J & P Book 3 - Please Don't Leave Me

Chapter 13

As the taxi pulled up outside her home, Jenny noticed that Deny's car was parked outside. It looked as if the driver door hadn't been closed properly. This was a little unusual.

She paid the taxi driver and carefully got out the taxi, still self-conscious. She closed the door of Deny's car. She sniffed the sleeves of her jacket and the collar of her blouse. She'd managed to obtain some deodorant at the hotel reception before setting off home, in an attempt to mask any suspicious scents that Patrick might pick up, but she was still concerned that he might still notice that she smelt different to when she left the house.

She let herself in and was alarmed to see that the family photograph in the hall was missing from the wall.

"Patrick?" she called.

She went into the kitchen and found her husband on the floor, cleaning up broken glass.

"Oh.. whatever's happened?"

"I had a drink, but I dropped the bottle and smashed it," he explained. His speech was a little slurred.

"And the picture in the hall?"

"Oh, that. It fell off the wall and smashed too."

"Why is Deny's car outside?"

"Oh, he came over to see you. He had a drink with me, so he left the car."

Jenny didn't quite believe Patrick's version of events, but was pleased at the delay to the inevitable questioning she was going to get in return. "Where is he now?"

"Think he went over your mum's. He's only been gone a few minutes."

Patrick continued to clear up the glass.

"I'm sorry I went off," she said. "I needed to get my head around things."

Patrick stood up, and put the dustpan of broken glass in the bin. "Where have you been?"

"Lucia's," she lied. "I went and told her the truth about Andrew."

"That must have been enough to send her into labour," Patrick commented, still not looking at her.

"I don't think she'd have a problem with that," Jenny said, knowing how weary Lucia was with late pregnancy. They'd spoken a couple of times on the phone over the last few days. "She won't say anything, Patrick. She understands. To be perfectly frank, she already knew. She's always known. She never believed me."

Patrick looked at her, with a regretful expression.

"So, someone else knows now. That's three people, with Paul."

Patrick froze. "I.. Well, I didn't intend to tell him but.. Deny knows now, too."

"Oh, Patrick!" Jenny shook her head. "What were you thinking?"

"He didn't take it very well," Patrick admitted.

"Of course he didn't," Jenny shouted. "He hates Paul. You didn't tell him he was in town, did you? Please tell me you didn't."

Patrick said nothing, just looked back at her, a pathetic look of defeat on his face.

"And you're certain he's gone over to Mum's?"

"I wouldn't let him drive," Patrick acknowledged.

"Ohh, I'm going to bed," Jenny said, despairingly. "We can talk tomorrow. I don't want to talk about any of this anymore today." In truth, she was exhausted, feeling tired, guilty, emotional, and lost in equal measures.