Page 51 of A Very Happy Easter

“In that case, congratulations. We’ll have to get together for lunch before you leave.”

Even as I said the words, they rang hollow. These past two weeks since the movie screening, I’d felt edgier than usual. Unsettled, and I wasn’t even sure why. Salma said I should speak with my doctor, but the doctor would only give me more pills, and the pills made me dizzy and tired. Last month, I’d been happier than I could remember; this month, I wanted to curl up in bed and cry. Of course, I hadn’t told Heath that. I didn’t want him to think I was a lunatic.

“Or maybe I could come over here and bring takeout?” Victoria suggested, and I was so grateful for that. I hadn’t left the house in a fortnight.

“When are you going?”

“Not this week; don’t worry.” She gave a nervous giggle. “Sometime in the next year, so I’ll be around for a bit yet.”

“Fleeing the country before Neil gets released?” I joked, but it wasn’t really a joke. My anxiety levels ratcheted sky-high.

I hadn’t expected her to nod, but she did.

“I just…I just don’t think it’s a good idea to be around when he’s free.”

A shiver ran through me at her tone.

“Well, I took his job, didn’t I? And…and…” She looked at the floor. “Dad cut Neil off completely, and I’m part of the reason for that.”

The shiver turned icy, a glacier-like lump lodging in my throat. I’d worked with hundreds of abused women, and the way Vic was looking at me right now…

“What did Neil do?” I whispered.

“It wasn’t as bad as what he did to you, but he used to come into my bedroom at night.” Vic shook her head, and honestly, she didn’t have to elaborate. I fished a tissue out of the box on the sideboard and handed it to her.

“You didn’t tell anyone?”

“Not back then. When I threatened to go to Mum and Dad, he said they’d get divorced, and I’d have to live with Mum. Then we’d have nothing again.”

“What do you mean, again?”

“I’ve never really told anyone, but I’m not Neil’s biological sister. I’ve known him since I was four, and we even look similar, so everyone just assumes… Anyway, Dave’s my dad. The only one I’ve ever known. He adopted me right after he and Mum got married, but I still remember what it was like to be hungry.”

I pulled Vic into a hug. “My gosh, I’m so sorry, I had no idea.”

“Dad always said that as far as he was concerned, I was his, that we were a family. Looking back, it was so ridiculous, but I was ten years old when it started, and I was scared. Scared that I’d ruin Mum’s life as well as my own by talking. So instead of spilling the beans, I pushed and pushed for that study year in Zurich, and by the time I came back, Neil had moved on.”

“Moved on to the party circuit,” I muttered.

“I’m so incredibly sorry. I should have told you sooner, but I kept my secrets bottled up for years, and it’s only now I’m seeing a therapist that I’m beginning to process everything.”

“Everyone heals on their own timeline, and I’m really proud of you for taking this step,” I said, even as I was screaming inside. “Sharing can help to lighten the load.”

While the weight on my shoulders grew ever heavier.

“I knew I had to tell you. That’s why I came early tonight.” Vic glanced at her slim gold watch. “Earlier.”

“So I can make plans to flee the country too?”

“I thought…I just thought you should know how he’s feeling. When Dad told him—told Neil that he knew what he’d done, and that he wasn’t welcome in our home anymore—Neil said we’d all regret it. Not so politely though. But we’ll be okay.” I wasn’t sure who Vic was trying to convince—me or herself. “We’ll be okay.”

Breathe.

Just breathe.

Neil had been given a standard determinate sentence, which meant he’d be released on licence halfway through. The date was marked on my calendar. I still had eleven months left. Eleven months to hire security or consider emigrating. We had a holiday home in the South of France. Maybe I could stay there for a while?

“Did you tell Camilla?”

---