And Lisa was starting to question if perhaps that was Jamie’s intention all along. Because Rebecca was suffering greatly right now, and Jamie would be well aware of that. She was starting to wonder what the real reason was for him wanting to hide out here. He seemed so angry with Rebecca. As if she’d done something intentionally wrong.
‘Look, I don’t know what’s going on here. But Rebecca has only just got back from the hospital, you should be at home with her, but instead you’re here. It doesn’t make sense?’ Lisa said honestly. ‘You know that I will always help you, Jamie. But I really feel like I’m stuck in the middle here. Rebecca is my friend, and I don’t want to hurt her any more than she’s already hurting. And she is hurting, Jamie. Surely you guys can fix this? Can’t you just talk to each other? Sort out whatever it is that’s going on between you?’
‘Oh, suddenly you’re an expert in marriage guidance, are you? Remind me again, how long have you been single for now?’ Jamie said, his tone full of sarcasm. His guard instantly up.
‘Oh, piss off, Jamie. You know I’m only trying to help,’ Lisa retorted. It was obvious Rebecca was struggling and needed help right now, yet Jamie was behaving like he didn’t have a compassionate bone in his body when it came to his wife.
‘I know it’s a crazy concept and all that, but I just think you’ll resolve everything a lot quicker if you actually speak to each other.’ Then, serious again, she adds, ‘and it can’t be good for Ella either, being away from her mummy. She’ll be missing her, Jamie. It’s not fair on her either. And whatever you think about Rebecca, whatever’s going on between you, she’s a good mother, Jamie. She does her best by Ella. You know she does.’ Scooping up her tiny niece into her arms to ease Ella’s soft cries, Lisa kissed her gently on the forehead. Ella was fractious. Despite being so tiny and too young and oblivious to know what was happening around her, she could feel something wasn’t right.
‘It’s okay, darling, there’s a good girl. Auntie Lee-Lee’s here, darling.’
‘It’s not as simple as just going home and talking. Talking isn’t going to fix this,’ Jamie said, losing his patience and shaking his head. ‘I’m not really sure anything will. You don’t understand.’
‘Well that’s one thing we agree on.’ Lisa shot a look to her brother that told him she wasn’t going to be so easily pacified. ‘Jesus, Jamie, Rebecca isn’t well. She’s struggling. It’s hardly a crime. I don’t understand what’s going on? So why don’t you enlighten me?’
‘They discharged her from the hospital, but what if Rebecca lied to the psychiatrist?’ Jamie said, hanging his head down into his hands and running his fingers through his hair, as if contemplating his own question. ‘What if she fooled them into thinking that she’s okay when really she’s not?’
Lisa laughed, unable to keep up with her brother’s irrational trail of thought. ‘Are you for real? Why would she do that? How would she trick them? That makes no sense. She was assessed by a team of mental health workers and a qualified psychiatrist. They’d see past any pretence. They’d know if she was sick or not. And she’s not, Jamie. At least not in the way you thought. She’s got post-natal depression. The hospital discharged her. They are going to treat her as an out-patient. She needs your support, not this. Christ, Jamie. I’m sorry but if anyone’s talking crazy right now, it’s you!’
Lisa was fuming.
Placing Ella down in her travel cot she busied herself tucking the child’s blanket in all around her and placed her dummy in her mouth. Anything to busy herself for a few minutes, so that she didn’t lose it completely with her brother. He should be doing all of this.
Jamie took Ella purposely away from Rebecca. He should be stepping up in terms of looking after his daughter.
Ella seemed to relax now, and Lisa smiled as the baby finally gave in to sleep and closed her eyes.
Arguing wasn’t going to help them either, she reminded herself. Her brother was tired and stressed. She got that. He’d been through an ordeal these past few days too.
‘I’m making coffee, do you want one?’ It was a peace offering of sorts and Jamie nodded his head.
‘Seriously, Jamie, why would she lie to the doctors? If she really was sick, don’t you think that maybe she’d want to get better?’ Lisa said, crossing the room and switching the kettle on, keeping her voice soft, aware of Ella sleeping peacefully.
She sees Jamie falter at her question, a flicker of doubt flashing in his eyes, confirming her suspicions that he was holding something back.
‘What is it you’re not telling me?’
Jamie paused. Taking too long to gather himself and speak. Giving himself away. Then, raising his eyes, he figured he had nothing to lose.
‘I think that Rebecca manipulated the psychiatrist. I think she’s been manipulating us all. It’s what she does.’
‘Okay…’ Lisa said doubtfully, rolling her eyes now at her brother’s latest crazy notion but she was interested to hear this theory of his. At the very least it might shed some light on why he’s acting the way he is, hiding from his wife, taking their baby daughter away from her. Lisa stares blankly at him, waiting for him to elaborate, only he’s struggling to put whatever he’s thinking into words and Lisa has to coax it out of him.
‘Jamie! What is going on?’
There was another thing niggling at her now too.
Jamie had been acting distracted since he got here. Sneaking off to make private phone calls out of Lisa’s earshot and constantly staring at his laptop or his phone.
As if he was waiting for someone to call.
Lisa knew for a fact that he hadn’t spoken to Rebecca yet. So, who was he talking to?
‘Do you still love her, Jamie?’
‘Jesus Christ!’ Jamie said, his temper getting the better of him. ‘Seriously, Lisa, do yourself a favour and stop with all the marriage counselling. You don’t know what you’re dealing with.’
‘I know more than you think,’ Lisa said, biting her lip, but unable to hold back. ‘She thought you were having an affair. I told her that you wouldn’t do that, that there’s no way you’d cheat on her. But you have been, haven’t you?’ Lisa shook her head, unable to keep the disgust from her tone as the realisation hit her. ‘Is this what this is all about? Is this the reason that you’re not going home? Now that Rebecca is struggling, you’re using it as your “get out of jail free card”?’
‘You saw what it did to our mother when dad cheated on her. You know what he put her through. What he put us all through. Do you really want that for Ella too?’
Lisa feels physically sick. As much as her brother could be a pain in the arse sometimes, she’d never had him down as a cheater. Not after what they’d been through themselves as children. They’d experienced the devastation first-hand when their own father had left their mother after a whole string of affairs. Jamie had lived the heartache of it with her. He’d lived it himself. And now here he was doing it to Rebecca, so soon after their first child was born.
‘Why would you jeopardise everything, Jamie, why?’
‘Jeopardise everything? And what is it exactly that I have, Lisa? A wife that won’t tell me jack shit about her life before we met. A woman who, since we’ve had Ella, has changed into someone completely unrecognisable. Will you listen to yourself, Lisa!’ Jamie shouted, getting to his feet, agitated as his phone started ringing. ‘Her saying that I’m cheating on her is just another story she’s made up. For Christ’s sake, Lisa, she thinks she’s got a stalker for crying out loud. She thinks someone was in our house. In Ella’s room. But there was absolutely no sign of them on the security cameras. The police saw it. We all saw it. She doesn’t know what the fuck she’s saying or doing lately. You do realise that, don’t you? So do me a favour, dear sister, and don’t get sucked into her bullshit too.’