Annabel pushed her hair off her face with both hands. ‘Where did you end up?’
‘Saddleworth, actually. A country pub with an amazing view. The sun was just setting. I stood on the top of the world watching it.’
‘Nice. You went alone?’
‘Yeah.’
‘We’d have gone with you, wouldn’t we?’ she asked Joel, who nodded happily and touched her face.
‘Course we would.’ He leant down to kiss her forehead.
Naomi wanted to get away. Everything felt too much. She couldn’t concentrate on conversation. Even the sound of a kiss sparked the beginnings of an ache somewhere deep inside her.
‘Anyway,’ she said, ‘I’m going to hit the sack.’
‘At this time?’
‘I’m knackered.’ She stood up.
Annabel sat up and scrutinised her. ‘Hey are you OK? You don’t seem yourself.’
‘I’ll be fine. Just need some sleep.’
‘Sure?’
‘Yeah.’
‘Lock up, would you. Mum’s gone up for a shower. She might not come back down.’
‘Yeah, OK.’
Naomi left the room and did a check of the downstairs. Her dad was in the study at his laptop, barely aware of her. He had a faraway look in his eyes as he mumbled his goodnights. She didn’t have the energy to connect with him so she backed out and closed the door.
Her legs felt heavy as she climbed the stairs. The shower was running in her mum’s room. She paused outside her bedroom door before taking hold of the handle and going inside. The light switch was to the right. She flicked it on but nothing happened. Before she’d had time to register that the light bulb had gone, someone grabbed hold of her and clamped her mouth and shut the bedroom door.
Complete darkness.
She needed to yell, but could only managed muffled sound. Whoever it was, was wearing gloves. The scent of leather was right under her nose. Iron fingers were digging viciously into her cheek. The more she tried to pull away, the more violent the grip on her face. He was behind her, his other arm wrapped round her upper body, disabling her arms. He was pushing her from behind. She shuffled forward while the room was leaking back in sepia shades. As soon as her foot stepped onto her sheepskin rug, she felt a blow to the back of her legs and her knees gave way and she crumpled forward onto the rug and he went with her, clasping her face and stopping her from shouting.
He was crushing her now. She was face down, her front against the rug and he was pinning her down, his full weight on top of her. She fought to break free, but he held on tight. She was struggling to breathe now. She panted rapidly through her nose which was squashed against wool, and made noises in the back of her throat, to tell him that she needed air. His weight shifted further up her back. He was pressing on her head now – pushing it into the rug where there was no air at all. She thought her neck might snap; she couldn’t twist her head to the side.
‘You want to breathe?’ he whispered. Nathan. Who else? She couldn’t respond. Couldn’t nod her head or speak a word. Writhing against him was costing her strength and giving her more reason to breathe, but her instinct was to fight. ‘Keep still and be quiet and I’ll let you live, how’s that?’
There was no air. She was barely taking in his words. The sound of running water gushed on and on and seemed closer than his voice and was a reminder that no one was in earshot. Even his legs were clamping hers down. She couldn’t squirm free. Fighting him was costing too much strength. Finally, she went limp.
There was a release of the pressure and he’d rolled off and she was free. She instinctively turned onto her back and gasped for air and he crashed on top of her again and shoved something sharp against her neck. She tensed and panted rapidly in his face. She was staring at a hideous mask and a hood. The stuff of nightmares.
He whispered, ‘Don’t move a muscle or make a sound, or I’ll ram this into your jugular and you’ll bleed to death in minutes.’
She complied and held still, her body and her tongue. They looked at each other in the darkness, her pulse throbbing painfully against the blade, her mind searching for a way out.
‘What do you want, Nathan?’ She sounded calmer than she felt.
‘You and your money, in that order.’
‘Take my money and leave me alone.’ A tear seeped from her eye and ran down the side of her face.
‘With that letter floating around? I don’t think –’
‘I was bluffing, like Kerry said.’
‘You’re lying. You’re not even seeing Dan because you know he’s in Solomon’s pocket.’
‘But I slept with him last Christmas. And yes, I regret it. You’re sick and twisted, the lot of you. Take the money and get out of my life for good.’
The blade was dangerously spiking her neck, but he hesitated now. ‘Where’s the money?’
‘In this room. Hidden. You meet me at the solicitor’s and I might get you another fifty.’
‘You’re in no position to be making deals with me.’
‘Aren’t I? I’ve only got to scream. There are four people in this house right now.’
‘And none of them will reach you before I’ve punctured your vein with this knife. And then you’ll never scream again.’
‘You’re not here to kill me, Nathan. If you hurt me, you get slammed in prison and your life is over. I have all the money. One point one million, and you want some and can’t figure out how to get it from me. This daren’t look like rape. You need it to look like I consented. So you won’t cut me. I know how you think. Take the money if you think you can find it.’
‘Give it to me,’ he said,
‘You touch me, and I swear you’ll end up in prison.’
‘Give me the money and I’ll go.’ He dragged Naomi to her feet and locked an arm around her neck and she shuffled to the side of the bed with the blade at her throat and Nathan’s body pressed hard against her. ‘Where is it?’
‘It’s under the bed.’
‘Get it,’ he ordered. She dipped a hand beneath the bed; he shadowed her movements. She pulled something out and held it up.
‘There. Now go.’
‘Call me Mr Cautious, but I want to see what’s inside and I don’t trust you, and it’s too dark to see,’ he said.
‘There’s a torch in my desk near the door.’
‘Show me the torch.’
As her heart beat frantically, the blade stabbed against her neck and Nathan wasn’t taking care. She felt nauseous and short of breath.
‘OK, OK.’
‘Slowly,’ he said, as if there was any other way to move with a knife poised to slice her flesh.
They made it to the desk, with Nathan squeezed against her. The water kept gushing from her parents’ room. Another tear ran down her face. With unsteady hands, she located the torch and held it up and he snatched the bag and dumped it on the desk and instructed her to open it and spray light on the contents.
As quickly as possible, she obeyed.
He stared at the money without touching it. He must have been salivating beneath the mask.
‘Fifty grand?’
‘Yes.’
He put a hand on the bag and held it there. Then he changed his mind. Why wasn’t he leaving? Another tear escaped, and then another. He had other ideas. She sensed them with absolute certainty. He wanted her and her money, only the order had changed. He took a look over his shoulder towards the bed and started to shove her towards it. She grabbed the bag and held it to her.
‘Nathan, no. Take the money and go.’ She tried to offer him the bag, but he wouldn’t take it.
‘I’m going to finish the job.’
Her bare feet stumbled over the softness of sheepskin. He wrestled her to the floor. Now or never. Throwing caution aside she unleashed her strength and slammed the torch into the side of his head. The shock knocked him off balance just long enough to land another blow and kick free. She scrambled to her feet still clutching the bag. Nathan lunged a
nd caught hold of her ankle and Naomi crashed to the floor and caught her head on the desk. The bag was beneath her, pinned to the floor.
Nathan pounced on top of her from behind. She cradled her head with one hand. The room was spinning though logic told her she was still. Nathan was speaking. She couldn’t decipher words. A door opened downstairs. Nathan was tugging at her clothes now and she wasn’t resisting.
‘Naomi?’ An urgent voice, too far away. Joel’s, she thought.
Then two commanding words in her ear. ‘Answer him.’
She couldn’t. Joel was in a distant place, far away from her spinning world. She felt quite sick, and wondered how she’d vomit. The weight on her body was too much. She couldn’t lift herself; couldn’t move. ‘Answer him. Now.’
Was someone running up the stairs?
In her ear, she heard, urgently, ‘Give me the money.’ There was a thudding noise drawing nearer. She felt lighter suddenly, but so did her head.
‘Naomi?’ Joel’s voice, much closer now.
She wanted to warn him about Nathan, but words were impossible. Nathan’s name formed inside her head. She couldn’t churn it out of her mouth. Her head was on fire. A swollen ball was growing beneath her hand as the room continued to turn like a fairground ride and carry her away.
Someone thundered into the room, calling her name. Light splashed in from the landing and flashes sparked in front of her eyes. Joel dropped to his knees beside her. Her eyelids folded, but light still fired in colourful explosions. Joel touched her hair and rocked her shoulders and was leaning close, trying to reach her with the same words.
‘Stay with me. Stay with me. Stay with me.’ Over and again, along with her name. She was glad she wasn’t alone, but Joel was in danger and she couldn’t help him now. She couldn’t stay with him either. His one request and she’d have to let him down. Darkness was wrapping her in a snug blanket and luring her towards delicious sleep. And she gladly accepted.
32
It was weekend and late at night, which was always going to mean lots of patient traffic through the A&E department. The waiting room was full of kids pumped with too much alcohol, who’d had either a fight or an accident, or both. Some were noisy and aggressive, which spread misery to the rest.
Naomi was listening from a nearby cubicle, segregated by curtains. She was high priority, apparently. Having been carted into hospital by ambulance, she’d got some immediate attention, which had involved scans and tests and a million questions and there’d been long periods of waiting too.
Annabel and Joel had left once it had been confirmed that it wasn’t an emergency, which left Naomi with her mum and dad and an assortment of hassled medical staff trying to divide themselves around a waiting room full of people.
‘I don’t see why we can’t go home,’ Naomi said. Camilla was peeping through the curtains hoping to flag a doctor down. ‘I just want to get to bed. I’m so tired.’
‘Of course you are.’ Henry put an arm around her shoulder. ‘Concussion can be serious, Naomi. We have to make sure you’ll be OK. It could have been much worse.’
‘Yeah I know.’
‘I still don’t understand how you slipped and banged your head. Joel said there was no light bulb in the main light. What were you thinking, groping around in the dark?’
‘I don’t know, Dad.’
Camilla looked over her shoulder. ‘You could have killed yourself.’
‘I know, Mum. Look, can we just drop it? I’m too tired to think. I have vomit all over my shoulder and my head is throbbing. I just want to have a shower and get to bed.’
Henry squeezed her then stood up. ‘I know, flower. You just scared us, that’s all. Better to be safe than sorry.’
A few minutes later, a doctor pulled the curtain back and strode forward. He was wearing a white coat and a mop of grey hair.
‘Right, Naomi, we’ve managed to get you a bed,’ he said, pulling her eyelids down and shining a slim torch in her eyes.
‘I don’t want to stay overnight. I want to go home.’
The doctor slid the torch in his top pocket. ‘It’s only a precaution. I’m sure everything’s going to be fine, but there’s swelling on your head and we’d like to keep an eye on you over the next twelve hours or so. OK?’
‘I’d rather –’
‘Don’t be ridiculous, Naomi,’ Camilla stood up. ‘You want to get to bed, don’t you? You’re exhausted. The doctor’s been good enough to find you a bed and we’d prefer the peace of knowing that you’re being monitored, wouldn’t we Henry?’
‘Absolutely.’
‘But I haven’t even brought anything.’ She knew it was a weak protest, pointless really.
The doctor was unsmiling. Maybe he was tired too. ‘We can find you a hospital gown and toothbrush. I estimate you’ll be free to leave tomorrow lunch time. It’s a very short stay, purely precautionary.’
Camilla nodded. There was no backing out.
Naomi was resigned. ‘Fine.’
Ten minutes later, Camilla and Henry left and Naomi was wheeled into a lift and taken onto a quiet ward and steered into a room where three sets of curtains had been drawn around the beds. She was helped onto a firm bed and then into it. And that was the last thing she remembered.
<><><>
Her eyelids felt heavy, like she was drugged and was fighting to resurface. She pushed towards the light of consciousness because she felt that someone was pulling her from the other end. She was right. Her eyelids were still reluctant to part, but she was aware of a hand on her shoulder and warm air on her neck.
‘Naomi?’ The hand swept the hair from her ear and spoke directly into it now. ‘Naomi?’
She tested her limbs by stretching her legs. The slightest movement told her that her head was sore. The voice was over her shoulder. She rolled onto her back.
‘How are you feeling?’
‘Dan?’ Her voice was low and thick and croaky. ‘What are you doing here?’
‘News travels fast. A guy called Jamie Longden took your blood pressure last night. He’s a mate of mine. He called to let me know you were here.’
‘What time is it?’ she said, suddenly conscious about how awful she must look. She finger-combed her hair and felt the padded dressing on the side of her head.
‘Eight-fifteen.’ He smiled. ‘How are you feeling?’
‘Rough. I know I look rough too.’
‘You always look amazing to me.’ Naomi pulled the covers to her neck. ‘Seriously, are you hurting anywhere?’
‘My head hurts. They’ve been waking me every couple of hours to check on me, but I wasn’t really with it.’
‘Do you feel dizzy or sick?’
‘Not anymore.’
‘Any memory loss?’
Naomi wiped her eyes and cleared her throat. ‘No, I remember everything.’
‘What happened?’
‘I’ve already explained. I slipped in my bedroom and banged my head on the side of my desk.’
‘Mm,’ Dan said, eyeing her carefully. ‘So what’s the cut on your neck?’
She shrugged and looked at her hands. ‘I must have cut my neck. Look, what are you doing here, Dan, I mean really?’
Dan sighed and tipped his head to one side. ‘I had to come.’
‘Why?’
‘Because I couldn’t stay away.’
‘Well, I’m furious with you actually. You haven’t answered any of my calls. You’ve been out of reach. You haven’t been there for me when I needed you.’ Her eyes filled. She blinked the tears away and waited until she could use her voice. ‘So I don’t want you here now. I can’t trust you at all. You’re just like all the others.’
Dan dropped into a chair at the side of the bed. ‘That’s not true.’
‘No, you’re worse, because you said you’d never let me down and I believed you.’
Dan sat in silence, considering his response, while someone stirred in the next bed. Dan’s voice was low. ‘If I said I was inc
redibly sorry, would it make any difference?’
Something melted somewhere inside, but her mouth produced, ‘No.’
‘If I told you that I love you more than you could ever know and that everything I’ve done has hurt me more than it’s hurt you and has been for your benefit, would you believe me?’
A voice in her head yelled yes, but her face remained impassive and she opened her mouth to speak. ‘I’ve told you, I don’t trust you.’
He leant forward, his elbows on his knees. ‘If I told you that I’d be happy to spend the rest of my life with you and to commit to you and no one else, how would you respond?’
‘I’d say you were mad and that you don’t know me very well, and I’d remind you that I’m your sister-in-law and that your brother promised me the same thing.’ A few quiet moments passed. ‘This is hurting me, Dan, it’s just opening up old wounds. You made your position clear the last time I saw you, and you left me devastated.’
Dan sat forward. ‘I obviously didn’t make my position clear, because you don’t know that I left because I didn’t think I deserved you and I didn’t want you to be with someone you had any doubts about.’
‘Well I do have doubts, Dan. Big ones. And I really can’t do this anymore. Every time I try to move on, I get knocked back again.’
Dan covered his face with both hands and nodded his head as if he was in a private discussion with himself. ‘You’re right,’ he said. ‘I have no right to ask anything from you.’ His voice started to tremble.
‘Too right you don’t.’ A long pause. The person in the next bed was shuffling around. ‘What I want to know is why.’
‘Why?’
‘Why did you get involved with Solomon? I know you were working for him because he told me himself. Why weren’t you honest with me? All I asked was that you were straight with me, but you lied and then you left me, just like Nathan did. And you really hurt me.’
Dan’s tone went up a notch. ‘When did you see Solomon?’
‘Does it matter?’
‘Yes, it matters. I’ve told you to stay away from him. He’s poisonous and he’s dangerous.’
Naomi sat up too quickly and the room vanished for a few seconds.
The Darkness Visible Page 32