The Perfect Husband (8 page)

“No, I’m sorry. I-I can’t go through with
it. Forget I said anything. I’m so sorry for wasting your
time.”

“I understand your fear, Mrs Donnelly,”
Senior Constable Rogers responded quietly, “but from what you’ve
told me, taking the children and leaving your husband to go
somewhere safe is the best thing you could do.”

Isobel drew in a shaky breath and willed
away her panic. She tried again to make him grasp the gravity of
her situation. “With all due respect, Senior Constable Rogers, you
don’t understand. I have to go home, at least for tonight. My
children are there. Even now, Ben’s brushing his teeth. Sophie will
already be asleep. I can’t just not show up. Nigel will go berserk.
He’s never hit the kids before, but after his recent threats, who
knows what he might do? And once he finds out I’ve left him, he’ll
never let me near them. I can’t leave without them.” Her voice
broke from the strain. Tears poured down her cheeks. “I just
can’t.”

Mason’s arm snaked around her shoulders.
After a slight hesitation, she relaxed and leaned on him for
support. Her sobs came harder until she wasn’t sure if she could
ever stop. Mason stroked her back in wordless comfort.

“
Shh
, Belle. It’s all right. We’ll
think of something. He won’t take your kids. I’ll come home with
you and we can face him together. I’ll make sure he doesn’t hurt
you. He’s not going to hurt you again.”

“If you’d rather, I can have an officer
escort you home and wait while you collect your kids. Would that
help?”

Isobel lifted her head and gazed at the
policeman. He meant well and she was grateful for his offer, but he
still didn’t understand. Nigel wouldn’t care if Mason or even a
police officer were present. If he knew what she planned, he’d go
crazy. More than once, he’d threatened to kill her and the kids if
she even thought about leaving. What if he tried something and the
officer and Mason couldn’t stop him? It would be too late for all
of them.

No, she had to return home tonight and
pretend that nothing had happened. She’d act like it was just
another night and in the morning, after Nigel had left for work,
she’d pack up their things and leave with her children. Haltingly,
she outlined her plan to the men.

“I’m not letting you go back there alone,
Belle!” Mason protested, his expression reflecting his alarm.

“It doesn’t sound like the best of plans,”
the officer agreed, his tone full of doubt.

“I agree, it’s not what I’d prefer.” She
shivered. “I’d be happy not to spend another moment under the same
roof with my husband, but he has my babies and I’m not leaving
without them. He won’t have any idea what’s transpired tonight and
I’m certainly not going to breathe a word.” She eyed Senior
Constable Rogers. “You said it will be some time tomorrow before
the court approves the AVO?”

“Yes. Court doesn’t sit before ten, so it
will be some time after that.”

“Then tonight I should be safe. Nigel has no
reason to suspect what’s happening and the earliest he’ll know
anything about it is after ten tomorrow when he’s served. Returning
home tonight is the best plan I can come up with. I’ll leave with
my children after Nigel leaves for work in the morning.”

Mason still looked doubtful. His lips were
pressed in a mutinous line, like he wanted to argue with her some
more. She glanced at her watch and noted the time. She had less
than ten minutes left of her break. Pushing away from the table,
she held out her hand to the police officer.

“Thank you, Senior Constable Rogers. I
appreciate your time and efforts and I’ll be even more grateful
tomorrow when you’ve obtained the AVO.”

The officer nodded in response. “I’ll go
first thing in the morning and I’ll call you on your cell as soon
as it’s done.”

“Thank you,” she murmured for the second
time and turned to leave. Mason stood and together they left the
room.

* * *

Isobel was quiet on the short return ride to
the hospital. Mason could understand her silence. She’d been
through so much at the station, having shared all of the horrible
details of her life. The anger that had settled in the bottom of
his gut like an icy block of cement, stirred and twisted and once
again, the cold, burning fire of fury surged through his veins. He
wanted to take Nigel Donnelly apart, limb by limb and torture him
as he did it. Knowing what he’d done to Belle…

“I can feel your anger and frustration from
here,” Isobel murmured and Mason gritted his teeth. She turned to
him and through the dimness, he saw a quiet strength and
determination in her eyes.

“I’ll be fine, Mason. It will be no
different from any other night. A thousand other nights.”

“But knowing what he’s—”

“One more night. That’s all it is. I can do
it. If it means leaving peacefully with my children during Nigel’s
absence tomorrow, I can do it.”

He stared at her, his lips compressed, not
trusting himself to speak. Even one more night was more than he
could bear to think about, but he understood her reasoning. Nigel
had become so unpredictable where she was concerned, it was
impossible to know how he’d react to having Mason and/or a police
officer turn up on his doorstep as a protective detail for his
wife. The last thing Mason wanted to do was tip off a man who was
clearly on the edge.

The kind of things Belle had spoken about at
the station… He shook his head, still in shock at the depravity
she’d revealed. He drew in a deep breath and blew it out between
taut lips and forced himself to relax. He glanced across at
her.

“Let’s talk about tomorrow. We need a plan.
Do you have any idea where you’re going to go?”

“My parents are still living back home in
Maitland, but they’re not in the best of health. Dad has dementia
and Mom’s just plain worn out. She’s been his primary caretaker for
years.” She paused and then added, “My sister Katrina will take us
in, but she’s living in a shoebox in Bondi. Kat and I are close,
but I… She thinks Nigel is the perfect husband and I haven’t told
her he’s anything but. Besides, Nigel knows where Kat lives. He’ll
look for us there and once I’ve left for good, there’s no way in
the world I can let him find us…”

All of a sudden, the fear was back. She
looked terrified at the prospect. Mason’s hands tightened on the
steering wheel.

“It’s probably best if we go to a hotel,”
she continued quietly. “There are so many in the city. I could
register under a different name…”

Mason listened to her suggestions and his
heart rebelled against every one. His head told him the best thing
to do was to stay the hell away from her and the temptation she
represented, but his heart was having none of that. Some might call
him a fool, but there was no denying the pull Isobel West still had
on him. He’d let her walk away ten years ago. He wasn’t about to
repeat the same mistake.

“You can stay with me,” he blurted out. “I
have plenty of room and Nigel won’t come looking for you there. He
doesn’t even know I’m in Sydney, let alone that we’ve
reconnected.”

Isobel shook her head. “I can’t ask you to
do that for us. Besides, if he does find out, you’ll be at risk,
too. It’s not fair for me to do that. It’s bad enough that I asked
you to come with me to the police station and help me leave.”

Mason waved her concerns away. “Don’t worry
about me. I can take care of myself. I’m a big boy. Nigel won’t
find it so easy to intimidate me or leave marks for all to see. And
in the unlikely event that he’s stupid enough to try, it won’t be
me wearing the bruises.” He stared at her and she gazed right back.
A moment later, she lowered her head.

“I thought I’d done a good job with the
makeup.”

“You did. I’m sure no one else noticed. I
had particular reason to pay attention.”

She looked up and searched his face—for what
he couldn’t be sure. A tiny frown marred the perfect paleness of
her skin. The silence stretched out and she continued to stare. She
was so close he could count her freckles, even in the dimness of
the car.

His heart took off at double time. The air
around them was suddenly charged. She reached across the gearshift
and briefly touched his hand. His heart stood still. Her expression
remained serious.

“Thank you, Mason. For everything.”

He acknowledged her thanks with a brief nod
and returned his attention to the road. As much as he wanted to
shout it from the tallest city office block, now wasn’t the time to
tell her he was still in love with her and that there was nothing
in the world he wouldn’t do for her. He cleared his throat.

“What time does Nigel leave for work in the
morning?”

“He usually leaves around seven-thirty. On a
normal day I give the kids breakfast. Sometimes we go to the park.
I do laundry, clean the house, organize dinner. The usual
stuff.”

“What time does he come home?”

“It depends upon emergencies and how his
theater list has gone, but it’s usually around seven in the
evening.”

Mason nodded. “Good. That gives us just
under twelve hours from the time he leaves until he returns
home.”

Isobel stared at him, her green eyes wide
and solemn. Once again, fear chased itself across her face, but she
nodded. He couldn’t help but feel a surge of admiration for her
courage.

Despite the horrors she’d relayed to him and
the police officer, he knew the decision to walk out on her
marriage hadn’t come easily. It pained him to think that even now,
after all she’d been through, she was still second guessing the
choice she’d made. Remembering the errand he’d run earlier that
afternoon, he reached into the pocket of his coat and pulled out a
cell phone. He handed it to her.

“This is for you. It’s prepaid, so there’s
no account or paper trail for Nigel to follow. Keep yours in case
he calls you.”

“Oh, he’ll call all right.”

“Once he knows for sure you’re gone, you
won’t need to answer his calls. You can get rid of your cell and
use this one. I’ll be at work tomorrow. It’s important that I act
as if nothing is out of the ordinary. The fact that he doesn’t know
I’m in Sydney is a good thing, but still I want to be cautious. I
don’t want him to link us in any way. That will only endanger you
and I sure as hell don’t want that. Unfortunately, it means I won’t
get home before seven tomorrow night, so you’ll be on your own
until then.”

She sat forward in her seat, a look of
concern in her eyes. “But I don’t know where you live or how to get
there.”

“I’ve programmed directions to my apartment
into the new phone. Just go to Google maps and follow the
prompts.”

“But, what about your neighbors? Won’t they
wonder about a woman and two children moving into your house?”

He shook his head. “I haven’t had time to do
more than greet one or two people in the building with little more
than a passing nod. They don’t know anything about me. They won’t
question you.”

“Is there a key?”

He reached into his pocket and pulled out
the spare key he’d had cut while he’d been out purchasing the
phone.

“Here.” He pressed it into her palm and
closed her fingers around it. He tried not to think how soft and
warm her hand felt. She stared at him, her eyes dark with
emotion.

“Thank you,” she whispered.

Isobel checked her side mirror and changed
lanes. It was way past late. At eleven, her shift had finally
ended. In a daze, she’d headed for home and in half an hour, she’d
be there. Home. With Nigel. With her kids. Her lips trembled at
what could lie ahead for her, but she refused to give in to her
fear.

After the meeting with Senior Constable
Rogers, when Mason had pulled up into the hospital car park with
only minutes to spare, her stomach had been tight with nerves and a
headache pierced her eyes. She’d swallowed some Tylenol, but it had
barely taken the edge off. The last thing she wanted now was to
drive home to Nigel, but she didn’t have a choice.

Somehow, she had to carry on as normal, as
if nothing momentous had occurred—or was about to. She’d never been
good at lying and especially not to her husband. The few times
she’d attempted to, it ended with him slapping her hard across the
face. Somehow, he’d always been able to detect any hint of her
deceit.

The thought of pretending all was well made
her even more tense and anxious. Hot tears burned behind her eyes.
She bit her lip and tried to stem the flow, but despite her best
efforts, they made a slow, desperate path down her cheeks. She
lifted her foot off the accelerator and eased the car over to the
side. With her head in her hands, she sobbed.

She wasn’t sure how much time passed, but
the clock on the console told her it was almost midnight. Panic
surged through her. Her husband was waiting for her. He hated it
when she was late. She hadn’t been lying when she’d told Mason how
difficult Nigel got over things like that. She had to get home.
Fast.

Searching through her handbag for a tissue,
she swiped at the moisture on her cheeks. With a determined blow of
her nose, she pulled her Toyota Magna back onto the road. Like
she’d told Mason, it was only one more night. Then she could make
good her escape. But she was so scared he’d somehow discover her
plan. She was even more terrified the planning was too late.

At last, she pulled into the drive outside
her house. The building was silent and dark—not even the porch
light was on. She was upset that Nigel hadn’t shown her even that
smallest consideration, but couldn’t help but also feel relieved
that he’d gone to bed. Taking care to bury Mason’s cell phone and
house key deep inside her handbag, she climbed out.

The half moon provided enough light that she
could make out the front step. With her door key in hand, she
cautiously made her way up the porch steps and inserted it into the
lock. The knob turned and the door opened without a sound. She
breathed a tiny sigh of relief and crept into the house.