Body & Soul by John Harvey

Author:John Harvey
Language: eng
Format: epub
Tags: Epub3
ISBN: 9781681779386
Publisher: Pegasus Books
Published: 2018-08-18T00:00:00+00:00

28

Vicki was midway through a storming version of ‘Tain’t Nobody’s Business’ when Elder felt the phone in his pocket begin to vibrate. Outside it was drizzling rain and he sheltered under the archway above the pub entrance while he took the call. Katherine’s voice was faltering, weak, broken by small choking sobs.

‘All right,’ Elder said. ‘Just tell me, where are you now?’

‘At home.’

‘At the flat?’

‘Yes.’

‘And is there anyone there with you?’

‘Chrissy. And Stelina.’

‘And all of this happened when?’

‘This afternoon. Late this afternoon.’

He fought back the urge to ask why on earth she hadn’t called him before.

‘Listen, sweetheart, try not to worry. Get some rest. Sleep if you can. I’ll be there first thing tomorrow. And don’t worry, okay? Try not to, at least.’

‘All right. If you’re sure.’

‘Of course. Of course I am. And just let me have a quick word with Stelina, okay? I’ll see you first thing and we’ll get all this sorted.’

After a few confused moments, Stelina came on the line. Elder asked her to make sure any pills, ibuprofen, paracetamol, anything stronger, were shut away where his daughter couldn’t get at them. Any alcohol. Anything sharp. Keep watch, you and Chrissy between you, it’s important.

Stelina assured him she would. They both would. Abike, too.

Elder broke the connection. For a moment he thought about going back inside to explain to Vicki, then thought better of it; he’d phone her later. Right now he needed to make sure he was in time for the overnight train.

Once he was on his way, he called Joanne and alerted her to what had happened. He didn’t think it was anything too serious, but he thought she should know all the same. It sounded to him like a fishing expedition on the part of the police and not a whole lot more. Anything more serious and Katherine would have been charged and placed under arrest. From what she had said it seemed as though they were trying to make connections, hoping things would fall into place. He would go in to the police station tomorrow, speak to whoever was in charge and sort things out. Let her know how he got on, good news or bad. If there was anything she could do. And he’d be sure to give her love to Katherine, of course.

He closed his eyes.

Slept fitfully.

At Paddington, he paid to take a shower, bought a bacon sandwich and coffee from one of the few places he could find open, then took the Tube to Highbury and Islington via Oxford Circus and from there the overground to Dalston Junction.

When Stelina let him in it was still not yet properly light.

Katherine was sleeping with one finger in the corner of her mouth, her other hand clutching at her hair. Careful not to wake her, he lowered himself to the floor beside the bed and sat there listening to the faint sounds of her breathing and watching the quick, occasional tremor of her eyelids as she slept.

Hadley realised she’d read the document on the screen three times without ever fully taking it in, her mind, part of it at least, elsewhere.

Download

Copyright Disclaimer:
This site does not store any files on its server. We only index and link to content provided by other sites. Please contact the content providers to delete copyright contents if any and email us, we'll remove relevant links or contents immediately.