She heard him rush down the cast-iron stairs. As he grew quieter, she realised she had left the bedroom light on. She’d also left the window wide open. Most people would notice that.
Sweat formed on her brow, her heart rate increased. Her only option was to make a run for it out of the flat. She pushed the door slowly open, taking a step out into the kitchen, allowing herself to let out a long breath. Before she had a chance to get anywhere, she heard a footstep on the bottom rung of the spiral stairs.
‘Hello?’ she heard Mikey’s voice call almost playfully from down below.
She stepped back into the cupboard, pulling the door to.
‘Kitty? Is that you?’ The Birmingham accent he had clearly been hiding, now laced every word.
The clunk of another foot on the next step.
‘I know you’re here.’
The voice that Beth had once found so attractive now filled her with terror and loathing. Hearing him call that name. She shivered.
Another thud on the steps.
‘I’m guessing Vicky spilled the beans. That poor cow. I think she believed I might actually be interested in her.’
One more clunk.
‘But then again. So did you.’ He laughed.
It crushed Beth to hear him say it. As much as she wished it didn’t.
A few more steps.
‘Where – are – you?’ A sing-song voice. He was toying with her.
The sick bastard was enjoying this. A final clunk, and then the sound of his feet on the laminate.
He’d reached the top.
Beth held her breath. The sweat ran down her face, down the back of her neck. She gripped on to the door handle with clammy hands. Fear permeated through her entire body. She wanted to run, but she couldn’t make her legs move. They felt like slabs of concrete, bolted to the floor.
‘Kitty… you going to come out and play?’
She shuddered. She had worked so hard to leave that person behind. Nobody had the right to call her that.
‘Are you scared, Kitty?’
She heard two tentative steps across the kitchen floor. Mikey paused again. He was taking his time. Relishing the game.
‘Are you scared like my brother would have been when you took him away from our mother?’
A couple more steps towards the cupboard.
‘Was he scared? Or did he think it was a game? At what point do you think he stopped smiling?’
Beth glanced around the cupboard, searching for something she could use as a weapon. The only object was the chair. And there wasn’t enough space to swing it. She clutched the handle.
Another couple of footsteps across the wooden floor.
‘Do you think a kid Billy’s age would have known he was going to die? I can’t imagine it from his perspective. I don’t think any of us can. He must have been… terrified.’
The footsteps stopped. He was standing right outside the door. Beth could hear him breathing he was so close.
‘Are you terrified now, Kitty?’ Mikey whispered through the door.
Beth’s fight-or-flight instinct kicked in. She pushed the door as hard as she could. There was a loud whack and a crunching sound as it connected with Mikey’s nose. He let out a shriek, and Beth heard him collapse to the ground.
She pushed again, and the door collided with his skull. She slipped through, glancing down at him. He was writhing around, blood pooling on the floor by his head. More had spattered over the wall.
Beth turned and hurried towards the front, but a powerful hand grabbed at her ankle. She turned, kicking out with her free foot. It collided with his arm, then his face. She kicked again, her foot connecting hard with the side of his head this time, and he let go. She took the chance and ran.
As she reached the door, he shouted after her.
‘Come back here, you bitch! I know where you live! You hear me? I know where your fucking family are hiding!’
She fumbled with the latch, her hands shaking. The adrenaline surged through her as the door swung open and she fell out onto the concrete steps, tumbling down them onto the path. She grazed her palms, but she was grateful to be outside. She gulped down air, greedily filling her lungs.
Mikey was still yelling from inside the flat. She looked back over her shoulder and saw he was getting up from the floor.
She climbed to her feet before Mikey had a chance to catch her, and bolted towards her car. As she unlocked it and threw the door open, Mikey barrelled outside, still howling after her.
The punters outside the pub stopped their conversation, staring at Beth in bewilderment, then back down the street at Mikey.
‘Call the police!’ she screamed at them. ‘He’s trying to kill me. He’s got a gun!’ The threat of a firearm would hopefully convince them to get help.
She clambered into the driver’s seat and started the engine. As she screeched away, she saw Mikey running down the middle of the road after her. One of the guys outside the pub had his phone pressed to his ear, a panicked expression on his face.
Beth’s heart pounded as she drove.
52
The buzz of the phone woke Charlie from a brief nap on the sofa. His eyes darted around Derek’s flat, momentarily forgetting where he was.
The confusion faded as he recalled what had become of his perfect life.
He grabbed his mobile. He didn’t recognise the number on the screen.
‘Hello?’ he grunted.
‘Mr Carter?’
‘Who’s this?’
‘It’s DI Burns from Sussex Police. We spoke the other day regarding the incident at your office.’
‘Oh, yes, hi.’ Charlie’s register altered immediately.
‘Further to our discussion I wanted to let you know that we did manage to lift a partial print from the perfume bottle.’
Charlie held his breath. He felt his heart speed up.
‘Okay.’
‘Can you come into the station, please? It might be best if you bring your wife and family in too.’
‘It’s not convenient right now.’
‘Mr Carter, given what you told me about your wife’s identity, I think it’s important that you and your
