She’s done this on purpose, I’m sure of it. But why wouldn’t she want to go to the police? Why show me the photo if she wasn’t going to use it to get Dominic arrested? To lure me in. To make me believe her. She wants to be in this house with me, it’s been her plan all along.
This terrifies me, but there’s too much at stake here so I can’t give in to my fear. Alison’s here for a reason, and I need to know what that is.
It’s only 5.30 a.m. but I get up to have a shower; I need to mentally prepare myself for the coming days and I want to be ready before Alison wakes up. But once I’m dressed and go downstairs, she’s already there, sitting on the sofa. She’s so busy looking at something on her phone that she doesn’t hear me until I speak.
‘Morning, Alison.’
She starts and almost drops her phone. ‘Hi! I didn’t hear you. Sorry, I was just… Dominic’s been texting me since last night. Checking up on me. He’s due back this afternoon… What’s going to happen when he notices I’ve left?’
I cross to the sofa and sit beside her. ‘You’ve got to stop worrying, Alison. Everything will be okay. We’ll have breakfast and then go to the police together, okay? He won’t be able to hurt you then.’
She visibly stiffens, and I find myself wondering if I’ve got this all wrong. But surely she wouldn’t be able to fake her fear, her injuries? Unless there’s another reason why she’s scared and it involves talking to the police.
‘I’ve already had a coffee and I don’t think I can stomach any food right now,’ Alison says. ‘I hope you don’t mind me helping myself, but it was so early I didn’t want to wake you. ’
I can’t force her to eat; she’s a grown woman who, despite how she comes across, is surprisingly wilful. ‘Well, it’s still quite early. We can get something afterwards. I’m sure you’ll feel a bit better then… Once you’ve made your statement.’
She nods and the screen of her phone lights up.
‘Is that Dominic?’
‘Yeah,’ she says, as she scans the message. ‘He says he’ll be back at two o’clock and he’d better have heard from me by then.’
Hearing this makes my skin crawl. Even if there’s a chance Dominic isn’t one of them, there are men out there who treat women this way. Women they claim to love. ‘You’ll get through this,’ I tell her.
‘Thanks, Mia. I really don’t know what I’d do without you. I’m sorry about the way we met, but I’m glad we have.’
But I don’t feel the same way. She’s opened up wounds I thought had finally healed and thrown my life into silent, suffocating turmoil. Instead, I say, ‘I’ll just get my jacket and then we can go.’
It’s less than two minutes before I’m ready but in that time something has changed. Alison is pacing the living room, her arms folded against her chest. I can see she’s having second thoughts.
‘Mia… I’ve been thinking,’ she says, still pacing the room. ‘And I think I should go to the police station on my own.’
Although I half-expected this, I’m disappointed. Everything she’s doing or saying has me questioning her honesty. But she’s still a client – in some twisted way – so I will treat her as one.
‘Are you sure? I’d really like to come with you. For support. You might find you need it once you’re there and faced with sharing such personal things. Don’t you think it would help you for me to be there with you?’
She shakes her head. ‘I know it probably would help – I’ve thought about how difficult it’s going to be – but I think it’s better this way. I just… I’ll be fine.’
There’s nothing I can do but go along with her choice, but she’s wrong if she thinks I can be fooled. There is too much at stake here. ‘Okay, if you’re sure. But call me if you change your mind.’
She looks relieved. Perhaps she expected more insistence from me. ‘Thank you, Mia. Again. Will you be here when I get back?’
‘Of course. I’ll wait in for you. I know you don’t have a key so don’t worry.’ And there’s no way she will get one either. Letting her into my home when I’m here is about all I’m willing to risk.
At the front door she gives me a hug and my body tenses. She must notice it as she quickly steps back.
I close the door behind her then rush to the window. The police station is only a five-minute walk from here and she’s heading in the right direction, through the park. But that’s not enough to convince me she’s actually going.
I’m still wearing my jacket and I check I’ve got my keys then rush outside. I can see her ahead of me, but I keep a far enough distance from her, just in case she turns around. It’s possible she’d still notice me, but I have an excuse ready: I will tell her I need to give her Will’s number just in case she can’t get hold of me for any reason.
But by the time we are almost at the police station, she hasn’t turned around once. She hasn’t even stopped to pull her phone out of her bag or to look in any of the shops we pass.
And when she turns into the police station, I admit, once again, that I really don’t know what to make of her. Truthful or deceitful? My mind flits between both of these and can’t seem to settle on either.
Outside the building, Alison stops and lets a man walk in before her, but then she pushes straight through the doors and disappears inside.
I don’t have a plan for how long I’ll stay there, watching just to make sure she doesn’t come out again within minutes, but after half an hour she still hasn’t emerged.
I call Freya and her excited chatter distracts me from my surveillance, even though I keep my eyes on the doors. ‘Can Megan come and stay here with me, Mum?’
‘I don’t think so, sweetheart. I think Grandma and Grandad just want to enjoy some time with you.’
‘Oh. Okay.’
‘But we can arrange for Megan to come and stay the night with us when you get back. How does that sound?’
She yelps down the phone and my heart swells. Everything I’ve had to go through, and will go through from now on, is worth it to hear and see my daughter happy.
When I’ve finished talking to Freya, I dial Will’s number and deal with his disappointment that I didn’t ask him to come for dinner last night. ‘I’m so sorry but I just don’t think she was up to it. This is a big deal for her – she’s never had the strength to walk away from him before. I just think last night would have been too soon.’
‘I do get that, Mia. I just hope you’re not getting into something risky. But anyway, you already know how I feel about it and, well, I don’t want to put pressure on you.’
I stare across at the police station, at the doors that seem to swallow people up. ‘If it makes you feel better, we’re at the police station right now. Alison’s in there making a statement.’
‘That’s good. That’s great. She’s doing the right thing.’ I can hear the tension leave Will’s voice. ‘So, I know she wasn’t up to it yesterday, but how about I come over for dinner tonight? We can get a takeaway to save you cooking for a change.’ Although his tone is casual I know how much he wants me to say yes. Will can’t help being a protector, but he needs to know I don’t need protecting.
I give in, even though I’m not sure what Alison’s reaction will be. ‘Okay, yes. That sounds like a good idea. I want you to meet her.’ Even though Will doesn’t know the full story, it will be good to get his opinion on Alison. My judgement is so clouded by Zach’s death that I can’t fully trust it, when normally I rely on instinct.
Will tells me he’ll see me at seven then adds that he loves me before saying goodbye.
It’s been almost an hour now since Alison went inside, so I decide to make my way home. For now, at least, it appears that she’s telling the truth, but I know better than to put my complete trust in her.
* * *
I make the introductions but I can already sense that neither Will nor Alison feel comfortable in the other’s presence. They are both polite enough, but Will is on edge, dropping Alison’s hand almost before he’s finished shaking it. I’m not used to seeing him like this.