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“What do you mean?”
“No comments, no rushing to warn your friends, no questions?” I demanded defensively.
“Grace, Rage has had enough dealings with the press to know not to believe everything printed. I’m sure the papers missed out a shit load of information.”
I began pacing back and forth.
“Really? No judgement? Everyone has a damn opinion. From I should have killed him to I should have turned the other cheek. Then there’s how the hell I didn’t know I was being drugged?”
“It’s your story, Grace. You know the truth, not me or anyone else. But the little knowledge I have certainly explains a lot, especially why you’re so protective of the girls.”
“It’s not something I ever expected to happen. Garry and I had been together a long time, and then wham, Garry’s knocking boots with my neighbour. Who was also a good friend. I keep asking myself, what if I hadn’t figured it out? Garry would have locked me up and divorced me, and the hospital would have claimed success when I regained my facilities.”
“That was a bad situation,” Savage agreed.
“No, Savage, bad isn’t the word. This is the truth. Garry and I worked together, but I had more talent, so I was moving up the ladder quicker than he liked. Then he and Lin started their affair, and Garry devised his plan. Because Lin worked at a private hospital, it was easy to get the drugs needed. Lin billed other patients for them and hid the theft. Bitch received a longer sentence for that than for assaulting me.
“They intended to keep me drugged and muddled. Garry had already convinced me to sign off sick. Eventually, they’d planned to lock me up. Garry would divorce me, steal my job, custody of the girls, and marry Lin. Except I discovered the remains of a dinner I’d made thrown in a bin. Dinners that Lin claimed she’d cooked for the kids. It was enough to raise suspicion. Garry said that I hadn’t been cooking; instead, he’d hired Lin. But I knew I’d made the children their meals.
“I checked the bins and found the leftovers. So, I confronted Garry, and he sent me upstairs, where I was so angry it had cleared a lot of the drug fog away. I sat by the window, trying to understand what was happening. That’s when I heard Lin and Garry discussing their plans, and I had enough presence of mind to record them. I was still trying to figure things out when I walked downstairs.”
I dragged in a deep breath, and Savage sat and watched me.
“If it’s too traumatic, you don’t have to go on.”
“No. When I approached the living room, I heard Garry explaining I was very bad that day, and he was apologising in advance. He and Lin had planned to drug me through dinner, so my former client, who was joining us, would report back on how severe I was. Then Garry would get my job permanently. Instead, I saw the leg of lamb, grabbed it and calmly smashed Garry around the head, knocking him out.
“Dwayne, the client, freaked out. I told Dwayne he could call the police, but would he please listen to what I’d recorded? I informed Dwayne if I was mad, he could lock me up, but if I was innocent, would he help as we’d been close friends before I took ill? Dwayne was scared I might hurt him and stayed away and kept his phone out, but he listened. When Dwayne heard everything, he called the police, and I assumed he was going to lock me up for being crazy.
“Garry woke up and started yelling, and then Dwayne confronted him. Once I realised Dwayne believed me, I whacked Garry twice and knocked him the hell out. The cops arrested me for assault, but Dwayne managed to transfer the recorded message to his mobile, so there were two copies of it. Once locked up, I began to go through withdrawal, and I was accused of being a druggie who’d attacked her husband.
“Meanwhile, Dwayne had contacted my boss. They engaged the company lawyers, who turned up and forced the police to get me to the hospital. Of course, I tested positive for what Lin had drugged me with. But the company supported me and pushed for answers. Still, that didn’t stop the media frenzy—or the stories. I was portrayed as a lunatic with the leg of lamb, and they gave me that God-awful nickname.”
“It’s pretty slick. But you were married, not a lady killer,” Savage stated.
“They only picked lady because I was female. And they thought I wanted to kill Garry. I only intended to shut the lying bastard up. However, they persisted until the truth surfaced. Public opinion had been decided by then, so the court case was pretty shocking for the media. Garry was sent down for thirty years for various offences and Lin twenty. But I was living a life sentence in my hometown.
“I tried to return to work; people kept staring and talking behind their hands. Ultimately, I was let go with a very generous severance package. See, the company was also guilty of believing what Garry had said and had helped him inadvertently carry out his plan. But I hadn’t sued them, so they were very kind.”
“That doesn’t explain why you’re waitressing,” Savage pointed out.
“Because I applied for several other jobs. The Leg of Lamb Lady Killer followed me. When I did take a couple of jobs, they didn’t last long because I wasn’t there for my worth as a professional. No. I was there because companies knew I’d bring in clients out of morbid curiosity. I didn’t need that reputation following me. Everywhere I went, people stared and pointed. Here? Nobody is expecting Grace Neville, Leg of Lamb Lady Killer, in RC, to work as a waitress.” I sighed.
“Can’t you get a job with your maiden name?”
“No. Because they’ll want my work background and references, and the Leg of Lamb Lady Killer fiasco will start all over again.”
“Why are you working such long hours? You said you got a good severance.”
“I got more than that. I divorced Garry, and the judge awarded me the house and three-quarters of our investments and savings. The building sold to a fan for double its worth. The dining room was cordoned off and used as a centrepiece. Freaking weirdos. I suppose I’m well off between the pay and everything else. But I locked most of the money away for the kids to get them through college and to help them buy a home and car. I kept a percentage back for emergencies and bought my house and vehicle here in cash.
“I want Harper and Isla to understand the meaning of hard work. But Angela messed that up. It seems I can’t do anything right. And they’ve changed. I didn’t notice at first, but Lin and Garry had been slowly repressing the girl’s boisterous personalities. Those rat bastards had used my illness to control the children.”
“Do you have to work?” Savage asked.
“Not really; even the percentage I kept back would see us living comfortably for years,” I admitted.
“Then why are you slaving so hard?”
