“Are you okay, Ash?” Sergeant Wright asked, catching my eye in the rear view mirror.
I nodded, trying to catch my breath. “Yeah. Just want this to be over.”
“It will be soon,” Constable Matthews said. “Then you won’t ever have to see her again.”
At least not until I bump into her in town or something. Because I knew I would. Manchester was big, but it wasn’t big enough for both of us. I’d have to go back to work eventually. What if she showed up there?
The car pulled up outside the flat, stopping my mind from going off on one again, and I looked through the window at the building. A couple of minutes later, Evie pulled up behind us, and knowing she was there made me feel a bit better.
“Okay, are you ready?” Sergeant Wright asked.
“I am,” I answered, adrenaline trickling through me. It was readying me to go and get whatever I needed in the fastest possible time so I could leave.
All three of us got out of the car, and I heard Evie’s car door shut too as she walked towards us.
She studied my face closely, and after a moment, she said, “What do you say we go get some coffee when this is over? I’ll drive you to the B&B later.”
She was one step ahead of me again. I’d been so busy thinking about seeing Natalie, I hadn’t thought about what I was doing afterwards. That I was going to be really alone for the first time in years. If I could delay that for a bit longer, I would.
“Yeah,” I said, nodding. “That sounds good.”
She gave my arm a supportive squeeze, then the police officers led me towards the doors of the block of flats. Sergeant Wright pressed the buzzer for my old apartment, and after a moment, Natalie answered. The sound of her voice caused me to start shaking.
Half an hour, max. Then it will be over forever.
I told myself that over and over as the door opened and we walked up the stairs to the flat. When we reached the top, the door was open and Natalie stood in the doorway. She was in full make-up, hair straightened, and she wore skinny jeans and a black hoodie that hugged the top half of her body.
A lot of effort to go to.
Her eyes looked sad; the look she gave me when she occasionally felt bad about what she did to me. And it was very occasional. She rarely apologized, just got up the next day and acted like nothing had happened, being a bit nicer to me than usual. The times she did apologize, her eyes went big, like a puppy. She’d cry, hug me, tell me she was wrong and that she loved me, yet somehow still managing to throw in some kind of dig at me. And every time, I’d accepted it.
Not this time though. Even though the way she was looking at me made me feel the way it always did. Like I should back down. Go back to her and do as I was told. At least then I’d have a place to live.
The police greeted Natalie with forced politeness, asking her to step aside, which she did, allowing them to go inside first. Sergeant Wright gestured for her to go into the living area, while Constable Matthews beckoned for me to go inside. Slowly, I walked in, careful not to look at her.
“Okay, Ash,” Constable Matthews said. “If you go ahead and get your things, we’ll be out here. And don’t worry. We’ll keep Natalie out of your way.”
I gave her a small smile of thanks and headed for the bedroom. The door was already open, and just the sight of the last room I remembered being in made my breath come short.
She had almost killed me.
I’d had a lot of recurring thoughts over the last few days, but that was the one that came back the most. And it wasn’t only that. One misplaced blow with those fucking heels, she could have crippled me. Damaged my internal organs.
And I would have let it happen because I’d had enough.
Instead of the usual feelings of failure, something new started to form inside me. Anger. I wasn’t sure whether it was with myself or her, but I let it power me forward, taking me into the bedroom.
As soon as I got around to my side of the bed, headed for the wardrobe where my suitcase was, I almost tripped.
On the floor, broken in half, was my laptop. I looked down at it to see that the screen was smashed and the hinges had been snapped, like she’d stood on both halves until it had come apart. Some of the keys were dented and missing too.
So, she was making those eyes at me a few minutes ago, like she regretted everything, and yet she left my laptop lying on the floor for me to see.
I walked around it; she could clean it up.
I opened my wardrobe and pulled out my suitcase, unzipping it and laying it on the bed. With as much speed as I could manage, I emptied my drawers and the wardrobe, wondering if this was really it. If this was all I had. Nothing of value, nothing that couldn’t be replaced. Once I had my photos and my toothbrush, I was done.
I was about to head back to the wardrobe when I heard shouts, and the bedroom door flew open. Natalie was being held back by Sergeant Wright, and the rage on her face was unm