Chapter Twenty
Daniel. After the ransom drop.
Irinse my hands under the tap and notice they’re shaking. Just as I’m about to leave the loo, my phone rings. It’s Rose, Jo’s tennis partner.
‘Danny, sorry to bother you. You’re not in the middle of something important, are you?’
‘Just leaving work, actually.’
‘It’s just I can’t reach Joanna. I’ve called and messaged, but her phone’s off. We’ve got a game tonight. She usually confirms, but I’ve heard nothing. Is everything okay?’
Shit. Another person I forgot to contact.
‘She’s not well. She caught a virus. I told her to turn her phone off and rest.’
‘Oh no, poor thing. Is she up for visitors?’
Jesus, this is getting messier by the minute.
‘Best not. It’s a nasty bug, and you don’t want to catch it. You know how schools are. It only takes one…’
‘And the whole school goes down. Yeah, wouldn’t look good for me, the head, to bring a new bug in, I agree. Tell her I’m thinking of her.’
I hang up and lean on the sink, trying to slow my breathing. How many other people have I forgotten to tell? The loo door bangs open, making me jump. Nic strides in, already undoing his fly.
‘With the missus away, how about a few shots and maybe something more after?’
I shake my head. ‘Told you, I need to be home for Joel.’
‘Christ, I’ll be glad when she’s back. You’re getting boring, Danny boy.’
Shit. If I keep acting strange, he’s going to catch on.
‘Okay, but not for long,’ I say, forcing a grin. The truth is, a few shots sound like exactly what I need.
‘Let’s hit the town,’ he says.
So we do.
***
I keep checking the time, but the phone screen is blurry. The alcohol has hit me harder than I expected. I should have eaten. My head’s spinning.
‘Chill out, man. Everything’s going great for you, isn’t it?’ Nic shouts above the noise of the bar.
I should tell him the truth, but I’ve learned that Nic only helps others when it benefits him.
‘I need another shot,’ I say, faking a laugh.
Nic eyes me for a second, then calls the barman over.
Stupidly, I drive home, even though my head is fuzzy. Nicola smells the alcohol the second I walk in. I can tell by the way she wrinkles her nose.
‘Joel and I had fish fingers and chips today,’ she chirps.
‘Great,’ I say.
‘How’s Joanna’s conference going in France?’ she asks.
France? Damn it, I forgot I told her a different story.
‘Oh, right. Yeah, it’s going fine. Mrs Neal said she should be home in a few days. That’ll be great, won’t it, dude?’ I say, turning to Joel.
Nicola looks at me, but says nothing. I’m relieved when Donald calls. Nicola takes that as her cue. ‘I’ll be off then,’ she says.
I wait until the front door closes, then return to the call.
‘It’s getting hard, Donald. I keep forgetting what I’ve told people. I get muddled. I told Nicola something different because I couldn’t say Joanna was sick. I’m going to mess this up.’
I’m talking too fast. The shots are still fogging my brain.
‘Slow down, Daniel. Try to stay calm.’
Easy for him to say. He’s not the one with everything on the line. All he has to do is magically produce a million.
The intercom buzzes. Nicola must’ve forgotten something.
‘It’s me,’ says Gil.
Shit. She’ll smell the alcohol on me.
I buzz her in.
‘Gil’s here. I’d better go,’ I tell Donald.
‘Stay in touch, Daniel.’
I have barely opened the door before Gil bursts in, out of breath.
‘I think I know where the kidnapping happened,’ she says.
***
I check on Joel before returning to Gil, who is even more agitated by now.
‘I’ve walked home with her a few times. I know the route she usually takes from the hospital.’ Her face is flushed with excitement, her eyes wide. ‘I found these, crumpled by the side of the road near the industrial estate.’
She pulls a comic and a chocolate bar from her bag.
‘She said she was stopping to get these. It must be where they took her.’ She pauses and squints at me. ‘Have you been drinking?’
‘Just a few. I didn’t drive. I…’
She shakes her head, disappointed. ‘Anyway,’ she continues, ignoring my excuse. ‘There could be DNA on them. Someone might have seen something. We need to call the police. Now.’
I struggle to keep my temper. She’s driving me mad. I’ve told her over and over: no police. Why won’t she listen? One more payment, and it’s over. We’ll have Jo home.
‘Gil, how many times do we have to go through this? No police.’
She stares at me. ‘This is madness, Daniel.’
‘I’m trying to stop my wife from being killed!’ I shout.
Her gaze shifts past me. I turn and see Joel standing in the doorway.
‘Mummy?’ he asks.
‘No, dude. Not yet. I thought you were watching your favourite… thing.’
I’m so hyped up I can’t even remember the name of the show.
‘Park,’ he says quietly.
Gil grabs his coat from the hook. ‘Aunty Gil will take you,’ she says.
‘Wait, he’s in his pyjamas.’
‘I’ll wrap him up. You need to sober up,’ she says softly. ‘Jo would be disgusted if she could see you. Think about what I said.’
‘It’s too late to go to the park,’ I protest.
‘We won’t be long,’ she says, already in control.
I’m almost relieved. When they have gone, I make myself a strong black coffee and sit down.
Christ, what was I thinking, letting Dan talk me into shots?
I’ll talk to Gil when she gets back. It was just a few drinks, for God’s sake.
She has no idea what I’m going through.
And now she’s disappeared with my kid.