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Kate sniffled and blew her nose. “Yes. It’s what she liked to be called. She hated Je
And like I’m not A
“The usual things.”
Christ, thought A
“Yes. She seemed very nervous and jumpy lately. It wasn’t like her.”
“Nervous? Since when?”
“Just these past few days.”
“Did she tell you what it was about?”
“No. She was even more quiet than usual.”
“Do you think there’s any co
“I don’t know,” said Kate. “There might have been.”
The problem was, A
“Do you know which network she used?”
“Orange.”
A
“What?”
“A note or something? Letter? Postcard?”
Kate turned to a corkboard on the wall by the door. A number of Far Side cartoons were pi
“Did she go by herself?” A
“Yes. She said she’d always wanted to go on the Eurostar and they had a special deal. She went around all the art galleries. She loved going to galleries and museums.”
To A
“I suppose so.”
A
“Je
“But she has been more recently?”
“I think so.”
“Just think so?”
“Well, Je
“Since when?”
“A few weeks.”
“But this started before the odd behavior?”
“Yes.”
“Did she tell you his name? I assume it was a he?”
“Good Lord, yes, of course. But she didn’t mention any names. She didn’t even tell me that she was seeing someone. It was just a feeling I got from her behavior. Intuition. I put two and two together.”
“But you said she seemed nervous and jumpy. That’s hardly the way a new relationship is supposed to make you feel, is it? And why was she so secretive? Didn’t you ever talk about personal matters, say, if one of you split up with a boyfriend or something?”
“We’ve only been flatmates for six months,” said Kate. “And nothing like that’s happened to either of us in that time. There’s that one bloke keeps pestering her, but that’s all.”
“Who?”
“Her ex-boyfriend. His name’s Victor, but that’s all I know about him. He keeps ringing and hanging around. You don’t think…?”
“I don’t think anything yet,” said A
“Sorry,” said Kate. “It was over before we started sharing. Or Je
“What did she think about it? Was she frightened of him?”
“No. Just a
“How did you two become flatmates?”
Kate looked away. “I’d rather not say. It’s private.”
A
Kate remained silent and A
“Kate?”
“Oh, all right, all right. I thought I was pregnant. I did one of those home tests, you know, but I didn’t trust it.”
“How does Je
“It was where she worked. She was an administrator at a private women’s health center. They specialize in family pla
“Like the British Pregnancy Advisory Service? Marie Stopes?” A
“It’s a new chain. There are only a few of them open yet, as far as I know.”
“What’s it called?”
“The Berger-Le
“And they perform abortions?”
“Not at the center itself, no, but they have satellite clinics, and they arrange for abortions to be performed. That’s not all they do, though. They cover the whole range, really: do reliable pregnancy tests; give advice and counseling, physical exams; arrange for abortions or put you in touch with adoption agencies, social services, whatever. They take care of everything. And they’re very discreet. One of my friends at work told me about them. Why, do you think it’s important?”
“I don’t know,” said A
“In my room. I’ll get it for you when I get Melanie’s.”
“Fine,” said A
“Yes, she ran the business side of things. We got talking in the office while I was filling out the paperwork, that’s all. She was explaining it to me, how the system worked, that sort of thing. We just sort hit it off. We’re about the same age and I think she felt a bit sorry for me. Anyway, it turned out I wasn’t pregnant, and she asked me if I fancied a drink to celebrate. When we got talking we found out that neither of us was happy living where we were, so we decided to pool our resources and share. We didn’t know each other well, but we got along all right.”
“Where did she live before?”
“Out Hammersmith way. She said it was a really tiny flat and the area wasn’t very nice. She didn’t like walking there by herself at night. Can I have another glass of water, please?”
A
“Where did you live then?” she asked, handing over the water.
“Thank you. In Richmond. With my parents.”
“Why did you leave? Was it because you thought you were pregnant?”
“Oh, no. It wasn’t anything to do with that. I never even told them. And the boy… well, he’s long gone now. Richmond is just too far out. I was spending all my time commuting. I work in Clapham. I’m a librarian. It’s only a couple of tube stops, and on a nice day I can walk if I’ve got enough time.”