Elise could hear the red flags unfurling and snapping in the sea breeze.
Eleven
SATURDAY, AUGUST 24, 2019
Dee
Liam can’t sit still this lunchtime. He keeps going out to his van for something and coming back empty-handed. He’s obviously secretly checking his phone.
“For goodness’ sake, stop it!” I shout when he gets up again. “You’re driving me mad. I thought you had work to do?”
“It’s Saturday!”
“Well, some of us are still working. Who are you texting?”
“What do you mean? No one.” He holds up his hands to show they’re empty.
“Every time you go outside, I mean. Who is it?”
“No one.”
And he goes quiet again. He can sulk for days when he feels like it and I try to move us on.
“Have you heard Charlie Perry has gone missing?” I say, and Liam looks out the window.
“Has he? When?” he mutters.
“Last night. Pauline says she didn’t hear him come home.”
“She must have done, the state he was in.”
“He looked awful last night, didn’t he?”
“Yeah. I expect she’s pleased he’s gone off. She’s always saying he’s a waste of space, isn’t she?”
“I know. But she’s not happy. She was furious when I was up there this morning. She’s told the police he’s missing.”
“Seriously?” Liam snaps. “Bit of an overreaction, isn’t it?”
“I suppose. But maybe she really is worried? I don’t know. Did you talk to him last night? You said you were going to the other day.”
“Did I?”
He knows he did. The rent is due at the end of the month and he’s changed the password on his business account.
“About his unpaid bill, Liam. It’s been months since you finished the work.”
Liam shook his head. “No. He was too pissed. You saw what he was like.”
“Right. So what are we going to do? Will we be okay?”
“What? ’Course we will. I’ve got some work coming up, so stop nagging,” he says. “You are doing my head in.”
“I was just asking.”
“Well, don’t.”
“But we need to talk about money, love. About what we’re going to do long term, if your work doesn’t pick up. My cleaning money won’t be nearly enough to keep us afloat.”
“Leave it alone, Dee. It’ll be okay. Dave wants me to do a big job at the pub—he’s putting in an outside bar and renewing all the plumbing upstairs. Look, I’ll talk to him today.”
“You can’t—he’ll be at the hospital. Haven’t you heard anything from him about how Ade and Tracy are?”
“No.” He’s still not looking at me.
“Tracy’s dad and his friends will string up whoever gave them the drugs. They attacked Pete Diamond in front of the police this morning.”
“Bloody hell!” he says too loudly. “Look, I’m taking the dog out.”
I’m glad when he’s gone. He hadn’t looked me in the eye once while we were talking and it’d begun to unnerve me.
I watch him walking up the path. He nearly drops Misty’s lead as he answers the phone. “Hello, Dave,” I hear him say.
* * *
—
At the Neptune the door is locked and there’s a sign—Closed due to family emergency—but the lights are on. I knock just in case. I want only to know how Ade is, I tell myself.
Dave opens up and lets me in. He stands, arms hanging at his sides.
“How is he?” I say.
“The same,” he croaks.
“How can the bastards who were selling those drugs live with themselves?”
He doesn’t reply. Just stands there.
“Have you come home to pick up stuff for Ade?”
“No,” he says. “I couldn’t face seeing him like that. There was nothing I could do there except get on Doll’s nerves. I came back to get things sorted here. We could be up at the hospital for days.”
“Have you had anything to eat? Shall I make you something?” I say, and stroke his arm as I squeeze past him. “You need to keep your strength up, Dave.”
In the kitchen he watches while I slice cheese onto bread. I expect he’ll throw the sandwich away as soon as I leave.
The pub phone rings and makes us both jump. He doesn’t move, so I go and answer it for him.
“Hello, Doll,” I say, and her voice gets higher as she tells me the good news.