The Marriage Betrayal

by Shalini Boland

  Once all their things have been packed in their rucksack, Lainy leads the girls over to Cath. ‘Say thank you to Cath for having you today.’

  ‘Thank you, Cath,’ the girls say quietly.

  ‘You’re very welcome,’ she replies with a warm smile. But it’s quickly replaced by a dark scowl for Lainy.

  ‘Look,’ Lainy says, as we’re preparing to leave. ‘I do appreciate you having the girls today. I really do. But you promised me it would just be you. And with everything that’s been going on with Faye’s family, I thought you’d understand that I’d be worried about them being with anyone else.’

  ‘But you know Kayla!’ Cath insists.

  ‘Yes. I know a lot of people. But it doesn’t mean I trust them with my children.’

  ‘Fine. Let’s not keep in touch then, eh?’

  Lainy shakes her head and turns away with her daughters. Tom and I follow on behind. I give Cath a regretful glance. She shrugs her shoulders and shakes her head, turning away from us.

  * * *

  Back in the car, it takes an uncomfortable fifteen minutes to drive back up to Scar Point. Tom tries to ask Lainy why she got so angry with Cath, but she just apologises before saying she doesn’t want to talk about it.

  There’s a space opposite the house on the other side of the road. Tom pulls into it in one fluid movement. My throat is tight, my chest hollow. Sitting in the back seat next to my sleepy nieces makes me realise how much I miss my boy. My baby. My Dylan. I try to picture his face and grow short of breath when his features won’t come. But then I suddenly see him in my mind. Laughing at some silly joke he heard from one of his friends at school.

  ‘Faye…’

  I look up at a tap on the window.

  ‘You coming in?’ It’s Lainy. She and Tom are already out of the car.

  ‘Sorry,’ I mouth, and unfasten my seatbelt. I climb out, my limbs stiff and heavy. I help the girls with their seatbelts and wait for them to slide out after me. We follow Tom and Lainy across the road and up the steps to the house.

  I almost crash into Lainy’s back as she stops abruptly next to Tom.

  ‘What is it?’ I ask.

  Tom pushes at the front door, which swings open at the touch of his fingertips. The edge of the door next to the lock is splintered.

  ‘All of you, go back to the car,’ Tom says in a low voice. ‘I think we’ve had a break-in.’

  Twenty-Eight

  Then

  Lainy lands heavily on her knees, any pain dulled by the spikes of adrenaline speeding through her system. Her heart beats so loudly it’s drowning out the thump of music from the party on the beach below. With a gasp and a sob, she realises she must fight off her attacker. He still has hold of her ankle.

  ‘Get off me!’ she cries, terrified and half sobbing, but knowing that she has to fight. She inhales deeply and kicks backwards, hard, with her free leg. Feels the sole of her shoe make contact with her attacker’s face.

  ‘Ow! Shit!’

  Her ankle is suddenly free, and she makes the most of it, scrabbling to get upright.

  ‘Lainy, what are you doing? It’s me! Owen!’

  She’s on her feet now, panting hard, preparing to run, but his words suddenly cut through her fear. ‘Owen?’ Lainy pauses, turns her head, still not trusting that he really is who he says he is. ‘Is that you?’

  ‘Yes, it’s me.’ His voice sounds muffled and slow.

  In the silver moonlight she sees that it really is Owen. He’s crouching down, cupping his jaw with both hands. ‘Are you… okay?’

  ‘I think you might have broken my jaw.’

  ‘No! I’m so sorry. Here, let me have a look.’

  He stands and she gently takes his hands away from his face. ‘Careful,’ he says through gritted teeth.

  ‘What were you doing chasing me up the cliff?’ She examines his jaw but can’t see anything amiss.

  ‘I wasn’t chasing you, I was trying to catch up to you. I was going to ask if I could walk you home.’

  ‘I thought you were a murderer, or a rapist! Your jaw looks okay. It doesn’t seem dislocated or anything. Are you able to move it?’

  Owen tentatively tries to open his mouth, then move his jaw from side to side. ‘Okay, maybe I was exaggerating. It feels all right now, just a bit sore. Sorry if I scared you back there with the whole coming-up-behind-you-in-the-dark thing.’

  ‘That’s okay. Sorry I kicked you in the face.’ They grin at one another.

  ‘So… can I walk you home?’ he asks.

  ‘Er, yes. That would be nice. Thanks. My brother was supposed to be walking me back, but he got sidetracked.’

  ‘Yeah, I saw him hanging out with Rose.’

  ‘I think he likes her,’ Lainy says without thinking. Jake would kill her if he knew she’d told Owen that. Oh well, anyone with half a brain could work out that her brother likes Rose. He wasn’t exactly subtle about it.

  ‘I think you’re right,’ Owen says.

  ‘But then again, everyone likes Rose.’

  ‘Do they?’ He pauses. ‘I’m sure not everyone likes her. I bet some people like you too.’

  Lainy’s cheeks grow hot and she’s glad it’s dark so he can’t see her blushing. Could one of those people be Owen? Or is that simply wishful thinking?

  The path isn’t made for two people to walk side by side – not if you want your own personal space, but Owen obviously doesn’t care about that because he walks at Lainy’s side. So close that their arms touch and she can feel the spark of electricity between them, making her go hot and cold at the same time. She’s trying to think of something cool and funny to say, but all she can think of is his body next to hers, and the thumping of her heart.

  Maybe tonight isn’t turning out to be such a disaster after all.

  Lainy realises they’ve already reached the clifftop. She’s not far from home now. But suddenly home is the last place she wants to be.

  ‘Stop here a minute,’ Owen says, putting a hand on her arm.

  ‘What? Why?’ She’s flustered, embarrassed. Everything she says sounds so immature. Standing at the cliff edge, Lainy is struck by how beautiful it is up here with the moon reflecting down on the water below, and all the lights sparkling in the black distance.

  ‘I want to talk to you,’ Owen replies with a teasing tone in his voice.

  ‘Do you?’ she replies, trying to keep her voice as light as his. But her throat feels tight, like it might close up. She wants Owen to tell her that he likes her. She wants him to kiss her. Why else would he have followed her up here?

  Lainy can no longer feel the ground beneath her feet. She’s focused on Owen’s questioning smile. She can’t believe that the boy she likes might actually like her back. This moment might just be the most perfect of her life so far. Owen leans forward an inch and she catches her breath.

  His face flushes and she can tell he’s feeling a little awkward. A little embarrassed. But this only makes her like him more.

  He murmurs something to her… but then the sound of someone yelling makes them both jerk back like they’ve been scalded.

  ‘What the fuck, Pearson!’

  Twenty-Nine

  Now

  ‘What do you mean?’ Lainy asks, putting her arms around the girls and ushering them back down the steps.

  ‘I mean exactly what I said.’ Tom takes a hesitant step into the hallway. ‘The door’s been forced open. Someone has broken into the house.’

  ‘Broken in?’ I echo stupidly. ‘But who would… why would…’ The hairs on the back of my neck stand up and I take a step back down, away from the door, ushering my nieces down with me. ‘Whoever it is might still be in there. I’m calling the police.’ I begin fumbling in my bag for my phone, panic making my fingers clumsy.

  ‘What if it’s something to do with Dylan and Jake going missing?’ Tom asks. ‘I’m going inside. Get back in the car, all of you.’

  ‘Tom, no!’ Lainy cries, reaching a hand out as though to
stop him. But he’s too far away from her. He’s already moving away down the hall, peering into rooms as he goes.

  She pulls out her phone and manages to get through to the police station before I do, so I end my call and listen while she gives out our details. Between us, we usher Poppy and Annabel back across the road and inside the car. I do my best to soothe away their questions with bland answers while Lainy continues talking to the police. She perches on the edge of the back seat, facing outwards onto the pavement, while I wait outside, resting my elbows on the roof of the car, keeping one eye on the house.

  Tom told us to stay put, but what if he needs our help? Should I go back in there? My heart hammers as I straighten up and take a hesitant step away from Lainy. She’s talking intently on the phone but looks up questioningly when she sees me moving away.

  ‘Faye, wait!’

  Just as she calls out to me, Tom peers out of the front door and beckons me over. He’s shaking his head and his expression is grim.

  ‘Hang on, Lainy. I’ll be back in a second.’ I glance up and down the street, jog across the road, and head back up the front steps. Tom ushers me into the hallway.

  ‘There’s no one downstairs,’ Tom says in a low voice, ‘but we’ve definitely had a break-in. The rooms have been trashed.’

  My hand flies to my mouth. ‘Did they take anything? Do you think whoever it was has gone now?’

  In answer to my question, a reverberating thump from upstairs freezes my blood.

  ‘Don’t go up there,’ I hiss. But it’s too late. Tom is taking the stairs two at a time, uncaring that his thudding footsteps must be alerting the intruder to his approach.

  ‘The police are on their way,’ Lainy calls up the steps.

  ‘What are you doing here?’ I cry. ‘What about the girls?’

  ‘They’re in the car. Is Tom okay?’

  A crash sounds above our heads. ‘What are you doing?’ Tom’s voice booms overhead.

  A rough male voice replies, letting out a string of expletives. I’m momentarily relieved my nieces aren’t in here to witness any of this. Or Dylan… but then my thoughts fly back to Tom and how much danger he might be in.

  ‘Tom!’ Lainy cries, heading for the stairs.

  ‘Don’t!’ I grab her by the shoulders and pull her back as a figure appears at the top of the staircase. Lainy and I both squeal and reel backwards. But it’s okay; it’s Tom.

  ‘Are you all right?’ Lainy calls, rushing up to meet him. ‘You’re bleeding! Are you okay?’

  ‘I’m fine, I’m absolutely fine.’ As Tom makes his way down the stairs, I see that blood is beading across his eyelid and down his cheek, making a jagged line.

  ‘You don’t look fine.’ Lainy reaches up to touch his head with her fingertips, but Tom jerks his head away.

  ‘Where are the girls?’ Tom cries.

  ‘They’re in the car with an audiobook. I locked them in for a moment. What happened? Who’s up there?’ Lainy and I gaze nervously up the stairs. ‘Are they going to come after you? We should leave.’

  There’s banging and shouting coming from upstairs. The whole house judders. My body is tensed, ready to flee.

  ‘He’s shut in the bathroom for now,’ Tom croaks. ‘Bastard whacked me on the forehead.’

  Lainy takes his hand and leads him out onto the front steps. ‘Who is it? Who’s up there? Are you sure you’re okay?’

  I follow them outside and glance across to the car, where Poppy and Annabel are sitting, their attention held captive by whatever story they’re listening to, oblivious to the drama going on in the house.

  Tom sits heavily on the third step. He’s white as a ghost, his eyes wide and glassy. ‘It’s just one man. He was in Faye’s room,’ Tom says, looking up at me. ‘He was going through your things.’

  ‘In my room?’ I wonder who it could possibly be. ‘Who is he? Did you recognise him?’

  The shouts from inside are becoming louder and he’s crashing around so violently that the whole house seems to be vibrating.

  Tom’s words slip out of his mouth in a breathless jumble. ‘I didn’t get a look at him, he was wearing a baseball cap and it was pulled low over his face. When I opened the bedroom door, he walloped me on the head with a chair. I staggered back onto the landing and he followed me out there.’

  ‘Shit,’ Lainy gasps.

  ‘It was a blur, but I somehow managed to tackle him and shove him into the bathroom. Then I used the chair to wedge the door closed. But from the sound of it, he could break down the door at any minute. We should get away from the house. Be with the girls.’ He gets to his feet. ‘Did you call the police?’

  ‘They’ll be here any minute,’ Lainy says.

  ‘This is all too much of a coincidence,’ Tom mutters. ‘He could be something to do with Jake and Dylan’s disappearance.’

  ‘Do you think so?’ I ask.

  ‘Don’t you?’

  ‘I don’t know.’

  Tom stands and closes the front door behind us, which means the intruder is now on his own inside the house. But if he breaks out of the bathroom, there’s nothing to stop him barging his way out of the front door. Or maybe he’ll slip out the back…

  ‘Where are the police?’ Lainy says, staring up the road and then down it. ‘They said they’d be here any minute.’

  On the edge of my hearing, I make out the distant wail of sirens getting louder. Seconds later, two marked police cars hurtle down the street and park over someone’s driveway. The sirens stop, but the flashing lights continue, casting an erratic blue haze over the houses. I wonder if it’s usual for two cars to show up at a burglary – perhaps it’s because they think it could be something to do with Jake and Dylan’s disappearance.

  Two male officers make their way over to where we’re now standing on the pavement. The older of the two nods at us. ‘Lainy Ellis?’

  ‘Yes, I made the call,’ Lainy says. ‘He’s still in the house – the burglar or whoever he is.’

  ‘You’re hurt,’ the officer says, staring at the drying blood on Tom’s forehead.

  ‘I’m fine.’

  ‘Did you call for an ambulance?’

  Tom gives a brief shake of the head. ‘No, but I’m a paramedic, and like I said, I’m fine.’

  ‘Still, you should get yourself checked out.’

  Two more police officers join us on the pavement; one of them walks up to the house, crouches down and peers through the letter box. He straightens and returns to join us. ‘There’s yelling and banging coming from inside,’ he says.

  ‘The intruder hit me with a chair,’ Tom explains, ‘but I managed to trap him in the bathroom. He must still be in there, but I don’t know for how much longer – he was doing his best to try to batter the door down.’

  ‘Is he armed, do you know?’ the older officer asks.

  ‘Not that I’m aware of,’ Tom replies. ‘But he’s pretty strong and very pissed off.’

  The officer nods. ‘Is there a back way out of the property?’

  ‘There’s a door to the garden from the kitchen,’ Lainy says. ‘But the garden walls are quite high.’

  The first two officers head inside, the shouting and hammering from within easily heard from the street. I notice a couple of neighbours peering through their windows, and a few have come out of their houses to see what all the commotion is about. I try to avoid eye contact.

  ‘Can you come away from the front door please, sir,’ one of the remaining policemen asks Tom, who’s tried to follow the first officers inside. This policeman’s over six foot, and his uniform is stretched over his burly frame. He looks more like a wrestler than a police officer.

  Tom does as he’s asked and retreats back down the steps onto the dusty pavement.

  ‘And can you all move away from the entrance,’ the officer continues. ‘Be better if you crossed the street, in case this guy decides to do a runner.’

  We cross over the road to the car and then turn to face the house, our eye
s trained on the open front door. My heart pounds as I wait for a glimpse of the person who broke in. Could he be something to do with Jake and Dylan? Surely it’s more likely he’s an opportunist?

  It seems like only moments later that I make out dim shapes in the hallway. A police officer steps outside followed by a scowling dark-haired man wearing handcuffs, yelling abuse. The other officer follows behind.

  Lainy and Tom instinctively move into the road, blocking the car windows with their bodies so the girls can’t see what’s going on outside the house. I join them. We have to flatten ourselves against the windows every time a car goes past.

  The intruder has a wiry frame and a pinched-looking face beneath his baseball cap. My heart gives a jolt as I recognise him. ‘I think that’s…’

  Tom finishes my sentence. ‘…the guy from the caravan park.’

  ‘I know it was dark,’ I say, ‘but he has the same build and the same angry eyes.’

  ‘Who do you mean?’ Lainy asks.

  ‘You know, the guy from last night when Faye and I went to the caravan park. He ran off when he saw us. What’s his name…? Mark Tamworth.’

  ‘Mark?’ Lainy screws up her face and peers across at the guy until he’s put into the police car and we can no longer see him clearly. ‘I know it’s been a few years since I last saw him, but that guy is definitely not Mark Tamworth.’

  ‘You weren’t there last night, Lainy. You didn’t see him outside his caravan. That’s him. That’s Mark.’

  ‘No, it isn’t.’ She frowns. ‘His build is all wrong. His colouring is too dark, his features, everything. There’s no way that’s Mark Tamworth.’

  ‘Okay, so it might not be Mark,’ Tom says, ‘but it’s definitely the guy from last night. So if it’s not Mark, what was that guy doing outside Tamworth’s caravan? We need to let the police know.’

  The older officer crosses the road to where we’re standing. His eyes are fixed on me in an unreadable expression. My chest tightens. ‘Faye Townsend?’ he asks.