‘Wesley said Jay was so worried about the tourism going down, and nobody visiting Stafferbury that he perpetuated the myths about the strange goings-on around here,’ says Dale. ‘There were recordings on Jay’s phone of a child crying.’
‘Wait! So that child crying I heard? That was just some kind of recording?’
Dale purses his mouth and nods.
‘I heard it on the night I was attacked.’
‘Wesley has admitted to attacking you and playing the recording. He said he never meant to hurt you. Jay wanted him to scare you away so that you’d talk about the supernatural elements of Stafferbury in your podcast. I think he was hoping you’d not focus so much on the crash. Jay always got someone else to do his dirty work. He was a bit of a father figure to Wesley by all accounts, especially in the last few years. He admitted to the dead birds too.’
‘God.’ I let this information digest and curdle in my stomach.
‘I think on one hand Jay wanted you around to report on the myths and legends in order to boost tourism, but on the other he didn’t want you to find out what was really going on with the drugs ring and the girls’ disappearance.’
I touch the back of my head where I was struck. I’d had a lucky escape.
Dale rubs his stubble. He looks exhausted with shadows under his eyes, his hair even messier than usual. ‘God, this has been a case and a half. I need a holiday.’
I suddenly think of something. ‘Can I be the one to tell Brenda?’
He chuckles. ‘Sure. I need to get back to work anyway. Another day, another caseload.’ He stands up and I follow suit. There is a moment of awkwardness and our eyes lock. ‘Thank you, Jenna. I’ve enjoyed you being here, having someone to chat to about all this.’ He pulls me into his arms and hugs me tightly. I’m so surprised I inhale sharply, breathing in his musky scent. I hug him back.
We stay like that for a moment before I pull away. ‘You’ll keep an eye on Olivia, won’t you? I’m worried about her.’
‘I promise,’ he says.
I follow him to the door and watch as he walks to his car. Before getting in he turns to me, his expression pensive, and then he folds himself into the driver’s seat.
As I wave him off a lump forms in my throat.
An hour and a half later, my bags are packed into the boot of my Audi and the keys posted through the letter box. I wonder what will happen to Knapton Developments. I stand outside, looking up at the cabin, my heart heavy. I’ve updated my editor, Layla, who was beyond excited when she heard I’d have a conclusion to the podcast after all. After Dale left earlier I’d gone to see Brenda and told her everything. She’d stared at me in wide-eyed surprise as I recounted it all, her hands to her face as I told her about how Jay chased me with a knife.
‘I can die happy now,’ Brenda had said, as she showed me out. ‘I was worried I’d never find out what happened to them.’
It’s a relief to be leaving even if I will miss Olivia and, if I’m honest with myself, Dale too. As I get behind the wheel and drive slowly away I bid a silent farewell to the cabin in the forest where so much has happened.
As I turn onto the Devil’s Corridor and away from Stafferbury, the heavens open. And I don’t know if it’s the misty rain causing my mind to see things that aren’t there, but in my rear-view mirror I’m sure I see the shape of a hooded figure standing in the road.
Epilogue
Three months later
The room is noisy with the hum of excitable chatter and it smells of vegetables and bad breath. The guard shows Olivia to where her mother is sitting behind a table and gives her instructions on not touching or getting too close.
‘Thank you for coming.’ Her mother looks up with haunted eyes. Olivia thinks she seems well, considering. Her grey hair is longer and is tied back at the base of her neck, making her appear older but her eyes tell a different story. They are mirrors of grief and horror and loneliness. ‘I didn’t think you would visit,’ she says.
It had taken her a while to agree to her mother’s request. But now she feels ready, although she avoids her gaze as she pulls out a plastic chair. She can’t start feeling sorry for her now. As she sits down she casts her eye around the room where more than a dozen other interactions between the female inmates and their loved ones are taking place.
‘I’m so sorry.’ Her mother’s voice cracks. ‘I’m sorry for what I did and for never telling you, for letting you wonder about your friends for all these years. I hid it all, the business with Jay, the drugs, everything because I didn’t want to implicate you or drag you into the murky world I found myself in. I was angry that Jay had recruited Wesley.’
But Olivia doesn’t want to talk about that. She doesn’t want to hear excuses. She’s tried to get on with her life in Stafferbury. It hasn’t been easy but she’s getting through it. She’s finally grown up and is standing on her own two feet.
They fall silent, although Olivia can see the barely suppressed emotion behind her mother’s rictus smile.
‘The stables are doing well,’ Olivia says, to break the tension. ‘Jay got what he wanted with the tourism. It’s thriving since the truth came out.’
At the mention of Jay her mother’s face falls and she looks down at her hands.
‘I’ve employed a yard manager,’ Olivia continues. ‘A woman around my age called Violet. She’s a bit of a loner too. No husband or kids. She’s been a lifeline, and has become a good friend. And I have a proper accountant now to do the books. And two part-time helpers who come and muck out the horses.’
Her mother looks up. ‘How did you find the money?’
Thankfully, the riding stables had been run legitimately, so the police didn’t seize it after the drugs ring was broken. ‘I’ve begun renting one of the outbuildings as an Airbnb. Borrowed some money from the bank.’
‘I’m proud of you,’ she says softly, her eyes sparkling.
Olivia swallows the lump in her throat. She hardens herself. ‘Have you heard about Wesley?’
Her mother shakes her head.
‘He’s got twelve years. He admitted to theft and drug-dealing and possession of class-A substances. He’s got away with what he did to me, though.’
‘I’m sorry I got him so wrong. I thought he was your Gatsby.’
‘Oh, for fuck’s sake, Mum,’ Olivia hisses, causing her mother to shrink back in her seat, like she’s been slapped. ‘Why do you still hold on to all these ridiculous romantic notions? You do know what happened to Gatsby, don’t you?’
‘Of course I do. I’ve read the book enough times.’
Olivia gives a hollow laugh. ‘It sounds like John-Paul was more your Gatsby. Look what you did to him.’
‘Please don’t be bitter, Olivia. I want you to find love.’
‘Well, I don’t want it, thanks very much.’ She takes a deep breath. She doesn’t want to argue. She’s getting on with her life and she’s happy. Sort of. She’s got a new friend in Violet and she keeps in touch with Jenna. It’s more than she deserves. She tries not to resent her mother. She still loves her, despite everything.