Sleeping Love

by Sara Curran-Ross

  ‘Ah, Sabrina I’ve just been telling Maxim what you told me. Both he and the local police haven’t had any success in finding anyone in the grounds, but he’s arranged for Luc and Cressida to be arrested. Alain has also been taken in for questioning.’

  Sabrina glanced at Maxim and then away quickly for fear of meeting his eyes. She folded her arms as she sat at the small kitchen table making Raoul watch her with interest.

  ‘How are you feeling, Sabrina?’ Maxim asked with genuine warmth.

  She tried to smile and felt her mouth tremble with the effort of pretence. Her flesh was crawling, and she was growing cold with fear.

  ‘I’m ok. I just want this all to be over.’

  ‘Can you tell me anything you remember about the man who attacked you in the study? Anything will help.’

  He stubbed out a cigarette and lit another one. There was something about the smell. She recognised that particular odour of cigarette on the breath of her attacker. It was French unlike the English brand Amelia used. She put her hand to her mouth feeling nausea rise. She let out a slow breath to calm her agitation wondering if she was about to have another flashback and answered.

  ‘No, I just remember Luc being there first and someone else in the room. Luc left after threatening me, and the other person was the man who raped me.’

  Her eyes steadily met Maxim’s searching his for a reaction. She ascertained nothing but a coldness that chilled every bone in her body. Raoul put down a mug of hot tea on the table beside her at the same moment. Every time she mentioned what happened, she could feel him physically tense. He rubbed his hand along her shoulders and stood behind her. She rested a hand on the table not knowing what to do, not knowing why she was feeling so bad and so distrustful of Maxim.

  His presence made her feel so uncomfortable, she wished he would just leave and lift the heavy oppressive weight that had settled in the small cosy room. Maxim leaned over and covered her hand with his own.

  ‘We’ll find him, don’t worry.’

  Her response to his touch was instant making her memory trigger as though a bolt of lightning had hit it. She slipped back in time. She was in the study looking up at the man who was brutally pulling the necklace from her throat and pushing her to the ground. He was shouting so hard at her that she belonged to him and not Raoul. He was shaking her, shouting abuse and saying he was going to take her away from Raoul. She was going to be his wife. She would never escape him.

  Sabrina heard herself sob as he pushed her to the ground, banging her head off the wooden floor. The man leaned over and Sabrina found herself looking up at the man who was about to rape her and lock her away from the world. His face was no longer a blur but a clear image.

  Sabrina snatched her hand away as the room came back into view. Raoul was kneeling down running his hands up and down her arms coaxing her back into the present. She stared at Raoul, tears streaming down her face and then forced herself to look round into the eyes of the man who had so viciously abused her that night.

  Maxim looked sympathetic for a brief moment. Then she saw comprehension in his eyes, a fleeting fear of discovery and then resignation. She felt nausea swell like a giant tidal wave and fled from the room pushing Raoul’s hands aside. She leaned over the toilet in the bathroom adjoining the bedroom upstairs and was violently sick.

  Sabrina slowly lifted her head that was now pounding and listened to the voices downstairs in the kitchen. Raoul was talking to Maxim of her flashbacks, and then she could hear his reassuring footsteps tapping up the stone steps. She splashed some cold water on her face and walked out into the bedroom determined to find a way to tell him everything and warn him of the danger they were both in.

  He stood impossibly tall in the doorway making her take a breath. His eyes were black with fierce anger. She stopped in her tracks, too afraid to move, to say anything.

  ‘It was Maxim, wasn’t it?’

  It was all he asked. His voice was low, almost a whisper, and incredibly calm to the point it made her feel frightened. She didn’t appear to answer quick enough and his eyes narrowed, piercing her soul for an answer. She nodded.

  ‘Stay here,’ he commanded.

  She flew across the room as he caught the handle of the door and swung it shut with a slam behind him. She tried the handle, but he was turning the key in the lock, making her a prisoner of safety within the confines of the bedroom. She stopped pulling on the handle and began kicking manically at the door on hearing Raoul’s raised voice confront Maxim in French.

  At first he attempted to deny everything. A fight quickly ensued and Sabrina could hear knives and forks clattering to the tiled floor and a heavy bang. She heard the small kitchen table scrape noisily across the tiled floor and the sound of fists making contact with firm flesh. Raoul was shouting at Maxim demanding his confession. He eventually gave Raoul what he wanted.

  Maxim told Raoul how he’d always taken everything from him. He always got what he wanted even when they were at school. Maxim loved Sabrina and was determined to have her. He had kept her locked away in the basement of his deceased mother’s farmhouse in Brittany. Every moment he could, he spent with her. He’d travelled back and forth to see her from Paris. His brother had kept watch over her when he couldn’t be there. After seven months of indulging himself with her over and over again, she had planned and executed her escape to England. Now he was going to take her back, and there was nothing Raoul could do about it. This time Maxim would be more successful in making it appear to the local police that Raoul had murdered her. He wouldn’t escape the charge as he had done last time. Raoul was finished, and Sabrina was his again.

  The sound of fighting stopped abruptly. Sabrina held her breath. There were two sets of footsteps on the stairs. Maxim must be forcing Raoul to lead him to her. He must have a gun.

  ‘You go near her, Maxim and I will kill you.’

  She knew Raoul meant every word by the dangerous tone lining his calm voice. The key turned in the lock, and Sabrina let go of the handle, taking a step back, knowing fine well what was about to happen. She picked up the heavy bronze statue of a man and woman romantically entwined that lay on a chest of drawers beside her and stood at the side of the door as it creaked open. Raoul was shouting a warning at her, and Maxim was calling her name.

  Maxim walked into the room dragging Raoul by the front of his jumper, his arm outstretched with his firearm in his hand. Before he fully entered the room Sabrina brought the statue down hard on his arm. The gun dropped to the floor. Maxim cried out in pain and dropped to the floor reaching out to retrieve it. Sabrina kicked the gun away as Raoul lunged forward and landed on top of him. The man fought back hard, but Raoul was the stronger opponent. When Maxim lay slumped against the bed unconscious, Raoul stood back to admire his handiwork.

  Sabrina sank to her knees suddenly feeling exhausted. Raoul was pulling out one of his ties to restrain Maxim’s hands and another for his feet. He quickly pulled Sabrina up and led her out of the room.

  ‘Let’s get out of here. I don’t want you in the same room with him. I’ll call the police and get them to pick him up.’

  He locked the door and ran down the stairs to grab some keys out of the kitchen that was now in complete disarray and led Sabrina outside. The air was bitterly cold, but the sun was shining and the sky was clear. His hand was firmly enclosed around her small one, and there was no escape. This time she didn’t want to argue. She was more than grateful that he was taking charge. He unlocked the Range Rover parked outside the front of the house and told her to get in.

  ‘Raoul, you’re injured.’

  Sabrina brought her fingertips up to the side of his forehead to examine the cut that was lightly bleeding.

  ‘It’s nothing. We need to get into the village and report this as soon as possible. I can’t get any reception on my mobile out here. We’ll have to see how far we can get in the car in the snow. We might have to get out and walk.’

  He expertly drove the vehicle over
the slippery snow covered terrain using the chains on the wheels until they reached the gate that Sabrina had jumped on horseback. Raoul jumped out and undid the lock.

  Sabrina heard her door being opened. Luc Valoire’s arm reached into the passenger side and took hold of the front of Sabrina’s long riding coat and pulled her out of the vehicle. She hit the ground, rolling uncomfortably in the fresh wet snow. When she pulled herself up, Alain was pressing a gun to Raoul’s temple, making him walk over to where Luc and Cressida stood.

  ‘You’re all involved in this aren’t you?’ Sabrina heard herself shout.

  Luc pulled her up until her feet stood on tip toes. Raoul was struggling to gain his freedom, shouting in French at Luc. But Alain jammed the gun hard against Raoul’s head, halting any further movement.

  ‘Aren’t you the clever one, Sabrina? But then you always were so clever, except on that night of course,’ Luc grinned. ‘I hear you have your memory back, so unfortunately, we will have to do something about that. If he hadn’t found you, everything would be all right. And we all did such a good job of keeping him from finding you.’

  Cressida stood beside her as Raoul began to struggle like mad again.

  ‘Why did you have to come back, you stupid bitch? You’ve ruined everything. You know I would have been better suited to Raoul than you.’

  She looked at Sabrina with contempt.

  ‘I’ve ruined nothing. Raoul never loved you, and you can’t stand it. You’ve tried to keep us apart for seven years, but he still doesn’t want you. I can’t believe you all did that to us. You cruel, hateful people. You will never have Raoul, Cressida, if it’s the last thing I do.’

  Cressida reached out to hit Sabrina, but Luc impatiently pushed her away.

  ‘Give it a rest Cressida. You are just kidding yourself that Raoul loves you. He’s rejected every overture you made to him. He doesn’t want you, Cressida. He never has despite all of your scheming to make him have an affair with you. Give it up. You are as deluded as Maxim. Now if you just thought about the money like I have, you wouldn’t have been so damn disappointed.’

  Sabrina glanced at Raoul. He was scowling at Luc with murder in his eyes.

  ‘Let her go Luc. You’ve done enough to us both. I already know you’ve been stealing from the company and defrauding it. I take it the rest of you along with Maxim were involved?’

  ‘You always were astute, Raoul.’

  ‘I knew you were involved in Sabrina’s disappearance. I never thought all of you would have been involved. Is this some kind of conspiracy?’

  Luc laughed.

  ‘Alain and Cressida knew about the fraud from the start. She was in on it with me. She wanted you as a bonus. I saw the way Maxim looked at Sabrina. I followed him a couple of times and found out he was the stalker. I told him I could help him take Sabrina for himself in return for him getting you out of the way, Raoul. With you convicted of murder, the Board of Valoire Industries would have voted me in as chair and the company would be mine. Unfortunately, you managed to keep it all together, just like you always do,’ he sneered. ‘The only way I am going to get the company now is to kill you both. Now get in the car and keep quiet.’

  ‘Luc, what are you going to do?’ Sabrina could hear panic quivering in her voice and gritted her teeth as she got into the back of Luc’s Jeep.

  Alain slammed the car door shut, making her jump in response. Luc was getting into the front with Raoul, and Cressida got in the back with Sabrina, aiming a revolver at them both.

  ‘Let’s just say you are both going for a cold dip. Well, that’s after I have shot you both first. A bullet in the head, execution style should make it quick for you. I’m not a heartless man,’ he smiled.

  ‘You’re actually going to kill us?’

  ‘Have you any better suggestions, Sabrina? You know too much.’

  ‘You would kill your own family?’

  ‘Family? Yes. I have debts, and if I don’t pay them, I am going to be killed. It’s all about survival. It’s you two or me. I would rather it was not me.’

  The car drove off through the gate, out of the Chateau’s estate. They followed a small track road and then veered off sharply to drive down another track into a wood.

  Luc stopped it next to a large stagnant pond in a small clearing in the middle of the wood. Luc opened the car door on Raoul’s side. The moment he did, Raoul seized his chance and banged the door into Luc’s body. Raoul lunged at him knocking Luc and the gun to the ground. Sabrina seized her chance when Cressida began to panic. She reached for the gun and the two women began to struggle.

  Sabrina fought Cressida with all of her strength. Leaning back against the door she gave a sharp kick to Cressida’s stomach propelling her backwards with a grunt. The gun clattered to the floor. Sabrina and Cressida reached for it the same time, but Cressida was to get there first.

  With shaking hands she aimed it at Sabrina and took off the safety. Sabrina held her breath, frantically searching for a way to save her own life. The sound of police sirens approaching didn’t deter Cressida from wanting to kill Sabrina.

  ‘You’ve ruined everything,’ she shouted. The malice in her voice was acute. ‘But at least I can stop you having Raoul.’

  Sabrina took a breath and waited for the shot to be fired, but Cressida’s car door was abruptly opened causing her to fall back against Raoul. Cressida struggled with him to hold on to the revolver. Sabrina leaned over to help, but the gun went off.

  It was hard to see who had been shot. Sabrina’s heart began to thud as Raoul backed away from Cressida in shock, blood on his hand. He stared at Sabrina and then at his shoulder soaked in blood. Cressida was lying back along the seat trying to turn over with the gun.

  Rage boiled over in Sabrina. She lunged for the revolver once more and landed Cressida’s face a hard punch. Another swift hit had Cressida groaning and dropping the gun. Fired by anger and distress for Raoul, Sabrina pushed Cressida out of the car into the snow.

  Raoul was now on his knees dripping blood into the snow. The police were running forward and dragging Cressida up when Sabrina got out of the car. She dropped into the snow next to Raoul, screaming for help.

  ‘I’m all right, Sabrina. It’s over, it’s over,’ Raoul kept saying to her in a drowsy voice, as she frantically tried to pull him into her arms and look at his wound. He slumped unconscious next to her.

  Amelia and Julian ran out of the car as the police swarmed around them.

  Sabrina was crying holding Raoul, calling for help. Julian ran towards her.

  ‘Julian, you have to help him,’ she sobbed.

  Julian helped her lay Raoul on the snow so he could take a better look at Raoul’s wound.

  ‘Relax, Sabrina’ he said placing his hand on her arm. ‘It looks a lot worse than it is. The paramedics are on their way.’

  Sabrina collapsed with relief in Amelia’s arms as an officer helped Julian get Raoul into one of the cars to keep warm.

  ‘We knew something was wrong. Maxim has been acting so strangely. He refused to call the police for assistance. He said he could handle the stalker on his own,’ Amelia began. ‘Julian and I weren’t convinced and we were so worried something bad had happened when you didn’t come back this morning, so we got in touch with the police watching the Chateau from a distance on Raoul’s request,’ Amelia told Sabrina.

  ‘They said the police in Paris have been watching Maxim for illegal activities for a while. He’s been taking bribes and a work colleague had accused him of sexual harassment. They were eager to catch up with him. He was suspended two weeks ago,’ Amelia narrated with excitement.

  ‘It’s all over, Sabrina,’ Julian finished, watching the Paramedics drive up. ‘Come on, travel with Raoul in the ambulance.’

  Sabrina followed Raoul as he was carried into the ambulance on a gurney. She sat across from him holding his hand.

  ‘The bullet nicked my skin, Sabrina. It didn’t go in deep. Don’t worry about me,’ he smiled re
assuringly. ‘You certainly pack a punch. You floored Cressida. I’m impressed. Remind me not to get on the wrong side of you again.’

  ‘Well, she shouldn’t have hurt my husband. There was no way I was going to let her get away with that.’

  ‘You called me husband,’ he said drowsily, feeling the effect of the morphine injection the paramedic had just given him. ‘Now we can carry on where we left off. That’s if you still want to?’

  Sabrina smiled and squeezed his hand. She wiped at her tears.