Black Widow by Jessie Keane Read Free Book Online Page B

strong, bracing.
    ‘You going to tell me what’s been going on?’ asked Dolly.
    ‘Nothing’s been going on,’ said Annie.
    Dolly smiled dryly. ‘Like fuck,’ she said. ‘You looked like a ghost when you pitched up here. And you sounded in bits on the phone. You’re shaking like a sodding old man now. So what’s happened?’
    Annie looked straight at Dolly. ‘Something horrible, Doll. And now they’ve got my baby girl.’
    ‘Layla?’ All trace of the smile was gone. ‘Fucking hell, Annie—
who
, for the love of God?’
    ‘I don’t know who,’ said Annie. ‘They’re going to contact me here. That’s all I know.’
    ‘Do they want money?’
    ‘Yeah.’ Annie tried another sip of the tea but this time it wouldn’t get past the lump in her throat. She put the mug aside.
    ‘Have you
got
it?’
    Annie shrugged. Anxiety gnawed at her. This was taking her right back to the time when she had been kicked out of home and left to fend for herself. Potless, homeless, abandoned, disgraced, and on the run from the Carter clan. She felt as lost, as hopeless now as she did then. She didn’t know squat about Max’s financial affairs. There had always been plenty of money, and he had been generous with it, but where it had come from andwhere he kept it was a mystery to her. She had no money of her own; she’d never needed it while Max was there. But now Max was gone.
    ‘And where is Max?’ asked Dolly after a pause.
    ‘I don’t know,’ said Annie painfully.
    ‘What the fuck do you mean, you don’t know? He’s your flaming husband, of course you know where he is.’
    ‘He disappeared, Doll. These people phoned me and said they’d killed him.’
    Dolly recoiled in shock. ‘Jesus, no.’
    Annie nodded dumbly. She looked spent, Dolly thought, as if all this had drained the life from her. Dark shadows under her eyes. Her lips parched and cracked. Her skin sallow. This wasn’t the polished, controlled woman she knew. This was a beaten stranger. Dolly wondered how
she
would cope with such a bucketload of grief, though. Her kid snatched, her husband topped…that was enough to finish anyone, even the strongest.
    ‘You mustn’t tell
anyone
that Max is dead,’ said Annie. ‘I mean it, Doll. No one.’
    ‘You know I won’t. What about Jonjo?’ asked Dolly. ‘Jeanette was with you, so where’s Jonjo?’
    Annie swallowed and shook her head.
    Dolly was silent, gobsmacked.
    ‘Look, I tell you what,’ she said at last. ‘You get washed and dressed, then we’ll think again, okay?’
    Annie looked at her. Dolly was the best friend she had ever had, and she knew it. Annie was quite likely bringing trouble to her door, and many another would have turned her away, but not Dolly. She could almost have cried at Dolly’s kindness, but she held her emotions in tight check. Dolly would be embarrassed anyway by a display of emotion. She always had been. You’d never get hugs and kisses from Doll, but what you would get was firm support from a genuine ally.
    ‘Thanks, Dolly. Can I borrow something to wear? All I’ve got in the case is sandals and summer dresses and swimming cossies. Don’t ask me why I brought any of it back. I don’t think my head was right at the time.’
    ‘Help yourself. Anything you want. Oh, and Annie…’ Suddenly Dolly looked awkward and anxious. ‘I had to phone Redmond Delaney, tell him you’re here. Sorry. You’re a mate, but I can’t be seen to be disrespecting the Delaneys, not on their own turf. I didn’t want him just hearing about it from Ross, do you understand? I have to be careful.’
    Annie nodded. ‘Don’t give it another thought, Doll. I know you had to tell Redmond. That goes without saying.’
    And Redmond ain’t going to be very pleased about it
, she thought.
    Dolly’s tense expression relaxed with relief.
    ‘We’d better get you some breakfast,’ she said. ‘You come down when you’re ready, Annie love. No rush. I’ll listen for the phone, don’t