WILL TIME WAIT: Boxed set of 3 bestselling 'ticking clock' thrillers (21 page)

Laura’s
unspoken thoughts somehow wound up in my head.  I spun round to face
Lee.  “It wasn’t Lee.  Definitely not,” I assured her, staring
straight into his eyes.

“Are
you with him now?”

“Yes. 
When did you get the message?”

“About
30 seconds ago.”

At
least now, I didn’t need to convince her of Lee’s innocence anymore.  I
took a second of sweet pleasure out of that, and then began wishing we’d
thought twice before paying in the first place.  Laura thought it had
ended, but an end is no more than the door to a new beginning.

“How
much do they want?”

“Twenty
thousand.”

I
stepped over to the window, lowered my voice and cupped my hand around my
mouth.  “This is out of control.” 

“They
say they’ve still got evidence.  But this time they have photos.”

I
slammed my hand against the wall, then pretended to head butt it. 
“Grrr.  I knew it.”

“What
should I type in the reply?”

“I
know you don’t want to hear this.”  I paused.  “Maybe you’ve got no
choice but confess to Paul and phone the cops.”

“Out
of the question!  I won’t, can’t.  Jesus, Chelsea!  I thought
you understood.”

“Okay,
okay, calm down.  But your theory about Daryl looks like it’s now totally
wrong, and that worries the hell out of me.”

“No. 
Lee’s exaggerated.  Trust me on this.  I know how grief can twist
things in your mind.  But perhaps Daryl was being blackmailed, too. 
I just don’t know...  Anyway, what can I do about this money?”

“Look,
they can’t expect you to produce more money instantly.  Buy some
time.  But not literally.”

“I
don’t have much time.  I’m getting married the day after tomorrow. 
They know I’m under the gun here.”

“Use
initiative.  Stall them.  We need to think about how to deal with
this.  I’m on my way round.” 

Lee’s
eyes, so narrow and full of concern, followed me around the room.  I
mumbled to myself and picked up my bag.  

Finding
it hard to breathe steadily, the pressure built up like a chamber of terror
within while I paced a tight circle.  Once again, I wanted to phone the
police, but knew Laura would never forgive me.  Officer Baines probably
wouldn’t believe me anyway, not since I’d lied. 

The
crushing news made my embrace with Lee feel so distant now.  The sordid
mess kicking off again felt like changing lanes, taking a hairpin turn then
speeding towards a concrete wall. 

Lee
took hold of my arm mid-circuit.  His gaze ticked over me.  A frown
removed the sparkle from his eyes.

“What’s
going on?” he demanded, curling his other arm around my waist, pulling me
closer.  “What else aren’t you telling me?  Let me in,
Chelsea.” 

I
paused to draw breath.  Unsure of whether I should tell him, the words
jumped out at double speed anyway.  “They’ve demanded more money and—”

“Slow
down,” he said, his face colouring red.  “What money?  I thought this
has to do with email threats?”

“Things
have escalated since then.”

“Well,
that’s typical around you.”

I
slumped on the sofa and filled Lee in on the blackmail, his brother’s affair
with Laura, and the money drop which explained why my hair was so wet. 

When
I finished, he looked too stunned to even breathe.  A blue vein popped up
on his forehead, pulsating.  I wanted to stroke it, take the stress
away. 

His
slow nod indicated things were adding up.  A slow one was all he could
manage.  He finally knew the connection between me, Laura, and his dead
brother.

“Let
me get this straight.  Laura was Daryl’s mystery girlfriend, and she’s
paid money to keep the affair quiet?”

I
nodded.

Lee
switched the telly off, chucked the remote away and held a serious face,
pinning me with his chestnut eyes.  He leaned forward, vein still
pulsating like an angry worm under his skin.  “Why the hell didn’t you
tell me this before?  Whoever’s blackmailing Laura must have killed my
brother!”

My
throat felt dry.  “I couldn’t tell you because Laura was so convinced it
was you.  But she still thinks that Daryl’s death isn’t linked, that it
was accidental.  She say this person only wants money.” 

“Then
she’s a fool.”  Lee shook his head.  “You asked me to forgive you,
and all the time you had this information about my brother?”

“I’m
sorry.  I didn’t get the chance.  The only thing on my mind was the
thought I’d lost you.”

He
threw a hand into the air.  “Jesus, Chelsea!”

“They
want more hush money, twenty thousand, or they’ll still tell Paul during the
wedding ceremony on Saturday.  So now you know everything I do.”

“Twenty? 
That’ll make it fifty-five grand!”  Lee shook his head so much I didn’t
think he’d be able to stop.  But he did, and his expression changed as if
switching perspectives.  “Laura has to tell Paul, and the police.”

“She
won’t.”

I
filled Lee in on Paul’s painful childhood, and how the blackmailer threatened
to expose the affair earlier if Laura involved the police.

“Why
don’t
you
phone the police instead?” he asked.

“Laura
didn’t get out of bed for months when her parents died, barely ate, hardly
spoke…  It doesn’t matter
who
phones the police, the blackmailer
will tell Paul about the affair.  But even if not, I’m sure Paul would
figure something was wrong when Police start swarming their house.  Paul
will leave her.  She’ll crumble.  I can’t see her go through that
again.  Not twice in nearly six months.” 

“Does
Laura know who’s doing this?  Know who killed my brother?”

I
almost laughed.  “You’re kidding, right?  Don’t you think we’d be
kicking down their—”

“Stupid
question.”

“I’m
hoping another solution presents itself.  If it doesn’t, then yes, I guess
I’ll have to phone the cops myself tomorrow evening.  Until then, I’m just
trying to support her.”

P
aul’s incessant
milling around Laura’s house prevented me from speaking in private with
her.  Frustrated, I gave up and waited in the lounge.  Before long,
the best man, Mark, arrived.  “Hey!” he said, removing his beige leather
driving gloves while crossing in front of me.  “How are you?”

“Good,
thanks.  Bit cold out.  You?”

He
smiled at me.  “Yeah.  Great.”  He pointed at my cheek. 
“You’ve got a little something on your—” 

Oh,
Christ!  The chocolate.  Why hadn’t anyone told me? 
“Thanks.”  I wiped the icing off my face and licked my fingers.

Mark
settled onto the opposing sofa, laid his gloves on the arm and started filling
in a newspaper crossword. 

He
used to be a good friend, until Jayne had tricked me into dating him a short
while back.  I quit taking his phone calls after the third night out
because I still felt guilty about dating someone.  I felt awful about the
way I’d rejected him, but relieved that he wasn’t a very outspoken person about
feelings, relationships...  It meant he didn’t press me for an
explanation.  If handled badly, dating friends can kill friendships. 
I’d learned the hard way.

I
remained sitting on the sofa, nibbling my fingernails in my rising
awkwardness.  Mark was a nice guy and deserved better.  I intended to
make it up to him one day, but not today.  Not with all this going
on. 

His
presence reminded me again that Jayne's attempt at playing cupid in my life
often backfired.  He had shaved his head since I’d last seen him, making
his long nose appear even more Pinochio-like.  Laura and I often joked
that his intelligence made him the human equivalent of a computer processor –
Intel Mark inside. 

I
put a smile on my face.  “Looking forward to the big day?”

Mark
glanced up from the crossword.  “Yeah.  What about you?”

“I
can’t wait.”  Putting us in the same room, when we’d never cleared the
air, was like trying to mix vinegar and water, but I carried on making an
effort.  “Have you got your speech ready?”

“Yeah.” 
He tapped a pen to his temple.  “It’s all in here.  I’ve also compiled
a short DVD of photos to play.  I think I’ll manage to embarrass the poor
bloke.  That’s what I’m meant to do, right?” 

I
chuckled.

He
smirked then returned to the crossword. 

Paul
poked his head round the door and motioned for Mark to follow him.

With
the men out of the way, I joined Laura in the kitchen just as she finished a
conversation with her aunt over the phone.

“How’s
your Aunt Carol?” I asked.

“She’s
good.”  Laura began chopping vegetables.  “Well, that’s a lie. 
She keeps pestering me for more of my mum’s things, you know, to remember her
by.  But I’ve been putting it off.”

“What
does she want?”

“Jewellery,
ornaments, the expensive kind.  My parents didn’t leave her much of value
in their will.”  There was deep sadness in Laura’s voice.  “I’m
worried she’ll trade them for booze.  I can’t remember the last time she
was sober.  It’s gotten much worse since my parents died, as has her dress
sense.  She either looks scruffy, or over the top like a
clown.”  

“I
didn’t know her drinking was quite
that
bad.  You really do have a
lot on your plate.”

“Maybe
when this is over I’ll give her something.  Make her promise to quit the
hard stuff.  If there’s anything left to give her.”

“Anything
left?”

Laura
turned her back to rinse the knife in the sink.

It
was hard to get my head around how problematic her life was.  After just
days of carrying Laura’s problems, I wondered how she’d ever maintained a cool
head.  Next week, I thought, next week has to be a good one to balance
this out.  I pictured Laura on her honeymoon, basking on a white beach
with Paul.  Then, I pictured myself and Lee, with a lot of uninterrupted
time together between the sheets.  It made me long for this nightmare to
be over more than ever. 

“Listen,”
I said, wishing I could have changed the subject to a more pleasant one. 
“We have to talk about you-know-what.”

Laura
suddenly looked horrified, as though looking into my eyes was the same as
staring down the barrel of a gun.  “Keep your voice down.  Paul could
walk in at any minute and hear us.” 

I
lowered my voice.  “How long shall we give them to reply to your message?”

“I’m
working on the money.  I’m gonna have to sell some of my mum’s—” 

There
was an unexpected knock at the front door followed by feet descending the
stairs. 

“I’ve
had an idea,” I whispered.  “Mark’s quite a brain box, isn’t he?”

She
nodded, but only seemed to be half-listening.

“Perhaps
he has some thoughts on email accounts.  You know, about hacking into
them.  Or maybe the dead guy knew this creep and was seen typing the
password.”

Laura
shook herself and moved her gaze from the hallway to me.  “Huh?”

I
tugged her sleeve.  “I said...”

Someone
knocked on the door again, louder.

Laura’s
knife clattered when she dropped it in the sink.  She darted into the hall. 
“That better not be…”

I
followed, while wondering how to persuade Mark to help us.  After all, we
were barely speaking, and I’d also have to make him promise to not mention it
to Paul.

Down
the hall, I saw Lee standing in the doorway swapping pleasantries with
Paul. 

“Hello,”
Lee said, smiling.

I
returned Lee’s warm smile, but then worry caught up with me and my heart missed
a beat when his gaze landed on Laura.  Oh, Christ! 
Is Lee going
to shout at her in front of Paul now that he knows she tried to cover up being
Daryl’s mystery girlfriend?
  It was as though Lee’s presence tainted
the house even more, and I could smell catastrophe in the air from the looks
crossing between them.

“I’ll
leave you to it,” Paul said, and went upstairs.

Scowling,
Laura returned to the kitchen.

I
whisked Lee into the lounge.  “I thought I asked you not to come round?” I
tried to speak calmly, but to me, my voice sounded sharp.

“What? 
No kiss?”  Lee leaned toward me.

I
put my palms on his chest to push him away.  “You’re not here to have a go
at Laura, are you?”

I
listened for movement beyond the door, too on edge to kiss him.

“Wow! 
You blow hot and cold,” he stated.  “I warned you I’d drive over if I didn’t
hear from you.  I’m allowed to be concerned, aren’t I?  It’s not
every day people have to deal with something like this.”

“Please
don’t be angry with Laura.  Don’t say anything to her, and certainly not
in front of Paul.  She’s got enough to cope with.”

“You
make her out to be a porcelain doll.  Don’t worry, I’ll not upset her.”

Hearing
voices in the hall stopped me from continuing the conversation.  We sat
down, and I gave Lee a kiss on the lips.  “You’ve been eating that
chocolate cake,” I said.

He
smiled.

Paul
entered the lounge followed by Mark, who sat as far away from me as
possible.  I took this as an unsubtle snub.  Getting him alone and
persuading him to look into the origin of our emails would be tricky.

Paul
passed Mark a newspaper.  “Here, I saved you the sudoku puzzle.  If
you finish it before you leave, I’ll buy you a pint of beer.  I swear
those puzzles get harder each week.”

“Cheers. 
You’re on!”

Laura
entered, carrying hot drinks on a tray.

“Thanks,
love,” Paul said.

Conversation
ping-ponged across the room between Paul and Mark about an upcoming football
match on the TV.  Then Paul started teasing Mark about his driving
gloves.  “When will I ever persuade you to dump those things?  No one
has driving gloves these days.  I wouldn’t be seen dead in them.”

Mark
laughed, started teasing Paul about his days of the week socks which Laura had
bought him. 

It
appeared to be a normal gathering of friends in good spirits.  Then, the
men fell silent, slurped their coffees, and Mark began the Sudoku. 

Lee
took my hand in his and rested it on his thigh, but just like me, I could tell
he wasn’t relaxed.  He felt stiff and had a tight grip. 

I
glanced around at everyone’s faces and noticed the atmosphere had a hidden
layer.  Mark and Lee swapped shifty eye movements and didn’t smile
once.  I looked between the two of them, hoping to pick up whatever I’d
missed. 

Say
something, Chelsea!
 
I faced Lee.  “Shall I stay at your place tonight?” I said - anything to
break the tension.

He
nodded.  “Sure.  I’d love you to.”

I
felt a little embarrassed by my forwardness, but was pleased he’d said yes.

Laura
left the lounge.  To me, the room felt all too sensitive in her
absence. 

When
she returned with biscuits, I couldn’t help noticing Paul’s intense expression. 
He watched her walk across the room offering biscuits to us, and then to
Mark. 

“Thanks.” 
Mark winked at her. 

Laura’s
hair swished as she turned. 

Paul
stared at Laura with what I assumed were his bedroom eyes.  They were
part-closed, sparkly, and full of intent.  As I continued watching, while
munching on my biscuit, I noticed that beyond this, there was something obscure
about his look.  Laura wasn’t in the best of moods of late.  In all
likelihood, Paul was still concerned, like I was before I had dragged the truth
out of her.

Lee
held a different expression altogether.  He now avoided my eyes so
deliberately it was as though he’d take a bullet if our gazes met.  Lee
sat shoulder to shoulder with me.  Although his warm hand remained curled
around mine, I felt invisible, as if I was a prop.  Then I realised. 
He couldn’t tear his gaze away from Mark.  But why?  No words, just
frosty eye talk rallied between them.

Reluctant
to leave them alone, I let Laura do all the clearing away of the cups. 
Then, she called my name several times from the kitchen.  The men’s
questioning gazes moved over to me.  They probably wondered why I’d
ignored her.  I felt awkward.  Lee nudged me with his elbow, and then
I dashed out of the room. 

On
entering the kitchen, footsteps drummed up the stairs.  I assumed Paul and
Mark had returned to whatever they were doing earlier, and only now that they’d
gone did I realise just how on edge I’d been in the lounge. 

“I
want you to speak to Lee away from the guys,” Laura insisted.  “Find out
why he’s here, then get rid of him.  If he mentions his brother’s name in
front of Paul then, well…”

“It’s
making me nervous, too.”

“Please,
just shove him out the door.”

“Don’t
be so nasty!  I’ll get him to leave, but I need to ask him something
first.”

I’d
only taken three steps into lounge when Lee reached for my arm and yanked me
towards him.  “Christ, Chelsea!”  His breath blasted across my
cheek.  “How do you and Laura know Mark?”

“What?”
I asked, stunned he’d stolen my question.  “He’s Paul’s best man, and I—”

“Flippin’
heck!”

“More
to the point, how do
you
know him?” I asked.  “And why were you
swapping frosty looks?”

“I
don’t know him.”  His voice lowered.  “But my brother did.”

I stepped
over his feet and my hand went to my mouth.  “Really?”

“Yes. 
Mark was Daryl’s patient.  I passed him in reception a few times when I
dropped in to see Daryl at work.  Mark could easily have taken the photo
of Daryl’s certificate hanging on the wall of his office.”

“Bit
obvious though, don’t you think?”  I slumped onto the sofa.  “Anyway,
that explains the cold looks between you.  I thought it was something to
do with me.”

“Why
did you think that?”  Lee pursed his lips.  After some silent seconds
elapsed, he rolled his eyes.  “Oh! Not another old boyfriend?”

My
cheeks warmed.  “It didn’t last long.  I kind of just stopped
answering his phone calls.  Things are a bit… awkward.  But he’s got
a soft spot for Laura now.”

“For
Laura?  That’s fascinating.  I’m starting to wonder…”  He
glanced around the room, drumming fingers on a cushion.

A
cold tide of dread rolled through me.  It became clear that Lee was
already forcing pieces together.  I pictured the inside of his brain, cogs
clicking and turning ever faster.

Lee’s
expression grew more serious.  He arched his eyebrows then opened his
mouth ready to speak.

I
cringed, realising what was coming.   “It’s ridiculous!” 

“Why? 
Mark knows you, and Laura, and Daryl.  So it’s possible he saw them
together and worked out they were having an affair.  If he likes Laura,
then maybe he’s jealous and
that
is what’s fuelling this.  Plus,
he’ll have some idea of how much money she can get her hands on.  Maybe he
tried to scare you in revenge for dumping him.”  Lee’s tone contained such
conviction that, if I hadn’t known Mark, I might have believed his theory.