AllFreeNovel
Share Us
What do you mean?
You know what I mean. You’re in my head. You know everything, apparently. The crash.
There was no answer.
Claire?
I don’t want to talk about it, Claire’s voice replied.It’s in the past. Let’s just leave it.
But Carrie couldn’t just leave it. She’d failed Claire, and then Claire had died and she’d never had a chance to say she was sorry.
‘And that’s part of what’s eating me alive,’ Carrie said, out loud. ‘I failed you, Claire. And I’m sorry.’
There was no answer.
‘I’m sorry. I’m so sorry, Claire.’ Carrie’s voice broke, and she started to sob. ‘Please forgive me.’
But, for once, her sister’s voice was silent.
TWENTY
I need a hand at the vegetable supplier today – don’t suppose you’re free? Can pay you extra of course.
Carrie looked at her phone, reading the text from Rory. She’d just got out of the shower and was towelling her hair dry when she saw the phone light up.
She was surprised to hear from him, given that they’d left things in a slightly uncomfortable place the night before.
Nothing happened, really, Carrie thought.Except for the fact that we had a little argument.
Lovers’ tiff,Claire’s voice interrupted her.
Oh, shut up, Carrie thought. She looked at the text message again. This would be a trip in a car, most likely, and Carrie still wasn’t that great in cars. It wasn’t so bad if she drove, but she wasn’t sure how she’d be with someone else at the wheel. The idea of it brought her out in a cold sweat. She wouldn’t be in control. And that terrified her.
You have to be able to get in a car with someone else, Claire’s voice told her sternly.What happened with me was a freak accident.
I know, but I can’t help the way I feel, Carrie responded.
You have to try, Claire’s voice told her.Be brave.
Carrie didn’t want to be brave. She wanted to hide away in Gretchen’s cottage forever and pretend the past months hadn’t happened. But she knew she couldn’t do that.
She tapped out a reply before she could think too much about it.
Happy to. What time?
She pressed send. There.That was her, being fearless. Her stomach twisted with tension, but there was a kind of wild freedom there too. I did it.
In an hour? I’ll pick you up in the car, he replied, immediately.
Okay, she replied, her heart thrumming in her chest.
Brave girl, Claire said.
* * *
‘Morning. Thanks for this.’ Rory leaned over and opened the passenger door to his black jeep, pushing a pile of papers off the seat and onto the floor.
‘No problem,’ Carrie lied, her heart beating so hard that she thought Rory might hear it. ‘I could do with the extra money, and I had the time free.’ She stepped into the jeep gingerly and sat down. ‘Don’t you want all these?’ She leaned forward and gathered some of the papers in her hand, offering them to him.
