Contrite ✓

Chapter 35.

Pam groaned and plopped down on a chair in the kitchen, letting her eyes follow me as I rummaged around trying to locate some tea.

"I don't even know where to begin," she said.

"Why don't you start from the beginning?" I suggested. "Why did you really quit your job at the coffee shop?"

She huffed. "Other than that the boss is a complete wanker?"

I laughed. "What are you talking about? He's a ray of sunshine, that man."

"Right. I miss him terribly. His face used to light up my days." She rolled her eyes and laughed.

"Seriously though. Why? Had you met Max?"

I turned around to face her, leaning against the counter and crossing my arms in front of my chest as I waited for the water to boil.

She nodded slowly. "Yeah. . . I met him about a month before when I went to visit my brother in Liverpool. He was charming and handsome and so incredibly kind. I practically fell for him the minute he spoke my name."

"So what happened?"

"Well. . . at first I honestly thought he was this hot shot business man, you know since he mostly wore fancy trousers, shirts and ties. But the more time we spent together, the harder it became for him to lie to me about what he really did. Much thanks to Cole."

I shuddered at the mention of his name, wondering what he had done to Pam.

"One day, Cole showed up at my doorstep, asking for Max. I told him he wasn't there and he started to get aggressive. Told me he would expose Max and make me regret ever getting to know him. Of course I had no clue what he was talking about but he was kind enough to enlighten me.

"So, when Max came over that night, I confronted him. And he confessed. Can you imagine the feeling when your boyfriend tells you he's basically a drug lord, running cartels all over the globe?" she barked out a laugh, shaking her head.

"Not really, but I suppose I can recognise the feeling a bit. I mean, Harry's involved too. And I wasn't overly happy when I found out he was dealing drugs," I mumbled and poured two cups of tea, placing them on the table.

"Thanks," Pam smiled. "Gosh, you probably hate me right now. I swear though, I had no idea about Harry. Max had mentioned him like once or twice, but his name didn't stick with me. When you talked about him, I put two and two together. When I figured out he worked at HES, I knew he was friends with Max. But I'd never met him until that night we were there."

I nodded, happy with these news. "But how come you got involved, too? I honestly thought you were going to school."

She shrugged. "I was, at first. Up until some weeks ago. Then I got sick of it and decided it wasn't for me. So I dropped out. And that's when Max offered me a job at the club."

"Did you know Heather?" I said, bracing myself for whatever answer she would give me.

"No, never met her. The only one I encountered frequently was Cole. The others working here in Holmes Chapel didn't do much travelling to Liverpool. Oh, well, except Dylan."

Dylan. I remembered Saturday and winced. I needed to speak with him and make sure we were still. . . friends? He'd been my friend, hadn't he?

"Okay," I took a sip from the hot tea, hissing as it burned my tongue.

"I'm sorry I haven't been honest with you. But I promise it was all for your own good. I didn't want to drag you down with me," Pam said.

"It's fine. I'm just glad you're telling me now. And I'm already involved, much to my annoyance. Cole keeps bothering me about seeing Harry. I think he lives to ruin people's happiness," I snorted.