Page 67 of Cover Story

Bel reached out and held her forearm.

‘It’s OK. You did nothing wrong by sending them. Nothing at all.’

‘I didn’t send him nudes. I didn’t tell the truth about that,’ Erin said, shaking her head. ‘Sorry. It was so cringe telling my uncle about what happened that I gave him a different version. I didn’t know if I’d ever want to tell the real story so it made sense to simplify it at the time. I mean: it’s true he shouldn’t have them, and he has them.’

‘Oh?’ Bel was lost.

‘What happened was … Glenn hinted about sending some. But there was a big scandal at my school with a girl who ended up on everyone’s phone so I’ve always been too scared …’

Bel stayed silent.

‘Glenn, erm …’ Erin played with her glass with small, bony fingers, nails painted in dark blue glitter polish. ‘He took photos of me sleeping.’

Bel sucked in a sharp breath.

‘When I met him to ask why he’d stopped replying to me, he showed them to me on his phone. Like,if you cause trouble for me Erin I can cause trouble for you. Don’t think I haven’t got insurance.I nearly threw up,’ Erin said.

‘He took nude photos without your knowledge or consent and then used them as blackmail? Was he actually unashamed about this?’ Bel gasped.

‘It was as if I’d been made redundant and might go to a tribunal and he was telling me well, if you do that, the companywill defend itself to the full. Here’s what we have on you. Emotionless.’ Erin was pale.

‘I mean, that’s criminal, surely? You could report him, get his phone confiscated …’ Bel said.

She knew Bailey was a nasty piece of work but this was the first time she thought he was the full sociopath.

‘Even if I could stand the shame of other people seeing those pictures, and even if they believe me that I didn’t know they were being taken– you know what he’s like. He’d have the police officers laughing and joking with him and taking a jar of his homemade pickles home with them.Great with sausages,’ Erin said, throwing her hands up, doing a Glenn impression. ‘He has so much goodwill to draw on and who the fuck am I? Sorry to swear.’

‘Never apologise for swears to me. Very true. Wish I trusted the police more than that, but I don’t,’ Bel said.

‘I really appreciate what you’re doing,’ Erin said, rubbing her nose and its tiny jewel stud. ‘I’m not being difficult about the interview, I’ll tell you anything you like, if you can get proof he’s going to that house. I can’t cope with the idea that I might put myself out there and then look like an idiot fangirl who thought a one-night stand mattered, and nothing would change. As I said to Uncle Ian, I’m totally grossed out that I did it, so how can I expect other people not to be?’

‘I get it, entirely. I think you’ve been extremely brave doing this much, and other women would thank you for it,’ Bel said. ‘When did you meet Amber?’

‘When Glenn had dragged her out at one in the morning when the doorbell kept ringing and he was panicking it was someone who knew he was there. She wanted to show him the footage to prove it was some drunk stumbling around, so shebrought that iPad. She seemed embarrassed; she didn’t meet my eyes …’ Erin paused. ‘Do you really think you can get into the iPad and get those recordings of Glenn?’

‘Honestly, I have no idea. I am going to give it my best shot,’ Bel said. Erin nodded.

‘Knowing someone believes me, someone proper. It’s meant a lot,’ Erin said, and Bel felt like a fist was gently squeezing her heart.

Ian saw Bel out, so they could briefly speak, one to one.

‘You know what makes me so angry?’ he said, as they stood at his gate. ‘Erin hasn’t had much experience of the world of work yet, the world full stop, really. And that fucker has taken her optimism and her self-confidence and all the … brightness she should feel in her youth. Why should the start of her story be dominated by him? How dare he vandalise her youth for a few meaningless encounters?’

Bel put her hand on Ian’s arm. If she’d ever thought she’d maintain an unemotional professional distance, that was long gone. She thought of Ian discovering that his boss had taken sneak shots of his unclothed niece.

‘We’re going to get him. We’re going to give Erin the power of putting out her side, and we’re going to stop the next Erin ending up a Bailey victim. He thinks Erin is his victim too– but he’ll find out she’s his mistake.’

‘You’re a credit to your profession,’ Ian said.

‘I will settle for being of use to you,’ Bel smiled.

Bel departed home on the tram with a renewed sense of furious purpose, a greater degree of apprehension than ever before, and four hydrangeas, their damp stalks in a twist of cling film.

38

Shaun’s flight was inevitably delayed, so Connor checked into Hotel Gotham by himself, all liveried bellhops in those flat usher hats, dramatic lighting and maximalist, glitzy Art Deco clutter. He was quite won over to the ‘Murder On The Orient Sexpress’ look they had going on. His room– Shaun had enjoyed the irony of it being a ‘Bank Manager’s Suite’– had a zig-zagging geometric black-and-white carpet and vintage travel chest as coffee table.

In London he’d have found it insufferable but up here it was playful larks.There you go, Manchester,Connor thought,I can learn to love you, all I need is a five-star accommodation in a £600 per night suite. Or spacious interiors on a par with Bel Macauley’s place, which was probably a £1.2m proposition. God, maybe he WAS a shallow Finance Bro.

---