Chapter 20
CHAPTER TWENTY
Danny was washing his car when he heard someone shout his name. He turned to see Richard at the bottom of the drive and walked down to greet him.
‘How are you doing?’ Richard asked. ‘Commuting life suiting you?’
‘Actually, yes, it is.’ Danny nodded. ‘Coming up here every weekend gives me time to switch off from work. I don’t think I’ve ever done that before.’
Richard nodded. He ran a hand through his hair. ‘Could I talk to you about something?’
‘Sure.’
‘It’s a bit sensitive but I thought you should know. Juliette asked me about a child she’d seen in our garden the other day. She said she saw a little girl with blonde hair, wearing a red dress. The thing is, Danny, there hasn’t been a child in our garden for a good while.’
‘Oh! That’s strange.’
‘This may sound silly, but I took this photo.’ Richard passed his phone to Danny.
Danny looked at the screen. There was a red T-shirt on the washing line, the yellow buds of a magnolia tree in the background.
‘I just wonder if it was this she saw and…’ Richard paused.
‘She mistook it for a child because she wanted to,’ Danny finished the sentence for him.
‘Yes. I’ve thought about it all week, whether to tell you or not.’
‘I’m glad that you have.’ He handed back his phone. ‘Juliette hasn’t mentioned anything to me about it.’
‘Perhaps she’s realised and doesn’t want to say.’
‘Perhaps so.’ Danny felt deceitful lying about Juliette.
‘I can imagine as a mother she took the death of her child hard,’ Richard went on. ‘Both of you, really.’
Danny said nothing. Richard was right. It hadn’t just affected Juliette. But he supposed as a mother she had more of a bond with their daughter.
‘We’re just setting up a seating area in the garden where we can sit and remember her,’ he said. ‘Emily was a busy child, always up to something. She would have loved all this space to play in. I miss her too.’
‘Danny? Oh, hi, Richard.’
Danny turned to see Juliette in the doorway. She waved but stayed where she was.
‘I’d better see what she wants.’ Danny threw his thumb over his shoulder. ‘Speak soon, yeah?’
‘Yeah.’ Richard nodded. ‘Hope everything is okay about what we discussed.’
‘It’s fine. Thanks for telling me.’
Inside the house, Danny found Juliette hanging up a pair of curtains at the window. ‘Could you hold the bottom of these while I thread them through the poll, please? They’re so heavy, my arms are aching.’
‘Here, let me hang them for you.’
‘My hero.’ She rolled her eyes before grinning, stepping down from the ladder. ‘What did Richard want?’
He’d thought he wouldn’t say anything about it straight away, but he couldn’t help himself. ‘He mentioned the child you allegedly saw in the garden.’
‘There was no alleged,’ Juliette said. ‘I saw a little girl.’
‘That’s the thing, Jules. He showed me a photo of a red T-shirt hanging on the line. He says you were mistaken.’
Juliette gasped. ‘And you believe him?’
‘Well, I… don’t you think it’s weird that he’s denying it?’
‘What I find strange is you’re saying you don’t believe me over someone you’ve met a handful of times.’
‘It’s not that. It’s – what if there wasn’t a child and your tablets are making you see things? Are there any side effects?’
‘I don’t have any, and you know that.’
‘But you’ve been under a lot of stress lately and it just explains things. Perhaps you’d be best getting it checked out. Have you registered at the local surgery yet?’
‘No.’ Juliette folded her arms.
‘Perhaps you could get an appointment in London and come to stay with me for a week?’
‘I have work to do.’
‘It’s portable.’
She shook her head.
He sighed. ‘Next week then?’
‘I’m telling you I saw a child. Why won’t you believe me?’ Juliette burst into tears.
Danny dropped to the floor with one stride and pulled her into his arms. ‘I’m sorry,’ he said. ‘I thought perhaps you were overdoing things and that you were thinking of Emily.’
‘I’m always thinking of Emily,’ she sobbed.
‘I know. Me too.’ He waited for her tears to subside, thinking what a shit he’d been. But he was worried about her. He had seen the photo. There was no child next door. She must have been mistaken. There could be no other explanation.
‘What did you find out?’ Sarah asked Richard when he came into the house.
‘Nothing. I planted an idea in his head that Juliette was imagining a child in our garden. Danny’s worried her grief is overtaking her.’
‘That’s cruel.’
‘It is.’ Richard smirked.
‘So you’re trying to get Juliette to suspect that something is going on?’ she asked.
‘Of course not. I just want her to think she’s seeing things. Then if she hears anything untoward, she’ll dismiss it and we’ll be home and dry. There is a method in my madness, you know.’
‘Madness being the optimum word,’ she muttered.
‘What was that?’ He glared at her.
‘Nothing.’
He grabbed her roughly by the chin, squeezing hard. ‘Watch that mouth of yours.’
They stood in silence, as if he was daring her to speak out again. She wouldn’t give him the satisfaction of that, nor seeing how much it hurt.
Finally, he let her go.
‘What are you cooking for supper?’ he asked, the moment seemingly over.
‘I thought a nice steak, new potatoes and I have some fresh veg from the garden.’
‘Great. I’ll leave you to it. Make sure everything is done for six p.m. I’ll be working until then. Don’t disturb me. And make sure nothing else does, either.’
Sarah nodded curtly, blowing out her breath as he left the room. She relaxed again when he’d gone. He created such an oppressive atmosphere at times. Never had she been so glad he had the studio to work in, to give her some peace during the days.