“Don’t judge me,” she said and opened the door.
Liam glanced down at the lock with an old iron key on the outside of the door and then followed her in.
“Pink?” He grinned.
“I said not to judge me.” She rolled her eyes. “I was a very girly girl. Okay she’s not in here. Last room is her bedroom,” she said, ushering Liam out of her room.
They walked along the creaking hallway and into the room at the end. Liam walked over to the tiny window by the bed and looked out over a small, neat garden.
“Satisfied?” he asked.
Beccy let out a heavy sigh. “I suppose so. I mean I’m glad we haven’t found her collapsed anywhere...and there is the note. So, yes.”
“Good,” Liam said. “Let’s get out of here.”
Liam turned and then stopped as something caught his eye. He ran his hand over several of the wooden rods of the headboard.
“Looks like your aunt may be a bit kinkier than you think.”
“I doubt that. Why?”
“Look here.” He pointed to the lighter lines around the spindles. “See, the wood’s been worn away here. I can feel the dents. Made by handcuffs if I’m not mistaken.”
“No way. This bed frame is as old as the house. Could have been anything. Let’s go.”
“I didn’t know that having a bondage fetish was hereditary.”
Beccy rolled her eyes. “I’m getting you out of here before you start looking through the drawers for whips and blindfolds and searching the house for a secret sex dungeon.”
Liam laughed and allowed himself to be pushed out of the room. Back in the kitchen, Beccy picked up the note and stuffed it into her pocket. As they left the house, Liam noticed her puzzled expression as she looked around the kitchen one last time before switching off the light and shutting the backdoor.
“Is it far to your house?” Liam asked.
Beccy guided him around a large stone flowerpot he’d missed seeing in the settling dusk.
“No. Just a few minutes by car. Sandborn isn’t a big place. Everywhere is just a few minutes away.”
“Have you got any food in your house or do we need to stop at the supermarket to stock up?” Liam asked as he opened the passenger door and waited for her to slide inside.
“There’s not much fresh but there’s bits in the freezer and stuff in the cupboard.”
“Mmm, bits and stuff. Sounds delicious,” he said as he got into the car and started the engine. “Let’s go to the supermarket first.”
“We might be able to pick up something from the post office. It doubles as a small shop. The nearest supermarket is half-an-hour away.”
“Bits and stuff it is then.” Liam didn’t want to delay their evening together any longer.
Less than four minutes later they pulled up outside a scruffy, thatched cottage just off the high street.
“It’s a doer-upper. You’re going to have to watch your head in there. Some of the doorways are pretty low. Even I hit my head,” Beccy explained as they walked up the steep steps to the front door.
“I’ll be careful.” Liam ducked through the doorway into a tiny kitchen. “Don’t they believe in hallways in Sandborn?” he asked as he put their bags down.
“It’s two tiny cottages knocked into one. They don’t have space for extravagant things like you big city folk do,” Beccy said with a laugh. She pointed to a door in the kitchen. “The stairs behind there that lead up to my study, and through here is the dining room.” She stepped into a small room with a dining table in the centre “Why are you grinning.”
“I love the way you tell me what each room is, just in case I get confused.”
She narrowed her eyes at him, but a smile played on her lips. “I was taught to be polite.”
Suddenly all the colour drained from her cheeks, and she swayed forward. Liam grabbed her around the waist. For a second her eyes glazed over, then they came back into focus, and she blinked at Liam in confusion.
“Woah, I don’t know what happened there. Felt a bit dizzy.”
“You need to sit down.”
Liam supported her weight and guided her through a tiny doorway into a sitting room. She sank into the deep sofa.
“Sorry,” she mumbled.
“Wait there,” Liam said and hurried back to the kitchen.
After riffling through the cupboards, he returned a minute later with a glass of water, and a slice of madeira cake. Beccy opened her eyes.
“It’s the best I could do.” He shrugged. “Eat. Drink. You haven’t had much today. I should have insisted you ate something when we stopped at the services. Plus, you’ve been stressed about your aunt and your period’s due. No wonder you’re dizzy.”
Beccy broke off a small piece of cake and popped it in her mouth.
“Do you often get dizzy spells?”
She shook her head and then changed it to a shrug. “Sometimes.”
Liam sighed. “I can see I’m going to have make sure you take better care of yourself.”
“I’m okay, but I think I should have a little lie down.” She shrugged out of her coat and draped it over the arm of the sofa.
“Eat a bit more first. Have you got anything like fruit or juice?”
She shook her head. “I feel a bit sick. I don’t really want anything to eat yet.”
“Do you want to go up to bed?”
“No, I’ll just stretch out here,” she said and kicked off her trainers. “I’m a bit chilly, would you mind lighting the fire? It’s ready to go.”
Liam looked at the wrought iron fireplace in the alcove behind him. Lumps of coal sat on top of a crisscross layer of kindling and scrunched up balls of paper. He spotted a long-handled fire lighter on the mantle and used that to light the paper. He watched for a moment as the paper flared and the kindling caught fire and decided he’d have to get a real fire back in his apartment. There was something comforting and hypnotic about watching the flames dance. He turned back to Beccy.
“There we go. Now, I’ll make something for dinner. You’ll be famished when you wake up.”
“Thank you.”
Beccy stretched herself out on the sofa, and Liam planted a kiss on her forehead.
“We’ll have words about this when you’re feeling better.”
“Make yourself at home. I’ll be with you in a...few...minutes.” Her eyes closed and her voice faded.
“Sleep well.” Liam pulled a fluffy, black blanket from the back of the sofa and draped it over her body.
“Sorry,” she mumbled again. “Shadow...feed him.”
“Leave it with me. Get some rest.”
A tiny window, smaller than Liam’s television back in London, was set in the thick, stone walls. He rested his elbows on the deep ledge with its multitude of small cat figurines in various poses and peered out the window up at the shining full moon. A long, heavy sigh slipped from his lips. Every plan he attempted to make with Beccy kept being scuppered by the universe. He pulled the curtains shut. The universe had another thing coming if they expected him to give up.
He headed to the kitchen and began his search for something healthy and nutritious.