Virtual Justice (3 page)

Jade avoided Lorne’s gaze when she exited the room and made another appointment with the receptionist.

The doctor shook hands with her sister, nodded curtly to Lorne, and disappeared back into his office.

“Everything all right?”

“We’ll talk in the car,” Jade insisted, her eyes wide with what appeared to be fear.

The receptionist handed Jade an appointment card, and she dashed out of the building before Lorne could utter another word. Jade threw herself against the car and folded her arms tightly across her chest.

Oh dear, this doesn’t look good.
Lorne unlocked the doors, and they both got in. “Are you going to talk to me?”

“About what?”

Lorne took the hint and backed off, the way she always did when her younger sister was in one of her notoriously bad moods. She started the car and pulled off, heading towards the East End as she’d planned.

“Home isn’t this way. I want to go home.”

“Jade, I told you, I have to drop in and see a prospective client.”

“And that’s your problem, isn’t it? You put your work before your family. You always have done.”

Lorne’s head snapped round to look at her sister and then quickly turned back to face the oncoming traffic. “That’s totally unfair—”

“Is it? Really? Think about it, sister dearest. I think other family members would come down on my side on this one. Tom, Charlie—even Dad if he was still here.”

Lorne could feel her blood boiling but bit down hard on her tongue rather than vent her anger at her sister. She suspected that the psychiatrist had told her sister some home truths that she probably wasn’t willing to accept, so Jade was intent on taking her frustrations out on her sister, just as she always did. Lorne remained silent, not really knowing how to retort to the accusation without hurting her sister.

Jade had other ideas, though. “If you hadn’t put your job first, your marriage to Tom would still be okay. Charlie wouldn’t have been raped as a teenager by that sicko, and Dad…‌Dad would still be with us today.”

Lorne surveyed the road ahead and pulled into the nearest available space. Turning in her seat, she narrowed her eyes and said in a calm voice, “I’m sorry I’m such a disappointment to you, Jade. All I’ve ever done is try to serve my country, try to make the streets of the UK a safer place for people to live and enjoy their lives. If in the process of doing that I’ve managed to rip my family apart, then it’s something that I will always have to live with. I’m sorry you detest me so much. I really didn’t have a clue until now. I’ll ring and cancel the appointment and take you home.”

Jade’s mouth dropped open, and she appeared to attempt to form a word or two, but Lorne’s statement had floored her. Lorne reached into her bag and pulled out her mobile and the slip of paper with Stacy Meldrew’s number written on it.

“What are you doing?” Jade asked quietly.

“Cancelling my appointment.”

“Don’t. I’m sorry. Please don’t do that.”

“No, I’d feel better taking you back home. I wouldn’t want to put your life in danger any more than necessary.”

“I’ve said I’m sorry, Lorne. Just forget what I said and keep your appointment.” Her eyes welled up with tears.

“If you’re sure? I really don’t want to inconvenience you.”

“You’re not. Now drive.”

Lorne smiled apologetically and indicated into the flow of traffic once again. Silence filled the car for the rest of the journey. She pulled up outside the small terraced house. “I won’t be long. Here, pick out something nice to listen to.” She handed her sister a CD wallet full of varied CDs, some belonging to her and some that were Tony’s odd choices.

“No thanks. We have different tastes in music.”

And everything else, apparently
, she thought as she left the car and trotted up the small path in front of the house. A woman standing in the bay window waved at Lorne, and within seconds, the front door opened.

“Stacy? I’m Lorne. I hope I’m not too late?”

“Come in, please. No, you’re bang on time.” The woman closed the door behind them and then led the way up the hallway to the large kitchen at the rear of the house.

Stacy headed towards the kettle and flicked the switch. “Would you like a coffee?”

“Just a quick one, thank you. I have my sister waiting for me in the car.”

“I see. Okay, what would you like to know?” She poured the boiling water onto the coffee granules and offered Lorne the mug. “Help yourself to cream and sugar.”

“Thanks. When was the last time you physically saw your sister, in the flesh?” Lorne asked as they walked through to the lounge.

Stacy sat on the brightly coloured sofa and cradled her mug between her hands. “I think it was either Wednesday or Thursday last week. The days are just a blur right now.”

Lorne sat in the armchair opposite the woman. “And how did she seem?”

“Fine. Just the same as normal. Which is why I’m so worried about her. If something untoward was going on in her private life, she would have told me. We tell each other everything.”

“Everything?” Lorne found that hard to believe, given her relationship with her own sister. Surely, it didn’t do to tell someone
everything
going on in your life.

“Yes, everything. We’re closer than best friends.”

“I see. Does your sister have a boyfriend, or is she married?”

“No. I’m all she has,” Stacy reiterated. “Wait a minute. She used to have a boyfriend a few years back with whom she had problems.”

Lorne raised a questioning eyebrow. “What kind of problems?”

“Oh, I don’t know. I seem to remember him being rather possessive, kind of suffocating at times. I didn’t get to see him much—or her, for that matter—when she was going out with him. If he didn’t want to go anywhere, they didn’t go.”

“Do you have an address for this guy?”

“No…‌what the dickens was his name?”

“It would really get the investigation going if you could remember.”

Stacy put her mug on the coffee table and went over to a pine sideboard. She opened one of the drawers and searched around, showing signs of frustration when she obviously couldn’t find what she was looking for. Moving on to the next drawer, she tossed aside a few items. “There you are.” She brought a slip of paper back and handed it to Lorne.

“They were engaged!” Lorne glanced down at the invite in amazement.

“Yeah, kind of. Karen arranged it all. Printed the invites, booked the community hall, and the caterer, but he refused to go.”

“Wow, really? Sounds like a nice guy. What was the reason behind his refusal, do you know?”

Stacy reached for her mug and sat down on the sofa again. She shrugged. “Who knows? He’s one weird guy. No one really understands what she saw in him. I think she was clutching at straws, you know, afraid of being left on the shelf.”

“I’ve heard of that happening before. Actually, a good friend of mine married her older boyfriend when she was eighteen, fearing the same thing. It’s strange how the human brain functions at times.”

“Did your friend’s marriage last?” Stacy asked.

“About seven years in total. It was a complete nightmare. So, he’s called Paul Cram. I don’t suppose you have an address for him?”

“No. The last time I heard, he’d moved. Good riddance, too, I say.”

“I have a contact in the police who I can call on to trace him. Any idea when he moved? Where he works?”

Stacy thought over the question and glanced out the window. “Sorry. To be honest, I wasn’t that interested in him, full stop. When Karen used to talk about him, I sort of switched off. I’m regretting that now, mind.”

“No problem. If he’s still in the area, we’ll find him. Enough about him. What job does Karen do?”

“She’s a secretary at a law firm. A property lawyer in the city.”

“I’ll need a contact name there, too.”

“Her immediate boss is a woman. Not many men working there as far as I can recall, if that’s what you’re thinking.”

“Ah, right. I’ll give them a ring anyway. We need to cover every angle. Was your sister happy? Let me rephrase that. Does she have a happy disposition? I need to find out more about her character.”

“I wouldn’t say she was dancing-for-joy happy. She just seemed to plod along, really. Do you know, I’ve never really thought about it before.”

“That’s not uncommon and completely understandable as people have their own lives to lead. Is there anything else that you might think will help aid my search for Karen? Anything at all?”

“Not that I can think of. Just please do all you can to find her. I’m lost without her. About payment, do you want an advance?”

“Let me see what I can find out first, and then we’ll discuss terms, okay?”

Stacy nodded and stood up.

Lorne drained her mug of coffee and followed Stacy to the front door. “I’ll be in touch in the next few days. Try not to worry too much. If Karen is out there, we’ll find her and bring her home.”

“Thank you.”

Lorne walked towards the car and startled Jade when she opened the driver’s door. “Sorry, didn’t mean to scare you.”

“I was lost in thought. How did it go?”

“So, so. I’m going to do some checking around for her and report back in a few days.” Lorne smiled at her sister, pleased to see that she appeared to be interested in someone else’s problems for a change.

“You’ll find her. You’re exceptional at your job.”

High praise indeed, considering how Jade had torn her apart earlier for putting her work before her loved ones. Tentatively, she asked, “Feel up to telling me what the doc said?”

Jade stared ahead. The evening was already descending into darkness around them. “Basically, he said I had to give it time. Different people grieve in different ways.”

“That’s right. At least you seem to be on the right track now. It took a lot of courage to go see a psychiatrist, Sis.”

“That’s what he said. He seemed pleasant enough. I’ll give it a go for a couple of weeks and go from there.”

Lorne started the engine and pulled away. “That’s great. I’m sure you’ll be back to your old cheery self soon enough.”

“I’m not sure I was ever cheerful. But learning to smile again would be a good start.”

It would indeed—for everyone’s sake.
She wondered how long Luigi would be able to put up with Jade if she didn’t start changing soon. Italian men weren’t renowned for being patient.

CHAPTER TWO

B
ella Croft excitedly switched on her laptop. She had dressed for the occasion, brightened her dull features with the latest trend in colours, and put on the dress she had bought at the boutique sale the previous day. Her finger worked the keypad, and she logged on to her favourite site. “Come to me, Mr. Right, wherever you’ve been hiding. It’s time to show yourself.”

Hundreds of male profiles filled her screen. She worked her way through them one by one, discounting the ones that didn’t appeal to her or belonged to men she had rejected on previous visits to the site. After picking through the pictures, she sat back and surveyed the chosen ones. The four men were all in their mid-to-late thirties and greying at the temples. She liked men who compared well to her film idol, George Clooney. She glanced up at the star’s signed photo sitting in pride of place on the wall above her computer. Then she selected the candidate most like George. “Yes, he’ll do.”

She looked up his e-mail address and sent him a link to her own profile, adding a cheeky message. “If you like tennis, I’m interested in a game, set, and match outcome.” It was corny, but then so was the whole online-dating experience. She hit the send button and then trawled the net, looking at fantasy holiday resorts where she and her new beau, if he responded, could spend the weekend together.

She was on her third site of ideal getaways when she received an e-mail. She quickly went to her e-mail account. Her eyes widened, and her jaw dropped open. Mr. George Clooney Lookalike had made contact.

Before she opened the e-mail, she fidgeted in her chair and raised her hands to cover her open mouth.
You’re being foolish! Just open it and see what he has to say.

She sucked in and blew out numerous breaths and then opened the e-mail.

“Sounds like a perfect match to me. Meet me in an hour at the Cross Keys Pub.”

She frantically closed the e-mail, then reopened it and read it again, just to make sure it was real. She flew out of her chair and danced around the room like a five-year-old. “He wants to meet me.”

She ran into the bathroom and topped up her makeup. There was no need to, but she wanted it to be perfect. She hadn’t been blessed with flawless skin like most women, but the way her instructor at college had advised her to layer her makeup hid the flaws in her aging skin well. At thirty-five, she already had the beginnings of wrinkles gathering around her eyes and mouth. Skill was necessary to disguise the wrinkles. Most women had problems with that and usually ended up highlighting the wrinkles instead, but not Bella. She cast her eyes over her features in the mirror one last time before slipping into her evening sandals. She would make sure she knocked him out with her appearance the minute he laid eyes on her. It had been a while since she had been admired by a man as good looking as her date. It had been a while since any man had shown her any interest, full stop.

Several months back, her confidence had been at an all-time low, forcing her to enrol in the evening makeup course at college. The class was all about improving self-confidence, and some of the women on the course were butt ugly. Not her, though. At least she had good foundations to build on.

She left the house on a high, and about halfway through the journey, she pulled her car over to the side to contemplate whether or not she was doing the right thing. This was the first time she had ever arranged to meet a total stranger. A quick internal conversation took place before she started the car again and set off.

Recognising her date immediately, she casually walked up to him, shyly avoiding eye contact with him until she was a few feet away from the entrance to the pub. He held out his hand, and she gave him a ladylike handshake, not a firm one as her father had taught her all those years ago.