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Tom had made himself a cup of tea whilst he waited for Trish to return, and as it was now after 10 p.m., he hoped he wouldn’t have to wait much longer. Normally, the talks at her University of the Third Age group finished around 9 p.m., so it was possible she had decided to go for a drink with the others. He just wished she would respond to his texts though. Her phone was still diverting calls to voicemail, so he had no way of contacting her.
After browsing the sites his wife had visited, he was beginning to wonder whether she had become a drug abuser, although thinking back over the last few weeks, he could remember no particular change in her mood. In fact, she had seemed more positive than she had done in a long while and was certainly keeping busy, and interested in her new hobbies. It all seemed a bit incongruous at the moment and what was equally disturbing, was that she had clearly revisited the transcripts of the SEKare inquiry on a regular basis. He was worried that repeated exposure to the harrowing evidence would bring about another attack of memory loss. Perhaps he would contact Beth in the morning and see whether she had picked up on anything different about Trish in their recent interactions.
‘Come on, where are you?’ he sighed as the newsreader announced that it was time for the sports news.
**
‘We’re not going up to London are we?’ asked Gina. ‘This is the station car park.’
‘Yes, I know, but I’ve got to park somewhere. This is the closest.’
‘To where?’
‘The wine bar.’
‘Oooooh, very posh, not a pub but a wine bar. What’s it called?’
‘I can’t remember, but you’ll like it. Come on, we need to get a move on before last orders.’
‘I can’t open the door,’ said Gina.
‘I’ll do it, it must be the childproof locks.’
Susan got out and ran around to the passenger side, and Gina climbed out unsteadily.
‘Here, take my arm,’ said Susan.
‘Which way?’
‘Up St Dunstan’s Street, this way. It’s not far now.’
They reached the level crossing, which was open to cars and pedestrians and Gina stopped to look at the railway lines. ‘London this way, the sea, that way,’ she said. ‘I think they are pulling me, they look like ropes. Where will my journey take me?’
‘That’s right, they do have a certain draw. They look amazing, don’t they? The railway lines stretching out almost into infinity.’
‘I’ve never looked at them like this before,’ said Gina, wistfully.
‘Gina,’ said Susan, trying to attract her friend’s attention to bring her back to the moment, ‘do you know there’s a shortcut to this wine bar, we need to hurry, it’s getting late.’
‘Sounds good, which way?’
‘This way, follow me!’ shouted Susan, as she ran along the side of the railway.
‘Wait for me!’ shouted Gina.
Other pedestrians looked on in horror at two middle-aged women walking along the side of the railway lines. Gina continued to vape as she ran along, but the cloud of smoke seemed to be lessening.
‘This way!’ shouted Susan. She was heading out of town in the direction of London, and it was becoming increasingly darker, so she activated the torch on her mobile.
Gina caught up and seemed a little out of breath.
‘Mind the live rail!’ shouted Susan. ‘There’s a third rail down here remember!’
‘Oops,’ shouted Gina, stepping to the side away from the tracks. She stumbled over a piece of debris or perhaps a tree branch. ‘Shit!’ she shouted. ‘Oh, where’s it gone?’
‘What’s the matter?’ called Susan.
‘I’ve dropped it! Oh, where is it?’
‘Never mind, you’ve done enough vaping tonight, too much isn’t good for you.’
‘Don’t tell me what to do, I’ll do what I fucking want!’ spat Gina.
‘Really? Do you reckon? That’s what you are used to doing isn’t it?’
‘Yes, we’ve already had this conversation? Why are you bringing it up again? Stop wasting time and let’s get to the wine bar.’
‘I’m just mentioning what you’ve already told me. You were very proud of telling me how you are used to being in control of people. Getting your own way!’
‘So, that’s the way I am. It would be no good always being a doormat. Some of us have to be in charge.’
‘I see. You are in charge, and the rest of the world is made up of minions to do your bidding? Is that it?’
‘Well, possibly. I’m not sure.’
Gina’s mood had become more subdued. She was speaking quietly and much less animatedly than she had been earlier.
‘Are you OK, Gina? You seem a bit tired?’
‘I’m cold. I want to go back. This is a shit shortcut! Ha! That’s a good phrase, a shit shortcut!’
‘Not so fast, I’ve not finished!’ screamed Susan, pulling a knife from her bag and holding at Gina’s throat.
‘What are you doing?’ cried, Gina.
‘Oh, you’ll find out soon enough. Now, I think it’s best to keep still, and then nobody gets hurt.’
**
Tom had gone to bed, as he had begun to feel sleepy due to the effect of a second whisky, that had proved much too tempting during his solitary wait. He had a busy day ahead and needed to sleep, but at the same time, he wanted an explanation from Trish about his recent discoveries. Her phone was still diverting to voicemail, and it was now after 10.30 p.m. He was seriously beginning to worry she’d had a car accident. He switched on the news to keep him company, turned down the volume and relaxed back against his pillows with the phone in front of him on the duvet.
