you fucking dare criticise Mum! Not after what you did to her.’
Larry also sprang to his feet. ‘Don’t you swear at me in my own house!’
‘Why, what’re you gonna do? Spank me? Or maybe you’re going to knock some respect into me. Come on, give it a try!’
Both wives stood too, trying to calm their husbands. ‘Eddie, Eddie, come on,’ said Nina. ‘We should probably get moving, huh? It’s getting late.’
‘Suits me fine,’ said Eddie. ‘Thanks for dinner, Julie. We’ll see ourselves out.’ He stormed from the room.
Nina shot Larry a disgusted look- he had, after all, been just as responsible as Eddie for the evening’s unpleasant turn – before facing his wife. ‘I’m sorry, Julie.’
‘So am I,’ she replied, equally apologetic. ‘I hope the rest of your stay is . . . better.’
‘Me too. Bye.’ With a sigh, she followed Eddie, who had already donned his leather jacket and was waiting at the door. ‘What the hell was that?’ she hissed as she collected her own jacket. ‘You couldn’t stay civil for two hours?’
Eddie walked out. ‘What? He bloody started it.’
‘You were both as bad as each other,’ she said, catching up. ‘Yes, he was acting like an ass, but you didn’t have to do the same!’
‘I didn’t want to fucking come at all, remember? The whole thing’s your fault for dragging me here.’
‘Oh, right, blame me! That’s really goddamn mature, Eddie.’ They reached the car, Eddie heading for the driver’s side. ‘What are you doing?’
‘Getting in the car, what does it look like?’
‘You’re not driving, not after all that wine.’
He slapped the key on the roof with a clang. ‘Whatever, fucking fine. Maybe I’ll walk back instead.’
‘Don’t tempt me,’ said Nina, tight-lipped. She took the key and unlocked the Mondeo.
Eddie dropped heavily into the passenger seat and slammed his door. ‘Well, if you’re so fucking embarrassed to be seen with me, I’ll save you any social humiliation and not go to Glastonbury tomorrow. You can find your own bloody way there. I’ll spend the day with Nan, like I promised. At least I know there’s one member of my family who appreciates me.’
‘Fine. What-ever.’ Teeth clenched, Nina started the engine and, over-revving, powered down the drive.
4
Eddie departed the hotel the next morning without breakfast or even a word, leaving Nina in a bad mood. She was still mad at him – and Larry – for their sheer childishness.
Her outfit from the previous night was on a chair; she folded the skirt and blouse to return them to her suitcase. The creased business card dropped to the floor. She glowered at it, then found her wallet and slipped it inside. Amongst the phone numbers was Larry’s home; though she had no particular desire to talk to him, she might still want to speak to Julie, if only to apologise again.
But for now she had work to do. Though she had spoken to the trustees of Glastonbury Tor from New York, the hastiness of the arrangements meant she wanted to check that all was in order before setting out. She started making calls.
Half an hour later, everything was confirmed. Nina tied her hair back in a ponytail and was gathering her belongings when her phone rang. Eddie? No, Macy. ‘Hello?’
‘Hi, Nina!’ From the background noise, Macy was apparently in a car, and going at considerable speed.
‘Hey, Macy. Where are you?’
‘On the freeway. M3, I think it’s called. I’m on my way to you.’
‘Did you bring either of the statues?’
‘I’ve got both of them! Mr Penrose persuaded Dr Assad to let the Egyptian one go on vacation, and your friend at Interpol – Mr Jindal? He said yes right away about the other one. Are you still in this Bournemouth place?’
‘Yes, I’m at the hotel.’ Nina gave her the postcode.
‘Okay,’ Macy said after entering it into the satnav, ‘it says I’m seventy-five miles from you. Also says it’ll take an hour twenty-five to get there, but pshht! I can do better than that.’ The engine note rose.
‘There’s no rush, Macy,’ Nina told her. ‘They’re not expecting us there until lunchtime.’
‘No problem. You and Eddie can show me round England first.’
‘Eddie’s not coming today.’
‘No? Huh. Why not?’
‘Personal reasons,’ was the only answer Nina felt like giving. ‘I’ll see you soon.’
‘Where’s Nina today?’ asked Nan.
She and Eddie were on a clifftop road overlooking the sea, Bournemouth’s pier jutting into the English Channel to the west. He was pushing her along in a wheelchair, an oxygen cylinder on its back connected to her breath