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Allee shook her head. After hearing how badly Stuart had hurt her precious feline, she couldn't speak and felt a sense of dread at seeing just how battered Piddle was. She felt Noah squeeze her hand in reassurance, and she gave him a quick squeeze in return.
“Well, if you come this way, you can say hello to Piddle and take her home.”
Allee took a deep breath and followed Simon into the back area, Noah following behind with Piddle's crate. They passed cages holding cats, small dogs, and even a guinea pig. Then they arrived at the one that held Piddle. Allee gave an involuntary cry at the sight of her. Piddle was almost unrecognisable with the patches of shaved fur, the stitches, and the scabs that covered her. Her tail had been bandaged to keep it straight, and a gauze pad dressed her left eye. She also had a plastic cone fastened around her neck, which made her appear even more pathetic.
“Oh, Piddle, my poor, sweet girl!”
At the sound of Allee's voice, Piddle opened her right eye and meowed piteously. Tears welled up in Allee's eyes, and she reached a trembling hand out, lacing her fingers through the cage door.
“She looks a lot worse at the moment than she actually is. We've given her some strong pain killers, and they've made her a bit woozy. Once she's back at home and settled in, she'll sleep most of it off, but you'll still need to make sure she's getting loads of rest.”
Allee nodded, still unable to speak without crying. She stood back as Simon opened the cage, gently cradling Piddle in his arms, and then transferred her into the cat-crate.
That night, Allee, Sammy, and Andre all sat down to dinner together, Allee having cooked up a delicious chicken and sweet potato bake. It was the first time in several days that Allee had felt like cooking. She'd never made it since Stuart scoffed at it, associating it with the ugly memory of Stuart's actions rather than the many loving memories from her mother and grandmother. But Sammy and Andre were both impressed at the flavour and the simplicity of the dish. Andre even asked for the recipe.
The evening passed quietly without incident. Despite the frustration of needing others to stay for her safety, Allee began to feel as though she may come out the other side of the battle in one piece.
After Thursday's failure, Stuart kept a low profile, only watching the studio to see if Allee was back at work.
Stuart had used Saturday to find a place to observe Allee's house without getting too close and had found a thicket of trees and scrub in the bushland behind her complex. It helped screen him from any passers-by and gave him a great line-of-sight to the rear of Allee's house.
He had spent most of Sunday there and had noticed that she had spent the night with two men, one tall and blonde, the other average height and dark. Stuart had felt the rage building inside of him at the thought that Allee was entertaining other men. He wondered if perhaps the tall blonde was sleeping with her? He'd put a stop to that soon enough.
Chapter Twenty-Two
Allee dressed with care. This was a big week for everyone, and she thought if she could fake confidence, she'd be able to get through it without completely losing the plot. She knew she would need to look professional and composed, so she had organised her outfits for the week after she had finished packing everything for Charlie's. She dressed more formally than usual. A charcoal-grey fitted dress with a pencil skirt that ended below the knees was teamed with a black and cream patterned jacket, stockings, and black heels. Allee's hair was pulled back into a neat chignon, and her make-up and jewellery were understated. Both Andre and Michael were surprised at the formal style but didn't say anything other than she looked smart. After breakfast, Allee travelled with Michael in his little Suzuki Swift, with Andre following in his Triton.
The day passed in a blur. Allee was flat-out with last-minute organisation issues, looking out for Stuart's Monaro on her journey home with Beth and Mark. Beth thought she saw it a couple of times but couldn't be sure if she imagined it. They made their way into the complex, and when they arrived at Allee's town house, they saw Mr Barker standing out the front.
“Hello ladies, how are you both today?” the older man said.
“Hi Mr Barker, we're both good. How are you and Mrs Barker?”
“We're both well, thank you, Allee. Just wanted to let you know that we've been keeping an eye on your place during the day like your young man asked us to. We haven't seen anyone around today. How's your cat?”
“Oh, thank you for that. Piddle is healing well, I'll be taking her to the vet next week for a check-up, and if all goes well, she'll have all of her stitches out the following week.”
“Lovely to hear that she's on the mend. I can't abide people who mistreat animals, and I hope they find the person responsible.”
“So do I, Mr Barker. So do I.”
With that, Allee and Beth entered the town house to await Charlie's arrival. It wasn't long before Allee heard her intercom buzz, and as she could see Charlie's grinning face on the screen, she unlocked the gate to let her in. Within moments Charlie was bounding through the front door, dropping her bag on the floor in the lounge, and the three women sat down to relax and unwind with a coffee.
On Tuesday, Allee dressed in a pinstriped suit, the pants tailored, the jacket fitted. Underneath, she wore a short-sleeved blouse in mint green, and she completed the outfit with leather ankle boots. Her hair in a loose yet neat bun, she looked calm and composed, even though she felt anything but.
When she arrived at the office with Beth and Mark, Allee was still jittery. She had been looking out for Stuart's Monaro but hadn't seen it. Although she wasn’t sure if it was real or imagined, she still felt she was being watched. Allee went through the motions before the workday started and then made her way into the conference room for the weekly meeting. She had a lot to get through that morning, particularly in preparation for Gareth's visit on Wednesday, the media launch on Thursday, and the party on Friday. Once everyone had assembled, Craig opened the meeting with a brief reminder of the importance of the coming events before handing over to Allee.
“We've got a busy week ahead. Gareth will be in tomorrow. He will be heading up a general meeting to go over the plan before speaking to each of you about the roles you've played in the production of Guardians III. Thursday is the launch. We will have journalists attending, and this will be our last opportunity to influence the outcome of the first batch of reviews – and we all know how important they are!” she set a list of names on the table and gestured towards it. “We are also expecting local press, and so this will be a fantastic opportunity for us to get out to the local community what we do.”
Allee spent the next fifteen minutes going through the itinerary of the remainder of the week, briefing each Lead as to what they would be responsible for. Once she was finished, she opened the meeting up for other business. Sammy cleared his throat, and everyone looked towards him expectantly.
“There's a fair bit of anticipation towards Return of the Warrior, with lots of speculation about the new features. However, we do still have an issue with 'Harvester'.” Sammy paused, looking towards Allee before explaining. “We have managed to track down a few of Stuart's fake accounts; he seems to have gone for names of songs, primarily by Metallica, but with a couple of Sabaton and Monster Magnet too. So far, he's had Harvester of Sorrow, Carolus Rex, The Unforgiven, Space Lord, Primo Victoria, and Low Man. Anyway, his latest offering is quite disturbing.”
Sammy handed around a single sheet of paper with several posts copied on it. They read:
Seems like she enjoys a spit-roast or two, white meat with a shot of hot curry sauce.
Fucking whore belongs in the back of a Hong Kong whorehouse.
