The Half Sister, page 26
‘So, the initial findings are . . .’
Kate wishes she’d hurry up, but at the same time doesn’t want her to say what she’s about to say.
‘. . . that there’s no match.’
The words swim as Kate tries to put them in the order she wants them. If she could lose the ‘no’ and put an ‘a’ in its place, it would make all the difference.
‘Are you . . . are you absolutely sure?’ she stutters, shocked by the strength of feeling that is pooling in her intestines and flowing through her veins – unable to comprehend how it could make such a difference to know that it’s her dad who has fathered a child, rather than her mother who has given birth to one. How had it felt easier to accept the latter?
‘99.9 per cent sure,’ says Nancy. ‘But as soon as the comprehensive results are in, I’ll send them over.’
‘Th-thanks,’ says Kate, ending the call and looking at Matt numbly.
‘What is it?’ he asks.
‘Maybe you should run Jess’s article after all.’
41
Lauren
Lauren can’t sleep. She looks at the time on her phone again, its digits goading her as they move ever closer to dawn. Her eyes are heavy, but every time they close, she pictures herself lying in Justin’s arms, wondering how on earth she could have done it. As wonderful as it was, she’s a married mother of three small children who depend on her. They deserve a mother they can rely on, not a woman who is prepared to leave them with someone she clearly knows nothing about so she can make a pathetic attempt to recapture her youth.
She feels sick as she thinks of the chaos she’s wreaked by bringing Jess into the family. She’d naively thought it would be a good thing; that finding her would bring them closer together, yet it seems it’s only torn them even further apart.
She catches her breath as she hears Simon come home from his nightshift. His heavy work boots scuff the flimsy lino as he no doubt makes himself a hot drink in the kitchen. She only saw him a few hours ago, but so much has changed in that time. She’s changed in that time.
‘What’s going on?’ he says gruffly as he walks into their dark bedroom.
Lauren’s under the duvet, pretending to be asleep, but she’s sure he must be able to hear her heart hammering.
‘Lauren!’ he barks.
‘What?’ she says croakily, her throat dry. ‘What’s the matter?’
‘What the hell went on last night?’
Every muscle in her body tenses as she wonders what part he’s talking about.
‘What do you mean?’ she says. ‘Nothing, why?’
Her mind races. He can’t possibly know.
‘Where were you?’
It’s as if she’s been hit by a stun gun, paralysing everything but her raging thoughts. ‘I was here,’ she says, with a nervous laugh. ‘Where else?’ She stays put under the duvet, not brave enough, or incapable perhaps, of coming out.
Simon snaps the light on and sits down heavily on her side of the bed.
‘What’s going on?’ she says, shielding her eyes.
He taps on his phone and holds it to her ear. The message plays out in stereo around the room.
‘Simon, it’s Kate. Is Lauren with you? I need to talk to her urgently and she’s not picking up her mobile or the landline. I’m on my way round to your place now, but if she’s with you, can you get her to call me back?’
Lauren wants to snatch the phone from him and make it stop.
‘So, I’ll ask again; where were you?’
‘I . . . I popped round to Mum’s,’ she stutters.
‘So why didn’t you answer your phone?’ he asks, staring at her intently.
She forces herself to come up with something feasible, but she can’t think quickly enough. ‘I didn’t even hear it ring. It must have been on silent.’
Simon reaches for Lauren’s phone on the bedside table and attempts to bring it to life with her passcode. She flinches as Try Again lights up the screen, knowing that he’s going to be more suspicious of her changing it than anything he might find. She’d taken great care to delete any messages between her and Justin.
Try Again.
Try Again.
She feels sick as he turns to look at her. ‘What the fuck’s going on?’
She sits up and holds her hand out, hoping he doesn’t notice it shaking. ‘I changed it,’ she says.
‘Why would you need to do that?’
‘Because Noah knew my pin,’ she says, as light-heartedly as she can. ‘He was playing games on it whenever I turned my back.’ She wants to say, It’s none of your damn business. It’s my phone and you’ve got no right to look at it, but she knows there’s nothing to gain by riling him when he’s in this mood.
‘So what’s the new code?’ he asks, still holding on to it.
‘Give it here and I’ll do it.’
His eyes narrow. ‘How about you tell me what it is, and I’ll do it.’
‘Fine,’ she says. ‘1921.’
His face flashes with satisfaction as the phone lights up, before clouding over again. ‘You’ve got eight missed calls from Kate and five from me.’
Shit, that’s something she hadn’t cleaned up. ‘Really? I had no idea.’
‘What time did you get back from your mum’s?’
‘Erm, I don’t know,’ she says. ‘Around eight, but then Kate caught up with me here, so it’s all good.’
He’s still looking intently at the phone, making Lauren’s nerves jangle. ‘What was so urgent?’ he asks without looking up.
‘Eh?’
He turns to face her. ‘What did Kate need to talk to you about so urgently?’
She slides back down the bed. ‘Oh, it was just something about Jess,’ she says, faking a yawn. ‘She’s got a bee in her bonnet – you know Kate.’
‘So what time did Kate come here then?’
His questioning makes her feel as if she’s on the stand, in front of a judge and jury. She needs to tread carefully because like the best of lawyers, Simon’s good at catching her out.
‘I can’t remember,’ she says. ‘Probably about nine-ish.’
Simon’s brow furrows. ‘That’s odd, because she left that message on my phone at nine thirty.’
An overwhelming heat engulfs Lauren’s body, instantaneously making every pore prickle with sweat.
‘And she last tried you at ten,’ Simon goes on. ‘So that doesn’t add up, does it?’
‘I’m tired,’ says Lauren, bringing the duvet up over her head. ‘Can we talk about the semantics in the morning?’
‘It is morning,’ says Simon, pulling the cover off her. ‘And I want to know where you were.’
‘I already told you, I was at Mum’s.’
‘Until ten o’clock?’ asks Simon.
‘I can’t remember the exact timings, but if that’s when Kate last called, then yes.’
‘So you took the kids with you?’ asks Simon.
He knows she would never keep the children up that late. ‘No,’ she says hesitantly. ‘I left them here . . . with Jess.’
Simon leaps up from the bed. ‘You left my kids with a fucking stranger?’
‘She’s not a stranger, she’s my sister.’
‘All to go to your mother’s?’ Simon’s jaw tightens as he shakes his head. ‘Nah, I’m not buying it.’
Lauren swallows hard as she backs up onto the headboard.
‘Do you know where I think you really went?’ he says. ‘I think you went and covered that shift.’
‘What?’ exclaims Lauren, wondering what on earth he’s talking about.
‘The shift that woman was going on about yesterday,’ he goes on. ‘Sheila, or whatever her name was.’
Lauren didn’t know it was possible to feel relief and an impending sense of dread at the same time. She weighs up which answer will get him off her back faster.
‘I . . . I didn’t want you to get mad,’ she says, seeing a way out. ‘It was only for a few hours and I thought we could do with the money.’
‘Why do you think I’m out all night? Providing for my family.’
‘Yes, I know,’ says Lauren, reaching out and holding on to his arm. ‘And I’m very grateful, but it doesn’t hurt to have a little bit extra, does it?’
He falls heavily back onto the bed. ‘I don’t want you having to work. Your place is here at home with the kids.’
She nods enthusiastically in agreement. ‘You’re right, and I’m sorry.’ She hadn’t realized she could be so manipulative.
‘I’m sorry I woke you,’ he says, suddenly conciliatory. ‘I was just worried.’
‘That’s okay,’ she says. ‘I may as well jump in the shower before Jude wakes up.’
She sees her phone on the bed, but there’s no good excuse to take it into the bathroom with her, so she leaves it where it is.
She showers as quickly as she can, sticking her head out the door to listen for any sounds from the children as soon as she’s finished. Even with Simon in the house, she’s always felt the children are her responsibility. She doesn’t know if that’s the innate instinct of a mother or if it’s the way Simon makes her feel.
There’s total silence, though, and she revels in the last few minutes of peace before her day becomes overrun with the physical demands of three children. However, she fears it may be the incessant noise of her thoughts that will be her greatest distraction today. If she could just stop thinking about the way Justin’s touch had set her skin alight; how his lips on hers had felt like the most natural thing in the world. Stop! It is done, but it must never be repeated. It was a mistake, and she now needs to focus on her family and husband, who is trying so hard to keep their boat afloat.
As soon as she banishes Justin from her mind, the next thought gets in line, desperate for her attention. She roughly blow-dries her hair, her hands working ever more feverishly as she thinks about the pact she made with her mother and father all those years ago. The three of them vowed never to talk of it again, not with each other, and least of all with anyone else. As far as she knows, her dad had kept his promise, but her mum had broken hers in the cruellest way. How could she? Lauren won’t let this slide. She can’t. She’ll go round there, as soon as she’s dropped Noah at school.
She’d thought Simon would go to sleep for a couple of hours, but their bedroom’s empty when she walks back in; so Jude did wake up after all. The black jumpsuit that she’d worn last night hangs prominently in her open wardrobe, prickling her conscience. She tucks it out of sight, knowing she’ll never be able to wear it again.
Stepping into her more usual attire of leggings and baggy T-shirt, she hastily makes the bed, lifting the duvet into the air. A dull thud hits the floor and she instinctively knows it’s her phone and groans. It’s landed face down and Lauren turns it over slowly, grimacing at the potential cost of a replacement. But when she sees what’s written on the screen, no amount of money could possibly repair the damage caused.
42
Kate
The headline on the double-page spread in the Echo reads:
I Found My Sister, But Who’s My Mother?
‘It looks good,’ says Matt as he stands against the kitchen counter, spooning cornflakes into his mouth.
Seeing Jess’s picture staring out at her from Matt’s laptop unnerves Kate, and she swallows the doubt that she’s done the right thing by letting him run it.
‘Are you absolutely sure you want to do this?’ he’d asked late last night.
Kate had thought about it for a few seconds longer, knowing that once she gave him the go ahead, he’d push the button to go to press. But they’d both decided that if they couldn’t prevent the fire, they could at least try to control the flames.
‘For better or worse, we now know Jess is my father’s daughter,’ she’d said resignedly. ‘She deserves to know who her mother is and hopefully this will find her.’
Kate’s phone rings now and she watches as it vibrates away from her on the worktop.
‘It’s your sister,’ says Matt.
‘Uh-oh,’ says Kate, taking a deep breath. ‘Here we go.’
She’d thought about ringing Lauren last night to pre-warn her that Jess’s story was running, but it was late, and besides, she didn’t think she’d have a problem with it. In fact, Kate imagined that Lauren would be thrilled that steps were being made to help find Jess’s mother. After all, hadn’t that been her intention all along?
‘Kate! Kate!’ Lauren is screaming down the phone. ‘He’s taken the kids. I don’t know what to do!’
Kate looks at Matt, wide-eyed.
‘What do you mean?’ she says, feeling as if the breath is being sucked out of her.
‘Simon! He’s taken the kids and I don’t know where he is.’
‘Are you at home?’ asks Kate, running into the bedroom and reaching for the first pair of sweatpants she can find.
‘Yes,’ sobs Lauren. ‘I don’t know what to do.’
Kate slings a T-shirt on. ‘Okay, stay where you are. I’m on my way.’
Matt wordlessly falls into line with her as she grabs her car keys and makes her way out of the flat.
Not surprisingly, Lauren’s a wreck when they reach her ten minutes later, collapsing into Kate’s arms as soon as she walks through the door.
‘What’s happened?’ she asks. ‘What’s going on?’
‘He’s gone, and taken the children with him,’ cries Lauren.
Kate steers Lauren onto the very sofa they were sitting on last night. How can so much change in such a short space of time?
‘But why?’ asks Kate. ‘When did he leave?’
Lauren passes her sister her phone and sobs even harder.
‘Do you want me to call the police?’ asks Matt.
Kate shakes her head as she reads the texts on Lauren’s phone.
Lauren: Happy I could help out last night
Sheila: Help out? I’m not sure that’s what I’d call it! I can’t stop thinking about you. Hope everything was okay at home?
Lauren: I need to see you again
Sheila: You have no idea how happy that makes me. When?
‘I’m sorry, I don’t understand,’ says Kate, reading the messages over again. ‘Who’s Sheila? And what’s she got to do with Simon and the kids?’
Lauren’s head falls into her hands. ‘Sheila’s Justin,’ she says.
Kate’s mind feels frazzled. ‘Your Justin?’
Lauren nods.
‘You’ve been seeing him?’ Kate asks incredulously, as the pieces begin to fall into place.
‘Just twice,’ says Lauren quietly.
‘So that’s where you were last night? And now Simon’s seen your messages?’
‘They’re not my messages. He was on to me this morning, when he got back from work, and whilst I was in the shower, he must have started this chat, checking that my story stacked up. I told him that Sheila was a midwife and I’d helped out on the ward last night.’
‘Shit!’
‘And by the time I’d come out of the bathroom, he’d gone, and taken the children with him.’
‘I assume you’ve tried ringing him,’ says Matt.
Lauren nods and wipes her nose with a tissue. ‘I don’t know what he’ll do. I don’t know what he’s capable of.’
‘What do you mean?’ asks Kate, taken aback.
‘You don’t know him.’ Lauren sounds broken. ‘He has a temper – that he struggles to control.’
‘Are you saying you’re frightened of him?’
Lauren nods.
Kate is lost for words. How did she not know that her sister had been enduring this?
‘If he’s so much as laid a hand on you . . .’ says Matt, his nostrils flaring.
Lauren looks at the floor, almost as if she’s ashamed. It makes Kate hate Simon all the more.
‘Lauren, why haven’t you spoken to me about this before?’ asks Kate. ‘I thought you were happy. I thought you had the perfect family.’
‘It’s funny what we both thought the other one had,’ says Lauren.
It’s a flippant remark, but as the two women look at one another, as if seeing each other properly for the first time, the truth of Lauren’s words burrows deep into Kate’s psyche.
‘So what are we going to do?’ asks Matt, breaking the spell. ‘I can’t see that the police are going to do much at the moment. For all they know he’s a dad who’s just taken his kids out for an hour.’
There’s a screech of brakes from outside and they all freeze, looking at each other. Matt is the first to move towards the front door, throwing it open and leaving it swinging on its hinges.
‘Be careful,’ says Kate, going after him.
‘Where’s my wife?’ Simon shouts, as he gets out of the car and strides up to Matt, their noses just inches apart.
Kate puts a hand on Matt’s arm for reassurance, but her insides have turned to jelly.
‘How about we all calm down and sort this out?’ says Matt.
‘Calm down?’ shouts Simon. ‘My wife’s been sleeping around and you want me to calm down?’
Kate can see the children in the car and inches her way towards them, closely followed by Lauren, whose breath she can feel on her neck. She admires her sister’s restraint. If it were her kids, she’d be like a screaming banshee, but Lauren obviously knows the best way to handle her husband. It pains Kate that she’s clearly had years of practice.
‘Come inside,’ says Matt, taking hold of Simon’s arm. ‘Let’s talk about this.’
Simon shakes him off and moves towards Lauren, his eyes blazing. Kate pulls herself up and stands tall between them, blocking his way.
‘How long’s it been going on?’ he shouts. ‘Did you honestly think you were going to get away with it? That I wouldn’t find out?’
He takes a step closer and Kate instinctively puts a hand across her stomach.
‘Who is he?’ Simon yells. ‘Tell me who he is, because I’ll fucking kill him.’
He raises his right arm and Kate can feel, in slow motion, the rush of air as he swings it down. She ducks, pushing Lauren away, and flinches as she waits for contact to be made. With her eyes squeezed shut, the split second feels like an eternity, not knowing who he’s going to strike or where. Another whoosh and a slap of skin, but it’s not hers, it’s Matt’s, as he takes hold of Simon’s forearm just before it crashes down on top of her.
