‘Jason, stop it,’ said Jenna.
‘You can’t kill him,’ added Linda. Three-quarters of the champagne had disappeared inside her by now. She hiccupped, keeping a wavering finger pointed at Jason to make it clear that she had more to say on the matter. ‘Cos you can’t. Cos it’s a crime, that’s why.’
‘Murder? A crime? Well, how about that? Jen, did he touch you? Did he threaten you?’ Jason grabbed hold of Jenna’s arms, searching her face for the answers.
‘No, s’not what I mean,’ insisted Linda loudly. ‘Course murder’s a crime. But it’s worse, ain’t it, when you kill, like, there’s a special name for it, like, when you . . .’
‘What are you on about? Zip it,’ said Jason impatiently.
‘Like a something-cide,’ she continued undaunted.
‘Homicide?’ suggested Kayley.
‘No, it’s a different one, and you can’t kill Lawrence Harville cos the thing is, that’d be it. The thingy-cide.’
‘Shut up, Ma, if you can’t talk sense. This is between me and Jen.’
‘When you kill your brother,’ shouted Linda over the top of him. ‘What’s it called when you kill your brother?’
There was a moment of silence.
‘What do you mean?’ said Jason.
‘Fratricide,’ said Jenna helpfully, though she was sure now that Linda must be raving, out of her mind with champagne.
‘I ain’t got a brother,’ said Jason.
‘That’s what I’m saying,’ said Linda, as if she had been patiently explaining something for a long time. ‘You see. You can’t kill Lawrence Harville cos it’s – what she said – icide.’
‘You’re not making sense,’ said Jason, and Jenna nodded her agreement, though a creeping kind of sick feeling was unfurling in her stomach.
‘No? Well, make sense of this. You’ve got the same dad. You and him. He’s no better’n you. Never was.’
‘This . . . Come on, Mum. This is bullshit. You’ve had too much to drink and you’re making up stories. Go and have a lie down, yeah?’
‘Don’t you talk down to me, son!’ she shouted, suddenly furious. ‘Don’t you call me a liar! I’ve sat on this for near-on thirty years and it’s killed me, d’you hear? Killed me, not saying anything. Killed me!’
‘Then why didn’t you say it?’ Jason shouted in return.
‘Please, can we keep it down?’ begged Jenna, picturing a dozen hidden hands with tape recorders around every corner.
‘Because I was scared to,’ she said, suddenly breaking down in tears. ‘I couldn’t tell you. I wanted to. I couldn’t do it.’
‘This is bollocks,’ said Jason, rolling his eyes. ‘You’ve told me so many different stories about my dad, I can’t believe a word you say any more. First he’s this bloke, then he’s that bloke, then you don’t know, it could be anyone – and now it’s Lord fucking Harville? Well, excuse me for not falling for it, but I’m sick of being spun all these lines. Fuck it, I’m going back to find Tabitha. I need some sanity. Jen, come with me. Everyone’s asking for you.’
‘Oh. I’ll be there. Give me a minute. I’ll just take your mum up to bed.’
‘Let Kayley do it, for God’s sake.’
‘No, it’s OK,’ said Jenna. ‘I want to. Tell Tabitha I’ll be out in a minute.’
Jason stormed off with Kayley at his heels, leaving Jenna with a wailing, champagne-swigging Linda.
‘Here.’ Jenna handed her a tissue from her handbag. ‘You . . . Did you mean that?’
Linda nodded, catching her breath.
‘I’ve never told him. At first, I daren’t. I thought I’d lose him. Harville would have him taken off me. That’s why I made out like I’d had five different fellas it could have been. When I got pregnant, it put him off the scent. But there weren’t no one else. Only George. Harville, that is.’