Angel Kiss - Laura Jane Cassidy [68]
‘Who was it?’ I said. My heart was beating so fast that it was almost unbearable.
‘I can’t tell you! Please don’t make me sorry I told you this.’ There was a harsh finality in her voice, but I couldn’t let her stop now, not when I’d got this far.
‘Is he from here?’ I asked. ‘Is he from the village?’
‘Yes.’
‘Lydia, who is it?’
‘That’s all I can tell you. I’m sorry.’
I was so frustrated. But at the same time I felt so sorry for her, so sorry for what she had gone through, what she was going through now. ‘How can you deal with that?’ I asked. ‘How can you live in the same place as him?’
‘I know it’s not ideal, but I’d find it hard to cope anywhere else. I don’t know if Colin has told you … but sometimes I get very down.’
Colin hadn’t mentioned anything about Lydia having depression. But I still didn’t understand how she could live so close to someone who’d threatened to murder her, and who she thought had murdered her best friend.
‘I’m sorry, I can’t tell you any more,’ she said. ‘This man … he’s too well connected. He’ll never get done for it.’
Chapter 22
I knocked on Des’s front door. There was no answer. But his van was outside, so I waited. I glanced up and down the street, hoping nobody would see me. Mum would be very upset if she knew I was going to talk to Des, let alone visit him at his house. But I knew he wasn’t a threat now. I believed Lydia. And I needed to hear Des’s side of the story. I wondered if he would even talk to me. I stood there for a few more minutes and eventually he opened the door.
‘Jacki. What are you doing here?’ He didn’t sound mad, just surprised.
‘I need to talk to you,’ I said, shuffling on the doorstep.
‘OK so. C’mon in.’ Des was unshaven and looked exhausted.
I stepped into the hallway.
‘Come into the kitchen,’ he said. ‘Mam is dozing off in the sitting room.’
‘How is she?’
‘She’s a lot better.’
‘That’s good.’
Des was looking at me suspiciously. I would have to get to the point.
‘Why are you here, Jacki?’
‘I wanted to ask you about something. Well, someone, actually. Beth Cullen.’
Des sighed. ‘I know what you’ve heard. But it’s not true. I didn’t kill her.’
We sat down at the kitchen table.
‘Can you tell me what happened? If you don’t mind, of course.’
‘No, I don’t mind. Especially if it’s going to put your mind at ease. It was a long time ago, Jacki. We were very young. She meant everything to me. Her dad, Jim, asked me why I didn’t cry at the funeral. Why I hadn’t cried once since I found out she was murdered. They saw it as an admission of guilt. The fact that I showed no emotion. Truth is I couldn’t accept it. I couldn’t accept she’d been taken away from me.
‘I saw her that day, the day she was killed. She was in Carrick buying Christmas presents and I was doing a job in one of the shops. She came up for a minute to say hi to me. I went outside to her. All her shopping bags were in the basket of her bicycle. She told me she’d got me something, but I wasn’t allowed to see it till Christmas Day. Those were the last words she said to me. Since we first started going out, I’d never been apart from her for more than a week. I missed her like crazy. I missed her so much. I wanted to cry. I really wanted to cry. But I just couldn’t let myself. Because if I cried then it would all be real. If I cried, then I’d have to accept