Page 71 of Any Kind of Life
Juliet woke to Paige still sleeping beside her, that gentle breathing reminding her that everything was going to be okay. People always said it—it was a default response when the shit hit the fan—but Juliet believed every word Paige said to her. It was hard not to when those dreamy eyes gazed back at her, holding so much love that it stole her breath. Granted, they had a lot to contend with in the coming weeks and months, but Juliet knew she could do anything she put her mind to. She had always been raised that way; she wasn’t about to change who she was now.
She carefully reached for her phone on the table to the side of her, just about managing to grasp it with her fingertips. Juliet didn’t want to wake Paige yet, she knew she wasn’t sleeping, so she would text Henry and see if he had anything new when it came to Cara. As she opened her phone, scrolling her local news app, her eyes widened.
CRIME LORD RONNIE DELEHEDY DEAD AT 77
Juliet didn’t know what to do. Part of her wanted to wake Paige up and share the news with her, and the rest of her simply wanted to scream and squeal. Ronnie was dead…did that mean Juliet’s threat was now redundant, too? Surely, it had to mean that. Ronnie’s pals wouldn’t be running any business for him if they weren’t getting paid. Sure, they may all claim to be loyal to him, but when the money wasn’t coming in, that loyalty seemed to lie elsewhere pretty quickly. Juliet knew that all too well from her career in law.
She carefully brought the phone to her ear as she called Henry, praying Paige didn’t wake up just yet.
“Hey, Jules. Always a pleasure to see your name pop up on my screen.”
She looked down at Paige, those eyelids fluttering as she slept so peacefully. “What happened, H?”
“I’m sorry?” The line crackled, but Juliet could just about make out what Henry was saying. “Jules?”
“What happened to Ronnie?” She didn’t want to ask too many questions when she was in a room that had an officer stationed outside, but she had to find out how this had happened. It couldn’t be sheer coincidence, no way. “I’ve just seen the news. He’s dead.”
“Fuck. Really?” Henry laughed. “Well, that solves a lot of problems for a lot of people.”
“Henry,” Juliet warned, her stomach roiling at the idea he could be behind this. “Please tell me you didn’t.”
“Sorry, Jules. The connection isn’t great. I’ll drop in and see you this evening. Get plenty of rest.”
Juliet frowned when the line went dead. Henry had never hung up on her before, and he sure as hell wouldn’t do it again. She rested her head back, lowering her phone to her stomach. Paige stirred beside her, but Juliet would have to share this information eventually. The police would make an appearance here soon if Juliet knew how this was going to go. Still, she had nothing to hide. She was lying in a hospital bed after an attempt on her life. If they believed she could be capable of something like this, they were sorely mistaken.
“Paige, baby,” Juliet whispered, stroking a hand through Paige’s hair. “You need to wake up. I have to tell you something.”
Paige groaned lightly, turning her body into Juliet’s and snuggling into her. “Half an hour more.”
“Oh, I wish I could give that to you.” Juliet wanted nothing more than to be here with Paige like this all day and all night. But they’d already been told off by a nurse because Paige was in bed with Juliet. “If Nurse Pippa sees you in here, she’s going to kill one or both of us. I’m already recovering from that sort of thing, so I don’t know how well I’d do a second time around.”
Paige looked up at Juliet, a lazy grin spread on her mouth. “I’m happy to know you haven’t lost your sense of humour.”
“Oh, I wasn’t trying to be funny. You saw her last time. She was brutal.”
Paige sat up and stretched, groaning as her body came to life again. “You’re right. I can’t be arsed with Nurse Ratched having a go at me again.” Paige climbed from the bed, fixing the sheet to the side of Juliet where she had snuck in earlier. “Wouldn’t want to leave any evidence behind.”
“What you really mean is…you’re scared of her.”
Paige snorted, unzipping her hoodie as she moved towards the window. “No. I could take her any day.”
“Mmhmm.” Juliet watched Paige’s back, shaking her head with astonishment. This woman was going to be her wife one day, and that day couldn’t come soon enough. She kicked those thoughts away for the time being, wanting Paige to be completely aware of what was happening. “While you were sleeping, I had a look at the local news.”
Paige spun around. “They’ve caught her?!”
“Mm, no. But I think the news I’m about to give you is potentially better.”
As Paige perched herself on the edge of Juliet’s bed, she took her hand and searched Juliet’s eyes. “I’m not sure what could possibly be better than the woman who tried to kill you being caught.”
“Well, the man who ordered her to do so being dead surely trumps it, no?”
Paige froze, not even a single blink of the eyes.
“It’s online. I’ve just come across it. I called Henry, but?—”
Paige quickly covered Juliet’s mouth with her hand. “N-no. Don’t say anything else. Not here, and not unless we’re absolutely sure there is nobody around.”
Juliet nodded, frowning when Paige eventually brought her hand away from her mouth. “Okay.”