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‘Hannah?’ she says. ‘What’s going on?’
‘I’m sorry. I’m meeting someone near here shortly, and I wanted to stop by and see how you are. Is there anything you need?’
‘That’s kind of you. But that police liaison woman’s been helping with stuff. She’s not here again today, though. Thank goodness. I want my own space.’
‘That’s understandable,’ I say. ‘I was also wondering if you’ve seen or heard from Taylor since we were here yesterday?’
She pulls the door open to let me in. ‘No, I haven’t. But I did message him last night. I wanted to see if he’d come with me to Alice’s flat this morning. I can’t bear the thought of going alone. The police went through it all after they found her, and now I can’t stop picturing them rifling through her things, unpicking her whole life. Alice would have hated that. She was such a private person.’
‘I can imagine how hard it must be.’
Molly rubs at a smudge she’s noticed on the wall by the door. ‘Anyway, Taylor didn’t reply. And it looks like he hasn’t even read my message.’
Again, guilt threatens to drown me. ‘I’m sure he’ll reply,’ I say, unable to meet her eyes. ‘I could come with you? To Alice’s flat. If it would help you?’
Her eyes brighten, and I silently curse myself for lying to this woman. ‘That would be…yes, please. It would really help me.’
‘Would you like to go now?’ I ask.
‘Oh, are you sure? Don’t you have to meet someone?’
‘Actually, they messaged just as I got here to say they can’t meet now. So it looks like I’m free for a bit.’
‘Thank you. I’ll just get my bag,’ she says. ‘I always keep Alice’s spare key in there. Even after all these months when I’ve barely seen her. I just kept thinking, you never know when she might need it. Lock herself out or lose her key. You never knew with Alice. There was always some disaster or other.’ Her eyes well up, and I want to offer her words of comfort, but nothing I can say would help.
Instead, I nod and step back outside, leading Molly Hughes to my car. ‘I’m just there,’ I say.
‘No,’ she says. ‘I’ll drive my own car. Otherwise you’ll have to come all the way back here to drop me off. And you live in Putney, don’t you? Right near Alice.’ Her voice is quieter as she says this last part.
‘It’s no problem at all.’
‘You’re very kind. But you’re already doing enough by coming with me. I won’t have you being a taxi service too.’
All the way to Roehampton, I’ve wondered how it will feel to step inside Alice’s flat. I’ve prepared myself for every emotion: guilt, fear, anger. Even sadness.
What I’m not expecting is to feel numb as I step into her small flat. As though this isn’t happening. The first thing I notice is the stale smell. The unlived-in feel. It’s been two weeks since there was life inside this flat, and the whole place feels gutted.A body without a heart. Even though it’s still full of Alice’s belongings.
‘I need to open the windows,’ Molly says.
To the left of us is a large living room, with a dining table at one end and a large grey corner sofa in the other. Molly heads to the window and opens it. ‘I used to worry about Alice living on the ground floor. When she wanted to buy this place, I told her it wasn’t a good idea. I really tried to put her off. It’s not safe, I said. But she laughed. She said she would fight off anyone who tried to break into her home.’ Molly bursts into tears. ‘But she didn’t, did she? At that hotel. She couldn’t defend herself.’
I rush to Molly and put my arms around her. ‘I’m so sorry. Maybe she did fight back?’
‘If she even saw it coming.’
And that’s when the devastating sadness hits me. For the woman who slept with my husband. Not just once or twice, but for months.
Why would Max want you dead? Were you trying to help me? To stop him doing something to me?
‘Let me get all the windows open,’ I offer, when Molly loosens her hold. ‘We can close them when we leave, so the flat’s safe.’
‘Thanks,’ she says. ‘I can’t bear the thought of getting rid of her things. Everything she owned gone.’ She breaks down, burying her head in her hands and crying uncontrollably.
I take her hand and wait, silently fighting my guilt, hoping that I’m doing enough.
Most of the walls in here are white, but there’s a dark blue feature wall to the left of the window, and on it are hung framed inspirational quotes.Choose Happy. Dream. Inspire.Somehow, given what I’ve found out about Alice, it feels as though she probably never quite believed these messages she was trying to get her brain to absorb.
Molly holds up a bag. ‘I’m going to take a few of her things with me. To keep. So I’ve got something of hers.’
