Claire was unresponsive but Suki’s will was strong. They went for a walk in the park. Snow was falling, light as kisses. The sun shone but the air was frigid. Kids played. Life was going on even if Josh was dead. When they got back to the apartment, Claire went back to the wardrobe again, opened the door, and felt panicky as she inhaled the faint but slowly vanishing scent of him. He was going from her, her long-lost and re-found Romany love, the king of the gypsy fighters. She should have been his queen, but life had played cruel tricks on both of them. And this time, he would never be coming back.

‘All right. Get rid of his clothes,’ she said, heartbroken, and closed the door.

129

129

Lesley Deveney stood in the sitting room of Shauna’s place and thought, Wowser, look at this! Shauna was just as she remembered: hard-looking, with piled-up and dyed black hair. She had darkly outlined and very penetrating eyes that seemed to skewer you. She was expensively dressed – and this place looked like it was worth a fortune.

Shauna sat down opposite and said: ‘All right, what’ve you got then?’

Lesley laid her briefcase on the Italianate glass and marble coffee table between them and unlocked it. She took out a large envelope and handed it to Shauna.

‘I was sorry to hear about your loss, Mrs Flynn,’ she said.

Shauna said nothing. She flipped the contents of the envelope out on to the table. There were seven eight-by-ten black-and-white photographs in total, and in each one . . .

She took in a gasping breath. ‘Oh Christ,’ she moaned, putting a hand to her mouth.

‘I’m sorry, Mrs Flynn,’ said Lesley, meaning it. She didn’t like this woman, but it was a horrible blow, all the same, this on top of her bereavement, and she did feel sympathy for her.

Shauna stared aghast at the prints. In each one of them, walking among crowds of tourists and New Yorkers, she could see the tall figure of Josh arm-in-arm with a pretty blonde woman in a mid-toned coat, boots and jeans. They were smiling at each other, and in one of them Josh was bending a little and kissing the bitch on the lips.

Shauna’s breath caught for a second time.

That looks like . . .

‘But . . . that can’t be . . .’ she started.

‘What is it?’ asked Lesley, alarmed by Shauna’s sudden stillness.