I copy the position of her arms and she lay Christopher into them. Maybe it comes from working with horses, but as soon as she puts my son into my arms, my body instantly loses its anxiety that I wouldn’t be able to do it properly, that I’ll drop or hurt him. He is so tiny my hand can support his whole head. My hands go around Christopher naturally, protectively. I lift our child up to my face and kiss his soft cheek tenderly. He smells of milk and innocence.
I look at Izzy’s face and she is nodding. Her eyes are full of joyful tears as if she just saw the proof she needed that she made the right decision to trust me. The heavy burden of protecting Christopher from Tony all on her own has been magically lifted from her shoulders. As if the sight of me with Christopher in my arms is everything she has ever dreamed for the last two years.
For an eternity we stare at each other, both of us lost in our own joy and the little being we created. Then her phone rings and she jumps like a startled cat. She takes her phone out of her bag, looks at it, and back up to me.
“It’s him,” she whispers.
“Don’t answer it. Get Christopher’s things. Quickly.”
She runs around the room throwing essentials into a yellow overnight bag. In minutes she is ready. We go out of the room and she knocks one of the other doors on that floor.
“Are you ready, Mom?” I hear her ask.
“Yes,” her mother replies coming out.
We go down the stairs and out into the night. The teenagers are still there with their bikes. I curse, but there is no way around it. They turn to look at us. No wonder. We make an unusual sight. We look like we are running away.
I settle my son in his grandmother’s lap at the back and carefully put Izzy in the front passenger seat. I am worried that she might have broken ribs. I need to get her to a doctor in the morning.
“Where are we going?” Izzy asks as we drive away.
“You’ll find out when we get there. You wouldn’t know where we are going even if I told you,” I explain, glancing into the rearview mirror to make sure we are not being followed. Tony’s not the only one with connections. I’m taking them to a gypsy camp.
It will be a shock to Izzy and her mother, but I trust these people implicitly. I have to take my family where even the cops will not dare to tread. It’s too dangerous for them, but not dangerous for me or my family.
Our surroundings start to get a bit dodgy after thirty minutes of driving out of London. We don’t talk much. Finally, we turn off the motorway into Hounslow. I take a dirt road to a gypsy caravan site. Even though it is already dark, children run towards our car.
“Are you sure this is a good idea?” Izzy’s mother asks anxiously as she sees the caravans.
“It’s the best shot we have,” I murmur as I steer the car over the narrow path.
“Tony, his men or the cops will not dare come here. There is no one here who will betray us. These people are fiercely loyal and protective of their own kind,” I explain as I navigate the car between two stone walls connecting the east and west side of the camp. There aren’t many lights on in the windows, but I still see faces peering out at us. The ladies must see them, too. A look in the rearview mirror shows a very worried looking woman.
“It’s not the Ritz, but it’s temporary and it’s the safest place for the three of you,” I say.
“Won’t you be staying with us?” Izzy asks worriedly.
“No. I need a bit of time to arrange things for us.”
“We’ll be fine here, Tyson. You go on ahead and do what needs to be done,” Izzy’s mother says firmly.
I catch her gaze in the mirror. “Thank you. I promise there is no safer place you can be. I’ve spent more time here than I care to recall,” I say as I park the car between a ditch and a pile of rubbish. It doesn’t do much to settle their minds, I’m sure. I turn to them. “As a boy, I had a lot of friends in this village. I know it like the back of my hand, and the people here know me.”
“You’re friends with gypsies?” Izzy asks, looking around us with a dazed expression.
“Yes. I know. Crazy, right? Rich boy is friends with gypsies. I’m actually half-gypsy. After I ran away from the correction center I lived with them for many years. I wanted to run free, and that is what I did with them. It’s where my love of horses comes from. I know the woman who lives in that house,” I say pointing to the one on my left. “Mariella is a truly terrible cook, but she is a good woman.”
“What if Tony does track us here?” Izzy asks.
“Then God help him. Those people are lovely and very welcoming. They would give you the shirt off their back, all of them, but they’ll also show Tony he’s not half as tough as he thinks he is if he tries to start trouble. Believe me. I’ve seen them handle themselves.”
Mother and daughter look at each other, having a silent conversation.
I add, “It won’t be forever. Just until I can think of something more permanent. My top priority at the moment is keeping all of you someplace where he can’t find you. I need to be able to make my plans without having to worry about what he’ll do to you.”
“No,” Izzy whispers, turning to me. “Now, I’ll have to worry about what he’s going to do to you.”
“He doesn’t even know I exist … yet. But he will.”
“I hope you’re right.”
“I can take care of myself, Izzy. You just stay safe here.”
Mariella opens the door before we can even reach it. She comes out with her arms open and envelops me in a warm, soft hug. “Oh, my boy. It’s so good to see you again.”
“Thank you for doing this,” I say close to her ear.
She pulls away from me and looks at me incredulously. “After everything you did for me and my boys? This is nothing.”
I introduce my family to her and she grins widely. “I’ve made a lovely dinner for everybody.” I look at Izzy, and for the first time since she called yesterday to say she won’t be turning up, I smile.
She widens her eyes. “You are staying for dinner, aren’t you?”
I pat my stomach. “Would love to, but I just had food. Couldn’t manage a thing.”
Izzy grins back. She looks happy.
I wait long enough for them to get settled in before I say my goodbyes. Izzy touches my arm. “Please. Come back and collect us quickly,” she whispers. “Not because I don’t like being here or anything, but I do hate being without you.”
I pull her close to me and inhale her scent with my entire being. She makes me feel like a king, like I could do anything. All I want to do right now is to start our life together, but I’ll have to be patient. I’ve waited t
his long. I can wait a few more days.
“I’ll come back soon. I promise.” I kiss her gently on the side of her swollen lip, and run the back of my fingers on her cheek. I have said goodbye too many times to this girl. If I am smart and play my cards right this could be the last time.
Chapter Thirty-One
Tyson
Ralph did offer to stay and take care of the farm, but I told him to go to his big family gathering five miles away. It’ll be good for me to go back to the farm. My best thinking time is early in the morning when I am astride one of my horses and galloping across the open fields. I feel good that I have taken Izzy and Christopher away from Tony.
By now he would know they are gone. My family are safe for the time being, but I need a plan quickly. One doesn’t rest on their laurels when they’re dealing with a psychopath.
I know my enemy. I’ve done my research. He’s a nasty, vile, disgusting excuse for a human being who is already linked to at least a half-dozen murders. Those I know about are only the ones the police are actually aware of. There might be dozens of others. People who didn’t know when to leave well enough alone, who tried to testify against him in court, or who wouldn’t back down when he threatened them.
Izzy’s face floats in the front of my mind’s eye. Beautiful, fragile, injured. He’ll never hurt her again, not as long as there’s breath left in my body. I think of my son with wonder. I don’t think I’ve fully appreciated him yet. Even the thought is amazing. My mind drifts to the future. I can already see myself teaching him to ride. Giving him a real childhood in the country with horses, and dirt, and values. It’ll be a sweet life.
I’ll make it a sweet life.
The first step of my plan has to be drawing up a will and making Izzy completely self-sufficient should anything happen to me. I immediately call my lawyer’s office and leave a message for him to call me in the morning.
I only stopped once to get some sandwiches, but by the time I get back to Suffolk it is after midnight. I open the front door and I’m in such a hurry to start work I don’t even bother to switch on any lights or switch on the heating. I go straight to the back of the house where my office is. As I’m firing up my laptop I hear gravel in the driveway crunching. A car is coming from the direction of the stables and halting in front of the house.