I look up. ‘What?’ And it dawns on me. This doesn’t just exist as a screenshot on Mel’s phone; this was in a Facebook group. For Christ’s sake. What if one of the parents happens to work at Sterling & Wicks? Would they put two and two together? And what about Holly? Will someone ask questions about the accident now it’s out there? Will the police get involved after all? And who else is Diana telling, now the post has been removed?
I’ve got to shut this down.
‘I’m going to call Mrs Ashford-Wells right now,’ I blurt, pulling my phone from my back pocket. ‘I’m going to tell her what I think of her antics.’
Mel leans forward and puts a hand on my phone. ‘Trust me, don’t call her now, you’ll only make it worse. Everyone is on your side.’
‘Everyone?Are you saying that the whole school has seen this?’
‘No. It was only up for a short while. Half an hour, maybe. But you need to go through the proper channels, Kate. Talk to Mike. Put in a formal complaint.’
A formal complaint. Immediately I think of Teri going to the police about Holly.I look up. ‘Do you know a lawyer?’
Mel recoils. ‘A lawyer? Why?’
‘Because… Because I’m going to sue the pants off Diana Ashford-Wells, that’s why.’ This doesn’t even make any sense, but at this point I don’t care.
I need to know where Holly stands regarding the accident. I need to know just how serious a threat Teri is. And if it turns out that Holly would be all right, just a little slap on the wrist maybe, then we could go to the police ourselves and tell them.By the way, we had a little accident, barely an accident actually, just that someone tripped in front of the car.
After I get rid of Max, obviously. If I ever manage to get rid of Max.
Then I could go to Teri and tell her, ‘You have nothing. They don’t care.’
Mel stands up and leaves the room. I hear her and Georgie’s voices somewhere out there, speaking in hushed tones. She reappears a few minutes later with a small torn piece of paper.
‘Her name is Penny Malik. She’s an old mate and she’s very good. She specialises in family law, so not necessarily whatyou’re looking for, but she’s very knowledgeable, and her firm does everything anyway.’
‘Do they do criminal law?’ I blurt.
She frowns at me. ‘Why?’
‘I don’t know. You never know.’
She gives me a small smile. ‘I hope you’re not planning to kill Diana Ashford-Wells.’
I stare at her blankly, too tired to even pretend to join in the joke.
She tilts her head. ‘So what’s going on, Kate? Are you really leaving?’
I stand, clutching the piece of paper in my hand, my stomach churning. ‘I’m really sorry. I can’t talk about this right now.’
‘Kate, wait.’
‘I’m sorry.’
I race out the door.
33
I stop on the bench outside the flower shop to gather myself. What the hell did I do to Mrs Ashford-Wells to deserve this? I didn’t reply to her emails in time. That’s it. I apologised, didn’t I? I can’t even remember. Did I apologise?
I rest my elbows on my knees and bury my face in my hands. I have to tell Holly before she finds out from someone else.I know this is a difficult time right now and you have a lot on your plate, but here’s this other thing.
‘Mrs Price? Are you okay?’
I look up. It’s Scarlett, in frayed denim shorts, white lace-up boots and a white crop top exposing her pale midriff with a ring in her belly button. We’re in the middle of November, for Christ’s sake. At least she’s wearing a denim jacket, even if it’s short and unbuttoned.
‘Hi, Scarlett.’ I stand and pull my bag further up my shoulder. ‘I’m all right, yes, of course. I was just thinking about what to make for dinner.’
