The Guilt Trip(96)

There’s a hum of voices, barely audible at first, but as soon as she concentrates, she can separate two accents. It feels as if she’s playing a lead role in someone else’s dream and, desperate to get herself out of it, she blinks really hard. It’s always worked before, when she’s trapped in a nightmare with no other way out. But as much as she squeezes her eyelids together, she still doesn’t wake up in her own bed.

Jack’s here, though—she can hear him, talking quietly, so as not to disturb her. Then she remembers the villa they were staying in and she realizes he must be downstairs.

She swings her legs off the bed, but a searing pain shoots from her hip, making her fall back against the pillow. What the hell’s going on? Jack’s voice seeps into her consciousness, his words becoming clearer, as if he’s getting nearer. She goes to call out but she stops herself when she hears him say, “She’s my soul mate.”

“So, you would do anything to protect her?” asks another voice, heavily accented.

“Of course,” says Jack. “She’s the love of my life. We’re going to spend the rest of our lives together.”

“So, you’re planning to leave your wife?” asks the other male voice.

There’s a loaded silence as Rachel’s befuddled brain momentarily plays catch-up.

“Yes,” says Jack. “But it’s complicated because Paige is my wife’s best friend.”

The name pierces Rachel’s heart like a knife, as reality hits her. The wedding, the arguments, the blood, the thrashing waves as the car disappeared into the murky depths. Her lungs struggle to inflate as she gasps for air, making her feel as if she was the one in the water. Tears sting her eyes and she bites down on her clenched fist, for fear of crying out.

“Do you remember what happened to you, Mr. Hunter?” asks the man, who Rachel now recognizes as Da Silva.

Jack sighs. “I know that I was hit by a car that just came out of nowhere.”

“Do you remember where you were just before the accident?”

“I was on the terrace,” says Jack, sounding as if he’s in pain.

“And Paige Collins? Do you remember where she was the last time you saw her?”

“I … I don’t know,” says Jack. “Look, what’s this about?”

“I’m afraid I have some difficult news to tell you,” says Da Silva.

“What is it?” asks Jack, his voice high-pitched. “Is it Paige? Is she okay? Please tell me she’s okay.”

A heavy silence fills the air as Da Silva contemplates how to answer.

“Do you not want to know how your wife is first?”

“Yes, of course,” snaps Jack.

“Your wife—she is fine, but I am afraid to say Paige Collins was not quite so lucky.”

“What do you mean?” asks Jack, panic-stricken. “Where is she? What’s happened to her?”

“Mrs. Collins’s body was recovered a little while ago,” says Da Silva.

Jack lets out a strangled cry. “No, she can’t be. She can’t be.”

“I’m sorry.”

“Was she hit?” asks Jack. “Did the car hit her? Who’s the driver? You need to find the driver.” He’s verging on hysterical.

“Her body was found in the car,” says Da Silva.

“What the hell,” cries Jack. “But why? Why would she do that?”

“I’m not entirely sure she did,” says Da Silva.

“What?” Jack chokes. “What do you mean?”

“It appears Mrs. Collins might not have been alone in the car.”

There’s a sharp intake of breath. Rachel doesn’t know if it’s hers or Jack’s as she’s suddenly reminded of what she’d already been told.

“Are you suggesting that someone…?” Jack chokes. “Someone did this on purpose … to hurt her?”

“We’re looking at all lines of inquiry at the moment, but if you have any reason to think someone might have had cause to do such a thing, I’d be grateful to hear it. I understand your wife and Noah Collins found out about your affair at the wedding party?”

“They did?” answers Jack, almost in question. “Erm … erm, yes … yes, they did.”

“Did you tell them?”

“Er, no, I was intending to, but someone else got there first.”

“And who was that?”

“Ali,” spits Jack, with such venom that it makes Rachel shudder.

“Alison Hunter?” asks Da Silva, double-checking. “Why would she do that?”

Jack makes a strange snorting sound. “Because she’s been threatening to do it for months. She’s jealous of Paige. Jealous of what we have.”

Rachel can imagine the confusion that must be clouding the policeman’s features. “Why would she be jealous?” he asks.

“Ali and I had a thing,” says Jack, resignedly. “A little while back.”

“An intimate relationship?” asks Da Silva.

“We slept together a few times,” says Jack.

Rachel’s head falls back onto the pillow. So they’d lied, though she doesn’t know who she’s most disappointed in: Jack or Ali.