Blood Red

Thirty-nine

I kept the mobile switched on all the time we were out, even though the battery was getting low, but there was no call from Gerard. I was tempted to ring him, but it was pretty late by the time Santi and I made it home, so I decided against it, switched off and put it on charge overnight.

I slept later next morning; Santi was up before me, and when I went upstairs, there were a couple of glasses of freshly squeezed orange juice on the table, alongside two plates, each with a monster slice of watermelon, and a bowl for the seeds. Tom and I both love watermelon, for the fun of eating it as much as for the freshness and the taste.

‘I have to shop,’ I told him, once we had finished it, and the toast that followed.

‘Sure,’ he replied. ‘I’ll take you down to the city.’

I shook my head. ‘No, Santi; I said I have to shop. Me, personally, for women’s things.’ I tugged my hair. ‘For example, I don’t want this reverting to blond. And I’ve got hardly any make-up; at my age I can’t go without it altogether.’ There was also the matter of a new Gillette Venus; I was beginning to look like a gooseberry, and getting itchy with it. ‘I saw enough yesterday to know where to go. I’ll be back by lunchtime; maybe we can do some of the other monuments this afternoon.’

He was fine with that, so I set out on my own, down to the Paseo then along towards the main shopping drag, behind a square called Plaza Bib-Ramblas, which seemed to be the local flower market. I found the stuff I needed without difficulty, including the same brand and tint of hair dye that I had used at Shirley’s. I bought two, in the optimistic hope that I wouldn’t need the second one, and could replace hers without her ever knowing.

I was shopping for sensible underwear in a department store, trying on a bra in a fitting room, in fact, when the mobile sounded in my bag. I snatched at it. ‘Gerard.’

‘Primavera.’

‘Surprise me; give me some good news.’

‘It’s raining, and the earth needs it. Other than that, I have nothing to offer. Alex has been as helpful as he can, but it’s not good. Your theory has proved to be correct. The police tests have shown that Senor Planas had relations with Senora Fumado just before he died.’ He sounded pained by the idea. ‘Their conclusion is as you said it would be. I told Alex that was ridiculous, but he said that it was where the evidence pointed and that he couldn’t ignore it. The public prosecutor is satisfied; he says they needn’t look any further.’

‘But they must. There has to be evidence that shows somebody else was there. They can’t just stop looking for it.’

‘They’re not going to look for it, Primavera. They’re sticking with what they’ve got. The prosecutor is going to ask a judge to issue a warrant for your arrest, tomorrow, Alex reckoned, at the latest.’ He sighed. ‘He’s guessing that we’re in touch. He said last night that if he was in your shoes, and had your resources, he’d adopt a new identity and disappear. I hate to say it, but he may be right; as you’ve told me, you’ve done it before.’

I was shaken. ‘Are you giving up on me, Gerard?’ I asked, tersely.

‘No!’ he protested. ‘I’m trying to keep you safe.’

I’d wounded him; instantly I was sorry. ‘I know,’ I sighed, ‘but I don’t think that your way’s working. I’m going to try something different, from here. You don’t need to know about it, though. Give me a couple of days; I should know by then whether it’s paid off.’

‘And if it doesn’t?’

‘Then I’m coming home.’

‘You can’t. If you’re convicted of double murder you’ll go to jail for thirty years.’

‘I didn’t do it; I won’t be convicted.’

‘That’s not what Gomez thinks; it’s not what Alex fears. You can’t come back, Primavera.’ He sounded desperate.

‘Then only one thing will keep me away. You bring Tom to me, and the three of us will disappear together. You’re right; I’ve done it before, and I have the means to do it again.’

‘Primavera. .’

‘If it comes to it, that’s what I want. Will you do it?’

‘I’ll bring Tom to you. The rest. .’

‘If you bring Tom, you’ll be walking away from your career. Gerard, I might not be Irena, but. .’

I heard his intake of breath. ‘He told you.’

‘Yes. The whole story.’

‘And what do you think of me now? I’d have killed my own father, but for Santi arriving when he did.’

‘If the man had tried to rape me, I’d have killed him myself, no mercy, no second thoughts.’ I pulled myself up, sharply. ‘Which is probably not what you want to hear from a murder suspect, but it’s true nonetheless. I’m glad Santi stopped you, but for your sake, not for your father’s.’

‘Try your other way, Primavera,’ he sighed. ‘Try it and let’s hope it works. If not, then we’ll see.’