X Marks the Spot

19 - Truth Will Out

Paige was reluctant to bring up the topic of Michael's study again, as it was uncomfortable for both her and Clementine to talk about; Clementine didn't want anyone to go into the study and Paige didn't want to ask. Any time Paige brought up the subject, Clementine silenced her without even opening her mouth; just a look was enough to make Paige feel guilty for mentioning the subject. 

Other than that, Paige and Clementine's living situation was working out better than expected and Paige began to believe it could be a permanent solution. All of the pieces of her life were coming together; she had a job, a home, and, most importantly, Clementine. She'd even kept the motorbike that she'd used to follow the killer. Nobody had come looking for it, and if they did, she would hand it over, but not until then.

With Michael's funeral approaching, Paige didn't want to bring up the study again. She wanted to spend the day trying to get some closure and giving Clementine space to do the same. The service was out of town, in a small village called Scetton where Michael had grown up.

On the day of the funeral, Paige cooked breakfast as usual, and changed into a short black dress she'd bought for the event. It was still snowing, so she pulled on a thick winter coat and joined Clementine in the car.

***

"... and he will be missed by all who knew him. He touched so many lives, and loved so many who loved him in return."

Bullshit, Paige thought bitterly. Where were you when he had no money and no home? People only wanted to know him after he had a roof over his head. You were lucky to have him forgive you for that.

The eulogy ended. The speaker sat in a pew next to a man who looked of similar age: late fifties or early sixties, Paige would have guessed. Looking around, Paige saw that Michael didn't have nearly as many mourners as he deserved. She'd never asked him much about his family, because she didn't want to upset him. She knew he might not have a lot of family, because he wasn't exactly young, but she'd expected more than this. And in the short time he'd had with Clementine, he hadn't been employed, so he didn't have any friends that Paige knew about. She started to wonder who these people were, and if they cared enough about Michael to come to his funeral, why didn't they help him when he had nowhere to go?

At the reception, Paige mostly stood by Clementine's side, not wanting to leave her alone in case she was feeling emotional. Paige was hoping that having her live with Clementine rather than Michael wasn't hurting her too much; she knew she could in no way replace Michael, and she didn't want to, but there was nothing she could do, except perhaps avenge him. Clementine was quiet until the man who had made the eulogy came over to greet them. He was tall and shared some of Michael's facial features, leading Paige to guess they were related.

"Hello," he said solemnly, shaking their hands. "Thank you for coming. My name's Alec, I'm Michael's brother. Are you his wife?"

"Yes, Clementine," she replied. "And this is Paige, she was a close friend of his."

"He mentioned that he had a wife," Alec commented, "but we didn't talk much about it. The last time I saw him was the first time in about thirty years. That was only a couple of weeks ago, and we didn't get another chance to meet."

But why? Paige asked herself. Why did you leave it so long? Just because he was homeless?

"Me and my Uncle Steve, we're the only ones that are left."

"The only ones?"

"In the family. I didn't have any children."

So that's why the three of us make almost half of the guests here.