The Mark

by Heather Burnside

  The more she thought about it, the more determined Crystal became that, one way or another, she was going to find out just where Gilly went to whenever he disappeared in his car for hours.

  19

  Maddy answered the door to find the handsome face of Aaron smiling back at her.

  ‘Your carriage awaits, madam,’ he said, turning to the side and waving his hand with a flourish towards the shiny red BMW that was parked on the road.

  ‘Very nice,’ said Maddy.

  ‘Yes, I’m happy with it. I mean, it’s not as good as the Porsche but it’ll do for now.’

  ‘I wasn’t talking about the car,’ said Maddy, grinning as she turned and walked back up the hall.

  Aaron stepped inside and shut the door before following her. As they walked he grasped one of her buttocks in his hand. ‘You’re cheeky,’ he said. ‘And you know what happens to cheeky girls, don’t you?’

  Maddy chuckled. ‘Ooh, I can’t wait.’

  ‘Well, you’ll have to,’ said Aaron. ‘Grab your coat. I want to take you out in the car. I’ve got something to show you.’

  Within fifteen minutes they were sitting inside Aaron’s car in the middle of Trafford Park.

  ‘So, what do you think?’ asked Aaron.

  Maddy looked out of the car window. Across from them was a large warehouse. Erected from red brick, it had pale grey metal sheeting covering the top part of the building and dark grey metal shutters. Maddy could see a small wooden door next to the enormous shutters and a tiny window with a metal grille. The building wasn’t exactly aesthetically pleasing and she wasn’t sure what he wanted her to say.

  ‘Erm, yeah. It’s big, isn’t it?’

  Aaron laughed. ‘Yeah, and it’s got kitchen space, an office and toilets. I think it’ll be perfect for the business.’

  ‘Ooh, can we take a look inside?’ asked Maddy.

  ‘Not on a Sunday, no. But I’ve already checked it out and it’s great. I just wanted you to see it too, even if it is only from the outside.’

  ‘It sounds fine,’ said Maddy.

  Aaron leaned across and kissed her. Then he said, ‘And it’s not a million miles from where you live.’

  Maddy smiled. ‘True,’ she said. ‘Now, are we going back to mine for a bit before we have to get ready for Becky coming home?’

  ‘Sure,’ he said. ‘But before we do I want to stop off at the supermarket to get some flowers for you both.’

  ‘You don’t have to,’ said Maddy.

  ‘I want to,’ said Aaron, laying his hand on her inner thigh as he leant over for another kiss. ‘Besides,’ he added as he pulled away again, ‘I want to make a good first impression on your daughter, don’t I?’

  Maddy was secretly pleased. She desperately wanted Aaron and Rebecca to get on and was glad he was making an effort.

  *

  Despite Maddy’s best intentions, the pull of Aaron was too much. Within five minutes of arriving home they were upstairs in bed, the flowers discarded on the coffee table. After another session of ardent lovemaking Maddy glanced across at the bedside clock.

  ‘Bloody hell!’ she said, jumping out of bed and picking her clothes up off the bedroom floor where she had left them. ‘Becky’s due home any minute. We can’t let her see us like this.’

  While she rushed round, pulling her clothes on and frantically trying to smooth down her hair, Aaron remained in bed, smiling at her. ‘Chill,’ he said. ‘She’s not here yet, is she?’

  As if in response to his words the doorbell sounded. ‘Shit! She’s here,’ said Maddy, throwing Aaron’s jeans at him. ‘Get some bloody clothes on quick.’

  Maddy dashed out of the bedroom and down the stairs, stopping to check her appearance in the hallway mirror. She glanced back to see Aaron trudging behind, slowly buttoning up his shirt.

  ‘Quick,’ said Maddy. ‘Get in there.’ She nodded towards the living room then gave him a few seconds to settle while the doorbell chimed urgently and the sound of Andy’s voice met her ears.

  Hoping she’d given Aaron enough time to make himself decent, she swung open the door and smiled at her daughter and ex-husband.

  ‘God, Mum! We’ve been waiting ages,’ said Rebecca.

  ‘Sorry, love,’ said Maddy, bending to plant a kiss on top of Rebecca’s head. ‘I was in the bathroom.’

  She bid a hasty goodbye to Andy then turned her attention back to Rebecca, who was busy trying to remove her shoes. ‘I’ve got someone I’d like you to meet,’ she said, before opening the living-room door.

  To Maddy’s delight, Aaron was standing on the other side of the door with a bunch of flowers in each hand and a big beaming smile on his face. He handed the first bunch to Maddy, who thanked him, then he turned his attention to Rebecca.

  ‘Hi, you must be Becky,’ he said, handing her the second bunch of flowers.

  Maddy could see from the expression on Rebecca’s face that she was thrilled to receive the flowers. At eight years of age it wasn’t something she was used to.

  ‘Thanks,’ she gushed. ‘Nobody’s bought me flowers before.’

  ‘Why not?’ asked Aaron.

  Rebecca screwed up her face. ‘I think it might be because I’m just a kid.’

  ‘Well, I think you’re a young lady, and every lady should receive flowers.’

  Rebecca smiled coyly at him. ‘Can we put them in vases together, Mummy?’ she asked.

  ‘Course we can, love,’ said Maddy, following Rebecca through to the kitchen.

  As Maddy passed Aaron, a look of acknowledgement passed between them. She was thrilled at Rebecca’s reaction and knew that Aaron had played her just right, making her feel grown up and special. She also knew that, like her, Rebecca had immediately taken to Aaron. The man was irresistible! He had only known her daughter a few moments and yet he was already beginning to work his magic.

  20

  ‘Jesus, is that the time? I must get back,’ said Maddy, edging her way out of bed while checking her watch.’

  It was a week later and Maddy was at the Midland hotel with Aaron.

  ‘Relax,’ said Aaron, moving over to her until she could feel his breath on her back. ‘It’s Sunday and Becky isn’t due back till this evening, is she?’

  ‘Yes but…’ Maddy began but stopped when she felt Aaron lift her hair and plant tiny kisses on the back of her neck, sending shivers all the way down her spine. ‘I’ve got loads to do before she gets back,’ she continued till Aaron cupped her breasts and began gently stroking her nipples. She relaxed as she lost herself to the exhilarating thrill that swept through her body.

  ‘Have I ever mentioned just how gorgeous you are?’ he whispered.

  Maddy giggled. ‘Once or twice,’ she said.

  Just as she was beginning to surrender the sound of her mobile phone ringing seemed to pierce the air and she reached over to the bedside table to grab it.

  ‘Shit! It’s Annette Willoughby, the editor from Glimmer magazine,’ she said on seeing the name on the screen.

  ‘Ignore it,’ said Aaron.

  ‘You’re right,’ said Maddy, replacing her mobile on the bedside table. ‘Who the bloody hell rings on a Sunday, anyway?’

  ‘Exactly,’ said Aaron.

  It was a while later before Maddy and Aaron were showered, dressed and ready to leave the Midland hotel. Aaron ran her back home in his BMW and for the duration of the journey Maddy sat back in her seat, making the most of the opportunity to rest before she got home.

  While Aaron drove, Maddy decided to check her phone, alarmed to find a message from Andy, which had been sent an hour and a half earlier. His mother had been taken ill and rushed to hospital. Unsure of just how ill she was, he wanted to go and see her as soon as he could but preferred not to take Rebecca with him just in case it was bad news. He asked if it would therefore be all right to bring Rebecca back as soon as possible.

  Maddy rang him straight away, ‘Andy, I’m sorry, I’ve only just got your message,’ she said. ‘I’m on m
y way home.’

  ‘OK, I’ll bring Becky back now,’ he said.

  ‘How is your mum?’

  ‘I don’t know,’ Andy replied. ‘They haven’t told us anything yet.’

  ‘Aw, well, please give her my good wishes, won’t you?’ said Maddy. ‘I’ll see you in a bit.’

  She cut the call and put the mobile back in her handbag.

  ‘Bad news?’ asked Aaron, taking his eyes off the road for a moment and raising his eyebrows quizzically.

  Maddy quickly explained what had happened. When they arrived home she gave him a chaste kiss on the cheek and turned to get out of the car.

  ‘Is that all I’m getting?’ he asked, pretending to be affronted.

  ‘Sorry, love, but they’ll be here any minute and the house is a tip.’

  Maddy waved him goodbye and rushed up the garden path. She opened her front door but, rather than the fresh homely smell that usually greeted her when she walked in, there was an unwelcome odour of unemptied bins and alcohol.

  She raced through the house, disturbed to take in the state of the place. Somehow it hadn’t seemed that bad on Saturday morning when she’d had Aaron distracting her. In the living room the cushions had been scattered wantonly about the furniture rather than arranged neatly. Her cardigan lay draped over the arm of the settee, a pile of DVDs was stacked haphazardly on the coffee table and the smell of stale beer filled the room.

  Maddy sniffed the air as she wandered round the room trying to detect where the smell was coming from. To her consternation she found two empty lager tins at the side of the sofa, one of which lay upturned in a small pool of beer where the dregs had leaked out of it.

  Her mind switched back to Friday night. She had stayed in with Aaron, watching a film while they ate Chinese takeaway and drank beer. Feeling tipsy by the end of the night, she had gone to bed fully intending to clear up the mess the next day. But the following morning Aaron had grown bored waiting for her to get ready so they could go out for the day. At his insistence she’d left most of the mess from the previous night, thinking she would have plenty of time to clean the place up when she returned home on Sunday.

  She bent to retrieve the discarded cans and rushed through to the kitchen to put them in the bin. But here the smell was worse. The bin hadn’t been emptied for several days and, as well as the greasy odour of Chinese food, there was another, stronger smell coming from the bin. Something had obviously gone off since she’d last emptied it.

  In the sink, Friday’s pots lay half submerged in water. She’d quickly dumped them there instead of taking the time to load the dishwasher while she’d rushed to leave the house with her impatient lover.

  For several minutes Maddy rushed round the house trying to tidy as much of the mess as she could before Rebecca returned home. As she made her way through each of the rooms, she noted with dismay that a thin layer of dust also clung to the furniture.

  Maddy had managed to make a good start on tidying up before the doorbell rang. She headed for the door, stopping in the hallway to check her appearance and smooth down her top. She was delighted to see Rebecca standing there with Andy beside her. As soon as Maddy opened the door Rebecca dashed inside, shouting bye to her father as she sped down the hall.

  ‘What’s got into her?’ Maddy asked, laughing.

  ‘There’s something she wants to watch on the TV apparently.’

  ‘Aah, right.’

  ‘She’s looking forward to watching her princesses DVD later too.’ He chuckled, despite the obvious strain he was under. It was a shared joke between them that Rebecca would watch the same DVD over and over till everybody but Rebecca was tired of seeing it. ‘Anyway, she’s all yours,’ he said, smiling. ‘I’m off to the hospital now. Maybe I’ll have a well-earned rest while I’m there. She’s worn me out.’

  Maddy smiled. ‘You must be getting old, can’t take the pace any more.’

  ‘Dead right. She’s been a bundle of energy.’ Then he turned to go, saying, ‘See you next week.’

  ‘OK, see you then,’ said Maddy, adding, ‘I hope everything’s OK with your mum.’

  ‘Thanks,’ said Andy before walking away.

  Before Maddy went to join her daughter, she briefly scanned the street, thoughts of the blue Astra now dominating her mind. But there was no sign of it, just a red car further up the road. But as she looked she thought she saw the bare outline of a driver inside it and he seemed to be wearing a baseball cap. Maddy dismissed the thought almost as soon as it had entered her head; she was obviously getting a bit carried away with herself. Instead of dwelling on it she shut the door and went in search of her daughter.

  *

  Gilly sat in his car watching Maddy’s home. He’d swapped the blue Astra for a red Honda Civic and parked a short way down the road in the hope that Maddy wouldn’t notice him again.

  As he watched, Gilly saw a car drive up to the gate and a tall, good-looking man of about forty get out of it with a young girl. Then they walked up the driveway and knocked on the door. Gilly had never seen the man at the house before and he presumed he must be her ex-husband dropping her daughter off.

  He saw Maddy answer the door, her hair loose and falling in waves round her pretty face. She was wearing fitted jeans again, which clung to her firmly rounded hips, and he felt the desire stirring within him, imagining himself grasping hold of those hips as he penetrated her and she screamed with delight.

  The girl went into the house straight away but Maddy stayed there chatting with her ex for a while. Gilly felt irritated as he watched them sharing a joke and saw her flick her hair about, tantalisingly, and the ex was smiling, putting on the charm and trying to impress her with his humour.

  The man obviously still wanted her. How could he not? She was stunning! Gilly could feel his irritation shifting up into anger. Wanker! Who did he think he was? She wasn’t with him any more so why the fuck did he still think he could have her?

  And her! She was flirting too! Why? Why would she want to be fuckin’ laughing and joking with a man she had divorced? He couldn’t understand it; unless they were still seeing each other. That happened sometimes. Couples who couldn’t live with each other any more ended up splitting up, but the desire was still there and they still fucked. Sneaking around when they thought no one would know. The bastard ex, waiting till the daughter was at school before he popped round for a quickie.

  I bet she’d be fucking him now if her daughter wasn’t there. Bitch! Slut! She’s just like all the other women. She might wear nice clothes and keep herself looking good but deep down she’s no different from all the others. Willing to do whatever it takes to get what she wants out of men.

  He tried to bite back his anger. Maybe she wasn’t fucking the ex. Maybe she was just flirty like that. But he didn’t like it. He’d thought she was different from the other women. But she wasn’t that different after all…

  21

  ‘Hiya, love. Have you had a nice time?’ Maddy asked Rebecca when she found her in the living room.

  ‘Yes, what time is it?’

  ‘Don’t worry, you haven’t missed your programme. You’ve got plenty of time before it starts.’

  For the next quarter of an hour Rebecca regaled her with tales of her weekend but Maddy found it difficult to focus, her mind straying to other things. Apart from the state of the house, she had got behind with her work. She had two in-depth pieces that needed returning to editors by the end of the next day and, although one of them was almost finished, she hadn’t even started the other.

  ‘Will you take me there too?’ she heard Rebecca ask and Maddy switched her attention back to her daughter, who was staring doe-eyed at her, in eager anticipation.

  ‘What? Where?’

  Rebecca sighed in exasperation. ‘I’ve just told you. That restaurant near the DIY store.’

  ‘What? Which one? Yeah, course I will, love.’ She smiled fondly at her daughter. ‘Have you got any homework to do, Becky?’

  ‘No
, I did it at Dad’s.’

  ‘OK. Do you want to watch TV, then, or would you rather play on the PC in your room?’

  Rebecca’s face dropped. She didn’t say anything but the glum look on her face gave away the disappointment that Maddy didn’t seem to want to spend any time with her.

  ‘OK.’

  She stood up and shrugged, then stomped off to her bedroom. Maddy felt a stab of guilt. She hadn’t seen Rebecca all weekend and now here she was packing her off to her room as soon as she got home, but she’d make it up to her when she had more time. For the moment though she had work that needed doing and that had to come first if she was going to keep a roof over their heads.

  She walked over to her workstation and plonked herself down on her office chair. Working was the last thing she felt like doing, especially on a Sunday, but she’d already neglected it in the week due to the amount of time she’d spent with Aaron. She would much rather be snuggled up on the sofa with her daughter watching TV and, as well as feeling guilty for neglecting Becky, Maddy was overtired. Aaron was a voracious lover and she caught little sleep when she spent the night with him.

  The first thing she needed to do was to phone Glimmer magazine. She picked up her mobile and noticed that since the call this morning Annette Willoughby had also sent her a text asking her to get in touch urgently. It didn’t bode well and Maddy braced herself as she selected Annette’s phone number on her mobile then hit the call button.

  ‘Hi, Annette, it’s Maddy. How are you?’

  ‘Fine,’ the woman replied curtly before coming straight to the point. ‘It’s about that last article you sent to me. I’ve had chance to read it over the weekend and I’m afraid it’s not what we’re looking for.’