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His longing for Nicole has become a physical pain, emanating from his chest, from the exact place where his heart is, and radiating out. It’s worse than his head pain, worse than anything else he’s ever experienced.
‘Can you take me to A&E?’ he asks. ‘Can you get Nicole? Please?’
‘Sorry,’ Olly says. ‘But I don’t drive.’
Frowning hurts, but Tom can’t help it because he thinks that’s a lie. He’s seen Olly driving, hasn’t he? ‘Can you get Sasha or try to call Nicole?’ he asks. ‘My phone’s dead.’
‘I don’t have my phone with me. Where did the man go?’
‘I don’t know,’ Tom says. ‘I told him the security cameras were filming him. Maybe he ran off because of that. Or because he saw you. But you know, it was a lie. The cameras are broken. I broke the system. Do you hear that? The opera? I can’t turn it off. But I was talking to him then I fell over and I think I blacked out and next thing I know I’m lying here with you. I need Nicole.’ He tries to stand.
‘Whoah,’ Olly says. ‘Careful. We should get you inside. Here. Let me help.’
Tom feels his hands on him, bony and insistent. What a terrible day this has been. Perhaps it’s to counter all the good fortune he’s had. ‘I’m a lucky man,’ he tells Olly.
‘Yes, you are.’
He feels Olly steering him towards the house. He’s so unsteady on his feet that he wants to give the pool a wide berth.
‘What time is Nicole getting back?’ Olly asks.
‘I don’t know. I’ve been waiting for her. Maybe a quarter of an hour.’ He’s slurring his words again. He has to say the sentence twice for it to be comprehensible. Olly puts a hand in the small of Tom’s back to guide him and pushes Tom a little hard, towards the pool. Tom stumbles. ‘Hey,’ he says. ‘Careful. I said careful.’
They walk a few more steps. Tom’s vision fills with the beautiful pool water, all the gorgeous shades of turquoise and aquamarine, the foliage around it dancing with wildlife, those psychedelic red dragonflies, and the play of the sunshine on its surface.
They stand beside the pool together, Tom supported by Olly. His symptoms steady and he finds a moment of clarity. ‘What are you doing here?’ he asks.
69
FRIDAY
Olly
Olly sits in his study. Anna lied to him outright about her journal earlier and it’s difficult to suppress his anger at her, but he must focus.
He’s rehearsing what he and Sasha have agreed that he’ll say to Patrick. They’re going to try to do a deal with him, tell him that they can’t possibly get him £10K now, but if he can be patient, the rewards will be much greater in a few months’ time. He might even be able to get the Maserati if he’s willing to be very patient.
It’s a risky strategy. They decided not to tell him that they have Nicole’s wealth in their sights because that would complicate things. It relies on Patrick not questioning how they will deliver but believing they’re capable of it. If he agrees, it buys them time to decide exactly what they’re going to do about him. Time is what they need. They need the press and police to leave andattention to be diverted somewhere else, away from the peninsula. Then, they can make a move on Patrick. And Anna.
Patrick raps sharply on Olly’s study window as it’s getting dark. Olly indicates that Patrick should meet him by the small porch where they spoke this morning. He unlocks the door and lets Patrick in.
‘How are you?’ he says.
‘Have you got my money?’
‘Why don’t you come in? We can have a chat.’
‘No chat. I want my money.’
Olly peers outside. ‘There’s been a drone buzzing around this evening because, as I’m sure you’re aware, the press are gathering, desperate for a story. Do you want to be seen?’ He holds the door open a little wider. ‘Come in. You won’t regret it. I have a proposition for you and it’s a good one.’
Patrick enters cautiously, clearly suspicious. He ducks to pass through the low doorway. Olly shows him into his study. ‘Do you mind if Sasha, my partner, joins us?’ he asks. Patrick shrugs and Olly beckons to Sasha who’s watching from the shadows at the end of the hall. The soles of her shoes squeak on the flagstones as she enters the room.
They sit, Olly and Sasha opposite Patrick. Patrick looks dishevelled. He has a backpack with him and a duffel bag. Olly suspects he slept rough last night.
‘I just want my money,’ Patrick says.
Olly smiles. ‘Here’s the thing. Have you heard of the Stanford marshmallow experiment?’
