Errors of Judgment(110)

‘I know you did. Neither of us was in the right place. If you’ve made up your mind to stop, I reckon you’ll do it without my help. But it’s there if you need it. Remember that.’ Leo moved some papers from a chair and sat down. ‘There was something I wanted to tell you, too, that evening. I didn’t, and I wish now I had, because events have rather overtaken me, and I find I must.’

Anthony loosened his collar stud and took off his bands. He unbuttoned the neck of his collarless shirt and sat down at his desk, waiting. He could tell from Leo’s face that it was something important.

‘You’re going to the High Court Bench?’

Leo shook his head impatiently. ‘No word about that yet. No, this is more personal. It’s about someone we both know. Gabrielle.’

Anthony stared. ‘You know her?’

‘Yes. Quite well, as it happens.’

‘You’re not—?’

Leo could see that if he didn’t say something quickly, Anthony would start to jump to all kinds of ridiculous conclusions.

‘For God’s sake, I’m her father.’ There was a silence. ‘There. That’s it. I had an affair with Gabrielle’s mother twenty-odd years ago. She went back to France without telling me she was pregnant. I only discovered a few months ago that Gabrielle is my daughter. And Gabrielle only told me recently that she was seeing you.’

Anthony let this revelation sink in. It was a while before he could speak. ‘This is unbelievable. You. Of all people—’

‘I know. Not a great situation, is it?’

‘Why didn’t she tell me about this? Why didn’t you?’

‘She didn’t tell you because she hasn’t told a lot of people. She knows we work in the same chambers, but—’

‘For God’s sake, I’ve talked about you! She listened to me talking about you and she said nothing! Why?’

‘That’s something you’ll have to ask her. I didn’t tell you because … well, when I discovered Gabrielle was seeing you, I hoped your relationship might turn out to be a short-lived thing. I gather now, from what she tells me, that’s not the case.’

‘I don’t know what she feels. I don’t know what she thinks. I realise I don’t know – anything.’ Anthony put his head in his hands, trying to make sense of it. Certain things fell into place, the familiarity of things about her, mannerisms. All the time she had reminded him of Leo. Was that the reason he had fallen in love with her?

Leo was silent for a moment. He knew it would take Anthony some time to come to terms with it all – if he ever did. But there was also the matter of Jacqueline’s phone call.

‘The reason I’m telling you this now is because Gabrielle’s mother rang me this afternoon, while you were in court. She’s worried about Gabrielle. She can’t get hold of her, hasn’t heard from her in two days. She said she knew you and Gabrielle were going to a party on Saturday, and she hoped you might know where she is or why she hasn’t been in touch.’

Anthony lifted his head from his hands. ‘I haven’t been able to get hold of her myself. The last time I saw her was at …’ He hesitated. ‘At that place on Saturday.’

‘What place?’ Leo began to feel alarmed. He’d been hoping Anthony would have an easy explanation for the lack of contact. ‘Tell me exactly where you were and who you were with.’

‘We were at Blunt’s. It’s a members-only casino in Mayfair. The owners were hosting a private poker game for some Saudi playboys. The game was going on in one room, and there was some kind of party going on in another. I was playing poker.’

‘And?’

‘Something kicked off next door. I think one of the Saudis got drunk and tried it on with one of the girls – away from the party, I mean, in a bedroom. The word was he tried to rape her, and that he knocked her about, assaulted her. I don’t really know. Like I say, I was in the poker game.’

‘And Gabrielle?’

‘When I left the game with everyone else to find out what was going on, she was …’ He frowned, recalling. ‘She was standing in the doorway, and Edward and some other guy were holding the man. The one who’d tried to rape the girl. She was shocked. Well, all the girls were, I suppose, but Gab seemed really shaken. White-faced. I went into the bedroom to see what was going on, and when I went back to find her, she’d gone.’

‘She’d left?’

‘She must have. No one saw her go. I kept ringing her mobile, and I went round to her flat, but she wasn’t there. I assumed she’d gone to her parents’ place. I kept ringing the next morning, and went round to her flat again. Then I gave up, decided to wait till she got in touch with me. She does this sometimes. Goes out of radio contact for a few days, for whatever reason.’ He stared at Leo, as if seeing Gabrielle through him, still trying to fathom the fatefulness of it all, that Leo should be Gabrielle’s father.