One Mistake: A totally unputdownable gripping psychological thriller

by Rona Halsall

  When she turned towards the house after leaving her message, she noticed broken glass, the kitchen window propped open. Matt. Is he still here? Quickly she unlocked the back door and ran inside.

  Ezra was screaming upstairs. She crept through the hall until she could hear Matt’s raised voice. ‘We’re just going on a little holiday. You do not need every single bloody cuddly toy.’

  He’s taking him away! She clung to the banister as she listened.

  Ezra’s screams got louder, and she knew Matt was fighting a losing battle. There was no rational conversation to be had, no reasoning with him once he’d worked himself up into this sort of paddy.

  Quickly she crept outside, where she wouldn’t be heard, and rang Hailey to tell her what was happening.

  ‘What a relief you found them. Don’t worry, the police are here. I’ll tell them Matt’s at your house and threatening to run off with Ezra. That should get them round pronto. I’ve already given them a run-down of what’s been happening, but they want a full witness statement, so I’ll be here a little while longer.’

  Sara finished the call, then picked up a piece of the broken glass and crept out to Matt’s car, stabbing the two back tyres. Satisfied that he wouldn’t be going anywhere, she went back into the house, bumping straight into Matt as he carried a screaming, thrashing Ezra into the kitchen.

  ‘Mummy!’ Ezra shrieked, battering his father with his fists, his face red and tear-stained. Matt stared at her, a look of horror in his eyes. The shock of seeing her must have made him loosen his grip, allowing Ezra to wriggle free and run to Sara, who scooped him up, her heart skittering with relief as he wrapped his arms and legs round her body.

  A sheen of tears blurred her vision and she blinked them away, glaring at Matt, who was standing open-mouthed, obviously unsure what to do next. His eyes slid to the back door.

  ‘Locked,’ she said.

  His mouth twitched.

  ‘Look, love,’ he said, as if it was a normal day and she’d just come back from work, ‘let’s have a chat, shall we?’ He walked through into the lounge, turned on the TV and flicked through until he found the CBeebies channel. ‘Hey, Ezra,’ he called. ‘Look what’s on telly.’

  At the sound of the familiar theme tune, Ezra’s eyes lit up and he gave Sara a kiss on the cheek before scrambling down and going to sit on the sofa to watch Teletubbies, his thumb in his mouth.

  Satisfied that his son was occupied, Matt came back into the kitchen and leant against the worktop, just a few feet away from her. It felt too close, but they needed to be able to speak without disturbing Ezra.

  ‘You punched me,’ Sara said in an urgent whisper, before he had a chance to speak. His mouth opened and closed. She gave a derisive snort. ‘Yeah, there’s no excuse for that, is there?’ She pointed towards the lounge. ‘And what’s the plan with taking Ezra?’

  Matt stuffed his hands in his pockets, mouth twisting from side to side before he answered, his eyes on the wall above her left shoulder. ‘I was just going away for a few days until everything settled down. Fiona said to go to Center Parcs as the booking had already been made.’

  ‘Don’t you think that’s a bit of an obvious place?’ Sara scoffed. ‘She’s played you good and proper, hasn’t she?’

  Nerves tugged at her stomach and her hand found Hailey’s phone, felt the reassuring coolness of the metal casing. She sneaked a quick look at the screen as he studied the floor, then slipped it back in her pocket.

  ‘I’ve spoken to Fiona,’ she said, and noticed another twitch of his lips. ‘I know she was your client, the one who runs the website business. I know it was her idea… but Matt, you didn’t have to do it. You could have said no at any time, when you knew what it was all about. Can’t you see how something like that can ruin people’s lives? Innocent women being exploited to feed men’s fetishes. Can’t you see it’s wrong?’

  He stared at her for a long moment before he finally spoke, scuffing at the tiles with the toe of one of his trainers.

  ‘I needed the money to keep our family solvent.’ His voice was low and even, as though he was having to patiently explain something obvious to someone who was being a bit thick. ‘She assured me the women had given their consent. She said they were willing participants. No harm done. And it would earn us a shedload of money.’

  Sara’s anger burst into flame, her finger the only weapon to hand as she stabbed the air. ‘But you know that’s a load of rubbish, don’t you? Look at what happened to me. In no way did I consent.’ She realised she was shouting, and glanced into the lounge, worried that Ezra would hear, but thankfully, he’d fallen asleep.

  When her gaze came back to Matt, his expression told her she’d caught his lie.

  ‘I got it wrong, love.’ He ran a hand through his hair, searching the wall for an excuse. ‘She mesmerised me, enticed me with talk of all the money we would make, how it would give the family stability, how you weren’t coping and needed me to step up.’ He gave a slow shake of his head. ‘She said she was doing us a favour, helping us out.’ His voice cracked. ‘I can’t understand how she did it, but she made me believe it was the right thing, the only thing I could do.’

  ‘Oh Matt.’ Sara wasn’t having any of it, suddenly immune to his wheedling ways. ‘You’re not that gullible. She’s not a bloody snake-charmer, is she?’

  Matt huffed. ‘Well she charmed you well enough. Look how she took over the girls. Always offering to take them on trips with Chelsea, feeding them all sorts of ideas. Separating them from us. Did you see that?’

  His words made Sara pause and think for a moment. Her anger flickered. He’s right. Her head had been turned by Fiona. She had been flattered by her desire to be friends. Am I to blame for this too? A shiver of doubt ran through her and her hands found each other, twisting together.

  ‘You’ve ruined everything.’ His voice was getting louder, and she glanced towards the lounge, hoping he wouldn’t wake Ezra. ‘We were doing great until you brought her into our lives.’

  ‘Me?’ Sara’s voice was incredulous. ‘I ruined everything? How is this my fault?’

  ‘Shh,’ Matt said, motioning with his eyes towards the lounge. ‘Keep your voice down.’ He took a step towards her and put a hand on her arm, tried to draw her to him. ‘I’m sorry, love. I’m just really stressed about everything.’

  She shook his hand away and stepped back, determined not to let him break her resolve. ‘You need to give yourself up. Tell the police everything you know and let’s get the whole thing stopped. That’s the only way forward.’

  He pursed his lips and shook his head. ‘Nope. I can’t do that.’

  ‘Why not?’

  ‘Because… I’m not going to prison.’ He shuddered. ‘I couldn’t…’ He bit his lip, looked away.

  ‘I’ve had to face up to my mistakes. I know it’s not going to be great for a while, but we’ll get through the bad patch and then rebuild.’

  He glanced at her, his voice hopeful. ‘You mean we’d still be together?’

  She heard a knock at the door and looked her husband straight in the eye.

  ‘No, Matt.’ Her voice was hard, her meaning clear. ‘After what you’ve done, we can never be together.’

  She ran to the door and let the two uniformed officers into the house, handing them the phone from her pocket that had recorded the conversation. Then she watched as they cuffed Matt and led him away, his head bowed.

  This is the end, she told herself. But in truth, it wasn’t quite.

  Chapter Thirty-Nine

  The police were very polite and listened to Sara’s story, but then they listened to Fiona too. Her account put a very different spin on everything, turning Sara and Hailey’s version upside down.

  Fiona said she’d gone for a run on the moors as she regularly did and had tripped and hurt herself. Sara and Hailey had found her. Nothing more sinister than that. She denied having anything to do with a Sleeping Princess or voyeurism website, appalled that anyone could
think such a thing. She pointed out that she was Sara’s boss and had simply been trying to help her through a sticky patch. Matt was clearly lying to save his marriage.

  Sara knew this was what had been said, because the police reflected everything back to her, suggesting alternative interpretations of what had happened through their questions. She became quite flustered, wishing she’d thought to record the conversation with Fiona on the moors. Fiona had told the police that Sara was under a lot of stress because her home life was rocky. She’d been worried about Sara and told her to take time off work. That was true, of course, but it implied a certain amount of emotional instability that made Sara a less than credible witness. Without the incriminating video evidence, all Hailey knew of the alleged crimes was what she’d heard second-hand from Sara. Even the pictures she’d seen on the screen in Matt’s office could be quite innocent; just a man looking at a bit of porn.

  Fiona could be so convincing, and she was a person of authority, an influential character in the area. As the questioning wore on, it became clear that the police believed her version of events. The item wrapped in plastic in her car was indeed the sort of external drive used for backups, but Fiona claimed to know nothing about it. Her car had been in for a valet the day before – maybe someone had put it in there? The data was all encrypted, so the police technicians were having a struggle to find out exactly what was on it, and Sara doubted they ever would.

  Without any concrete evidence, Fiona and Matt had been free to go – though the allegations were still being investigated – and all Sara could see was trouble coming back to her door. Matt was denying everything; said the conversation Sara had recorded had been taken out of context, and had explanations lined up to justify his comments. Sara had been under a lot of stress working full-time, he’d said. She could be a little fanciful at times. He’d been taking Ezra and the girls away for a few days to give her a break and had no idea why she was saying she didn’t know anything about it.

  She was well aware she was losing the battle. Matt and Fiona would be free to carry on with their venture and she was being painted as a neurotic woman who was having a bit of a breakdown.

  After a restless night, she woke with a new determination. If the police weren’t going to help her get to the truth, she would have to sort things out herself. And the first thing she was going to do was visit Fiona. Surely I can appeal to her as a mother?

  It was Monday, the first day back at school after half-term, and once she’d dropped Ezra at nursery, she drew up to Fiona’s house and rang the bell. Fiona’s husband, Maurice, answered the door, impeccably dressed in a Pringle jumper and golfing slacks, his silver hair slicked back from his forehead. He had the bearing of a man who had lived most of his life as the boss, the man in charge.

  ‘Hello, Sara. This is a surprise,’ he said with a worried frown. ‘I don’t think Fiona’s expecting you, is she?’

  Sara held up the bouquet of flowers she’d bought on the way.

  ‘I wanted to apologise. If she’ll see me.’ She looked at the ground. ‘Of course, I’ll understand if she doesn’t want to.’

  ‘Well, if you’d like me to take the flowers, I’ll just go and ask her.’ Sara handed him the bouquet and Maurice started to close the door. ‘If you’d like to wait there a minute.’

  She rocked back on her heels as the door shut in her face. She’d never been left standing on the doorstep before, and she stuffed her hands in her pockets as she waited. Finally she heard movement, and Maurice opened the door, waved her through into the hall.

  ‘She says to come in.’ He closed the door behind Sara, waited while she wiped her feet on the doormat before walking ahead of her. ‘She’s in the orangery.’

  Sara followed him through the living room to the large glass-panelled room that stretched across the back of the house, giving a magnificent view over the roofs of the town and across the Wharfe Valley. Fiona was sitting like a queen on her throne with her leg up on a padded footstool, her arm resting on a cushion. She looked pale, and Sara hoped she was in a great deal of pain. She gave a sheepish smile, ready to play the part of sinner coming to beg forgiveness.

  ‘We need a little time alone,’ Fiona told Maurice with a dismissive wave, waiting for him to leave before she addressed Sara. ‘Well, I have to say I admire your nerve.’

  ‘I’m so sorry, Fiona. That was Hailey getting the police involved. I tried to persuade her not to, but you know she’s always been so protective of me, and… well, when she gets something in her head, there’s nothing I can do to stop her.’ She gave a heavy sigh, looked up at Fiona from under her lashes. ‘I’m assuming it’s all okay, though? No harm done?’

  Fiona huffed. ‘No thanks to your bloody sister. They gave me a bit of a grilling, but as we went on, they could see my point and I managed to persuade them you were a bit doolally.’ She made a spiralling motion with her finger, gave a satisfied smile. ‘They came round to my point of view in the end.’

  Sara’s heart fluttered. Just as she’d thought. Fiona was one of those people who could persuade the Eskimos to buy ice, and it was no surprise she’d persuaded the police that her version was the truth. But in reality, without concrete evidence, what were the police supposed to do? It was Sara’s word against Fiona’s.

  ‘Can I assume our secret is still safe?’ she asked, tentatively.

  Fiona gave her a cold stare. ‘Oh no. I’m sorry. No second chances. I’ve done enough for you and that’s it. A line has been drawn as far as I’m concerned. You’ve used up all your favours. I had to tell them about your theft. It was only right.’ She gave a little snort. ‘I have to admit, it came in handy as a diversionary tactic.’

  Sara’s jaw clenched. ‘So we’re quits? All debts repaid?’

  ‘I think so. And it’s better if you don’t come here again.’ Fiona looked towards the doorway. ‘Maurice! Maurice!’ she called, and a few moments later, her husband strode into the room. ‘You can show Sara out now.’

  Sara followed Maurice to the door, her heart heavy with disappointment. She hadn’t even had the chance to talk to Fiona about her business venture with Matt; hadn’t come close to saying everything she needed to say.

  She was expecting to be shown out and the door closed firmly behind her, but Maurice came outside with her, gently pulling her to the side of the house, out of sight. ‘Look, Sara, I couldn’t say anything before, but…’ His hands were in his pockets, jingling the small change he had in there, his worried eyes studying her face. ‘I’ve heard your accusations. The police questioned me as well, and I defended Fiona, because I believed everything she said.’

  Sara braced herself for more bad news. Is he going to take legal action against me? Or perhaps he’d do something to tarnish her reputation more publicly. She looked at her car, desperate to get in and drive away.

  ‘Since she’s had her accident, I’ve been running around after her, getting this and that, and I found a phone hidden at the back of a drawer.’ He had Sara’s attention now. She watched him cringe, obviously uncomfortable with what he was about to tell her. ‘I know this doesn’t sound good, but I checked through it. Fiona always uses Chelsea’s birthday for PIN numbers, so it was easy to get in, and…’ He sighed and his whole body seemed to deflate. ‘I was shocked. There are conversations with James on there, a lot of them quite cryptic, but in one of them, she tells him that if he doesn’t do the favour she’s been asking of him, then she’ll make some pictures public that would suggest he was raping her while she was unconscious. It’s clear she was blackmailing him.’ His discomfort was palpable. ‘I know they had a short affair and she obviously kept some video evidence so she had a hold over him when he ended it. James wouldn’t stand a chance against Fiona. She can be very vindictive and he must have known to just do what she asked without necessarily understanding why.’

  He pulled a face, his distaste very clear. ‘My wife has some very strange… let’s call them predilections.’ He sounded lost, defeated. ‘Anyway, I ju
st wanted you to know I’m going to hand it over to the police. There are also messages to your husband on there. She seems pretty keen on him, but from his responses, I get the idea the sentiment wasn’t returned. It was a business arrangement. He said that more than once.’ He looked at her, sadness in his eyes. ‘Fiona and Matt both knew what they were doing, Sara. It’s clear from their conversations. Careless of them really to communicate like that, but Fiona has an arrogant streak. It wouldn’t have entered her head that she might get caught.’

  Tears pricked at Sara’s eyes as the betrayal by her husband and her friend was spelled out for her. ‘Why me? Why would she pick me to be one of these Sleeping Princesses? And why humiliate Milly?’

  ‘Fiona is a strange and jealous woman. I suspect she thought you had the perfect family, the perfect marriage, whereas… well, our marriage was over a long time ago. We’ve stayed together for Chelsea, but this is the final straw. The police will have their evidence and I’m filing for divorce.’

  Chapter Forty

  Ten days later

  Once Matt had realised he was trapped, his solicitor had advised him that being helpful would reduce his sentence, and he had cooperated fully with the police. By the end of the week, Sara had been fully updated on the situation and was starting to feel more in control of her life.

  James had been cleared of all wrongdoing, the evidence showing that he’d been manipulated by Fiona to think he was doing Sara a favour by taking her away for the weekend, when in fact his role had been delivery boy, serving her up like a delicacy for others to feast on, without him knowing anything about it. Fiona liked it that way. She liked to be the puppet master, pulling the strings and watching everyone dance along to her tune. A tune that only she could hear. James had suspected he was being played by Fiona, but had simply thought he was getting Sara out of the way so Fiona could spend time with Matt.