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Camay: WHAT HAVE YOU DONE YOU STUPID SELFISH WOMAN!!!
Chris: WHERE THE FUCK ARE YOU? HEADING HOME. MEET ME THERE.
She had to get away – now, away from the shouty capital-letter messages and the anger. Chris wouldn’t go back there alone. Camay would insist on being with him and Shauna wouldn’t miss the chance to stick the boot in. She couldn’t talk to him now. It would have to be later when the heat had cooled.
Stanley pulled up outside the house.
‘Will you be all right? Do you want me to wait around?’ he asked her.
‘I’ll be fine,’ she said. ‘Thank you. I will, really.’
The Barrett family could rock up at any minute; she couldn’t risk going in and grabbing more of her belongings.She had enough with her for now in the boot; she’d get the rest later if Chris wasn’t influenced by his daughter and sister to take it to the tip. They were just things, after all; it was more important she preserved herself.
Her fingers were shaking as they reached into her handbag for her keys. Thank goodness she’d followed the curious hunch to bring it. She opened the car door, slid into the driver’s seat, switched on the ignition and pressed the accelerator. The postcode for Shoresend had already been put in the satnav in readiness.
She was off.
In the 14 May ‘Focus on Slattercove churches’ edition, there was some unfortunate wording in the passage referring to St Mary’s in which we reported that ‘vicar’s wife Denise Holt made her own wine and is drunk at every communion service’. This of course should have read ‘witchis drunk at every communion service’. TheDaily Trumpethas made a sizeable donation to the church roof fun of St Mary’s and we apologise reservedly for any distress caused.
Chapter 14
Ward’s BMW rolled up outside the house five minutes after Polly’s car had left. Chris opened the door, calling ahead, convinced that Polly would be in there.
Camay, Ward, Will and Shauna followed behind.
‘Dad, sit down, you’ll give yourself a heart attack,’ said Shauna. She couldn’t wait to give Polly a piece of her mind. She’d never liked her, though she felt secure enough in her father’s affections not to feel jealous of her for any rivalry reason. In a row once, Will had said to her that Polly was a much nicer person than she could ever be, and intrinsically Shauna knew that. So it made her feel better to malign Polly at every available opportunity, none more fitting than now.
‘Yes, sit down, Christopher,’ agreed Camay. ‘I’ll put the kettle on.’
‘I think something stiffer might be in order. For shock,’ said Ward, spying the malt whisky on the work surface.
Shauna went upstairs, hoping to find Polly in tears perched on the bed, a sitting duck for a gobful of righteous vitriol, but no such luck. She checked the bathroom and the other bedrooms, then called down.
‘Dad, you better get up here.’
Chris headed upstairs to where his daughter was standing outside Polly’s room, the one with the table she’d put in there so she could do jigsaws. Camay followed, anxious to see what her niece had discovered.
Chris walked in to see all the boxes and cases piled up there.
‘Her wardrobes and drawers have been cleared,’ said Shauna, trying not to let the smile leak too much out of her lips. ‘I think we know now why she didn’t want to marry you, Dad.’
Camay’s hand flew up to her mouth.
‘Oh my god, she was leaving you, Christopher.’
Chris didn’t say anything for a few moments. His head was like a shaken snow globe.
‘Now, why do people usually leave their partners,’ said Shauna, being deliberately puckish.
She didn’t say the words,for someone else, but Chris heard them all the same.
Polly pulled up in a quiet country lane and changed into a pair of jeans, a top and trainers. There was a large bin nearby, for dog poo presumably. She stuffed the dress and the feathery headgear into a carrier bag and left it at the side hoping someone would be curious enough to check its contents and discover a designer frock that would fetch a pretty penny on eBay. It would be a shame if it didn’t happen but she couldn’t have that outfit in the car with her.
She caught sight of her still heavily made-up eyes in the rear-view mirror and saw the tiredness in them. There was no shine there at all, just two circles of dull brown. What a bloody mess. Just… why? Surely tomorrow wouldn’t have come as that much of a shock to Chris when she said they were over?
Maybe it would though, because he didn’t see things from her side, only his own. He didn’t know her at all; he hadn’t even really tried to get to know her either. A relationship should be about two people creating a life together, not one deciding for them both and expecting the other to be compliant – this wedding epitomised everything. She’d fitted in with his plans all along and maybe, in doing so, she’d reaped what she sowed. Maybe in trying to be easy to live with she’d made a rod for her own back. Then again, maybe if she’d been with someone who was considerate, who saw her as a person and not an extension of himself, he’d have taken the time to find out whatherneeds were too.
What were they all saying about her at the house, she wondered? How many pieces had she been ripped into? She pulled her thoughts away from second-guessing what was happening behind her back and screwed her concentration to the road.
