Page 56 of Joker in the Pack

Just let anybody try to take it off me.

Just let them.

CHAPTER 18

I ROLLED OVER into something warm and furry on Saturday morning. Twiglet. He’d taken to sneaking into bed with me, and I didn’t have the heart to kick him out. Hang on. What was that cold thing lying across my stomach? A poker? Why did I have a poker in bed with me?

Exactly how much wine had I drunk last night?

Enough, it would seem, because it took a good thirty seconds before the previous evening’s events became clear in my mind. When my thoughts finally crystallised, I leapt out of bed.

Someone had been in my house!

And I’d been stupid enough to sleep there. I smacked my own head. That was it—I was never drinking again. Ever.

Shaking with every step, I picked up the poker again and did a sober circuit of the cottage. Nothing. Nothing but those horrible words on my wall, which told me it wasn’t just kids messing around, no matter what everybody said. When I got back to the bedroom, all my false bravado subsided, and my legs gave way. Twiglet mewed on the bed next to me, and I scritched his head.

“I’ll get you breakfast in a minute, little one.”

Breathe, Olivia.Nobody else was in the house, and I’d even blocked up the broken window. At least drunk me hadn’t been completely incompetent, merely incredibly stupid.

Sometimes I didn’t understand myself. Why hadn’t I just called Tate again? Or better still, 999?

I rectified the situation as best as I could by calling the police to file a report. Graham made vague promises about doing paperwork but gave me no confidence whatsoever.

“We didn’t find any fingerprints last time, so I doubt we’ll find anything this time. Hardly seems worth sending a forensics team out.”

Good to know my taxes were hard at work, wasn’t it? “But somebody’s been in my house. What if it happens again?”

“You might want to try and stop upsetting the locals. Keep your head down for a bit,” he suggested, making me want to throttle him.

I’d hardly gone out of my way to annoy people deliberately, had I?

I sent Tate a text to let him know I’d had another break-in, but when he called back and offered to cancel his weekend golf trip to stay with me, I insisted he go. Having him change his plans would be yet another black mark in my copybook.

In any case, I wouldn’t be at home for most of the weekend. I’d be at Valerie’s party with Maddie, and Maddie had offered her sofa bed for Saturday night. I agonised over whether to stay in Upper Foxford instead, but if I did, I’d give the person out to ruin my life even more control. They could try to destroy my home, but I’d be dammed if I’d let them take my soul as well. I’d just have to hope Lilac Cottage was still in one piece when I got back.

On Saturday, the party was in full swing by the time Maddie and I arrived with Mickey in tow. They’d bonded on our initial trip to Lilac Cottage, and when Maddie mentioned on Facebook that I’d be in town, Mickey had invited himself around for a drink, and we figured he might as well come to the party.

“Valerie won’t mind,” Maddie said. “The more people who turn up, the more popular she looks. She even invited the checkout assistant from Tesco to one of her parties when he asked what all the wine was for.”

As I wasn’t going home tonight, I suspended my teetotal pledge for the weekend. I needed to have fun, and one glass of wine wouldn’t hurt. Or punch, even.

“It’s white wine mixed with Prosecco,” slurred Valerie, who’d clearly been sampling the product. For most of the afternoon, judging by the lack of focus in her eyes. “And I put some fruit in too so we get our vitamins.” She gave me a grin, then hiccupped.

I glanced down, checking she still had all her fingers. How she’d managed to keep them while chopping up the strawberries, oranges, and kiwi fruit was a minor miracle. I ladled myself out a small cupful and took a sip. Not bad.

“Is that all you’re having?” Maddie asked.

“I’m trying to cut back.”

“Why? Life’s too short.”

“I’ve done a couple of really stupid things while I was tipsy, and I want to avoid it happening again.”

She bumped me with her shoulder. “Oh come on, the strip club was fun. You must have seen the funny side of that by now.”

I stared daggers at her.

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