Page 88 of The House Guest

‘Give me the gun,’ he said, taking a handgun from his security guy, who had been standing guarding the door throughout.

Emilio had Callum on his front, pinned to the ground with his arms behind his back. ‘Doesn’t Eden want to do it herself?’ Emilio asked.

Gabriel lowered the gun. ‘Let him up.’

Emilio and Brittany got to their feet, leaving Callum on the ground. Slowly, he pushed himself into a sitting position. Gabriel pointed the gun at Callum’s face.

‘Get up,’ he said.

Slowly, Callum did as he was told.

‘Emilio, get Eden. I want this done now.’

Gabriel and Emilio led me out, leaving Callum behind with Brittany. Then Gabriel’s security guy came with us into another room. As we entered, Gabriel turned to Emilio and said, ‘Get everything ready.’

Emilio nodded and walked away before Gabriel shut and locked the door. Now it was just me, him and the security guy.

‘Ready for what?’ I asked.

He didn’t reply, and as he looked at me, it came back to me. I had thought he looked familiar when I first saw the photo of him. Now I knew where I had seen him before.

‘You were in the park. When Ruth’s phone was stolen.’ He was the man who had given chase, the one who had spoken to us and told Ruth to report it to the police. He’d been clean-shaven then and had been wearing sunglasses. But it was definitely him.

‘Well done. You clearly have a better memory for faces than Ruth.’

‘Why were you there? Because you wanted to get a proper look at her? In the flesh?’

I guessed he had stolen Ruth’s phone so Eden could give her a new one with a tracker inside, in case he needed to keep tabs on her. And as a bonus he had got access to all Ruth’s private photos.

‘You’re disgusting,’ I spat. ‘When did you first become obsessed with her? Was it before or after the cruise? Did Mona tell you about her existence?’

He didn’t respond. Instead he walked over to the window while I continued to rant at him.

‘What have you done to her?’ I demanded. ‘Have you brainwashed her? Forced her to join your cult?’

He pressed a couple of buttons on a panel on the wall and, to my astonishment, the glass slid away and a balcony emerged, jutting out into the open air. I was silenced, staring out at the night, the illuminated city, as wind gusted into the room.

Gabriel grabbed me by the front of my shirt. I tried to resist but he was stronger than he looked, and the security guy stepped forward, gun in hand.

Gabriel pushed me on to the balcony and against the thin rail, gripping my throat, breathing in my face. I could feel the fifty-storey drop behind me, hear the distant drone of a helicopter. I tried to grasp hold of the rail as Gabriel shoved me up against it, and made the mistake of turning my head for a second to look down, only to imagine myself falling, down, down, to smash on the pavement below.

‘How many other people know about us?’ Gabriel demanded, spittle landing on my face. ‘Who have you talked to?’

‘None.’

‘Liar! I know about Wanda Brooks. Who else? Ruth’s understudy? What did you say to her?’

‘Nothing.’ The word came out strangled and he loosened his grip on my throat a little.

‘How many people do I need to kill?’ he spat.

I didn’t speak. I really didn’t believe he would push me. This wasn’t the middle of nowhere. A body hitting the ground would draw the police, TV news crews, crowds of onlookers. Maybe Gabriel saw this realisation enter my eyes, as he suddenly dragged me back into the room and threw me to the floor.

‘Want me to kill him?’ the security guy said.

Gabriel paced around me. I could see and feel the anger coming off him. Maybe I shouldn’t push him further, I thought, but I couldn’t help myself.

‘Callum and I figured out how to find you,’ I said from my position on the floor. ‘Other people will too. You’re nowhere near as smart as you think you are, Gabriel. You’re not special. You’re a narcissist. A megalomaniac. A small man with a god complex. And one day the law is going to catch up with you and take all this away. I’d like to see how special you think you are when you’re rotting in a cell.’

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