Trash was a new club in the centre of Bath, hugely popular and a bit trendier than Maddy was truly comfortable with, but Nuala had been longing to come here for ages, ever since reading in a magazine that it was where the city’s movers and shakers went. Nuala, Maddy suspected, was under the impression that this meant everyone would be leaping around, dancing with abandon to Las Ketchup.

Oh well, if she had to join in, she would.

‘Cheers,’ said Kate, clanking glasses and blissfully unselfconscious of her scars. ‘I still can’t believe everything that’s happened. This morning I was the tragic victim of a hopelessly broken home. Now Mum’s back, and she and my father are giving it another go. When I left the house they were being so lovey-dovey together it’d make you sick.’

‘Cheers.’ Maddy, who could clank with the best of them, said, ‘Good for your mum and dad.’

‘It may be good for them, canoodling away like teenagers, but what about me? They’re my parents.’

Kate grimaced. ‘It’s embarrassing. They’re too old for all that.’

Too old. Taking a sip of wine, Maddy envisaged herself in fifty years’ time. Marcella, aged ninety-something and feisty to the last, had just died in a tragic rollerblading accident. Finally, finally, she and Kerr had a chance to be together. Except she was seventy-seven herself and Kerr was eighty. Gazing dreamily into the distance, Maddy pictured the two of them on their Zimmer frames, inching their way across the shabby linoleum floor of the nursing home, dribbling a bit with the effort, peering short-sightedly at each other before she croaked, ‘Kerr? It’s me, Maddy. I’m free! We can be together at last ...’

And Kerr, typical man, would pause, bemused, and say, ‘Eh? What are you on about, woman? Do I know you?’ Bastard, thought Maddy, outraged.

‘Excuse me?’

Oops, maybe she hadn’t just thought it, perhaps she’d accidentally said it aloud.

‘Sorry.’ Turning, Maddy addressed the man behind her. ‘Just thinking about someone.’

He gave her a sympathetic look. ‘Ex boyfriend?’

‘You could say that. Anyway, we’re here to have fun.’ If she said it often enough, it might come true.

‘That’s a coincidence, it’s why we’re here too.’ The man beamed down at her; he wasn’t what you’d call drop dead gorgeous, but he had a friendly chipmunky face and a decent enough body. ‘My name’s Dave. Hi.’

Oh well, look where being fussy had got her in the past. ‘Maddy,’ said Maddy, resolving not to mind about his teeth. He had friends with him as well. Keen to get started on the moving and shaking, Nuala was already eyeing them up.

‘Who wants to dance?’ she said loudly.

Gosh, they were big, thought Maddy. His teeth, not his friends.

An hour later, on the dance floor with Dave, Maddy spotted a face in the crowd that stopped her dead in her tracks. Dave, boogying on regardless, landed on her right foot and leaped off again yelling, ‘Sorry!’

Maddy didn’t even notice. She was too busy gazing across at the brunette whose features were indelibly imprinted on her mind.

The last time she’d seen her, the girl had been having lunch with Kerr. If they were seeing each other, did that mean he was here too? Bobbing up and down on her toes, Maddy did her best to see over the heads of the clubbers thronging the dance floor, but it was no good, she couldn’t see him. Although actually, surely that was good .. .

‘Hey!’ Abandoned in mid-bop, Dave shouted out, ‘Where are you off to?’

‘Um, just to the loo.’

The brunette was wearing a pale green strappy silk dress with gorgeous lilac high heels and a matching lilac clutch bag. It was hard to hate someone, Maddy discovered, whose accessories you coveted. Anyway, she might not need to hate her. There was no sign of Kerr; the girl appeared to be with her plumper, blonder friend – ooh, and now she appeared to be on her way to the ladies’. Fantastic.

By the time the brunette emerged from her cubicle, Maddy had installed herself in front of the sinks and was brushing blusher onto her cheeks. She smiled at the brunette in a friendly fashion, via the mirror in front of them both, and the brunette politely smiled back.

See? That was all it took to show other people you were a nice person.

‘Busy tonight,’ said Maddy, by way of getting the conversational ball rolling.

‘Um, yes.’ The brunette squirted liquid soap onto her hands and began washing them.

‘Quite hot, too. I’m baking!’ Maddy beamed and energetically fanned herself. ‘Good music, though.’

‘Absolutely.’ Having finished at the sink, the girl gave her hands a good shake and moved over to the hot-air dryer.

Hmm, not exactly a chatterbox. In desperation, Maddy said, ‘I just love your shoes. They’re incredible!’

‘Uh, thanks.’

‘Where did you get them?’

The brunette frowned. ‘Gosh, I can’t remember. Faith, I think.’

‘Well, they’re brilliant.’ This was definitely the way to go about it. Since marching up to complete strangers and asking really quite personal questions was generally regarded as impertinent –

unless you were Michael Parkinson – Maddy had decided to go the more subtle route and become the brunette’s friend. Then with a bit of luck, once they were chatting away as if they’d known each other for years, the subject would just naturally crop up. OK, maybe with a bit of a nudge in the right direction, but still. ‘I bought a great pair of boots in Faith last year,’ Maddy said brightly. ‘Grey denim, with silver studs up the sides. Remember them?’

The brunette frowned. ‘Remember them? I’m sorry, do I know you?’

‘Oh no, I just meant do you remember seeing them in the shop?’ Seizing the opportunity, Maddy put down the lipstick she was currently applying and held out her hand. ‘How rude of me not to introduce myself. My name’s Maddy.’

‘Right!’ After a moment’s hesitation, the brunette shook hands. ‘Um, Annalise.’

Annalise. Nice name. Maddy pictured Kerr saying it and had to force herself to smile. Was there a way she could ask yet about boyfriend-type stuff without sounding pushy? How about if

‘Well, bye.’ Having hastily gathered up her lilac bag, Annalise made a dash for the door and disappeared.

Chapter 53

‘Hi,’ Dave exclaimed. ‘I was beginning to wonder where you’d got to!’

‘Oh, right.’ It was hard to concentrate on Dave when all she could think about was Annalise currently queuing up for drinks at the bar less than six feet away.

‘I bought you a glass of wine,’ Dave said eagerly, waving it in front of Maddy’s face. ‘You don’t need to queue up.’

‘That’s so kind.’ Maddy looked suitably grateful. ‘And I’ll buy you a drink in return, I promise, but could you do me a huge favour and leave me alone for five minutes? It’s just, there’s someone I really want to talk to.’

Dave’s pudgy chipmunk cheeks quivered with disappointment. He held up his paws ... hands, in defeat. ‘Fine, I know when I’m not wanted.’

Feeling terrible, but not that terrible, Maddy said, ‘You are wanted—’

‘But not until the better-looking bloke’s turned you down. Don’t worry,’ Dave sighed. ‘I’m used to it.’

Honestly, life would be so much easier if only she could fall for a nice man who looked like a chipmunk. Ooh, gap in the crowd .. .

‘Hello again!’ Having wriggled through, Maddy beamed at Annalise, who was with her blonde friend.

‘Oh, hello.’ This time Annalise’s shoulders visibly stiffened and her tone was wary. Since flattery had seemed to work well last time, Maddy exclaimed, ‘Gosh, look at your eyelashes!’

Which, in the absence of a mirror, was probably impossible.

Startled, the girl said, ‘What?’

‘Your eyelashes. They’re so long! You lucky thing, how on earth did you get them to grow like that?’

‘They’ve, um, always been long.’ Annalise was attempting to back away now. ‘Actually, I don’t think we’ll have that drink. Maybe I’ll ring my boyfriend and ask him to come and pick us up.’

Maddy tensed; why had she deliberately emphasised the word boyfriend? Did she know? Why were she and her friend exchanging significant glances? For heaven’s sake, it wasn’t as if she was a mad axe-woman – why couldn’t she just ask Annalise a few simple questions and find out what she wanted to know?

Then again, nothing ventured .. .

‘What’s your boyfriend’s name?’

Annalise said, ‘Right, we really should be making a move. Come on, Bren. Let’s go.’

Avoiding her eyes, the two girls slipped away. As they left, Maddy saw Annalise take a mobile phone out of her bag. Honestly, why did life have to be so complicated?

And where was Paul McKenna when you needed him? He could have quickly hypnotised Annalise, asked the relevant questions, discovered all he needed to know then de-hypnotised her, leaving her none the wiser.

In fact, why wasn’t Paul McKenna a member of the SAS? Or was he?

‘You’re not dancing!’ shouted Kate, materialising hot and breathless at her side. ‘Come on, you’re missing out on all the fun!’

Maddy was touched by her concern. Kate’s eyes were shining. After all her exertions her foundation was starting to melt, but she clearly wasn’t bothered. Still out on the dance floor, Nuala and Dave and a group of Dave’s friends were having a whale of a time lowering the tone of Bath’s trendiest club and competing with each other to see who could dance in the least cool manner. Tonight was Kate’s first foray into nightclubland since her accident, yet you wouldn’t know it. Belatedly, she was discovering that if you smiled instead of scowled, laughed instead of glared, people were far more likely to smile back.

At this rate Dexter was going to have his work cut out keeping her under control.

‘Bit hot.’ Maddy fanned herself by way of apology. ‘What?’

‘ BIT HOT.’ Above the noise of the music, Maddy bel lowed, ‘I’m just going outside for a few minutes, to cool down.’

‘Then you have to come and dance,’ shouted Kate. Maddy nodded. ‘Definitely. Just give me five minutes. I’ll be back.’

Outside, she made a point of proving she was hot, in case any CCTV cameras were pointed in her direction. Well, it had been tropical inside the club; what could be more natural than wanting to gulp down a few lungfuls of fresh air, unstick your top from your torso and fan yourself with your hands, Al Jolson-style?

She only had to wait a couple of minutes before Annalise and her friend emerged from the club.

‘Oh, hi!’ sang Maddy, her Al Jolson hands going into overdrive. ‘Hot in there! Just came out for a breather.’

‘It’s all right,’ Annalise murmured out of the corner of her mouth. ‘He’ll be here any second.’

Turning to Maddy, she added, ‘My boyfriend’s coming to pick us up.’

Well, good, because that’s why I’m out here, thought Maddy. Duh.

Oh dear, was she getting a bit carried away here? If Annalise’s boyfriend did turn out to be Kerr, was she going to be tempted to jump into his car and run away with him? Would she be able to curb the impulse to—

‘Look, you’ve made a mistake,’ Annalise began to say as a white Volvo drew up, illuminating them in its headlights. Muttering, ‘Thank God for that,’ and visibly relaxing, she returned her attention to Maddy. ‘I’m very flattered, but the thing is, I’m not ... that way.’

Puzzled, Maddy said, ‘What way?’

‘Oh, come on, don’t be offended, you know what I’m trying to say. I’m sure you’re a very nice, um, person,’ Annalise said hurriedly, ‘but I’m straight.’

‘Hmm?’ Not really concentrating, Maddy was far more interested in confirming that the driver of the white Volvo wasn’t Kerr.

‘You’ve got the wrong night,’ Annalise’s friend explained kindly as Annalise wrenched open the Volvo’s passenger door. ‘Wednesday is gay night at Trash.’

‘Oh, right.’ Maddy nodded, relief washing over her as the car’s interior light came on. Raising her voice, she called across to Annalise, ‘Is that your boyfriend?’

In the passenger seat, Annalise gave the driver a significant, that’s-the-barking-one look. Slowly, all three occupants of the car nodded.

Completely unable to help herself, Maddy blurted out, ‘How do you know Kerr McKinnon?’

Annalise’s plucked eyebrows shot up. ‘Kerr McKinnon? The guy from Callaghan and Fox? His company does business with our company.’ She paused, bewildered. ‘Why?’