he would like to punch Gary in the teeth for suggesting such a thing about his friends. Even Charles gave Gary a dark look, his bushy eyebrows meeting as he frowned. Tom looked at Gary’s jutting chin, raised as if he were superior to everybody in the room, with lips curled upwards, although without a hint of a smile in his eyes. Gary hadn’t finished.
‘And what about all you girls, home alone while the boys were out enjoying themselves. What were you lot up to last night, then? Out on the razz, I bet.’
Ellie was sitting directly opposite Gary, and she appeared to be getting the full benefit of his sly grin. Before anybody could comment, support came from an unexpected source.
‘Stop being a tosser, Gaz,’ Sean said. ‘The poor kid might die, and you’re teasing the girls? Bad taste, mate.’
‘It was a fucking joke, Sean. Lighten up.’ Gary ran his fingers through his slicked back hair and raised his eyes to heaven, as if Sean were the one behaving like a prat. There was an embarrassed pause as Gary looked round, obviously hoping - and failing - to get smiles of support from the other guests.
Sean’s weathered face looked slightly flushed as he turned to Tom.
‘I’ve never noticed any cameras on the back road,’ Sean said. ‘So if they don’t find any forensic evidence, it sounds like it might be a tough nut to crack.’
‘Well, I bet there’s one person who hopes this child doesn’t recover,’ said Charles, filling his wine glass from the expensive bottle that Tom had brought.
‘Charles, even by your standards that’s a pretty crass statement,’ Fiona said. ‘What on earth do you mean?’
Charles shrugged, casting another glance around the room at those seated at the table.
‘If the girl wakes up, she might well remember what type of car hit her. That’s all I’m saying. I presume he or she won’t want to go to prison.’
Fiona gave her husband a disparaging look.
‘Shall we change the subject? This is a bit too depressing for a party, don’t you think?’ she asked.
Tom couldn’t help thinking that it wasn’t half as depressing as having a daughter on the critical list in hospital.
Max appeared to drag himself back from thoughts of Abbie and the previous night, as if realising belatedly that he was the host. He jumped to his feet.
‘Listen, everybody. It’s difficult to forget about Abbie - particularly for those of us who know her, or are in some way connected to her. But I was intending to propose a toast to the new house. Let’s have a toast first to Abbie, wishing her a safe recovery, and then move on. There’s nothing we can do to help at the moment, other than to wish her well.’
After the round of toasts, conversation returned to normal if slightly more subdued levels.
Tom was sitting next to Penny, who had been very quiet all evening despite his attempts to make conversation. So he was surprised when she turned towards him and spoke in a quiet voice.
‘I know we’re not supposed to be talking about this, Tom - but what happens next? Will the police want to speak to everybody who was out last night?’
Tom felt, rather than saw, Gary’s arm go round Penny. At last he’s showing her some affection, he thought. He wasn’t sure what had been going on when this couple had arrived, but he had been around long enough to know that although a fit of sneezing could make your eyes stream, it rarely made your chin wobble. And he was well aware that Gary had barely spoken two words to his wife all night, although he’d been the life and soul of the party in all other ways.
He sensed that a few people round the room had picked up on Penny’s question and were waiting to hear his response, and he certainly had Leo’s full attention. Penny’s arm suddenly jerked slightly, splashing red wine on the tablecloth. She grabbed her napkin and furiously started to dab at the stain, as Gary tutted and removed his arm.
Without waiting to hear Tom’s answer to Penny’s question, Leo smiled across the table.
‘Don’t worry about that, Penny,’ she said. ‘It’s only a drop. We’ll get it out later. And we’ve not had chance for a catch up tonight, so do you fancy helping me to clear the table to give Ellie a bit of a break?’
Leo jumped up and started busying herself with the plates, but not before Tom had intercepted the