Gravitate (47 page)

Chapter 33

My brain tried to conjure up numerous reasons for why Sam would have the spare key to my parents’ car, but found none. I knew my dad had taken the car in to the garage himself, worried that my mum would ask for a new se
t of tyres that weren’t needed.
I examined the handwriting on the brown tag on the key – it certainly
looked like my dad’s scribble.
Dad would have left the spare key and taken his key away – I knew he’d picked up the Volvo in a rush, as he’d had a parent consultation evening at my school that night – I remembered it clearly, worrying that he’d miss the appoi
ntment with my English teacher.
Wh
y would Sam have the spare key?
If my dad had forgotten to pick it up, surely i
t would still be at the garage. Not in Sam’s jacket pocket.
I knew Dad wouldn’t have trusted anyone else to collect the car from the garage, he was more protective
of the Volvo than he was of me.
He must have collected the car and the spare key that night – he arriv
ed at parents’ evening on time.
So how did Sam have the key?

My musings were interrupted by Sam’s return – surely ten minutes hadn’t gone by in this time.

“Darling,” he said, before he entered the room, “your older boyfriend is having a senior moment and forgot his wallet – how will I ever keep my Princess Claudia in champagne at this rate?”

He stopped dead w
hen he saw me holding the key. I looked at his face.

“Why is this in your pocket?”

He strolled up to me as calm as if I’d a
sked who ate the last biscuit.
He reached out and took my hands in each of his, in what, at first, appeared to be a kind
gesture.
Then, his hands moved up to grip my wrists and he pinned my hands behind my back and slammed my body against the kitche
n cabinets, trapping my hands.
He leant the full weight of his body against me, freeing his hands, but leaving mine trapped. He reached one of his hands past my head, to one of the cupboards, open
ing it and grabbing an object.
The other hand reached into my hair, his fingertips winding the strands, pulling and twisting, venomous pleasure on his face as he watched shock, fear an
d pain sweep across my face.
I was sure I could fight him off, until I saw the gun in his hand – the object he had retri
eved from the kitchen cupboard.
He held the gun against my temple.

“And you thought yo
u had to fear that lunatic Tim.
He hasn’t got s
hit on me.
I can’t believe you worked it out on the night you were finally willing to give it up.”

“You killed my parents.” The fact had just dawned on me, but he’d assumed I’d known the moment he entered the room.

“I should have killed you, too.
Why did
n’t you go with them? Hey?
You could all be together like you wanted.” I tried to shrink away from him, but he grabbed my arm, rooting me to the spot.

“But I thought you…”

“Loved you?
I’d love to fuck you, li
ke any other red-blooded male.
No, that’s no
t fair. I did love you.
I fell in love
with you the moment I met you.
But you never loved
me. You always held out on me. You were a great challenge. I could have made you happy.
If you’d never found th
at key, you’d never have known.
I could have be
en the one.”
He leant against me and I trembled. “Don’t worry, Princess, everyon
e is nervous their first time.
I might be gentle, I might not.”

“You’re going to
kill me.” It all became clear.
In my fear, I fleetingly thought of poor Ben, being the son o
f a murderer.
But mostly, my mind was filled with Marty and I felt like I was going home.

“I think I might have some fun first…conquer some virgin terri
tory, if you know what I mean.”
He moved in closer, holding me in pla
ce with the weight of his body.
Summoning all my strength,
I kicked him in the testicles.
He winced, not expecting the onslaught, relea
sing me as he recoiled in pain. I ran as fast as I could.
He’d told me himself that the guestroom co
uld be locked from the inside.
I was praying that he hadn’t been lying then, a
s I threw myself up the stairs.
I ran insid
e the room and locked the door.
I headed towards the window and cursed myself for leaving m
y mobile phone in the kitchen.

A sound from behind
the door froze me to the spot.
Metal
on metal. Sliding bolts.
I watched with horror as the loc
k reversed and became unlocked.
Sam flung the door open, the silhouette of hi
m holding a penny in his hand.

“Those grooves on the locks – they fit a penny so that parents can unlock a door if a
child becomes stuck.
Kind of ironic, since you’
re young enough to be my child.
That’s why your dad didn’t let us meet – he knew my reputation for bedding younger women, he knew I’d be attracted to you, though he never worked out what your mum and I did.”

I felt sick, realising that he’d been the man my mother had had an affair
with.
I figured my only chance of escape was to keep him talking.

“It was you – you had an affair with my mum.”

“Hmmm, yes I did, and I’m g
oing to try the younger model.
It’s far
more exclusive.
I did laugh when my own son coul
dn’t close the deal with you.”
He threw me on the
bed as though I was a rag doll.
All my resistance was dec
imated by his anger and force.

“Get off me!” I screamed, hoping that the dog walkers might still be near enough to hear and call the police.

“No chance.
I
’ve been waiting ages for this.
Just think, if you hadn’t been nosing around, we could have lived our lives toget
her, we could have been happy.”
He used his body weight to stop me squirming around and his hands wrapped around my wris
ts, holding them above my head.
“Lie back and think of…well, Heaven, seeing as you won’t be in
England
for long after I’ve had my way with you.”

Chapter 34

The fear was exceptional.
I’d never known anything like
it.
He’d gone from being a man I would have trusted with my life, to being a man who would take everything
away without a second glance. I couldn’t breathe.
Everythi
ng became blurred at the edges.
Unconsciousness came as a welcome relief – at least it
would numb the pain.
I could feel myself leaving the
pain of my body and rising up.
I was fainting a
nd my soul was leaving my body.
I remembered what Olivia had told me about letting my soul leave my body, but I couldn’t care less about the risks – I was about to be raped and killed on Earth, so what if my spirit never found its way back to my broken and bruised body.

As I reached the ceiling of the room, I look
ed back on the scene below me.
I was sprawled on the bed, pinned down and passed out, while
Sam held me down. It was sickening.
I no longer cared about what was happening on Earth – I had a much better
place to be.
I allowed myself to fly upwards, through
the roof and up to the clouds.
I had an angel to find.

It felt like it took less time than I r
emembered to reach the clouds.
I put my feet down, just like Marty had t
aught me, and started running.
I didn’t know where he’d be, but I truste
d my instincts. I’d find him.
Soon, I’d
never have to leave him again.
My heart sang with the thought
.
Maybe Sam was doing me a favour after all.

My heart skipped a beat when
I saw him.
His back was turned to me, but I would
have recognised him anywhere.
I yelled his name and he turned around, slowly, as though he couldn’t believe he’d really heard me.
His face didn’t bre
ak into a smile when he saw me. He looked angry.
I
t hadn’t been what I expected.

“Claudia, what are you doing here?”

“I fainted with fear, aren’t you pleased to see me?”

He pulled me into a fie
rce embrace, holding me tight.
I neve
r wanted him to let go.
It was as though the months since he left had been erased, like waking up from a nightmare.

“What could have scared you this much?” Marty sounded confused.

“I’m about to be murdered.”

“What?” Marty’s anger returned with ferocity and I could feel him shaking with rage.

“Don’t be worried, it’s OK.
If I get murdered, then I can become an angel an
d we can be together, forever.”
It sounded so simple, so perfect, so insane.

“No!
This can’t happen.” He held my hand and pulled me behind him, walking briskly, calling out names
loudly, “Olivia, George, Alfie!
Help!”

Through the mist of the clouds, I saw the other angels run towar
ds us and I felt apprehensive.
Things hadn’t gone well last
time I’d been here with Marty.
George, especially,
scared me.
Marty felt my hesitation and pulled me close to him, stroking my hair and caressing my face.

“What are you doing here, Claudia?” Olivia sounded as confused as Marty had done when he saw me.

“I fainted with fear, I’m about to be murdered.” 

“There must be a mistake. George?” Olivia turned to George, expecting an answ
er.
He was strangely silent.

“You were meant to be keeping an eye on her, George – making sure she’s kept safe – what’s she talking ab
out?” Olivia stared at George.
Other angels had started to arrive, joining the gathering in the clouds.

“I had to stop watching her.” George avoided looking at anyone else in the group.

“What? Why?
Why would you leave her witho
ut an angel watching over her?”
Marty was livid and he held me tighter.

“I thought she was fine.
The older man was looking after her, s
he was resuming a normal life.”
Even I could tel
l George was hiding something.
I decided to speak.

“That older man is the one who is about to murder me – well, he’s planning to rape me first.”

Mart
y gasped and cradled me to him.
The angels surrounding me looked horrified.

“I told you he wasn’t to be trusted, how could you put her in danger like this?” I could feel Marty shaking with
anger and George looked away.

“I thought, we all thought, that your feelings for Claudia were clouding your judgement on the older man – you would never trust any man who showe
d an interest in your Claudia.”
George was still looking away.

“But I told you about the flowers – he was being deceptive then; and that was before you banned me from watching her.” Marty wrapped his arms around me, as though if he held me to him tightly, he could reverse time and I’d be safe again.

“The flowers?” Despite the gravity of the situation, I didn’t want to be unaware of any of the facts.

“The ones you thought Tim had left for you – Sam put them there
.
He played on your fear to make you dependent on him.”

“But the note had Tim’s phone number…” I
realised how stupid I’d been.
“He planned to drop me off, to be there when I saw the flowers so he could make sure I didn’t phone the number and he took it with hi
m so I couldn’t change my mind.
I fell straight into the trap.” I shook my head.
“No wonder he was there when I found out I was adopted, or that he was the one who told me
my mum was having an affair.
He made me need him by making me feel that I had nobody else left.”