Ring of Lies (2 page)

One by one,
the
other
mourners
paid their respects
then
silently
drift
ed
away
.
O
nly Olivia
remained by
her
side.

‘
Poor, poor dear,
’
she said, draping an
arm around Grace’s shoulders.
‘
Here you are
,
a
nd w
here is that sister of yours?
Doesn’t she care?
’

‘
You know she does
,
Olivia.
I’m sure she
woul
d be here if she knew, but I
’ve
been
un
able to contact her.
She has a career and—
’

‘
—and a sister, whom she is leaving to twist in the proverbial wind
o
n the darkest day of her life.
I swear
Grace, I don’t know
how
you’re holding together.
’

Grace shivered.
‘
I’m not.
’
She collapsed on Olivia’s shoulder and shuddered with sobs.
Olivia cradled her as a child—as the child s
he’d soon have, Grace thought. Another loss,
sh
e
realize
d.
She’d never have a child now that Daniel was gone.

‘
Oh, Grace.
I know you loved him so.
’

‘
I did. I do. What do I do now
Olivia?
How do I continue without him?
’

‘
I’m here for you,
my
dear
, a
s
is Tom.
Somehow we’ll get through this together.
’

Gr
ace sniffed and blew her nose.
‘
I…
I’d li
ke a few moments by myself.
Do you mind
?
’

Olivia narrowed her eyes.
‘
Are you sure?
’

‘
Yes.
I ne
ed to say goodbye. I have to.
I won’t be long.
’

‘
Take as much time as you need.
I’ll wait
in the car
.
’

Not trusting herself
to speak, Grace merely nodded.
She clasped her slender hands together and bent her head to hide the pain
in her eyes. She felt empty.
A flash of wild grief ripped through her, threatening to shatter her resolve not to cry
anymore
.

She
remained at the graveside
,
ignoring
the rain as it dripped from the brim of her
borrowed
hat onto the back of her neck. She
gulped
in air, and kept
her
gaze
on
the rain-speckled
brass plate on the
coffin
.

Daniel
Elliott
.
19
7
1
-200
9

Tears blinded her eyes.
Daniel
was
too young to die.
At
thirty-
eight
, he
’d been
the youngest
partner in a firm
of international accountants.
And he’d been
her rock
—
her one
constant
in
ten brief years.
H
ow would she cope without him?

With h
er emotions
barely
under control, she made her way over the
slippery
cobbles
tones towards the car park.
A man stepped out from beneath
the moss-covered lych-gate
and made
her jump
.
She
recognize
d him as the smartly dress
ed stranger from the graveside.

He doffed his hat.
‘
Mrs.
Elliott?
’

‘
Yes?
’

‘
My condolences on the loss of your husband.
’

‘
Thank you.
It was
kind
of
you
to come
today.
I
f you don’t mind, I’d
prefer
to be on my own.
’
Grace turned, but he grabbed her arm
with the strength of a boxer. She winced.
He rel
axe
d his grasp slightly, but held her fast.

‘
What I have to say won’t take a moment.
’

Grace felt her temper rise
.
‘
I don’t even know you
.
I’
ve just buried my husband.
Have a heart!
’

He grinned.
‘
A heart?
An i
nteresting choice of words.
Hearts aren’t standard issue in my business,
Mrs.
Elliott. Information is.
’

Her head snapped up.
‘
Information?
W
hat sort of information?
’

‘
The
kind you are about to provide.
’

Grac
e gave an involuntary shudder.
The impenetrable blackness of his eyes and the way his tongue darted at the end of his
sentences
made her think of snakes
.
S
he glanced over her
shoulder
.
Olivia beckoned from the car,
no doubt
anxious to get back to help her husband Tom, the loc
al vet, with afternoon surgery.

‘
I
ha
ve to go
now.
M
y friend is waiting.
’

‘
I
appreciate
that this is not the most suitable time to discuss matters, but I assure you this will only take a
few minutes
.
Your late husband looke
d after my business interests.
’

‘
In that case
,
I suggest you
talk to
Shaun, Daniel’s partner.
He’s
dealing with all Daniel’s clients
.
’

‘
Perhaps I’m not makin
g myself clear,
Mrs.
Elliott.
This has nothing to do
with
your husband’s
business
.
’
His tongue darted again.
‘
Daniel
an
d I had a private arrangement.
He
had access to some very
,
shall
we say, sensitive information.
I just want to ensure that it doesn’t fall into the wrong hands.
’

Frightened,
Grace
tried to
pull away
, but his
fingers tightened.
‘
Whoever you are, let me go.
’

‘
In a moment,
Mrs.
Elliott.
’

‘
You’re hurting me!
’

The stranger’s lips
twisted into a cynical smile.
‘
That’s good, since it’s my intention.
’

‘
I’ll scream
.
S
omeone will come
.
’