The Running Girls(46)

Laurie wanted the girl to tell her what she meant, but there was no point in rushing her. When she appeared to have cried herself out, Laurie asked, “Hid what, Tilly?”

“Grace’s diary. I should have told you about it, but I wanted to keep it safe. I read it when I got back today. It was for the first time, I swear. I confronted him about it and he told me to leave the house.”

“Glen? Mr. Harrington?”

Tilly nodded.

“Was Sandra there?”

“No, she’d gone for a walk.”

“What was in it that made you confront Mr. Harrington?”

“Don’t you get it? That was the reason Grace and Mia split up. She never really cared about me. She was just using me because she was still in love with Mia.”

“Slow down, Tilly. Start again.”

“I never read the diary until today, I promise,” said Tilly, repeating herself. “I took it when Grace went missing. She always left it in sight. She liked to test me, to see if I could be trusted.”

“And what did it say when you read it today, Tilly?”

“It was Glen all along. That was why they split up.”

“Mr. Harrington told Grace to split up with Mia?”

Tilly shook her head and Laurie had a sickening feeling about what she was going to say next. “No—well, probably, but that wasn’t the reason. Grace saw them, you know?”

“No,” said Laurie, but there was an inevitability as to what was to come. “Tell me.”

“Glen and Mia. Together. You know, making out. She wrote about it in her diary. That was why I hit Mia. I couldn’t believe she would do that to Grace.”

Laurie ran her hand through her hair. “You told Mr. Harrington you read this?” she said, already making her way out of the car.

Tilly nodded.

“Stay here,” said Laurie, calling in backup as she returned to her own car.





Chapter Twenty-Four


If Tilly was telling the truth, this potentially changed everything; making out with your daughter’s girlfriend wasn’t the behavior of a man in control of himself. She made a number of quick calls on the short journey to the Harringtons’ house in Offatts Bayou before calling Gemma Clayton to double-check that Glen Harrington was still at home.

“He went out an hour ago,” said Gemma, a hint of nervousness in her voice.

“Out? Where exactly?” said Laurie, already fearing the worst as she watched a trash can lid caught in an updraft sail past her car roof.

“Said he needed to clear his head. I didn’t know I was supposed to keep them inside,” said Gemma defensively.

“Wait there.” Laurie hung up, her impatience outweighing any compassion for her colleague’s mistake.

Parking outside the Harringtons’, she called Rodriquez and told him to concentrate his efforts on finding Glen. She decided not to tell him why for the time being but insisted that it be the team’s number one priority.

Gemma answered the door. “Sorry, ma’am,” she said. “I would never have let him leave if I had known.”

Sandra Harrington was in the sitting room, curled up on a four-seater leather sofa, a cup in her hand, staring through the ceiling-high windows at the pattern the wind was making on the surface of the ornamental pool outside. She greeted Laurie with a vacant look before glancing over at the television, where a rerun of Modern Family was playing on mute.

Laurie sat down next to her. “Do you know where Glen is, Sandra?”

“Out. I hope he never comes back,” she said, not looking away from the television.

Remi had questioned Sandra about Glen’s extramarital affairs. He’d even gone so far as to ask her if she thought her husband capable of killing Grace. Remi had told Laurie that she’d been surprised by the question, but perhaps not as surprised as she could have been.

“We really do need to speak to him, Sandra. Is there anywhere you think he may have gone?”

“He took the car, so he’s probably heading to Houston to fuck one of his college girls.”

“You knew about that already though, Sandra, didn’t you? About Glen and young women?”

Sandra placed her cup down. From the smell, it seemed it had been full of white wine. She was wearing jogging sweats and an oversized hoodie with Texas A&M emblazoned on it. “What can I say, he likes them young. I didn’t mind so much in the beginning, but that was twenty years ago. It’s sad and pathetic now.”

“He’s been doing this for twenty years?”

“That’s not the worst of it. I’m one of his affairs. He was with someone when we hooked up. I didn’t know about it at the time, but it explains a lot. I wouldn’t have lasted if I hadn’t got pregnant.”

Laurie’s stomach lurched at the word “pregnant.” She wanted to ask Sandra why she’d stuck it out with the man for so long, but she wasn’t there to judge anyone. “I understand Glen and Tilly had an argument?”

“Did they? I’ve been sleeping.”

Laurie looked over to Gemma, who nodded. “I heard some shouting,” said Gemma. “Tilly left, and Glen not long after.”

“What’s happening?” said Sandra, glancing from Laurie to Gemma and back again.