Kyle gave a long, low moan and slumped on top of her. Bella’s room was warm, the air unmoving, even though the window was open. They lay naked together, their bodies moist from exertion. The bed covers, a sheet and a duvet, lay on the floor where they had long since been discarded. Their clothes remained in the lounge, where they had been dropped or carelessly tossed in the heat of passion as first Kyle had taken Bella to the heights of ecstasy before she turned her attention on him. Hands and mouths had touched, caressed, exploring every opportunity for pleasure, exploiting them all until, as their activity became more frenzied, neither of them could hold back from the final act of consummation. To Kyle’s surprise, Bella had led him upstairs to her bedroom where they collapsed on the bed together in a fever pitch of excitement. Not fifteen minutes had passed when Kyle had given up, incapable of performing, and Bella lay beneath him stunned and disappointed, uncertain of what to say, his weight becoming unbearable.
“Kyle, I’m going to have to move,” she explained quietly, the words almost squeezed out of her. Suddenly the room had become like a morgue, drained of its high-energy, pulsating atmosphere as surely as if someone had pulled a plug. The silence was overwhelming. Kyle raised himself up slowly and climbed off of her, avoiding her eyes, and she could sense the tension in him, the anger bottled up inside. She watched as he walked to the door and disappeared along the hallway, not daring to speak as he left the room, then flinched at the sound of the bathroom door as he slammed it behind him. And this was the night she had looked forward to so much! Never in a million years would she have dreamed this was how it was going to end. Strike out climax and substitute anti-climax, she thought, with a mirthless, ironic laugh. Bella slipped out of bed and picked up the sheet and duvet, to give herself something to do, then she heard his raised voice. The room was still warm but she shivered. Realising that she was alone in her isolated home with a powerfully-built man who she really didn’t know very well at all instantly made her feel vulnerable. The fact that he was not only powerful but also seemed to be exhibiting signs of an anger problem had a disturbing effect on her. For the first time since she had moved into Willow Cottage, Bella felt seriously scared and the worst thing about it was she only had herself to blame. All too clearly now she could recall his unrestrained anger at the time of the accident. ‘What the fuck do you think you’re playing at?” The words echoed in her mind, spat out in rage as she had sat dazed and in shock. For the first time it made Bella wonder exactly how fast he had been driving at the time. Now knowing the way he drove, it would have been unlikely that he was going slowly through the village. She didn’t know what to do. Obviously Kyle was upset, to put it mildly. Should she go back to bed and lay there in case he wanted to carry on? Or would that add insult to injury? On the other hand, should she go down to the kitchen and keep out of his way? Bugger laying there, she thought, reckoning that even if Mel Gibson walked in the room, naked, she’d have trouble getting aroused now. Where did I leave that brandy, she wondered, slipping into a short, silk wrap.
Having made herself a coffee and poured a brandy, she sat at the kitchen table listening for any signs of movement upstairs and also wondering how Ubix was getting on.
“Remind me to pay more attention to your reactions to people, in future,” she whispered to the cat in its absence. “And take this as an apology.” Having imagined, before the weekend, that by now she would be enjoying an exhausted sleep she couldn’t help but smile at her situation. Then she heard what she took to be the bathroom door opening, followed by the sound of footsteps on the stairs. Noises from the lounge seemed to indicate that Kyle was collecting up his clothes, then he went back upstairs. In her tired, frustrated state Bella was mystified. What was he up to? Surely not getting dressed? The question was about to be answered when she heard him coming downstairs again, The heavier tread of shoes, this time.
“Bella?” Her name was shouted. There was nothing sweet or romantic about it and she closed her eyes before answering, not wanting to open them, not wanting to look at him.
“In the kitchen!” she replied, as pleasantly as she could, and waited for his arrival. As she had suspected, he was fully dressed and she could only look at him in surprise but he spoke before she could utter a word.
“I’m going,” he announced, tersely. The look on his face indicated that he was furious about something, but what? Surely he couldn’t blame her for what had happened, Bella thought. And was that any reason to leave?
“But Kyle, it’s the middle of the night, for God’s sake.” It was a plain statement of fact, with no inference of any sort.
“So fucking what?” he snarled. “I’ve never had anything like that happen to me in my life! Not fucking ever. Never! Do you understand?” The sheer violence in his attitude appalled her and she suddenly felt her personal safety was at risk.
“But Kyle, that sort of thing happens. To most men at some time or….
“Well, it’s never fucking happened to me before. Not with anyone else!” He looked at her with utter contempt, as if she were the cheapest, ugliest slag he could have picked up and her flesh crawled.
"It’s got to be you, or this fucking place of yours. I reckon you’re right about it but you’re part of it too, d’you know that?” The urge to attack her was almost overpowering. To knock her down, strip her and force himself upon her. Perhaps that was the only way he could have her, at the height of his rage with her submitting to his fury. His eyes misted over and he spun away from her, crashing into the kitchen door frame before regaining control and almost running for the door in the lobby. Bella sat at the table, absolutely stunned, waiting for the crash of the door, certain the glass would break, but the sound never came. What she did hear next was the sound of the Range Rover’s engine starting up, then revving hard, the engine screaming. The tyres bit into the driveway as Kyle launched the vehicle away from the cottage, not putting the lights on til the last minute, nearly colliding with the first stand of trees. Even from the kitchen she heard him turn into the lane, the tyres squealing on its surface as he roared away and out of her life.
Bella burst into tears. More relief than anything else. She could never recall having been so scared in her life and considered herself lucky to have escaped in one piece. She began to shake, delayed shock setting in, and reached for the brandy. Ubix appeared from nowhere and Bella grabbed the cat like a drowning person would a lifebelt.
“You don’t know how glad I am to see you!” As she lavished affection on the animal, Bella remembered Ubix must have come in through the open front door and hurried to close it. All of a sudden, security at the cottage had become a major priority and she made a mental note to address it, after the weekend.
“What a reaction, Ubix! And what a weird guy!” She swore that the cat wore a look that said ‘I told you so!’ The whole episode had been so unnerving that she couldn’t settle. There was no question of going back to bed and trying to sleep, and she certainly didn’t want to be in the dark, right now. For company, she put the stereo on low, a late-night classic hits programme, and made sure the portable phone was close by. It even occurred to her to take off for the rest of the night, find a motel, and come back later in the morning. But it had to be around midnight now, she figured, and where would she find a motel, anyway? The tears had dried up and she began to regain her composure, much like coming off a scary fairground ride and finding one’s feet back on the ground. Memories from the earlier part of the evening, after the meal, drifted back to her. Sensual images of intimate acts, a prelude to complete fulfilment. That part of it had been good, at least, she thought, with a sigh. If only it could have continued like that! It was as though she had been with a different person from the enraged man who had stormed out of the cottage. Bella curled up in one corner of the sofa, Ubix tucked in securely beside her. Although she felt a good deal better, all her senses were tuned to react to any indication that her visitor might have chosen to return.
Chapter Twenty-Four
&nbs
p; Ben was at the wheel of Barbara’s car as they headed north towards Suffolk trying to keep his attention on the road as his mind was in turmoil. Distracted by the fact that Barbara had unbuttoned her skirt and sat next to him virtually naked from the waist down, he was also trying to cope with the enormity of what he planned to do. From the moment she had threatened him on Friday, the day after she had first proposed the picnic, there was an inevitability about the whole thing. Her hold over him was complete and, faced with his criminal activities or his infidelity being exposed, he had no alternative but to comply with her wishes. In respect of the relationship between him and Tina, they were now leading more separate lives than ever with Tina talking in serious terms about a divorce. Ben’s eyes darted to his left as Barbara began to rub moisturiser into the lightly-tanned flesh of her taut stomach, her well-manicured nails tantalisingly flicking the elastic of her briefs. Although she was dreamily staring straight ahead, enjoying the sensation of the cool, silky smooth lotion on her flesh, she was well aware of the effect it was having on the driver.
“Best keep your eyes on the road, don’t you think, lover, for both our sakes?” Right at that moment he hated her as he had never hated anybody in his life.
Barbara had been studying the map for a few minutes before giving Ben directions. They were heading for Bury St. Edmunds, somewhere Ben had never been before in his life but, once they were there, Barbara seemed to know her way around quite well.
“Where are we going?” She had given him absolutely no idea of their final destination.
“You’ll see shortly, it won’t be long now. Take a left at this roundabout and it’s along here, on the left.” They were not far out of the centre of the city but heading away from it, in a north-westerly direction. The two-lane road they were on was now lined with tall trees on either side, blocking out the warmth of the sun and diffusing its light so that it glittered and spangled through the trees and branches as they passed. As she saw a familiar sign up ahead, Barbara began to button up her skirt.
“Turn left here,” she instructed him. “Just after the sign.” The sign read ‘Nowton Park’ and Ben did as he was told, flicking on the indicator before turning into a spacious, open parking area that led onto the park. A huge recreational area, Nowton Park covered many thousands of acres of open grassy spaces and woodland and was a popular spot with people from many miles around. It was probable that many hundreds of people were already enjoying its amenities at the time of their arrival but such was the size of the place that rarely would large numbers be seen together. For anyone wanting to find somewhere off the beaten track, to secure absolute privacy, it was not a difficult task. In fact it was possible to be totally hidden from people passing in fairly close proximity and it was the thrill of that prospect that appealed to Barbara. Despite himself, Ben was beginning to get excited knowing what lay ahead as he stepped from the parked car and went around to the boot to take out the picnic basket that Barbara had prepared. He felt her beside him and turned to her as she slipped an arm through his as he lifted out the basket and shut the boot lid.
“Well, you’re in charge. Which way do we go?” She raised herself on tiptoe and gave him a quick kiss.
“Over to the left there,” she said, pointing. “We’ll get well into the park before we find ourselves a nice little spot. Come on!”
With a soft mohair blanket tucked under one arm she took his hand and pulled him in the direction she had indicated. Ben knew her ways well enough by now that she was infecting him with her mood and there was nothing he could do about it. There was only one thing on her mind as she stepped out toward the distant trees and the light breeze carried the musky scent of her too him, spurring Ben on as well. From the fact that she’d set off with no hesitation it was obvious to him that she knew where she was going. Whereas most of the people they came across were either jogging or strolling in a leisurely manner, befitting the atmosphere of a warm summer’s day, Barbara was setting a cracking pace and Ben found himself having difficuly keeping up, especially carrying the basket.
“Is there some sort of competition, going on?” he asked, a little breathlessly.
“Competition?” she replied, leering at him hungrily. “Not that I’m aware of. It’s not much further from here. See where the path splits in two up ahead?” He nodded. “Most people take the right hand fork but we’re going left. Then we’ll leave the path and head into the trees.” There was no-one in sight when they left the track and Barbara led the way until they were about fifty yards into the thick woodland. Having pushed their way through some bush and low scrub they found themselves in a small, secluded grassy area well-hidden from prying eyes. Barbara opened the blanket and, shaking it out, laid it down on the grass. Glad to be free of his burden, Ben put the basket down and went to open the lid. The firm’s Financial Controller looked at him in amazement.
“What are you doing?” Even as she spoke, Barbara was unbuttoning her skirt then threw it aside. “Bollocks to the food, Ben Hollingsworth!” He watched, transfixed, as she stepped out of her underwear “You’ll get stuck into me before you get stuck into that. What d’you think the rush was for? Get your priorities right, lover!”
Revelling in the outdoor setting, with the caress of the sun on her naked body and the sights and smells of the woodland all around she rutted with the ferocity of a wild animal in its natural habitat. Urging Ben on with whispered obscenities or groaning with the sheer ecstasy of the experience she fought and clawed as her body thrashed beneath him. Sucked into the vortex of her passion, Ben responded in kind as all the pent-up anger and frustration of his troubled life found a release and he drove himself into her as though he were wildly plunging a knife into her faithless heart. Again and again and again until he finally collapsed, spent and exhausted, on top of her. Afterwards, they lay side by side on their backs, Barbara’s body was covered with a patina of perspiration whereas Ben was dripping with sweat from his efforts. Silently they gazed at the leafy canopy above while their breathing slowly returned to normal. In the distance, the shouts and cries of children running along the track, or the barking of a dog, could be faintly heard from time to time.
“There’s nothing like making love in the open air, especially when there’s people close by. It just adds to the excitement!” Her voice was low and husky but Ben wasn’t really listening to her. His mind was elsewhere, wondering if he strangled her now, right here, how long would it be before the body was found. The feathery touch of her fingertips at his groin focused Ben’s attention and, unable to prevent it, he felt himself respond.
“Well, now, what are we going to do with this, Ben?” There was a dreamy, lustful quality to her voice as she took hold of him. “I wonder if it goes well with mayonnaise, what d’you think?”
Ben felt as though the afternoon had an air of unreality about it which cast a shadow over his whole life. How many times over the years had he snatched a few hours of excitement like this? Another sexual encounter at the crossroads of life where two strangers met, however briefly, then moved on in their different directions. A pretty face, a young body. The promise of illicit pleasure. Someone else’s wife or girlfriend. Daughter, even. Not surprisingly, his thoughts brought him closer to home and he pictured his own daughters. What did they really think of him? A loving father? Hardly. If only they could see him now. Or a little earlier, God forbid! The thought made him squirm as he lay, dressed now, hands behind his head, staring at the sky while Barbara lay dozing peacefully next to him. It all seemed so shallow now and inconsequential. Where had it all gone wrong? Tina and he had certainly been in love, by anyone’s definition of the word, but love seemed to have foundered somewhere on the rocky coastline of their marriage. It was a good job Barbara couldn’t see him, as he was close to tears. This would never happen again with Barbara after today. Or anyone else. He had made up his mind. The decision was responsible for his mood of maudlin self-pity, he knew. How he regretted his own weakness for not being able to deal with Tina, or
to stop himself chasing other women. And where had it all got him? Into the clutches of a woman who had turned his weakness against him and now stood to ruin his life.
“You look so nice and relaxed there, lover, it must be a perfect time to think about how you’re going to come up with my money for me don’t you think?” Her voice only reinforced his resolve. He had known it would come to this and he was prepared.
“I need time,” he replied, with a calmness he didn’t feel. “You must appreciate it’s not easy for me to get hold of a sum like that.” She moved closer, until their bodies were touching.
“Ok, lover. Well, how about twenty thousand, on account, by the end of the month, hm? That’ll give you two weeks.” Her lips were next to his ear now. “And don’t let me down, Ben, otherwise I’ll make damned sure you’ll live to regret it.”
They left Nowton Park just as it was coming up to 3-o-clock and Barbara guided them back the way they had come. Ben was quiet and introspective until he saw the sign for the motorway.
“Isn’t there some other way we can go back? I’m sick of driving on motorways. Maybe we can find a pub somewhere and have a drink?” She looked at him in amazement.
“Surprised you’ve got the strength to lift a glass! Still, it sounds like a good idea. Let me have a look at the GPS.” Ben hoped he sounded more confident than he felt. It was taking all his will power to make his voice sound normal and not give away the tension that was gnawing away at him.
The Knapthorne Conspiracy Page 35
