Page 57 of The Temp

‘Morning gorgeous, I…’

‘Do you want the good news or the bad?’ Linda interrupts, without any preambles.

‘Oh, the good, please. I can’t take much more bad news today.’

‘Well, they’re both bad, actually, but one is worse.’

‘Please don’t tell me Theo is still reeling about Frank because…’

‘No, it’s not that. Everything is fine between us.’

‘What is it then?’ The washing machine spins. ‘Linda?’

‘Today’s gig’s been cancelled. Owner’s brother has passed away.’

‘Oh, that’s sad.’ I open my calendar app and delete the appointment. ‘I’d be a wreck if one of my loved ones died. But what can be worse than news of a death?’

‘The Limes Park guy.’

‘What about him?’ I ask. It can’t be Frank – he’s on the run, texting Louis from Cambridgeshire and withdrawing money from cashpoints.

‘He’s been identified.’

‘Is it someone we know?’ I gulp. The washing machine chugs.

‘Yes.’ A pause. ‘Are you sitting down?’

I flop onto the chair. ‘I am now. Go on, who is it?’

‘Liam.’

The hairs on my arm stand on end. ‘Liam who? It can’t be…’

‘Liam Cooper. Your ex.’ The machine spins at about the same time as my stomach. ‘He’s the Limes Park victim.’

Chapter 53

I heave over the toilet bowl, saliva dripping onto my chin. Liam is dead. Murdered. How is that even possible? Who could’ve done this to him?

‘Are you okay, Bella?’ I shake my head at Zelda as I get to my feet. ‘How did it happen? Did Linda say?’

‘No,’ I manage, staggering back into the kitchen.

‘But who could’ve killed him? It doesn’t make sense.’ Zelda turns the tap on.

I roll up my sleeves and notice that there’s a bit of drool on the right-hand cuff. ‘I’ve no idea,’ I say, rubbing it with my finger.

‘Here, drink this.’ Zelda hands me a glass of water. I don’t usually drink tap. Daisy said it’s polluted. Tom insists it’s perfectly fine to drink, meets the water quality standards. The liquid shakes as I draw it to my lips.

‘Is Linda certain? He’s not the only Liam Cooper in north London. I bet there are dozens of them around.’ Grabbing her phone, she starts jabbing at the screen.

‘It’s him,’ I say, voice barely audible. ‘Linda’s sure. There was a photo online. She said they’ll be updating the story throughout the day. God, I hate to think what his wife and kids are going through.’

Zelda stares at her lit-up screen, lips parted, and then chucks her phone onto the table and steps away from it, her expression confirming Linda’s story. She’s taking this a lot worse than I expected. It’s terrible news, but she was never a Liam fan.

‘It’s a lot to take in, isn’t it?’ I say. ‘Look, I need to go up and change. I got a bit of sick on Daisy’s hoodie.’

I go to move but Zelda grabs my arm, digging her nails into my flesh. ‘Oh, God, Bella. I’ve done something stupid.’

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