Her mom stood up, rinsing her cup and putting it on the draining rack. ‘Have a think about it, and I’ll see you and the boys tomorrow.’
‘OK, Mom, thanks, I’ll drop Ty off first thing in the morning, take Wren to school then go check out the cafe.’ She kissed her mom goodbye at the door and watched her drive off. There was something a little off about her mom, but she put it down to her dad coming back into her life. The nerve of him to ask her for help after what he did.
8
Vanessa was wiping down the already spotless counter when she saw Toby standing outside the café, taking in the freshly painted exterior. ‘Vanessa! The place looks great, well done,’ he said as he entered. ‘You’ve done such an amazing job – there are even people sitting outside eating something that I hope there is still a slice of because it smells so good!’ She was so pleased that he liked everything that she had changed. She had put hours and hours of thought into how to make the café shine. Old man Phillips and her had clashed on some of the changes, but after a phone call to his son, who had chastised his father, he had come around. Especially when he saw the finished product. She included him where she could, but he seemed to be happy now to leave it all up to her.
She enjoyed working and earning her own money; there was a sense of pride attached to being able to support her children. She didn’t rely on her mom now for anything except babysitting. As the months passed, she met new people and began to form friendships with the regulars. People from all over town came to the café, not just for petrol or repairs anymore but to taste her cooking, the cakes, muffins and fresh sandwiches. She had done that, herself.
Toby touched base with her less and less as time progressed. He could see that the café’s numbers showed promise so he was very happy with her. She had hired a part-timer, Leanne, a girl in her twenties who was able to take the shifts that Vanessa couldn’t. Quite often, Vanessa’s mom would pop down with the boys if she were working the late shift. Wren, now eleven, would come behind the counter and help her serve people, telling them to have a good day, or help her cook out the back. He was such great company, and those times together only served to highlight just how delightful he was. Her mom would sit out the back with Ty, who Vanessa cuddled whenever she could. He was growing up so fast, and her heart swelled with love every time she thought about her children.
She still thought about Mark often. He knew where she worked, the town was only so big, yet he’d made no effort to harass her. It unnerved her more than she cared to think. What was he playing at? She had seen him standing across the road staring at the café a couple of times. It was only a matter of time, she was sure of it. She tried not to worry, but subtlety was not one of Mark’s strong points, so of course she was wary. It made her uncomfortable knowing that he could come for her at any time.
Vanessa still worried about protecting her boys. She worried that she’d put too much weight on Wren’s small shoulders. After all he’d seen, to be growing up into such a wonderful young man was a credit to his personality. He was also a great big brother and would make a great role model when Ty was older.
Another few months passed without her seeing Mark at all. He stopped standing across the road, staring at the café. With her fingers crossed, it seemed like he was finally going to let her and the boys go. She had expected, well, she didn’t know what she expected, but silence from him wasn’t it. Over a year of silence.
She hadn’t seen Billy for a few days. He had decided to set up a new business since he was going to be in town for the foreseeable future, landscaping, like he’d been doing since he’d left high school. He loved working with his hands, designing gardens for clients. Although he’d used the excuse that sorting his mother’s house was taking longer than anticipated, Vanessa knew that his future depended on her; he was just too polite or scared to say so. With his landscaping business he sometimes had Wren help him do easy jobs like weeding. Wren got a kick out of driving around in the pickup, sitting up front, being treated like a man by Billy and earning some pocket money.
Vanessa didn’t know how she felt about Billy’s absence. Was he backing off from their friendship? Or was he giving her time to get herself together? She wasn’t sure, and she didn’t know what it meant for her or for them.
She was sweeping the floor in the café one morning after dropping Wren off to school. Her was hair falling out of its loose bun, jeans clinging to her curvy shape, which was complemented by a slouchy gray top that hung from one shoulder. She was staring intently at a stubborn piece of dirt on the floor that just wouldn’t move when she felt someone’s stare and for a terrifying moment, she thought it was Mark. She turned slowly, the hairs on the back of her neck rising. But it was Billy, standing there, grinning at her with his slightly lopsided smile that she found endearing.
‘Billy, you scared me!’ Her hand immediately went to her hair, smoothing it down. Suddenly she felt self-conscious about her choice of clothing.
‘You look busy,’ he said, indicating the broom. ‘Want some help?’
‘How are you at swinging a mop?’
He saluted her playfully before going into the back room and returning with a mop and bucket of soapy water. He began to clean the floor, starting in the far corner. They worked in silence for a few moments before Vanessa moved to the walk-in fridge to sort out some stock. She heard him speak but the whirring of the cooling systems meant she didn’t hear him.
‘Pardon?’ she said as she came back out on to the main café floor.
‘I said that the place is looking really good. You’ve really turned it around. Toby must be happy. How’s old man Phillips taking all the changes now?’
Vanessa laughed. ‘Well, as you know, at first he wasn’t happy, and we had a few clashes about… well… everything really, but he’s come round, and he loves the boys, always finding a reason to come in when they’re here. Not everyone copes well with change, but I think he’s doing a wonderful job.’
‘Except you,’ he said, finishing off the mopping.
‘Except me what?’
‘You cope well with change.’
‘What does that mean?’ she asked, surprise on her face.
‘Only that you’ve had so much thrown at you – you left your husband, became a single mother, started a new job – but you look amazing, and happy.’ He looked away, as if embarrassed by his words.
‘Thanks, Billy,’ she said softly, blushing at his kind comment. She didn’t know what else to say, but she did know how it made her feel, like a teenager again.
While putting on the sausages to cook, Vanessa said to Wren, ‘Hun, how ’bout you go run a bath for Ty and I’ll get dinner ready for you?’ Wren nodded and took Ty from her arms. She watched as he left the room, talking to his little brother, hearing Ty’s garbled and cheerful responses. She could hear the pair of them giggling from the kitchen, it was a lovely sound to hear. It made her heart swell with love. Wren was so attentive to Ty. Always playing with him and taking care of him. She couldn’t be more proud of him. Vanessa walked down the hallway and stopped at the bathroom door, peering around the corner. Wren was leaning over the bath pouring water over Ty’s head who giggled underneath the waterfall of warm water.
‘Honey?’
He looked up. ‘Yeah, Mom?’
‘I just wanted to tell you how much I appreciate your help. Love you.’ She went back to the kitchen to check on dinner then made her way down the hallway to her room.
She was intending to get changed after a hard day at the café. She pushed open her bedroom door and stopped in stunned shock. All of her clothes were strewn across her bed and floor, every drawer opened and empty, her cosmetics in the bathroom were carelessly thrown across the floor. Her bed had been slashed, the knife marks going through to the stuffing of the mattress. From her vantage point, she could see the bathroom mirror. In red lipstick were the words: You’re next.
Stifling a scream, she backed out of the bedroom and closed the door. She ran into Ty’s
bedroom where Wren was getting him dressed after his bath. She took him from her son’s hands, finished dressing him and grabbed the nappy bag.
‘We’re going to Nannie’s house. I’ve barely seen her all week. So, c’mon, let’s go. Chop, chop.’ She turned off the stove and ushered them quickly to the car.
Wren gave her a quizzical look, and she knew what he was going to ask. ‘What’s wrong, Mom?’
‘Nothing, sweetheart, I just changed my mind about eating at home. And I miss Nannie,’ she finished lamely.
He could see right through her. ‘He did something, didn’t he?’
She looked at him in the rear-view mirror; his fists were clenched by his sides in anger.
She chose not to answer, just kept driving. He was looking out the window the next time she glanced at him, fists still clenched. ‘Maybe we’ll even stay the night,’ Vanessa said cheerfully. ‘We haven’t done that in a while either. Nannie won’t mind – she loves having us over.’ She was being overly bright and happy, but Wren would know something was up. He knew her better than that.
‘Mom,’ he said, his tone so stern that she felt like a schoolgirl in the principal’s office about to get a rap on the knuckles.
Vanessa sighed, glancing in the mirror at him again. ‘Your dad might have been in the house.’
‘What?’
‘I don’t know for sure so we’re going to Nannie’s so I can call the police to check it out. It’ll be fine, Wren, OK? Don’t worry, honey.’ She wanted to shield him, but she also wanted to be honest with him. He was her best friend, someone who had been through the wars with her and lived to tell the tale.
Her mom was surprised to see them this late but didn’t ask any questions even when she saw the strained expression on Vanessa’s face, but once they had settled the children, she had pounced on her daughter.
‘What is going on and why do you look so scared? What happened? Is it Mark?’ She looked as worried as Vanessa felt.
‘Someone broke into my house,’ she said, twisting a piece of hair around her finger, almost mirroring her mom who was playing with her fringe. ‘I suspect it was Mark,’ Vanessa continued. ‘My room was trashed but the rest of the house was OK.’
‘Well, are you going to call the police?’ Vanessa thought about it. Should she call the police? What would they even do? Give him a talking to? What would that achieve? There was no way to prove it was even him.
‘Yeah, I think I might. Even if they can’t prove it’s Mark, at least there’ll be a record of the break-in.’ She pulled out her cellphone, scrolled through until she found the local police station’s number.
Officer Emily Beck knocked on her mom’s door later that night. Vanessa and Emily had shared some of the same classes at high school.
‘Officer Beck. Did you go to my house?’ Vanessa was almost scared of the answer.
‘Evening, Vanessa. May I come in?’
Vanessa opened up the door and Emily strolled inside. She saw Vanessa’s mom and headed toward the kitchen to say hi. Everyone knew everyone here. But Vanessa couldn’t wait for them to finish their small talk. ‘Did you find Mark?’
‘Yes, at the bar.’ Beck regarded her with cool, blue eyes.
‘Well, did you question him about the break-in? Where he was, things like that?’ It felt like she was pulling teeth trying to get information out of her.
Beck raised her eyebrows and Vanessa felt like a chastised child. ‘Yes, I questioned him. He said he’d been at the bar during the day and after work he was with his girlfriend, who vouched for him. I believe you know Maggie?’ Twisting the knife. Beck had sided with Maggie when the shit had hit the fan.
‘You know I do, Emily. Are you trying to say that he didn’t trash my bedroom? Who else would do that? I was targeted, I’m sure of it.’ She blew out a frustrated breath, her voice had been getting steadily higher as she spoke.
‘We’ve taken fingerprints and photos from the scene. It could have been a crime of opportunity.’
‘Emily, he wrote “You’re next” on my mirror – feels pretty bloody specific to me.’
‘It could still be someone trying to scare you.’
‘Yeah, my husband.’ She was adamant that it was Mark behind it, but that Maggie was covering for him.
‘Did you speak to Maggie? Alone, I mean? She might have a different story to tell.’
‘No, I spoke to them both. Nothing was stolen as you pointed out, no locks were forced, and no real damage was done. I’ll file a report, but it’s not high on our list of priorities.’
‘Great, thanks, Emily,’ she said, trying to keep the sarcasm out of her voice. She saw the police officer out and returned to the kitchen.
‘Well, that wasn’t much use. Might as well not have bothered calling them,’ her mom said to Vanessa, turning from the bench and offering her daughter a cup of tea.
To say Vanessa was disappointed was an understatement. What did they expect Maggie to say when Mark was standing right there?
‘Are you going home, honey, or do you want to stay here?’
‘I was going to stay but now I want to go home. He’s not chasing me away from my home again, besides, I need to clean up and Wren has school tomorrow.’
Twenty minutes later, they were back at home with Wren and Ty settled into their beds. Vanessa was just about to tidy up the mess from the break-in when there was a quiet knock at the front door, close to her bedroom. She looked out the window before opening the door.
‘Billy! What are you doing here?’ It was late.
‘Your mom called me, wanted me to come over and keep an eye on you, maybe help you out.’ He came inside, then pushed open her bedroom door. ‘Shit. What a mess.’
Vanessa sighed. Billy looked up in response. ‘I’m not annoyed at you, but my mom shouldn’t have bothered you. I’m sure you were busy.’
‘Nope, free as a bird, happy to help. Sure nothing was stolen?’
‘No, I’ve been around the house and checked, anything of value is still here. Your mom’s bed has been slashed. It’s ruined, I’m so sorry.’ Vanessa became teary. This loving and gentle man had given her something important to him, and it had been destroyed on her watch.
‘It doesn’t matter. It’s just a bed. Do you want me to stay the night? I can sleep on the couch.’
She thought about it, about her hard-fought independence. She’d called upon him so many times already. She only wanted to do it in emergencies. ‘No, it’s OK, but thanks.’
‘All right, I’ll help clean up then I’ll be on my way.’
With two of them working, her room was returned to rights shortly after they started. When they finished, he grasped her by the shoulders and kissed her gently on the cheek, lingering. If she’d just moved her head toward him a little, he’d be kissing her lips. But she wasn’t sure that she was ready for that, and she had to be ready… and sure. He pulled back, looking disappointed, but then understanding flooded his eyes.
‘I really appreciate you coming to help me, yet again. I’ll call if I need you tonight, otherwise I’ll call you tomorrow. Maybe we can catch up…’
It was gloomy in the hallway, but she still saw him smile. He left, and she touched her cheek where he had kissed her. She made sure the door was locked – she wasn’t taking any chances.
‘Fuck, I thought he’d never leave,’ a voice growled behind her.
Vanessa gasped, but a meaty hand was clapped over her mouth, cutting off any noise. It was Mark. He let go but dragged her to the ground by her hair. He knew for certain that she wouldn’t make a noise now, in case she woke the boys. They both knew that she’d never subject them to him. She tried to huddle into a ball, knowing what was coming next, but still her breath was stolen when he kicked her with his boot. She felt an excruciating pain in her side as a rib snapped. She looked up, locking eyes with him. ‘Please,’ she whispered.
‘You filthy slut. Bad enough that you ran, but to be fucking Billy while you’re married to me? No fucking wa
y.’ He kicked her again and a small noise escaped through her pursed lips. She was trying so hard to keep from screaming, but the pain was building with every second. Soon she wouldn’t be able to stop herself.
He pulled her up by the front of her shirt, the material ripping, the sound of her breath coming hard.
‘I’m not yours,’ she hissed at him, spitting in his face. How dare he come into her house and attack her.
He released and wiped the spittle off with his sleeve. ‘Finally, some spirit. I wondered where the real Vanessa had gone, not this fucking insipid, mousy woman that I lived with day in and day out.’
‘Then why didn’t you leave if I was so boring?’ She taunted, feigning to the left to get past him. He countered her, blocking her path to freedom.
‘I told you, you fucked up my life, so it’s my job to fuck up yours.’ He grinned maniacally at her.
‘Oh yeah? And what were you going to do with your life? Go somewhere? Be somebody? I don’t think so – once a loser, always a loser.’ She said, as she had done before. She was provoking him, but she didn’t care. It felt good to say those things. Felt good to stand up for herself, even though she was going to pay for it.
He smacked her across the face, catching her high up on the cheekbone. Vanessa bit her lip so hard that it began to bleed, the copper taste leaching from her lip and into her mouth.
‘I could have been with Maggie. Got out of this fucked-up town. You ruined my chance.’
‘Well you’re free now. I’ll divorce you and you can marry Maggie and live happily ever after.’
She began to cough as he grasped his hand around her throat, slowly cutting off her air supply. ‘Think you’re so smart, hey bitch?’ He let go of her throat, and she dropped to the carpet with a thump. She prayed that Wren hadn’t heard it or their furious whispering. He slapped her again, putting all of his strength behind it. The same side as before. She could already feel the swelling, the blood rushing to her face, the throbbing filling her body, her rage building.
Never Ever Tell Page 9