Page 17 of No Safe Place
She was so dazed that it took a second to register that the woman at the door was in police uniform. Her patent leather shoes were shining in the August sunlight.
‘Hi there. Last night there was an attack in the area, and we’re just knocking to see if you may have seen or heard anything. Could I come in?’
Lily shot a glance at the closed dining room door. ‘Not really. Sorry.’
A raised eyebrow. Lily checked over her shoulder. ‘It’s my,’ she hesitated. ‘Housemate. He’s not well.’
Lily tried to nudge some of the leaflets under the cabinet with her foot.
The policewoman – police officer Lily should call her – checked her notebook. The heat outside was stifling, and Lily thought she must be sweating in her bulky uniform.
Lily wiped her forehead with the back of her hand.
‘What’s going on?’ Cal emerged from the dining room, a cigarette between his lips. He stood behind Lily, a fraction too close.
Even a year after the break-up, they hadn’t quite lost that overfamiliarity. Sometimes they’d catch themselves and Cal’s hand would be on her waist, or she’d have touched the nape of his neck, like she used to.
‘We’re knocking to ask if you saw or heard anything suspicious last night. There was an attack in the area, on Ancona Road.’
Lily blinked. ‘No – nothing.’
‘Me neither.’ Callum stared blankly ahead, not quite meeting the woman’s eye.
They stood in silence for a second, and Lily was about to suggest that the officer come back later, when she smiled and took a step backwards.
‘And you haven’t seen anyone suspicious in the area? Nothing that’s made you feel uncomfortable or seemed out of place?’
Lily felt Callum shuffle behind her. Not the time to tell this woman that he hadn’t left the house in two years.
‘No,’ Lily said. ‘Not that I can think of. Was the person – were they okay?’
The officer smiled a benign smile, tucking her notebook into her vest. ‘It’s good of you to ask – not everyone does. I can’t give out any details, though.’
Lily’s stomach churned, and made embarrassing noises. If the officer heard, she didn’t react. Lily put a hand on the doorframe to steady herself.
The officer leaned back and scanned the walls. ‘Does that camera work?’
‘It’s a dummy,’ Callum answered.
The woman nodded, hooked her thumbs into her vest and took a step back. ‘Okay, well, thanks anyway. If you think of anything that might be relevant, you can dial 101, or pop into the station.’
‘Okay,’ Lily said, already shutting the door. ‘Thank you.’
The hinges creaked, and the hallway fell into its usual gloom.
‘I’m going to make a brew,’ Callum said in monotone, not meeting Lily’s eye. His hands shook as he lit his cigarette. ‘Want one?’
‘No, thanks,’ she said.
Lily felt the weight of all the things sheshouldsay.
She should go to Callum, comfort him. Congratulate him.
A stranger at the door – and he’d come and spoken to her.
Lily was so proud of him, she wanted to pull him into a hug. She could imagine the pressure on her chest as he pressed against her, his heart thudding away behind his ribs.
But Callum walked to the kitchen, and Lily stayed frozen, leaning against the front door and holding her aching stomach.
