But surely she couldn’t stay here, not if Sam wasn’t going to stop. On top of that was the humiliation at realising that he’d lied about people seeing some special talent for marketing in her. She didn’t have any special talents. She had nothing going for her. She was an idiot who should never have flirted with and kissed her boss. Sam would never have targeted her if she hadn’t done that — it was all her own fault. Sam was right, she was a slut. And if she tried to complain about him, even with the emails as proof of his harassment, he was worth way more to the company than she was. So they’d probably give him a slap on the wrist and keep him on, while she’d be pushed out the door. That was the way it worked, wasn’t it?
Eventually, she crumbled. She typed up a letter of resignation and took it into Tina Sutton, the managing director of KB and Thomas. The plan was to hand it in and walk away, but Tina stopped her.
‘Why are you quitting?’ she asked.
Georgia shook her head, too ashamed to tell Tina the truth. ‘I just don’t think I fit in here anymore.’
Tina stared at her. ‘I had noticed a change in you,’ she said. ‘You used to seem a lot brighter, happier, but these last few weeks you’ve looked really down. I’d wondered if perhaps there was something going on in your personal life.’
Georgia was completely taken aback. She’d assumed Tina would never have even noticed someone like her, at the opposite end of the food chain.
‘But maybe it’s something here that’s been bothering you?’ Tina continued. ‘I’d really like to know.’
Still Georgia couldn’t bring herself to tell her the truth. Even worse, the kindness in Tina’s voice was making her want to cry. How embarrassing! She couldn’t break down in front of the managing director. She clenched her jaw to stop herself from letting out a sob and then said quietly, ‘I don’t . . . I can’t . . .’
Tina continued to eyeball her. When she spoke again, her words were careful, measured. ‘Has someone here been bothering you, Georgia? Maybe a male superior?’
Georgia was stunned. Did Tina somehow know?
‘If you look at my work emails you can see for yourself,’ she blurted. Then she turned and fled.
She was supposed to give two weeks’ notice but there was no way she would show her face at KB again. She couldn’t believe that she was going to have to start over yet again with a new job. The humiliation stung.
And then she humiliated herself at home as well. She was still living with Lena then. They got along well, they were friends, but not super close — Georgia usually kept her at arm’s length.
But that night she got drunk on shot after shot of vodka and told Lena she’d lost her job. They were sitting on the couch together and Lena leaned in to give her a hug. Somehow, Georgia got confused. She’d never kissed a woman before, but was Lena . . . hitting on her? Well, maybe it was exactly what she needed, a different kind of comfort. She went in for the kiss and Lena recoiled, horrified. The embarrassment when Lena leaped up from the couch and exclaimed, ‘You think I’m gay? What? Just because I have lots of piercings and tattoos?’
Georgia tried to explain that she was confused, upset . . . but Lena stormed out and Georgia was left alone.
She invited the darkness back in.
She finished the bottle of vodka alone and cried for hours. She ended up in the bathroom, arms wrapped around the bowl of the toilet as she threw up over and over. When she opened the cabinet in the bathroom, she was looking for painkillers. She saw the jar of pills. Lena’s sleeping tablets.
The idea of falling into a deep, dreamless sleep seemed like heaven. She could escape from the world, from all of her problems. From the complete humiliation. From Sam’s revolting emails that made her skin crawl. From her fear that maybe he would find out her personal email address and keep emailing her here at home.
She picked up the bottle and looked at the label through blurred eyes.
The question was, did she want to wake up again? She thought back to that night that she’d wanted to jump. She thought about how she’d failed.
She tipped her head back and poured the pills into her mouth.
Maybe I’ll wake, maybe I won’t.
Maybe I don’t deserve to wake.
Lena was the one who called the ambulance. Georgia remembered waking up in the hospital and wondering what it had been like for Lena to find her like that. How frightening it must have been.
The truth was, though, she was relieved to be awake. In the in-between stage, after she’d swallowed the tablets but before she’d passed out, the regrets had come marching across her body like an army of ants. What have you done? they hissed as they marched. What have you done?
Marcus arrived from Melbourne, furious with her. He sat by her bed and demanded she tell him right now. ‘Was it a mistake?’ he asked. ‘Did you overdose on those tablets accidentally? Or did you do it on purpose?’
She shrugged. ‘I don’t really know,’ she lied.
She never told him the full story behind her breakdown though. She was still ashamed. She begged him not to tell their other brothers. She couldn’t stand the thought of them all thinking of her differently. Of their wives giving her looks of pity at the next family gathering.
‘Fine,’ he said, ‘but I can’t keep this from Mum and Dad.’
‘At least wait until they get home from their latest trip,’ she said. ‘I don’t want to ruin it for them.’
Marcus wasn’t happy about it, but in the end he had no choice but to agree. It was too hard to reach them anyway. Once again, they were exploring remote parts of the world with limited access to wi-fi or phone signals. He made her promise that in the meantime, she would get professional help. She was transferred across to the mental health ward for assessment and that’s where Kathy came in. Where the other nurses would briskly check her vitals and then walk away, Kathy took the time to talk with Georgia. She leaned against her bed and asked her about her life. About her interests. About past boyfriends and annoying flatmates, and about family and about fears.
Surprisingly, it was Kathy who was the person Georgia told about Sam, instead of the psychologist she was supposed to open up to. Kathy was so angry. ‘You can report him to the police,’ she said. ‘He shouldn’t get away with it.’
But Georgia had already received a voicemail from Tina telling her that Sam had been fired and that she was welcome to come back to work if she wished. She decided that knowing he’d been fired was enough. And she didn’t want to go back to KB. She wanted to find her true passion.
When Georgia was ready to leave the mental health unit, Kathy presented her with two things: the citrine stone, so she could carry happiness with her always, and an empty jar, which she told her to decorate and fill with positive thoughts as often as she could.
By the time she moved back in with her parents, Georgia knew what she wanted to do. She wanted to become a nurse. She wanted to help people in the same way Kathy had helped her. She enrolled in a new degree, picked up a part-time job, and eventually she moved back out of her parents’ place and rented an apartment on her own.
Her parents didn’t travel again for a good few years, not until Georgia slapped a holiday brochure for Istanbul down on the table in front of them and said, ‘Go, please. I promise I won’t do anything stupid while you’re gone.’ The trapped look in their eyes was too much to handle.
*
Now as Georgia stared up at Luke, it all clicked into place. He was Sam Burton. The guy that had terrorised her with email after email. The man who thought she owed him something because if she was willing to make out with one boss, surely she’d be willing to make out with another.
She would never have recognised his face because she never actually met him in person. But he’d been worried that she’d know what he looked like, probably in case she’d ever seen his photo on the company website or something like that. She hadn’t, though; she’d never looked him up because she hadn’t wanted to know what he looked like. She hadn’t wanted to put a face to th
e name.
Why was he out for revenge now? After all this time had passed? Why wait so long to make his move? Not to mention the fact that while he might have been fired, he’d sure as hell ruined her life more than she’d ruined his.
He stood up now, leaning over her, and put his other hand on her shoulder. The shoulder that was already filled with pain. Then he pressed down harder, with the full weight of his body, pushing and pushing. The pain was excruciating. Georgia tried to cry out but all that escaped from her lips was the tiniest squeak. Tears streamed down her cheeks.
‘You want to know what I had in mind for you?’ he said. ‘I was going to take you straight back to that place you’d already been. You remember? You remember when you were going to give it all up? When you were going to throw your stupid, worthless life away? But you failed, didn’t you? Well I was going to take you back there. I was going to give you a second chance. A second chance to take a fistful of tablets and make it all end. I took away your job and I was taking away your friends, and I was making you think your life was in ruins. Your brother’s been ignoring you, hasn’t he? Ignoring all your messages. But you were too dumb to notice that’s because I blocked his number on your phone. I couldn’t have him telling you to go and get professional help again.
‘I wasn’t going to actually do it to you, you know? I’m not a fucking murderer. I’m not a monster! I was going to let you do it yourself. You know, lead a horse to water and all that. The problem, though, is that the jig is up, isn’t it? And I didn’t get what I wanted. None of it.
‘And now I’m angry. Like, really fucking angry. And I want to get something out of this. Something for my time. So, I was thinking, if originally I was going to talk you into ending it, then maybe doing it for you isn’t all that different anyway.’
Georgia’s eyes were wide with terror. Her hands scrabbled at Luke’s arms, trying to get the horrible weight off her chest. She tried once again to scream out but her vocal cords failed her — all that would come out was a hoarse grunt.
‘What do you think? Should we use your phone to send a suicide note to your brother? It won’t be the first time he’s got news like that, will it? Maybe I’ll send one for you, after.’
He kept one hand heavy on her chest, holding her down, and reached into his pocket with the other.
CHAPTER THIRTY-EIGHT
Cadence
Michelle was chatting nonstop and I had the feeling it was because she was a bit in shock about what had happened with Luke, or maybe about what could have happened — had he turned violent rather than seemingly accepting defeat and leaving. She was driving us to the police station, and while I knew it was the right thing to do, I was still worried about Georgia.
‘The thing is,’ I said, interrupting her monologue about the self-defence classes she’d done at her local RSL last year, which meant she could definitely have ‘taken him down’ had he tried anything, ‘if he’s gone straight to Georgia, if there’s a chance he could hurt her . . . then I don’t know if the police would act in time.’
‘I’m all for warning this other girl,’ said Michelle, ‘but you said you don’t know how to reach her. So I don’t see that we have any other option.’
I looked down at the phone in my hands, willing it to ring, willing Georgia to contact me like we’d planned. What was going on? Why had she gone silent since our meeting? Had she somehow fallen back under his spell? Had he found a way to explain it all away and make her believe I was the stalking ex she’d first thought I was?
As I looked at my phone I realised something. I couldn’t find Georgia, but I could track Luke. I went straight into the Find My Friends app and clicked on Luke, then waited for his location to load.
North Shore Private Hospital.
He’d said Georgia was a nurse, hadn’t he? That must be where she worked, so he had gone straight to her. Was she safe? It was a public place, surely he couldn’t do anything to hurt her there. But what if he could? What if he already had? I made a snap decision.
‘Turn left up here,’ I told Michelle.
‘No, that’s the wrong way.’
‘I know, but take the turn. I’ve figured out where Georgia is and I need to make sure she’s okay. Please, trust me on this. I promise we’ll go straight to the police, right after.’
Michelle glanced at me with a look that said, Okay fine, but I’m doing this under protest, then pulled hard on the steering wheel for the sudden turn.
As we approached the main reception desk on the ground floor of the hospital, a middle-aged man with a pencil moustache looked up at us with a friendly smile.
‘Hi, I’m hoping you can help me find someone?’ I said. ‘Her name is Georgia Fitzpatrick.’
He tapped away at a computer. ‘Fitzpatrick . . . Georgia. Here she is. She’s in room 203 . . . although visiting hours are almost over.’
I stared back at him. ‘Visiting hours? But . . . isn’t she a nurse?’
The receptionist frowned. ‘No, she’s a patient.’
Michelle tugged on my arm. ‘Cadence,’ she said, ‘what if he did something to her already? You said you were afraid he would. What if that’s why she’s here as a patient?’
The man’s smile was gone now. He frowned at us. ‘Is everything okay?’ he asked.
‘No,’ I said. ‘I don’t think it is. Long story short, there’s a guy here somewhere, his name is Luke and he was my boyfriend and he was abusive. And I think he was the one who put that patient, Georgia, in the hospital. And maybe he’s here because he’s going to hurt her again.’
‘Wait right here.’ He picked up the phone on his desk and punched in a few numbers. Then he spoke rapidly into the phone. ‘We have a potential code black, room 203 . . .’
I nudged Michelle. Let’s go, I mouthed at her.
She nodded. We slipped away from the desk while the receptionist was distracted on the phone, and then we made a run for the lifts.
CHAPTER THIRTY-NINE
Georgia
Georgia had never wished more to be in a public room surrounded by other patients instead of in the privacy of her own single room. She felt the same pure helplessness she’d experienced in those moments after she’d taken those sleeping tablets all those years ago. The same helplessness she’d felt when Sam had been sending her those vile emails.
He leaned right down so his forearm was across her neck, making it harder and harder for her to breathe, and then with the other hand, he pulled a syringe out of his pocket.
‘I’ve been doing some research. It’s remarkable the information you can find on the internet when you know the right place to look. If I inject this into your drip, you’ll be dead within minutes. And the best part is that it can easily look like human error. As though some dumb nurse like you fucked up.’
He climbed up onto the bed and used his knee to pin her down while he reached for the IV tube. Georgia shook her head wildly, scrabbling against him. He unscrewed one of the lines from the IV bag and started screwing in his own vial. As she watched the new liquid spread through the bag, the door flung open, and from her peripheral vision she could see two shapes striding into the room.
‘Get the fuck off her,’ a voice shouted.
Luke’s knee slipped and Georgia’s hand flew up to grab at the IV. She twisted it and squeezed it in her hand, holding it tight to stop the flow. At the same time, someone launched themselves at Luke, making him tip sideways and then tumble away from the bed. Georgia realised it was Cadence, and saw her arms flying everywhere as she pummelled Luke over and over.
Another woman rushed over to Georgia’s side. ‘Are you okay?’ she asked, ‘Are you hurt? What did he do to you?’ The woman saw the tube in Georgia’s hand. ‘Did he do something to that?’
Georgia nodded. With her other hand, she reached for the line where it connected with the cannula in her vein and tried to disconnect it. The woman understood and helped her remove it, careful to leave the cannula in place. With a breath of relief, Georgia let
go of the tube, allowing it to drop to the floor.
They both turned as they heard a shout from the other side of the bed and Georgia saw Cadence rolling to the side as Luke managed to shove her roughly away, clamber to his feet and run from the room. A moment later, more people were pouring into the room — a security guard followed by two nurses.
‘He just ran out!’ Cadence was getting to her feet and pointing after Luke. ‘Him! You have to go after him!’ The security guard realised and turned back, while the two nurses went straight for Georgia.
*
The police officers were having trouble taking statements with Georgia unable to speak. She could see that Cadence was trying her best to explain the whole situation from beginning to end, but clearly there were gaps she couldn’t fill. The security guard hadn’t been able to catch Luke, but the police were hopeful he wouldn’t have got far.
It was also clear that Cadence was nervous about telling the police she had willingly taken the tablets Luke had been giving her for the last few months. She looked embarrassed, and Georgia desperately wished she could reassure her. It was when Cadence started spelling Luke’s surname that Georgia realised she hadn’t communicated to anyone yet the most important piece of information. She started banging her hand on the side of her mattress to get their attention and everyone looked over at her.
She opened her mouth and tried to croak out the word ‘Sam’.
‘Sorry,’ said one of the police officers, ‘I can’t quite get that.’
She shook her head and reached out for his notepad. He stepped forward and handed it to her.
Sam Burton, she scrawled across the page, in shaky handwriting as everything still hurt.
‘Sam Burton,’ the officer read out. ‘Who’s Sam Burton?’
Cadence stepped forward. ‘I know that name,’ she said. ‘I definitely know it.’ She looked at Georgia. ‘Are you saying that’s Luke’s real name?’
Georgia reached for the notepad again. Think so.
Cadence looked at the police. ‘Oh my God,’ she said. ‘If she’s right, then that makes sense. That’s why he knew about my shares. Sam Burton worked for my mother’s company. My mum fired him after he sent these awful emails to one of the girls who worked there.’
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