Chapter 36
Flinging myself into Jo and Emma’s arms in a group hug triggered something within me and the tears came flooding out.
Maybe my trauma was upsetting them too as they also had tears streaming down their cheeks.
I hadn’t felt so overwhelmed for many years and when I had, when I was knee-deep in grief, I didn’t have friends like this to hold me up.
God knows what people at the airport were thinking of us, huddled together and all crying.
‘Come on, sweetheart, let’s go and get a drink and gather yourself and then we’ll get you home,’ Jo said, rubbing my back, which in itself calmed me.
In that moment, I thought about what a wonderful mother she would have been to her girls when they were growing up.
We had only met since she was Jo, single, middle-aged mum of two grown up girls who hardly had any time for her in their busy lives.
I’d had never known her in full-on mother mode.
When she talked about her girls, and beamed with pride at their achievements, and how through the years she’d sat up with them at night, listening to their teenage heartbreaks, I felt so bad for her.
And I wanted to shake them and tell them to appreciate her more.
That they didn’t know how lucky they were to have a lovely mum who was still there for them.
They rarely visited her, and she always said they had busy lives away from home, but I was sure they could make more of an effort.
She often talked about them and I could tell how much she missed having them in her life.
The three of us sat around a small table in a café inside the airport concourse. My hands were wrapped around my paper cup, which was full of hot chocolate. At this time at night, it would appear that you didn’t get a mug. Less to wash up for the staff I suppose.
‘So, tell me about Makis leaving then? I still haven’t heard a thing from him. There must be something wrong with his phone.’ I saw Jo and Emma exchange a glance.
‘What?’ I asked.
‘He’s always seemed a bit shifty to me, Michelle. I’m sorry to say it, but we both think it, don’t we, Emma?’ Emma nodded her response. ‘What if he’s something to do with all of this?’
‘Oh, you’re just imagining it. He’s lovely. You just don’t know him well because you didn’t spend much time with him. He’s an entrepreneur, he wouldn’t dabble in hacking. It had to be someone who cloned my card at the airport.’
‘And you’re sure about that, are you, Michelle?’ Jo asked. I knew they were only trying to help.
‘I am.’
‘OK, well if you say so, then we’ll have to do some more investigating. What did the bank say?’
‘Well, they’ve cancelled all my cards and are sending new ones out but it’ll be a day or two before they arrive.
So whoever has my details can’t do anything.
Not that there’s anything left in either account for them to spend.
Maybe Makis knew something and has gone off to sort it out.
There should have been at least a few grand in the business account that some cheeky bastard has stolen.
That’s where he must be. Sorting it all out. I just wish he’d answer his phone.’
‘But why would he say to us that he’d told you he was on his way to Greece? You said he’d never told you this.’
She made a good point.
‘Yeah, not sure about that part.’ I checked my phone again to see if there were any messages or missed calls.
‘Hang on a minute. Have I missed something?’ Emma interrupted. ‘Michelle, did he have access to your accounts?’
‘Well, he didn’t have access to them as such, but he did know my account details. He paid some money into my account for me when I was in a rush the other day.’
Emma chewed the inside of her cheek.
‘And you saw him do this, did you?’
‘Well, not really, but I did give him my… Oh!’
‘What?’ Jo moved closer to me.
‘I gave him my purse and told him my bank card was in the back, so he could pay the money I’d made into my account.’ I chewed the inside of my mouth, not sure if I was doubting myself or Makis. ‘But… he wouldn’t have…’
Jo and Emma shared that look again.
‘Would he?’ I asked.