like a female Jack Sparrow.
‘Well fuck off then. No goodbyes needed,’ said Merritt, pushing the door and walking back into the drawing room, not realising Johnny had blocked the door open with his foot. Johnny and Tatiana invited themselves in and followed him into the room where Eliza and Kerr looked up with surprise.
‘What are you doing here?’ asked Eliza guiltily.
‘We come to say goodbye,’ said Tatiana.
‘OK, bye then! See you in London,’ said Eliza, distracted by her phone.
‘No darling, here’s the thing,’ said Johnny charmingly. ‘Hello there,’ he said to Willow who looked at him as though he was insane.
Eliza looked up at him. There was something in his voice that told her she ought to pay attention.
‘What, Johnny? We have a crisis here,’ she said. ‘The autistic child has gone missing.’
Willow stood up. ‘Don’t fucking call him that, OK?’ she cried, wanting Merritt to take her in his arms but knowing she had burnt her bridges with him too.
‘Hey, I say it as I see it,’ said Eliza. ‘Kerr said he was an idiot or something. Imbecile?’ She tried to find the word.
‘He’s just a little slow,’ said Willow loyally, her heart breaking.
‘That’s a bit harsh isn’t it, old fella?’ asked Johnny to Kerr.
Kerr looked at him as though he didn’t matter, which to Kerr at this point he didn’t really.
‘What?’ asked Kerr.
‘Well you don’t call your own child a fool, do you?’ asked Johnny. However reprobate he was in life, he had certain values when it came to animals, children and most art. He had wanted to have children with Eliza but so far she was holding out, claiming she could be like a Scientologist wife or the Time Traveller’s Wife or something and give birth when she was fifty.
Lucy walked into the room and into the middle of the drama. Everyone was watching Kerr yell at Eliza’s husband, and the moment Eliza set eyes on her, she started to scream too. ‘You fucking whore, you ruined my business! You stole Willow from me!’ she accused, and she tried to jump over the coffee table towards her former employee. Lucy stepped sideways and Eliza went sprawling across the floorboards.
Lucy walked straight to Willow and took her in her arms, ignoring Eliza.
‘What’s happened?’ she asked.
‘Lucian’s missing with the dog. Poppy says he’s gone to America.’
‘OK, well he can’t have gone far. What did the police say?’ she asked Merritt, who hunched his shoulders and snorted at her.
‘We didn’t ring them,’ said Willow. ‘Too many questions and all the media hanging around.’
Lucy shook her head. ‘No, they need to know. How long has he been gone for?’
‘Two hours,’ said Willow, feeling sick again.
‘Two hours? Jesus. I’ll call them. You get me a recent photo of him, OK?’
Willow nodded and, desperate to have a task, she ran to the bedroom to get the digital camera.
Johnny seemed unflustered by the chaos around him, while Tatiana looked bored. ‘Come on Johnny, let’s go,’ she said in her little girl voice.
‘Yes, well, we are heading back to London,’ Johnny announced to the room, but only Eliza listened.
‘Together?’ she asked.
‘Yes, Johnny will make me star. I’m an artist,’ she said proudly.
Eliza snorted. ‘Well, good luck with that,’ she said, laughing.
‘I don’t need luck, she has talent,’ said Johnny easily.
Tatiana preened in front of Kerr. He was useless as far as she was concerned. Useless and a boring fuck.
‘So, you’re leaving me for that?’ asked Eliza.
‘Yes. I think we’ve run our course, don’t you?’ said Johnny simply.
Eliza stood shocked. ‘You are leaving me for some fucking Eurotart with no class?’ she bellowed.
‘Now, now Eliza, don’t be such a snob,’ said Johnny, pulling Tatiana back as she lunged at Eliza. ‘Don’t forget that you are just a grocer’s daughter after all,’ he said, referencing the shopping centres that her father owned in Manchester.
Merritt tried not to laugh at the shock on Eliza’s face. She tried to cover up her background but when she was angry, as she was right now, her Manchester accent came out. She screamed at Johnny. ‘You fucking prick. You’ll never get any decent PR without me!’
Johnny shrugged. ‘Get over yourself Eliza. It was me that brought in the PR and the contacts. Without me you’re nothing,’ he said.
Willow rushed back into the room with a photo she had printed off from the camera.
‘Where’s Lucy?’ she asked, but no one answered her. She ran into the hallway and bumped into Ivo and Kitty in each other’s arms, kissing. ‘Where the fuck have you