The Back Road

39

How Ellie had made it through supper, which was actually a very passable frittata and salad, she didn’t know. Both Leo and Max had noticed how quiet she was, but she had managed to fob them off by saying she was upset about Abbie and worried about Georgia. At least everything seemed to be okay with Leo again. Never one to bear grudges, she had behaved as if nothing had happened that morning.

Ellie’s head was all over the place. Max’s phone call and the money transfer were bad enough, but the text had terrified her.

She had been certain that Sean was the one letting himself into the house. Max had asked him to change the locks at the weekend, and she had thought it was a joke. Now she knew it was essential. Much as she didn’t like Sean having access to a set of keys, he was the lesser of two evils. She couldn’t think of a single good reason to ask Max to find somebody else.

But if she admitted to Max that she was being blackmailed, she would have to tell him everything else too, although if she genuinely believed the children were in danger there was no other option. Maybe she should wait. The blackmailer had said that she only had to do one thing, and her children would be safe. Maybe the sensible thing would be to find out what she was going to be asked to do.

Her mind was spinning out of control. Max and Alannah, the weird texts, Abbie, Sean.

And she felt totally helpless.

For now she had settled on telling Leo and Max that, whether they thought she was paranoid or not, they mustn’t let the twins out of their sight for a second in the house. They were not to be left alone in the kitchen, their bedrooms or even watching a DVD. They must have recognised that she was seriously stressed, because they didn’t argue. They knew of her suspicions that somebody had been in the house on Sunday, but neither Max nor Leo seemed to suspect that today there had been another visitor.

As she lay in bed waiting for Max to come from the bathroom, she couldn’t help thinking about his behaviour. He had been chirpy all evening, but she wasn’t fooled. It was all bravado. Could he really behave like that when he was about to leave her? But there was no getting around the missing money and everything she had overheard. She didn’t care about the money; only what it represented.

The bathroom door opened, and Max walked naked towards the bed. Ellie couldn’t help wondering if this was the last time she would see him like this. Perhaps if they made love, it would change things. She wasn’t going to let him go without a fight, even if her weapon was silence.

He slid under the sheets, and lifted his arm so that she could snuggle down against him. Lying on her side, she moved her right hand so that it was gently stroking the fine dark hairs on his smooth, flat stomach. Max kissed the top of her head. Gradually, Ellie started to increase the range of her stroking, and she made her way downwards very slowly, knowing that this usually drove Max crazy. She kissed him on his chest, and started to give him tiny painless bites as her hand moved lower, and the hairs became coarser and thicker.

Gently, Max covered her hand with his own. Thinking he was probably imploring her to speed up, she gave a low chuckle. But she was wrong. He lifted her hand and moved it back to his chest.

‘Sorry, Ellie. I think you’re backing a bit of a loser there tonight. Nothing personal, sweetheart - it’s just been one of those days. What do you say that we carry on where we left off tomorrow night?’

He brought his other hand up to wrap her in a tight hug, then freed the arm that was behind her and turned over.

‘Love you,’ he muttered. His breathing soon sounded regular, but Ellie knew he wasn’t asleep.

* * *

A cloudy start to the day had deteriorated into a still, heavy night with dark, overcast skies, and there wasn’t a glimmer of moonlight. There were no streetlights down this country lane, but the lack of a light source meant there were no shadows.

Dressed from head to toe in black, with only the eyes showing through slits in the balaclava, the figure waited patiently. It would only take a matter of moments for the eyes to adjust.

The front door provided the easiest access - the fastest route to the target, but the window to the master bedroom was standing open right above the doorway and the slightest sound could alert one of the occupants. The side door was out of the question too, because crossing the wide gravel parking area would create too much noise. So it would have to be the kitchen door. Once inside, that would mean navigating the kitchen and dining room and then the long hallway to reach the bottom of the stairs, but there was no choice.

The figure crept silently along the side of the house, using the grass to muffle any footsteps. Very familiar with the layout of this house after the forays of the last few days, the intruder knew that tonight’s success would depend on Ellie’s predictability.

The three keys were easy to differentiate. How stupid to leave them lying around like that for anybody to take. Inserting the largest into the lock, it turned without a sound. The door opened on silent hinges.

The intruder stood just inside the doorway. There were weird glimmers of light in the room; the small green lamp on the freezer door, the brightly displayed temperature on the fridge and the luminous digital clocks on the control panels of the two matching ovens combined to throw faint shadows around the room.

Although there wasn’t a breath of air, the door was gently closed - a rogue gust of wind could slam it and alert the whole house. Everywhere was silent. Strangely, though, there was no sense that the house was sleeping. It felt awake, aware - as if it were watching the intruder’s every move on high alert.

Keeping to the centre of the room to avoid furniture, the ghostly shape crept towards the atrium. Unless there was a break in the clouds, there would be no light there at all, and all movement would have to be based on memory. The darkness was dense and solid, yet offered no resistance.

Every inch of this house had been explored in the last few days. More often than Ellie knew. It was important to learn one’s way about, find out which stairs creaked, which doors could be opened soundlessly. It offered added pleasure that this was Ellie’s house - the woman everybody believed to be perfect. If only they all knew. And they would do soon.

Sweat was making the balaclava stick to clammy skin, and breathing was becoming difficult. It was so much easier to sneak in when the house was empty - but for this task, Ellie had to be at home.

The hallway was easier. A gentle glow came from the landing - no doubt from a night-light left on for the twins. How very convenient. The goal was in sight as the black figure approached the bottom of the stairs.