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“HI!” SHE MANAGED TO stutter out. She hadn’t seen him come in, but the surprise of seeing him pulled her from the murky thoughts of Ella’s death and the mystery texts. She realised she was pleased to see him – he was really the only friend she’d made since coming back to Oxford.
“My dad told me about Tom – please give your mum my best wishes,” Leo said with an earnest half-smile.
“Thank you,” she replied, unable to return the half-smile.
“Would you like another drink? Or some cake?” He seemed sincere in his condolences, but he still had his signature smirk as he gestured towards the cake.
“Yes, please, it has been the most surreal couple of days,” Paige said, “I would really like some cake,” she said, standing up to follow Leo to the counter, “But, I owe you a drink from last time - I’ll get these.”
“Thank you, but given what you’ve been through, I think you can owe me for the time being,” Leo said, ordering some brownies. Paige didn’t argue, she was happy to accept his generosity, especially as she hadn’t received her first month’s payment from Eckland yet; her bank account was already looking a little sad.
They brought their brownies over to an empty table, “Do you mind me asking what happened?” Leo said, somewhat more tentatively than he usually approached difficult subjects.
“Rufus,” Paige said bluntly, her throat catching as she tried to elaborate more. She made herself trace her eyes over every inch of her brownie so that she didn’t have to meet Leo’s eyes. His sympathy was overwhelming, even if it was well-meaning.
“Rufus...” Leo said, his breath halting for a moment. She looked up, somewhat surprised at how taken aback he was. Noticing her looking at him, he added, “Sorry, I just was expecting you to say it was an accident.”
“Well, it was, I suppose,” Paige said, “They fought.”
“They fought?” Leo said, surprise still tinging his voice.
“Yes. Tom wouldn’t let Rufus talk to me, and they fought. Rufus pushed Tom and he hit his head,” Paige said, getting it out quickly and hoping Leo would move away from the subject.
“I’m so sorry, that sounds awful,” Leo said, clearly sensing the desire to change subjects. He paused to take a bite of brownie and then added, “I hope my dad didn’t make a fuss about you having time off?”
“No, he has been very understanding,” Paige said, “I have been enjoying working for him.”
“That’s good to hear.” He paused again, words seemingly alluding him as she struggled to change the subject.
“Yeah,” Paige added in a perfunctory reply.
Leo thought for a moment and added, “You seem a good match. He’s been looking for someone for a while.”
“Really?” Paige said, chewing her brownie and thinking over her next words. She ran back through Eckland’s weird remarks in her head, trying to summon any inkling that he had previously had help. He had never mentioned anyone, let alone named Ella as his research assistant.
Although cautious of their new friendship, Paige realised she had to ask Leo about Ella – what if he had met her? She would find out once and for all if Eckland had been pretending not to know Ella. Doing her best to keep her tone casual, she said, “He was looking for a while?”
“Yes,” Leo replied, taking another bite of his brownie, “after his last assistant left suddenly.” Paige’s heart started to pound again – was Leo talking about Ella?
“He had an assistant before me?” Paige asked, still nonchalant.
“Yes – a student of his. I only met her very briefly at a function – a book signing, I think,” Leo said, furrowing his brow as he tried to recall, “Ella? I think that was her name.”
Paige didn’t want to seem overly interested and so just nodded, giving no clue that she knew who Ella was. She replied, “Did she work for him long?”
“I’m really not sure,” Leo said, “I know she left suddenly, and dad wasn’t pleased about it.”
“Really? Do you know why?” Paige said, unable to contain herself.
She realised she had appeared too keen when Leo replied, “No, I don’t...” with a slightly curious look on his face, “Did dad say something to you about her?” He added, putting his brownie down on its plate, as if to give her his full attention.
“No, actually...” Paige said, adding, slightly quieter, “Which is odd...”
“Oh, not really,” Leo said, “Dad is a very ‘in the moment’ kind of person. He’d forget I existed if I stopped coming ‘round for dinner.” He said it with some humour, but Paige’s face darkened. Is that what happened to Ella? She thought, A troublesome employee, cast aside and then forgotten to the point that he doesn’t even remember her after she died?!
That thought horrified her more than she thought it would. She had developed a connection with Eckland, even if not in the same way Jade said Ella had; his eccentricity was surprisingly charming, and he treated her ideas with respect. For the first time in her life, she felt valued in her job, as if she was doing something important.
“Are you okay?” Leo asked, clearly noticing her face, “Worrying about Tom?” He offered the reason tentatively, but not unkindly.
“Yes, sorry, I really should get back to the hospital,” she stood up to leave, “but thank you for the brownie, and the conversation.”
“Anytime,” Leo said, digging in his pocket for something, “Look, here’s my number. If you ever feel like chatting,” he handed her a business card with a mobile number on it.
“Thank you, I’m sure I will,” Paige replied, checking to make sure she had all of her things.
“Is that your jacket on that window seat?” Leo asked, gesturing to the light blue denim jacket Paige had left there, “I think it was the one you were wearing in the pub the other night.”
“Oh, thank you, you’re right,” she said, “I haven’t had a chance to go home and get more clothes.” She walked over and grabbed the jacket, “I hope to see you soon,” she added before turning to walk out.
Leo smiled and gave a singular wave, “Wishing Tom a speedy recovery,” he said.
Paige headed back down the road to the hospital, examining the business card Leo had given her with his number on. She smiled to herself and decided to add it to her contacts now. Filling in the details, she clicked “save” and put her phone back in her pocket.
As she rounded the corner to the hospital, her phone buzzed. Looking at the screen preview, she saw the unknown number again:
07764321123 – unknown number
17.36pm
I’m glad Ella’s name got your attention. This is my final message. For your own sake, do not work with Professor Hugh Eckland anymore. Keep yourself and your mum safe.
A friend x
Paige sighed audibly, partly in fear, and partly in frustration. Whoever was sending these messages must be following her or tracking her electronically.
This time the message mentioned her mum. She was filled with rage – who could possibly mean her mum harm? Was this a threat?
With anger burning in her, she called a taxi. If she had any chance of figuring out who was sending the texts, who had attacked her and who had killed Ella, she needed to start at the Ecklands. They were the link in all of this.
