CHAPTER TWENTY-SIX #3
‘It won’t help to walk into the middle of everything,’ Evie cautioned Lukas. ‘She has people there to help her sort that out, then we can meet her and let her know how very much we want her to be a part of our lives.’
Lukas looked at Cristy, clearly torn, unsure of the right thing to say. ‘We’ll be on the next plane if she wants us to be,’ he told her. ‘Or she can come here. Whatever works best for her.’
Impulsively squeezing his hand, Cristy said, ‘We’re going straight to Guernsey from Miami – one change – but my phone will be on the whole time. I’ll be in touch the minute I know more.’
Going to shake Gabe’s hand, David said, ‘I have no doubt she’ll want to meet you, and when it happens you’ll be very proud of her.’
Gabe stared back at him, tears welling in his eyes. ‘Is she like her mother?’ he asked hoarsely. ‘The photos say she is.’
David smiled. ‘You’ll probably be surprised by just how much.’
‘I wish,’ Gabe began and faltered.
Placing a comforting hand on his shoulder, David said, ‘It’s OK, my friend, I get it.’
A few minutes later, as they drove away from the house, Cristy said, ‘What do you get?’
Waving a thanks to the security guard who opened the gates, David said, ‘He wishes we could find Janina.’
Cristy nodded, impressed that he’d intuited that, while wishing the same thing for them all – and what a coup it would be for Hindsight.
‘Clove and Jacks have already started a search for Albescu,’ she said, as they headed for I-75, ‘but my gut is telling me that whether he was involved in the disappearance or not, the answers are all with the sisters. Either written down, or, more likely, stored inside Mia’s head.’
*
Cristy and David had already checked in at Miami International when Connor rang.
‘Has Mia been released yet?’ Cristy asked right away.
CONNOR: ‘FYI, I’m recording this. The answer is yes, Mia’s free and Sadie’s back at the lodge. Anna and I have just left.’
CRISTY: ‘Is Sadie OK?’
CONNOR: ‘I think so. Not as angry as she was, anyway, but she’s obviously still shaken up and now she’s totally focused on reading Lottie’s journals. The ones that were in the safe. Apparently, Mia told her it’s where she’s going to find the truth.’
CRISTY: ‘Why the heck can’t Mia just tell her?’
CONNOR: ‘She says she doesn’t know all of it.’
CRISTY: ‘So she’s not read the journals herself, but claims it’s where Sadie will find the truth? How does that work?’
CONNOR: ‘I’ve no idea, but it’s what’s happening right now. Sadie’s got the journals and has promised to call if she finds anything. Have you spoken to Clove and Jacks?’
CRISTY: ‘Not yet, have you?’
CONNOR: ‘They’re still in Vilnius, and they’ve interviewed the older sister.
All it’s really adding is more background to Janina and Lukas’s childhoods – an expansion of what he’s already told you.
They’re heading back this afternoon, and I’m on my way to St Peter Port to interview the landlady who’s already told me on the phone that she doesn’t remember renting her flat to anyone with the names I gave her. ’
CRISTY: ‘But it was a long time ago, maybe photographs will jog her memory?’
CONNOR: ‘That’s what I’m hoping. Where are you now?’
CRISTY: ‘Waiting to board a flight to Dublin. Changing there for Guernsey, so I’ll call as soon as we land. Before you go, how did Sadie take the fact that George Symmonds-Browne is her father?’
CONNOR: ‘She didn’t actually say much at first, I think she was in shock, needed time to process, then she heard Lukas speak and started to cry, sobbed when Gabe came in.
It was hearing about Lottie directing Janina to some random house that really got to her …
Incidentally, she didn’t know that the sisters ever had any other properties on the island.
Anyway, that’s when she took off to the villa. ’
Anna’s voice came down the line. ‘If it helps, she told me while Connor was on the phone that she’s really excited to meet her father and uncle, and nervous, but she wants to find out what happened to her mother first. Then she thinks she’ll probably want to go there rather than them come here, because it’ll punish Mia for lying to her all these years if she just ups and leaves. ’
Cristy checked her phone as a text arrived. It was from Matthew so she let it go for now. ‘Does she understand that her father has a slightly impaired cognitive ability?’ she asked Anna. Was that the best way to put it; right now she couldn’t think of another.
‘Yes, she does and she says it just makes her feel more protective of him.’
Cristy smiled. ‘Much like her mother did, by the sound of it. I’ll let him and her uncle know that she is keen to meet them.
This being the States with practically everything on same-day delivery if you can pay, we should have their DNA results pretty quickly so we can be certain they match with Sadie’s. ’
‘Are you doubting it?’
‘No, I’m not.’
After speaking briefly with Connor again, she rang off and, seeing David was on his phone, she checked Matthew’s text.
How’s it going over there? Am I allowed to say I’m missing you? OK, not what you want to hear. He’s a lucky guy, but he’ll never love you as much as I do. Mx
As the final words jarred, Cristy looked up, almost as if expecting to find someone watching her, messing with her.
No one was, and of course, the echo in Matthew’s text of what the weirdo had said in his latest was nothing more than an unfortunate coincidence, because Matthew really wasn’t that creepy.
He simply wouldn’t send anonymous messages designed to unnerve and annoy her.
He had no reason to when he was pretty good at that anyway.
Messaging him back, she said, How’s Aiden?
Accusing me of being ‘de-lulu’ for thinking you’ll marry me again. I’m guessing that means delusional. Shall we prove him wrong?
Did he never give up?
How’s Baby Bear?
There was no reply to that until she and David were settled into their seats for the flight and a photograph of a wide-eyed, cute-as-a-bear-cub baby came through. Finding no accompanying message she typed in, Sweet, you must be very proud. When are you going to see him?
We’re both invited to LA any time we want to go. Fancy it?
Irritated, she switched from the thread and sent a quick message to Evie. Thanks to you all for your hospitality and for your frankness. I have it on good authority that Sasha is very keen to meet Gabe and Lukas. She read it through quickly, and pressed send.