Page 57 of A Murder is Going Down

Ben – of course – cracks open the driver’s side door and sticks his head out. ‘You guys okay?’

‘We’re fine, babe.’ Lilia looks pointedly at me. ‘Talk later,’ she says, which probably only sounds like a threat to me. Then she gets back in the car.

‘What was that about?’ Patrick asks as we go inside,where Aunty Sam’s cello is vibrating the house. The living room and kitchen are empty, so presumably Michael and Elena have fled this unofficial concert.

‘I don’t know,’ I say, honestly. ‘My head’s a mess.’

‘It was a lot,’ Patrick says. ‘I might go have a lie-down for a quick hundred years or so.’

‘At least we know Elena wasn’t having an affair,’ I say, trying to buck him up. ‘Not with Adam, anyway,’ I add, remembering that phone call I’d overheard Elena make. ‘She did tellsomeoneshe loved them.’

I go to the kettle and flick it on, while Patrick hovers. ‘What about Felix walking in on Haruto and Adam?’ he says. ‘What did you make of that?’

‘It feels like it should be significant. Felix uncovers this secret and then he’s dead, what, half an hour later. But it doesn’t feel like a super strong motive for murder.’

‘Does it sound like something Felix would have done, though?’

‘Which part?’

‘SayI’ll knock next timeand walk away?’

I take out two mugs and drop two of Lipton’s finest into them as the kettle starts to whine. ‘Maybe? If he knew Haruto was married, I don’t think he’d have felt obligated to tell his wife, if that’s what you mean. I think he would have enjoyed having a secret he could hold over someone.’

I wait for Patrick to ask something else, but he’s spaced out again, so I keep talking. ‘Both Adam and Sarah said Farnoosh was the only one who went outside. She didn’t come and get Haruto until after she’d spotted Felix in the water, so I don’t really see how Adam or Haruto could have slipped out without anyone noticing.’

Patrick nods, without saying anything. I’m still not convinced he’s listening.

‘Except Adam would have covered for Haruto,’ I say.

‘Uh huh.’

‘And Sarah would have covered for Farnoosh,’ I go on.

‘Right.’

‘Farnoosh had the opportunity, but why would she kill a guy she’d just met for the first time that night?’

I pause again, in case Patrick wants to take the opportunity to snap out of his funk, but all he does is nod. I suspect he has no idea what he’s agreeing with; I could be trying to get him into crypto and he’d sign away his life savings right now. Although Patrick’s life savings is probably, I don’t know, five pairs of shorts and two pairs of Wayfarers.

‘Do you think Adam really saw Aunty Sam outside Felix and Elena’s place?’ I ask. ‘It seems really weird that she would be there.’

Really weirdis underselling how much space this thought is taking up inside my brain – space that probablycould be used to understand quantum mechanics or the plot of a Christopher Nolan movie.

‘Hmm,’ Patrick says.

‘Patrick!’ I’m ready to throw his mug of tea at him as he reaches out to take it. ‘Am I boring you? You’ve said three words in the last ten minutes and one of them washmmm.’

Patrick rubs at his face with the hand that’s not holding the hot tea. ‘Sorry, I’m tired. I might go have that lie-down.’

I don’t think I believe him. Patrick doesn’t seem tired, he seemsoff. But I don’t say that as he slouches off with his tea towards the bedroom he’s sharing with Michael.

My phone beeps and Lilia’s name flashes up on the display. I should have blocked her and Ben forever the day they sat me down to tell me they’d been promoted toweand I’d been demoted to ame.

Lilia’s message says this:Ben deleted that message from Felix off his phone.

It takes me a moment and a sip of my tea to figure out what she’s talking about. I didn’t realise Lilia overheard the confrontation with Ben at his dad’s surgery over that message:Are you going to tell her?

I’ve also let new thoughts of an Elena–Felix fight and Aunty Sam’s secrets push that deeply weird message out of my mind.