Behind A Twisted Smile (Dark Minds Book 2) (25 page)

He caught me giving him another sidelong glance and laid down his cutlery. He looked nervous.

“What?” I asked.

“We’ve been together for a while now.” He must have read my mind.

I nodded, thinking about our wonderful lovemaking and reached for my glass.

“I was wondering…while I was away in San Fran. If I can’t get you to come out and live with me in America, then I’ll have to come home early.”

I gasped. “Can you do that?”

He laughed, and I noticed how the anxiousness left his eyes. “I can. I’ve got the new office up and running early and I’ve appointed a guy who’ll make a damn fine manager once I finally hand over to him.”

“When are we talking about?” I felt excited and warm inside, knowing he was doing this just for me. Tango must have caught the undercurrents between us as he sat up and glanced at us in turn.

“I believe I can come back for good in a couple of months. I’ve already set plans in motion for me to cut my time over there.”

“That’s brilliant!”

“I’m glad you think so. But there’s something I want you to do for me.” Again, I noticed that uneasy shadow return to his eyes.

“Okay. But now I’m feeling a tad bewildered.”

“This isn’t easy, Moya. As I said we’ve been together for a while—”

“Yes, yes I heard you. Jon, what do you want me to do?”

“I want you to live with me. Actually, not just that. Moya, will you marry me? Please?”

I felt my heart contracting like a fist. So this was what real happiness felt like. For a moment I was speechless.

He looked pained when I didn’t say anything. “I realise this might be something of a surprise, but at the risk of sounding corny, I want to make babies with you…and for us to just be together always.” He finished and looked down shyly at his uneaten meal. “You and me.”

I sat back from the table.

He raised his head. “If I’ve misunderstood your signs and made a fool of—”

“No,” I said.

“Oh. In that case—” He turned away but not before I caught the abject misery which had clouded his eyes.

“No, you haven’t made a fool of yourself.” I stood up, pushing my chair back with my thighs and moved across to him. I knelt down at his side and reached out one hand to his face, tracing his lips with my fingers. “You’re the loveliest, kindest man I’ve ever met, and yes, I’d love to marry you. I believe I’ve loved you from the very first time we met.”

I moved nearer and our lips met. I tasted salt and realised I was crying with happiness.

Tango shuffled forward, then after sighing as only a dog can, laid his head down between his paws as if he knew he was about to be ignored once again.

***

For the rest of that evening and the next day, I felt as if I was floating in some sort of earthly heaven. Jon’s visit was a flying one, and he was soon winging his way back over the Atlantic, after promising to get everything sorted to be back in England full-time.

I had never been so ecstatic, and as soon as he left the UK, I made my way over to Faye’s. I needed to tell someone my exciting news.

I realised I felt scared, too. Not because I didn’t think I loved Jon enough…I did. No, I was nervous because I was so happy. Had I the right after Evie’s and Kate’s deaths? A little voice inside was also nagging away: what if I was some sort of magnet for ruination? That people I was close to were destroyed in some way.

I assumed Faye was at home that day because she had the week off work. Their house needed redecorating, and she had told me the week before that she bought paint and paper to redo the living room and two bedrooms.

I arrived in time for coffee, complete with a bag of still-warm doughnuts from the bakery just around the corner from her flat.

I rang the doorbell, and she opened the door, dressed in a pale-blue towelling bathrobe, her hair dishevelled. “Moya!”

“I’ve come prepared,” I said with a laugh, waving the bag under her nose and pushing my way past her into the hall. I walked towards the kitchen. “They’re still hot and I know you love them.”

“Moya,” she called after me.

“It’s all right. I’ll make the coffee if you want to finish getting dressed. I’ve got something really exciting I want to share with you,” I said, sailing right into the kitchen. I stopped. “Martyn?”

He stood with his back to me, nothing but a towel draped round his waist. I remember gasping as he turned round, that same familiar twisted smile playing around his mouth. “Why, it’s Moya. Funny how you always turn up out of the blue.”

Moya joined us and flicked a troubled look from Martyn to me. “I tried to stop you, Moya. I didn’t want you…finding out.”

I threw a look of horror her way. “You and Martyn?” I whispered. “Faye, how could you? After your own sister’s death?”

She shrugged one shoulder. “It just happened. I didn’t mean it to. “

“No, but I bet you did, you bastard,” I spat out in his direction.

“Moya, listen. It isn’t what it seems. Martyn has been hurt, too. We simply consoled one other. Martyn called round to give me a hand painting the ceiling. One minute we were calmly talking about Kate and the next we found ourselves in floods of tears. Kate was my sister and Martyn’s wife. When she died, our hearts were broken. And before you say a word about Evie, she was in our thoughts. Martyn has suffered more in his life than anyone else I know. But he’s still nice and considerate, never unpleasant. And whatever you may say or think, he still cares for you, Moya,” she said, taking a step towards Martyn as if seeking confirmation.

I shook my head and shouted. “But you slept with him. What about Simon?  Doesn’t he matter to you anymore? How are you going to explain this to him?”

They exchanged looks.

“It was a…a one-off, Moya. We won’t say a word, if you don’t.” Faye put a hand on Martyn’s arm to restrain him. “It’s okay, Martyn. Moya understands.”

I couldn’t believe my ears and said so. “No, I bloody don’t. It all sounds so plausible coming from you, Faye. But I know Martyn. I bet you anything you like he planned all this. Manipulated you into going to bed with him. It’s what he does best. Don’t you understand anything yet? And tomorrow? What then? Will he come back with another good reason why he needs to fuck you?”

I was shaking with anger and disgust and
fear
. Martyn had seduced my best friend. Not only seduced her, but if he had his way, he would ruin her too. At best, Faye would end up as damaged goods; at worse…I dreaded to consider.

For the first time since I had started shouting at them, Martyn joined in the conversation. “As usual, you’re the one who’s not listening, Moya. Why do you go around making up lies about me? I’m tired of all your accusations. You’ve never been the same since I dumped you. I’m sorry to say this, but I think you’re sick. Moya, I really believe you need help, and by that I mean medical help. And, I can prove I won’t be manipulating Faye as you’ve just implied. You should believe your friend. I won’t be here tomorrow, as I’m going away. I don’t know how long for, but rest assured, Faye’s in no danger from my attentions. Happy with that?”

Martyn’s confession must have come as a shock to Faye, as she flashed a look of surprise his way. I stared as I digested his words. What was the creep planning now?

Chapter 34

Shocked and disappointed with Faye’s behaviour, I never did share my exciting news with her. As I tossed and turned in bed that night, I found myself crying. As well as tears of regret and self-pity I was saddened that Faye hadn’t seemed at all ashamed about her infidelity.
How could she have?
I saw how attracted to Martyn she was from the first time she met him, but I assumed she had more self-control. How wrong I was, and I understood how little we really knew people, even those closest to us. I closed my eyes and willed my body and mind to relax.

The house loomed up in the pitch blackness, but it was strange because I could see it perfectly. The roof and walls seemed to radiate light, and I took in every detail. There wasn’t a sound except my own breathing, and without feeling a whit of nervousness, I stretched out my hand and tried the latch.

The wooden gate fell back at my touch, and I found myself standing inside the garden. The house stood right across from me at the end of the swathe of grass, a glistening path of blood leading from the kitchen door to where I stood, gaping. How it glistened! With my eyes, I followed the path to where it ended. To my right was the shed, two bicycles leaning upright against it. I took another step forward…

With a strangled cry, I opened my eyes. Sweat was pouring from my brow, and in panic, I sat bolt upright in bed. It was okay—it was a nightmare. I breathed deeply, feeling scared and disorientated. My heart thumped away in my chest.  Strangely enough, I hadn’t been afraid in my dream. I lay back down and gazed through the chink in the curtains at the dark sky. It was a clear night; I could see many bright stars twinkling in the heavens above. When we were children, I recalled how our father used to say that each star represented a lost child. I remembered being worried and vowed never to stray unknowingly from home, because if I did, I would have been snatched up and would have had to stay hanging in the cold black sky for ever.

I turned over onto my side, hugging my knees to my chest, going back over my dream. I was always sceptical of dreams having any meaning and was about to dismiss it, but something made me think again. It was a dark night, but I saw everything with perfect clarity, right down to the imaginary path of blood going from the house to the bottom of the garden, past the shed to the fence and gate.

I shot up again. Of course, how stupid I was! Martyn
had
gone back that afternoon. I thought through the possibilities. He had spoken to Evie, suggested she get me over to talk. She knew I would never have gone round if he was there. So...supposing she had told him I would be over in half an hour? He must have killed her then, immediately. Evie’s wrists were cut down the veins—death wouldn’t have taken long, especially once he had immersed her in a warm bath, and the whole house seemed stifling when I first went in. Warmth makes blood flow faster and it was hot; I also realised I knew how he managed to get home without being seen. It was so simple once you thought things through; I just needed to check one more thing, wondering if there would be any remaining physical proof after all this time. I knew it was a long shot but thought it worth searching for.

And ironically, catching Martyn and Faye together was actually a stroke of luck. I learnt he was going away. The house would be empty.

***

I took time planning how I would play this. There were a few things I needed to do. Knowing how devious Martyn could be, I had to be sure he really was away and the house empty. I couldn’t very well telephone and ask if he was at home. Neither could I use my mobile to ring him. So I used a variety of public phone boxes in different areas. I rang the home landline over three separate days, taking no chances before I made my move. Every time I rang, the call went unanswered.

I decided to go early in the morning, just before it got light. For one thing, I knew I would have to break in, and as I didn’t know the property that well, it would be easier in the daylight. Also, if I went at night, someone might just have noticed my torchlight, or I might have been tempted to switch a house light on. I recalled that they hadn’t installed an alarm system when Evie was alive. I was betting Martyn still hadn’t bothered, as he hated spending money ‘unnecessarily’.

I remembered reading somewhere, years ago, about taking a large sheet of heavy paper and pouring treacle or honey over it. You then stuck this sheet up against the window you aimed to break so that after smashing the glass, the sticky paper muffled the sound and caught most of the glass shards. It sounded easy in theory, and I packed a plastic bottle of treacle and a folded sheet of paper in my hip pack, along with a small torch and a substantial screwdriver. 

This left me two remaining tasks. One was to leave a note for Jon. He was due back any day, and I wanted to get this over and done with without involving him. I felt guilty in some ways for not letting anyone know what I was planning. But I still had an odd feeling that whomever I told wouldn’t wholeheartedly believe me, anyway. Jon didn’t particularly like or trust Martyn, but because this was
my
mission, my pledge to get retribution and proof of Evie’s and Kate’s murders, it was something I had to do on my own. Perhaps I was being pig-headed, but I felt completely compelled.

For the first time, I realised how Amanda must have felt when she failed to make people aware of Martyn after her cousin died. Yes, it was for her too. She had been through a rough time, and I wondered whether I should try to make contact again. I spent a while deciding what would be best. I appreciated that once all Martyn’s victims had been avenged and he was brought to justice, then and only then could I be free to love Jon and live a normal life.

So, I wrote my note and left it propped up on the kitchen worktop where Jon or anyone else in my family would find it…if anything went horribly wrong.

The next day was
the
day.

***

It was a keen wind that blew early next morning, and I was glad I was wearing my thickest tracksuit over my running strip. I left while it was still pitch black outside, and as I ran, I made sure I kept to well-lit roads. It wasn’t long before I turned off the highway and headed down a lane leading to the fields and wooded area I had covered some days before. Thin streaks of steel grey appeared behind the clouds, and I knew I had just less than an hour before it grew light.