The Therapist by B.A. Paris

Thirty-Seven

Before going back to the hotel, I call Leo. He’s still at work but I’m no longer worried about disturbing him.

‘Apart from you and me,’ I ask, plunging straight in, ‘does anyone have keys to our house?’

‘Why – is there a problem? Have you locked yourself out? I can come over.’

‘No, it’s not that.’ I take a steadying breath. ‘I’m going to ask you something and I’d like an honest answer. Have you been letting yourself into the house at night?’

‘Sorry?’

‘It’s a simple question, Leo. Have you been letting yourself into the house at night and creeping around, trying to scare me?’

‘It’s also a bizarre one. Why would I do that?’

‘To get me to leave the house.’

‘You really think that’s something I’d do?’ His voice is low and I remember that he’s at work. ‘Anyway, I’m in Birmingham most of the time, remember?’

‘But not all of the time.’

‘Can you hold on a moment?’ I hear him say something to someone about needing to take a couple of minutes and then he’s back. ‘Look, I might be dishonest but I’m not a psychopath.’

‘Really? What about the hair?’

‘What hair?’

‘The ponytail in the wardrobe.’

‘I have no idea what you’re talking about.’

‘Come on, Leo, you admitted it!’

‘Admitted what?’

I can’t keep hold of my anger. I’m tired, so tired of his lies.

‘Hiding hair in the wardrobe and spreading it around the house to make me think that it’s Nina’s!’

There’s a long pause. ‘Alice. You’re beginning to worry me. I honestly have no idea what you’re talking about.’

The calmness of his voice infuriates me further. ‘I messaged you! I told you the hair was pathetic and you said you didn’t do it so that I would like it!’

‘Yes, the shorter hair, my beard. It wasn’t for you, I wasn’t trying to impress you or anything. I just didn’t shave for a few days and liked it, so thought I’d carry on letting it grow.’ There’s a pause. ‘Can we rewind? To the part where you accused me of creeping around the house?’

My mind is still trying to catch up with what he said about the hair. ‘I’m not imagining it, Leo.’

‘I didn’t say you were. I thought there was someone in the house after our drinks evening, remember?’

‘After the first couple of times, I did think I was imagining it,’ I say. ‘Because nothing ever happened. But Eve told me that before Nina died, she used to think there was someone in the house.’

‘The first couple of times?’ His voice rises in alarm. ‘How many times has this happened?’

‘I don’t know – four or five, maybe.’

‘And you’ve carried on staying there?’

‘Yes, because nothing ever happened. As I said, I thought I was imagining it. But to get back to my original question, does anyone else have keys to the house?’

‘Yes, Will and Eve. I gave Will a set after we moved in.’

My heart plummets. ‘Right.’

‘You don’t seriously think either of them have been letting themselves into the house to try and scare you?’

‘No,’ I say, although my mind is screaming Will’s name.

‘What was all that about hair in the wardrobe?’

I cringe internally at the mix-up. ‘Sorry, I’ve got a call coming through. It’s Debbie. Can I call you back later?’

‘Sure.’

I hang up. Debbie isn’t calling but I need to think. I really need to think.

Ten minutes later, I’m on Eve’s doorstep waiting for her to answer the door.

She flings it open. ‘Perfect timing!’ I can hear voices coming from the kitchen. She opens the door wider. ‘Come in.’

‘No, it’s fine, I don’t want to disturb you, I just—’

She reaches for my arm. ‘Don’t be silly, the others are here. It’s a bit noisy with the children but I thought it was about time we had tea at mine.’

‘Great,’ I say, remembering that after their yoga session on Wednesdays, Eve goes with Tamsin and Maria to collect the children from school, and then they have tea together.

I follow her to the kitchen, which is full of people. Despite the cooler weather, the French doors to the garden are open and Maria’s three boys and Tamsin’s two little daughters run backwards and forwards, taking cake from the table and carrying it outside to eat. Tamsin and Maria are sitting at the table and Will and Tim are leaning against the worktop, mugs of tea in their hands.

‘Hi, Alice,’ they chorus.

I give a little wave. ‘Hi, everyone.’ I look over at Will and Tim. ‘I didn’t realise you were part of the Wednesday afternoon gatherings too.’

‘We’re only honorary members this afternoon, because we both happened to be at home,’ Tim explains.

‘And because I overheard Maria offering to bring one of her chocolate cakes,’ Will says. ‘You need to try some, Alice, it’s the best.’

‘Sit down.’ Eve hoists herself onto the worktop next to the table. ‘Will, pass Tamsin a mug for Alice.’

I pull out the chair next to Maria and she cuts me a slice of cake while Tamsin fills my mug with tea.

‘Thanks,’ I say, trying not to think that at one time or another, I’ve suspected three of the people in the room of having murdered Nina.

‘Did you have a nice time away?’ Eve asks.

‘Yes, thanks. Actually, that’s why I came over – Debbie, the friend I was staying with, is coming to spend a few days with me and I’d like to give her keys so that she can come and go as she pleases. Leo said that you have a set?’

‘Yes, hang on a second.’ Will goes over to the wall next to the fridge. ‘How is he, by the way?’

‘Fine, thank you. Working hard as usual.’ I still don’t feel ready to tell them that it’s over between me and Leo.

‘They’re here somewhere,’ Will says, running his eye over a row of keys. He chooses a keyring and holds it up. ‘It’s not this one, is it?’

‘Those are mine,’ Tamsin says.

‘I thought they were.’ Will frowns and turns to Eve. ‘Apart from your mum’s spare set, Tamsin’s seem to be the only ones here that aren’t ours. Have you got Alice’s?’

‘No, I didn’t even know we had a set.’

‘Leo gave them to me after they moved in. I put them here with the others.’ He turns back to the hooks. ‘Come and have a look, Alice, you’ll recognise them better than me.’

I leave my cake and walk over to where he’s standing.

‘Can you see them?’ he asks.

‘No.’

‘We did have them, because I remember seeing a label with number 6 on it. I don’t remember Leo taking them back but maybe you could ask him.’

‘I just spoke to him, he was the one who told me you had a set.’

Will scratches his head. ‘I don’t know where they could be. Eve, did you move them, put them somewhere else?’

‘How could I, when I didn’t know we had any?’ she says archly. She jumps down from the worktop. ‘Maybe they’re in the study.’

‘Why would they be there?’

‘I don’t know but it’s the only other place I can think of to look. Come with me, Alice.’

I follow Eve to the study, and we search the desk and its drawers. But there’s no sign of the keys.

‘Weird,’ Eve says. ‘I’m sorry, Alice, I’ll carry on looking once everyone has gone.’

She doesn’t sound too worried and another possibility adds itself to the ones already crowding my mind, none that I like very much. Could Will be lying? Maybe he’s put the keys somewhere else, or they’re in the pocket of the jeans he was wearing last time he went on a night prowl. But maybe it’s not him, maybe someone saw our keys on the wall by the fridge and took them. I look over at Tamsin, then at Tim and Maria. They are all frequent visitors here.

‘No problem,’ I say, except that it is a problem, because now I know that Leo isn’t my prowler, I won’t be able to sleep in the house when I leave the hotel tomorrow, not when a set of keys has gone missing.

I finish my cake, make my excuses and leave.

‘When is your friend arriving?’ Will asks, coming to the front door with me.

‘Friday,’ I say.

‘Well, let’s hope we can find the keys before then.’

Back at the hotel, my phone rings. It’s Ginny.

‘How are you?’ she asks.

‘I’m fine.’

‘Are you sure?’

‘Yes, why?’

‘I had a call from Leo. He’s worried about you, Alice. He said you were accusing him of prowling around the house at night, and something he didn’t understand about him spreading hair everywhere.’

‘It was a misunderstanding,’ I say. ‘And anyway, he’s exaggerating.’

‘Hm.’ She doesn’t seem convinced. ‘Are you still away?’

‘Yes.’

‘I’m sorry, Alice, that’s what I don’t understand. You ask Leo if you can have the house for two weeks and then you go away.’

‘I’ll be back tomorrow.’

She sighs. ‘Are you going to tell me what’s going on?’

‘There’s nothing going on. Sorry, but I really need to go. Can I call you in the morning?’

‘Alright, but—’

‘Thanks, Ginny, I’ll speak to you then.’