by M J Hardy
I feel so nervous, it’s a strange feeling being here, but this was always part of my plan. Some would call me foolish, others strange. I’m not sure if this was such a good idea, but I need to lay the ghosts to rest.
I walk towards the door of number 9, Willow Drive, Meadow Vale, and the key shakes in my hand.
I’m back.
I’m here alone.
Marcus wanted me to wait for him to finish work, but this is something I needed to do on my own. I must confront my past and put my fears to rest because everything I’ve done since I was here last, was leading to this moment.
True to my word, I knuckled down and applied myself. They placed me with a foster family, who, as luck would have it, were teachers. They couldn’t believe their luck when, far from being a wayward teenager, I craved their knowledge. I worked hard every minute I could and up until today; I stayed living with them. I look on Carl and Fiona as the parents I always thought I’d have. Finally, I have a mother and what a fabulous one she is.
My own father went to prison for two years but is out now and finding his way. It was easier for me to stay with the Grosvenor’s, although I’m still close to my dad and see him regularly.
When I went to university, they all encouraged me every step of the way. Three people watched me graduate with honours and now I’m due to take up a junior position in a law firm in London.
I’ve come a long way since I was here last, showing what determination can do for a person. I didn’t let what happened define me and here I am, moving in with my boyfriend Marcus Fisher who I love with a passion.
We met at uni and have been inseparable ever since. He is also starting a new job, ironically with the police as a graduate entry. He hopes to become a detective one day and I think it’s an honourable thing to do.
So, here we are, right back where it started and I’m taking a moment to accept that this it, my moment of reckoning.
“Excuse me.”
I turn and see an elderly man holding a folder in his hand and he smiles warmly. “Good morning, I’m Keith Wickham, the chairman of the local neighbourhood committee. I just wanted to welcome you to Meadow Vale.”
“Oh, hi, I’m Lola.”
“I’m pleased to meet you, Lola, are you moving in alone?”
He looks concerned and I smile. “No, my boyfriend will be here after work.”
He visibly relaxes and says with interest. “What does he do, work that is?”
“He’s training to be a policeman and I’m a junior lawyer.”
He chuckles and I wonder if I’ve said anything funny. Then he smiles as a woman around the same age as him, arrives by his side. “Honestly, Keith, I leave you for one second and you’re already chatting up a beautiful young woman.”
He smiles and as I see the look they share, it melts my heart. They’re in love.
The woman holds out her hand and says sweetly, “I’m Verity. I’m married to Keith, and between me and you, we’re newlyweds. We’ve just got back from our honeymoon in Scotland.”
“Congratulations.”
I smile because they look so happy it’s infectious and then Keith says with interest, “You should meet Jasmine, she’s a lawyer, a good one at that. You would have a lot in common.”
“I’d like that.”
Verity nods with enthusiasm. “Why don’t you settle in and maybe drop round tomorrow evening to meet the rest of the neighbours. They’re a lovely bunch and will be pleased to have a new face to gossip about.”
They share a laugh and I feel a warm feeling inside. This is what I wanted. I knew I’d find it here.
The couple move off and I hear her whisper, “Are you going to tell her what happened in that house?”
“Shh, Verity, you know we don’t talk about that, the poor girl would have nightmares.”
My heart quickens as I turn back to the pretty pink door and hesitate, the key shaking in my hand.
For a moment, I stand and collect my thoughts before I insert the key in the lock and the door swings open. I swallow hard as I see the familiar staircase, although now a soft grey carpet feels comfortable against my feet. Nervously, I start my tour of a place I never really got to know. The kitchen, the living room and the little study set in the furthest corner, all seem alien and unfamiliar.
My heart pounds as I take my first step up a staircase I thought I’d never see again. The memories swirl around me like a dangerous mist, and I’m unsure what I’ll feel when the fog clears and reveals the terror of my past before my eyes.
As I turn the handle on my old room, my heart quickens and I shut my eyes tightly as I’m transported back in time. Will it be the same, will it break me?
As I step inside, I just see a light and airy room bare of any furniture and just the shutters to remind me I’m in the same place.
As I move across to the window, I have a flashback to the time I waved my red t-shirt and look at the gardens of the houses opposite. They are more established and there are even two trees that weren’t there before. I wonder if the people that lived there are the same? Maybe they moved on, maybe they stayed. It will be interesting to find out.
There is one more room I need to see before I can say I’ve faced my fears and the nightmare is truly over.
“My heart beats frantically as I approach the room of my worst nightmare and the scene of my lowest point in life.
When I turn the handle of the room I feared most, I step inside and feel—nothing. I have no feelings at all as I look at a room that is nothing like the one I left. Bold wallpaper decorates the once bare walls and a bright blue carpet covers what was once bare boards. There is no furniture, just a newly installed set of mirrored wardrobes and as I look around me, I feel finally free.
It’s gone.
The memory, the pain, the suffering and the self-loathing. This is now my house of new beginnings and I knew I would find peace here.
A knock on the door makes me jump and I think back to the last time I heard it.
A little nervously, I head back the way I came and answer the door, seeing the removals man on the doorstep.
“Is everything ok, love, would you like us to move the stuff in?”
Flinging the door wide open, I positively beam at him. “Yes please, I can’t wait to get started.”
Yes, I’ll be happy here - we’ll be happy here because this is where my path in life was determined. I always wanted to be one of the people who lived a happy life here. Now I am and I will make it the happiest, most successful one I can.
The End
Note from M J Hardy
Thank you for reading Behind the Pretty Pink Door.
If you have enjoyed the story, I would be so grateful if you could post a review on Amazon. It really helps other readers when deciding what to read and means everything to the Author who wrote it.
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Read on for more books by M J Hardy
About the Author
Have you read?
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Learn More
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The Girl on Gander Green Lane
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The Husband Thief
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Living the Dream
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The Woman who Destroyed Christmas
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The Grey Woman
The Girl on Gander Green Lane
Have you read?
The #1 Bestseller
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The Girl on Gander Green Lane blurb
A Chilling Psychological Thriller with a Twist.
When a perfect marriage, the perfect husband and perfect life is nothing but an illusion.
Then one night, the nightmare reveals itself.
Sarah Standon is living the dream, at least that’s what everyone tells her.
She is the wife of a successful solicitor w
ho looks like a movie star.
They live a Stepford existence and appear to have it all.
But then one fateful night, everything changes.
A terrible accident leaves Sarah alone to deal with a situation so frightening that she starts to question her grip on reality.
Her perfect life has been exposed as the lie it always was and she loses everything.
She thought that was the worst that could happen.
She was wrong.
The Girl on Gander Green Lane
The Husband Thief
Have you read?
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The Husband Thief Blurb
How well do you really know your husband!
When Tom Mahoney was mugged on his way home from work, they thought it was the worst thing that could happen.
They were wrong.
When Tina & Harry found out they couldn’t have more children, they thought that was the worst thing that could happen.
They were wrong.
When the new teacher Isabel Rawlins arrives, she brings with her a secret that's about to blow their respectable worlds apart.
Five lives all intertwined and heading on a collision course.
Will their relationships survive, or is one or more couple about to find out there’s a husband thief in their midst?
Remember, if you have trust, you can conquer anything. When trust goes, madness sets in.
This tale comes with a twist it's doubtful you will see coming.
The Husband Thief
Living The Dream
Have you read?
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Living The Dream - blurb
Have you ever wondered what it’s like to have it all?
Four couples live a charmed life behind the security gates of an exclusive development. To everyone else, they have a dream life. Beautiful homes, designer clothes and more money than sense.
Behind closed doors, the story is very different.
Beauty is skin deep and when you scratch the surface the blood runs cold. Betrayal, dishonesty and lies are about to blow their worlds apart and not everyone will survive.
Who is telling the truth and who is hiding a secret they would do anything to protect?
Money doesn’t buy happiness; it buys a more expensive kind of trouble.
When your friends are your enemies in disguise, expect things to get ugly.
Living The Dream
The Woman who Destroyed Christmas
Have you read?
The Woman who Destroyed Christmas - blurb
How far would you go to protect your daughter?
When Alice Adams met her daughter’s boyfriend, she was far from impressed. He was everything she didn’t want for her little girl and so decided to give fate a helping hand.
Luckily, they were invited to spend Christmas with his family which was just the opportunity she needed. Three days to ruin their relationship and save her daughter from a lifetime of regrets.
However, Alice has secrets she hopes her daughter will never discover. In interfering with fate, she unlocks the past with devastating consequences.
As the snow falls and the sleigh bells ring, this will be one Christmas they will all want to forget. There are more than presents under this Christmas tree and as they unwrap the past, the future will never be the same again.
Alice Adams thought she was prepared this Christmas – she was wrong.
The Woman who Destroyed Christmas
About the Author
Thank you. I feel very fortunate that my stories continue to delight my readers. The Girl on Gander Green Lane reached the number 1 spot in Australia in the entire Kindle Store. The Husband Thief and The Woman who Destroyed Christmas reached the top 100 in Canada, the UK and Australia.
I couldn’t do it without your support and I thank each one of you who has supported me.
For those of you who don’t know, I also write under another name. S J Crabb.
You will find my books at sjcrabb.com where they all live side by side.
As an Independent Author I take huge pride in my business and if anything, it shows what one individual can achieve if they work hard enough.
I will continue to write stories that I hope you will enjoy, so make sure to follow me on Amazon, or sign up to my Newsletter, or like my Facebook page, so you are informed of any new releases.
With lots of love and thanks
Sharon - aka M J Hardy
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Ps: M J Hardy is a mash up of my grandmother’s names. Mary Jane Crockett & Vera Hardy. Two amazing women who are sorely missed.
