Page 96 of You Lied First
I nod. ‘Sounds like a plan. So what are we going to do with the memory card?’
‘We save a copy of it. And we hang on to it,’ Flynn says. ‘We can’t give it to anyone until we know it’s in the right hands. Like Mum says, we can’t risk it getting lost.’
Liv shudders. ‘I can’t believe this is our life. That we’resitting here in Mum’s living room discussing how to get your dad taken down for murder.’
‘I can’t believe my dad murdered someone. Someone we know!’ Flynn says, and they stare at each other, aghast.
Margot’s just shaking her head slowly, looking baffled. ‘Right, Sara, would you mind having a look for a place for me to stay in, umm, say, Oxfordshire? I don’t have the mental space to deal with hotel bookings right now.’
‘Sure. Buy do you actually have to go that far?’ I say, ‘I mean, you couldsayyou were there but actually be much closer … he’s not going to check, is he?’
‘I guess not … in that case, somewhere reasonably close but not too close? Just somewhere simple.’
‘Do you need to pack?’
‘I suppose I need to go home and pack a few bits, yes.’
‘I’m coming with you!’ Flynn says.
‘Okay. Here’s the plan. You two do that first. Before we do anything else. I’ll book you a room. Then, once you’re both safe, Margot, we’ll call the incident room.’
‘Okay.’ Everyone nods.
Sara the sensible one. Sara the rescuer. You couldn’t make it up.
79
SARA
Ibook Margot into the Holiday Inn in Gloucester. It’s close enough for her to be reachable, but far enough away that she’s unlikely to bump into Guy. I also save on my laptop a copy of the video, which Margot decided to leave with me ‘just in case’. Then I look up the number for the incident room. Detective Sergeant Margaret Ward is the name given.
‘Great,’ I say. ‘So now it’s just a matter of waiting for Margot and Flynn to get back.’
Liv orders dinner for us, though I doubt either of us taste any of it. After we’ve eaten, she gets up and looks out of the window. Then she starts pacing the room and chewing the skin around her fingers in a way that makes me nervous. I gather up the detritus of the Five Guys meal and pack it into the largest paper bag.
‘I hope they’re all right,’ Liv says. ‘They’ll have to be so careful. They mustn’t give anything away or he might …’ She shudders.
‘He’s not going to do anything to them,’ I say.
‘But if he finds out that they know, and they’re planning to hand him in, he’ll be desperate. He might do anything. I mean, he’s a ruthless person. We know that now. But I’m so shocked,Mum. Before Oman, I used to think Flynn was so lucky to have him for a dad. He was more like a mate than a father. In a good way. I can’t believe it.’
‘Well, as you go through life, you’ll learn that people will surprise you. You think you know them, then they reveal a whole new side of themselves.’ I stop. I have more important things to talk about with Liv than Guy’s personality. ‘Livvie,’ I say. ‘While it’s just us, I want to say I’m so sorry that you and Flynn had to go through this.’ Oh, God, the guttural sound Celine had made as I’d pulled that scarf tight around her carotid arteries. ‘All I ever wanted was to protect you. I want you to know that. That was only ever my intention. And always will be.’
Liv stops pacing and looks at me. ‘And I’m sorry. I get that. I realise that he manipulated you. You had no choice. Flynn made me see that. I’m sorry for what I said.’ Her mouth wobbles. ‘Really sorry.’
‘It’s okay, Livvie. I’m always here for you. Okay?’
‘Thanks,’ she says. ‘Can I have a hug?’
We lapse into silence after our hug. Liv continues pacing. I refresh my WhatsApp constantly, checking to see when Margot was last online, as if that’ll tell me anything other than that she’s still alive.
‘Do you think he’d take them hostage?’ Liv asks.
‘You mean if he finds out about the memory card? He doesn’t even know the camera was there.’
‘What if he remembers?’
‘Let’s think positive. Margot and Flynn are popping home to pick up their stuff. Flynn’s coming to stay with us, and Margot’s got a meeting with a potential new client who mayor may not be royal. Guy’ll probably be glad to have a night to himself … we’re overthinking this because we know what’s at stake. But you’ve got to remember that Guy knows none of this. For Guy it’s just a normal Tuesday.’
