The Guilty Couple(10)
Most worrying was Dominic’s admission that he was being followed by a man dressed in black, and that he feared for his life. He begged Dani to intervene, suggesting she take Liv out to the pub. If Olivia was drunk she might become loose-lipped and he needed a concrete confession to take to the police. As a thank you he’d give Dani another five grand so Casey could stay in rehab for two months rather than just one.
Dani refused. She was on shaky ground as it was, accepting the first five grand as a gift when he knew she was a cop. Actively accepting more money in return for providing evidence that could lead to a conviction was a massive no no. It was corrupt practice and she could end up in prison herself. But then Casey ended up in hospital after an overdose. The doctors told Dani that Casey would almost certainly die if she overdosed again. She had to get clean. That night Dani asked Olivia to go for a drink. Twenty-four hours after that, Dom handed over five grand and Dani booked her sister into Carmichael House, the most secure private rehabilitation unit she could find. As Casey screeched and wailed as she was led inside Dani could only pray that two months would be enough to save her sister’s life.
Jab, jab, upper cut. She smashes her fist into the belly of the bag.
She’s been ignoring her phone all day because she knows her mum Brenda is at home with Casey, waiting for an update. When Dani said she’d sort the money for treatment Brenda nodded tightly, her lips pressed into a thin, tight line. She didn’t ask where she’d find thirty grand, she just wanted Casey to be well.
Dominic Sutherland was Dani’s last option. She hadn’t wanted to ask him for money again, not when sometimes she woke in the night feeling like she’d sold her soul to the devil to save her sister’s life.
She liked Dominic and she enjoyed sleeping with him. No-strings sex suited her – whenever she got into a relationship normally the bloke would moan about her hours and question her relationships with her male colleagues – and seeing Dom every few months meant she could check the lie of the land.
The first time she met Dom she was more focused on his fitness goals than checking him out. She registered that he was attractive – tall, dark with piercing blue eyes and an athletic physique – but he was a client, thirteen years older than her, and married. He was also a bit of a Jekyll and Hyde. One day he’d be charming and funny, the next snappy and irritable. She began to understand why he was so irascible when he began quizzing her about his wife’s movements – had she been going to all her sessions, had she ever mentioned another man’s name?
Jab, hook, jab, hook. Dani gives the punchbag everything she’s got with her arms then attacks it with her legs, smashing out a roundhouse kick then jump-kicking the bag until her quads are burning and she’s gasping for breath. She sits down on a weights bench, her head between her knees, and takes long, slow breaths until her heart stops hammering. She’s screwed up. Threatening Dom was a mistake. Now she’s got to find thirty grand, save her sister’s life, and watch her back.
Chapter 7
OLIVIA
I knock on Nancy’s red front door then check my phone. There’s still no message from Grace. Yesterday, as Ayesha drove away from the school, there was a part of me that hoped Grace would pluck my phone number from the fronds of the umbrella, driven by curiosity or love. That dream has faded with each hour that’s passed since. Life has shaped my daughter into someone I no longer know. I don’t know what she’s experienced, how much she hurts, or how many lies she’s been fed. We’ve got a supervised visit tomorrow but how can I rebuild Grace’s trust in me with her grandparents hovering around?
‘Olivia?’ The door swings open. ‘Olivia, oh my god!’
I almost don’t recognise Nancy as she lunges towards me for a hug. She’s dyed her brown hair bright red and it’s almost down to her waist, her skin is healthy and glowing and she looks so elegant I want to cry. I return her hug, trying not to feel self-conscious in the cheap, shapeless viscose dress I picked up from Primark this morning. My roots need doing and my fingernails are bitten down to the quick but more than just my appearance has changed since we last saw each other. I’m rougher on the inside too.
Nancy pulls away to look at my face. ‘I can’t believe you’re out. Are you a mirage?’ She laughs her throaty laugh. ‘Oh it’s so, so good to see you, Liv. I’ve missed you so much.’
Looking into her sparkling, laughing eyes again I feel as though I have stepped back in time, as if I’ve popped round for a bite to eat or a quick coffee before I collect Grace from school. Instead I’m here to say hello after five years in prison and to pick through the belongings Nancy’s been keeping in her garage since Dominic threw them out. Momentarily I’m the woman I used to be, living the life I used to have, and it makes my heart ache.
‘Come in, come in.’ She grabs my hand. ‘I’ve got champagne in the fridge.’
I follow her into the living room, a room I know almost as well as my own (or what used to be my old living room). Dom and I used to come round at least once a month, hanging out with Ian and Nance, drinking wine, chatting, laughing and, way before Grace was born, passing around a joint. The sofas have changed since I was last here – Nancy’s finally convinced Ian to get rid of those horrible old leather things – but everything else is pretty much the same. There’s an impressive wooden fireplace with the original tiled surround, the paintings Nancy bought from my gallery hanging on the crisp white walls, an elegant glass coffee table and a sixty-inch TV with secret hidden speakers that Ian installed in the walls to give cinema-effect surround sound.