Jayne spent a long time in the shower, scrubbing away the last of Chris, hoping it would wash away how foolish she felt.
Her phone rang. It was still in the bedroom, but she was in no rush to answer. The hot water soothed her bruises, now an angry purple, and it could be Chris, checking in, doing whatever new lovers do. She wasn’t ready for his cheery deceit.
But it was enough to make her step out of the shower and start her day.
As she dried herself, she stared at her bruises in the mirror. Her hair hung wet over the eye that was bruised to its peak blue. It seemed so obvious now that Chris was wanting to be close to her for a reason, not for her looks.
She went through to the bedroom to check her phone, wrapped in a towel, and saw that it was Dan.
She thought about not returning his call but she knew she had no choice. She was in the hotel he was paying for, doing work on his case. She sat on the bed and called back.
‘Sorry, I was in the shower,’ she said, when he answered. ‘What ideas do you have for me today?’ Her tone was flat.
He didn’t answer at first, and Jayne thought there was a problem with her signal, until he said, ‘I need you to come back now.’
‘That’s a good idea. I’ve made some progress, but I’m done with this place.’
‘What have you found out?’
‘I’ve spoken to the people who Mark spoke to, went down a couple of dead ends, but no one knew what excited him. More importantly, if they were going to kill him, they’d do it here, not Highford. No, it must be to do with something that happened away from here, closer to Highford.’
‘It’s about Highford, all right.’
‘I don’t understand.’
‘Just come back and we’ll talk.’
‘Okay, if that’s what you want. And perhaps the truth about Nick Connor is exactly as it appears. A mugging gone wrong. It won’t be the first time a client has lied to you.’
‘It’s the first time a murder victim’s mother has helped the defence. That made it worth looking into, but we’re done with that now.’
‘Are you all right, Dan? You sound a bit, I don’t know, defeated.’
There was a pause, before he replied, ‘I’m fine.’
She wasn’t convinced, but she knew there was no point in pursuing it. Dan went into lockdown mode when things bothered him.
Jayne thought back to what she’d found out at Chris’s house. She knew she ought to mention it, but she didn’t want Dan to know that she’d slept with someone. She didn’t know why she thought that, he knew about many of her other one-nighters, but there was something more embarrassing about Chris.
As she thought about it, she realised why. She’d allowed herself to like him, even to wonder whether they could be a couple, had daydreamed about a new life by the coast.
As the silence grew between them, she knew that she couldn’t hold it back. It was a link between Brampton and Highford, and wrapped up in an untruth.
‘There is one thing,’ she said. ‘Do you remember how I met the brother of the little girl who was murdered by Rodney Walker, Chris Overfield? When I told him why I was here, he made out that he’d never heard of Highford. That isn’t true. I ended up going to his house.’
‘Do I need to know why?’
‘No, Dan, you don’t, but when I was in his kitchen, I saw a bank statement. He was in Highford a month ago. He filled up with petrol there. But why would he lie?’
‘Always follow the lies and you’ll find the truth.’
‘What are you thinking?’
‘His belief in Rodney’s innocence might be a sham. He might be covering up for what he did to Mark, because who’d suspect the person campaigning for him, Rodney’s cheerleader, especially an unlikely one?’
‘But he told the police when it happened that it couldn’t be Rodney, that he’d seen him on the rugby fields when his sister went missing, and that he was still there afterwards.’
‘Who told you that?’
‘Well, he did, of course.’
Jayne could hear the smile in his voice when he said, ‘That would be the man who’s told you one lie already?’
She laughed, despite herself. ‘Yes, good point. I was blinded, I suppose. Do you want me to look further at Chris?’
‘Are you sure you can be objective about him?’
‘What, that I might be cross-eyed with love or something? Don’t you worry about that, Dan. He’s lied to me. For that, I want to know more.’
‘Find out where he was when Mark was murdered. If he was on duty, we can forget about him, but keep me updated.’
‘I’ll find out what I can and head back to Highford.’
‘I’ll get the wine chilled for you.’
‘Good boy. See you later.’
When he clicked off, she scrolled through to Chris’s number. She’d taken a picture of them both the night before, both grinning madly as she held the phone at arm’s length. That was the picture she’d used for his contact photo.
It didn’t take long for that to turn sour.
Chris didn’t know that, of course. If he was prepared to use her, it was time for her to do the same.
She texted him.
Hey babe. What a night, hot lover! Fancy a coffee? I might have to go back but I want to see you more. XX
She stared at her phone as she waited for a reply, ignoring how her body was getting colder as she sat on the bed.
The reply came in. Coffee Pot in an hour. My treat. XX
No, she thought, as she put her phone down on the bed. I’ll be making it my treat.