by Alex Lake
‘Thanks,’ Beth said. ‘But you don’t know him.’
‘I don’t need to. I will keep you safe.’ Kate paused. ‘I do have one question, though. How did you get away?’
‘I decided to. Funny, isn’t it? That was all it took. I simply decided to. Decided that I had to get out of there, decided that I would come to you, decided that I had to leave, before it was too late. He watched me, closely, but I found a way. Walked out of work this afternoon, found a hairdresser and took a train to Manchester. The real question is why I decided to.’
‘And? Why did you?’
The colour that had been returning to Beth’s cheeks, fed by the wine and pizza and love of her friend, drained away.
‘Because,’ she said, ‘I’m pregnant.’
3
‘Holy shit,’ Kate said. She looked at Beth’s stomach, assessing how far along she was. She couldn’t be very far; with so little body fat, any swelling would have been obvious and there was nothing.
Then she looked at her friend’s wineglass. It was her third, it was half-empty, and she showed no signs of slowing down.
‘Six weeks,’ Beth said. ‘Still early.’
‘Does he know?’
‘Of course. He knows everything. He saw that I’d missed a period and made me take a test.’
‘And so you left, because you know you have to protect the baby,’ Kate said. ‘You have to keep it safe from him.’
‘God, no,’ Beth said. ‘I left because I want to get rid of it.’ She sighed, and reached for the wine. ‘It’s complicated, Kate. Like everything at the moment.’
‘It sounds it.’ Kate raised her hands. ‘But whatever you do is fine by me. I assumed—’
‘I know what you assumed.’ There was a slight edge in her voice; this was hard for her, Kate saw, which was no surprise. ‘But here’s how it is: that bastard wanted me pregnant for months. He kept a close eye on my cycle and when I was ovulating he pinned me down and fucked me every morning and every evening. He wanted me pregnant because he thought that way he would own me for ever. How could I leave with a kid – or two, or three – and no money?’
‘This just gets worse,’ Kate said. ‘I feel so sorry for you.’
‘Don’t. It won’t change anything. So, when he found out I was pregnant, he was ecstatic. Absolutely over the moon. He isn’t much of a drinker – thank God – but he opened a bottle of champagne and we toasted our good news. Or he did: I had water, some folic acid, and a hearty meal. He was going to make sure I was healthy for his baby, he told me.’
‘And that was when I knew I had to go. Had to go and get rid of his baby. I don’t want it, don’t want anything of his in my life, don’t want a reminder of him staring at me every day. I need to start again, and how could I do that if I had his child? And there was no way I could have had an abortion.’
Beth laughed, a bitter, acid laugh.
‘He would have killed me. He’s a very religious man – or he says he is, but I see none of the warmth of religion in him, only its fanaticism – and he is implacably opposed to abortion. In his eyes, I would have been a murderer, and that would demand justice. An eye for an eye, a tooth for a tooth. It’s one of his favourite sayings.’
‘How did he do this?’ Kate said. ‘How did he ever convince you to go out with him in the first place?’
‘He’s a very charming man,’ Beth said. ‘Funny, warm, attentive. Until the mask slips – because that’s what it is: a mask. And behind it is a monster.’
‘OK. So what do we do?’
‘I don’t know. Get rid of the baby. Then find a place I can hide from him.’
Kate’s phone rang. It was Phil.
‘Hi,’ she said. ‘Sorry—’
Phil interrupted. He sounded tense. ‘No problem,’ he said. ‘Have you seen Beth?’
Kate straightened in her chair. Something was wrong; she could tell from his voice. And why was he asking about Beth?
‘No,’ she said. ‘Not for ages. You know that. Why do you ask?’
‘That guy Colin’s here. Says she’s disappeared. Says she was very upset – he didn’t say why – and he’s worried she’s done something rash. He thought she might have sought you out.’
Thank God she’d said no. ‘I haven’t seen her. I can try calling, if he’d like?’
Phil passed on the message. Kate heard a voice replying. She couldn’t make out the words.
‘He says don’t bother,’ Phil said. ‘She’ll turn up. Hold on a sec.’
She listened as Phil said goodbye to Colin and promised to let him know if they heard anything from Beth, then she heard the sound of the front door shutting.
Phil came back on the line. ‘Where are you, anyway?’
‘At Mum and Dad’s. Can you come over?’
‘Why?’
‘I’ll tell you when you get here.’
‘What’s going on, Kate?’
‘Just come over.’
‘All right,’ Phil said. ‘By the way, that guy Colin. He’s a bit weird.’
‘You don’t know the half of it,’ Kate said.
4
‘Phil’s on his way,’ Kate said. ‘Colin was at the house.’
Beth shook her head. ‘Tell him to stay put.’
‘Why?’
‘Colin will be following him.’
‘He doesn’t know you’re here. I said that I hadn’t seen you.’
‘It doesn’t matter. He doesn’t trust anyone.’ Beth pressed the heel of her hand into her forehead. ‘You don’t understand. He’s not like you and me. He won’t believe what Phil said and he’ll want to check. So Phil can’t come here. If he does, I’m leaving. Right now.’
Kate could see that she was serious. She picked up her phone and called Phil.
‘Don’t worry,’ he said. ‘I’m on my way. You don’t need to check in.’
‘Change of plan. You need to go back home.’
‘What? You said to come to you.’
‘Not any more. I’ll explain later, I promise. But you need to go home.’
There was a long silence. ‘Fine. But you need to tell me what’s going on. Now. I’m getting worried.’
Kate took a deep breath. She looked at Beth, who nodded. ‘OK. It’s Beth. She’s with me. She’s hiding from Colin. She left him, he isn’t taking it well and she’s worried about what he might do. He has’ – she looked at her friend – ‘he has a history of violence.’
‘Against her?’ Phil said. ‘He’s been violent to her?’
‘Very,’ Kate said. ‘But we can talk later.’
‘I don’t like the thought of you alone,’ Phil said. ‘I’m not going home. I’m coming to you.’
‘No!’ Kate replied. ‘Beth thinks he might be following you. So go home, and wait. I’m going to see if she can stay here for a few days. It’s the safest place; Colin doesn’t know my parents from Adam.’
‘All right,’ Phil said. ‘But call me immediately if anything happens. OK?’
‘OK. And thanks. I love you.’
‘Love you too.’
‘You’re lucky,’ Beth said. ‘Phil’s a lovely guy.’
‘I know,’ Kate said. ‘And all this makes me realize how lucky I am. We have some figuring out to do.’ She raised an eyebrow. ‘What do we do? Mum and Dad will be back soon. How do we explain this to them?’
‘Tell them the truth. Or part of it. Tell them that I’ve left Colin and need a place to stay for a few days.’
‘They’ll ask why you don’t stay with me. Or Gem, or May.’
Beth shrugged. ‘I don’t know,’ she said. ‘I’ll think of something.’
‘Leave it to me,’ Kate said. ‘I’ll talk to them.’
When her parents’ car pulled up outside the house, Beth went upstairs. Kate waited in the kitchen.
‘Hello, love,’ her mum said. ‘What are you doing here?’
‘I need to talk to you about something.’
Her dad frowned. ‘Everything OK?’
<
br /> ‘With me, yes. But something came up today. I saw Beth.’
‘Oh,’ her mum said. ‘How lovely. It was such a shame you two lost touch. How is she?’
‘She’s good enough. But she needs a favour. She’s broken up with Colin – that’s the guy she was with – and she needs a place to stay for a few days.’
‘Right,’ her dad said, drawing out the word. ‘Is she staying with you?’
‘She can’t. I was wondering whether she could stay here.’
Her parents exchanged a glance. ‘She’s more than welcome,’ her dad said, ‘but wouldn’t she be better with you?’
‘No. Phil’s busy at work. It’d be a distraction.’
‘It’s the weekend,’ her mum said. ‘What work is he doing?’
Her dad folded his arms. ‘Look, petal,’ he said. ‘We’re happy to help. But we need to know what’s going on.’
‘It’s kind of private. It’s Beth’s business. But she needs to stay here.’
‘It’s fine.’ Beth appeared in the doorway. ‘I’ll tell them.’ She stepped into the kitchen. ‘Hi, Tony. Hi, Margaret.’
Kate watched her parents struggle not to react to the change in Beth’s appearance. Eventually, her mum walked to Beth and hugged her.
‘Hello, love,’ she said. ‘Would you like a cup of tea?’
A wide grin spread over Beth’s face. ‘I knew you’d say that,’ she said, as the tears came again. ‘It’s so great to see you. I’ve missed you. All of you.’
Beth sat down at the kitchen table, a cup of tea in front of her. Kate’s dad sat opposite her; Kate was to her left, her mum to her right.
‘So,’ her dad said. ‘First things first: you can stay here as long as you like, and you don’t need to tell us anything that you don’t want to. But if you do want to, then we’re ready to listen.’
‘Thank you,’ Beth said. ‘I’ll tell you. But it might be easier to show you.’
She lifted her jumper to expose the bottom of her ribs.
Kate’s dad stiffened. An expression Kate had never seen before came over his face.
She realized what it was: it was fury.
‘Was that your boyfriend?’ he said, his voice low.
Beth nodded.
He leaned over the table, and put his hand on hers. ‘Whatever’s been going on,’ he said. ‘It’s over now.’
‘I hope so,’ Beth said. ‘I hope so.’
They talked for a long time, about Colin and what he had done, about how she had felt, about her options now she was free.
‘What about the police?’ Kate’s dad said. ‘What about informing them, and letting them deal with it?’
Beth shook her head. ‘I don’t want to. I want to be done with him, for good.’ She sipped her tea. ‘He’ll get to me,’ she said. ‘There’ll be a court case and it’ll drag on and he’ll get to me.’
Kate’s mum leaned forward. ‘But then the police will know he did it, and he’ll—’
‘He doesn’t care. He’ll find me and kill me and then go to jail. He’s a …’ she paused, ‘a psychopath. At least, I think so. He has no feelings. It’s weird. He can be so charming, but it’s an act. He can turn it on and turn it off. Underneath, all he cares about is himself. And you can’t hurt him. He’s not scared, of anything. Of pain, of prison, of punishment.’
‘He’d be scared of me, if I got hold of him,’ Kate’s dad said. ‘That bastard would—’
‘He wouldn’t,’ Beth said. ‘Whatever you did to him, he wouldn’t care. Or the police. And when he finally got to me, he’d take it out on me. So I don’t want the cops involved or anything like that. I just want to be free from him for good.’
‘But how?’ Kate’s dad said. ‘How do you disappear?’
Her mum sat back, upright in the kitchen chair.
‘There’s a way,’ she said. ‘There are people who can help.’
5
It moved quickly after that.
A phone call that night; a meeting the following morning, and then Beth was gone. She stayed for a few weeks in a shelter in the town centre, an innocuous building that used to house a small school but which had been shuttered for years, until it was bought by a charity and quietly converted into a place where women could seek refuge. There were no signs outside. A keen-eyed observer may have noticed that only women entered or left, but other than that, there was no way to guess who used the building and why.
Kate only went inside once; even though she was a friend of Beth’s, the people who ran the refuge didn’t like to have any more people than was strictly necessary go there. They made an exception the day that Beth had her abortion; Kate went to see her afterwards. It was odd; she seemed more troubled than upset. Thoughtful. Either way, it was done, and a few weeks later, Beth was gone. She had a new name, a new address and a new start in life.
It was years before Kate heard from her again, but this time she did not regret her friend’s absence. She knew that it was the only way she could move on.
PART THREE
1
‘Jesus,’ Mike said. ‘That’s such an awful story. Thank God she got away from him. At least she’s alive.’
Kate shook her head. ‘It’s ridiculous that we live in a world where a woman needs to be grateful that she’s alive, that her husband or boyfriend didn’t actually kill her. It’s so fucked up.’
‘I know. And I watched my own mum go through it. It made me hate my father, you know? That’s how fucked up it is: it made me hate my own father. I was glad when he died. I didn’t feel empty or angry or sad, unless you count sadness that I didn’t kill him myself.’
‘Well,’ Kate said. ‘She’s happy now.’
‘What happened to her?’ Mike said. ‘Did you stay in touch?’
‘Not for years, but then I got a friend request on Facebook. Different name, but I recognized the photo. We exchanged the occasional message, but that’s it.’
‘Good for her,’ Mike said. ‘Good for her.’
After dinner they lay on the couch and watched Love Actually.
‘Phil would never watch this with me,’ Kate said. ‘He said it was garbage. And it is, but sometimes garbage is what you want.’
‘It’s harmless enough,’ Mike said. ‘And I don’t care what we watch, as long as we’re watching it together.’
He looked at his watch. ‘Although it’s getting late. Are you staying here tonight? Or at your parents’?’
‘Parents’. I need to go home. I still don’t feel safe alone.’
‘I could stay. If you want.’
‘It sounds very appealing, but I think Mum would have a heart attack.’
He pushed out his bottom lip in mock disappointment. ‘OK. Do you want me to drive you over there?’
‘Yes,’ Kate said. ‘But there’s something else I want first.’
‘What?’
She turned her face to his and kissed him.
‘This,’ she said.
Her mum was still awake when she got home.
‘So,’ she said. ‘Two nights on the run. Getting serious.’
‘Mum,’ Kate said. ‘Not now. And it’s not getting serious. Not yet, anyway.’
‘Do you like him?’
Kate caught her mum’s eye. ‘Yes,’ she said. ‘I do.’
She slept better than she had since the break-up. When she woke up she had the feeling of renewal and hope and energy that a deep, natural sleep can bring.
It didn’t last long. When she checked her phone there was a text message from Phil.
Don’t worry about me. I’m having a great time! Really great!
It was time-stamped two thirty-three a.m. God, that boy was falling apart. Drinking, picking up women. He needed to stop the slide before it became too late. And what was he thinking, sending her a text like that? Did he think it would make her so jealous she’d go running back to him?
More likely he hadn’t thought anything at all. He was nothing other than drunk and unable to control himself.
Her phone buzzed again. This time it was Gemma.
OMG. Have you seen the news?
Kate’s pulse rate increased.
No. What is it?
The reply came.
There’s been another.
Kate opened the web browser and navigated to the local newspaper. There it was:
BREAKING NEWS: STRANGLER – ANOTHER VICTIM
Reports are emerging that the body of a woman found by the Bridgewater Canal near Stockton Heath may be the latest victim of the serial killer that has been operating around the village over the last month.
Police have yet to confirm the identity of the victim or the manner of death, but fears are increasing that this may be the fourth woman to be murdered in the vicinity.
More to come as the story develops.
Kate lay back in bed. She scrolled through her text messages to the one Phil had sent.
Don’t worry about me. I’m having a great time! Really great!
Sent at two thirty-three a.m. She didn’t want to jump the gun, but it was hard not to at least ask the question.
Was it Phil? Was it Phil who, mad with grief, was killing these women? If so, then he’d sent that text message after he’d murdered his latest victim, which didn’t make sense. Why would he do that? It was asking for trouble.
But then, none of this made sense. Even if it wasn’t Phil, even if it was some random person, the fact that someone wanted to and was capable of doing this made no sense. And maybe Phil didn’t care about getting caught – maybe he even wanted to be caught – in which case why not send the message?
Shit, this was an unholy mess. She wished it would all go away. But there was one more question she had to deal with before that could happen.
Should she tell the police about Phil’s message?
Kate closed her eyes. She had no choice.
2
Phil kicked off his covers. He was hot, and it was making him uncomfortable, and he wanted to go back to sleep. The thought of getting out of bed and facing a Sunday without Kate and with a stinking hangover was not exactly appealing.
