The café is warm, filled with the rich scent of coffee and the low hum of conversation. Outside, rain drizzles against the windows, blurring the city into soft streaks of grey and gold. Nottingham feels different after everything – familiar and reassuring. A change from when I regarded life here as being slightly dull. But I think it’s just me who’s changed.
Paige sits across from me, hands curled around her cappuccino, her eyes wide with disbelief. We’ve spoken plenty on the phone, but Paige’s mum has been unwell and, logistically, it’s taken until now for us to get together to hammer out all the details.
‘Wait.Wait!’ She leans in, voice dropping to a stunned whisper. ‘You’re telling me Webb was planning to kill youandhimself? And Tilda –Tilda– killed Sarah?’
I nod, watching as she shakes her head, open-mouthed. ‘He’d planned it all out in detail in his journal. The police found it in his room at the B-and-B, and his poor landlady’s body.’
‘Shocking! But Tilda orPamela… she was so put-together. Like, she was always dressed perfectly, always so in control. There was a time she was the last person I’d have thought had …’ she’s searching for the word ‘… issues. Until you told me Webb was her puppet master, sending her letters that drove her to suspect you and then to the house, too, to cause the most mayhem and collateral damage.’
I stir my tea, staring down into its dusky caramel depths. The spoon clinks against the cup, steady and rhythmic. ‘Yeah. I suppose it just goes to show – you never really know what’s happening in someone else’s life. Tilda was vulnerable but lethal, nevertheless.’
Paige exhales, leaning back in her chair. ‘No kidding. So, what’s happening with them both now?’
I take a sip before answering, letting the warmth of the tea settle me. ‘Webb’s been charged with Monica’s murder, and ABH for his attack on Dev. Not to mention stalking offences. His trial is pending.’ The words taste bitter on my tongue, even now. ‘And Tilda has been charged with murder but is waiting to be evaluated by a psychiatrist. They need to determine if she’s fit to stand trial, which Simon is convinced she isn’t. Apparently she switched her suspicions from me to Sarah after she watched them flirting together at the drinks party. By that time, there was little logic to her actions.’
Paige shakes her head, eyes dark with something between sympathy and horror. ‘And Simon? What’s he going to do?’
‘He’s vowed to stand by Tilda. He told Dev and me that he knows he’s treated her very badly over the years and now he has a chance to try to make it up to her. He blames himself for not acting when the signs of her psychosis started returning.’
Paige pops to the bathroom and I glance at the rain-streaked window, at the blurred shapes of people scurrying past.
After Simon had come to the rescue and stopped Webb’s killing spree, he left Dev and me to recover for a few days before popping in to see me. ‘I want to tell you something,’ he said. ‘About Tilda. To help make sense of all this.’ His voice was hoarse, scraping up from his throat. He rubbed a hand over his face. ‘Tilda isn’t a bad person, Merri. She – she’s had problems for years. Since her twenties, really. Since before I even met her.’
A chill ran through me. ‘What kind of problems?’
‘She had a breakdown in her teens. Her parents ignored the signs when she was growing up until it was too late.’ He shook his head. ‘When I met her she was out of the clinic and looking after herself. We had a lot of happy years together.’
‘But she became ill again?’
Simon nodded, his face grim. ‘About ten years into our marriage, she changed. She started lying compulsively. About little things, big things. And the spending …’ His jaw tightened. ‘Over time, it got completely out of control. She drowned us in debt. Buying things – designer bags, jewellery – all stuff she hid from me, maxing out credit cards, taking out loans.’
‘Oh, no. I’m sorry to hear that, Simon,’ I said, trying to connect the picture I had of Tilda, so calm, capable and together, with the alternative chaotic personality Simon was describing.
‘During that period, I was working twenty-four-seven on the new business,’ he said. ‘I admit I was distracted … I’d become a workaholic, if I’m honest. Maybe Tilda felt neglected, maybe I just wasn’t listening, I don’t know. But when I eventually found out the extent of her shopping addiction, it was already way out of control.’
That didn’t fit with what Tilda had told me. But then I thought about what Webb had said of her history. How easy it was for him to send her spiralling.
‘Tilda said you sold the business because you’d been caught out having another affair and you begged for another chance,’ I murmured. ‘She said you both did very well financially from the sale.’
Simon laughed, short and bitter. ‘That’s a lie about the sale. We sold it because we had to. The debt was suffocating us. She liked to tell people we owned the barn when in reality, we were only renting it. But I’ll admit I’ve screwed up. I’ve hadaffairs in the past and I’ve got no excuse for that. But I’m not cheating on her now. Haven’t for years.’ He lifted his head, meeting my gaze. ‘I like a little flirt, yes, but I haven’t crossed the line for a long time.’
I didn’t know whether to fully believe Simon or not. But something in his face – his raw honesty – made me want to …
Paige comes back from the bathroom. ‘Just going back to what we were talking about, maybe Simon’s right. Maybe if he’d spotted Tilda’s psychosis, Sarah would still be alive.’
‘Maybe. But Dev and I owe our lives to him, so we’re his biggest supporters. Without him, Webb would almost certainly have …’ I can’t finish the sentence.
Paige falls quiet for a moment, then says softly, ‘And Jack?’
‘He’s sold Mower World as a going concern and already moved out of the area.’ I push away my tea, suddenly unable to stomach it. ‘Last we heard, he’s planning on going backpacking for a year. He couldn’t face staying, you see. Not after what happened.’
Paige sighs. ‘I don’t blame him.’
For a while, we sit in comfortable silence, watching the late November rain. Then Paige brightens. ‘OK, enough murder and misery. My turn.’ Her face brightens a little. ‘I’ve met someone.’
I smile, grateful for the shift in conversation. ‘Oh?’
‘It’s early days, but I think this one might actually be decent. And now I’ve finished college, I’ve got my firstproperfull-time nursing job starting in a couple of weeks.’ She beams. ‘Finding out who was behind the burglary and “Pamela” coming into my life has helped me realize it wasn’t personal to me, wasn’t anything to do with the house. I feel differently about being there now.’
