Page 15 of Savage Obsession

My fists clench of their own accord. “Did you move yourself in because of Lily? To get close to her?”

“I suppose you’d say Julia was a package deal,” he agrees. “And quite a tasty little package at that.”

“But it didn’t go quite the way you wanted, did it? Lily didn’t like you. Did she?” I know I’m pushing it, but he might bite. He seems stupid enough.

Sure enough, he leers knowingly at me. “She would have come around, eventually. They always do.”

“You’ve done this before, then? Cosied up to a woman with kids?”

“Maybe, once or twice. It can save a lot of messing about.”

“Outside schools, you mean? In playgrounds?”

“You make it sound tacky. I’m just a bloke who knows what he likes. Same as you. There’s no harm in it. No one gets hurt.”

“Would it matter if they did?”

“I’m not a monster,” he spits, indignant suddenly. “I never touched a kid who didn’t want it.”

It’s a real struggle to keep my tone low and calm, but while he’s in the mood to talk, I’ll take what I can get. Years of interrogation training have put a range of tools at my disposal, and I know what I’m getting right now is the truth as he sees it. The animal.

“Why would they want it?” I probe. “Lily’s only twelve. How would she even know what was going on?”

He shrugs. “They just… do. You can tell.”

I rein in my revulsion. “Like when you walked in on her in the bath? How did that go?”

He chuckles. “She shrieked the place down. I caught her by surprise, that’s all. Next time…”

My self-control snaps. “You’re a filthy pervert, Debinbski.”

He glares at me. “No, I’m not. I just?—”

“Do you get off on it? Groping children? Spying on young girls? Lusting after kids? You’re a fucking animal.” My blood boils when I think of my little girl, trapped in her own home with this monster. Driven to flee everything she knows, on her own, just to feel safe.

“I never touched her,” he protests.

“No?” Probably true, but not for the want of trying. “But you would have. And you fucking looked.”

“No harm in that.” He wrestles with his bonds. “Let me go, or I’ll?—”

“I’m calling the shots here, Debinbski. I’m doing the looking now, the touching.”

He eyes me warily, only just beginning to perceive the danger he’s in. “What do you mean? What’s this about?”

I stand and lean over him. “I’m her father, Debinbski. You tried to get your filthy paws on my daughter. Scared her. I can’t allow that. Like I said, you’re a pervert, a danger to young girls. Boys, too, for all I know. That has to stop.”

“Okay. I—” He’s starting to sob now. “I understand. Please, just let me go and I promise I won’t…”

I ignore his blubbering and stroll over to the kitchen worktop. I start opening cupboards and drawers until I find something to suit my needs. This place is pristine, he must hire a cleaning contractor to come in and service it. They probably bring a lot of their own equipment and products, but there should be something here…

Bingo! I open the cupboard under the sink and find just what I’m searching for. Drain cleaner. I scan the list of ingredients set out under the ‘hazardous materials’ label and confirm what I’m thinking. It contains sodium hydroxide, better known as caustic soda. Perfect.

I select a glass jug from one of the cupboards and half fill it with cold water from the tap. Then I spoon in a generous measure of the caustic soda powder, three times the amount suggested on the packaging, taking great care not to get any on my hands. A pair of rubber gloves tucked into the top of a bucket under the sink will offer extra protection. He’s likely to squirm a bit.

The liquid starts to fizz. I give it a few seconds, then I approach him from behind. He won’t see this coming. In fact, he won’t ever see anything again, least of all some innocent kid. A fitting punishment for leering over what he should never have gone near.

I seize him by the hair on the top of his head and yank his head back. He lets out a startled yell, which escalates to an agonised scream as I carefully pour the bubbling liquid into his eyes. He thrashes and screeches and desperately tries to escape my attentions, but it’s futile. I empty the jug then step away to admire my work.

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