‘He’s anything but honest. He’s fooled you before. But it’s your decision.’
Darla bit her lip before uncovering the phone’s microphone. ‘There’s a café on London Road. I’ll text you the details,’ said Darla.
‘Great. I can’t wait to see you again, babe. I’ve been th—’
Darla ended the call and let out a huge sigh. She looked at Ros. ‘Don’t say it. I know I wasn’t meant to meet him but I can’t risk him spilling what he knows to my parents and there is a chance that he has the cash he owes me.’
‘I understand,’ said Ros. ‘I’ll take time off and I’ll sit nearby in the café so you have someone to call on if needs be.’
‘Thanks, Ros. You’re a good friend. I knew you’d have a plan.’
‘Always,’ said Ros, with a smile.
***
The next morning, Darla met Ros when her cleaning shift finished so they could go over the plan one more time. Darla looked her friend up and down. Ros had on threadbare leggings and an oversized shirt that had also seen better days. ‘Are you auditioning for a part in Oliver!?’ asked Darla.
‘I’m sorry, I don’t follow.’
‘What are you wearing?’
‘Oh these? Aren’t they great? I didn’t have anything suitable for cleaning so I got these for ten pence each in the charity shop where Cameron works.’ Ros looked thrilled with her purchase.
‘Great,’ said Darla, trying not to show her real feelings but Ros didn’t seem to have noticed and began going through the plan they had already mapped out.
‘And if you feel unsafe at all you say: it looks like rain,’ concluded Ros.
Darla nodded and tried to keep her breathing steady. She’d not slept much thanks mainly to the prospect of having to face Patrick but also due to having to feed the lambs every two hours as Elliott was still struggling without Lee. ‘What if there’s an embarrassing lull in the conversation and the weather is all we have to talk about?’
‘Unlikely, but then don’t talk about rain. I’ve also put Cameron on standby in case he cuts up rough.’ Ros sort of winced.
Darla laughed at Ros’s turn of phrase. ‘He’s not violent or anything like that,’ said Darla, wondering what Cameron would do in that situation.
‘It’s merely a precaution, and hopefully he won’t be needed as he’s got to hand a paper in to university so he may not be nearby. But worst case I’ll call the police.’
Ros had been quite keen to call the police anyway but Darla had explained that when it had all first happened she’d cried in front of a lovely police officer in Oxford who had told her that there was little they could do because everything was in joint names. ‘It won’t come to that. And I’ll meet you on the quay afterwards,’ said Darla.
‘We need to set off from here separately so we aren’t associated in case there’s ever a situation where we need to do this again. We can have a full debrief while we’re cleaning the yacht.’
Ros had kindly offered to help Darla clean the yacht as the meeting with Patrick was going to eat into her cleaning time. ‘And then I’ll buy you lunch and a glass of wine, hopefully with some of the money Patrick’s going to give me.’
‘This is where I’ll leave you,’ said Ros. ‘Set a timer for ten minutes before you follow.’
‘I know, and don’t look at you or acknowledge you in the café. Got it.’ Darla hugged her friend and watched her stride away.
The ten minutes dragged. Darla messed about on her phone and watched the minutes count down. At last she could start walking to the café. She tried to clear her mind and listen to the birds but all she could hear was the rumble of traffic and the odd screaming child. She concentrated on her steps and was soon outside the little coffee shop. She took a deep breath and went inside.
She was pretty sure she hated Patrick for everything he’d done and for how he’d betrayed her trust, but the moment she saw him she got butterflies. He didn’t spot her at first, which was good because it gave her a moment to see that Ros was sitting back to back with him and that instantly reassured her – at least she wasn’t alone. Patrick looked up and smiled at her. He appeared genuinely pleased to see her. She was now fighting conflicting emotions. Part of her had gone all giggling schoolgirl but the rest of her wanted to batter him with the nearest thing to hand, which was sadly nothing more substantial than the pastries currently on display.
He came forward to hug her and she stepped back. ‘Hello, Patrick.’
‘Darla, babe, it’s so good to see you.’
Darla sat down in the seat opposite his so it was clear that she wouldn’t be giving him a hug.
‘What did you want to drink?’ asked Patrick. ‘They’re on me.’
‘A large mocha with cream please.’ It was the most expensive thing she could think of. Maybe it was petty but he owed her.
He ordered at the till and came back to sit opposite her. ‘You’re looking amazing. Have you lost a few pounds?’
She had but she wasn’t going to give him the satisfaction of being right. ‘No, and let’s cut the small talk. I have somewhere I need to be.’
He looked puzzled. ‘But I’ve just ordered you a large mocha.’
Bugger it, she thought. ‘I can always get it to go. Now, say what you came to say.’
Their drinks arrived, which gave him time to gather his thoughts. Patrick relaxed back into his seat and for a moment she feared he was going to bump his chair into Ros’s. ‘I was convinced you weren’t going to show up,’ said Patrick. ‘And I wouldn’t have blamed you for that. It was all a bit crazy at the end. But you have to believe me when I say I had no choice but to leave.’
‘Rubbish. You could have told me rather than let me open the door to bailiffs. What the hell happened to all the money?’
‘I’m glad you asked that. It’s all good. I’ve invested it.’
She let out a derisory laugh. ‘I don’t believe you, Patrick.’
‘Honestly. I have. Well, some of it anyway.’
Darla was losing what was left of her patience. ‘In what? Stocks and shares? Premium bonds?’
