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Chapter 34
‘I’m afraid it was Maisie’s mother who robbed the shop,’ Ray said down the phone. ‘You were on the evening news. When Hannah saw that you’d been arrested, she called me and said she was turning herself in.’
‘I wasn’t an accessory,’ Lili said, as Hannah caught sight of her and mouthed, ‘I’m sorry,’ as they led her away.
‘Yes, Hannah told the police you had nothing to do with it. But she had a key, Lili. That’s why Reggie didn’t report it, as there wasn’t any sign of a break-in. It was only when Sarah visited the shop the next day and noticed things missing, along with the orchid, that the alarm was raised.’
‘What orchid?’
‘Joseph’s ghost orchid. It had bloomed. Joseph had his hip operation and was due home. He wanted to stop by the shop, so we thought it would be a delightful surprise if his prize orchid was there in the window.’
Lili frowned. ‘Well, that was dumb.’
‘Yes, in hindsight it was, but how were we to know the place would be robbed?’
Lili shook her head. ‘I sent her there to collect some of my belongings that I’d forgotten to take with me when I left – that was all.’
Now Lili had an idea why she had been arrested at the airport; Joseph’s prized orchid was worth six figures. ‘I don’t understand why she’d do such a thing. And believe me, she would have no idea how much the plant was worth.’ Lili guessed Hannah had seen the flower in the window and thought she’d give it to her best friend.
Lili frowned. That did not explain why Hannah had stolen Joseph’s antiques. Then she recalled the row she’d overheard between Hannah and Kyle; she was certain that they were having financial troubles.
She couldn’t believe what Hannah had done, taking advantage of her as she had. Had that been why she’d offered to collect Lili’s stuff in the first place? Maybe it hadn’t just been a chance to get out of the house. Had her plan all along been to steal from the shop?
Lili recalled how keen Hannah had been for her to take the next flight to Corfu. Now she understood; it was so she was as far away as possible when the theft was discovered, otherwise the police might trace her to their home.
Lili couldn’t believe that after all she had done for Hannah over the years, this was how she had repaid her. Something one of her friends had once said to her came to mind:Hannah needs to grow up and take responsibility for her own life, and that of her child.You’re not responsible for her. The day will come when you won’t be around to bail her out of trouble.
Thinking of Hannah being led away to a prison cell, Lili guessed that day had arrived.
Her heart suddenly sank.Maisie! ‘What about Maisie?!’ Lili exclaimed down the phone.
‘It’s okay, Lili, she’s with me. Well, she’s with her father at the moment.’
Lili thought she heard children’s voices in the background. She would bet that William was delighted to have his big half-sister back.
Ray added, ‘I’m up at the house too.’
Lili caught the police officer standing off to one side, pointing at the clock on the wall. Lili nodded in his direction. ‘Ray, I have to end the call soon.’ She paused before she added, ‘Nate does know it wasn’t me who stole from Joseph, doesn’t he?’ Now Lili understood why Ray hadn’t answered her texts or messages, and why Nate had seemed so angry with her over the phone when she’d called his number. It hadn’t been to do with Maisie; it had been over this. Until Hannah had come forward and confessed, they’d assumed it was her.
Ray replied, ‘Don’t worry, I’ve filled Nate in.’
‘Thank you, Ray.’ Not that Lili thought it would do any good. He’d still be mad at her.
‘What are your plans for after they release you?’
Lili thought of her friends who lived in London, her closest friends. She knew they would put her up while she figured things out. In hindsight, Lili wished she’d gone to them first instead of Hannah.
‘I know what you’re thinking, Lili,’ Ray said. ‘Listen to me. None of this is your fault. She would have screwed up whether you’d handed her the key to Joseph’s shop or not. If it wasn’t stealing from the antique shop, something else would have happened. It was on the cards.’
That was what her other friends had said.
‘You’re not responsible for Hannah – or Maisie.’
Lili sighed. That was what her friends had said, too.
‘You must think about yourself, Lili. By the way, how did your trip to Corfu go?’
Lili didn’t have time to get into that; not over the phone while standing in a police station. After what she’d discovered about his father-in-law, it was quite possible that Joseph and George had lived a lie since they’d returned to England after the war, taking the assumed names of two dead people. That was illegal.
