Page 114 of The Girl in the Woods

The house was huge. However, Ana considered it probably not that large for Oxford. Back home in Kirby, a place like this would belong to someone very influential or well-known. The driveway was wide enough for four cars. A black Mercedes and a Land Rover sat alongside another vehicle, which Ana recognised as Beth’s.

‘I’ll park outside,’ said Jonny. ‘Leave space for the important people.’

‘What do you mean?’ She smiled. ‘I am the important person.’ She hoped it would relieve her nerves, but it didn’t. To Ana’s relief, Beth opened the front door.

‘Love the dress,’ said Beth, hugging her warmly.

The desire to flee was so overwhelming that she wasn’t aware of Jonny pulling her forward.

‘Thanks for the invitation,’ Jonny was saying.

The smell of the barbeque reached Ana’s nostrils, and the sound of laughter and clinking of glasses was all too much. God, she was fucking hyperventilating.

‘Hi,’ said a bright voice. ‘I’m Sandy. How’s your jaw feeling?’

A woman now stood beside Beth. Ana thought she looked like a celebrity with perfectly coiffured hair and bright red fingernails. Her perfume wafted over Ana, and she could tell it was expensive. She was as unlike Beth as anyone could be.

Ana was struggling to breathe. ‘It’s better, thank you.’

‘Great. Come through and meet everyone.’

‘Can I use your loo first,’ she asked breathlessly.

Sandy directed her to the downstairs toilet, which was as fragrant as her. Ana rummaged shakily through her bag for the Valium she’d brought with her and swallowed two. God, what she wouldn’t do for a drink. After taking several deep breaths, she left the loo. The hallway was empty. Boisterous laughter could be heard from the garden. Ana looked at the doors that led off the hallway. Then her eyes locked on the front door. She could run now. Grab her stuff from the flat and be on her way home.

‘Are you lost?’ said a voice behind her. Ana felt a tingling in her chest as she turned around. He appeared to be one who had learned how to look confident as a survival skill. One couldn’t deny his handsomeness.

Her lips trembled when she smiled. ‘Looking for the garden,’ she said.

‘Follow me,’ he said in an almost playful tone. ‘I’m Michael, by the way, Michael Rust. Ray’s partner at the practice.’

‘Ana,’ she said.

He nodded knowingly. ‘Ah, yes, we met briefly. How are you? You looked rather unwell when I last saw you.’

‘Something I’d eaten,’ she lied.

‘Well, nothing here should make you ill. No rabbit stew or pigeon pie.’ He laughed.

Sandy appeared then. ‘Did I overhear you talking about my cooking?’

‘Only that awful rabbit stew. One of Sandy’s clients spends much of her time shooting rabbits, pigeons, and pheasants, of which we get the pleasure of eating.’

Just the thought of a rabbit stew made Ana nauseous.

‘Is she licensed to have a shotgun?’ she asked.

Sandy pulled Ana to one side. ‘Honestly, he should know better than to discuss my clients. I visit her at home. I’m a counsellor, by the way. She has a lot of land and needs to keep it under control. So I’m always getting dead rabbits and pigeons. She’s quite safe. I have been seeing her for years,’ Sandy assured her. ‘She’s eccentric but not unstable.’

The noise was getting closer. Where was Jonny? They walked through the living area, which seemed cluttered with toys, out through some French windows and onto a patio where tables and chairs had been laid out.

‘You’re from up north,’ Michael said. It wasn’t a question.

‘Kirby, Liverpool. Do you know it?’

He shook his head. ‘Never had the pleasure.’

Ana shivered, even though it was extremely humid.

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