Minding Frankie - Maeve Binchy [126]
“Can I leave him a note?” she asked, fearful of strange places and unfamiliar surroundings. A nurse brought her pen and paper.
Lizzie pinned a note to the suitcase.
Muttie, my darling, I’ve gone home but I’ll be back tomorrow. You’re going to be fine. The next time we use this suitcase will be when we go to New York and have dinner in Chinatown.
Love from Lizzie
She felt better, she told Declan, now that she had written a letter.
Declan’s relief at the safe return of Frankie was tempered by what he had just discovered: he had spoken to the medical team that had examined Muttie. The cancer had spread all over his body.
It would not be long now.
Lisa thought that the night would never end. Teddy’s birthday party at Anton’s was in full swing when they got there. They had just put on music and were beginning to dance. Straightaway she noticed April dancing around Anton.
“Hey, that’s not dancing! That’s lap dancing!” she called in a very loud voice. A few people laughed. Anton looked annoyed.
April went on weaving and squirming.
“Suit yourself,” she said to Lisa. “You dance your way—I dance mine.”
Lisa, her rage fueled by alcohol and jealousy, was about to engage in further conversation, but Moira interrupted quickly.
“I need a glass of water, Lisa. Can you come and get one with me?”
“You don’t need water,” Lisa said.
“Oh, but I do,” Moira countered, pushing her towards the ladies’ room. There she took a glass of water and offered it to Lisa.
“You’re not expecting me to drink this, are you?”
“I think you should, then we’ll go home.”
Lisa was only just holding herself together. Moira must never know Frankie was missing.
“I’ll think about it,” she said.
Moira spoke firmly. “I think it would be wise. Yes, then I’ll phone us a taxi.”
“No, we can’t go home. Wherever we go, we can’t go home!” Lisa said in fright.
Moira asked mildly, “Well, where do you want to go, then?”
“I’ll think,” Lisa promised. Just then her own phone buzzed with a text message. Trembling, she read it.
ALL CLEAR. COME HOME ANYTIME. F SAFE AND SOUND.
“They found her!” Lisa cried.
“Who?” Moira paused in the middle of talking to the taxi firm.
Lisa stopped herself in time. “My friend Mary! She was lost and now she’s found!” she shouted, with a very unfocused look on her face.
“But you were talking to her earlier, weren’t you?” Moira was perplexed.
“Yes and she got lost. And then found since then,” Lisa said foolishly.
Moira completed her call to the taxi and began to support Lisa towards the exit. On the way, they passed Teddy, the birthday boy, who whispered in Moira’s ear.
“Well done. Anton will owe you for this. We have an unexploded bomb here,” he said, nodding towards Lisa.
“Well, it’s a pity he wasn’t able to do something about it!” Moira retorted.
“Not his problem.” Teddy shrugged.
“Good enough to sleep with, but not important enough to be nice to, right?”
“I just said he’d be grateful to you. She was about to make a scene.”
Moira pushed past him, supporting Lisa into the taxi. Her dismal outlook on men seemed to have been confirmed tonight.
Lisa sang a little in the taxi. Sad songs about loss and infidelity, and then they were in Chestnut Court.
“Lisa’s home, slightly the worse for wear,” Moira said into the entry phone.
“Can you help her in, please, Moira?”
“Certainly.”
Noel put Frankie down for the first time since she had been found. He realized he had been clinging to her since they came back to the flat.
Faith had washed the dishes and tidied up the place.
Moira brought Lisa in the door and settled her into a chair.
“Partly my fault. We had a lot of wine at Ennio’s and then we went to this party at Anton’s.”
“Oh, I see,” Noel said.
“You’ll be fine, Lisa,” Faith said, holding Lisa’s trailing hand.
“Oh, Moira, I’m Faith, by the way. A friend of Noel and Lisa’s from the college.”
“How do you do?” Moira was gruff.