Free The One I Love by Anna McPartlin Page B

on the oven and clock.
    This would be the third time Leslie and Tom had come to her house to discuss their project’s progress. Elle had been there both times before but she was taking her break-up with Vincentpretty hard. When Jane had spotted the “Gone Fishing” sign on her door earlier that morning, she knew it meant that Elle might be away for a week or a month. She wasn’t sure how she was going to break this news to Tom.
    Tom had become incredibly excited at the last meeting when Elle had revealed the painting she had done of Alexandra. He had previously given her a box of photos of his wife and she’d gone through all of Jane’s from when Alexandra was younger. After she’d spent a week looking at the woman’s face, she spent another week capturing it. According to Tom, Jane and even Leslie she had done so beautifully.
    “I made her look sad,” Elle had said. “I hope you don’t mind because I know she’s a happy sort but I think she needed to look sad.”
    “I don’t mind. She’s beautiful,” Tom said, staring at the painting, which leaned against Jane’s kitchen wall. “How did you do that? How did you make her look lost?”
    Elle had stared at the face she had come to know so well and hunched her shoulders. “I don’t know.”
    Tom bit the side of his mouth so hard there was an indent in his cheek. He nodded and looked at Elle. “You’re incredible.”
    Elle loved it when people complimented her. She’d blush and say she hated it but her heart would flutter, her pulse would race and, for a moment, she’d feel a great high, which she’d come down from all too soon.
    Leslie had created a fantastic website – www.findingalex-andra.com – which incorporated Alexandra’s most recent photos and a map of her last movements. She’d even managed to attach the CCTV footage from Tara Street and Dalkey DARTstations. She had created a blog space for Tom to update if and when he wanted, a chat room for anyone who might wish to post a comment and, of course, there was an email address for anyone with information. Tom had been overwhelmed, especially when she revealed the link to Jack Lukeman’s website. When she clicked into Jack’s site there was a link to findingalexandra. Tom was dumbfounded. Jack’s website even mentioned Alexandra and asked his visitors to check the findingalexandra site to work out if they had seen her.
    “How did you manage that?” Tom asked.
    “I designed Jack’s site.”
    “Wow, that’s fantastic. Absolutely fantastic.”
    “And you said you couldn’t help!” Elle teased.
    “Well, I’m glad you’re happy,” Leslie said, a little chuffed with herself.
    “How did you get Jack to agree?” Jane asked.
    “Alexandra’s a Jack fan and I got Myra in his office to agree, and once she agreed it was pretty much done and, by the by, they asked if there was anything else they could do.”
    “You are shitting me?” said Elle.
    “No,” Leslie said. “And I’m not sure I even know or care to know what shitting a person is.”
    “Of course there’s something else they can do,” said Jane suddenly.
    “Yeah,” said Elle, beating Jane to it. “Jack can sing at the Missing Exhibition opening.”
    “It would make the PR a cinch,” said Jane.
    “I’ll talk to Myra,” said Leslie.
    Tom didn’t know what to say. He was bowled over. In the few short weeks he had known these three women, hissearch for his wife had taken on a whole new life and he could hardly express his gratitude to them.
    Jane smiled at him when he became tongue-tied and slightly tearful. “We’ll find her,” she promised.
    Now, less than a month later, her promise appeared slightly premature, if not a tad arrogant. Elle was missing in action and that meant she wasn’t painting, and if she wasn’t painting the exhibition might not happen in April as had been planned, and if the exhibition didn’t happen in April Jack wouldn’t be available to play until after he’d finished with the