The dark side of my soul (20 page)

“The desk,” she panted. Take me on the desk. I’ve always wanted it on the desk but David would never allow it on the precious thing.”

It was not too late. I suppose I still could have stopped her, stopped myself, but she was a beautiful willing young woman and I was a red blooded and weak willed man. I know it was wrong and it is not an excuse but how many men in my position could have resisted. She stood and ripped off the rest of my clothes as I got to my feet and with Jesus looking down on us from the wall we made love on the desk, over the desk and up against the desk. In truth love didn’t have much to do with it. It was pure animal lust, wild unrestrained, uninhibited sex.

When we were both fulfilled Julie led me, naked, to the master bedroom where the covers on the king size bed were already drawn back as though this whole evening had been planned, carefully choreographed and she knew this is where we would end up. We fell onto the bed side by side, breathing heavily with her head nestling on my shoulder, our bodies sheathed in perspiration from our exertions.

Time drifted by in a sort of euphoric haze and it must have been a half an hour or more later when Julie’s fingers started tracing patterns on my chest. The thought flitted through my mind that this was some sort of love trap and that Julie, having discovered that I was the killer of her family members, had a large knife or dagger hidden under the bed that was meant for me when I drifted off to sleep. I almost laughed out loud at the crazy idea as her hand worked its way down my body.

I was surprised at the effect she was having on me and as her hand reached my groin I once again became aroused. She rolled on top of me, wide eyed and eager for more and this time on the bed, with her on top, we went wild once again. Being the second time I lasted longer and the feeling of pleasure was even greater than before. We changed positions several times, turned and twisted and caused the bed to vibrate against the wall until eventually, satisfied, we collapsed exhausted.

This time with my mind and body totally relaxed I drifted off into a deep and wonderful sleep, but it was not without dreams. I dreamed of the upcoming holiday in Barbados, of the beautiful beaches and the warm clear sea. Although I may have had sex with Julie, Sandra was my true love, my real passion, my soulmate and I imagined her running into the water in one of the many new bikinis she had bought while I sat at a beach bar drinking a cool rum punch.

Now I was free of any suspicion of the crimes I had committed I could look forward to a new and more prosperous future and I envisaged Julie as my most important client paying me wads of money for dealing with her investments. I must admit that I also fantasized about the possibility of having the occasional fling with her, nothing serious, of course, just the random wild orgy like tonight.

Then without warning the dream changed from heavenly bliss into a nightmare. One moment I was asleep, the next awake with Julie hovering over me, but gone one was the loving, smiling face, the come hither eyes, the sexy pout. Gone was the soft warm shapely body. Julie was astride me with anger and hate in her eyes and her naked form took on the appearance of a female warrior, as she held a large butcher’s knife high above her head ready to strike.

I was on my back with my arms stretched out on either side of my naked body. Instinctively I tried to put my hands up to fend her off but they would not move, could not move. They had been fastened to the sides of the bed with strong cord. I was defenceless. Julie seemed in no hurry to plunge the blade into my bare skin, she wanted to taunt me and waited while I tried to free myself but my frantic efforts were hopeless. I pulled and tugged at each arm in turn but they were securely fixed to something on the side of the bed.

Perspiration ran down my face as I tried to throw her off by moving my hips and legs but my feet were also securely fastened to the corners of the bed so I was unable to get sufficient movement to budge her. I tried to yell out, to shout at her but was unable to make any meaningful sound. My mouth was sealed with strong tape.

Her body had a silvery sheen in the shafts of moonlight that came through the windows, no longer beautiful but statue like, Amazonian, as she held the knife high above her head.

Then she spoke in a voice I never recognised. “You killed my family and now it is time for my revenge.”

The knife came down in a blur of movement and bit deep into my chest. In spite of the tape over my mouth I yelled out.

I sat up and was surprised that I could move. I took long rapid rasping breaths through my mouth. There was no tape, I was not tied down and Julie was not attacking me but sleeping silently on the bed.

It had seemed so real and it took several seconds for me to realise that it was only a nightmare. I took several more long deep breaths and had to reassure myself by touching Julie’s bare skin. Her shoulder felt warm, her breathing was even. She was fast asleep on her side with her back to me.

Sighing with relief I turned to look at the luminous numbers on the bedside clock and I gasped when I saw the time. Five minutes past three. One nightmare was chased away by another. I thought of Sandra sitting up waiting for me to return home. Her verbal attack would be far worse than the cuts Julie could inflict with the knife.

Turning to Julie I spoke quietly. “I’m sorry, I have to go. I’ll call you tomorrow.” The only response was her soft breathing.

I rolled out of bed and quietly made my way to the office where, although it was dark, I found my clothes strewn on the floor. I hurriedly dressed and eased my way down the stairs and out of the front door, closing it gently behind me. Being out in the country there was no light pollution and looking up I marvelled at the clear starry sky as I headed for the car. On any other night I would have stopped to admire the splendour of the heavens and tried to pick out the planets and constellations but not tonight. Tonight there was no time for stargazing.

Aware of the lateness of the hour and my earlier consumption of alcohol I drove steadfastly, not wishing to come to the attention of any police that might be patrolling the area, but I didn’t see another vehicle, the lanes were devoid of traffic and a passing fox, its bright eyes caught in the headlights was my only company on my way home.

When I pulled up in front of my garage I was relieved to see that the house was in darkness. Sandra had evidently gone to bed. I got out of the car, closed the door as quietly as possible and locked it. At the front door I put the key into the barrel of the lock but even that simple action seemed to make a horrendous sound. I turned the key and the door opened with a squeak that I had never noticed before. Why are all noises magnified at night I wondered, as I closed the door with a loud audible click. After removing my shoes I crept up the stairs trying to avoid the treads that I knew would groan when my weight was placed upon them. The only sound was the relentless ticking of the grandfather clock in the hall.

On arriving at our bedroom the door was open and through it, in the shadows, I could just make out Sandra’s shape under the covers on the bed. She was still and appeared to be in a peaceful sleep. I breathed a sigh of relief and swiftly moved into the bathroom.

I needed to take a shower or when Sandra awoke she would detect the scent of Julie’s perfume on my body. Sandra had a nose like a bloodhound and she would know for sure that I had been involved in a lot more than work that night. Without turning on the light I removed my clothes, turned on the water and stepped into the flow. I needed to be quick before Sandra woke so after a brief soap and rinse I stepped out of the cubicle, dried myself, collected my clothes from the floor, repositioned them at the side of the bed and slipped silently under the covers next to my wife’s sleeping body. I congratulated myself on a job well done and in no time I was asleep.

Eighteen

I awoke, rolled over and reached out for Sandra but her half of the bed was empty. I turned to face the bedside clock and was surprised to find that the time was ten thirty and it took a few moments for me to fully come to my senses. Light poured in through the window. Of course, I had not gone to sleep in this bed until the early hours of the morning so it was no wonder that I had slept so late. Turning onto my back the events of the previous day and night came flooding back and an involuntary smile crossed my lips. What a day it had been. I was free from suspicion, I was going to make a cool one hundred and forty grand from David’s Estate, and I had shared a very special night with the grieving widow. Wow.

Realising that no sound was emanating from downstairs I guessed that Sandra had already gone out, another of her many shopping expeditions I assumed. At this rate we were going to need an extra couple of suitcases to take on holiday to accommodate the clothes she had bought. It didn’t matter, it kept her happy.

After spending twenty minutes or so in the bathroom I went downstairs to the kitchen and decided to rustle up a fried breakfast. I was in a wonderful mood, this was my first day of freedom from suspicion and I made up my mind to enjoy every moment of every day henceforth, after all there was plenty to look forward to.

I turned the radio to a local station and hummed along with the tunes while I cooked my breakfast. I liked this particular station because it featured older music, standards, songs from a bygone era and not all the modern stuff for the teenyboppers. The aroma of bacon cooking and fresh coffee filled the house and when Frank Sinatra took to the airwaves I even accompanied him in my own out of tune rendition of ‘my way’. Such an appropriate song, I thought.

When the bacon, mushrooms, toast and eggs had been washed down with a couple of cups of sweet black coffee I dutifully placed all the dishes and utensils in the dishwasher and returned to the kitchen table with another coffee. I had barely sat down when I heard the front door open. Sandra was back.

“Hi babe,” I called but there was no response.

Sandra strode into the kitchen with a small handbag in her right hand and a look of thunder on her face. Without a word she dumped the bag on the table, went to a wall unit, took out a glass, filled it with cold water and swallowed it in one go. We had been married long enough for me to know that she was mad, real mad and it didn’t take a genius to guess it was due to my late night with Julie.

I tried to lighten her mood. “I’ve got some good news. Old David was worth somewhere in the region of fourteen million, which means we are in line for a bumper fee of about one hundred and forty grand.”

Sandra snorted as though it was nothing then pulled out the chair across the table from mine and sat down. She was furious but I knew how to handle her. Let her have a go at me, full on, both barrels, then when she had got the anger off her chest, when the tears started rolling, I would reason with her, explain how last night I had been working into the early hours and she would calm down.

“You were very late home last night,” she blurted.

“I know, I’m sorry but I had a lot to get through. David, as it turns out, was a very rich man, much better off than we had imagined. He had stacks of bank accounts and investments and as I was saying he was worth fourteen million.”

Both her hands were on the table, balled into fists and her voice had an icy edge. “I heard you the first time, he was worth a lot of money but I’ve never known you to work until three in the morning before.”

“It wasn’t that late, I was home before that.” She was asleep, how would she know the time I got in?

“You came in at precisely three twenty one. I stayed awake until you came home. When you came upstairs I pretended to be asleep.”

“Okay it may have been that late. You know how I get carried away when I get engrossed in figures.”

“Yes and you were really engrossed in a different type of figure last night weren’t you? I tried calling your mobile but you didn’t take it with you. I don’t suppose you wanted to be disturbed.”

“That was an oversight. I forgot it.”

“What was she like, young Julie? Was the sex good?” Her accusatory tone was cold enough to freeze an ocean.

“I was working the whole time.”

“Ha, don’t be ridiculous. What do you think I am, stupid?”

“I swear I was working the whole time.”

“Don’t demeanour yourself. Don’t lie to me.”

“Sandra I…….”

“I KNOW you were with her last night.”

“Yes I was working.”

Sandra leaned back in her chair. Her hands were still balled on the table but she seemed to relax, just a little. Her voice became a little quieter. “Since when has accountancy been so tough that you have to take a shower afterwards?”

“It was a long stint. I felt I needed a shower.”

“Oh it was a long stint all right, hot and steamy, I bet.”

“When are you going to get it through your head that I did not have sex with her?”

“You’re lying.”

“I’m not.”

Sandra let out a long sigh and I thought I caught the glimmer of a tear in her eye. “Where do you think I have been this morning? I have just left your precious bitch and she’s told me everything.”

That stunned me. I regarded her with total amazement. “I…..I don’t believe you.”

“There’s a lot you’re not going to believe, now how about telling me the truth.”

I didn’t know what to say. Was she bluffing? Had she really been to see Julie? Would Julie have told her what happened? I must have looked totally bemused because she let out a cruel laugh, “It’s no good denying it, Julie has told me everything, right down to the positions you were in on the desk. Now do you believe me?”

I was in shock, my little dream world of ten minutes ago shattered. What could I do but to come clean, I knew I would have to admit everything, so in a slow easy tone I tried my best to explain.

“Look, it wasn’t like you imagine. When Julie found out how much she was going to inherit she went wild. She opened a bottle of champagne and drunk a couple of glasses straight down. I had one, I don’t know maybe more, but then she was all over me. She flung herself at me. She seduced me. I couldn’t stop her.”

“You could have resisted, said no. You could have pointed out that you were a married man.”

“Sandra, she was all over me, she seduced me. It was difficult.”

“Oh, I bet it was. I bet you really tried hard to fight her off.”

“It meant nothing. It was just sex. I don’t love her, I don’t care for her. Look, I’m sorry, I’m sorry it happened and I promise it won’t ever happen again.”

Sandra’s look of death did not soften. “She told me some other truths that might interest you.”

I closed my eyes and wondered what the hell was coming next. “What else did she say?” I asked, resigned to more bad news.

“You shot the wrong person when you killed Terry Bovey.”

“What do you mean?”

Sandra stood up, took the empty glass from the table and refilled it with cold water. She drank some of the water while looking out of the kitchen window with her back to me then returned to her seat with the glass half full. She placed it on the table with excessive care and attention. Her manner was now less confrontational. There was a sad almost sorrowful look in her eyes. Something big was coming and she was keeping me waiting on purpose.

The tension grew along with the silence but eventually she broke the spell. “You thought that Terry Bovey had told his sons about the hit and run accident didn’t you?”

“Yes, of course.”

“You were wrong. Think about it. I mean really think about it. When you first called him and said you wanted work done on the front of your car you said that he guessed you were involved in the hit and run. You not me.”

“I assumed that he guessed that it was you that was involved.”

“But when his boys started trying to blackmail you they said they knew the old woman went over the car and ended up in the road, bleeding badly from the head. They even knew that I had been drinking. They knew all the details. You didn’t tell Terry any of that so how did they know so much?”

“I assumed they chanced upon the right scenario. They probably guessed a lot of it and as it happened they guessed right.”

Sandra waited a few moments before replying. “You were wrong. You see it wasn’t Terry Bovey who told the sons about the accident. It was Julie.”

I stared at Sandra uncomprehending. That could not be the case. That could not be true. “But she didn’t know anything about it,” I protested.

Sandra smiled, but it wasn’t a happy smile, it was kind of forlorn and pitiful. “Think back Harry. Didn’t you go to your good friend David and tell him the whole story?”

“Yes but that was just between him and me.”

Sandra laughed again, a scornful, grating sound. “Well you of all people should know how persuasive Julie can be. She got him to tell her and then she passed on all the details to her brothers.”

“No, she wasn’t in touch with any of her family.”

“Oh, she didn’t want to be. She didn’t want David to know about them but the brothers were aware that she had married a rich guy and they kept pestering her for money, handouts, loans and the like. To her they were a pain so when she found out about our awkward situation she told them. It was a way for them to make some money without harassing her. Christ, she even suggested the idea of blackmail to them. She suggested collecting the cash in Lyminge forest. You could say she was responsible for the whole set up.”

I couldn’t believe it. Julie, how could she do such a thing?

Sandra continued, “But then, of course, you went and shot them. Julie was pretty certain that you had killed them. After all you were the one meeting them in the forest.”

I interrupted. “In that case why didn’t she go to the police?”

“She didn’t want to get involved. David would find out about her background and she didn’t want that. Besides you had done her a great favour. You had taken her brothers out of the picture. One way or another Julie was always planning to get rid of David and when she did the brothers would have been after her for a share of the inheritance. They would have hounded her until she paid them off. With them out of the way she could keep the lot. I expect that you have gathered that there was never any love lost between them.”

I was still finding it hard to accept but it did begin to make some sort of sense.

Sandra gulped the rest of her water before continuing. “But then you went and shot poor old dad. That was different. He was her father.”

I interrupted again. “He told me that he hadn’t seen her for years; that she never kept in touch.”

“That’s right, she avoided contact with any of her family as far as possible so that David wouldn’t find out about them but that didn’t mean that she didn’t care for her old man. Once Julie got hold of David’s money she was going to see that good old dad had a nice comfortable retirement. However you sort of ruined that idea. Once again, she didn’t know for sure, but she thought you probably had killed him so she devised a plan.

You see from the beginning she was only after David’s money. She had been pumping him full of Viagra since their marriage in the hope he would have a heart attack. When that didn’t work she started giving him all sorts of other drugs, telling him they were good for him. It was Julie who suggested he take you up to the cliffs at Dover that morning. She had already really dosed him up with stuff that altered his balance and perception. She knew how fast he drove that new car of his and she didn’t believe he’d make it to Dover in one piece. Your young bit on the side thought that he would kill himself and take you along with him in a spectacular road accident.”

I remembered David’s apparent change of personality the morning he called, his shaking hands and his strange behaviour.

Sandra continued, “But David made it, at least as far as the edge of the cliff. You however, survived, so Julie adapted her plan. Very adaptable is our Julie. She realised that you could be a great deal of use to her. You could sort out all David’s finances, obtain probate and basically do all the work to enable her to get his money. You were never going to get your one per cent. Christ she had enough on you to be able to blackmail you for the rest of your life and a couple more lifetimes as well. What with the accident, the murders and the sex, you would have been in her pocket and would have had to do her bidding for the rest of your miserable days.

Your sweet little sex bomb has got you in a bit of a corner wouldn’t you say? Don’t worry, I’ve sorted it. It’s like our roles have been reversed. I’ve become the one to fix things.”

With that she stood up. “I’m having a tea. Do you want one?”

I shook my head, stunned and still trying to make sense of her revelations. “No, no thanks. How did you get her to open up and tell you all this,” I asked, facing the empty chair as Sandra stood waiting for the kettle to boil.

“Ah,” she replied. “Now that’s a different story altogether.”

She was holding something back, something important, something vital and my hairs stood on end as I wondered what it could be.