Page 115 of Last Breath

‘He wouldn’t have felt it.’

‘Oh well, that’s okay then.’ Jett shifted his stance. Tiny rocks crumbled beneath his shoes to the snapping ocean below.

‘The belt.’ Nella willed Sally to focus on her, not Jett. ‘You got that from Ian’s gym bag, didn’t you?’

Sally nodded. ‘Our angel must have made him leave it behind.’

‘And he came back for it, but you’d already left,’ Nella said. ‘Times of death are never specific enough, so the police bought your story that Clarkson was still alive when you left. If Ian went back to work within the hour, as long as there was enough time for Clarkson to allegedly hang himself between you leaving and Ian arriving, they had no reason to question you.’

But she should have questioned it. She should have known.

‘They’ve arrested Ian,’ she continued. ‘Was that all part of the plan?’

Sally nodded slowly. ‘I took Clarkson’s Boogie Board and I hid it in Ian’s house when I picked him up for the funeral. Just in case the police tried to pin the murder on you.’

She was practically panting at Nella, like a dog who’d placed a ball at her feet – ready to fetch or get a congratulatory scratch behind the ears.

‘What about Ariana?’ Nella fought to keep the accusation out of her voice. ‘Was that for me too?’

‘She’s a La Marca – she’s yourenemy. I didn’t want her to be strong enough to do anything silly on our trip. And then, when you slipped her that letter under her door, I was so, so angry that you wanted to be her friend. I’m not perfect Nella, I will admit that I was a bit jealous. But I knew you were upset and desperate, and once I thought it through, I realised you didn’t actually want Ariana to be your friend, you just needed her to get that footage. So I wrote a new letter. I copied your signature, and I told her that we’d keep poisoning her until she had no breath left unless she got it for us.’

‘Oh, Sally ...’

‘I did it all for you.’ There were real tears clouding Sally Sue’s blue contact lenses. The hand holding the gun was shaking now. ‘Please don’t be mad at me.’ She sounded like a child who’d drawn all over Nella’s white walls in red crayon.

‘I’m not mad,’ Nella said, inching towards her. ‘I’ve always wanted a friend like you. I’ve always wanted someone who would do anything for me, who’d love me even though I’m not always a good person.’ Another dash of spray on her cheek. Then another.

‘Really?’ Sally’s eyes were wide, tears pooling in her hollow cheeks.

‘Yes, Sally.’ Nella was right beside her now; she could smell the marshmallow perfume that she’d bought her as a Christmas present, could see the glint of her gold nose ring.

The water wasn’t sea spray. It was rain.

‘But I have someone just like that. And I can’t let you hurt him.’

‘What?’ It was the distraction she needed, the pull of the rug. Nella wrapped her hand around Sally’s cold fingers and shoved all her weight into the arm holding the gun.

But Sally’s finger was already on the trigger; despite her delusions, the scent of betrayal had been thick enough in the air. As Nella lunged, the gun went off.

40

Jett

Icy black sky.

Freezing swords slashed through Jett’s ribs, clogged his throat with salt and blood. Falling. Falling. It was space – empty, cold, soundless. No up or down. No light.

A face. Pale. Of course that was the last face he’d be left with as he drew his last breath.Of courseit was her.

It had always been her.

It wasn’t an addiction. It was something more.

Except her face wasn’t fading away. And there was something pushing him, pulling him up. Pain in his shoulder screamed through his whole body. But he couldn’t scream, because there was still no air.

But then there was. Glorious, salty, breathable air – he swallowed it all.

It was Nella’s face now – her real face, not the delusions of his final moments. Black hair plastered to her face, all her energy forcing his body to float. He wanted to float, but his body did not.