Page 113 of The Dead Ex

‘That’s just it. The possibilities are endless. David had – I mean has – several enemies.’ Then she shakes herself. ‘Goodness knows why I’m telling you this. Just get on with some work, can you?’

But no one can concentrate. As one of the secretaries says, there doesn’t seem any point when everything is so uncertain. Not for me. I’ve already got what I came here for.

45

Vicki

My mouth is dry after so much talking. I take a slurp from the plastic beaker on the desk and glance up at the clock. I’m surprised one of the officers hasn’t knocked on the door to say it’s lunchtime. I’ll get a strike if I’m late. But my solicitor hasn’t finished yet.

‘I have to say that I hadn’t realized you were pregnant.’ My solicitor has a thoughtful expression on her face. ‘Whathappened …?’

Her question hangs in the air.

‘I can’t talk about it at the moment,’ I whisper.

There’s a sigh. ‘You’re not making it easy for me. As I said before, I need to know as much as possible. But all right. We’ll go back when you feel a bit stronger. Meanwhile, let’s go on to your theory that David was money laundering. When did you first have suspicions?’

I’d come back to the Kingstonhouse during a rare weekend off. I was nearly three months pregnant. I’d had that dragging ache at the bottom of my stomach which is apparently normal at this stage. It had been a tough week. A woman on B wing had thrown paint at another during the art class. The teacher had brought in her own materials (which wasn’t allowed, although they had somehowgot through security), and the oil paint hadstung the victim’s eyes. No long-term damage had been done, but her family had reported it. I’d had to suspend the teacher, which was a shame, as she had, until now, been a great asset.

Consequently I was tense. So, too, was my husband. Instead of asking me how the drive had been or how I was feeling, he announced that he had some ‘urgent papers’ which he needed me to sign.

‘What are they?’I asked.

‘Just to do with our investments.’

David and I had decided at the beginning of our marriage that we would each maintain our separate bank accounts. So the sudden mention of ‘our’ investments was a surprise.

‘I didn’t know we had any,’ I said, sitting down at the dining-room table to read through the papers he’d put in front of me.

‘I want to put something aside for the baby.’ As hespoke, he massaged my shoulders from behind. Mmmmm. ‘Couldn’t we do this in the morning?’ I suggested, leaning my head sideways against his arm.

‘I need to get this sorted.’

His hands stopped. His voice was abrupt. ‘It has to be sent off by tonight. Don’t you want to make sure that our baby is provided for?’

‘Of course.’ Keen to make the peace, I added, ‘It’s really thoughtful of you.’

‘Justsign here.’

‘I haven’t read it yet.’

‘There’s no need.’

‘Come on, David. You wouldn’t sign something unless you read it first.’

‘I would if you asked me to. Don’t you trust me?’

‘Sure.’ My eye had already scanned the first few paragraphs while we’d been talking. ‘You’re buying a house in the States for 3.4 million dollars?’ I was stunned. ‘I didn’t realize we had that kind of money.’

‘I’vedone a big deal at work. And it’s not just me that’s buying it. So are you. It’s got nothing to do with the company.’

So that’s why he needed my signature.

‘But I haven’t seen the house.’

‘You’ve hardly got time to come home, let alone go to the States. Anyway, it’s an investment, like I said.’

I was still reading. ‘You’re paying for it in cash?’