The Marriage - K.L. Slater (story books to read .TXT) 📗

her. It wasn’t her right to limit me seeing my grandson at the same time as acting so unreliably herself.

Tom and Ellis had another swipe at each other and I stood up, the headphones still clinging on around my neck.

‘I’m not listening to this any longer. I’m going into the bedroom to do my relaxation session, and I don’t want to hear a peep out of either of—’

The doorbell rang.

‘Are you expecting anyone?’ Tom bit his lip, probably worrying it might be his mother again.

‘No one I can think of.’ I walked to the front door and looked through the peephole. Two official-looking women stood outside, one in her late twenties, one older, probably late thirties. I felt sick. What might this be about?

Behind me, Ellis ran over to the kitchen, where he had a good view of the front door when I opened it.

‘We’re here to speak to Bridget Wilson,’ the older woman said briskly.

‘I’m Bridget Wilson. What’s this about?’

‘Nottinghamshire Police. I’m Detective Inspector Irma Barrington.’ She held up ID. ‘This is my colleague, Detective Sergeant Tyra Barnes. We’ll need to come inside, if that’s OK.’ She glanced at the house next door.

I stood aside. ‘Come in.’

‘What’s this all about?’ Tom appeared in the hallway, his face pale.

‘It’s not about the bullying, is it?’ Ellis asked in a fearful voice. ‘I didn’t do that stuff they said at school, I—’

‘I think we can be fairly certain it’s not about bullying, Ellis,’ Tom reassured him. Sometimes he responded in such a caring way in the face of Ellis’s obvious resentment.

I led the officers into the living room. ‘This is my husband, Tom,’ I said. ‘And my grandson, Ellis.’

DI Barrington cleared her throat. ‘If it’s OK, I think it might be better if we speak to you and your husband alone. It might be a good idea for Ellis to sit in another room while we talk.’

Could this be about school after all? Maybe Ellis had hurt another child and not told us. Coral would relish the chance to pile more blame on me.

‘Can’t I stay, Nan?’ Ellis pleaded with me.

‘Bedroom, please, Ellis,’ Tom said firmly.

‘Fine!’ Ellis pushed by him, knocking his arm. ‘Don’t tell me what to do.’

The detectives glanced at each other as Ellis’s bedroom door slammed shut so hard, it was a miracle the hinges stayed intact.

‘Sorry,’ I said. ‘Kids, eh?’

They both sat down, refusing Tom’s offer of a drink. ‘Coral McKinty is your daughter-in-law, Ms Wilson, is that right?’ Barrington said, folding her hands neatly in her lap.

I frowned and looked at Tom, but he stared silently at the officers. ‘Sort of. My late son and Coral were never married, but we’re close and she’s Ellis’s mother. What’s happened?’

If Coral had made some kind of complaint about me, I swear I’d—

‘I’m so sorry to tell you that Coral’s body has been found on the outskirts of local woodland, in a ditch. She had a head injury, but at this point in time, I’m afraid we have no further information.’

‘Her body?’ I repeated faintly. ‘You mean …’

Barnes nodded. ‘I’m very sorry, I’m afraid she’s dead, Ms Wilson.’

Tom cursed and then cried out as he clenched the drink he held too hard and shards of glass fell to the floor. He rushed to the kitchen, clutching his bleeding hand.

I fell back against the seat cushion, my hand flat on my chest. I glanced at the door and dropped my voice, praying Ellis couldn’t hear anything. ‘How did it happen? I mean, has someone … Who did this?’

‘That’s what we’re currently trying to ascertain. We haven’t got the full picture yet, but we’re treating the incident as a possible hit and run.’

Tom re-joined us, a clean cloth wrapped around his injured hand. Both detectives turned to face him. He clasped his hands together in front of him to stop them from shaking, but it didn’t work.

He’d barely had anything to do with Coral. What on earth was he so afraid of?

‘We’ll need to ask you both some questions, if that’s OK,’ Barnes said, her eyes trained on Tom’s trembling hands. ‘Ms Wilson, when did you last see Coral?’

‘She dropped Ellis off a couple of hours ago. Hang on.’ I checked the call log on my phone. ‘She rang me at 15.52 and dropped him off about fifteen minutes after that.’

Barnes checked her watch. ‘And now it’s six thirty, so he’s been here a couple of hours, give or take.’

I nodded. ‘She didn’t say where she was going,’ I volunteered. ‘Just that she had a couple of things to do and she wouldn’t be long. About an hour, she said.’

‘I see. And what about you, Mr Billinghurst?’ Barrington turned to Tom. ‘When did you last see Coral?’

‘I … I had to pop back to the gym so I was out when she dropped Ellis off earlier,’ he said. ‘Let me think.’ The room fell silent. Then, ‘Sorry, my mind’s gone blank.’

‘It must’ve been the dinner party on Friday,’ I said, and he nodded, relieved.

‘Yes, of course. I saw her Friday evening.’

Barnes checked her notebook. ‘You were discharged from Nottingham prison nearly two weeks ago, Mr Billinghurst, is that right?’

‘Yes.’ Tom’s voice sounded defensive. ‘What’s that got to do with anything?’

‘Just confirming our details, sir. You don’t mind answering our questions, I take it?’

‘Actually, I feel a bit shaky,’ Tom said. ‘I think I still have some glass in this cut. Is there any way we can do this tomorrow?’

‘Sure, no problem,’ DI Barrington said easily, standing up. ‘It would be great if you both came to the station. Shall we say tomorrow at ten?’

Forty-Two Ellis

‘I’m really sorry about your mum, Ellis,’ Tom said when the detectives had gone and his nan had told him the news that made him want to die himself.

‘Leave me alone … I hate you!’ Ellis cried. He picked up his nan’s empty coffee cup and threw it. It smashed against the wall and shattered around Tom’s feet.

‘Ellis, don’t!’ His nan dashed over and