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Authors: Jac Wright
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ever visited her son in Guildford. She did not approve of Jack’s divorce from Marianne and remained loyal to her first daughter-in-law, whom she adored, and her two grandsons. She preferred her son to visit her at the Connor family home. Hence, the ground floor en-suite room was adapted by Peter as his room. There was another twin suite dedicated to Jack’s two boys, Peter and Marc, upstairs.
Jeremy slipped quietly out of the washroom and out the front door, and came back in making some loud noise. Bubbles was on the steps, watching Félipé locking the gates, and bounced himself in as he closed the door. He walked into the front reception, poured himself a scotch, and called out, ‘Caitlin, they’re gone. Are you okay?’
Caitlin emerged from the kitchen as he walked back into the hallway, sipping a scotch. A scotch! Caitlin was definitely panicking.
‘Are you okay?’ With a little effort he met her glance with a concerned look.
She nodded and turned back towards the family room.
‘I think so. Come in.’
He followed.
‘My God, they have turned this place inside out. I don’t know where any of my things are. I need Hannah to straighten out the house, and I need to put my office together upstairs.’
She sank into the corner-unit sofa and buried her face in her hands. Jeremy perched himself on the armrest of an armchair. He wanted to sympathise with her, but she was up to something shady.
‘So Michelle called you a lot here, did she?’
‘Yes, starting about three months ago when we first found out and asked Jack to stop seeing her. During the past month she has called at least once every other day. She would say things like: Jack has had no children with me because he does not love me and is only with me for the money and the career; that it was Michelle and their unborn baby that Jack loved; that I had my kid with the love of my life, and I do not love him like she does; that I am cold, frigid, and controlling and Jack’s private name for me was “the Ice Queen”; that she was 29 and Jack is looking for a younger model; that their sex was explosive and earth shattering . . .’
She put her head in her hands again. Did Jack know Michelle had been calling and harassing Caitlin, clearly trying to break up the marriage?
‘Jack has simply refused to talk about Michelle for the past four or five weeks. Initially he cried, made promises, and we fought about her; but lately he has just refused to talk about it. Certainly Jack has withdrawn from me since the child came into the picture. All he’s been saying is he “doesn’t know”. He didn’t know what to do about the child, he didn’t know if he could stop contact with Michelle, and he didn’t know what he wanted. The calls were upsetting Gillian. I told her to stop, but she wouldn’t.’
‘I’m very sorry Michelle was badgering and taunting you, Caitlin. I’ve seen her behaviour at Marine. She was a very forward, stupid, manipulative, brash, ill-mannered, and selfish woman.’
Yet Jack had loved her. Michelle could do no wrong in his eyes. She was “outgoing” and “vivacious” to him.
They remained silent for a few moments.
‘That file they had, Jeremy, Papa had stored it up there so that Jack or I would not come across it. He says they are papers from the private detective he’d hired to find out about the affair. Papa gave Harry the detective firm’s contact details. I didn’t know it was up there.’
These Jeremy knew were outright lies. It was hard to tell when Caitlin was lying and when she was not! Douglas McAllen was either protecting or colluding with his daughter. At the first sight of the police arriving at the gates Caitlin had, with a cool head, got her stash of cash and her laptop out of the property though the side gates with Gillian and Peter. How did she know right away that there might be a search? What did she pay for covertly with untraceable cash? What was on that laptop?
‘Can your father get up there
Jeremy slipped quietly out of the washroom and out the front door, and came back in making some loud noise. Bubbles was on the steps, watching Félipé locking the gates, and bounced himself in as he closed the door. He walked into the front reception, poured himself a scotch, and called out, ‘Caitlin, they’re gone. Are you okay?’
Caitlin emerged from the kitchen as he walked back into the hallway, sipping a scotch. A scotch! Caitlin was definitely panicking.
‘Are you okay?’ With a little effort he met her glance with a concerned look.
She nodded and turned back towards the family room.
‘I think so. Come in.’
He followed.
‘My God, they have turned this place inside out. I don’t know where any of my things are. I need Hannah to straighten out the house, and I need to put my office together upstairs.’
She sank into the corner-unit sofa and buried her face in her hands. Jeremy perched himself on the armrest of an armchair. He wanted to sympathise with her, but she was up to something shady.
‘So Michelle called you a lot here, did she?’
‘Yes, starting about three months ago when we first found out and asked Jack to stop seeing her. During the past month she has called at least once every other day. She would say things like: Jack has had no children with me because he does not love me and is only with me for the money and the career; that it was Michelle and their unborn baby that Jack loved; that I had my kid with the love of my life, and I do not love him like she does; that I am cold, frigid, and controlling and Jack’s private name for me was “the Ice Queen”; that she was 29 and Jack is looking for a younger model; that their sex was explosive and earth shattering . . .’
She put her head in her hands again. Did Jack know Michelle had been calling and harassing Caitlin, clearly trying to break up the marriage?
‘Jack has simply refused to talk about Michelle for the past four or five weeks. Initially he cried, made promises, and we fought about her; but lately he has just refused to talk about it. Certainly Jack has withdrawn from me since the child came into the picture. All he’s been saying is he “doesn’t know”. He didn’t know what to do about the child, he didn’t know if he could stop contact with Michelle, and he didn’t know what he wanted. The calls were upsetting Gillian. I told her to stop, but she wouldn’t.’
‘I’m very sorry Michelle was badgering and taunting you, Caitlin. I’ve seen her behaviour at Marine. She was a very forward, stupid, manipulative, brash, ill-mannered, and selfish woman.’
Yet Jack had loved her. Michelle could do no wrong in his eyes. She was “outgoing” and “vivacious” to him.
They remained silent for a few moments.
‘That file they had, Jeremy, Papa had stored it up there so that Jack or I would not come across it. He says they are papers from the private detective he’d hired to find out about the affair. Papa gave Harry the detective firm’s contact details. I didn’t know it was up there.’
These Jeremy knew were outright lies. It was hard to tell when Caitlin was lying and when she was not! Douglas McAllen was either protecting or colluding with his daughter. At the first sight of the police arriving at the gates Caitlin had, with a cool head, got her stash of cash and her laptop out of the property though the side gates with Gillian and Peter. How did she know right away that there might be a search? What did she pay for covertly with untraceable cash? What was on that laptop?
‘Can your father get up there
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