The Publicist by Natalie Tambini

Author:Natalie Tambini [Natalie Tambini]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Tags: Fiction, Thrillers, Domestic, Suspense, Women, Family Life, Marriage & Divorce, Psychological, General
ISBN: 9780008588564
Google: JHq1EAAAQBAJ
Publisher: HarperCollins UK
Published: 2023-08-17T23:00:00+00:00

Chapter Fifteen

LOLA

I’m in the office bright and early, catching up on emails. A small group of paparazzi are huddled outside, probably hoping Sam will show up, or he’ll be found dead and they’ll want pictures of me, sobbing. Either way, it’s a chilly, drizzly day and I need them onside so I’ve sent them a delivery from Costa. Lattes all round and some chocolate cookies.

Olivia’s already in and is making us both a coffee.

‘Did those pics appear of April at the Ivy?’ Olivia asks. ‘I can’t see them on the Mirror site.’

‘No. April’s been texting me this morning, moaning there were no paps outside when she got there. I tipped off that new guy, Jim L. Useless fucker. He could have made a few quid out of that.’

‘Jim L? The Aussie? He wasn’t outside this morning. That’s strange. He’s been there constantly since Sam went missing. I think he’s obsessed with him.’

‘What makes you say that?’

‘Well, he took that shot of Tyler arriving in Cobshott. I checked with the picture agency. But he must have known we normally stop those sort of shots being used, so it could have been a complete waste of time. I mean, how did he know that a snap of Tyler arriving at Sam’s would suddenly be worth a small fortune? Unless he knew he was going to disappear.’

‘Fair point.’

‘And one of the paps said he’d do anything for money.’ She lowered her voice. ‘Rumour is that he also works as a rent boy. He’s even been lurking round Sam’s shoot in the Lake District. The other paps think he’s a bit weird. I asked them.’

‘So you think him and Sam…’

Olivia reddened. ‘Oh gosh, I don’t know. I’m sorry, Lola, I’m sure I’m speaking completely out of turn. I just wondered if I should tell the police?’

Sam and Jim L. I can imagine it. He’s certainly pretty enough to pique Sam’s interest. Maybe Sam was up to his old ways and met him on the Heath. Maybe Jim L knows where he is, and it’s just a matter of time before we get a ransom demand.

Then there’s the Heath. Where, according to Lee Soldwell, Sam had had sex with Tory MP Andrew Netherington. Was Sam blackmailing him? Sam wouldn’t do it for the money, but since he’d gone all left-wing and found a conscience lately, maybe he’d threatened to out Netherington. Especially as the MP recently voted again a bill to improve LBGT rights. That would have wound New Sam right up. It’s possible…

I need to stay calm, give no hint that my mind is a mass of contradictions, of possibilities. ‘The police have enough to be sifting through, Olivia. They’ll have checked to see who took the shot of Tyler, and they’ll have talked to the paps. But it’s certainly something you and I can check out. Get me a home address for Jim L and his full name.’

‘On it.’

I scroll through my emails, still dwelling on what I’d had planned for Sam. The overdose.

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