Page 4 of The Soulmate

Johnno picks up his tea and blows on the top to cool it. ‘Can you describe the woman?’

‘Dark hair, in a ponytail. Clothes were all black. Black pants. A black puffer jacket.’

‘Young or old?’

‘Youngish . . .’ Gabe says. ‘Maybe thirty-five? Forty? Maybe even fifty. She was . . . well looked after. Seemed young at first but then you realise she’s older than you thought, you know?’

Johnno nods his understanding. Sweet Johnno. I think of all the times he must have showed up on doorsteps in much worse circumstances than these. Situations where he has had to give people bad news, telling them that they have lost a loved one. It reminds me that someone is going to be getting bad news soon about this well-maintained woman aged thirty-five to fifty. A husband, partner . . . maybe even a child?

Johnno makes a note, then looks up. ‘Did you get her name?’

Gabe shakes his head.

‘Then what happened?’

Gabe looks at his own cup of tea but doesn’t pick it up. ‘She said her husband was unfaithful.’

Johnno writes this down. ‘Did she say his name? The husband?’

‘No.’ Gabe goes on: ‘It was hard to hear her, because of the wind. I think she was mostly ranting about her husband. I came closer, to see if I could talk to her. And she just turned and . . .’ He inhales, closes his eyes. ‘It was so fast. She was there and then . . . a scream . . . and she was gone.’

There’s a quiet moment, a respectful silence. Johnno writes furiously on his notepad. After a few more seconds, he looks up again.

‘She screamed then, did she?’

Gabe frowns, then appears to reconsider this. ‘I mean . . . I think so. It might have been the wind. To be honest, it’s all a little blurry.’

‘Why?’ I ask Johnno. ‘Is that unusual?’

‘Not necessarily. Just worth noting.’ Johnno duly makes a note of it. When he looks up, he says, ‘Anything else that might be important?’

Gabe frowns as he appears to think about this. After a moment, he shakes his head. His eyes close.

Johnno puts down his pen. ‘It’s not your fault, mate. Frankly, it’s amazing that you’ve saved as many as you have. So don’t blame yourself, okay?’

Gabe nods, his eyes still closed. Johnno shoots me a look and I nod as well.

‘Well, we better go secure the site,’ he says, and he and Aaron stand. Johnno takes the notepad over to Gabe. ‘Have a read over this, and if you’re happy it’s accurate, sign and date it at the bottom.’

The two men make their way to the back door. Just before he slides it open, Johnno pauses. ‘You didn’t see anything, did you, Pip?’

It’s an afterthought. His gaze is on me, but light, as if his thoughts are already outside.

The question takes me by surprise. It’s straightforward enough, but I don’t know how to answer it. The fact is, I did see something. I saw Gabe, cliffside, talking to the woman. I saw her throw up her arms, and I saw him take a step towards her. Then I saw Gabe alone, his arms extended, palms forward. The more I think about it, there’s something about his stance that bothers me. I can’t get it out of my head. He was holding his hands the way you would if you’dpushedsomeone.

Johnno is still looking at me, waiting for my response. Gabe’s head is still hanging, clutching Johnno’s notepad, his eyes closed again.

‘No,’ I say. ‘I didn’t see anything.’

3

PIPPA

NOW

Ilied to the police. No matter how many times I tell myself this, I still can’t get my head around it.I lied to the police. Why did I do that?

Admittedly, it’s quite common, if police procedural dramas are anything to go by. In every one I’ve watched, at least the first three suspects are lying about something. Usually, it’s an affair. Or another, more insignificant, crime. I’m hiding neither. And yet, here we are.