Secrets and Lies: A Collection of Heart-stopping Psychological Thrillers

by M K Farrar

  Haiden pursed his lips. “I don’t know. It seems like a long way.”

  “Not too long.” She suddenly wanted other people around. The silence between them had grown tense, and she was starting to regret coming out here.

  “I’m just nipping to the loo.” She got to her feet and leaned in to kiss him, hoping to lighten the mood between them, but he turned his face, so she just got his cheek.

  Holding back tears, she went into the cottage and found the bathroom. She shut the door and locked it, and fished into her pocket for her phone. She longed to hear her son’s voice.

  Kristen pulled up the number for the house and tried that first, but there was no answer. Next, she tried Violet’s phone, but again it just rang to answerphone. She considered leaving a message, but then decided not to. What could she say? That she missed them and wished she hadn’t come? She didn’t want to worry either her sister or her son.

  What were they doing that they couldn’t get to either phone? Her stomach knotted with worry. She hoped they were both safe. Maybe Stephen had taken a turn for the worse, and they’d had to rush to hospital. But surely Violet would have tried to call if something like that had happened.

  Now she just had something else to worry about, and she couldn’t even mention her concerns to Haiden. He’d complain about both her worrying, and that she’d called home in the first place when she was supposed to be concentrating on ‘us.’ Though she was no longer sure she wanted there to be an ‘us.’ She was seeing a side to him that he’d kept well-hidden over the past few weeks.

  Kristen got back to the table to discover Haiden had refilled her champagne glass.

  “Cheers,” he said, lifting his glass up in a toast.

  She gave him a tight smile and picked hers up as well. They clinked glasses, but she didn’t drink from hers. She already regretted having drunk as much as she had. It meant she wouldn’t be able to just hop in the car and drive home if there was an emergency.

  Haiden noticed and tilted his head towards her. “You know it’s bad luck not to drink when someone toasts you.”

  “Oh, sorry.” She took a sip. “I was miles away.”

  “Thinking about us, I hope,” he teased, and she got a little flash of that old, relaxed, friendly Haiden.

  “Of course.”

  He pulled her in and kissed her, and the kiss grew heated.

  “Let’s go to the bedroom,” he murmured against her mouth.

  Kristen pushed her negative thoughts away. She’d been overthinking things. They were here to enjoy each other.

  She allowed him to tug her by the hand towards the bedroom. It wasn’t as though she could say no, was it? Besides, the alcohol had loosened her reserves, and she wanted to feel good again. He was young and gorgeous, and really seemed to care about her. He wanted a future, and she was the one being difficult.

  Chapter Twenty-nine

  The late afternoon sun warmed strips across her naked body.

  They’d had sex and then dozed for a while. It was starting to get late, the heat of the sun already diminishing.

  “If we’re going to go down to the pub, we should probably leave soon,” she suggested, as she lay with her head rested on his bare chest. “It’ll be dark coming back, otherwise.”

  He nuzzled his nose against the top of her head. “Is it bad that I want you all to myself?”

  She looked up at him. “You mean you don’t want to go for a walk?”

  “Why do we need to, when we have everything we need right here?”

  She still hadn’t heard anything from Violet, and she wanted to slip away and try to call home again. She told herself it was good that she hadn’t heard anything. It meant they were all happy and safe, didn’t it? They didn’t need her.

  Or they were lying dead in a gutter?

  Why did her mind always jump to the worst possibility?

  “We don’t need to go down to the pub,” she suggested. “We could just take a walk down the lane. I spotted some wild ponies on the way up here. I’d love to go and see them.”

  He wriggled down in the bed, so he was facing her. “Why am I getting the feeling I’m not enough for you?” His tone was teasing, but there was something in his blue eyes—a hardness—that concerned her.

  “Of course, you are.” She placed her fingertips lightly to his cheek and leaned in to kiss him. His blond stubble grazed her skin. “But it seems a shame to let all this countryside go to waste, and I could do with stretching my legs before it gets dark.”

  “I guess we can have a romantic stroll.”

  She smiled with relief. “Great.”

  He climbed out of bed. As he unfolded his long legs and stretched out his lean back, she couldn’t help but admire him. She needed to shake off this sense of foreboding. It was only being apart from Ollie that was causing this anxiety inside her. She was allowed for things to go well for once in her life. It wasn’t healthy to keep looking into things so deeply. If you looked hard at anyone’s relationship, she was sure you could pick things apart.

  She washed up and dressed in something comfortable. Quickly, she shut the bathroom door and typed a quick text message to Violet asking her to call or message back that they were okay. It was stupid that she felt like she was doing something wrong, but she still slipped the phone into the back pocket of her jeans and pulled a baggy shirt over the top to hide it.

  “Ready?” Haiden called out to her.

  “Ready!”

  Together, they left the cottage and took the path up towards the road and the moorland beyond. Haiden swung his arm around her shoulders as they strolled, chatting comfortably. Soon enough, they came across a small group of the wild ponies she’d spotted in the car.

  “Oh, look,” she exclaimed. “There’s a baby foal. How sweet.”

  “Yeah, sweet,” he agreed, though she had the feeling she was boring him.

  They walked a little farther and stopped at an overlook to take in the view. While Haiden was distracted, she checked her phone. The one bar coverage was down to nothing now.

  “We should probably head back,” she said. “It’ll be dark soon.”

  Haiden gave her a strange look. “Not afraid of the dark, are you?”

  “Not normally.” And that was the truth, but out here, with nothing else around, the idea of it getting dark sent a wriggle of fear down her spine. But they’d be tucked up in the cosy cottage, maybe snuggled under a blanket on the couch, getting to know each other better.

  “Come on, then.” He caught up her hand in his. “Let’s get back. I’d rather be at the cottage with you, anyway.” And he pulled her in for a kiss.

  It only took them half an hour to get back to the cottage, but by that time the temperature had noticeably dropped, and the skyline was awash in pinks and purples, like a watercolour painting. They hadn’t locked the door when they’d left, and they tumbled back into the cottage, rubbing their arms and stamping feet.

  “I’m glad we didn’t eat everything at lunchtime,” she commented, noticing how they’d left everything out on the worktops. “It’s going to have to be dinner as well.”

  So much for the cosy pub meal.

  He smirked. “Well, we did work up an appetite.”

  Kristen deliberately misunderstood him. “Yes, we must have walked a couple of miles at least.”

  Her phone buzzed in her back pocket.

  She pulled out the phone. There was only one bar, but it was enough to receive calls. Violet’s name flashed up on screen and she breathed a sigh of relief.

  “It’s my sister.”

  His frown deepened. “Leave it.”

  “No, I can’t. Ollie might need me.”

  She swiped to answer and took a few steps away from Haiden.

  “Hi! I’ve been trying to get hold of you guys. Everything okay at home?”

  Violet’s voice came down the line. “You sound strange. Are you on speaker phone?”

  She wasn’t the only one whose voice sounded strange. Violet
’s was strangled, high pitched as though she was frightened of something. Her heart lurched. Had her instincts been right? “Is everything okay with Ollie?”

  “Yes, he’s fine. Are you on speakerphone, Kristen?”

  Kristen frowned. Why was she so insistent on her answering that question? “No, I’m not. It’s just the reception around here is terrible. I only have one bar.”

  “I need to pass you over to someone, but just pretend you’re still talking to me, okay? It’s really important, Kristen.”

  “What? What are you—”

  But a male voice cut in. “Ms Scott, this is Detective Superintendent Craig Miles. I’m head of Major Crime, and Serious and Organised Crime for this area.”

  Alarm spiked through her. “Sorry?”

  “Ms Scott, are you with Haiden Lindgren right now?”

  She lifted her gaze to where Haiden was watching her intently, his eyebrows arched as though silently asking her what was being said. “Yes, I am.”

  “Ms Scott, I need you to listen to me very carefully, but whatever you do, don’t have a reaction to what I’m telling you. Speak calmly, and don’t do anything rash. If you can, reply only in yes or no answers, okay?”

  Worry trickled through her, and her gaze flicked back to Haiden and then away again. She didn’t know what this was all about, but to hide her reaction to whatever she was about to be told, she angled her body away from Haiden and ducked her head. “Okay, I understand.”

  “You’re not safe right now.”

  “What?”

  “The body of Haiden Lindgren has been discovered in a forest just outside of Kalmar in Sweden.”

  “I’m sorry... What?” Her mind blurred. What the hell was he talking about? Haiden was standing right there. “I don’t understand.”

  “The man you’re currently with is not Haiden Lindberg. We believe his name is Filip Nilsson, and we believe he had reason to murder Haiden Lindberg and pose in his place.”

  The world turned in a slow, dizzying circle. Her vision went black at the edges, tunnelling. Her stomach dropped, her pulse thundering in her ears. A rush of cold swept over her body, quickly replaced by a flood of heat.

  “That... that isn’t possible.” She didn’t want to believe it. This was crazy. She’d been living with this man for the past month. He’d told her everything about himself. She’d allowed him into her home, into her body. He’d played with her son, and they’d talked of a future. Surely, this couldn’t be true. It must be some kind of sick joke.

  She wanted to turn to Haiden and demand for him to tell her the truth, to beg him to tell her this was crazy and a total lie. She wanted to pretend none of the last few minutes had happened.

  Though she didn’t want to believe what the police officer was telling her, something rang true. Certain things had never quite pieced together. How he’d been avoiding contact with any family back home. How he’d never had any friends and had been so willing to give up a course he clearly wouldn’t have known anything about.

  “Your sister said you’re staying up in a cottage on the moors. Are you able to give me your current address?”

  She wracked her brains, trying to figure out if she knew it. But she didn’t think Haiden had ever told her, and she hadn’t been paying that much attention to the names of the little areas when they’d been driving through.

  “No, I’m sorry. I can’t.”

  “Okay, don’t worry. We can find you. Is there anyone else with you right now, other than him? Yes or no answers, remember.”

  “No.”

  “Is there someplace safe you can go where there will be other people?”

  She thought to the pub. She opened her mouth to tell him that and then remembered what he’d said about yes or no answers. “Yes, there is.”

  “Good. I want you to try to get there. We’re working on getting a warrant to triangulate the position of your phone. If you can just slip it into your pocket to make sure it’s on you all the time, that would be helpful. Do you understand?”

  She tried to make her voice bright. “Yes, no problem.”

  “You can even leave this line open, if you want. We’ll keep someone on the other end.”

  “I’m not sure my battery’s going to last,” she said, trying to sound chirpy. “I need to charge it.”

  “No problem. Just make sure you keep it on.”

  She felt detached from reality, as though she’d woken up in a nightmare. Surely this wasn’t happening. They must have made a mistake.

  She wanted to ask if her sister and Ollie were all right, but she was mindful of the yes or no part. Haiden, or whatever the fuck his name was, was watching her intensely. She could feel his gaze burning into the back of her neck. Nausea swirled inside her at the possibility he was a murderer. She’d had sex with this man. She’d been more intimate with him than with anyone else for years, and he’d turned out to be a killer.

  She gulped back a sob, knowing she couldn’t let him know what she knew. She had to pretend like everything was just as it had been.

  “We’re sending someone out to you, Ms Scott. Just hang in there. Both the mountain rescue and the police will be with you soon.”

  “Okay.”

  She swiped the phone to end the call and slipped it back into her pocket. Swallowing hard, she did her best to compose herself, but she was rooted to the spot. A high-pitched buzzing filled her ears, and she fought against the bile rising up the back of her throat. Haiden wasn’t Haiden. His name was Filip Nilsson. He was some random man who’d murdered the real Haiden and taken his place. Oh, God. She’d slept with him. She’d kissed him and let him be around her son.

  She was breathing hard now, her head swimming. She wanted to bend over and put her hands on her knees and try to get control of herself again, but she knew she’d look too obvious. She remembered what the police officer had told her about remaining calm.

  How was she going to get to the pub without him wanting to come with her? She should be okay to drive by now—hours had passed since she’d drunk the champagne. Maybe she should just grab the keys and make a run for it? But if she gave him any idea that the police were on to him, he’d run, too. She needed for them to arrest him so she’d at least have the knowledge he was behind bars. If he got away, what was to say he wouldn’t come back for her, or, even worse, try to get to Ollie? If he was capable of murdering once, who knew if he’d do it again.

  Kristen sucked in a long breath, pasted a smile on her face, and turned towards him.

  He studied her with concern. “Everything okay?”

  “Yes, fine.”

  “Is Violet coping with Ollie?”

  She pulled a face. “Not really. Ollie is upset and missing me. I’m not really sure I should be staying.”

  His tone hardened. “We’re not running back home just because Ollie’s being a brat.”

  Despite everything, she bristled at the insult of her son. “He’s not a brat!”

  He put out his hand. “Give me the phone.”

  Her blood ran cold. “What?”

  “You heard me. Every time you’ve thought about home or had contact with home since we left has ended up with things being weird between us.”

  She balled her fists, aware she was trembling, and not wanting him to notice. “That’s not my fault. You’re making me feel like I’m doing the wrong thing by caring about my son.” She could barely believe she was even having this conversation. None of that even mattered. He wasn’t who he said he was. He was a killer. She struggled to get her head around it.

  He took a step closer, and inadvertently, she stepped back.

  Right away, she knew she’d done the wrong thing. A muscle in his jaw twitched and his hands clenched and unclenched.

  His tone lowered, smooth and cold. “Who was really on the phone?”

  Her heart fluttered like a trapped moth in her chest. “I told you, it was my sister. She was worried about Ollie.”

  “So, she let you talk to him? You got to
say goodnight.”

  “Yes, of course I did.”

  He gave a cold laugh. “Don’t bullshit me, Kristen. I know you didn’t talk to Ollie.”

  “How could you possibly know that?”

  “Because your voice changes when you talk to him. It goes higher, and is softer, and you call him baby or sweetheart. You don’t talk to him in the way you were talking just then.”

  Fuck.

  “Who was on the phone really?”

  “It was my sister, I promise.” She was desperate for him to believe her.

  “Let me see the phone, then?”

  She couldn’t give it to him. If she did, he was bound to not give it back. What if he destroyed the phone, and the police weren’t able to track her position? Would he kill her, too?

  His eyes narrowed. “You know, don’t you?”

  “Know what?” she tried to bluff.

  “Who I really am.”

  Oh God.

  Her gaze darted past him, towards the front door. Could she make it? Just run. It wasn’t what she was supposed to do, and yes, maybe he’d run as well, and the police would lose track of him, but this was her life on the line.

  He widened his stance, clearly reading what was on her mind. “Don’t even think about it.”

  “Please, Haiden... or whatever your name is. I have a son. He needs me.”

  “Oh, I know you have a son. Isn’t that all I hear about!” He jabbed a finger out towards her. “And don’t try to pretend like I haven’t helped you, Kristen. You and Ollie. I’ve done everything I can to make you happy.”

  “What are you talking about?” Her confusion deepened.

  “It’s because of me that Felix no longer goes to the school and Ollie’s been able to return. You should be thanking me!”

  She stepped back in shock. “What? Felix was in an accident. A horrible accident.”

  He sighed and shook his head. “Yes, it was horrible. But things had to be done. You said yourself, no one was doing anything to help Ollie.”

  She stared in horror. “What did you do?”

  He didn’t answer her, only pressed his lips together and glanced away.

  “What did you do?” Her voice rose to a high-pitched shriek. “What did you do?”