The Mistress - Jill Childs Page 0,69
away before university. I’ll help you persuade your mum. She’ll come round. But in the meantime, clear all this from your mind and focus on your work. Can you do that?’
She blew her nose and managed a weak smile. ‘I’ll try.’
‘That reminds me. Sit there a moment. I’ve got something for you.’
I hurried up to my bedroom, found my chequebook and wrote her the biggest cheque I could afford.
Downstairs, I hid it behind my back.
‘Put your hands out. Go on. Eyes closed.’
She stuck out her hands, too tired to be excited. I laid the folded cheque across her palms and folded her fingers round it.
‘Okay. You can look now.’
Her eyes popped when she read the amount.
I said, ‘This is between us. Put it in the bank and don’t tell your mum. Promise?’
She tore her eyes away from the cheque and looked at me. ‘I can’t… I mean, it’s too much.’
‘You absolutely can. It’s for your year out, once we’ve persuaded your mum to let you go. She said you were a bit short.’ I smiled. ‘Think of it as an extra thank you for all the babysitting you’ve done.’
She tipped her head to look at me again, more hesitant now. ‘But you don’t have to—’
I shook my head. ‘You don’t know how much you’ve helped me, Megan. Now, we both need to get to bed. Shall I call you a cab?’
‘That’s okay. I’ll walk, thanks.’
She tucked the cheque into the inside pocket of her jacket and zipped it closed.
On the doorstep, she looked up the street, then hesitated. Her face clouded.
‘You okay, Megan?’
She stepped back into the hall. ‘That man. In the car.’
I peered past her at the saloon car further down the road, scraped along the side. Mike Ridge.
‘What about him?’
‘I don’t like him. He came to our house, asking questions. Mum said she’d already told the police everything and sent him packing.’
I nodded. I wondered why Bea hadn’t mentioned it.
‘And he came up to me in the street the other day. In town.’ She looked wary. ‘I wondered afterwards if, maybe, well… if he’d followed me.’
I looked up sharply. ‘What did he say?’
She squirmed. ‘He wanted to know if I’d been babysitting for you recently.’
‘What did you say?’
‘That I’d been over sometimes, for a bit of extra cash.’
My heart hammered. ‘And?’
‘He asked if I had a key to your place. A spare key. I said no.’
‘Well, you haven’t.’ I considered. ‘It’s your mum’s key, isn’t it? You just borrow it. So you didn’t lie.’
‘That’s what I thought.’ She went on. ‘He asked if you’d ever leave Anna on her own. I said no way, you’d never do that. Not even to pop to the shops like Mum might, if she’s desperate. You’re strict about safety.’
I nodded. ‘Good girl.’ She was bang on script, just as we’d discussed. ‘And?’
She steadied herself. ‘He asked if I knew anything at all about that night. You know. When Mr Wilson…’
I stiffened. ‘What did you say?’
‘I said no, of course.’ Her lip trembled. ‘But he seemed to know I was lying. What if he tells the police?’
She sagged forward and sank her face into cupped hands, close to tears again.
‘He won’t.’ I put my hand on her shoulder. ‘He’s just trying to rattle you.’ I lowered my voice to a whisper. ‘If you hadn’t come over that night, after I’d dashed out, how could I have kept looking for Ralph? I couldn’t have left Anna on her own all that time.’ I sighed. ‘I know I didn’t find him. But at least I tried.’
I took a deep breath. ‘And the texts you sent him, from my phone. If just one of them had reached him in time, it might have changed everything. I really believe that. We might have saved him, Megan. And it would have been thanks to you.’
She leaned into me and I stroked her hair and soothed her as if she were a much younger child. Her skin was warm and firm through her flimsy clothes, trembling as she pressed against me.
When she seemed calmer, I patted her back and drew away.
‘Better?’
She nodded. ‘I can’t thank you enough, Mrs Wilson. Honestly. For—’
I interrupted, pushing her out into the night, smiling as I spoke. ‘Enough. We’re even. And good luck in your exams. I’ll keep everything crossed.’
On my way upstairs, I went to check on Anna. She was splayed across her bed, one leg sticking at an odd angle out of the pink duvet, her arm wrapped around her pillow, her