Dan was in bed when his door buzzer sounded. He raised his head from the warmth of his pillow and opened a bleary eye to look at the clock. Eleven-thirty.
He wasn’t going to answer, it might just be kids messing around, but then it sounded again. Two buzzes this time.
He wrapped the pillow around his head and wished he could ignore it, but he knew he wouldn’t get back to sleep if he didn’t check what it was about. He stumbled out of bed and went into the hallway, rubbing his eyes. He jabbed the button and said, ‘Yeah?’ His voice was slurred through drowsiness.
‘It’s me,’ a voice said, crackles coming through the intercom.
Dan rubbed his eyes. It was Jayne. He would have to stay up now.
He pressed the button until he heard the door downstairs click. He stretched and opened his apartment door, so that Jayne could walk straight in, before going back into his bedroom. He found a pair of grey sweatpants and a T-shirt, his TV clothes, for when he settled down with a bottle of wine, maybe two, and went on a Netflix marathon.
He’d started a bottle of wine before he went to bed. They might as well finish it. The bottle clinked as he opened the fridge and reached for two glasses. He was pouring the wine as Jayne came in. From the loose focus of her eyes, Dan knew he was merely topping her up. He held a glass out anyway.
‘This is late,’ he said.
Jayne took the glass and curled up on the sofa, her knees tucked underneath herself. ‘I’ve had an interesting night.’
‘And you thought you should share it.’ He took a sip and grimaced. It didn’t taste as good after an hours sleep. ‘Has something happened?’
She took a drink, pausing only to raise her eyebrows and nod appreciatively. ‘Better than the stuff I get,’ she said, almost as if to herself, and then, ‘I’m not doing this anymore.’
‘Doing what?’
‘Living in fear. Always looking over my shoulder, worrying about the next knock on the door, or who might be waiting for me.’
‘Jimmy’s family?’
‘Yes, them, and others.’
‘Have Jimmy’s family ever done anything to you?’
‘They threatened me when I was at court. You know that, and you knew it would happen. You said I had to be brutal about him.’
‘No, I said you had to be honest, because you were fighting for your life.’
‘But have I won it back yet? All the time I was telling my story, they were glaring at me, hating me.’
‘He was part of their family, and they were grieving. I told you to expect that.’
‘But they told me that they would get me someday.’
‘People say things when they’re angry or upset.’
She drained her glass, gulping it down, before holding it out. ‘Well, not anymore. This is the new me.’
He topped her up and said, ‘I’m glad to hear it, but what’s brought it on?’
‘I’ve been barricaded in. Everything I do is about seeing the threat coming. And I can’t stop it, can’t help myself. But I’ve had enough of it. I’m not hiding anymore.’
‘That’s what I’ve been trying to tell you all this time.’
‘Sit next to me,’ she said. When he didn’t move, she added, ‘I won’t attack you.’
Dan moved to sit next to her. She looked up at him, her eyes glassy, large and green and doleful.
He looked away. He’d seen something in her eyes that he shouldn’t.
She placed her head against his arm and spoke more softly. ‘I should have listened to you.’
‘We don’t have to do this, just because you’re drunk.’
‘I’m not drunk.’
‘You’re more drunk than I am.’
She poked him in the arm and giggled. ‘You need to live a little.’
When Dan turned towards her, she tried to stare into his eyes. Her gaze was soft, her pupils enlarged.
Dan stood up and went to the window. He couldn’t let it go that way.
‘What’s brought this on?’ he asked.
She put her head back. ‘Mickey Ellis came to my apartment.’
‘Mickey? How does he know where you live?’
‘He said he worked it out from social media. A couple of pictures I’d posted.’
‘What did he want?’
‘I thought at first that he’d come to scare me. And he did, creeping around, pushing me into my apartment. But he had something to tell me about the case, and he’s scared too, so it made me think about my life, about how I live it. I was telling him that he’s got to do the right thing, how he can’t let fear rule him, but look at me. Everything I do is about being scared. Knowing the escape routes, not being in small spaces where I can be trapped.’
‘What did he say?’
‘When Mary screamed, Mickey was in his room. He turned off his light to see what was going on.’
‘Did he see anything?’
‘Yeah, he did, and get this.’ She took a long sip of the wine. ‘Two people came out of that house a minute later.’
Dan was confused. ‘Two?’
‘That’s what he said. Through the back yard and then up the alley. They must have just got around the corner when Carter rushed round.’
‘Is he sure?’
‘Seemed it. You see, he’s not bad like me. Doesn’t drink. He’s a good boy for his mother. So everything is clear. He told me everything.’ She put her glass down. ‘Come sit down again.’
‘No. I mean, not yet. I need to make a note of this, while you remember it.’
She stretched out and put her head back. ‘Work, work, work.’
‘Wait there. Let me get some paper.’
He rushed to the bathroom and splashed his face with water. He needed to wake himself up. Jayne might not remember as much in the morning so he needed to get it down. He used the toilet and went back into the living room.
He stopped and looked around. He couldn’t believe it. She was gone.
He slumped into the chair and groaned. He’d got it wrong. All he’d wanted to hear about was the case. Jayne had wanted more. Now? She was in a huff with him and had taken off, knowing that she had information that he wanted.
He finished his wine and took the glass to the sink. He was about to turn off the lamp in the living room when he looked along the hallway. There was something on the floor. A boot outside his bedroom door. Next to it, a sock. A small white sock.
He walked slowly along the hallway, not sure what he’d find. The clothes weren’t a sexy trail, but discarded as Jayne had taken them off. The light from the hallway was enough to provide a glimpse into his room.
Jayne was in his bed, the rest of her clothes on the floor in a crumpled heap. She was naked, the sheets pulled back, her breasts small and pink, her stomach taut, her body lithe and pale against the dark triangle of her hair, her head turned towards the doorway.
Dan leaned against the doorframe. If she’d intended to make her intentions clear to him, it had been spoiled when she’d fallen asleep. Her right hand hung loose over the edge of the bed and her breath was soft and regular.
He went to her and took her hand in his, light and warm, and moved it so that it was on her body. He covered her with the bedclothes and moved some strands of hair from her forehead. He watched her sleep for a few seconds before giving her a gentle kiss on her forehead and going back to the living room. He grabbed an old sleeping bag from a cupboard, knowing that he had a long night on the sofa ahead.
Her body was on his mind though as he turned off the light, but the reason for her visit came back to him. Mickey had disclosed something important to Jayne, but Dan had no idea whether she would remember it in the morning.