E.V. Seymour - Her Sister’s Secret

Glad to reach home, I escaped inside and closed the door on a world that I no longer recognised. Ugly. Dysfunctional. Desolate.

A wave of hunger grabbed my stomach and I realised I hadn’t eaten all day. Not really fussed, I browned a thick slice of bread in the toaster, smothered it with peanut butter and ate standing up, mindlessly viewing my accrued possessions. A sucker for old things, the interior was really an extension of the contents of the shop. Most people didn’t have a vaulting horse planted in their living room.

All set, my mobile rang from a number I didn’t recognise. Normally, I’d reject calls like this, but these were strange times and I answered it.

“Molly Napier?”

“Yes?”

“Rocco Noble.”

Rocco? The only other Rocco I’d heard of was Madonna and Guy Ritchie’s son. Noble, oh yeah, the client I should have phoned. Scrabbling, I said, “I owe you a huge apology. I should have got back sooner, but I’ve been overtaken by events.” I winced, mortified. What would Scarlet think if she knew I’d referred to her death as an ‘event’?

“All good, I hope,” he said cheerily. He had a nice voice, rich and low. I pegged him about my age, maybe a bit older.

“Actually, not. My sister was killed in a road accident this morning.” I cringed. How could I be so indiscreet and reveal something this personal to a stranger, in a business call, no less?

Judging by the stunned silence that followed, Mr Noble appeared to agree.

“Hello, you still there?” I said.

The unmistakable click that signals a caller hanging up asserted otherwise.

I stared long and hard at the screen. Screw you, I thought, weirdo.

“Your mother won’t come out of the bedroom.” Dad sat in the conservatory, hopeless and lonely. “How did Zach take it?”

“Upset. I’d hoped he’d come home but—” My voice died away.

“Zach is Zach. He’ll be here when he’s ready.” He stared blindly out of the window at the garden.

“Have you talked to the police?”

“I’ve put calls through to Roger Stanton, the SIO in charge.” Senior Investigating Officer. “Nothing yet. I phoned the garage where Scarlet rented the four-by-four and put them in the picture.”

“How did they take the news?”

“Someone’s death normally trumps business interests.”

“Of course.” I cleared my voice. “Will you be all right, only I thought I’d swing by Nate’s.” I couldn’t mislead my father, although I mentioned nothing about confidences. Didn’t breathe a word about my bad vibe concerning Zach either. Dad had more than enough to deal with.

“Tell Nate we plan to leave here about ten tomorrow.”

To lay flowers, I remembered, the prospect unnerving. “I’ll be there.”

“And if there is anything I can do for him,” he said, trailing off.

“I’ll let him know.” I kissed my dad’s cool cheek and turned to leave.

“Molly?”

“Yes?”

He tore his gaze away from the garden and looked up at me with solemn eyes. “Any news from Nate, about what happened, I’d be grateful to hear.”

I read disbelief and unease in his expression. While denial was entirely natural – I shared it too – Dad’s instinct, sixth sense, whatever you wanted to call it, mirrored my own. A tragic accident it might have been, but there had to be more to why Scarlet came off that road. If I were wrong, I’d be the first to gladly embrace it.

I pushed a smile. My father had no idea how committed I was.

Scarlet lived – had lived – off the trendy Bath Road in Leckhampton. The road was more congested than usual and the side streets chock full of cars. A tricky place for parking, I found a spot outside an electrician’s from where I walked around the corner.

As soon as I pushed open the gate, the front door cracked open. For a second, I imagined Scarlet standing there with a big warm smile and my heart caught in my rib cage.

“Hello, Nate.”

A million miles away from the mousse and moisturiser guy I knew, he stood on the threshold like a man who’d emerged from a war zone. His hair was lank, jaw dark. Against prison pallor, deep shadows loitered underneath his hangdog eyes. He looked as if he needed a blood transfusion. He wore an old T-shirt over three-quarter length shorts. Both had seen better days. He grabbed hold of me, and we squeezed the life out of each other. Eventually, he pulled away. “Drink?” From the smell on his breath, I guessed he’d already started and was probably halfway through a bottle of neat spirit. Couldn’t blame him.

“A small one. I’m driving, remember.”

For a second, he blanched as though I’d made a joke in appalling taste, and then seemed to pull himself together.

I followed him down the short hall to the heart of the house, a stylish kitchen diner and family room with WOW factor; Nate’s and dad’s first project. Helplessly, my eyes zeroed in on the white and grey noticeboard that Scarlet told me had cost a small fortune. A mini home office, it paraded invitations, reminders and recipes, most of it written in my sister’s organised handwriting. A sudden surge of tears threatened to catch me unawares. I bit down, choked it off.

“Wine or beer?” Nate said.

“Beer, please.”

Pulling up a bar stool, all cream and Italian leather, I sat down at the counter while Nate fixed my drink and topped up his own glass with whisky.

“What’s this?” I picked up a navy-blue folder with ‘Brake’ written on the front.

“A support pack. Someone dropped it off. As if that’s going to help.” Nate’s tone was bitter.

I nodded sympathetically, glanced around the room which, usually so tidy, was a mess. My expression must have given me away because he said, “I’ve been searching for the bracelet I gave Scarlet for Christmas.” Three carat diamonds set in gold; it had cost a small fortune. My sister had been knocked out when she discovered the price tag on-line. It had cost the thick end of four grand. As much as she loved it, she thought it too lavish, which was typical of her. Why the hell Nate was hunting for it at this precise moment beat me. For sentimental reasons, or something else? Except I couldn’t think what the ‘something else’ was.

“Turned the whole house upside down,” Nate complained.

I tried to mute any reaction to what seemed a strange obsession, given the circumstances. “Maybe she was wearing it.”

He rolled his eyes. “Not at work.”

“Want me to take a look?”

He hitched his shoulders in a ‘knock yourself out’ gesture.

I left Nate nursing his drink and stepped out into the narrow hall and up the tight staircase to the main bedroom. It felt weird walking around Scarlet’s home when she was no longer there in person, and there were reminders of her existence everywhere.

Nate had already searched Scarlet’s jewellery box, judging by the lid flipped open, but I dived in anyway. The contents consisted of earrings, a couple of dress rings and a charm bracelet Mum had given her when she was twenty-one. Much luck had it brought her, I thought stonily, as I turned my attention to the drawer beside her bed that disclosed nothing of importance. A rummage through the wardrobe yielded a similar result. The only marvel was how neat and tidy everything looked. Not a shoe out of place. Best clothes contained in those fancy covers you pick up from the dry cleaners. Everything reflected my sister’s ordered and tidy mind. If anyone was accident proof, she was. Or so I’d stupidly believed.

Back out on the short landing, I hung over the banister and called out to Nate.

“Did you check the spare bedroom?”

“Found nothing.”

“Mind if take a look?”