For Thane. Well done for catching up! What a hero! Love, IJKS xxx
Chapter Five Hundred and Thirty Seven
It was the following afternoon and Will had taken his daughter out for some fresh air. Irene hadn't been very keen on the idea, being that the little girl was on antibiotics but Will had snapped at her that she was always complaining he never did anything with Lily and now he was making an effort, why was she trying to stop him? So Irene had dropped it and stayed out of his way.
Now, father and daughter were playing soccer in the park and having a nice time, although Lily was pushing herself more than she knew she should because she was so desperately enjoying getting some attention from her Dad. She felt breathless and dizzy but she didn't want Will to go back home and drink and feel sad again. She liked this version of him, the one who was laughing and playing, having fun and actually talking to her.
She kicked the ball to her Dad but suddenly he had stopped. He didn't return the ball. She turned to look at what he was looking at. Joey Collins was walking past them. Feeling she was being watched, Joey looked over at them.
"Hi, Lily," she said warmly, not acknowledging Will.
"Hi, Joey," Lily replied.
She liked Joey. She had always been kind to her.
"Are you okay? You look a bit wheezy."
"Tonsillitis," Lily said. "But it's okay. I've got antibiotics."
"Well, you make sure you keep nice and warm and get lots of rest, okay?"
"I will," Lily promised, wandering off to kick the ball again.
Joey accidentally caught Will's eye. Things hadn't been good between them since the argument they'd had a few weeks ago, which had brought back a lot of memories from adolescence.
"I know how to look after my kid," Will said stiffly.
"Never said you didn't," Joey replied.
"Well, I just get the impression you like telling everyone what to do so…"
"I try to help if people ask," Joey told him. "But I don't think I stick my nose in, if that's what you're saying."
"Well, you seem to think you've come up pretty far in the world," Will shrugged. "None of these people seem to remember who you were."
"Has it not occurred to you that people can grow and change?" Joey asked. "I guess not. I mean, you haven't. In fact, you're a more useless human being than you even used to be. At least when we were at school, as much of a thug as you were, you were popular, you had a pretty girlfriend… several in fact, sometimes overlapping, if I remember it rightly. You had your life handed you once you'd met Irene. And look at you now. You really messed it all up, didn't you?"
Will felt anger boiling inside him again. Joey didn't care.
"But whatever's going on with you right now, please don't take Alf down with you. He's done so much for you and he's such a good man. He doesn't deserve to get caught up in the mess you've made of your life."
She didn't allow him to retort. She just walked away, hoping her words may have got through somehow.
"Dad?" Lily said quietly.
Will turned towards his daughter, having watched Joey walk away.
"Dad?" she said again, breaking his trance. "Was Joey upset with you?"
"No," he lied. "We're just… not really friends."
"I thought Joey liked everyone," Lily said. "That's what VJ said."
"Well, there's always an exception to the rule."
He sighed.
"Dad, did Alf Stewart really kill that man?" Lily asked, not sure if she really wanted to know the answer.
Will looked alarmed.
"What?" he managed.
"I just… he doesn't seem like someone who could kill someone," Lily ventured. "He seems so nice."
Will sighed heavily.
"Yeah," he said. "He is nice. The nicest man you could ever meet."
He reached out his hand.
"Let's go home."
It had been a particularly long day and Charlie was eager to finish her shift and go home. She knew that dinner would be on the table, provided by her amazing partner and she was looking forward to a cosy night in. She was just packing up her things, ready to go home for the day when her mobile rang. Hoping it was nothing that was going to hold her up, she answered the call.
"Sergeant Buckton," she greeted.
"Charlie? It's Will Smith."
She sat down. It definitely sounded like something that was going to hold her up.
"Will…" she said. "How can I help you?"
"I need to talk to you," he said. "Alone. Away from the Bay."
"Okay… Where?"
He gave her a meeting point on the edge of town.
"Charlie?" he said. "Come by yourself. Don't tell anyone. There are things I need to tell you."
"I will," Charlie said.
She decided to honour the promise. She didn't think she could be outsmarted by Will Smith of all people. She didn't think she would be in danger, even meeting up in the middle of nowhere. But she needed to get to the truth. For Alf. She grabbed her things and headed to her car to go and meet Will without telling anyone where she was going.
Will was nervous as he waited for Charlie to arrive. Dark had descended and Lily was tucked up on the backseat of the car. He drummed his fingers impatiently on the steering wheel, looking out for a car to appear on the quiet road.
His heart lurched and he sat up straighter when a little blue car finally appeared, pulling up just in front of him. The driver killed their lights and the door opened. A slender woman approached. Will got out of the car and approached her, coming face to face with Charlie.
Back at the station, Watson was overwhelmed with last minute paperwork, frustrated that she was not going to be going home on time today. She'd seen Charlie leave earlier and couldn't help but feel jealous.
"I want your phone and your gun," Will demanded, holding his handed out.
Reluctantly, Charlie handed them over.
"Will, is that Lily in the back of the car?" she asked.
"Yeah."
"Will, can I check she's okay?" Charlie asked. "I understand that she's poorly."
Irene had told her in the Diner at lunch time that day.
"She's fine."
"Can I check please?"
"I'm her Dad!" Will snapped. "I can look after her!"
"I know that, Will. You're a good Dad. But I just need to do my job and make sure that she's okay."
"Fine," Will shrugged. "Check."
Charlie opened the car door and leant in. Lily looked sleepy but fine.
"Hey, Lily, how are you doing?" Charlie asked kindly.
"I'm okay," Lily asked quietly. "Do you know where we're going?"
"I don't know," Charlie said. "What did your Daddy say?"
"Just that we're going on a trip," Lily said.
Charlie's heart sank. Her fears had been confirmed – Will was running away with his daughter.
"He didn't say where?"
"No," Lily said. "I don't want to go on a trip, Charlie. I want to stay with Irene."
"Okay, darling. I'll let your Dad know. You're safe, okay? But you feel alright? Not poorly?"
"No, just… well, tonsillitis."
Charlie squeezed her hand gently and stroked her hair. She left the car and came face to face with Will again.
"Lily doesn't want to go anywhere, Will," she informed him. "It's really not a good to take her and run away, especially when she's not well."
"That's not up to you," he told her.
"Why do you need to run anyway?" Charlie asked. "What are you running from?"
"I need a new start," Will said anxiously. "Everyone hates me in Summer Bay."
"People are upset with you," Charlie agreed. "But hate is a strong word."
Will shrugged.
"What did you want to tell me?" Charlie asked.
Joey glanced at her watch. Charlie had promised she would be home in time for dinner and it was unusual for her not to get in touch if she was going to be late. Shrugging, she assumed she had got waylaid with something and would be home soon. She continued making dinner for them and Ruby, who was in her room, possibly studying but probably procrastinating.
"I lied," Will said, turning Charlie's gun over in his hands.
Charlie's eye flitted between Will's eyes and the gun. She felt nervous and vulnerable.
"What did you lie about, Will?"
"I lied about Alf," he told her. "About what I saw."
"What did you see?"
"I didn't see anything," he said. "I didn't go to the bait shop that night. I didn't see him go in there and I certainly didn't see him covered in blood."
He sighed heavily.
"Why did you lie?" Charlie asked.
"Because Robertson was hassling and hassling," he said. "He wanted answers and I just wanted to say what he wanted me to say. He wanted me to say that I thought Alf killed him. I just wanted the pressure to lift. I regretted it as soon as I said it but it was too late by then. I'm sorry. I'm so sorry."
"I understand," Charlie said gently. "Robertson… well, he's a bastard."
Will actually laughed. Charlie managed a smile.
"He's handle this investigation all wrong, I think," Charlie admitted. "He's been determined to prove Alf guilty and he's preyed on vulnerable people like you to prove his case. It's not fair and it's not right."
"I didn't mean to hurt Alf," Will said.
"I know," Charlie said. "But it's not too late, Will. You can make this right, okay?"
She studied his face as he thought about what she said. Tears formed in the corners of his eyes. He scratched the side of his head with the gun which she couldn't help but think was dangerous for someone who was presumably not well versed with using them. He was breathing heavily. For a moment, it seemed like she was getting through to him. But then his face changed. He shook his head.
"No," he decided. "It's too late. It's too late now. Alf hates me. Everyone hates me. Robertson's right. I can't change what I've said. All I can do is tell you the truth. You can do with it whatever you can. But I can't do anything else. I'm sorry. I've gotta go."
"Will…"
He pointed the gun at her.
"Get in the car."
Joey was beginning to worry now. She had sent a couple of unanswered text messages and now she had called a couple of times but it had just gone to voicemail. Charlie never came home this late and if she ever was going to be late, she always phoned.
She knocked on Ruby's door.
"Hello?" she said, poking her head round the door.
The teenager was sat at her desk, twirling her pen around and looking bored.
"Is dinner ready?" she asked hopefully.
"Not yet. Have you heard from Charlie? She's really late."
"No," Ruby said. "Not for hours. Have you called?"
"A few times," Joey said. "It's not like her."
Ruby picked her phone up and tried her mother. No response.
"How many times do these people try to contact you?" Will demanded as Charlie's phone rang yet again.
"They'll be expecting me home," Charlie explained, sat reluctantly in the passenger seat of his car.
He was driving at speed. Charlie didn't know where.
"They'll be worried that I haven't been in touch," she said. "I'm late."
He ignored her and the phone and continued to drive.
"Where are we going, Dad?" Lily asked from the back.
"We're going on holiday," he told her.
If he was being honest, he didn't know where they were going. He just needed to get away. He stopped abruptly on a dark road lined by trees.
"Get out," he told Charlie.
"Here?"
"Yeah," he said. "Use what I told you to help Alf. Please. But I can't do more."
She didn't bother asking for her gun or her phone. She knew he wouldn't allow her to have them. She knew she was stuck in the middle of nowhere, alone. And she knew she would just have to find her own way home.
Next time… The search is on for Charlie and Will…
