Forty-Six
McDougall was still fuming about what Wayne Cutler had said to him, the dickwad’s stupid crack about fricking shortbread, as he made himself a toastie in the vast kitchen Cutler had paid for.
Eye-wateringly expensive marble and stainless steel and tiles with stupid sodding Cs embossed on them.
The music he could hear through the wall made it clear that Jacqui – a Cutler about whom Malky McDougall felt altogether differently – was still doing some hard thinking.
The Damned had followed the Ramones then given way to The Jam.
He wasn’t sure what it was about these old punk songs, which were all a good few years before her time, that Jacqui seemed to find so soothing.
On reflection, that was probably the wrong word.
Maybe they were numbing. Maybe those wailed vocals and thumping basslines just deadened everything, drowned out the pain and the noise in her head.
Malky wished more than anything that she would let him help.
Obviously he would take all the necessary practical steps, do what was best for the business, but there were so many other ways he could make her feel better. Things he could do that would make them both feel better, if only she could see what was in his heart and ask.
It was a crime to let love pass you by, because life was too short.
Especially in his line of business.
‘Town Called Malice’ stopped suddenly, and it became obvious that Jacqui had turned it off, because now McDougall could hear her phone ringing. It was still ringing when she shouted his name, and ten seconds later he rushed into the living room to find her holding out her handset.
‘It’s him,’ she said.
She was ashen, but he’d never seen her look so beautiful. ‘Put it on speakerphone,’ he said.
‘I told you not to involve the police,’ Battersby said.
Panic was etched across Jacqui Cutler’s face. ‘I didn’t.’
‘Right, so the fact that they turned up at the place I’d been staying was just a coincidence, was it?’
McDougall saw that Jacqui was struggling to keep it together. He mouthed ‘Let me’, and Jacqui nodded. He leaned close to the phone. ‘My name’s Malcolm McDougall,’ he said.
‘Who the hell are you?’
‘I work for Mrs Cutler and I can assure you that if the police found out where you were staying, it’s because they worked it out for themselves. Mrs Cutler was not involved.’
‘I’m sure she wasn’t, but she’s not going to try and deny that she talked to them, is she? She doesn’t think I’m that stupid.’
McDougall looked up at Jacqui. She pushed the heels of her hands into her eyes to hold back the tears. ‘I didn’t know what else to do … I was just doing whatever I thought would get Justin back. I’m sorry, OK? I’m really sorry.’
‘Yeah, well maybe it’s too late,’ Battersby said.
‘Don’t say that—’
‘Maybe I was angry because you didn’t do what you were told, and I sliced him up.’
‘Oh, God.’
‘Let’s all just calm down and be reasonable,’ McDougall said.
There was a pause and then a few seconds of incomprehensible muttering before a very different voice burst from the speaker. Shaky and desperate.
‘Mum … please.’
Jacqui gave up trying to dam the tears and it was clear she would be struggling to say much more. McDougall reached across to take hold of her arm. ‘Now, listen—’
‘No, you listen,’ Battersby said, having clearly snatched back the phone from Justin Cutler. ‘That’s your one life gone and, trust me, the next life lost is likely to be your son’s, because I will hurt him if you mess up again and don’t follow my instructions.’
Jacqui managed to say, ‘I will, I promise,’ amidst a series of sobs and sniffles.
‘Good, because you’ll be getting them very soon. So, make sure you put everything I’ve asked for together.’
‘It’s being done,’ McDougall said. ‘You’ll get everything you wanted.’
‘I better had, Jock, because I’m not known for my patience.’
When the call had been ended, McDougall and Jacqui stared at one another for a few seconds before McDougall opened his arms and Jacqui all but fell into them.
‘It’s going to be fine, Jax,’ McDougall said. ‘Justin’s going to be fine.’
He tentatively began to stroke her hair and she seemed happy enough to let him, so he did it some more.
He held her close and kept on stroking, whispering reassurances and thinking that, even though he hated to see her this upset and would obviously do anything in his power to bring her son back to her, this whole kidnapping business definitely had its upsides.