‘Why did you leave the hospital? Why did you come back here?’ Imogen asked.
‘As soon as I knew about the video of DS Miles rescuing me being on the internet, I knew I had to get back here. I just panicked, I guess.’
‘Do you remember what happened to you and Simon yet?’
‘I really don’t. I swear. I feel like it’s there, but I just can’t quite get to it, like it’s on the tip of my tongue. It’s very frustrating. Maybe my mind doesn’t want to remember.’ Angela shifted uncomfortably.
‘Why didn’t your husband report you missing?’
‘You would have to ask him that. Why haven’t you told him that you spoke to me at the hospital?’
‘We need to know that you are safe. After what the doctor suggested you had been through, we thought it best not to exacerbate the situation between you and your husband. Unfortunately, we can’t help you unless you help us.’
‘He knows anyway; he saw the video of DS Miles pulling me out of the river. He saw it before I even got back.’
‘He didn’t mention that to us.’
‘He likes to play games. I expect he is waiting for you to ask him about it.’
‘Simon Glover. Were you and he really just friends?’
‘Yes, we were. I’m not stupid enough to cheat on Reece. Reece made it clear years ago what would happen to any man I cheated on him with. Simon was a good friend to me. I should never have asked him for help.’
‘Would you testify about what happened to you and Simon?’
‘I really don’t remember that night, that wasn’t an act. When I woke up in the hospital, I didn’t know how I got there.’
‘You’re lucky Adrian found you in time.’
‘Am I? Doesn’t feel like it.’
‘We can help you leave if you want to leave. Even better, if you can testify against the man, then we can get him put away for a very long time. We can put in a request to get you a new identity and somewhere safe to live as well, if that’s what you need.’
‘I don’t believe you. I don’t believe he can be stopped that way. Where’s Adrian, anyway?’ Angela asked. ‘Why isn’t he here? Did Reece do something to him? I told you both to get away while you still could.’
‘Adrian’s got the flu, that’s all; nothing to do with your husband. Is there anything you can tell me about Reece that would help us get him? Something we can corroborate independently, so you don’t have to testify?’
‘You think I know anything? I don’t. He doesn’t tell me shit. Let me ask you something, Detective.’
‘What?’
‘Have you ever been terrified of a person? Not just in a bad situation. But scared all the time, from the moment you wake until the moment you finally fall asleep at night?’
‘No.’
‘Then how can you tell me what to do? Even here, now, I can feel him breathing down my neck. I hear him telling me what’s going to happen if I do anything that upsets him. I may not remember the attack, but I remember waking in that hospital bed. I remember looking in the mirror and the nurse telling me I was lucky to be alive. I don’t feel very lucky, DS Grey.’
‘I understand, no one should have to endure what your husband has put you through. You deserve better than that.’
‘Are you sure about that? You don’t even know me. I have eyes – I see the way you purse your lips together every time I refuse to speak against Reece. I hope you never know how it feels to be living under a shadow like this.’
‘You don’t have to live like this for ever, not if you testify. What’s your alternative? What about your parents? Do you have any family you can go to?’
‘Reece is the only family I have left. Everyone else is dead or gone,’ Angela said as she swiped her sleeve across her face to catch a tear.
‘Can you give me a name at least? Someone else we can talk to about him? Has anyone ever tried to help you before?’
Angela stood and walked to the window. She hugged her arms and Imogen could tell she was considering whether or not to say what she had on her mind.
‘There is one man who tried to help me before.’
‘What’s his name?’
‘Clive Osborne. He worked for the company for years and I confided in him; he offered to get me out of there.’
‘Where is “there”?’
‘Our old place, back in Oswestry, Shropshire. Reece must have got to him, because after I arranged to meet him, I never saw him again.’
‘What happened? Why didn’t he turn up?’
‘He just never showed up on the night we arranged to go.’
‘Where is he?’
‘I don’t know.’
‘Do you think he is dead?’ Imogen asked.
‘I didn’t until what happened with Simon. I just assumed Clive got warned off and thought better of helping me. Reece can be very persuasive when he needs to be. I think Simon’s death really drove home to me that I am never getting out of here. That Clive is probably dead, as well.’
‘How long have you been together?’
‘For ever and a day. A lifetime, a life sentence,’ Angela said and wiped an invisible tear from her cheek. ‘I’m sorry I can’t tell you what you need to hear. You had better get going before he gets back.’
Imogen didn’t feel right leaving Angela here. Each time she left felt more wrong than the last, as though some invisible clock on Angela’s life were running down. She couldn’t force her to leave, though. Who would that help?
‘Stay safe, Angela.’
‘Thank you. You, too,’ Angela said.
Imogen stood up from the table with a little more understanding of what Angela was dealing with. She could see the hopelessness in her eyes. Angela was little more than a possession for Reece and he would not relinquish her without a fight. Imogen felt completely impotent at the situation.
Imogen walked out of the house and back to the car. She had to go back and write up both of the pointless interviews she had conducted today. It felt wrong to walk away. Thank God, at least, they didn’t have any children.
Chapter Fifty-Three
I knew this would happen. I wish I had just died in that river, then no matter what happened to R, I wouldn’t have to deal with this guilt. I don’t feel bad for him; I feel bad for anyone who tries to help me. I’m not worth all this trouble. Simon is gone now because of me. I still see the images of him in my head. Are they real, or am I creating them to fill in the blanks?
He’s bloody, he reaches out to me, then he stops moving. I remember him staring at me, eyes fixed, one pupil blown and his face barely recognisable. I did that to him. My selfishness. R told me there was no way out. I should have listened to him. Am I this weak that I can’t just leave on my own and disappear?
Maybe I can sell my belongings and put some cash together to start a new life. I don’t have access to the jewellery in our safe; only R has the combination for that. I know he doesn’t trust me with anything of value, but I know even my shoes could fetch a couple of hundred pounds each if I sold them. I don’t have a bank account, though, so unless I get paid in cash, I don’t see how I can do this. I can’t sell anything on the internet. All my documentation is in the safe with the other things that might help me to get away. He has thought this through. I am nothing but a pet.
I need to stop this madness – hope has only ever got me in trouble before.
I hear a car on the gravel outside and look to see the police pull into the driveway. It’s DS Grey and another officer who I haven’t seen before.
Where is Adrian Miles? My mind immediately thinks the worst, but on closer examination of DS Grey’s face, she doesn’t look grief-stricken, so maybe there’s a good reason for him not being here. Still, I have that sinking feeling. What if R has done something to DS Miles?
I feel sick at the thought of someone else getting hurt because of me. If only I could make R happy, make it so he doesn’t want to hit me anymore, then maybe we could be happy. I could accept my place h
ere and no one would feel sorry enough for me to get involved. Part of me wonders if some of the reason R does the things he does is so that people will interfere, like he is looking for a reason to hurt people. It wouldn’t surprise me. I am exhausted trying to think of ways to fix this. I can’t.
Maybe I need to tell the police more. This will go on and on until R finally tries to kill me again.
I remember. What do I remember? I remember R telling me that I had gone too far this time and that he was going to kill Simon and make me watch. I can’t believe that he would let me go after that, but I just can’t remember how I ended up in the river.
DS Grey is different without her partner around. She seems softer, somehow. I wonder how much of her energy goes towards managing DS Miles when he is around. I notice women doing it a lot with their partners, trying to instigate damage control for some imaginary scenario that hasn’t even happened yet. I do it with R, so maybe that’s why I recognise it in her.
Even though I didn’t get educated past my GCSEs, I am not stupid. I might look stupid, and I know people constantly underestimate me and think of me as some gold-digging airhead who is just in it for the money. But they have no idea how wrong they are. I couldn’t give a shit about R’s money.
When I talk with the detective, I realise she has absolutely no concept of what it is she is asking me to do. But then I think about Simon and how much he wanted to help me, too. He would tell me to be brave and speak to DS Grey. R told me brave was just another word for stupid.
I genuinely don’t recall anything useful about the night Simon died, but I remember another man who tried to help me once. Clive Osborne worked for R and he saw me with some bruises that were difficult to explain away. He promised I wouldn’t have to spend another day in that house. He left to get the things we needed to get away, but he never came back. Maybe the truth was too much for him. I always figured he got scared, but now I think I was being naive.
Back then, I didn’t know the depths of R’s evil. I still had a rose-tinted view of him, as if somehow if I loved him enough that would change him, but it never did. All it did was change me into a person I can barely stand to look at.
I am all but erased – changing a little each day to accommodate his demands but never being quite good enough. I wonder if anything will ever be good enough for R. He tells me often enough that there is no one else for him but me. Those words are like a noose around my neck. He likes to make sure I know he can take my life from me whenever he wants to. I wonder how he will react when he finds out that I have told the police about Clive. Maybe he will be so angry that he finally finishes me and I can finally get out of this hell.
Chapter Fifty-Four
Imogen finished up the paperwork ready for the team progress meeting in the morning and looked at the clock: it was time to go home. She wanted to check on Adrian again. It was unusual for him to take any time off. Whatever this illness was it was really taking its toll on him. When she went to his house to spend time with him he was either asleep or glued to the television. He wasn’t himself at all. She wasn’t sure the medicine the doctor had given him was making any difference. It occurred to her that she had never really seen him sick before. He wasn’t a good patient. She had also never known Adrian to be this irritable with her; he just wasn’t like that.
DCI Kapoor walked over to her desk.
‘You going to see Adrian?’ the DCI asked.
‘Yes. I don’t think he eats when I don’t feed him,’ Imogen smiled, half joking.
‘Well, give him our regards. The place feels strange without him. Are you and DI Walsh getting on?’ Kapoor asked, then, without waiting for an answer, added, ‘I know you and Adrian have a very tight working relationship. It can be difficult to get used to other people’s habits.’
‘We are working together fine; did he say otherwise?’ Imogen said, aware that this was leading somewhere.
‘Good. I wanted to talk to you about that. We’re getting a new DS soon. I think you and DS Miles might benefit from switching things up a bit.’
‘With all due respect, I wouldn’t be happy with that. Adrian and I work well together, we trust each other and we get good results,’ Imogen said.
Was the DCI hinting that she knew they were in a relationship together? Their argument had caused a scene in the station and was something Imogen would rather forget, both personally and professionally.
‘I’m just concerned that sometimes it’s harder to be completely objective when you are too close,’ DCI Kapoor said.
‘No. Not us. I assure you, there won’t be a problem.’ Imogen folded her arms.
‘Let’s just see how you get on working with Matt. We can leave this discussion open for now. I was just sounding you out.’ DCI Kapoor smiled. ‘This fight that led to Adrian’s irrational and unprofessional behaviour, not to mention his subsequent injury, is a cause for concern.’
‘If you order us to do it then we will, but I think you would be making a huge mistake.’ Imogen tried not to sound too annoyed.
‘Prove me wrong, then. When Adrian gets back, I’ll be watching both of you to make sure.’
‘That’s fine.’
‘I’ll see you tomorrow.’
Imogen grabbed her things and left the station. She took a few deep breaths before starting the car to go and see Adrian. He was hard work at the moment. Resistant to everything. She was sure he was still upset over what she had said. Maybe the DCI was right and they needed a break from each other when he got back to work. There was so much at stake now; it would be hard to choose which aspect of their relationship she would find it hardest to be without. He was her partner, her lover and her best friend – so much to go wrong, so much to lose.
She parked the car and rang the doorbell. Adrian answered the door and smiled when he saw her. He was looking better. He walked back into the lounge and lay on the sofa. Imogen could smell food.
‘Did you cook?’ she said, surprised.
‘Yeah; nothing special, though. Just a prawn curry. Thought you might be hungry.’
‘You mean you didn’t want my cooking again?’
‘Pot Noodles are not classed as cooking. Besides, I thought it was only fair. You’ve been an excellent nurse.’
Imogen sighed and walked into the kitchen. It was clean and the food was cooked and ready on the stove. She had been really concerned about Adrian, more than she had let on even to herself. He just hadn’t been himself. The relief she felt was noticeable. Adrian seemed almost happy to see her.
She was starving and the food smelled so good. She made up two bowls and took them into the lounge. She put Adrian’s on the dining table and sat down. He was engrossed in the TV. She was a little bothered by his lack of interest in what she was doing. These days, he never asked how work was, never asked about the case or how she was. At least he had cooked, though.
‘The DCI wants us to work with other people. She doesn’t think it’s a good idea for us to partner anymore,’ Imogen said.
‘What do you think?’ Adrian looked up at her affectionately, a little surprised at the revelation.
It occurred to her in that moment that he hadn’t looked at her affectionately since they’d had their argument at the Corrigan house. He had been so distant. She knew he was ill, but she couldn’t help thinking he was still upset with her. She felt a lump in her throat. She wasn’t sure why that made her emotional; maybe because he had always looked at her with care and affection and she hadn’t noticed until it wasn’t there anymore.
‘I think she’s wrong,’ Imogen said. ‘I think the argument we had was nothing to do with us. We would have fallen out about it regardless of our relationship.’
She didn’t want to say that she thought he was wrong again for storming in and attacking Corrigan. She knew she was wrong for what she said, but it didn’t make him right. They seemed to have moved past it and she wasn’t about to stoke that fire again.
‘Then we’ll tell her that.’
‘Aren’t you going to eat?’ Imogen asked.
She watched as Adrian laboured to get off the sofa, clutching his side as he moved, anguish on his face. His face was puffy again, as though he had been crying. Her mother had suffered with depression many times, when she wasn’t going through one of her manic episodes, and so she recognised it in Adrian. No amount of telling him to cheer up would fix it and she daren’t suggest antidepressants to him, but she knew what he would say if she ever suggested it to him.
She wished there was something she could do, but she had seen that bruise on his rib – time was the only thing that could help. He shuffled over to the table with a cushion and put it on the seat, lowering himself onto it slowly. His eyes watering again.
‘Are you feeling any better? Are your pain meds working?’
‘The doc said my rib was going to hurt for a few weeks. When I get back to work, I’ll have to do desk work for a while. As long as I stay rested it should be fine.’
‘I want you to promise me you won’t do that again,’ Imogen said.
‘Do what again?’
‘Get yourself into a fight. I know this case has been difficult for you, but going out and pissing people off after work until they punch you is not the answer. You were already hurt. What if someone pulls a knife on you next time? I’ve been so worried about you.’
Imogen didn’t want to push too hard, didn’t want to ask what the hell he was thinking. They only had a minor disagreement. He was so impulsive and hotheaded sometimes. She didn’t really understand why he would want to be in pain. Surely this wasn’t worth it. Surely this wasn’t what he wanted.
‘I just got unlucky getting sick at the same time. I’ll be fine. You don’t need to worry about me,’ Adrian said gravely; her words had obviously hit home.
‘You look so pale and you’ve lost weight. I just want you to look after yourself.’
‘I will. I won’t do it again. I learned my lesson.’ He smiled a tentative smile and took a mouthful of food.
Woman in the Water Page 18
