‘And then you’ll leave me alone?’ asked Darla.
‘If that’s what you decide, then of course.’
Darla covered the phone. ‘He sounds like he’s being honest. This is such a dilemma,’ she whispered to Ros.
‘He’s anything but honest. He’s fooled you before. But it’s your decision.’
Darla bit her lip before uncovering the phone’s microphone. ‘There’s a café on London Road. I’ll text you the details,’ said Darla.
‘Great. I can’t wait to see you again, babe. I’ve been th—’
Darla ended the call and let out a huge sigh. She looked at Ros. ‘Don’t say it. I know I wasn’t meant to meet him but I can’t risk him spilling what he knows to my parents and there is a chance that he has the cash he owes me.’
‘I understand,’ said Ros. ‘I’ll take time off and I’ll sit nearby in the café so you have someone to call on if needs be.’
‘Thanks, Ros. You’re a good friend. I knew you’d have a plan.’
‘Always,’ said Ros, with a smile.
***
The next morning, Darla met Ros when her cleaning shift finished so they could go over the plan one more time. Darla looked her friend up and down. Ros had on threadbare leggings and an oversized shirt that had also seen better days. ‘Are you auditioning for a part in Oliver! ?’ asked Darla.
‘I’m sorry, I don’t follow.’
‘What are you wearing?’
‘Oh these? Aren’t they great? I didn’t have anything suitable for cleaning so I got these for ten pence each in the charity shop where Cameron works.’ Ros looked thrilled with her purchase.
‘Great,’ said Darla, trying not to show her real feelings but Ros didn’t seem to have noticed and began going through the plan they had already mapped out.
‘And if you feel unsafe at all you say: it looks like rain ,’ concluded Ros.
Darla nodded and tried to keep her breathing steady. She’d not slept much thanks mainly to the prospect of having to face Patrick but also due to having to feed the lambs every two hours as Elliott was still struggling without Lee. ‘What if there’s an embarrassing lull in the conversation and the weather is all we have to talk about?’
‘Unlikely, but then don’t talk about rain. I’ve also put Cameron on standby in case he cuts up rough.’ Ros sort of winced.
Darla laughed at Ros’s turn of phrase. ‘He’s not violent or anything like that,’ said Darla, wondering what Cameron would do in that situation.
‘It’s merely a precaution, and hopefully he won’t be needed as he’s got to hand a paper in to university so he may not be nearby. But worst case I’ll call the police.’
Ros had been quite keen to call the police anyway but Darla had explained that when it had all first happened she’d cried in front of a lovely police officer in Oxford who had told her that there was little they could do because everything was in joint names. ‘It won’t come to that. And I’ll meet you on the quay afterwards,’ said Darla.
‘We need to set off from here separately so we aren’t associated in case there’s ever a situation where we need to do this again. We can have a full debrief while we’re cleaning the yacht.’
Ros had kindly offered to help Darla clean the yacht as the meeting with Patrick was going to eat into her cleaning time. ‘And then I’ll buy you lunch and a glass of wine, hopefully with some of the money Patrick’s going to give me.’
‘This is where I’ll leave you,’ said Ros. ‘Set a timer for ten minutes before you follow.’
‘I know, and don’t look at you or acknowledge you in the café. Got it.’ Darla hugged her friend and watched her stride away.
The ten minutes dragged. Darla messed about on her phone and watched the minutes count down. At last she could start walking to the café. She tried to clear her mind and listen to the birds but all she could hear was the rumble of traffic and the odd screaming child. She concentrated on her steps and was soon outside the little coffee shop. She took a deep breath and went inside.
She was pretty sure she hated Patrick for everything he’d done and for how he’d betrayed her trust, but the moment she saw him she got butterflies. He didn’t spot her at first, which was good because it gave her a moment to see that Ros was sitting back to back with him and that instantly reassured her – at least she wasn’t alone. Patrick looked up and smiled at her. He appeared genuinely pleased to see her. She was now fighting conflicting emotions. Part of her had gone all giggling schoolgirl but the rest of her wanted to batter him with the nearest thing to hand, which was sadly nothing more substantial than the pastries currently on display.
He came forward to hug her and she stepped back. ‘Hello, Patrick.’
‘Darla, babe, it’s so good to see you.’
Darla sat down in the seat opposite his so it was clear that she wouldn’t be giving him a hug.
‘What did you want to drink?’ asked Patrick. ‘They’re on me.’
‘A large mocha with cream please.’ It was the most expensive thing she could think of. Maybe it was petty but he owed her.
He ordered at the till and came back to sit opposite her. ‘You’re looking amazing. Have you lost a few pounds?’
She had but she wasn’t going to give him the satisfaction of being right. ‘No, and let’s cut the small talk. I have somewhere I need to be.’
He looked puzzled. ‘But I’ve just ordered you a large mocha.’
Bugger it, she thought. ‘I can always get it to go. Now, say what you came to say.’
Their drinks arrived, which gave him time to gather his thoughts. Patrick relaxed back into his seat and for a moment she feared he was going to bump his chair into Ros’s. ‘I was convinced you weren’t going to show up,’ said Patrick. ‘And I wouldn’t have blamed you for that. It was all a bit crazy at the end. But you have to believe me when I say I had no choice but to leave.’
‘Rubbish. You could have told me rather than let me open the door to bailiffs. What the hell happened to all the money?’
‘I’m glad you asked that. It’s all good. I’ve invested it.’
She let out a derisory laugh. ‘I don’t believe you, Patrick.’
‘Honestly. I have. Well, some of it anyway.’
Darla was losing what was left of her patience. ‘In what? Stocks and shares? Premium bonds?’
‘You’ve heard of cryptocurrency, right?’
‘Oh for heaven’s sake, you’ve not invested in that?’
‘No, it’s something like that but better,’ he said. ‘We just need to wait it out and we’ll make a fortune.’
‘I don’t take risks, so I’ll have my share back now please.’ Darla held out her palm.
Patrick glanced at it and carried on. ‘I can’t I’m afraid, because that’s part of the agreement that you have to leave it invested.’
‘Show me proof that it’s in my name.’ She stared him down.
‘Yeah, you don’t understand. It doesn’t work like that. But trust me, your money is safe.’
‘No, it’s not, because it wasn’t even my money. It was off credit cards and maxed-out overdrafts, you moron. What money do you have to give me?’ she asked, sitting up straight. Clocking Ros’s raised thumbs up from behind his head spurred her on.
‘Sorry, I never said I had any money for you.’ Patrick winced.
‘Yes you did!’ Her last shred of patience was disintegrating.
‘But that’s the money I’ve invested for you. For us.’
The cheek of this guy was unbelievable. ‘If you don’t actually have any cash on you now, how were you proposing to fix things?’
‘By explaining that I had no choice but to leave and that your money is safe. You just need to fob off the banks and credit card companies for a while longer and then it’ll be sorted.’
Darla was astonished. ‘Is that what you think I’ve been doing all these months? Fobbing people off?’
Patrick appeared confused.
‘Bloody hell, Patrick. I lost the flat and everything in it, all my personal stuff including my grandmother’s clock.’ She swallowed hard to keep her focus. ‘Ever since then I’ve been paying off whatever I could so I didn’t go sodding bankrupt.’
Patrick sat back. ‘But you’re okay now. You’re settled here. Got somewhere to live?’
‘I can’t afford anywhere to live. And while we’re on that, how the hell did you know I was staying in Southampton?’
He looked a little smug. ‘As well as keeping an eye on our joint account, I can still get into one of your online shopping accounts and you’ve changed the address to somewhere near here. Sounded posh actually. You ordered some book about goats. I figured you were doing all right. Are you? Are you doing okay, Darla? Because I have been worried about you.’
She made a mental note to change all her passwords as soon as she got in. She’d changed most of them, but clearly she’d missed one. ‘I’m fine, thanks. If that’s it, I think I will get this put into a takeaway cup and get going.’ Darla pointed at her large mocha where the cream was melting and dripping down the sides.
‘Actually, there was one thing.’ He gestured for her to stay sitting down. ‘There’s this amazing opportunity that came up and all I need is—’
‘You are unbelievable. How can you rock up here and ask me for money?!’
‘You’ve not heard how much yet.’ Patrick seemed surprised when she got up and took her drink to the counter. He followed her and waited while the waitress swapped her drink to a takeaway cup. ‘Come on, Darla. I bet you’ve got a bit tucked away. I’ll double your money.’
‘No, apparently I’ve already got a large investment in something like cryptocurrency that’s going to make my fortune so I’m all good thanks.’ She rolled her eyes. What an idiot she’d been to think for a moment he might not be the complete wanker he’d proved himself to be.
‘Ha, you’re funny. So...’ He wobbled his head. ‘Will you come back to me on the cash or...?’
‘No, Patrick,’ she said, taking her mocha in the to-go cup and mouthing her thanks at the waitress. ‘It’s a big fat no, and it will always be a no, so unless you have a few thousand quid for me in good old reliable cash, then please don’t ever contact me again.’
She went to turn away and he grabbed her arm and leaned in. ‘The thing is, I need some cash urgently.’
‘Not my problem. But while you’re here I would like to say that you are a total and utter wanker.’ Darla wrenched her arm free and stormed out of the coffee shop. She walked for a bit, her heart thumping. She checked over her shoulder and he wasn’t following her, which was a relief. She headed down to the quay where she and Ros had planned to meet. Once on the boat she went inside the saloon and sat for a moment with her large mocha to try and calm herself down. She was furious with Patrick but she was also cross with herself for daring to hope that he would pay up. With shaking hands she got her phone out, went into her online shopping account and changed the password. The last thing she needed was him ordering stuff on there.
The boat rocked slightly as someone boarded and she gasped. ‘It’s me,’ called out Ros.
‘Down here,’ called back Darla.
Ros carefully reversed into the saloon of the boat and gave her a hug. The unexpected contact made her feel emotional. ‘You did so well back there. Are you okay?’ she asked.
‘Yeah.’ Darla took a breath and thought things through. ‘I might not have gained anything other than the satisfaction of telling him he’s a wanker, but I’ve not lost anything either. I’m fine.’
‘What a weasel that Patrick is.’
‘He’s worse than a weasel. They’re actually quite cute unless you’re a chicken, then not so much.’
Ros was giving her an odd look.
‘Anyway, let’s crack on,’ Darla continued. ‘The sooner we get this cleaned the quicker we can have a glass of wine.’
Darla got out the cleaning products and explained what she wanted Ros to do, when there was that slight sway in the boat. Darla froze.
‘Hello again,’ said Patrick, appearing above them.