Page 42 of The Good Girl

Chapter Forty-One

Molly had waited up late for Nancy to get home, but her granddad wasn’t well and Gran and Aunty Betty were in a flap and wanting to ring an ambulance, so in the end Nancy stayed over to keep an eye on all of them.

But Molly couldn’t hold it in, not until morning.

The stuff Harley had told her was like toxic waste poisoning her blood and she had to get it out so, in a series of back-and-forth text messages, she’d told Nancy the whole sordid story.

In between administering cups of tea and assuring her mum and Aunty Betty that they did not need to sit in A&E for twelve hours, Nancy called Molly and in hushed tones they dissected Harley’s situation.

As Molly hoped, Nancy was going to make damn sure the torment ended.

The children’s playground was nearly empty save for a toddler swinging in slow arcs while his mother scrolled through her phone and pushed him from behind.

Beyond the low fence, benches dotted the curve of the pathway.

Molly sat shivering on one, her floral dress catching on the morning breeze, making her glad she’d worn her denim jacket.

Nancy joined her a few moments later, carrying two takeaway coffees from a food truck nearby.

She passed one to Molly without a word and sat down, leaving a small gap between them.

Neither of them had an appetite for food and the park seemed as good a place as any to talk.

They sat in silence for a few sips, their thoughts elsewhere, maybe shared, thinking of the will reading later.

That was one of the reasons they were there, away from the house so that Nancy could divulge whatever it was she’d been holding in, a secret that had direct bearing on whatever the solicitor was going to say. And to talk about Harley.

‘What do you think we should do about Harley? We have to get Shane off her back even if it means I give her the money to repay him, then he won’t have a financial hold over her.’ Molly would transfer the money that day if necessary and give Harley written proof that it was a gift.

Nancy sighed. ‘There are plenty of options open to us, either via the company and HR, by dealing directly with Shane and confronting him and as you say, giving her the money to pay him back. We’ll sort out the Harley thing another day but for now, there are more urgent matters we need to discuss.’

Molly turned slightly to look at her aunt. ‘That all sounded very official. This is about Mum and the will, isn’t it? And whatever was on her mind before she died because I know something was, and it’s to do with Shane.’

At that Nancy inhaled, as though the mere mention of his name angered her.

‘I know you think I’ve been acting weird, holding off the will reading until after the funeral but in my own way, I’ve been protecting you and Dee.

I knew you couldn’t take another tsunami and frankly, I don’t think I could’ve dealt with one either on top of losing your mum.

We’ve all been through the mill which is why I needed to talk to you alone.

Somewhere private. Without the prospect of Shane or Dee interrupting. ’

Molly nodded. ‘I understand.’

‘At least Magda can keep an eye on Dee while we’re out. That woman is a saint.’

‘I agree. She’s been wonderful, hasn’t she?’ Molly took a sip of coffee. It was still too hot, and it scalded her tongue but it was Nancy’s stalling that pained her more.

‘ He’s gone to work,’ she said, almost to herself. ‘Like everything’s normal. Like we didn’t just bury my mother.’

Nancy said nothing.

‘By all accounts,’ Molly went on, her tone laced with disbelief, ‘he’s acting like he owns ClearGlass.’

Again, silence.

Molly looked over. ‘You don’t look surprised.’

‘I’m not.’

‘Why?’

Nancy set her coffee down on the bench. She rubbed her hands together, then exhaled through her nose.

‘Because your mother saw it coming, that one day he’d back her into a corner and try to ruin her or the company, or both, if he didn’t get his way, and I think he knows he’s running out of options,’ she said softly.

Molly’s breath caught. ‘I need to ask you something,’ she said, turning to Nancy. ‘And I need you to be honest with me.’

Nancy looked at her warily.

‘What were you and Mum planning? Did she tell you why the marriage turned sour? Was it just the age gap or… was there more?’

Nancy hesitated. Her throat worked. Molly could feel the tension radiating from her.

‘Please,’ Molly pressed, ‘I need to know and that’s why we’re here, isn’t it?’

Nancy lowered her eyes. ‘I’m in a terrible position, Molly. There are things you don’t know. Things your mother kept secret. Things she always knew might come out one day.’

Molly’s heart began to pound. She’d been waiting for this, ever since she’d overheard her mum on the phone to Nancy.

She remembered every word – ‘We’ve come this far so we just have to hang on, then once she’s gone he can do what he wants.

And I’m so done with secrets. If she finds out, so be it.

Me and you can deal with it together and explain it all to her. ’

‘Secrets?’

Nancy nodded slowly. ‘Yes. Things me and your mum kept from the family for a long time.’

‘What secrets?’ Molly asked, the words barely audible.

Nancy turned to face her. Her eyes were glassy with tears. She reached out, took Molly’s hand. ‘Secrets about you.’

Molly’s body went cold. ‘Me?’

‘Your mother was going to tell you. In time. But the right time never came. And now… now it falls to me.’

Molly tried to speak but nothing came out.

Nancy squeezed her hand. ‘She didn’t want it to be like this. In fact she never wanted you to know and if you did, to be older and certainly not when you’re drowning in grief.’

‘What are you talking about?’

Nancy looked away. The breeze picked up and scattered leaves at their feet.

‘It goes back to before Shane. Before ClearGlass. Before your father died.’

Molly stared at her. Breath held.

‘Your mother and I,’ Nancy began slowly, ‘we made a pact and stuck to it.’

‘A pact?’ Molly whispered as her hands trembled. ‘About me?’

Nancy nodded and suddenly the past, the present, the future became a mish-mash of panic and terror as she waited for whatever Nancy hadn’t yet said.

The secret. About her. And suddenly, Molly wasn’t sure she wanted to know.

The day had got too warm and the playground echoed with an innocent child’s laughter. And beside her, Nancy wept.