‘SURPRISE!’
‘Oh my God!’ screamed Mary.
Everybody cheered. I stood on my tippy toes, trying to see over the crowd. I shuffled in behind Emily, so I could get a better look at Mary’s face.
She looked completely shocked. She had just stepped into the parish hall, which Brigid and Joe had transformed into a sparkling wonderland complete with fairy lights, silver streamers and gold helium balloons.
‘I’m going to kill you, Brigid Smyth!’ said Mary as Brigid gave her a big hug.
‘Don’t blame me! It was all Joe’s idea!’ she said with a smile.
‘No wonder you were trying to get me to wear this dress, Nick! I can’t believe this! This is… this is wonderful!’
‘You deserve it,’ said Joe. ‘And may I say you look lovely.’
She did indeed. Mary was wearing the red silk dress that Lydia had made her for her birthday. It showed off her curves. She’d had her hair blow-dried and was wearing high heels, which meant she now reached Michael’s shoulder. She looked so petite and vulnerable beside this huge man. It was the first time I’d seen Michael out of his police uniform and he looked quite smart in a dark grey suit and blue tie, but he was smiling half-heartedly. He looked like someone incapable of happiness. Couldn’t he at least pretend to enjoy himself?
‘So you didn’t have a clue, Mary?’ said one of the other guests. There were so many people there.
‘Not a notion! I can’t believe it!’ At least Mary was having fun. That’s all that mattered.
I tried not to look at Nick. But I couldn’t help myself. He was wearing a suit. I don’t think I’ve ever seen anybody look that good in real life. And he was smiling too. Why couldn’t he be in one of his grumpier moods? His warm smile made him even more attractive.
Everybody went up one by one to kiss Mary on the cheek. I was one of the last to greet her.
‘Happy birthday, Mary!’ I said.
‘Oh, thanks, Jacki. Thanks for coming. I can’t believe this! You didn’t give anything away earlier! I should have guessed Joe was up to something.’
‘I love your dress,’ I said.
‘Thank you. Lydia gave it to me for my birthday. Isn’t it gorgeous? I wasn’t going to wear it, thought it was a bit fancy for a restaurant, but Nick insisted. Now I know why! I wasn’t going to a restaurant at all!’
It was nice to see Mary so happy. She really did deserve it.
‘Happy birthday, Mary!’ said David.
‘Thanks!’ she said.
David looked good too. He was wearing denims and a black shirt, which he’d spent ages choosing. Carla and I were ready half an hour before him. There had been talk between Peter and Anne about whether Carla should be grounded, but I was glad that they allowed her to go to the party in the end. And Carla seemed happy in her own way.
‘Jacki,’ said Joe, ‘… can I have a little word?’
‘Of course. Talk to you later, Mary,’ I said.
‘Yes, talk to you later. Oh my God! I can’t believe this! My very own surprise party!’
Joe beckoned me over to the side of the stage. The band had just launched into a rendition of ‘Congratulations’.
‘I’m going to call you up to sing. I’m not sure when it’ll be yet. We’ve to wait till Mary is settled and has said hello to everybody and everything.’ Joe looked anxious. I suppose as one of the chief organizers of this big occasion he wanted everything to go just right. The hall looked great, and everyone seemed to be having lots of fun already. I wasn’t nervous at all. I was excited about performing. I’d really grown to love the song.
‘That’s grand, Joe. Relax. Everything is going great.’ I smiled and he smiled back, but I don’t think he was really listening to me, because he rushed off, still looking flustered.
Everybody from Avarna was in the parish hall that night. Well, almost everybody. Des wasn’t there. I wished he was, just so he could see my mum. She was wearing one of Anne’s blue designer dresses and looked absolutely stunning. I had an idea of how insanely expensive it was, but I didn’t tell Mum. It had a high neckline and dipped down low at the back. She looked like the movie star she’d always dreamed of being. I don’t think I’ve ever seen her look so beautiful… except maybe in her wedding photographs. I hadn’t told Mum about my visit to Des. Not yet. I wanted to be one hundred per cent sure before I told her anything. I didn’t want her heart to break all over again.
‘Who’s yer one in the black dress? She’s a bit of all right,’ said a familiar voice from behind me.
I turned to see Colin standing there, in a black suit and white shirt.
‘You’re not looking too bad yourself, Colin.’
‘Yeah, I scrub up all right, don’t I?’ He looked really cute.
‘Want to go sit down?’ he said.
‘Yes. I do. These heels are killing me already.’ I’d brought some pumps in my bag, but I refused to surrender this early in the evening. Besides, the heels looked so nice that they were totally worth the pain.
‘Have you got your song sorted?’ asked Colin.
‘Yep. “Have I Told You Lately”, one of Mary’s favourites apparently. Joe is going to call me up when I’ve to sing it.’
‘Joe has gone to a lot of trouble. I know my mam and Lydia went to a lot of fuss, with the decorations and the food and all that. But he really went to town on the personal touches. Oh, and fair play to you for coming.’ Colin smiled at me sympathetically. I’d almost forgotten about Nick. Almost.
‘Well, I couldn’t let Joe down. I hope this won’t be too awkward.’ I glanced over towards Nick.
‘Ah, don’t worry about Nick. He’s busy mingling. His granny has him trapped over there at her table.’
I wished he would talk to me. Even just to say hello. I kept looking over, hoping that he’d catch my eye.
Joe got up on the stage.
‘Good evening, ladies and gentlemen! Now don’t worry, I’m not going to give a speech.’ There was a laugh from the crowd. I think Joe had a reputation for giving speeches that went on forever. ‘I’m just here to announce that we will now be having the first dance.’ This was my cue to go up on stage. ‘The song will be sung by the lovely Miss Jacki King. I would like to invite our birthday girl, Mary, and her husband, Michael, to the floor.’
As soon as the band started to play the intro to ‘Have I Told You Lately’, Mary let out a little squeal of joy. I started to sing.
Joe and Rita joined the Reynolds. Rita smiled at Joe, and he clasped her hand, and put his arm round her waist. Brigid took Pa by the hand, and led him on to the dance floor. He gave her a kiss, and they started to dance. Lydia and Colin followed. Then David and Emily, and then Anne and Carla, and more and more couples until eventually the dance floor was packed with people. I looked at them all embracing each other, dancing together, laughing and smiling. Then I took a deep breath and sang the chorus one last time.
There was a round of applause. I stepped away from the microphone, and walked down the steps. Joe came running over to me.
‘That was beautiful, Jacki,’ he said. ‘Just beautiful. You’re an absolute star.’
‘Thanks, Joe. Thanks for asking me.’
‘What are ya havin’ to drink?’
‘I’m OK. I think I’m just going to go home now. I hope you enjoy the rest of your night.’
‘What did you say?’ said Colin, coming over to join us. ‘No way you’re going home! Nick is stuck talking to all his relatives. You won’t have to talk to him. Come and sit down. I saw them putting candles on the cake – you can’t miss that.’
I smiled at Colin. He was so kind and tuned in to what I was going through.
I wasn’t sure if I could bear to watch Nick any longer. But I also hoped he wouldn’t avoid me forever. Maybe if I stayed, there’d be a chance we could at least talk. ‘Sure… I’ll stay for the birthday cake.’
‘What will ya have then, Jacki?’ asked Joe.
‘She’ll have a Coke,’ said Colin as he guided me towards an empty table.
As we sat down I decided I had to confide some of my thoughts to Colin; he was the only person I could tell.
‘Colin, there’s something we have to talk about.’
‘Does his name begin with N?’
‘Well, actually, it’s sort of got to do with him.’ I lowered my voice. ‘I have a strong suspicion about who Beth’s killer might be.’
‘Wow… go on.’
‘I’ve been doing some investigating and I think that it’s… it’s Michael,’ I said, glancing over in his direction.
Colin leaned back in his chair and laughed. ‘What have you been putting in your Coke, Jacki? Are you crazy? Have you forgotten that he runs a police station? Not to mention that he’s the father of one of our best friends? I get that he’s scary and all, but he’s not a murderer.’
‘I know how it sounds, Colin. Believe me, I wouldn’t say this if I didn’t have good reason.’
Colin looked at me in disbelief.
‘Thanks, Joe, cheers!’ I said as Joe delivered our drinks. He smiled at us as he wandered back to the crowd. I turned back to Colin and lowered my voice.
‘Were you aware that Michael -’ I wasn’t sure how to put this as I hadn’t seen it, only overheard it – ‘that he pushes Mary around?’
Colin’s eyes widened.
‘I’ve overheard them fighting. One day in the shop.’
‘Well, all couples have rows…’
‘I know what I heard, and it wasn’t just talking. But that’s not all. I heard something else that makes me almost certain he did it.’
‘What?’
‘I can’t talk about it here,’ I said.
‘Come on, Jacki, tell me.’
I couldn’t tell him about my conversation with Lydia.
‘What I can tell you is that he doesn’t have an alibi for the night of the murder.’
‘How do you know that?’
‘Mary said it… when they were having the row I overheard.’
‘Really?’ Colin looked less sceptical now. Maybe he was starting to come round. ‘I hope it’s not true. Mary would be devastated.’
‘And Nick.’ It was a bit scary to think that the guy I really liked could be the son of a murderer, but I knew Nick wasn’t anything like him. ‘Thing is,’ I said, ‘I’m pretty sure it’s true, but I’ve no way of proving it. Not yet.’
‘Cake!’ shouted Mary’s daughter, Rosie.
Everyone stood up and sang ‘Happy Birthday’ to Mary, and watched as she blew out the candles and cut the cake. Joe took a picture of her with Michael, Nick and Rosie. They stood in a line with huge smiles on their faces, including Michael. Well, at least he was making a bit of an effort.
‘Say cheese!’ said Joe.
Soon the crowd started to chant ‘Speech, speech, speech,’ so Mary got up on to the stage and took the microphone.
‘I would just like to thank everybody for coming here tonight,’ she said. ‘And especially all my relatives who travelled long distances, and my best friend Lydia Smyth for making me this dress.’
There was a huge round of applause and a few wolf whistles.
‘Thank you to my husband, Michael, and my children, and to all my other friends, especially Brigid and Joe. I hope you all enjoy tonight.’
There was another round of applause and then Joe shouted, ‘Time for the fifty kisses!’
‘Are you going up to give Mary her kiss?’ I asked Colin.
‘I gave her one when she came in!’ he said.
‘I saw you gave her your painting.’
He nodded. ‘Yes, I took it up to her house earlier.’
‘She was delighted with it. I can’t believe you gave it away!’ It was such a beautiful painting. If it were mine, I probably wouldn’t have given it away. But Colin was so talented that I was sure he could paint another one just like it.
‘Well, I knew she’d appreciate it.’
‘That was a really nice thing to do.’
‘It felt like it didn’t belong in my house anyway… that it belonged somewhere else. I’m not sure why. Art is like that, I guess.’
‘Where’s David?’ I said. ‘He was here earlier.’
‘Yeah… I saw him go outside with Emily. I’m guessing they’re all over each other out there. What’s it like living in his house?’
‘It’s OK. I can’t wait until we move into our new place though. I’m really looking forward to my own bedroom!’
‘I can imagine. I can’t help with that, but do you want some cake?’ said Colin. ‘Look at the queue. I’ll go up and get us a slice.’
I watched him walk across the dance floor. The only people on it were a group of little kids, dancing to the band’s songs, while everyone else was lining up to get a piece of the cake. Colin joined the back of the queue just behind Mum. I looked around at all the people seated at the tables, looking for people I recognized, and was surprised to see Ger Rapple. I hadn’t expected him to be here but I was always surprised by how everybody seemed to know each other around here.
He caught my gaze and came over.
‘Hi, Jacki,’ he said. ‘How are you?’
‘I’m good, thanks.’
Ger was looking well. He was wearing a blue-striped shirt and a beige jacket.
‘That was a lovely song. You’re very talented.’
‘Thank you!’
‘How’s it going… since we last met?’ he said, a little quieter.
I couldn’t wait to fill him in on all the developments.
‘You’re not going to believe this… Remember you told me about Jane -’
‘Yes, of course.’
‘Well, I found out that Jane is Beth Cullen. You know, that girl who was murdered in the forest twenty-five years ago.’
‘Yes, I knew about that murder.’
‘Beth is Jane. They’re the same person.’
‘Really? How’s that?’
‘Beth was adopted. Jane was her birth name.’
‘Ah, that explains a certain amount.’
The little blonde girl from the fête danced past us, balancing a slice of cake on a paper plate.
‘It’s so weird,’ I said. ‘That little girl was singing a rhyme about Jane at the table quiz.’
‘Very young children often connect with spirits,’ said Ger. ‘They’re not frightened of them.’
That made sense, I guess.
‘Have you any idea who killed Beth Cullen?’ I said. ‘I have a suspicion but I really need to find out for sure.’
‘No, I’ve no idea who killed Beth,’ said Ger. ‘I once asked a fortune teller about it, but I didn’t find out anything. Kathleen is a fortune teller I go to see in Dublin sometimes. I don’t entertain many fortune tellers, but Kathleen is genuinely gifted.’
‘What did she say?’
‘She said the girl with two hearts will bring justice to Beth. God only knows what she meant by that. Beth will be waiting a long time for a girl with two hearts to show up,’ said Ger with a laugh.
I turned to the side and pulled my hair back from my neck to reveal my freckle. Tiny and distinct. And in the shape of a heart. My angel kiss, as Gran called it.
By midnight there were still lots of people in the hall. The band was still going, and everyone sat round the tables talking and laughing. I was actually glad I’d stayed on. I hadn’t really wanted to go back to the Mulveys’ house by myself anyway; their alarm system was way too complicated. I decided to go outside for some air.
Joe was out the back, smoking.
‘Hi, Joe. Great party!’
‘Thanks, Jacki. Everyone seems to be enjoying themselves.’
I would have liked to talk to Joe about Mary and Michael. To find out if he knew about Michael’s angry behaviour or about the alibi, but I didn’t want to ruin the party for him.
Joe stubbed out his cigarette and went back in.
I stayed outside, staring up at the starry sky. Inside the band were playing a cover of Aslan’s ‘Crazy World’. The black dress Lydia had given me was the nicest thing I’d ever worn but I was getting a bit chilly. As I turned to go back inside I felt someone touch me on the shoulder.
‘Nick!’
‘Hi, Jacki.’
‘Hi… I -’
‘It’s cool.’
‘No, I want to explain -’
‘It’s OK. Colin told me that you were really stressed out about moving here and that it all got on top of you. I understand.’
Colin had made up an explanation for me. He was one of the best friends I’d ever had.
‘Yeah,’ I said. ‘I didn’t mean to freak out.’
‘I know you probably thought I was… you know, being too pushy. But I… I just wanted to kiss you.’
‘I didn’t think that.’ I took this escape route gratefully. I’d love to have been able to explain everything in detail but I wasn’t ready for that.
‘Have you been avoiding me?’ he asked. I could hear the hurt in his voice.
I took a deep breath. Now was my chance to tell the truth. ‘Nick, I’m really sorry. After that night I saw this picture that Emily posted online and I thought it was you kissing some girl. I… I thought maybe you’d found someone else. But it wasn’t you, and even if it was I’d no right to think there was anything between us after what happened.’
He looked shocked. ‘I haven’t kissed anyone else. I haven’t been able to think about anyone but you,’ he said. He leaned over and kissed me on the cheek. ‘I need to go. I have to take my little sister home. But we should do something soon, maybe the cinema or something. I’ll text you.’
‘Sure… cool.’
I actually could have cried with relief. There was hope.
When I went into the bathroom Mary was there. She seemed very happy. And very drunk.
‘Jacki! Are you having a good time?’ Her speech was slurred.
‘Yes. A great time.’ I was so glad I’d stayed. So happy that Nick and I had had a chance to talk.
‘Oh, that’s good. That’s good. Your dress is lovely.’
‘Thanks.’
I checked my reflection in the bathroom mirror. I reapplied my lipstick and fixed my hair while Mary washed her hands. Out of the corner of my eye I could see her looking at me. Like she was about to say something.
‘Listen, Jacki… I know you heard me and Michael fighting in the shop the other day. It’s so embarrassing, but… I’m sure it sounded much worse than it actually was.’
Mary’s guard was down, otherwise she never would have mentioned anything about it. She was so drunk she probably wouldn’t even remember this conversation in the morning. I wasn’t going to miss the opportunity to find out more.
‘I, em… I heard you say he didn’t have an alibi for Beth’s murder,’ I said.
‘Yes… I made one up,’ said Mary, looking at me with glazed eyes. She lowered her voice to a hush. ‘See, he was at a poker game. He had a bit of a gambling problem back then, and he didn’t want any of the other Guards to know about it. They all thought he had given it up.’
‘You’re sure he was at this game?’ I asked. I was surprised. If he was, then this changed everything. Maybe Mary was covering up for him? But was she capable of that in her state? Maybe she was so used to telling this lie that she had actually started to believe it.
‘Sure, I picked him up from it. He had been there all night. He just didn’t want to use it as an alibi. Why?’ she asked, perhaps regretting that she’d said so much.
‘Oh, nothing… I was just wondering. Enjoy the rest of your party!’
‘Oh, I will,’ said Mary as she turned back to the mirror.
I went into the cubicle and closed the door behind me. If Michael Reynolds’s alibi was genuine and he didn’t kill Beth Cullen, then who the hell did? Had Lydia and Des lied to me? Were they two of the best actors in the world?
‘Hi, Mary!’ said a familiar voice on the other side of the door.
‘Hi, Rachel,’ said Mary. ‘How’s the house going?’
‘Great! The landscapers are coming in tomorrow. I will be glad to get that hedge cut down.’
I didn’t realize Mum was having the hedge taken down. The leather bag was hidden in it! I needed to get it out of there before the morning. I’d have to hide it somewhere else. I slipped on my black pumps and decided to try to run back to the caravan before anyone noticed I was gone.
There was nobody else in sight as I turned off the main street and up our lane. I ran behind the caravan, rooted in the hedge and pulled out the bag. Then I unlocked the caravan door and stepped inside. There was a cold, unlived-in chill in the air. I dropped to my knees and rummaged under the bed. I pulled out Alf Meehan’s letter, stuffed it in the bag and then looked through its contents again. A stick of lipstick, a packet of violin strings, a hat and a wallet. I opened the wallet, and searched through it again, but there was nothing in it.
Look in the bag, said that voice in my head. But I had looked in the bag. I had examined all its contents. There was nothing new.
Look in the bag.
I tipped it upside down, but nothing fell out.
I opened the two front pockets, but there was nothing in them.
I searched every inch of it. And that’s when I found it. A zip on the inside, at the very back, hidden by the torn lining. I pulled the zip open. There was something in there. A card. I took it out.
It was a library card for the library in Carrick.
The name on it?
Elizabeth Cullen.
Oh my God. I knew this was important. I knew it was evidence. It would prove this was Beth’s bag.
I put everything back in the bag and gripped the leather handles.
‘Hello, Jacki.’
I recognized the voice immediately. I felt my insides collapsing with fear. I turned round, gripping the handles tighter.