Noel sure can beg. I’m barely able to breathe listening to him. I hope Conor doesn’t fall for all that crap.
‘Just go, Noel. I can’t think straight.’
‘I really am sorry, Conor. It was bad of me not to tell you but—’
‘Just go. I’ll call you later.’
There’s a bit more said in the hallway but I can only hear mumbles. Then the door closes. Reaching my hand out, I switch off the monitor and lie down on the bed with Shay resting beside me. His eyes stare at me. His little hand stretches out as if trying to touch my face. I take his hand and kiss it, waiting for Conor to come up to the bedroom. When he doesn’t arrive after twenty minutes, I decide to go down and see how he is. He must be so confused, not knowing what to do. Should he put his years of friendship ahead of doing the right thing? It must be hard being faced with that decision.
I wiggle off the bed and put Shay in his cot. A blue light appears, flashing in and out of the room.
Chapter Sixty-Five
‘Go back upstairs Laura.’ Conor orders me out of the hallway.
‘No, what’s happening? Why are you doing this?’ I scream at the detectives, gasping for breath between each word. My eyes fill with tears. The younger detective is putting handcuffs on Conor’s wrists. The older guy is reading him his rights.
‘Stop it. It wasn’t him. He did nothing.’ Everything is spinning around me. I grab the handrail to stay standing. ‘He did nothing. It was Noel… Noel killed her.’
‘Go back upstairs Laura.’ Conor’s voice is getting more agitated. But does he think I’m just going to stand here and let them take him away?
‘I have proof,’ I say. I hear the handcuffs clicking closed. The older guy steps in my direction.
‘Mrs Caldwell, could you go back upstairs please, this isn’t helping.’
‘But he didn’t kill her.’ I hear my voice fading as Conor’s voice pierces through the buzzing in my head.
‘It will be okay Laura, take care of Shay, I’ll be home soon. I’ll be back tonight.’
The next thing I know they’re gone. I don’t know how long I’ve been standing here in the hallway. But I fear if I let go of this handrail, I might fall and break into tiny pieces. My eyes are fixed on the hall door where my husband was hauled out by two detectives from Dublin.
I think of Shay. Shay! I run up the stairs and check he’s okay. He is. I take a few deep breaths, just like I’d been taught to do whenever living seemed impossible. Breathe in Laura.
What will I do? What can I do? My tear lands on Shay’s rosy-pink cheek. ‘It’s my fault Shay. This is all my fault.’ The words escape my lips like whispers in the night. It’s here. Karma has found me.
* * *
The house is silent. I carefully step down the stairs, Shay gripped tightly to my chest. When I get to the kitchen I switch on the light and wait for someone to call. I thought the phone would be hopping by now but it seems nobody knows yet. I consider ringing Maggie but decide against it for the moment. I don’t want her calling over here. I need my sister. Amanda. The phone rings. Leave a message. Always the same.
The laptop sits open on the counter. I tap the keyboard bringing the photos of Olive and Noel back onto the screen. My head feels heavy. I lift my phone and try to call Amanda again but still no answer. My phone rings. It’s not Amanda. I don’t recognise the number. My head throbs as I answer it. Fear hijacks my body. What am I going to hear now?
‘Laura… Laura.’ A deep voice says.
‘Yes.’
‘Laura, this is Detective Fintan Ryan. First of all, are you okay?’ The sound of his voice unravels my strength and I begin to cry.
‘Laura?’
‘Fintan. What’s going on?’
‘Laura, I don’t want you to panic. Conor asked me to ring you to see if you’re okay, if you need anything. The detectives are speaking to him now. It could take a while but you’re not to worry.’
I almost laugh at this request. ‘How can I not worry? They arrested my husband.’
Fintan’s voice softens. ‘I know it looks bad Laura, but it will get sorted.’
‘How, how will it get sorted? He didn’t kill Vicky Murphy, Fintan, you know that.’