The Café (complete story)

Chapter 3: An Angel at my door

The continual aggressive ringing and banging on the door scared Eve. Getting into her apartment wasn't a simple matter of walking up to her front door. Whoever got into the block of flats did so without buzzing up, evaded the consignor, entered the lift without being challenged and was now desperately threatening to do some real damage to her door and most likely herself. Eve thought that if she was to die at least they wouldn't harm her son who was with the childminder.

Eve was trembling as she cowered at the back of the hallway. As the letterbox flipped open she started to fear the worst. "I..I..I've got a knife" she shouted, hoping in vain that her threat of retaliatory violence would scare the person away.

The letterbox was open at its widest when the intruder shouted "Mrs Shepard, its Angel, you've gotta let me in, I've gotta see you."

A relieved Eve opened the door to an agitated young woman holding a cotton bundle. Angel bounced through the door the moment it was opened, almost knocking Eve on the floor.

It took Eve a while to get her breath back after such a dramatic first meeting with Angel. Amazingly Angel's 13 month old daughter had managed to sleep throughout the whole commotion.

Angel finished the glass of orange in two gulps. Her agitated state couldn't hide the fact that she looked emaciated, her long hair unkempt and her shoulders drooped as if they were caving into her body as she sat down.

"When did you last eat Angel?"

Angel stared blankly at Eve for a moment, turned her head to the little bundle cradled in her arms and said "I'm not here to take off you Mrs Shepard."

"And the baby?" persisted Eve "when did she last eat?"

Both Alison and Angela wolfed down their respective meals. It looked like neither had eaten a regular meal in ages.

"I know who killed Siobhan and Lynsey" said Angel suddenly. Eve's eyes shot open at the revelation. Her hands started to visibly tremble as Angel continued "he's the father of Angela."

"I..I..don't understand" said Eve, her eyes almost detaching itself from the socket as she spoke "that, that just doesn't make sense." Eve's voice which had shown compassion and concern turned from its softer, honey coated side to a harsher more inquisitive tone "hold on, who is he, how do know him?"

Taken aback by Eve's more strident approach, Angel at first hesitated, then carefully moved closer, placing her hand on Eve's still trembling arm in comfort "I don't know his real name. All I know is that he was Sibby's lover. She couldn't have kids. We got together but I swear I didn't know about Sibby and him. She discovered it first, told me then threatened to expose him. Now she's dead."

"Well, what does he look like?"

"I had a picture, my only picture. Sibby discovered it, put two and two together and destroyed it."

"Then why come to me, why not the Police?" Eve's frosty glare did not move from the line of Angel's face.

"I trust you. You tried to help Lynsey."

Eve calmed down enough to give Angel a reassuring half smile. Eve's annoyance was visible; but she felt she had every right to be annoyed. Spoken about locally in less than flattering terms in some quarters, being interviewed by the Police three times and here, right in front of her, in her very own home, was the one person who could solve the whole case." Listen I'll come to the station with you." said Eve.

Angel nervously returned the smile, nodding vigorously "Yes, Yes, Yes, we need to go now. And I mean this second. I'm sure this guy is connected with Mudlark."

"What exactly is Mud_"

A soft tap, tap, tap at the door interrupted Eve's sentence.

"Oh, that must be Bill. Where's his Dad?" said Eve as she moved to open the door for her six year old son.

Bill dashed in shouting "Mummy, mummy, mummy, daddies got me a new bike. He's in the lift, come and look mummy."

It was only when Bill turned his head to see Angel that he realised that there was another presence in the house. Bill stopped, his cheeks flushed red and he dipped his head towards the floor as he mumbled an inaudible "Hello."

He would have gone to his mother for safety and assurance as shy children confronted with strangers often do but when he spotted the baby from the corner of his eyes, his head shot up. He looked excitedly at Angel and walked straight over to her with his greeting hand extended, "My names Bill, what's yours?"

Angel let out an uncontrolled laugh at the politeness of Eve's son before she extended her own hand to meet his "My name is Angel, pleased to meet you young man."

The formality of meeting the mother over with Bill made his way towards his real target, the baby. He stood over her, fascinated by this precious bundle. "She's lovely mum. Can we keep her?" at which both women burst out laughing. It was during this laughter that the door opened and Alan stepped in.

"Have I come to the wrong house then?"

Both women turned around, Angel's face turned ashen white "I've, I've got to go" she said, hastily wrapping up Angela and pushing past Alan as she left without saying a word. She was in the lift before Eve could catch up to her.

Eve slammed the front door as she re-entered the house.

"What the hell happened there?" It was the look of fear on Angel's face which shocked Eve.

"Do you know her?" Eve glared at Alan looking for a reaction.

Alan stood still, dummy like, rooted to the same spot where he finished entering the house, "Who the hell is she?" his face looking more squashed as he spoke, "why would I know her?"

"Her name is Angel, Daddy," said Bill, not understanding the complexities being played out in front of him "she's got a lovely baby."

"She's an old friend from work who's in a bad place," said Eve calmly.

"She probably has a serious male phobia then," said Alan, still mystified as to what had just transpired.

Eve didn't want to get into another argument with Alan about helping prostitutes, especially with Bill present. Not telling him about Angel's importance was another necessary white lie.