He recalled how time had passed. Five o’clock, quarter-past five, half-past five, quarter to six, six o’clock. Where was Kate? By 6.00pm, he’d now been on the tennis court for some two-and-a-half hours. He’d expected Kate to come by a few minutes after 5pm, the time she normally collected them from the ‘Kid’s Club’. He remembered how he had begun to get concerned, even worried, about where she had got to. He had another tennis session booked at 6.00pm, when his male ‘Tapas 9’ friends had planned to join him for a game with the Mark Warners tennis coach, Dan.

He remembered how he’d kept on looking at his watch. Quarter to six, ten to six, five to six, six o’clock, five past six. Maybe she had just taken the kids straight back to the apartment without telling him? He hadn’t bothered to take the 2-minute walk to the apartment to check. Nor had he gone to the Paraiso to see if Kate was there with all his other ‘Tapas 9’ mates. Looking back, it was a bit of a mystery why he had remained rooted to the tennis court. Maybe it had been his painful Achilles tendon?

The tennis coach, Dan, had arrived, promptly, at 6.00pm. Gerry had told him to wait until his ‘Tapas 9’ friends turned up for their scheduled ‘social tennis event’. It was a full twenty minutes later, around 6.20pm, that David Payne had sauntered cheerily by, with still no sign of Kate.

“Gerry, how’s it going? Sorry we’re late. We were down the Paraiso. Where were you and Kate? They didn’t get the food on the table for the kids until gone half past five, so we were a bit late getting away. We’ll all be with you in a couple of ticks. I’m just going to get changed. Russell and Matt have gone to get changed as well”.

Gerry had said: “Dave, sorry, I won’t be able to join you. My Achilles tendon is really playing up”. Gerry’s worries about Kate had by now crystallised. He said to David Payne: “Look, Dave, I’m a bit concerned about Kate. She went off jogging nearly two hours ago and I’ve not seen her or the kids since. While you’re up there changing, would you mind just popping up to see if Kate’s O.K.? Ask her if she’s coming down and bringing the kids to watch us”.

“O.K., mate”, David had said. He always did as Gerry asked, even though it had crossed his mind as to why Gerry himself shouldn’t go up and see how his own wife was, if he was that worried. “Let you know in a few minutes, then. Shall I bring something to drink? You look worn out”.

“No, it’s O.K. I’ll wait till you tell me how Kate is”, replied Gerry.

Payne furrowed his brow. As he did as Gerry had asked, and wandered up to Apartment 5, pondered Payne, why does Gerry want her to bring the children down to the tennis court and watch him, if he’s unfit to play? If he had an injury, why didn’t he go back to his apartment and put his feet up and rest his ankle?

As he walked up to Apartment 5a, Payne reflected that Gerry could sometimes by mysterious and very unpredictable, was Gerry. But you didn’t argue with him

Meanwhile, Gerry had chatted animatedly to Dan, who was waiting patiently for all Gerry’s ‘Tapas 9’ friends to arrive for their tennis session. When Russell and Matt arrived at the tennis court, Gerry had explained that he was unable to play:

“Look, sorry I can’t play, my Achilles tendon is really playing up”.

“Where’s David?”, Matt Oldfield had asked.

“Er, he’s gone up to our apartment to check that Kate is O.K…erm, no, he’s gone up to ask Kate to come down with the kids and watch us’, Gerry had mumbled.

“Is Kate O.K.?, Russell O’Brien had asked.

“Yes. No…er, well, I’m not sure, it’s just that I’ve not seen her since she went off jogging nearly two hour ago. Anyway, David’ll be back in a moment or two, I expect”.

He couldn’t remember what time David had returned to the tennis court. It must have been nearly seven-ish, as best as he could now remember. Matt and Russell were in play with Dan.

David had swung open the door to the tennis court and marched up to Gerry. By now he had changed into his tennis gear.

“Kate’s fine”, he had reported. “She took the kids of somewhere for a ‘high tea’ with a couple of the nannies, then she went back to the apartment to put the children to bed. I saw the kids, all ready for bed. Oh, they were all tired after a hard day, but they did look so angelic, you lucky man. Kate looks a bit exhausted, though, she said could you go up now and help to bath them and perhaps read them a bed-time story”.

“O.K., Gerry had replied. “I’ll go up and see her. Sorry about my Achilles injury. Maybe you can get someone else to play in my place, one of the other guests, perhaps?”

“See you at the Tapas, then”, said David.

“O.K. – ‘bout half eight as usual”

When Gerry had got back to his apartment, it was just they way Dave had described it. The children were already changed and were in their night clothes. Kate had already got the kids in their pyjamas by 6.30pm. She looked a bit tired. But she wasn’t in a mood, anyway. “How do your match with Julian go?”, she’d asked.

“Had to abandon it shortly after you went for your jog. My Achilles tendon was really playing me up. I couldn’t get around the court. So we finished it at one set all. Maybe I’ll finish it tomorrow. Where’s that tube of ‘Deep Heat’?”.

“In the bottom drawer, along with our passports”.

Gerry was now remembering the moments just after he returned to his apartment. Once again, he recalled how David Smith had covered the events between then and 8.30pm, when he and Kate had gone off to the Tapas bar.

Smith may have skated over quite a few details in his account of the afternoon’s and early evening’s events. But as to what happened after 7.00pm, Gerry had obviously given David Smith a much fuller account. Once again, he recalled what Smith had said, word for word:

by ‘Montmorillonite’ – COPYRIGHT