‘Be careful, Kelly. He’s not a nice man.’
At her words, my heart knocks uncomfortably in my chest and I start to think that I must be crazy for inviting this drama into my home. But then my mind swings back to Sophie and how, without my help, Greg might have found her and taken her back to whatever it was she’s trying to escape from.
I wish Michael was still alive. He’d know exactly what to do. Ever since he died, I feel like every decision I’ve made has been the wrong one. Like my judgement is off. I never used to feel like this. Then again, I know that he wouldn’t have approved of taking in this girl in the first place. But Michael is gone. And Sophie needs my help. So I’m going to have to live with my decision and continue doing what I think is best.
The back door is locked, as I knew it would be. I go from room to room checking the ground-floor windows, and they’re all locked too. So unless Greg tries to smash his way in, I think we’re secure. I’m hoping he doesn’t know for sure that Sophie is here, and that it’s like he says and he’s simply knocking on doors, trying his luck. One thing’s for certain though – this situation can’t continue. I’m going to have to persuade Sophie to either call the police or seek help elsewhere. Now that a potentially dangerous man has shown up on our doorstep, I can’t risk exposing my children to harm.
I take a determined breath and walk upstairs to the attic room, where Sophie is sitting in the dark, on the edge of the bed, a hunched figure chewing at her fingers. She looks up as I walk in and switch on the light.
‘Does he know I’m here?’ She squints against the light.
‘I honestly don’t know. He said he was going door to door asking about you. He thinks you’re in danger.’
Sophie scowls.
‘He said he’s your husband and that he’s scared for your safety. Is he really your husband?’
She shrugs and then gives a reluctant nod.
‘And you want to leave him?’
Another nod.
‘Has he been hurting you?’
‘I really can’t… I don’t want to talk about it.’ Her voice cracks.
I sit on the bed next to her and take one of her hands in mine, giving it a squeeze. ‘I know this must be hard, but it’s possible he knows you’re staying here. It’s probably not safe—’
‘I get it.’ She snatches her hand away from mine. ‘You want me to leave.’
‘Hey, I didn’t say that.’
Sophie stands and swipes away a tear from her cheek. ‘It’s fine. I’ll go.’
‘Sophie, I didn’t say that at all. And anyway, Greg’s probably still in the vicinity, so it really isn’t a good idea to leave the house right now. Especially not while you’re upset and it’s dark out there.’ I’m trying to keep my voice quiet so as not to wake Ryan and Sonny. The last thing I need is for them to come upstairs and ask what’s going on.
‘But me staying here isn’t fair on you. On your kids. You don’t know me. You don’t owe me anything.’
‘Listen, Sophie.’ I get to my feet again and try to stay calm. ‘Obviously you can’t stay here indefinitely. It’s not practical. And now that Greg may well have found you, it’s not necessarily safe. But it’s also not a good idea for you to go running off into the night with no plan to speak of.’
She takes a deep breath. I can see it’s costing her everything to try to keep herself together.
‘The only alternatives I can see are to call the police and report your husband for whatever abuse he’s been inflicting on you.’
‘Not going to happen,’ she mutters.
‘Or, you let me find you a shelter where they’re used to helping people in your situation.’
Her shoulders droop.
‘Look… let’s leave it for tonight. It’s getting late and I doubt there’s anything I can do right now. We’ll sort something out tomorrow, okay?’
But tomorrow is the regatta and I can’t not go to that when Ryan is so looking forward to racing. This is the first time he’s shown enthusiasm about anything since his dad died. I have to give him my full attention tomorrow. This could be the start of getting my happy son back. And, actually, I may have Sophie to thank for that.
‘Why don’t you try to get a good night’s sleep. Things might seem clearer tomorrow. But I think it’s probably best if you don’t go downstairs or near any windows. Just in case anyone’s looking at the house. I can bring any food and drink up here for you.’
‘Are you sure you don’t want me to leave now? All I’ve done is bring trouble to your door.’
