Page 149 of Don't Believe A Word

‘I will,’ he promised.

As she started towards the office she could feel his loneliness and regrets as if they were stretching out between them, even trying to pull her back. She kept going, only turning at the last to give him a wave, but to her surprise he’d gone – and for one peculiarly disorientating moment it was as though he’d left her all over again.

*

An hour later everyone was gathered in the office, drinks in hands, feet up on desks or chairs as they listened to the closing minutes of the pod. Sadie was thanking theHindsightteam for the ‘incredible chance’ they’d given her to share her journey, ‘with your hundreds of thousands of listeners around the world … Sometimes terrible things happen and it’s only with the benefit of hindsight that we can see how they might have been done differently.’

‘Neat how she slipped the series title in there,’ Harry commented dryly.

Cristy nodded and continued listening to her own voice as she began winding things up.

CRISTY: ‘So there we have Sadie’s final words on the search for her roots, the surprises and joy it brought her along the way, the confusion, frustration and sadness – and last of all the way it resulted in the untimely and tragic death of her aunt. I wonder if you’re finding yourselves as moved by her retelling of what happened at the villa that fateful night as we were when we first heard it. It must have been terrible for her, having no one there to support or guide her, or to help persuade Mia not to jump. I’m sure the trauma of it will stay with her for a very long time.’

CONNOR: ‘I have no doubt of it. We don’t know whether or not Sadie and Mia talked about Janina that night, but it’s hard to imagine they didn’t, considering what Sadie found in Lottie’s journals. As the key points remain unavailableto us we still can’t share any details, but what we know already is that Lottie met Janina and Gabe while they were in Guernsey. You might have seen the photographs on our website of them in a café.’

CRISTY: ‘The fact that Janina lost her life not long after the pictures were taken could be put down to a tragic accident, caused perhaps by careless driving on dangerous roads that she was unfamiliar with. Or did someone force her over the edge? Matis Albescu, her old tormentor? There’s no evidence of him being on the island at that time, and why would he want her dead instead of returned to the captivity he’d kept her in for the previous five years?’

CONNOR: ‘As we’ve read the journals we believe we do know what happened to Janina, as does Sadie, of course, and we understand why she’s choosing not to share the details publicly. That could change now that her aunt Mia is no longer with us to be hurt by the revelations, and if it does we’ll certainly let you know.’

CRISTY: ‘Before we go we can reveal that questions have arisen around the way Lottie Winters died back in 2020. They were posed to us by Mia days before she died. I’m afraid we can’t be specific about what was said, nor can we say for certain that Mia was thinking straight when she brought the matter up. It’s just left that lingering doubt in our minds over what might have happened to cause Lottie’s collapse when her heart medication had allowed her to live a full and healthy life until suddenly it didn’t.’

CONNOR: ‘Naturally we wish Sadie – or Sasha as she’d now like to be known – all the happiness she deserves with her new family, and I’m sure you do too. We hope to be back later in the spring with a brand-new series, a whole new crime to unravel and hopefully solve.’

CRISTY: ‘For now we’d like to thank our sponsors for making this production possible, and all of you for listening …’

As Connor faded out the sound, Meena let her breath go in a long, loud exhale of amazement and said, ‘Well, a redefinition of subtle, if ever I heard one. I can’t wait to see how all that plays out when it reaches the parts most other pods wouldn’t dare to go. It must have been terrible for her, having no one there to support or guide her, or to help persuade Mia not to jump. Wow, if no one guesses from that what you think then they’re not paying attention.’

‘Did Sadie know you were going to talk about the journals like that?’ Jodi asked, clearly surprised and impressed. ‘I mean, you didn’t say what the missing parts are, but you’d have to be an idiot not to work it out.’

Cristy shook her head, and felt a quick pang of unease as she tried to imagine how Sadie, Gabe and Lukas might respond when they heard the insinuations, never mind what she’d said about Lottie’s death. She’d yet to hear what David thought of the episode, having sent him a copy just before the upload.

‘How do you think Sadie’s going to react?’ Iz asked, glancing up from her phone.

‘She’s lucky we didn’t go any further than we did,’ Connor retorted.

‘Everyone’s been asking, “Did she jump, or was she pushed?” since the last ep,’ Jacks put in. ‘All this will do is create more volume.’

‘Because you’re convinced she actually did push her aunt over?’ Iz grimaced as they all looked at her. ‘Sorry. Just needing to be clear.’

Connor eyed her warily. ‘We are, but if you’re thinking of putting our suspicions into some kind of press release, rein yourself in. We’ve got no evidence to support them and I guess there’s still an outside chance we could be wrong.’

‘What, you?’ Jodi teased. ‘Never let it be said.’

Connor crooked an eyebrow, and downed the rest of his drink. ‘Any more going?’ he asked, holding out his glass.

‘Coming right up.’ Iz headed for the fridge. ‘I’m so happy to be celebrating with you all,’ she declared in a burst of exuberance. ‘It’s been a brilliant series in so many ways, and with all the interviews we’ve got lined up over the next few weeks … Theadvertisers are going to carry on fighting for space forever more. That’s the great thing about pods, isn’t it, there’s no actual end to their lives. Unlike poor Mia and Lottie. Which reminds me, howdoyou think Lottie died? Was it really suspicious? Could Sadie actually have been behind it?’ Her cheeks were so flushed with excitement and her tongue running on so loosely that Cristy had to wonder if she was actually connecting with what she was saying.

‘Just imagine, if it turns out she offed both the aunts!’ Iz gushed elatedly. ‘There won’t be any Florida for her then, that’s for sure. And we, onHindsight,will have exposed it …’

‘Exactly what part of reining in did you not get?’ Connor interrupted. To Cristy he said, ‘Do you have to be somewhere? You keep checking the time.’

‘I’m meeting Robert Brinkley at seven-thirty,’ she replied. ‘He’s leaving at the weekend and asked if we could get together before he goes.’

‘The drop-dead gorgeous heart surgeon?’ Jodi teased.

‘Who was in love with Lottie,’ Clove added. ‘Do you know what he wants to see you about?’

‘I think just to say goodbye. I’ve put the journals on a memory stick so he can read what she wrote about him. Before you ask, no he doesn’t have the crucial entries, and no, we won’t be adding his starring role to the website. It’s not relevant for one thing, and they’re way too … personal.’

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