chatted all evening, until the battery of my phone drained to almost nothing and I could only make the two calls pertinent to the kids’ arrangements. I told Toma about the kidnapping, walked through every moment of horror; it felt good to talk about it, almost like therapy.
‘Why did you let your friends bully you?’ Toma asked. ‘You should have called the police. You know it was the right thing to do.’
‘I was weak. I regret it. I let Emily down. I just thought, as they all believed one thing and I was the only one to believe another, then I had to be wrong. I was scared I’d make things worse.’
‘I would think this Jennifer, she is your friend, yes? I would think she would support you, not your husband’s decision.’ And so I told him about the fact Jake is having an affair with Jennifer.
‘Or at least, he was. I don’t know if it’s still going on but maybe that complicated things on the night. Maybe that’s why Jennifer agreed with Jake. I can’t quite explain it.’
Toma went silent. I could almost hear his brain ticking over through the telephone.
‘You don’t have to stay with him, Lexi.’
I felt suddenly ashamed. As though I had betrayed someone. Jake, perhaps, for telling Toma about his torrid affair. ‘People have affairs, Toma, they make mistakes. We’ve been together for so long. I’m not throwing in the towel on my marriage after just one mistake.’
I do believe that, so I’m not sure why – now Jake is finally home – I seem to be picking a fight with him. ‘It was really scary. At first, I thought it was an intruder and then I felt trapped. I couldn’t get the car out of the garage because the garage has an electric door and our gate is an electric gate. You know we are overly dependent on our gadgets, I didn’t know what to do with myself without the computer or TV.’
‘You could have had a swim,’ points out Jake. ‘Our pool is not electricity-dependent.’ This is not actually correct – the heater and filter are both dependent on electricity – but I know what he means. The truth is it hadn’t crossed my mind to have a swim. I haven’t quite taken on board the fact we have a pool, or a gym, or a cinema room, come to think of it.
‘So what did you do all night?’
‘I read a book,’ I mutter sulkily. The truth is, I didn’t miss the computer or TV – I had Toma. I feel guilty lying to my husband. I almost ask him what he’s been doing all night, but I guess he’ll just deliver up a lie too.
Jake picks up his phone and calls the electrician, or at least, he calls the property manager who I assume will call the electrician. It only takes fifteen minutes before the electricity is restored; it’s managed remotely. I feel like an idiot for sitting shivering in the dark for so long.
‘The police have a lead,’ Jake announces.
‘They do?’ I sit up, excited. ‘Who? Have they said?’
‘Yes, it came off the back of Emily describing the kidnappers’ voices. And something to do with suspicious movement in our bank account. They didn’t really explain it to me, but they are looking for a man called Toma Albu.’
45
Lexi
Wednesday, 12th June
I call the police station at the crack of dawn and ask to speak to Detective Inspector Owens. They tell me I can come to the station at once. As I dress, Jake asks where I am going; when I tell him, he says he wants to come with me. I shrug, he can if he wants. I just want to get there as quickly as possible and put the record straight.
We are shown into a room that has a small, chipped Formica table and three plastic chairs in the centre of it, nothing else. There is no window and so the air feels stale, as though it has been inhaled and exhaled too many times. I can’t help but think of who else might have sat in this room: hardened criminals, vicious or desperate types, the guilty and innocent. I think I can smell their fear, and maybe remorse, that has to have dripped onto the tiled floor. The chairs are arranged so that there is one chair on one side of the tatty table and two on the other. The set-up is stark and intimidating. I’m glad Jake is with