144

On the way back from the hospital, Angel and Lil shared a cab. Both felt better having seen Tom. He’d been groggy, his head bandaged; but he’d been making perfect sense, his colour was good, he was going to be fine. Then Angel surprised Lil by asking her a question.

‘Would you come back with me to the flat?’ she asked.

Lil stared at her. ‘Why? What’s up?’

Angel shrugged. ‘I’m being stupid, I suppose. But there was a man loitering outside when I left, and after all this with Tom and that bloke threatening me . . .’ She felt stupid, saying all this. She never asked for help. Most particularly, she never asked for it from her ‘family’. But she was asking now. ‘I would feel better if you came back with me.’

The plan had been to drop Angel off, then for Lil to head on home.

‘No problem,’ said Lil, patting her hand.

When they made it back to the flat they found two men waiting at the top of the stairs. The bigger one took out his card.

‘It’s OK, love – police,’ he said.

‘What’s going on?’ asked Lil. She looked at the open flat door. ‘What’s happened?’

The other officer stepped forward. Angel had seen him before; he was the one who’d come into the police station while she’d been standing at the desk; a bit of a looker, this one. The first thing she’d noticed were his eyes – they gave the impression of intense honesty.

‘I’m Detective Inspector Farmer, this is Detective Sergeant Paddy Hopkins,’ he said, showing Angel and Lil his warrant card. He looked at Angel. ‘Are you Angel O’Brien?’

She nodded, cautiously.

‘There’s been a break-in here. The lock’s bust. We’re just waiting for fingerprints to be taken.’

‘Christ, and I thought coppers were useless,’ said Lil. ‘You got here damned fast, didn’t you?’

‘I was wanting to speak to Miss O’Brien,’ said Farmer. ‘I came here to do that, and a man came out of the flat and ran away.’

Angel stared at Farmer in horror. She’d been right to ask Lil to come back with her. If she’d come back here alone . . .

‘You look pale, are you all right?’ asked Farmer, watching her face.

Angel didn’t feel right at all. She felt like her whole world, which she had thought was getting back on track, was speeding toward a dangerous curve. Now the police wanted to question her, for what? Her mind went instantly to Donny, to the tailoring scissors, the blood and gore and horror in the little box room. Farmer was staring at her with those wide, honest eyes. He’d see her guilt in an instant. She knew it. It was going to haunt her forever.

‘It’s a bit of a shock,’ said Paddy.

‘Let’s go in now, perhaps you can make Miss O’Brien some tea . . . ?’ Farmer said to Lil.

Leaving the uniformed PC at the door, the four of them went into the flat.