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“Which is?” I’m staggered by this news and so relieved I didn’t even realise how anxious I was.
“That we call by one night for dinner and, well…”
“What?”
She seems a little embarrassed and says quickly, “It appears they thought the whole thing was such fun when it had time to sink in. They couldn’t believe we had the audacity to go through with it and apparently, they are not averse to a few fun and games themselves and they decided it may be fun to swap.”
“I can’t believe what I’m hearing, and say weakly, “Swap! You don’t mean…”
“Yes, I do.” She takes a swig of her coffee and grins. “They said we should pool our ideas and swap stories. It will be such a fun evening, especially when I relay my prison diaries.”
“Your what? All two days of it, you mean.”
She shrugs. “Two days may as well be a month when you’re in prison. The stories I could tell you, my dear sister, but I won’t.”
“Why not?”
“Because what happens in Bronzefield stays in Bronzefield. It’s the code.”
“The code? What are you, a pirate now?”
I stare at her in incredulous disbelief, and she pretends to zip her mouth shut and mumbles, “I will never tell.”
“But you just said you were telling the people who put you there in the first place.”
“Because they’reinvolved.” She rolls her eyes. “Anyway, I don’t suppose you are up for a bit of babysitting duty on Christmas Eve. We had to promise them we’d spare them a few hours then.”
“Christmas Eve! Couldn’t you say no? After all, you do have children.”
“It was either that or spend Christmas in prison. I think you’ll agree we made the right choice.”
“Fine. But don’t go doing more than conversation. I know what these people can be like.”
“Of course.” She turns away and I note the sudden flush spreading around her neck and my heart sinks. Great, my sister has now officially fallen down the rabbit hole and I’m the idiot left to pick up the pieces again.
CHAPTER38
ROBERT
Despite my grandfather’s anger, the board meeting was a great success, largely because of the vintage champagne I ordered and the healthy dividend they can expect in their bank by the morning.
My grandfather went off to lunch with his close friend Albert Grimes, leaving me to wait for Jessica like a teenage boy with his first crush.
On the dot of one, she strides into my office with a grave look on her face and my heart sinks.
“Is everything ok?”
“I’m not sure.”
She shrugs out of her padded coat and tosses it on the chair beside her and fixes me with a worried stare.
“I took a call from my superior on the way over.”
“You’re needed back at the station?”
My heart sinks and I feel the depression circling.
“Not yet.”
