New Title 1 (2 page)

Chase had already considered this. “The post mark’s too smudged to read, so I can’t even tell where it was posted from. I even rang directory enquiries, but they couldn’t help me unless I said what town I wanted. So I said
London
because of the address, but there was no listing. I also tried the Internet which just directed me to a porn site.”

“Strange.” Jane frowned, shook her head and handed the letter back.

“No you would have liked it, lots of flesh.” Chase laughed.

Jane raised her eyebrows in feigned disgust.

Chase didn’t want to think about it anymore. Her head was spinning, but a funny feeling danced in the pit of her stomach. She didn’t know whether it was excitement or apprehension.

Unlike Jane’s daring manner of dress, Chase wore a smart blue, knee length skirt and a white blouse, allowing her to blend in with the few office workers drowning another day in an alcoholic haze. She envied them the luxury of receiving a wage, but not the tedium of a nine to five.

The thought of Mat came unbidden into her mind. Tears bristled in her eyes. She wiped them away and took a sip of wine.

“Are you okay?” Jane asked.

“Yes, just smoke in my eyes.”

Jane frowned, “No one’s smoking. What is it? Is it Mat?”

Chase nodded, instantly regretting the action as the room started to spin.

“That bastard. He isn’t worth spitting on, never mind crying over. It’s his loss. He won’t get a honey like you again. Now if you batted for the other side ...”

Chase laughed. “Then you would be my first choice, but I doubt Gina would like it.”

“What she don’t see, sugar.”

“Now you know you don’t mean that.”

“Just don’t ever try me.”

Chase wagged her finger in mock admonishment. “Easy tiger, I don’t want Gina scratching my eyes out, so don’t even think about it.”

“Oh, I think about it all right!”

“You’re terrible. I don’t know how Gina ever trusts you.”

Jane laughed. “I’m going to have to go to the toilet, and I may be some time.” She winked salaciously.

“Get out of here.” She watched Jane walk away, as did most of the men in the room, and turned her thoughts back to Mat. She still couldn’t believe he had left her in such a cowardly way. It was just not like him. They had been able to talk about anything. She would have known if there was a problem. He was her soul mate, or at least she’d thought he was. In the last year he had performed more disappearing acts than Houdini.

At first she had thought he might have another girlfriend; that he was leading a double life, flitting between two partners, but she knew that was just silly. He wouldn’t do that to her. Would he? There were times when she did wonder. Especially when he once called her by another girl’s name. It had only been a slip of the tongue, and Mat couldn’t even remember doing it, but she had definitely heard him. He didn’t offer any explanation for the disappearances – he said that he couldn’t remember where he’d been. When she questioned him further, he got angry. She had never seen him like that before and when he started smashing plates, he had scared her more than she would like to admit, and she had run out of the house. When she returned, it was as if nothing had happened. The incident was never mentioned again. Another time he assaulted a man in a bar who accidentally knocked into him. That just wasn’t like Mat. He was a pacifist.

But this time he had been gone for nearly four months! She had tried ringing him but his phone no longer worked. And not even his friends or family knew where he was. Or so they said – she had her doubts, especially as his mother never seemed to like her, always staring down her nose, as though Chase wasn’t good enough for her son.

She had even considered reporting him as missing, but shrugged it off as a stupid idea. He was an adult, and free to do as he pleased. More tears bristled in her eyes and she wiped them away before Jane came back and admonished her again.

At times like this she wished her parents hadn’t emigrated to the other side of the world.

While she waited for Jane, she read the letter again.

It
had
to be a joke.

Didn’t it?

Outside, the night smothered the world beneath its huge raven wing.

As a car drove past, its headlights momentarily illuminated the doorway of the building opposite.

The man was back.

And he was still staring at the wine bar.

CHAPTER 2

Chase woke on Saturday morning with a splitting headache. She didn’t know what time she had finally gone to bed as Jane had stopped over and they had made a night of it, but it must have been about
4 a.m.
She glanced bleary eyed at the digital alarm clock: 6.30, and pressed her palms to her temples, trying to stem the pain. Why had she drunk so much?

She slipped out of bed and the room began to spin, causing her to feel a ship-bobbing surge of queasiness in her stomach. Her mouth salivated with what she knew was the first sign she was going to be sick, so she lurched to the bathroom, only to be met by the site of Jane hunched over the toilet, retching. The sound and smell caused Chase to follow suit into the sink. Her throat felt like it was burning and her nose stung with acrid bile. She blew her nose into some toilet paper and looked down at Jane who smiled weakly back before her head disappeared back into the toilet.

“What a night,” Jane said before throwing up again.

As though contagious, Chase followed suit until there was nothing left in her stomach to bring up. She washed her mouth out with water and brushed her teeth to take the vile taste away. It was not the first time she had been sick lately, and she wondered if it was more to do with a bug, than the excessive alcohol.

“Remind me never to invite you round again.” Chase shook her head and sighed. Jane had been her best friend since they were at school, but she was a terrible influence.

When she felt well enough, she walked downstairs to the kitchen, grimacing when she saw the empty wine bottles. She quickly drank several glasses of water and swallowed a couple of headache tablets before popping some bread in the toaster. If she hadn’t needed to be sick, she would still be in bed, but now she was up it hardly seemed worth trying to go back to sleep, especially as the room kept spinning like a carousel.

When the toast was done, she buttered it, smeared on a thin layer of honey and sat at the table, head in hands, still feeling too ill to eat. It took her half an hour to nibble the toast, but only five seconds to bring it back up. Luckily, there was no dirty washing in the sink and she swilled the mess away.

Jane didn’t even come down to attempt breakfast and it was 8.45 before she walked into the kitchen, her blue night-dress leaving little to the imagination and her olive skin unable to disguise her washed out complexion.

“You look like shit,” Jane said.

“And you think you don’t.”
 

“What time is it?” Jane yawned and walked to the sink where she turned on the tap and splashed water over her face.

“Almost
nine o’clock
. I really, really regret asking you to stop over.”

Before Jane could reply, there was a knock at the door that made Chase wince.

She walked slowly to answer it, her head pounding with every step. In the hallway, she caught sight of herself in the mirror on the wall. Her usually bright eyes were bloodshot and her hair looked as though a combine harvester had ploughed through it. She felt as bad as she looked. She unlocked the door and pulled it open, blinking as bright sunlight stung her eyes, making them water and momentarily blurring the figure standing before her.

“Miss Black. My name’s Drake. I’m here to collect you.”

Chase rubbed her eyes, focusing on the heavy set man stood before her. He was dressed in a chauffeur’s uniform and a peaked cap shadowed his eyes.
Ten o’clock
shadow etched his angular jaw and a harelip marred his mouth, giving him a perpetual sneer. He looked vaguely familiar.

“Collect me?” She frowned. What was he on about? Again she regretted drinking too much. Suddenly conscious of the fact she was wearing a nightshirt that hardly covered her bottom, she closed the door a fraction and peered around the edge, only too aware that she was naked beneath the thin material and that her nipples had risen in the cold.

“Yes, I’m here to take you to High Top Cottage.”

Chase opened her mouth to speak and then closed it again. In her drunken stupor she had forgotten all about the letter and the supposed prize. “I can’t be doing with this. It’s not funny. Can’t you see that I’m not laughing?” She started to close the door.

Drake scowled and lodged his foot between the door and frame. “Hold on. This isn’t a Joke.”

“Whatever, now please move your foot as its cold and I want to close the door.”

“Miss Black, nobody’s pretending. You’ve really won. If you can just give me a minute to explain.”

Chase tried to think clearly but her head throbbed. “Get serious. I didn’t even enter a competition.”

“I’m only doing my job, and I was told to come and collect you.” He reached inside his jacket and pulled out a piece of paper. “Here are the details with your name and address.”

“Come on, you’re just winding me up.” Chase didn’t know what to do. It had to be a joke, but he seemed so sincere.

Drake leaned forward and smiled. “Look,” he said, “I know it’s early, and to be honest by the looks of you, no offence, but I thought you’d started celebrating early. I’m only doing my job, but how many times are you going to win a house? If it was me, I’d be jumping for joy. So what I am supposed to say to my bosses?” He shrugged disarmingly.

Chase rubbed her face. She couldn’t think straight. Competition. What competition? “Tell them, I
erm
, I don’t know. Tell them they got the wrong person.”

Drake grinned. “Well if they got the wrong person, I won’t tell if you don’t.” He winked. “Seriously, I’m only the messenger and chauffeur. I get paid whether you accompany me or not, but think about it, what if you are the winner? We’re not talking about a year’s supply of toiletries here; we’re talking about a house.” He whistled softly through his teeth. “From where I’m standing, you’ve got nothing to lose, but everything to gain.”

“But I can’t remember entering.”

“If you’re anything like me, you probably can’t even remember what you did from one minute to the next.” He laughed softly.

Chase forced a smile. “I don’t know ...”

“Well, what’s it to be?” He glanced at the watch on his wrist.

A house. Could she really have won a house? “Well I’m not coming on my own. I’m bringing a friend,” she blurted.

Drake straightened himself up. “I’m sure that won’t be a problem. Wait here while I make a call.”

Chase stood on the step and watched Drake walk down the path to a black limousine parked at the end of the drive. She shook her head. What the hell was going on?

Drake took out a mobile telephone and punched a number, animatedly talking into the receiver and glancing back at Chase. The vehicle and driver looked out of place in the rundown area and Chase noticed a gang of kids checking out the car, most probably with an eye to stealing it.

“What is it?”