‘And do you think you’re adjusted now?’
‘I was getting there.’
‘Until you found the body this morning?’
‘Yes.’
‘So that’s why you were reluctant to come back round when I texted earlier?’
What’s one more lie, thinks Moira. ‘Yes, that’s why.’
Lizzie’s silent for a moment. Thinking. Then she nods. ‘I get it – the need to take a bit of time to get settled in. Life out here is very different to being in the UK. It can be a bit of a shock, especially if you’d not visited much before you moved. I’ve spoken to a few other Brits out here who’ve gone through feeling that, so I guess I do understand.’
‘Thanks,’ says Moira.
They sit for a moment in silence. The awkwardness remains, but at least the shouting has stopped. Moira isn’t convinced Lizzie truly believes her about Philip, but it’s a start. Still, Moira knows the risks are just as high. She can’t cut Lizzie out of her life. If she does, she might ignite the suspicions about her and Philip, and there’s a chance that’ll encourage Lizzie to try and find out more about her, and Moira doesn’t want that. She’ll have to keep Lizzie and Philip close. That way, maybe they won’t get curious. Right now, it seems the best play open to her.
Lizzie clears her throat. ‘You know, I wanted to live here because of the zero crime rate. But with the burglaries and now a murder it feels like we’re not safe any more.’
‘Sure.’ Moira doesn’t want to challenge Lizzie straight after the conversation they’ve just had – it feels like she needs to build their relationship up more before that – but she thinks Lizzie’s fooling herself. Nowhere is safe and a world with zero crime is a fantasy nirvana. Humans are hardwired to hurt each other.
Lizzie sighs. ‘I really wanted a rest from it all. The job was so all-consuming – all the pressure, and the long hours. Before he retired Philip seemed to have been suffering from fatigue for years, and I’m pretty sure the job was making it worse, although he refused to see that.’ She pauses, and seems to be looking to Moira for assurance, or understanding, or something.
Moira nods, but there’s something about the way Lizzie winced as she talked about Philip having a blind spot on the impact the job was having on his health that makes her think there’s more to the story than Lizzie’s letting on. ‘And you were happy to leave your job when he retired?’
‘I know I’m a bit younger, and had been a CSI for less time but, if I’m honest, I’d had enough.’ Lizzie shakes her head. ‘You see enough bad things, soon it’s hard to see the good in people. I didn’t want that to happen to me.’
‘What made you choose Florida?’
Lizzie smiles. ‘Philip’s always loved Disney. Funny I know, such a serious job and yet you take him to the parks and he’s like a little kid. We used to bring the children here every few years when they were growing up – it has such happy memories for us.’
‘I get that,’ says Moira. She’d learnt the hard way that if your work is all death and destruction you need a release – something that pulls you out of the carnage you see every day and into a more light-hearted place. She thinks of McCord, and the last conversation they’d had. Swallows down the emotions that immediately flare within her – pain, anger, sadness. She knows better than anyone that you need respite to stop you getting sucked into the darkness permanently.
‘When they told Philip he couldn’t go back to work after the heart attack, it hit him hard. They gave him the big send-off – retirement party, commemorative gifts, the works, but that almost made it worse.’ Lizzie starts fiddling with her rings again. ‘It was like he was grieving for the job. So I booked a big holiday for us – we came to Florida as a family and stayed at Disney, my eldest daughter’s little girls loved it. When the others flew home, Philip and I went on a mini-cruise around the Caribbean islands. Afterwards we stayed for a week at a lovely spa resort not far from here. We saw a flyer at the concierge desk for a wine-tasting event here on The Homestead, and decided to go along. When we came here we fell in love with the place.’