The Dead Dog Day (24 page)

She stopped and chuckled as Adam and Harry snorted with laughter.

‘You're funny, Cora,' giggled Harry.

‘And you're very cute,' Cora replied honestly. He really was a sweet boy.

She turned back to Adam. ‘Now I've shared a telly story, how about you sharing some police knowledge?'

She paused, wondering how far to push it, then decided to go for it. They were getting on so well that it seemed to be worth a try.

‘Jeanette's murder – why have you been talking to Scott so much? Scott Edson? Can you tell me anything?'

Adam's smile faded. ‘Cora, I'm really sorry but I can't. We've had our reasons, that's all I can say. Sorry.'

Cora suddenly felt a little sick and pushed the remains of her cake to one side. ‘But you haven't charged him. And you said there was more than one suspect …?'

Adam shrugged. ‘I can't comment further at this stage. Sorry.'

Cora nodded and started crushing bits of cake with her teaspoon, wishing she hadn't brought the case up.

‘So, to change the subject …' Adam hesitated. ‘How well do you know that blonde newsreader – Alice? Alice Lomas?'

Cora looked up, surprised.

Adam took another sip of his drink. ‘Just interested,' he said casually. ‘She seems like a bit of a character.'

Cora grimaced. ‘That's one word for her, I suppose.'

She paused, aware that she was sounding rather nasty. ‘Well, what I mean is that she's not exactly … popular. None of us are quite sure why she's here. Jeanette gave her an amazing job that, to be honest, she's not really cut out for, but instead of being grateful for it she's kind of horrible to everyone all the time. Even more so now that Jeanette's dead. Although we think that might be because she's scared she might lose her job now, because nobody else really rates her.'

‘Could be that, yes.' Adam smiled.

Cora smiled back, and for a long moment their eyes locked. Again, her stomach lurched. Oh for goodness' sake. She stood up so suddenly that Harry jumped, startled, and nearly knocked over his milk. He grabbed it with a sturdy little hand and steadied it just in time.

‘Oh, sorry! I just need to go – it was a very early start and I have a busy weekend ahead, got to squeeze in an afternoon nap before tonight if I can.'

‘Of course, don't worry. Well, it's been very nice. We must do this again sometime – you know, if you have time.'

Cora felt herself blushing. ‘That would be great, yes.'

She dragged her eyes reluctantly away from Adam. ‘And lovely to meet you, young man. You'll have to lend me that Superman comic sometime, I'm a bit of a fan too.'

Harry beamed. ‘I will.'

‘OK, well – bye then.'

‘Bye, Cora.'

She shrugged her coat on and made her way out of the café, turning at the door to wave self-consciously. Adam raised his hand and Harry waved wildly, making her laugh again. Still grinning, she stepped out into the February gloom and was marching happily along the busy South Bank when yet again she got the sudden feeling somebody was following her. She stopped abruptly and turned, but the street was so busy with scurrying pedestrians that it was impossible to tell if anyone was paying her any particular attention.

‘Oh, don't be ridiculous!' she berated herself, and forgot about it. And feeling ridiculously and unexpectedly chirpy for a Friday morning, she headed for the car park and home.

Inside the café, Adam urged Harry to hurry up and finish his pastry and stared out of the window, lost in thought. He'd felt strangely disappointed at Cora's admission that she didn't want children, though quite why that should have any relevance to him he wasn't sure. There was definitely a mutual attraction there, he was sure of that, but she had a boyfriend, and that was that. But what she'd said about Alice – interesting. He contemplated for a moment. Maybe Cora was right – the newsreader was simply scared of losing her job. It might explain her behaviour, he supposed. Being upset wasn't a crime, after all.

‘Daddy? I'm finished, look.'

Harry peered up at him, large sticky crumbs all over his chin. Adam grabbed a napkin and started to scrub, his son giggling and wiggling. Right, Adam thought. It's the weekend, I'm off, no more work till Monday. And he resolutely pushed Jeanette Kendrick out of his mind and concentrated on cleaning Danish pastry off the face he loved most in all the world.

35

Saturday 3
^rd
February

In the cosy little pub that was one of Cora's favourite Cheltenham haunts, she downed the remains of her third gin and slimline tonic and raised her eyes heavenward as Rosie and Nicole bombarded her with questions about Benjamin.

‘It's about darn time we met him for ourselves, Cora,' Nicole declared, and took a large mouthful of red wine. She banged the almost empty glass down on the long wooden table decisively. ‘You need to get him to come down here for a change – it's always you rushing off to London to see him. Make him do the running!'

Rosie nodded her agreement. ‘It
would
be nice to meet him, Cora.'

‘We
have
talked about him coming down here – it's just that there's so much more to do in London, and I'm often there on a Friday anyway so it's just been easier,' Cora argued feebly.

‘Nonsense.' Nicole was having none of it. ‘We're your best friends, we need to meet him. Sort it out, girl,' she said firmly, wagging her finger in Cora's face.

‘Stop it! Alright, you win, I'll invite him down. Now stop wagging and start drinking!'

Nicole smiled victoriously and took another big gulp of wine. She was a drink behind the others, having been called out on some sort of veterinary emergency involving a pig and an ulcer – Rosie and Cora had quickly declined their friend's offer to fill them in on all the gory details.

Rosie sipped her orange juice and grimaced. ‘Ugh. I'm so done with babies after this one. Being in a pub when you're pregnant is so utterly boring.'

Cora rubbed her arm sympathetically. ‘At least you don't get the hangovers.'

‘True.' Rosie sighed and then brightened up. ‘Come on – make me laugh. Any mad fan to tell us about? Have you got your very own stalker yet?'

‘No – thank goodness. Although …' she paused. ‘OK, you're going to think this is weird and tell me I'm imagining it, but I have had a sort of feeling a few times recently that someone was watching me. I even caught a glimpse once, when I was with Benjamin.'

Rosie and Nicole leaned towards her simultaneously, agog. ‘Really? Wow. That's a bit creepy. What exactly have you seen?' asked Nicole.

Cora counted off the incidents on her fingers. ‘Well, first there was a sort of – well, shadow at the gate outside the apartment. I just had a feeling somebody was out there. That last night you two were round actually, when I was waving you off.'

‘I didn't see anything,' said Nicole. She looked at Rosie, who shook her head.

‘OK, well maybe I imagined that one,' Cora said, feeling a little better. ‘Then there was the night I went to Hakkasan with Benjamin. There was definitely someone following us down the street – I turned round and saw them slip into a doorway.'

‘Paparazzi,' Rosie and Nicole said together, and they all laughed.

‘Yes, that's what I thought. But why hide – they're not usually shy!'

Nicole shrugged. ‘Don't know then. Bit odd, I suppose. What else?'

‘Well, I sort of thought somebody had been in my flat – there was a drawer half open, and I'm sure I didn't leave it like that. Although I probably did imagine that one – there was absolutely no sign of a break-in or anything. And then yesterday, when I was leaving the Media Café – you know, when I had a drink with the police officer and his son? I just had a feeling, again, that someone was there.'

‘Did you see anything that time?' Nicole was looking a little sceptical.

‘Well – no.' She paused, remembering something that had struck her as a little odd as she drove out of London. ‘Although, there was a navy blue car that I thought was following me for a bit on the way home. But then it turned off, so it probably wasn't.'

Cora was starting to feel a little bit silly. Last night she'd even started convincing herself that maybe Justin had returned and was following her, after his last slightly threatening message. Now, saying it all out loud to her friends, she realised she was more than likely getting herself in a state over nothing at all.

Rosie patted her hand. ‘I think you're just overtired, Cora. Lack of sleep can do strange things to your brain. Trust me, I'm the mother of two small children, I know what I'm talking about. After Alexander was born I barely slept for the first month – thought there was somebody outside chucking marbles at the window one night and spent a good five minutes screaming at them to stop, until poor Alistair managed to convince me it was just a freak hailstorm.'

Nicole and Cora hooted.

‘Oh, I'm sure you're right. I'll stop being stupid. Who'd want to stalk me, anyway? Delusions of grandeur, that's what it is. Right – who's for another drink?'

‘Anything but orange juice,' grinned Rosie.

Nicole waved her now drained glass. ‘Wine. More wine. LOTS of wine.'

Cora gave her the thumbs up sign and wriggled out from behind the table. She pushed her way gingerly through the crowd by the bar, trying to avoid being drenched by a group of rowdy but harmless twenty-something lads who seemed to be celebrating a birthday by vigorously waving their pints in the air and singing tunelessly.

‘Sorry, love – go ahead,' one of them slurred politely, stepping unsteadily backwards to let her pass. She glanced up to thank him and was struck by his lovely green eyes, albeit in a face flushed with alcohol and accompanied by distinctly beery breath.

‘Thanks,' she smiled, and instantly thought of Adam. His eyes. They were so striking …

‘And here I go again!' she berated herself as she leaned on the bar, trying to avoid soaking her sleeve in a puddle of lager. She waved at the barman and he gestured that he'd be with her next. As she waited, she puzzled over why Adam was creeping into her thoughts at all. She had a yummy boyfriend who was perfect for her. She loved him, she really did, despite their relationship being so young. And she truly believed that he loved her too. They had quickly developed a deep connection, something she had never expected when she'd first agreed to go out with him. It was wonderful. So why on earth was she thinking about someone she barely knew – and someone who had a child, to boot?

‘Ridiculous,' she said out loud, then, ‘Oh – a gin and slimline, a large glass of Shiraz, and a pineapple juice, please,' as the barman looked at her quizzically.

Two hours later, Rosie and Cora waved Nicole off in her taxi and then walked arm in arm to the corner of Rosie's road where they parted ways.

‘Are you sure you're OK, walking the last bit on your own, Little Miss Pregnant?' Cora squeezed her friend's shoulder affectionately.

‘Of course! You be careful too – and get some sleep, you look knackered!' Rosie stood on tiptoe and pecked Cora on the cheek.

‘OK – talk to you tomorrow – it was fun!'

‘Yes, it was!' Rosie turned and blew a kiss then walked slowly off, the orange beam of the streetlights giving her coppery hair a fiery glow as she ambled the few yards to her front door. Cora watched her for a moment then huddled further into her fake fur jacket and headed for home, shivering. Roll on spring! This weather was really getting rather tedious now, she thought, wishing she'd remembered her gloves.

Five minutes later, she gratefully turned into her driveway, fumbling in her bag for her door key, which promptly slipped through her numb fingers onto the gravel. As she crouched to pick it up, she heard a noise behind her. Turning sharply, she caught a glimpse of a white trainer disappearing into the shadows beyond the gatepost.

‘Oi!' Suddenly angry, she ran to the gate. Down the street, a figure was running, dodging the few people who were braving the chilly night. Moments later, he – or she, Cora couldn't tell – vanished round the corner. Breathing heavily, as if she'd been running herself, Cora leaned against the gatepost. So she'd been right. There WAS somebody following her. But who? And why? Could it be Justin? Was it just an obsessed fan? Trembling from more than just the cold now, she stumbled towards the door and let herself in with shaking hands.

Once locked and double-locked inside her apartment, she sank onto the sofa, clutching a cushion. Adam, she thought. I'll tell Adam. He'll know what to do. And she took herself off to bed and fell into an uneasy sleep, dreaming of shadowy running figures chasing small boys with piercing green eyes.

36

Monday 5
^th
February

‘The guy's never been faithful in his life. Anyone who goes out with him needs her head examined,' hissed Alice in a stage whisper, disdainfully shutting the latest
Hello
and dropping it on the floor.

Across the make-up room, Cora gripped the arms of her chair and clamped her lips shut.

‘I will NOT rise to it. Ignore her, ignore her, ignore her …' she chanted under her breath.

It was pretty obvious who Alice was talking about – she'd been poring over the six-page Benjamin Boland spread in her magazine for the past five minutes, muttering bitchily to poor Ben her make-up artist at a level clearly designed for Cora to hear, even over the hum of hairdryers and the chatter of the show's guests as they prepared to go on air. As Sam had predicted, the newsreader had clearly bounced straight back into nasty mode already. Ben caught Cora's eye in the mirror and grimaced apologetically, and she shook her head and smiled. Looking relieved, he continued teasing Alice's thick hair into gentle curls. He yanked the comb a little roughly through a knotty strand and Alice jumped.