Mine First

by A. J. Marchant

  33

  LORI STARED AT the ground while Em justified her suspicions, the detective taking the information without comment, no judgement in his voice as he asked for Addy’s full details.

  ‘I’ll run a background on Miss Brooke, follow up anything we find. There’s not much we can do until we get something to go on.’ So far he’d been standing a little way off, addressing them both. But now Detective Cooper crouched down, zeroing in on Lori, his hand a gentle comfort on her shoulder. ‘In the meantime, I recommend you stay with a friend, keep an eye out for anything, keep your phone on you at all times. If anything else happens, you let me know.’ He handed her a card with his name and number, squeezed her shoulder.

  Em jumped in, already organising Lori to come and stay with her. But Lori refused. ‘No. I won’t be run out of my own home.’

  ‘Then I should stay. You shouldn’t be here alone.’

  ‘Emmie…’

  Sensing what was coming, Cooper stood up and stepped back, but the narrow porch meant he couldn’t move far enough away to be out of earshot to their whispered argument.

  ‘… You need to be with Lena more than I need a bodyguard or a babysitter. I’ll be fine.’

  Em insisted, said she wouldn’t leave until Lori called someone else to come over and stay, suggesting Marina.

  ‘We’ve been on two mediocre dates. I can’t just call her and ask her to hang out in a house that was just broken into and had a knife stuck in the table—’

  ‘I thought you said last night went well.’

  They both glanced up at Cooper who rocked on his heels, eyes on his feet, his face not giving anything away.

  ‘One good date doesn’t cancel out a bad one. It just… evens the field.’ Lori knew how ridiculous it sounded, made worse by Em’s laughter and the small smile on the detective’s face.

  ‘That makes no sense. Just call her.’

  Lori knew it came from a protective place, but she was running out of patience with Em pushing her and telling her what to do. Deciding to put her foot down, Lori stood up.

  It was freezing without the blanket, but she wouldn’t let Em see her shiver. She did her best to keep her teeth from chattering. ‘Em, go home. I don’t need you.’

  It took something special to shock Em into silence. Lori knew she’d been direct, but she didn’t think any of what she’d said had been harsh or hurtful. But there they were, in a silent stare-off until Cooper stepped in. ‘We can put an officer out front for a couple of nights.’

  ‘Thank you, but there’s no need.’

  ‘Are you sure?’

  Em stayed silent, staring up at Lori as if she’d lost the plot.

  ‘I’m sure.’ Lori thought maybe she was being a little crazy. But just in case it was Addy, and just in case she tried to sneak in again, Lori didn’t want her getting in trouble, or worse, hurt.

  Em was still arguing as Lori pushed her out the door, bent on clarifying that she was only leaving because Lori promised to call if she needed anything or if anything happened, no matter what.

  After a while, Cooper and his team left as well. Lori closed the door behind them and stood for a minute, just listening. Silence. She turned the heater up and did her own check of the house, starting with the back door, checking each cupboard, closet and room were empty, every window locked, even the tiny one in the bathroom.

  After tidying up the mess left behind by the forensic team, she sat on the chair still pulled out from the table. Her fingertips bumped over the divots in the wood until she’d completely confused herself on what she thought she knew about Addison Brooke, scared she’d been naïve, but certain that Addy would never hurt her.

  It was dark when she looked up, the whole day gone. She didn’t know what to do, but she knew she didn’t want to be alone. Em had been right, but she wouldn’t tell her that.

  Lori felt a sense of calm the moment she heard Marina on the other end of line, telling her she’d be there as soon as she could get away from work.

  34

  WHEN NOTHING HAPPENED in the days after the break-in, Lori was almost sure it was all in her head; the paranoia every time something was a half an inch out of place; or if she saw someone ducking out of sight when she turned around; or when Beanie somehow locked himself in her house.

  She kept herself busy, just to keep herself from going crazy. But one morning the potted plants on her front porch had been rearranged, and yet she somehow convinced herself that that was how they’d always been.

  Then all the books on her office shelves were turned spine in, her diploma and photos turned back to front inside their frames.

  She’d come home to every light on, or the stereo blaring, or the television on at full volume.

  Once, her alarm clock had been set to go off in the middle of the night.

  There’d been a trail of dead leaves and dirt through every room, way too much to have been carried in on the soles of her or Marina’s shoes or on Beanie’s paws.

  It was getting hard to ignore.

  One day her laundry had been taken off the drying rack, everything neatly folded, sorted and piled, ready to be put away. But after a period of anxious pacing and a near meltdown, Lori found out it was Marina’s handiwork, a little gesture, a backfired attempt to lessen her stress.

  Em persuaded the maintenance crew to install a secondary bolt on Lori’s office door. Lori got the same one for her bedroom after she came home to every door and window wide open. She still refused to leave her home. Em did her best to talk her into installing an alarm system and then resorted to getting her detective friend in to convince her that if nothing else, an alarm would give her peace of mind. Even after putting in the alarm system, Lori still checked the doors and windows, twice-over sometimes. Inspecting cupboards, closets, nooks and crannies when she got home, and then again before she went to bed.

  And after all that, she checked that the baseball bat was under the bed and in reach. And that nothing, or no one, was there with it.

  One morning Marina woke her up, pulling her out of bed to look at an army of snowmen in the front yard, all facing the house, heads tilted and their beady eyes staring up at her bedroom window.

  At first, the only thing that helped was swimming a few laps at a steady pace to slow her body and settle her mind. But when that stopped working, she started pushing herself, relying on frantic lap after lap to tire herself out, to give her body no choice but to rest.

  Even then she didn’t sleep well. It was her mind that kept her awake, and every little noise.

  Despite all the crazy stuff going on around them, things with Marina were exactly what she needed; nice and stable and wonderfully boring.

  Lori was no longer the lonely, single person at their weekly dinners. Em, Olly and Matt were welcoming and on their best behaviour the nights Marina came along. But Lori found she was still the main topic of conversation.

  The break-in and every little incident after that had been a constant subject of discussion. It caused even more frustration for Lori because she hadn’t told Marina the whole story about Addy, or why Em was dead-set that it was all Addy’s doing.

  Matt didn’t have much to say, and Olly was more concerned about Lori’s safety than who was to blame. ‘You need to do something. Tell the police, or something. Anything.’

  ‘Detective Cooper knows everything, Olly. There’s no evidence that Addy is the one doing it. There’s nothing he can do.’ Lori looked down at her plate, adjusting the fork beside it. ‘I’m sure whoever is doing it will get bored and stop. So, can we talk about something else? Please?’

  Seeing that Lori was close to losing it completely, Olly apologised with a silent look across the table while Matt turned the attention to himself, starting in on an old story from the glory days.

  When everyone groaned about having to listen to it again, he pointed out the fact that Marina hadn’t heard it before, waving them off as being impatient and impolite.

  Em and Olly shook their heads i
n embarrassment at Matt, who was getting carried away with his story, Marina laughing uncontrollably. Lori wasn’t listening. She was staring across the table at Em, who’d either been avoiding her or busy with work and swim training and trying to make it good with Lena.

  Something was still going on with them. Lori could tell, and not just because Lena hadn’t made it to the last couple of dinners.

  Lori hadn’t yet found the right moment to ask, but she saw a chance when Em excused herself and headed for the bathroom. Lost in another story and laughing like maniacs, the others didn’t notice when Lori got up to follow.

  35

  LORI FELT A little awkward, apologising to a startled and sulky teenager who walked out of a cubicle to see her pacing back and forth in front of the sinks. Another lap and Lori almost lost her nerve, turning for the exit when another cubicle door opened.

  ‘You stalking me now?’

  It could have been a joke. Em’s face gave nothing away. Lori could sense the distance that had grown between them. She hated that it was this hard. ‘How’s things? How’s Lena?’

  ‘Things are fine.’ Em turned on the tap. ‘And Lena’s gone.’

  ‘What do you mean, gone?’

  ‘Packed a bag and left. Again.’

  ‘What, when?’

  ‘A week ago. Pretty sure she won’t be back this time.’

  ‘Why didn’t you tell me?’ Lori reached out, but Em shrugged off her concern, turning the tap off and shaking her hands, scanning the counter. Lori handed her a paper towel from the stack beside her. ‘Emmie, I told you—I promised we’d deal with whatever happened, together. And I meant it.’ She felt lame having to say it out loud.

  ‘You have your own stuff going on, Lori. It’s nothing I can’t deal with on my own.’

  ‘You don’t have to.’

  Em paused at the door. ‘Neither do you.’ She turned around, a smirk on her face. ‘I was right, though, wasn’t I?’

  ‘About what?’

  ‘You and Marina.’ Em walked out of the bathroom.

  Lori rushed to catch up, but she didn’t have to go far. Em was standing at the end of the little corridor. For a moment she thought she was waiting for her. But then Lori followed her gaze across the packed restaurant to see Addy with a group of friends being seated a few tables over. She recognised Nate and the girl with the two-tone eyes.

  Em stared knives at Addy’s back. ‘Have you seen her since…?’

  ‘No.’

  ‘She bombed her last three meets. Shows up to training on no sleep and drags through the pool. Heart isn’t in it, mind is somewhere else. Give you one guess why…’

  ‘We were like that in our final year, remember?’ Lori’s chest tensed at the need to defend Addy, and she followed Em back to their table and the others.

  The restaurant was loud and only getting louder as the night dragged on. Neither Em nor Lori said a word, barely pretending to pay attention to the conversation. Tension radiated from Em, ready to burst up out of her seat if Addy so much as took a step towards them. There was a tugging in Lori’s gut. She couldn’t help but glance over at the other table, at Addy, searching her face for signs; a telltale flash of anger or hurt or something sinister in her eyes.

  Addy looked fine, happy even. Not a worry in the world. Laughing, talking, enjoying her dinner. Lori assumed Addy hadn’t noticed they were there, not until she caught her staring. Even then, she’d met her gaze with a smile that seemed genuine and open, and it only made Lori miss her more.

  After that, Lori tried hard to keep her focus on her own table. Then the ghost of a hand ran across her back, bringing forward a memory of Addy doing the same, and suddenly there was a knot in her throat and a deep down burning. She turned around in her chair, but there was no one behind her. Marina noticed, raising an eyebrow. Lori smiled back and tried to relax.

  Finally, noises were made about getting a move on and they had the usual argument over splitting the bill. Matt and Olly tried to pay the whole thing while Lori and Em shoved money into their hands and pockets until they gave in. Then seats were pushed back from the table and the group wove towards the door.

  Out on the footpath they huddled together against the flurry of snow that was starting. Lori and Marina tried to get Em to come home with them, joking that she hadn’t changed the sheets yet, so the spare room was all hers if she wanted to stay the night.

  Em turned down the offer; she had to go back to the office to prepare for a meeting with a snotty physics professor who desperately wanted to fail one of her swimmers.

  Swapping hugs and goodnights, Lori and Marina left Em with Matt and Olly, waiting for their cab.

  After a few blocks, Marina tugged on her hand, slowing a step. ‘What’s the hurry?’

  Lori kept her pace and kept hold of Marina’s hand so their arms stretched between them. ‘There are tiny pieces of ice falling from the sky and you’d rather dawdle?’ But Lori wasn’t in a hurry because of the snow. She was desperate to get home, to get away from the feeling she’d had since they’d left the restaurant. Crazy as it would sound given the deserted footpath and empty road, Lori could have sworn someone was following them, watching them.

  As they neared the house Lori tried to convince herself it was only her mind playing tricks. But the more she tried, the more the feeling of being watched was replaced by the heavy weight in her chest at the image of Addy sitting at a table across the restaurant. The way she smiled, the ghost of her touch, the bud of yearning it kindled. It only made Lori more confused, wondering if she’d make the right decision. She almost forgot Marina walking beside her, startling when a jangle of keys made her look up to see they were at the front door.

  36

  DEEP UNDER LAYERS of fuzz and fluff, Lori sensed more than felt someone shaking her, words spoken in a cotton ball muffle. It felt like only a moment ago she’d fallen asleep, having resorted to taking a sleeping pill. Opening her eyes, awakening her brain, getting her body to respond, it wasn’t happening fast enough.

  Sound bled in. An insistent beeping. Lori felt groggy and her reactions were slow. It was dark and someone was leaning over her, shaking her. Marina. Her voice became clearer, growing louder with each urgent whisper of her name. ‘Lori!’

  Adrenaline rushed, clearing her head.

  ‘What is that?’

  It wasn’t loud enough for the house alarm. It came from somewhere near her head. Lori reached out in the dark, fumbling for her phone on the bedside table. The screen displayed a flashing alert; a window sensor had been disengaged.

  ‘A sensor downstairs isn’t working.’ Lori put in the code and stopped it from setting off the major alarm, accepting the prompt to send an alert report to the security firm.

  ‘Maybe the storm knocked it?’

  ‘Storm?’ Lori sat up and looked out the window. The flurry of snow they’d walked home in had turned into a full force snowstorm. Black shapes formed blurry profiles of the houses across the road. Silhouetted trees were half bent under the wind and the weight of the snow. There were no streetlights, no lights in windows, no headlights of passing cars. Lori tapped the lamp base. Nothing happened. The power was out.

  ‘Do you think there’s someone inside?’ Marina said what Lori was thinking.

  They both looked at the bedroom door. It was closed and locked. Lori got out of bed; half rolling, half stumbling. The drowsy drag of the sleeping pill made her unsteady on her feet. It took a second to get upright and find her balance.

  Her heartbeat was erratic and blood rushed through her ears, drowning her in a hush of static. But she couldn’t stand there and wait for it to pass. She had to move. Crouching, she reached under the bed for the baseball bat. It rolled when her fingertips hit it, but she grasped the handle before it got too far.

  ‘Where are you going?’

  Lori knew Marina would think her insane, but she adjusted her grip on the bat and headed for the door. ‘I need to know if there really is someone inside.’ And more importa
nt, if there was someone in the house, she needed to know who it was.

  Marina used her phone as a torch, sticking close behind as Lori unlocked the door and stepped out to the landing. It took a while for her eyes to adjust. The phone torch made it harder to see beyond its weak, diffused beam.

  All the other doors were closed. Lori held her breath and listened; the wind outside, the tap tap of snow hitting the glass, the old panels rattling in their frames.

  They started down the stairs. Lori was glad she wasn’t alone, Marina holding onto a handful of her shirt, right there behind her.

  37

  LORI STOPPED AT the bottom of the stairs. She saw a flash of movement at the end of the hallway. The door into the laundry was open, giving a view straight out the windows onto the yard and to the trees swaying at the back of the property.

  ‘Did you…?’ Lori pointed at the open door.

  Marina grimaced in the torchlight, whispering, ‘Sorry, I forgot to close it.’

  Marina waited while Lori checked the laundry and then followed her from room to room, looking for the pinpoint of green light on the sensor of each window. She flashed the torch over the couch, reflecting off the television and spotlighting the space behind the armchair, just big enough for someone to crouch and hide. Nothing.

  Out in the entrance, Marina held the phone up for better light while Lori checked the front door; locked and bolted. It was easy enough to see the sitting room was empty; there wasn’t much in there, a single window with a working sensor, a bricked-in fireplace, and nowhere to hide.

  A half-dozen steps away was the entrance to the dining room. Lori had a flashback of the knife sticking out of her table. The room still gave her the creeps. She hadn’t used the table or sat in any of the chairs since, keeping it covered with an old tablecloth dug out from the back of the linen closet until she could get it all replaced.