Page 55 of The Pearl Sister
I trusted you. Hope you’re happy.
I leapt to my rucksack and got out the scrap of paper on which Ace had written down his mobile number and saw it matched the number on my screen.
‘Oh God, Cee . . .’ I scraped the palms of my hands distractedly up and down my cheeks. ‘What have you done? Christ!’ I mentally retraced my footsteps since leaving Thailand, searching for clues as to what it could have been.
You’ve been on a plane for most of the time . . .
Nope, there was nothing. Nothing I’d said, or eventhoughtabout Ace that was bad. Quite the opposite, in fact. I stood up and paced across the small, tiled room, then I went back to my mobile and dialled the voicemail number, to be told in a strong Australian accent that it wasn’t the right one, but without telling me what the right onewas.I threw the phone onto the bed in irritation.
Even though it would cost a fortune, I had to find out what had happened. The best way was to go straight to the horse’s mouth, which was Ace.
Wishing for once I was a drinker – a few shots of whisky chased down by a tequila slammer or four might have calmed the trembling in my fingers – I tapped in Ace’s number. Squaring up my body as though I was about to have a physical fight, I waited for it to connect.
A different Australian voice informed me that ‘this number is unavailable’. Thinking that maybe I’d got it wrong, I tried another ten or even fifteen times, but still the answer was the same.
‘Shit! So, what do I do now . . . ?’ I asked myself.
Phone Star . . . she’ll know.
I paced some more, because it would mean breaking the silence, and I knew that hearing her voice for the first time in weeks might breakmetoo. Still, I knew I had no choice. There was no way I was going to be able to sleep tonight without knowing what I’d done.
I dialled Star’s number and it rang eventually, which was something. Then I heard my sister’s voice, and did my best to swallow a gulp of emotion as she said hello.
‘It’s me, Sia . . .’ I said, reverting automatically to the pet name I used when I spoke to her.
‘Cee! Are you okay? Whereareyou?’
‘In Australia . . . in the middle of nowhere.’ I managed a chuckle.
‘Australia? But you always refused to go there!’
‘I know, but here I am. Listen, do you know why I’ve got all these texts from everyone?’
There was a silence on the other end. Finally, she said, ‘Yes. Don’t you?’
‘No. I really don’t.’
Another pause, but I was used to those from her and I waited for her to choose her words. The result was disappointing.
‘Oh,’ she said. ‘I see.’
‘See what? Seriously, Sia, I really don’t know. Can you tell me?’
‘I . . . yes. It’s to do with the man you were photographed with.’
‘Photographed with? Who?’
‘Anand Changrok, the rogue trader who broke Berners Bank and then disappeared off the face of the earth.’
‘Who?What?!I don’t evenknowan “Anand Changrok”.’
‘A tall, dark-haired man who looks oriental?’
‘Oh. God.Shit. . .it’s Ace!’
‘You do know him then?’ said Star.
‘Yes, but not what he’s done. Whathashe done?’
