Page 46 of Three Widows

Orla’s cheeks coloured. ‘I’d like to know why you’re asking these questions.’

‘Did you know she’d quit?’

A loud crash sounded from somewhere inside the cottage, and Lottie jumped.

Orla smiled. ‘It’s the radiators. The ancient boiler and piping needs replacing. Whenever the heat kicks in, it’s like a bomb going off.’

‘I thought it might be your pet,’ Boyd said.

‘What pet?’

‘I’m sorry, I must have picked Helena up wrong.’

A shadow crept over her eyes before she brightened. ‘Ah, I think I know what she meant. They were talking about their pet dogs, and I said I had a cat just to be sociable.’

Lottie wasn’t convinced by her recovery. If she could lie about a pet, what else might she lie about?

‘So you created an imaginary pet. What else did you talk about last night?’ she said. There was something going on behind those eyes and she’d love to know what it was.

Orla’s face hardened. ‘The more we drank, the more they went on about their kids and dead husbands. I felt a little excluded, as I have neither.’

‘Do you not believe your husband is dead?’

‘I don’t know what to believe,’ she said earnestly. ‘I wish I knew one way or the other, and then I could get my life back on track.’

‘You still joined a group for widows, though?’ Lottie said.

‘It’s not exclusive to widows. Look at the details on the Facebook page. Life After Loss, it’s called. It’s for divorced or separated women as well.’

‘But you aren’t any of those.’

‘My husband is missing. They didn’t turn me away.’

‘Can you offer any explanation for Éilis disappearing?’

‘Wherever she is, it has nothing to do with me.’

‘Still, your husband disappeared and now a woman you know has dis—’

‘How dare you!’ Orla stood up abruptly, causing the chair to skid backwards and the clothes that were hanging on the back of it to fall to the floor.

‘It’s okay, Orla. Sit down, please,’ Boyd said, patting the table like she was an upset puppy.

Without a glance at Lottie, she picked up the clothes and sat, bundling them up on her knee.

‘Did you hear about the woman who was found dead on waste ground this morning?’ Lottie said, lowering her tone a little.

‘Oh God, it’s not Éilis, is it?’

‘No, but it is someone you both knew. Jennifer O’Loughlin.’

Orla’s face showed its first real emotion. She looked stricken and terrified as she dumped the clothes on the table and began wrapping the sleeve of a blouse around her hand. ‘It can’t be Jennifer. She must be on holiday or somewhere.’ Her skin turned deathly pale. ‘Do you think I’m in danger?’

‘Do you think that?’

‘It’s just… I don’t know. Éilis is missing. Tyler is missing. And you’re saying Jennifer is dead.’

‘Did you ever feel threatened because you’d joined the group?’