‘Mmm.’ Patrick scratches his chin. He walks over to our vast American fridge and takes out a beer, flipping off the lid and drinking it straight from the bottle.
‘Come and sit down,’ he says, taking my hand and pulling me towards the table and chairs. When I’m seated, he walks to the kitchen door and closes it.
‘There’s something I want to share with you that I haven’t mentioned before. I did a bit of digging into Ajay for you.’
‘What! Why?’
‘The police have got some new evidence that incriminates Ajay.’
‘How do you know?’ That doesn’t make sense.
‘I think the police might be questioning him this evening.’
‘What?’
‘Look, I don’t want to worry you, Lydia, which is why I haven’t said anything before. I’ve got a mate in the police, and I took him for a drink last week to pump him for information on Adam’s case. He rang me yesterday and said that someone has come forward with some new evidence, and they might be pulling Ajay back in for further questioning.’
‘And why hasn’t DI Cornish let me know?’
‘It’s strictly off the record, Lydia. This mate owes me a couple of favours, and I asked him to keep me in the loop. And the last thing I wanted to do was worry you unnecessarily in case it comes to nothing. But, you see, there’s something else as well.’ He pauses as if he’s still undecided whether to tell me.
‘What?’
He sighs. ‘Ajay was done for grievous bodily harm when he was in his early twenties. Did you know that?’
‘No! Ajay? Surely not.’
‘I’m afraid it’s true, Lydia.’
‘No!’ I shake my head. Until Adam’s death, I would have described Ajay as one of the gentlest people I know, but now it seems as if I have got him totally and utterly wrong. And it makes even more sense that the police considered him a suspect. With a history of violence, it’s beginning to stack up that he may have murdered Adam when he found out that Marianne was having an affair with him.
‘According to my mate, Ajay glassed someone in a pub.’
‘Are you sure?’
‘One hundred percent.’
‘But why did you get him checked out?’
Patrick strokes my cheek. ‘Because I love you. You’re my wife and I need to look out for you.’
Patrick sighs and takes a swig of his beer. ‘I don’t trust the man. The police would not have interrogated him in the way you said they did regarding Adam’s death if they didn’t have something on him, and now someone has come forward to say they saw his car near your house on the day Adam was killed.’
‘But why’s it taken them so long to come forward?’
Patrick shrugs. ‘I guess we’ll find out in due course. Ajay spent six months in jail. He was released early for good behaviour and because he showed remorse. If he can do that, and he has kept it hidden from you all of these years, you can see why I don’t trust the man. I want to make sure you’re safe.’
‘But Ajay isn’t going to harm me!’ I exclaim.
‘Why not?’ Patrick raises his eyebrows. ‘If he killed Adam… Perhaps this is his extreme way of getting one hundred percent control of Cracking Crafts?’
I laugh. ‘Come on, Patrick, that’s absurd. You don’t know Ajay like I do.’
‘I don’t want to labour the point, Lydia, but you didn’t know Adam was having an affair with Ajay’s wife, you didn’t know that Ajay has a criminal record for violence, and you didn’t know that your daughter was smoking weed.’
‘Woah!’ I say, holding my hands up. ‘How do you know that Mia was suspended for smoking weed? I only told you she was suspended.’
‘She messaged me this morning. She was terrified about your reaction.’
I don’t know what to say now. I should be pleased that Mia has confided in Patrick, but it makes me feel like even more of a failing mother.
‘Hey, you.’ Patrick takes my hands. ‘Cheer up. None of this is the end of the world. The most important thing is that you and the kids are safe. If Ajay is undermining you or the business, then you need to get rid of him.’
‘I can’t get rid of Ajay! We’re equal partners.’
‘Think about it, Lydia. The man had a motive to kill Adam; he has previous; he has lied to you about the machine you were presenting and undermined the business. If he devalues the business, he can try to oust you and buy the business for much less than its true market value. And now the police are likely to call him in again. It could be happening right now. I am honestly scared that he is going to do something to you. Let’s think this through. If you die, what happens?’
It’s a rhetorical question, because Patrick carries on talking.
‘I assume your shares go to your estate, which means that whoever is your children’s guardian will, in theory, have to protect their interests. In practice, it means that Ajay will be sole director in Cracking Crafts, and that means he’ll have full control.’
‘Yes, but…’
‘Look, why don’t we go and talk to Ajay tomorrow?’ he suggests. ‘Let’s get things out in the open.’
‘We?’
‘I’m your husband. I want to support you. I think you need to have a conversation with Ajay. Perhaps ask him to step away for a few weeks, just until things settle down a bit more.’
‘I can’t run the business without him. It’s too big.’
‘Darling, your safety is more important than the business. Just think about it.’
And I do. I can’t sleep. If Ajay found out that Marianne and Adam were having an affair, he could have killed Adam to get him out of the way. He and Adam had been clashing for months about the business, so it would have suited Ajay to ‘get rid of’ Adam. He would have known that I would never boot my own husband, even if we were getting divorced.
And now… perhaps he does want sole control of Cracking Crafts? Perhaps he’s undermining me and setting me up for failure? Or worse, perhaps he’s considering killing me as well. When Patrick rolls over in bed and throws a heavy leg over mine, I snuggle up closer to him. Thank goodness for Patrick. He makes me feel safe.
Mia comes down for breakfast still in her pyjamas and dressing gown.
‘You’ll need to get dressed,’ I say. ‘You’ll have to come into work with me for the next few days.’
‘Why can’t I stay here? I’m nearly sixteen.’
‘And you’ve been suspended for smoking dope. That doesn’t exactly make you trustworthy in my eyes,’ I say.
She scowls. ‘I’ve got schoolwork to do. I’m not going to be lounging around in front of the telly or going out to meet my dealer.’
‘Dealer?’ I hold my mug of coffee in mid-air.
‘Chill, Mother! I’m only joking. I don’t have a bloody dealer. Some boy at school gave it to me because I was feeling shit. He was just trying to be nice. Said it’d make me feel better.’
‘Oh, Mia, I know you’ve been feeling rubbish, and that’s why we need you to talk to a counsellor. I’ve been saying that for a while, and Mrs Kenner suggested it, too. It’s been a horrible few months. But I’m not leaving you here alone. You can bring your work and sit in the boardroom. Ok? And if you get bored, I’m sure Nicky can find some things for you to help out with.’