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Stuart had also taken up smoking, much to his own disgust, although he was meticulous not to do so where his parents might stumble across him. The withdrawals he had experienced over lunch had not helped his mood, and he was ready to explode by the time he went home.
Some nights Stuart would go to sleep imagining how he would punish Allee for her betrayal. That night he lay back, pleasuring himself, as he plotted how to make her suffer mentally. He knew that if he had the cat, Allee would be at his mercy, as her devotion for the stupid thing held no bounds.
April, Present Year
It had been a long couple of months before Stuart learnt about Allee's whereabouts in Lalor. His friend in the NSW Roads and Maritime had alerted him to the fact that Allee had changed her driver’s licence over to a Victorian one and that it had been done in the Bundoora service centre.
In his desperation to find her, Stuart had taken to social media and posted up on Facebook pages for the Whittlesea area about a much-loved cat that had disappeared and how he was trying to help his cousin find her. It was only a week before someone had tipped him off about Piddle's possible location.
The satisfaction and perverted glee that he'd experienced when he'd first stood outside her house in the early hours of that April morning had aroused him to the extent that he had needed to relieve himself in a public toilet. His surroundings were so unsanitary, which inflamed him even more, leading to further sadistic fantasies about his revenge.
August, Present Year
After Stuart was turned away from the house where he'd known Allee had been staying, Stuart focussed on tracking her down again, but he was getting close. It was the work of a few short weeks to find out from her workplace that she was now residing in Brisbane, working as an office manager. He’d needed all his cunning to get this information. Being able to call the studio and hear her voice over the line for the first time in almost a year had elated him. Now he was on her home turf.
Although he didn't know where she was living, he knew where she worked, and he didn't feel it would be long before she would be opening her front door to see him standing there.
Nothing would stop him this time.
Chapter Seventeen
Waking with a brilliant smile on his face, Noah’s heart felt both full to bursting and light at the same time, and he wondered if he'd be able to contain his happiness. He and Allee had agreed that they would continue as before, not flaunting their relationship but not hiding it either. Noah had joked that they wouldn't be the centre of attention at work for long, as he had a feeling that Andre would be asking Charlie out soon, to which she had responded with the suggestion of a double-date. This had led to a tickle then pillow-fight and Piddle yowling with indignation at having received a pillow to her face. Noah couldn't remember being so happy for a long time, and his grin stayed on his face as he left for work.
Arriving at the Business and Technology Park, he noticed a beautifully restored plum coloured Holden HG Monaro tucked up in the back corner of one of the car parks facing the studio. He couldn't see if there was anyone inside, but he could appreciate the time and money that must have been spent labouring over such a beautiful machine. Shrugging off the distraction, Noah drove to the rear of the office and parked in his usual space, arriving at the same time as Michael.
Chatting genially as they made their way upstairs, Noah saw Allee had already arrived and was making coffee. He ducked his head over her shoulder.
“Yes, please!” Noah said as he passed, eliciting a nod and smile in response.
He found Allee to be utterly mesmerising and couldn’t believe that he'd been fortunate enough to not only find someone so beautiful inside and out but also that she felt the same way about him. Six months ago, he'd have said that a long-term relationship was off the cards for the foreseeable future, but now he was calculating how long he should wait before asking Allee to move in with him. He was enamoured with both her and Piddle and hadn’t realised how much he missed having a cat around. He could see them living together and possibly beyond. This was a new experience for him, and he could only hope that Allee felt the same way.
Today was going to be a good day. That it would be one to look back and remember.
Noah did not know how correct he would be, but not for the reasons he'd thought.
Allee hadn't been able to sleep the night before. She was so keyed up with what had occurred over the weekend. Making her way to work, she felt energised nonetheless, walking her usual route around the back entrance, through the rear car park, and then to the front of the building which housed the studio. She didn’t notice the dark purple Monaro nor see the man sitting in the driver's seat watching her intently.
Allee entered her office, loaded up her Hard Repeat playlist, and cranked up the speakers while Imagine Dragons belted out Thunder. After a couple of other songs, she turned the music down and went out to make a coffee, hearing others turn up. Darryl walked past, nodding his acceptance as she offered to make him a drink.
She had an instant to recognise Noah's scent before hearing him whisper, “Yes please!” in her ear. She turned, smiling and nodding, and then raised her eyebrows to Michael. He grinned, so she pulled an extra couple of mugs from the cupboard and started filling them.
The day continued happily, the entire office falling back into its routine, Allee making the rounds for coffee refills, stopping here and there to chat with someone, laughing and joking. Enclosed in such a warm and relaxed atmosphere, Allee could feel herself unwind, her long-repressed sunny nature shining through, drawing the gaze and smiles of several of her colleagues.
As Allee left to walk home, she felt a chill go over her skin. She looked around but could not see anyone there. It was strange, but she felt like she was being watched. Not wishing to dwell on nastiness, she shrugged the feeling off and walked behind the office to cut through the car park. Heading down the track, Allee wound through the bushland, the dwindling light enough for her to make her way to where she crossed over the road before making her way back to her town house. She didn’t see the Monaro idling in the car park, but if she had, she would have been relieved to know that the driver had not been able to follow.
Allee was excited. Today was Friday, and earlier that week she and Noah had decided that she would spend the weekend with him, along with Piddle, and she had never been to his house before. Allee knew that they wouldn't get much done over the weekend and that Noah had plans regarding candles, flowers, a bed, and not much else. She didn’t mind at all, having not felt this way for so long. It was as if she was a teenager, in love for the first time, and her thoughts centred purely on Noah and how she could manage to spend as much time as possible with him.
Ensuring that she packed a bag containing enough for the weekend, she also prepared Piddle's crate, not worrying about the litter tray or food, as Noah had assured her, he would purchase those items. She left the container with her overnight bag at the front door, propping it open so that Piddle could get used to having it there again. Then she headed to work, her mind already on the weekend ahead, and the myriad of experiences that awaited her.
Allee entered the rear car park just as Michael and Sammy arrived and walked around to the front of the building, happily chatting with them. She felt momentarily disconcerted, the hair on the back of her neck prickling as if she was being watched. She glanced around, but couldn’t pinpoint where the feeling was coming from, so she shook it off and walked inside, laughing at the tail end of Michael’s joke.
At the end of the day, Allee headed downstairs, Charlie in tow. Charlie had been keenly observing Noah and Allee and had entered Allee's office moments before, a knowing look on her face.
“Patched things up between the two of you then?” she asked with a devious grin. Allee blushed and smiled.
“Patched it up and then some!” she responded with a wink. Charlie whooped in glee and grabbed Allee, pulling her into a tight, excited hug.
“Ohmigod! You gotta give me deets, girl! I want to know everything.”
