Page 138 of The Love Position

‘Adios, fuckers!’ Jessica yelled at Ganapati and Mohan as they pushed the speedboat away from the dock by the airport.

‘Make sure you think of us each time you look in the mirror, assholes! Shame on you! I hope your dicks fall off and you get reincarnated as cockroaches! Ever considered what your mothers would think of your crappy behaviour? Eh? Eh?’

Sophia collapsed onto the bench by the water’s edge and stared at the wooden boards beneath her feet. This was where she’d met Jessica three weeks ago. Back then, she never could have imagined how their ashram experience would have turned out.

Jessica took her hand. ‘You wanna call the police?’

She shook her head. ‘There’s no evidence. It’s our word against all of theirs. And I never, ever want to go back there.’

‘What about Hanuman?’

Rubbing an errant tear from the corner of her eye, Sophia shrugged. ‘Even if he believed me, which is unlikely considering how he worships Swami Vishnu, what could he do?’

Jessica was silent. No matter how laws may have changed to protect women, they both knew that most abusers remained unpunished. Here they were, hoping to change the ocean by tossing in a pebble.

‘What are you going to do?’ she asked Jessica.

‘Probably hop up to Fort Lauderdale and stay with a girlfriend until I get another job. You going straight home?’

She nodded.

Jessica put an arm around her. ‘Promise you won’t forget about me?’

Sophia leaned into her hug. ‘That would be a complete impossibility.’

‘Maybe I’ll come visit Foxbrooke one day.’

‘You definitely should. Although when you meet Estelle, the universe might implode. You look completely different, but she’s your spiritual other half.’

Jessica cackled. ‘You think England can cope with the two of us?’

‘Definitely not, but I can.’

‘And that’s all that matters. Okay, let’s get you into the terminal and find you a flight home.’

Sitting in a corner of the departure lounge, Sophia stared at her phone as it rang. She hadn’t yet told anyone she was on her way home, but she’d called Isaac repeatedly.

Where was he now? Had he noticed her absence? What had the ashram staff told him?

Every cell felt drugged with exhaustion, but her nervous system was too wired to let her sleep. That could wait until the flight from Miami back to the UK. With the money Anisha had given her, she’d upgraded to business class so had a flatbed. Sophia knew she’d sleep the moment the plane left the ground. It wasn’t just the bed, it was the fact she was leaving the continent far behind.

‘Sophia?’

She jolted as Isaac’s voice came through her phone. Nerves, excitement, anxiety, anger and grief all fought for her attention.

‘Sophia?’

‘Yes, it’s me.’

‘I’ve just got back to the ashram. Is everything okay?’

Despite everything Sophia needed to tell him, her inherent nature made her think of someone other than herself. ‘How’s Grace?’

‘Good. Just a few scratches on her hand. Luckily, her ankle isn’t broken or swollen. She’s got a Tubigrip bandage on it, but they didn’t give her crutches. Aren’t you meant to be in class now?’

Getting to her feet, Sophia went to the wall of glass overlooking the runway so nobody seated nearby could hear her.

‘I’m at the airport. Jessica and I got kicked off the island.’

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