“It’s an empty house, who will care or even know. Just get inside quickly.”
Amanda shrugged, looking around, there was nobody watching so I opened the door and stepped inside. The house looked as if it had been untouched, everywhere there were personal mementoes, pictures, trinkets and rosettes. Upstairs the bed was unmade and Hilary’s wardrobe was full. More worrying was there were lights switched on throughout the house, there was even an undrunk mug of coffee standing cold on the kitchen table. I looked at Amanda.
“Look, she had to travel overseas, she’s packed light…”
“Mandy, she’s left everything. Shit!” Kate grabbed a book that had been sitting on the shelf. “If she went to Germany, she left without her passport. Explain that?”
We walked into the office; the computer was on with the images of Adam frozen on the screen. I shuddered.
“Hang on…” Amanda reached past the office chair which was lying on its side, there was a large dark patch on the carpet. “I don’t know if this is just spilt wine.” She reached down, touching the mark before sniffing at her fingers. Before knocking a broken wine bottle with the toe of her boot, it also had a deep red mark on the glass. “Shit! I’m not an expert, but I’m pretty sure this isn’t a wine stain and this is starting to look a little suspicious.”
“Are you saying you think something may have happened to Hilary?”
“Kate, I’m not sure what I’m saying, but this all seems a bit weird, she isn’t here. Her groom says she’s gone to work in Germany but that can’t be the case. Look, let’s get out of here. I’m going to call Dan…”
* * *
I looked up as the cell door opened. I knew Kate was visiting me, I’d been counting the minutes until I saw her, but, equally, I didn’t want this to happen. Somehow, seeing the woman I loved crystalised my lack of freedom making it clear in my mind what I was about to lose.
She’d told me she would stand by me, but I couldn’t expect her to do that? I’d read the papers, and my barrister had made it abundantly clear a last-minute reprieve was the sort of thing that only happened in movies. Here, firmly rooted in reality I had to be ready for a trial where I had little or no defence. I had been alone at the time Olivia had been murdered, I had run away, a phrase the press seemed to favour, leaving the yard in the early hours to escape the consequences.
Any other time I would have just been alone in the caravan. Hilary and Sally had tried to console me, to convince me that I wasn’t some sort of awful bully. I’d never hit anyone in my life, but she’d made me see red and I’d hurt her, and that was the final nail in my coffin. Beating a defenceless girl. Oh, I had lived that statement. Spat at by other prisoners, the beating I had taken in the showers from someone whose daughter was the same age as the kid I had killed.
The press had been clear in the way they presented the story and it seemed the police were following the same narrative. From how they chose to look at it I wasn’t a crusader against animal cruelty, stopping a girl from beating a horse out of anger. I was a jealous bully with a chip on his shoulder, usurped by a better rider so I had first struck out and then brutally killed my competition.
I followed the officer into the visiting room. There she was. Gone was her cheeky smile which had so often greeted me outside of this hell. Instead, a frown, new lines on her brow and that gaunt, drawn look. She looked up briefly with a smile that failed to reach her eyes. I sat down opposite her. We fell into a halfhearted conversation about the stables, how she was coping with early pregnancy until we fell into painful silence.
“Kate, you know I didn’t do it…”
“Adam, I don’t think I would be here if I thought you had.” She touched my hand.
I looked into her eyes. She was holding something back, she broke eye contact with me, staring down at the table.
“Kate, what is it?”
She looked up as if stuck with lightning, gasping and stuttering before falling silent for a moment. She sighed deeply, looking up into my eyes.
“Adam… I need to know. While you were away…”
She stopped, again her gaze fell to the table, she drew her hand from my grasp.
“What?”
“Adam… Was there anyone else?”
My heart froze. What was she asking? Suddenly I understood.
“Kate… I… Babe, I love you. I only love you. Please, you must know that. I would never…”
I would never. But I almost had. I was a second away from infidelity, I had walked away but. The guilt engulfed me, there with Sally, we had been drinking, I’d left, but a part of me had wanted to storm down her door, to take what was on offer. But I had turned away. I stuttered.
Kate pulled her hand away, standing up from the chair. I saw the tears in her eyes, my own were splashing on the table. She turned and walked away. I called after her, pleading as she was led away to her freedom.
With a hand on my shoulder, I stood, following the officer back to my cell.
* * *
Kate looked broken as she stepped, blinking into the sunlight. I gulped. Whatever had happened in there? I broke the silence.
“I spoke with Dan.”
“And?”
“He thinks we are overreacting. Hilary has a hate campaign after her online, she’s probably left in a hurry to get away from the nasty comments and threats. I suppose he’s right.”
“You don’t sound
