The footpath appeared through the trees, a light grey shape against the darker hues of the wood. They sighed in unison, then walked in silence for another minute until they broke free of the trees. They stepped down into the shallow ditch that now seemed little more than a divot and then onto the pavement. The feel of concrete beneath Ashley’s muddy trainers was reassuring. She enjoyed the sound of her footsteps on solid ground.
The playground was a short walk ahead. They were almost home, and despite still being freaked out and moderately terrified, Ashley felt her body loosening up. Her heart no longer hammered against her chest.
She turned to Jude. “You okay?”
He nodded. “I am now. Just glad we got out of those woods. It’s getting dark.”
“Yeah, we only just made it. What time is it?”
Jude pulled out his mobile phone and looked at it. “Eight fifteen. Should I call my mum?”
Ashley shook her head. “I don’t think we can do this over the phone. Let’s get home first. We’ll go to yours. My dad will only freak out. Let me enjoy a few more hours of him not knowing about this bullshit.”
Jude nodded and put his phone away. They carried on until they reached the playground, then both of them froze.
Ashley looked at Jude and mouthed a single word, “Shit!”
Ricky, Lily, and the twins were all sitting in a line on the playground’s painted metal bench. Their backs were turned from the footpath. From the way Ricky was hunched over, Ashley assumed he was rolling a joint. The smart thing would be to run the other way, but then how would they get home? They could make a call to get her dad to collect them, but she really didn’t want to deal with him yet. Also, Ricky might spot them and give chase anyway. Then they would end up even further from home.
Deciding she wanted Ricky and his gang behind her rather than between her and Jude’s house, Ashley put a finger to her lips. Jude nodded to show he understood, and the two of them crept forward. While Ricky and his crew focused on what they were doing, they might not turn around. If they did, however, Ashley wanted the chase to be in the direction of home, not away from it. She just needed to get on the other side of the playground before they were spotted.
Ashley could hear Jude’s hurried breathing and wondered how loud her own breaths were. Was she breathing loudly enough that Ricky would hear them? She didn’t think so, and slowly, she started to believe they might manage to creep past.
Then: “Hey!”
Ashley and Jude froze. Ricky got to his feet and turned to face the footpath. He had a smirk on his face, knowing he’d caught them.
“How was Devil’s Ditch?” he asked. “Did you suck each other off down there? You should have fucking stayed.”
Lily stood up too. Her eyes narrowed when she saw them standing there on the path. “Wanna see my knife again?”
Ashley shoved Jude in the back. “Run!”
They legged it. Ashley’s body was already aching, sick to death of climbing, running, and fleeing, and her breasts, as usual, caused a hindrance, but she made it past the playground. She dared to look back and was relieved to see Ricky sitting back down. He was laughing, and he obviously couldn’t be bothered to give chase. He and his mates probably didn’t want to abandon their weed. Even so, Ashley and Jude didn’t stop running for a hundred metres. By then, they were both out of breath.
Ashley had a stitch. She clutched her ribs and doubled over. “This has been like the worst day ever,” she said.
Jude helped her to stand straight and held onto her as they resumed walking at a steadier pace. “Tell me about it.”
Five minutes later, they made it to Jude’s house. His place was smaller than hers, a narrow slice of windows crammed between two other homes. It had no downstairs toilet and only two bedrooms, but he lived alone with his mum, so it didn’t really matter. His garden, however, was much larger than hers, so they hung out at his more than they did hers. Also, his mum, Helen, was really laid back.
They opened the front door and rushed into the hallway. Jude’s mum was standing in the kitchen, watching the small LCD hanging on the wall and pouring herself a glass of wine. She placed the glass on the counter when she saw them hurrying inside. With the raising of an eyebrow, she gave them a crooked smile. “What’s got into you two?”
The words came out all at once, Ashley and Jude both speaking at the same time. Jude showed his mum his cut palm, which sent her immediately into a panic. It was almost like she hadn’t heard them about the naked woman chained up in the woods, but once she realised Jude’s hand wouldn’t fall off, she calmed down and listened. Two minutes later, she was on the phone with the police.
Chapter Five
“It won’t be long now,” said the tall Asian man who had introduced himself as PC Riaz. The police officer was sitting in Jude’s kitchen, sipping from a coffee mug with a picture of ‘Del Boy’ Derek Trotter on the side. He’d arrived fifteen minutes ago and had immediately made a call for his colleagues to search the woods. While the officer’s willingness to believe their story should have filled Ashley with confidence, it only caused her anxiety. Several police officers were frantically rushing about now because of her, and it felt like trouble. She eyed the back door that led to the garden and thought about running. A stupid idea.
Jude was bent over
