Page 35 of The Good Girl

Chapter Thirty-Four

Magda had never liked silence. When she arrived at the Lassiter home that morning, key in hand and rucksack laden with groceries, sighing when she saw a fresh bouquet on the porch, she paused on the step and exhaled.

The house loomed before her, still and before she even stepped inside she sensed the overbearing presence of mourning.

She turned and stood for a moment, taking it all in.

They’d been leaving the double gates open during the day because it was easier than answering the intercom when a florist or neighbour dropped off flowers and in some cases, food, which Magda took as a personal insult.

Did they not know she was the one responsible for feeding the family and didn’t need help in that department?

Erik had chastised her gently when she’d grumbled about it and she knew he was right, but this was her domain, and the family her responsibility.

Talking of responsibility, the garden needed attention.

Weeds had begun to stake their claim between the paving slabs.

The box hedges were untrimmed. It felt like no one had breathed life into the place since Julia’s passing.

She would give the gardener a call and tell him it was okay to come round.

He was probably being respectful but Julia took pride in her home and Magda would not let it go to rack and ruin.

She let herself in and quietly shut the door behind her. The once vibrant home felt subdued. Even the soft creak of her shoes on the marble sounded like an intrusion into their grief.

Without removing her denim jacket, she moved towards the kitchen and placed the flowers on the counter.

These weren’t lilies, thank goodness. Instead some kind soul had chosen a bright and colourful arrangement that would bring a smile to anyone’s face, even in such dreadful circumstances.

A small gesture. A whisper of beauty. The roses were partially opened, their rich scent already filling the air that was stale from whatever the family had eaten the night before.

Presuming he was out – his car was missing from the driveway – and the girls were still in bed or hiding in their rooms, she set to work immediately and started by opening the bi-fold doors that led to the garden.

She never had to ask what needed doing: it came to her like muscle memory.

This had been her second home for so many years.

She had been here through birthdays, tantrums, breakups, and funerals. And now, another loomed.

The fridge was full of half-eaten meals and expired milk.

She took off her jacket and hung it in the utility room and after donning her overall, began to remove the containers one by one, wrinkling her nose and trying not to dwell on how long it had been since anyone had prepared a proper meal.

She tossed out wilted greens and set the bin out to be emptied.

Then she rolled up her sleeves and got to work.

Wiping surfaces was mechanical. It helped. The scent of pine cleaner mixed with that of the flowers. She replaced the sponge on the sink and laid out a fresh dish towel. These small actions, these rituals of care, grounded her. They brought order.

Moving from room to room like a breeze, she fluffed pillows, folded throws, straightened picture frames. In the lounge, she smoothed the blanket draped over Dee’s favourite armchair, where the child had once curled up with books bigger than her lap. Still, no one stirred.

Upstairs, the greatest challenge awaited as she hesitated outside the doorway to Julia’s suite.

Nobody had been up there since the paramedics and forensic team had left – not to her knowledge anyway.

Gathering strength from a gulp of air, she opened the door and climbed the stairs, trying not to think about the day she’d had to, no, wanted to scrub the blood that told a terrible story.

She’d seen it as an honour, to be the one to put things back in order because Julia would’ve hated the mess, and for the girls to be distressed by it.

Reaching the top she stood on the threshold and took in the room.

It was such a beautiful, luxurious space, Julia’s safe haven.

Moving through the lounge area to the bedroom she saw the bed was untouched since she’d last made it up.

In the bathroom the bath still held the water Julia must have run before…

Pulling out the plug, she then straightened the row of L’Occitane bottles, Julia’s favourite brand containing body lotion, shower gel and shampoo.

Magda’s heart sank knowing she’d never have to perform these tasks again for her dear friend and banished the next, not allowing in the thought that he might move up here. That would be sacrilege.

She returned to the bedroom, each movement slow as she stripped the bed linens gently, folding the duvet as though Julia were merely away on a trip. The sheets smelled faintly of her perfume. Magda’s hands trembled as she bundled them into the laundry bag and headed downstairs.

It was as she passed the corridor that led to Molly’s room, the door firmly shut, that her mind began to wander to another time when she’d found things that bothered her to this day.

The socks and bobble, and the pills. Not that she’d ever mentioned them, though.

Being a good housekeeper meant being discreet and Magda prided herself on being exemplary in that area.

Continuing down the stairs, her attention turned to lunch and making the family, well, the ones she liked, something fresh to eat, now she’d chucked all that donated rubbish away.

Mid-morning, Nancy appeared, fresh-faced from a walk with Dee, the teenager trailing behind her like a tired puppy.

By the looks of her peaky complexion, the fresh air had done nothing to revitalise her.

Her hair was unbrushed, tucked into the collar of her jacket.

She walked with her hands in her pockets, shoulders hunched, and did not make eye contact.

Magda was wiping the hallway mirror when Nancy appeared beside her.

‘You didn’t have to come,’ Nancy said softly, enveloping her in a hug.

Magda shook her head. ‘I did. This house needs looking after. So do you and those girls and I like to keep busy, and your sister would want me to have it looking nice for you all.’

Nancy nodded, her eyes shining. She looked tired beneath the smile, less composed than usual. She placed a hand briefly on Magda’s shoulder. ‘Thank you. Really. And it’s so good to see you.’

They stood in silence for a moment. Then Nancy said, wiping away a tear, ‘Shall we have a cup of tea? I’ll stick the kettle on.’

In the kitchen, over two steaming mugs, they sat at the table. Magda had told Nancy about the visit from the two detectives. She’d seen them heading off as she came up the road.

‘I’ll ask Molly when she comes down. Let’s give her another hour in case she’s sleeping, then I’ll wake her for lunch.

’ She took a sip of her tea, lost in thought for a second before saying, ‘I keep thinking Julia will walk in, and she’ll complain about the traffic in the village or tell us off for leaving our mugs in the sink. ’

Magda smiled faintly. ‘She would. Julia liked everything just so.’

‘She was a perfectionist.’ Nancy smiled as she spoke.

Magda nodded, lips pressing together. ‘She was strong, too, and loyal and kind.’

Nancy nodded. ‘She was all those things and more which makes her leaving us even harder. You know, Magda, I keep thinking about what happened that night. And what might have happened before. Julia told me she was unhappy and she was scared of how Shane would react to a divorce.’

Magda looked down at her tea and wished she didn’t have to be involved in these conversations.

Nancy leaned forward. ‘Do you think he pushed her?’

Magda didn’t answer immediately. Her face was unreadable. She turned her mug slowly in her hands. ‘I think she might have been a bit drunk… she had been drinking more than usual but it was not for me to say this to her, and now I wish I had,’ she said eventually.

‘It seems to me she was really unhappy and was trying to numb the pain.’

Magda nodded. ‘I think so, too. That night will stay in my mind forever, you know. I was already worried by the way he acted earlier, totally blanking us and his face… you could tell he was in a bad mood. Later, when I came back for my phone, the fact I could hear him from down here tells you how mad he was. I’d heard them shouting at each other before, but this was different.

There was big anger in his voice, different to the times when they’d rowed about him staying out too late or leaving beer bottles in the garden. ’

Nancy inhaled sharply. ‘It doesn’t surprise me, that she’d been drinking.

I would if I was married to him, that’s for sure.

But what I don’t get is how he knew she was planning to divorce him.

She wouldn’t have told him because we’d planned it all so meticulously, for after her trip to the States with Molly and when he’d taken Dee to Paris.

She didn’t want to ruin anything for the girls so I know without a doubt she wouldn’t have told him, which means he found out somehow. ’

Magda met her gaze. ‘I think he is like the snake. I think he is a man who likes control and he’s always creeping about, snooping.

I’ve caught him before, in Julia’s study rummaging about in her drawers.

Once he said he was looking for a stapler.

I ask you. Who uses one of those these days?

And he is very secretive where his own stuff is concerned. ’

Nancy furrowed her brows. ‘What do you mean?’

There was a long pause. Outside, the breeze stirred the wind chimes near the back door, and they clinked like cutlery in a drawer.

‘Well… in his room, he has a metal box, like one of those you put money in, but bigger, and it has a screen and a digital code.’ Suddenly Magda realised she was breaking one of her own rules, but then again it was about him so did it count? No.

But just in case. ‘I don’t want you to think I am being the nosey person, because I am not.

I respect the privacy of the family and being housekeeper is a position of great trust, but anyway, I saw it just once.

He keeps it in his wardrobe and on that day, when I took up his laundry he had left the door of his wardrobe open slightly.

I never go into their personal spaces. I always leave their laundry on the bed, so when I saw the open door I went to close it and spotted it, the box, on the shelf. ’

Nancy leaned forward, lowering her voice. ‘That’s odd, and weird, because as you know, Julia has a safe in the study, for all their jewellery and passports, things like that. Ronnie’s things are in there, she told me, you know, just in case. So why would Shane have a separate one?’

Magda nodded. ‘I am thinking the same thing. I know about the safe because Julia showed it to me. I am official keyholder for the house so if they were ever broken into while they are away, the police will call me. It’s behind the Vettriano painting, of the blue car.

It was Ronnie’s favourite.’ At this, Magda welled up.

Ronnie would always be dear to her heart.

Nancy smiled and reached over, squeezing Magda’s free hand. ‘It was, and I’m glad Julia had you to confide in and support her. She trusted you so much and it made being away a lot easier for me.’

‘Thank you. That means a lot to me, and my Erik, because he keeps his eyes on things at ClearGlass. We would have done anything for her and Ronnie and that’s why I want to stay close by and watch over the girls, but I am worried that he will try to get rid of me.

There is no love lost between us and I expect he will sack me as soon as he can. ’

‘Don’t you worry about that, Magda. I’ll make sure he’s out of here as soon as the will is read, after the funeral.

And if he won’t go, I will stay here and piss him off so much he will give in and bugger off.

I have stacks of leave owed to me, and compassionate leave too, so between us, me and you will sort him out once and for all.

’ Nancy winked at Magda, a wicked smile brightening up her pretty face and the day.

Nancy’s words had lifted Magda no end, as did her smile which was a rare thing at the moment, and for the first time she didn’t feel quite so worried or alone, confident that together she and Nancy would see Shane off.

‘How do you think the girls will cope, if he gets his marching orders?’ Nancy asked.

Magda’s voice dropped, aware that Molly and Dee were around.

‘They’ve both become attached to him over the years, Dee the most. Molly gets on with him well but is more independent.

Maybe they will want him to stay, for security, or because they need a parental figure in their lives.

I don’t know how they will feel about him leaving and this house is too big for them on their own.

But with you here all the time, and me during the day, I think they will be fine. ’

Nancy’s hand went to her mouth. ‘It’s like they are under his spell, isn’t it?’

‘Unfortunately, yes,’ Magda said. ‘Dee is besotted with him.’

‘Then there’s only one thing for it. I’ll have to come home permanently and look after them.

Hopefully Molly can still take her place at Princeton, if not this year, maybe next.

And Dee can get on with her GCSEs. I can’t leave them to fend for themselves, can I?

I know you’ll be here during the day but they’ll need support for a long time after this. ’

Magda’s mind was running riot imagining Nancy giving up her home and job in Canada, and what if there was a lover, what would they think?

She knew Nancy had never found ‘the one’ and according to Julia she put her career before affairs of the heart but still, it was a selfless act she was considering.

Magda had to ask. ‘Would you really do that, for the girls? Give up your whole life for them. Isn’t there anyone special in Canada, someone you would miss if you came home?’

Without hesitation, Nancy replied, ‘It’s a no-brainer, Magda.

The girls are more special than anyone in my life and if they need a mother figure to help them through the next few months and years, then I will gladly sacrifice my world for theirs.

It’s my duty and what Julia would expect, and I won’t let her or the girls down. ’

‘And I will help. I will be by your side. I promise.’ Magda reached out and took Nancy’s hand in hers, knowing that her other worries would disappear and could stay silent, once Shane was history.

Amidst the sorrow and confusion, wrapped up in her doubts and suspicions Magda allowed herself to relax a notch. Put away the bad thoughts for now and focus on helping Nancy to get rid of that awful man, one way or another.