The rain was soothing, and I didn’t care about the cold. I was freezing to the bones of me anyway, and it had nothing to do with the October weather. I leaned against the slick exterior of the garage and let the rain wash over me. The place smelled like wet cement and mould. That would be the smell I would most associate with Jake as time wore on. Wet cement and mould. That was him, slippery and foul, a man with two sides. How had I fallen for him?
He had manufactured it. All of it. He’d seen the way I’d fallen apart after Aiden and he’d seized the opportunity while he had the chance. With my parents out of the picture he knew I had no one to take care of me, and he knew I would fail to take care of myself. So there he was, swooping in like a knight in shining armour, becoming my protector and my healer. He introduced me to paints again. He helped me find a job. He set me back on my feet, always with an arm behind my back propping me up.
Rob emerged from the garage with his head held low. When he came closer, he pulled me into a hug. “I never should have left. I’m so sorry, Emma. I shouldn’t have left you grieving for Aiden by yourself. I was fucking selfish and I’m sorry.”
Though I hugged him back, I felt like a shell. Now I understood how Aiden could sleepwalk through his life without uttering a single syllable. I got it. My heart shrivelled up inside my rib cage, barely fluttering. I was hollowed out.
He shut the garage door and led us to the truck. Once inside he removed his cap and rubbed the rain water from his skin.
“Aside from the pictures of you as a minor and the girl, there’s nothing. At least, there’s nothing that might prove whether he killed your parents,” he said. “He didn’t keep any souvenirs if he did do it, just those clippings, and I guess you could say it was his obsession with you that made him keep them. I think he did it, though. It makes sense. It fits in with all these lies.”
“Does it?” I spluttered. My throat was so choked that I could hardly get my words out. “Are we jumping to conclusions, here? He’s… he’s my husband and I’m accusing him of murder.”
“Emma, I really think he did it. And I think you believe it too.”
The sick part was that I did believe it. I wanted to be wrong, but I believed it.
“It’s not your fault, Em. He took advantage of you like he did that girl. That’s what he does.”
“I know… I just…” I stared down at my stomach. Was I carrying the child of a murderer? “How could I have fallen in love with him?”
“Did you though? Wasn’t it just the security he offered that you fell in love with? If you were really in love with him, would there have been this spark between us?”
I waved a dismissive hand. “That… that’s because of Aiden coming back. Our emotions were all over the place.” I tried to ignore the hurt look in his eyes. “Why didn’t the police find any foul play when they investigated Mum and Dad’s deaths?”
“Probably because they weren’t expecting any. Your parents didn’t have any enemies. No one would expect them to be murdered.”
“We should call the police,” I said.
He nodded. “And we need to figure out what to do next. It’s lunchtime now. He’ll still be at the school, right?”
“Yes.”
“We’ll go to your place and get some stuff. You can stay with us in the B&B.”
I shook my head. As much as I hated to do this to my best friend, it was now necessary. “I want to go to Josie’s. Your mum is too much of a wildcard, Rob. She makes decisions without consulting me and she’s too stubborn. She thinks she knows what’s best for Aiden all the time and I don’t want to be fighting with her. Besides, I’m due to give birth in days and your parents haven’t got the room.” The thought of my impending arrival weighed so heavy on my shoulders that I let them sag. I rested my head against the window of Rob’s truck. “What am I going to do?”
His warm fingers caressed my hand before squeezing it tight. The way my hand fit right into his injected a little warmth into my bones. It wasn’t much, but it was something.
“I’m not going anywhere this time, Emma. I’m going to help you.”
Yes, but for how long? I thought. “You’ve said that before.”
Rob sighed. “I mean it this time.”
“How do I know you’re not lying to me again? You lied last time, didn’t you? You told me, in the weeks after the flood, that you wouldn’t leave my side, that no matter what we would be together. You lied.”
“It’s not a lie if you believe it to be true. I thought we would be.”
I wiped a tear from my eye. “Sorry. I… I’m just upset. We should go.”