Page 33

‘Please. You don’t need to keep apologizing. I’m not holding you accountable. Iseeyou, Teri. I see what Angus has done to you. I know you’re not capable of hurting anyone, but I do want to know my brother’s whereabouts.’
‘Gabe, I don’tknow.’
‘And I understand that, I do, but you likely know something, even if you haven’t realized it. Something that might point me in the right direction.’
When Teri starts to respond, Gabriel holds up a hand. ‘Listen,’ he says. ‘I know you’re frightened. And I can understand why. But Angus is missing and I intend to find him – because my brother is all I have. And if he’s come to harm …’
Gabriel’s hand grips the sofa arm, crushing the bamboo. For a while, he cannot continue. He blows out his breath, tries to slow his heart. He knows through brutal experience what can happen when his blood is up. Gradually, the pulse in his ears surrenders to the whine of the leaf-blower. At last, it’s safe to continue. ‘You said you thought he was with someone Thursday night. Someone a lot younger. What made you say that?’
Teri scratches her cheek hard enough to leave track marks. ‘I sneaked a look at his phone. While he was in the shower.’
‘You saw messages between them?’
‘Uh-huh.’
‘This was on … Messenger? WhatsApp?
‘WhatsApp.’
‘You saw a photo?’
‘Yes.’
‘Can you describe her?’
‘I can’t … I mean, it was only a tiny picture. She … Well, she was pretty, obviously. Blonde hair. Eyes, I couldn’t say.’
‘You saw her contact details?’
‘I didn’t have time.’
‘You must have seen her name.’
‘It …’
Gabriel waits.
‘Barbie Girl.’
‘Barbie Girl?’
‘I think it was an alias.’
‘Teri,’ Gabriel says. ‘I think you’re probably right about that.’ He watches her frantic breathing for a while. Then he folds his hands in his lap. ‘You know what we’re going to do now? We’re going to rewind. Much earlier than the arrival of this new young thing who’s caused you all this misery. We’re going to talk about everything that’s been happening in Angus’s life – and yours – these past six months, every little detail. You’re going to tell me about his work, how he’s been spending his free time and where he’s been meeting these other women. Are you with me, Teri?’
She nods her head so furiously that in any other circumstances it might be amusing. But Gabriel senses that something serious has befallen his twin, and if that’s true there’ll be no room for laughter in this world. Only pain.
Teri talks. Gabriel listens. After an hour, they break forcoffee. While Teri, in the kitchen, presses buttons on a chrome-plated monstrosity that looks like it should run on aviation fuel, Gabriel checks the front of the house and sees that the Snow White Cleaning and Gardening van has gone.
Now, it’s just the two of them, in this enormous private space. Returning to the kitchen, watching Teri froth milk in an aluminium jug, he observes how girlishly she’s started to behave. It manifests in her body language, her diction, even the pitch of her voice. He’s astute enough to know it’s deliberate. Clearly, Teri thinks she’s most likely to illicit his sympathy by putting all her vulnerabilities on display, exaggerating them with a little play-acting.
Aware of her ploy, the resulting performance strikes him as coquettish rather than innocent; mildly perverse. Instead of eliciting empathy, it does the opposite.
He starts to question his earlier assumptions, his earlier reassurances:You don’t need to apologize. I’m not holding you accountable. Iseeyou, Teri. I see what Angus has done to you. I know you’re not capable of hurting anyone.
Maybe he was wrong about that. Maybe she’s a far better actor than he first thought. Maybe her bad acting is in itself an act. A cunning double bluff.
The atmosphere in the kitchen changes; the tension between them climbs several notches. When she turns towards him and knocks over one of the cups, spilling coffee across the quartz worktop, she blushes deeply and apologizes.