Ruby pushed down on the stiff doorbell, the noise producing a delicate chime out of place with the surroundings. Lenny had surprised her by texting the address, although he was the least trustworthy source of them all. Her heart skipped a beat as she contemplated meeting her daughter. Just how was she going to handle this? Flash her warrant card and blag her way inside? And what if her daughter was there? Could she arrest her own flesh and blood? It would end all ties with Nathan if he found out. Ruby took a deep breath as footsteps approached the door. The thought of losing her one constant in life made her scared. But a child’s life was at risk, and she had no choice but to try.
Yet it was not ‘Fat’ Barry Sedgewick opening the door, but Nathan. And his face was like thunder. Grabbing her by the elbow he pulled her inside. The long narrow corridor offered little room for movement and she found herself with her back against the woodchip paper. Nathan stared with an intensity that frightened her, and her heart picked up a notch as she tried to break free.
His breath fell warm and heavy against her skin as his hands pressed against the wall either side of her face. Why is he here? Ruby thought, listening out for signs of Lucy, but the only sound was of the traffic outside. If her daughter was here, she was being very quiet about it. ‘What’s going on?’ she said, keen to get moving. She was not here to play games.
‘I could ask you the same question,’ Nathan growled, every sinew in his body tensed. Ruby had seen him like this once before, and in times like these he was best left alone. But she had come here for a purpose, and she needed to know.
‘I’m here to speak to Barry Sedgewick. What’s your excuse?’ She could tell by his demeanour it was not a social visit, and she was not in the mood for an argument. Lenny had sent her the address. Had he been setting her up all along? Ducking under Nathan’s arm, she checked the downstairs rooms before making her way up the stairs.
‘If you’re looking for Lucy, she’s not here. Neither is Fat Barry. He wasn’t too keen to speak to you, funnily enough,’ Nathan said, standing on the landing as she returned from checking the empty bedrooms.
Ruby’s eyes fell to his grazed right fist and the blood splatters on his white shirt. ‘What’s your problem, Nathan?’
‘I’ll tell you what my problem is,’ he said, jabbing her on the chest. ‘You’re my fucking problem. How could you do it, Ruby? How could you set up our daughter? Did you really think I was going to allow you to arrest her?’
‘Ow,’ Ruby frowned, rubbing her breastbone. ‘What are you talking about? You’re not making any sense.’
‘What’s the view like from that high horse of yours? Lecturing me on what’s right, then trading information so you could nick our daughter for murder. And here was me thinking you were beyond reproach.’
Ruby’s face fell as she realised what it looked like. She had been played. And Lenny was pulling their strings. ‘I can explain… ’
‘You knew how much I wanted to see her. Yet you chose to keep it quiet because you wanted to take her from me all over again.’
‘What the hell? We both agreed, remember?’ Except Ruby knew that was not strictly true. Her mother’s recent ramblings had brought Nathan’s reluctance to light. ‘Anyway, it’s a bit late to start laying blame, don’t you think? If your family had any sort of normality, we wouldn’t have had to give her up in the first place.’ Ruby knew from the expression on Nathan’s face that her words were hitting home.
‘I had no choice,’ Nathan said, his voice choked by the anger backed up in his throat. ‘Your mum railroaded me into it when I was at my lowest point. And what about you? You have the cheek to tell me my family is inferior to yours? At least my mum knows what day of the week it is.’
Ruby drew back her hand, slapping Nathan hard on the cheek. Nathan had grown up learning that pain does not come from the fist alone and was adept at pushing her buttons.
He carried on as if nothing more than a fly had landed on his skin. ‘I should never have listened. If I did, then Cathy wouldn’t be the state she’s in now.’
‘Cathy? Who’s Cathy? And what do you mean “the state she’s in”?’ Ruby said, touching the stairwell to ground herself. Her phone buzzed in her pocket. No doubt it was work wondering where she was.
‘Her adoptive parents changed her name. And it’s a bit late to start acting the concerned parent. First you abandon her, then you try to nick her. And you have the cheek to lecture me about blood money. You disgust me. You’re nothing but a joke.’
‘How dare you talk to me like that,’ Ruby said, her voice rising. ‘You know nothing of this investigation. There’s a child’s life on the line here. If you just took the time to hear me out… ’
‘Well, I’m too busy looking out for our own flesh and blood. Go and find your killer elsewhere, because I can tell you now it had nothing to do with her. Now fuck off back to the job you love so much. We don’t ever want to hear from you again.’
‘Nathan, you’ve got this all wrong,’ Ruby said, following him down the stairs. ‘It’s Lenny. He’s set this all up. Just give me the chance to explain.’
‘We’re not interested. Cathy’s safe now, somewhere you’ll never find her.’
‘Please. Just ask her one question. Has she ever watched the movie Lucy’s First Christmas?’
Nathan looked at Ruby as if she was speaking a foreign language. ‘What are you on about? What movie?’
‘It’s part of the investigation. The killer’s recreating scenes from the film. I’ve got to know. Has Cathy watched it or not?’
‘You’re a piece of work, do you know that? Even now, you’re taking the side of the police.’ Nathan made towards the door, wrenching it open until it rebounded against the wall. ‘I’ll never forgive you for this, Ruby. You can go to hell.’
Ruby flinched as he slammed the door, leaving her alone in the hall. The energy of their disagreement still hung in the air, and she could not bear to leave it like this. But there was little point in chasing after him, and who could blame him for being mad? It was bad enough that she hid Lucy’s contact from him, but to hear it from Lenny… Ruby had walked straight into his trap and had nobody but herself to blame. She went crawling to him, and she should have known better than to trust Lenny Crosby. A wave of grief rose from within as long buried feelings of shame and regret made themselves known. She should have been stronger. Had she not given her baby up, things would be very different now. They could be together as a family. This was all her fault. Warm tears moistened her cheeks, and she swiped them away with the back of her hand. She would not allow herself to go there; at least, not until she had sorted out the mess her life had become.