Fat chance, thought Pat. She regarded Tiffany. The girl was wearing a loose, white top and although the smile, the hair, the make-up were as immaculate as ever, she had a tired air about her – almost one might say peaky. Presumably she hadn’t had much sleep either.
‘Anyway, folks, I’msosorry to gatecrash your coffee session,’ said Tiffany. ‘But last night – well, I couldn’t sleep waiting for Justy to get back, so I ended up doing a spot of online sleuthing.’
Pat, remembering yesterday’s fireworks, wondered if Justin was apprised of this fact. ‘Right,’ she said noncommittally, stifling yet another yawn.
‘Anyway, I found out something that seemed pretty significant and I thought you’d want to know about it.’ She looked round the three faces, eyes bright. The three faces looked back at her.
‘What have you found out?’ asked Thelma.
‘Son Masters.’ Tiffany paused. ‘It’s not his real name FYI. “Son” is a name he adopted when he became a life coach, apparently his real name’s Barry.’
‘What about him?’ interrupted Pat, trying to stifle another yawn.
‘He’s got a criminal record,’ announced Tiffany-Jane.
‘Son?’ said Pat, now wide awake. ‘Son Masters?’
‘He was Barry Masters back then,’ said Tiffany. ‘I was as amazed as you. And you’ll never guess what he got it for.’
You’re rather enjoying this, thought Thelma.
‘Fraud?’ said Pat.
‘Shoplifting?’ ventured Liz.
‘Robbery?’ wondered Thelma.
‘GBH,’ said Tiffany-Jane, with the distinct air of having trumped every other statement uttered.
‘Grievous bodily harm?’ Liz spoke the words in a shocked undertone. ‘I thought you said he was quite amiable—’
‘He was,’ said Pat. ‘Is.’
Tiffany nodded in agreement. ‘Every comment unthreatening, very unassuming body language,’ she said. ‘But – well, I was reading his book and it talked about patches of darkness in his life – so I got to thinkingwhatpatches? And I went online, and there it all was.’
‘When was this?’ asked Thelma. ‘And where?’
‘Newcastle, seventeen years ago,’ said Tiffany, efficiently handing printouts to the three. ‘I’ve done you each a copy.’
The three read the account of how a row in a nightclub, over a drink, had spilled over into a fight outside which resulted in the other person losing the sight in one eye.
‘Neville wasn’t assaulted,’ pointed out Liz, scanning the printout. ‘He was shouted at.’
‘People can carry round all sorts of negative emotions,’ said Tiffany. ‘And if they fail to vent them properly, they can burst out all over the place.’ All at once her face froze. ‘Two seconds!’ She smiled a bright smile – or tried to – and stalked rapidly off across the garden centre in the direction of the ladies.
‘That,’ said Pat, ‘is Tiffany-Jane.’
‘She seems charming,’ said Thelma genuinely.
‘She’s been a bit peaky lately.’ Pat frowned in the direction of the ladies’ toilets. ‘She was telling Rod it’s some sort of stomach bug. I hope she doesn’t pass it on to the rest of us.’
Liz and Thelma exchanged glances.
‘You do realise,’ said Liz gently, ‘that the girl’s pregnant?’
Chapter Twenty-two
Friday 25th July
