Underneath (23 page)

I open my mouth to protest. ‘I did no such thing. I went to ask her to leave us alone.’

‘You can see the difficult position we are in, Mrs Lawler?’

‘I can see that psychotic idiots are allowed to get away with anything. What’s she got to do before you do anything to her? Murder me? What about her latest text where she’s threatening my husband?’

Niall looks shocked. ‘What text?’

‘It came at the same time as the police arrived.’ I ask the policeman to hand me the phone back and show Niall.

‘Does this mean split us up, or is it a death threat? I don’t think we should stay here tonight Lauren. We’ll get a cheap hotel.’

‘There’s no need to overreact, Mr Lawler. I’ll get someone to sit outside on surveillance tonight. Tomorrow you should fit the security camera your wife was telling me about. Hopefully we’ll have more news for you by then.’

‘I’ll feel better if someone can stay outside for the night,’ I say.

‘I’ll stay until ten, and then a colleague will be taking over my shift until six.’

‘I’ll be up by then to get things ready for school, so that’s great. Thank you.’

PC Sheldon stands up and opens the door to his colleague, indicating that it’s time to leave.

‘Right, we’ll leave you to it. We’ve got everything we need so feel free to tidy things up now, though you might want to take your own photos and keep items for the insurance company.’

‘Yes, we will do. I’m going to have to take tomorrow off work now to deal with the car insurance, house insurance and key damage to the other car. This is just unbelievable,’ says Niall.

‘I’m sorry I can’t do more. Please don’t visit Mrs Southwell while we investigate.’

‘But what about collecting my son from school?’

‘I’ll get the community bobby to stand with you. They often attend your school anyway. Goodnight to you both, and you Joe.’

‘Niall brings our double mattress down into the lounge and I throw a duvet on the sofa for Joe. Niall makes Joe a hot chocolate whilst I go upstairs and clear up my stuff the best I can. I strip off the beds and change the bedding as the room feels defiled, and I open the windows for a while, as if I can let the bad out into the night. I sweep and mop the floor and dry it. I’m out of breath with the flurry of evening activity. I drag the black sacks of ruined clothing and dump them on the bed in the spare room. I’m desperate to talk to Niall and can see the frustration in his face; we can’t speak freely in front of Joe.

At ten we’re all back in the living room, waiting for Joe to fall asleep. After chatting excitedly for a few minutes, with the novelty of us all being in one room, we tell him he needs to settle. We wait. Our eyes accustom to the dark and we see him begin to twitch. We know he’s dropped off enough to not be disturbed by our low murmurs.

‘I hope the police find something from the phone.’

‘What if they don’t, Lauren? They’re affecting Joe with all this now. He was scared to death tonight. What if I go and see Bettina’s mother?’

‘No. If we need to contact someone I’ll find a way to get in touch with Danny. He can ring her doctor and get her admitted. He’s the money to sort it.’

‘Well we’ve got to do something. I can’t just sit and take all this.’

I run my hand down his clenched jaw, stroking his face and trying to free it of tension. ‘We’ll sort it, somehow, we’re strong.’

I turn around and curl up into his body. He spoons protectively around me and if I open my eyes I can see Joe. ‘We’ll be alright. We’re a team.’

I was nervous about taking Joe to school with Tyler being there, but I saw Bettina’s mother dropping him off. She smiled as she passed us in the car, so was maybe unaware of what was going on between us. I was pleased to drive away from the school and stuck an old Sugababes CD in the player and turned it up loud, singing along to ‘Hole in the Head’ as loud as I could. When it finished I’d enjoyed singing along so much I pressed repeat. I had a few strange looks from drivers and passengers in other cars, but just smiled and carried on singing. Maybe I was verging on hysteria by then? Who knows?

I pull into Endcliffe Park’s car park near the coffee shop and find Monique already there. She gestures to the waitress and then gives me a hug, ‘I’ve already ordered, so it shouldn’t be long now.’

‘Thanks, I’m so ready for it.’

‘So how was your weekend away?’

‘Loved it. Just what I needed, time away from the psycho, except when I got back the house had been broken into, my clothes were shredded and all the jewellery’s gone. We had to phone the police.’

Monique’s mouth drops open. ‘What? Lo, oh my, that is sick, what did the police say?’

‘Looking at evidence, going to talk to her, will let us know. Anyway, if it’s okay with you can we talk about other things? I’m so fed up of thinking about it all.’

‘No problem. Let’s get this coffee quick, and then do you need to look for some new clothes?’

‘I was going to suggest we did that. I don’t have a lot left to wear.’

We wander around the shops and I find a couple of pairs of trousers and some tee shirts. They aren’t my Levis or j brands though, and I hope the insurance doesn’t take long to sort out. I know my attachment to clothes is a little pathetic, but it’s something to depend on. I feel naked without my nice things.

‘How are things with Dr Love?’ I ask.

‘Oh, we’re pretty much done there, I think.’ Monique carries on looking through the racks and holds up a silk khaki top. ‘That’ll suit you, try it on.’

‘Never worn that colour in my life. Won’t that cling round my bust? How come this one’s on his way out?’

‘Try it on, and then moan if it doesn’t look nice, which you know it will, cos I am a stylista extraordinaire. He’s started to bore me, and after the whole miscarriage thing, I’ve not been that interested in nookie, so his attention has waned somewhat. Anyway, I’m more than happy right now with my own company, and that of my fairy godfriend, Lo Lawler.’

‘Why thank you,’ I wave an imaginary wand. ‘You shall be rewarded with further coffee and a sprinkled donut from the new cake shop and cafe across the street.’

‘Lo! Cheating on your favourite coffee shop?’ Monique pretends to swoon, placing her hand across her brow.

I pout. ‘I’m just testing it out to see if the competition’s any good.’

‘Is that what you were doing with Seb?’

‘Ha ha, you’re funny you, aren’t ya?’

She rifles through some belts. ‘What’s happening with the eBay stuff?’

‘I’ve not heard anything yet. I have to use Niall’s laptop now. I’ve lost so much stuff.’

‘Are there any summer fetes coming up you could do?’

‘I don’t have any more booked. Anyway, I’ve lost my mojo with it at the moment. Until things are settled I’m forgetting about the business.’

Monique sighs. ‘She’s messed you up good and proper hasn’t she?’

‘She’s done exactly what she set out to do. Hopefully the police are on the case and she’ll stop now.’

‘I hope so Lo, cos if she does the same to your shoes and bags, I’m going to have a breakdown looking at the state of your clothes.’

‘It’s not my fault she only left me with my George specials. Anyway, at least they’re comfy.’

‘Please, stop, I’m only jesting. If only you were my size, I could lend you some of my things. I feel so helpless.’

‘You help just by being around Mon,’ I say. ‘Now come on. Donuts and sprinkles.’ I wave my imaginary wand again.

The community policewoman, PC Smith, is a young enthusiastic brunette with her hair tied back in a ponytail. She meets me at the bottom of the drive. She is on a bicycle, ‘Easier for getting around.’

She accompanies me to the Portakabin. All the other parents and carers try to look as if they aren’t staring, even though they couldn’t be more obvious if they tried. Once again its Bettina’s mother who is there to pick up Tyler, so I needn’t have worried. ‘We’ll be fine now,’ I tell PC Smith and she cycles away.

Joe comes out of school. ‘Mum. Mrs Sullivan wants to see you.’

I bet Joe’s mentioned something about the break in. We walk around to the school entrance and I press the buzzer. I walk in and report to the receptionist. She asks me to take a seat in the waiting room. There’s a box of baby toys in the corner that Joe starts playing with, despite the fact that they are years too young for him.

Mrs Sullivan appears from her office, dressed today in a black power suit with a white and black spotty blouse that reminds me of spilled ink. ‘Joe, are you okay to wait there? Mrs Tweedy will keep an eye on you.’ She beckons me into her office, a small room fitted with a glass partition that overlooks the school office and path to the dining room and classrooms. It’s fitted with a blind for privacy. She closes it and the door.

‘Mrs Lawler, please take a seat.’

I sit myself down on the blue fabric covered chair facing her as she takes a seat behind her desk. I feel like a pupil in trouble with the headmistress.

‘I have a couple of issues to talk to you about, the first I’m afraid, is that a complaint has been made about you.’

I sink into the seat. ‘What sort of complaint?’

‘I’ve received an anonymous letter that states that you have been having an affair with Mr Kingsley, and that some of it took place within the school building. As it’s anonymous, I am not going to go down any official route, but I need to know if it’s true?’

I sit up straight. ‘I would never cheat on my husband. And the only time I’ve spent with Mr Kingsley has been at the fair.’

‘That’s what he said, so your stories corroborate. What I’d like to know is why you think someone would send such a letter.’

I feel I have no choice but to fill her in with all the things that have been happening.

‘That must have put you and your husband under a terrible strain, but also brings me to the other thing I wished to talk to you about. I understand you and Mrs Southwell put on quite an exhibition last week.’

My face goes red. ‘I must apologise for that.’

‘Just…no repeats of it, please. I trust that your problems are now being handled by the police. I must ask you to act courteous and adult in the school grounds. You set an example to the children here; we cannot have parents fighting in the yard. If there are any further problems between you then you must come to me, and I’ll see what I can do. As there’s less than three weeks of the school left, I’m hoping we can manage until then?’

‘I’m sure it’ll be fine,’ I say, ‘thank you.’

I’m about to walk out of the door when I turn to her. ‘Seb Kingsley seems like a really nice guy. He deserves a good reference.’

She smiles a slow smile. ‘Thank you for that, it’s nice to hear, although I’m well aware of Mr Kingsley’s strengths and weaknesses.’

‘Sorry, I didn’t mean to tell you how to do your job.’

‘Oh, it’s not that,’ she says. ‘Seb is my son.’

Chapter 17

‘Seb is what?’ I walk back into the room and stand with my back to the door.

‘My son has spent much of his adult life wandering around the world, not quite knowing what to do with himself. He trained to be a teacher and it’s suited him, being able to move around, but with a vocation. I asked him to come here because he’d had a bad time of things lately and needed to get back on his feet. We agreed not to tell people that he was my son. I felt it would cause embarrassment for him, so please don’t say anything.’

‘I won’t mention it.’

She sighs in obvious relief. ‘I know he’s not a bad lad, but he does try and get by more on his charm than his intellect. I was hoping he’d leave that side of his personality aside working with me, but alas, it seems not.’

‘I think you’d be surprised. I got to know him a bit at the fair and I’d like to think I saw some of the real Seb, kind hearted and quite vulnerable. Yes, he could do with losing the ladies man patter, but I reckon in a couple more years he’ll settle down. I do believe he wants that, eventually.’

‘Well, time will tell I suppose. Anyway, I won’t keep you any longer, Lauren, you have your own lovely family to get back to.’

‘Yes I do,’ I smile. ‘There’s a lot of stress going on for us at the moment but at least we’re in it together.’ I walk over and shake her hand. ‘Thanks, Mrs Sullivan, and I promise to keep things away from the schoolyard.’

‘Appreciated.’

I collect Joe from the waiting room, thank Mrs Tweedy and we head home. Pleased to be back through the door, I kick my shoes off in the hallway and sag down onto the stairs as Joe goes running through to greet his dad. I hear a female voice and wonder if it’s the policewoman, so I put my slippers on and head into the room.

I am greeted with the sight of Bettina on the settee, looking pale, red eyed and dishevelled with a tissue in her hand. I look at her and she flinches.

I turn to my husband. ‘What is she doing here, Niall?’

‘I think you’d better sit down, Lauren, Bettina’s had quite a lot to tell me. Joe, Tyler’s in the dining room on the Xbox.’