Page 59 of Cruel Crypts

When I was done, I sank to the floor, drew my knees up, and cried until there were no tears left.

38

ELENA

“This is a nice surprise.” My uncle smiled at me from across the small table in the visitors’ room. When did he get so old? His hair was fully grey now, and his eyes were dull, with deep, sunken circles beneath. The lines in his face were much more pronounced than they had been, and his skin had a sallow hue.

“I meant to visit sooner. It’s…”

He shook his head. “No need to explain. I know how difficult it’s been for you and your mother this past year. So, what’s the reason for this visit in particular?”

I eyed him cautiously, shifting on the hard plastic chair. “How did you know that I had a specific reason?”

“Because I know you.” His gaze softened. “Come on, tell me. I only get an hour here with you, and then I’m not allowed another weekend visitor for four weeks.”

Despite the fact that I knew he was a convicted murderer, something inside me ached, seeing this shell of the man he once was. I still loved him, despite everything. He’d been there for me and my mum, supporting us both financially and emotionally.

Until everything had fallen apart.

“Okay. Has my mum told you anything about her plans?”

He shook his head. “Plans? Last time I saw her, she said she’d have a surprise for me soon. Is that what you’re referring to?”

As quickly and quietly as possible, not wanting to draw the attention of the prison officer that stood against the wall behind him, I gave him a rundown of everything that had happened—how she’d fixated on getting revenge on his behalf, selling the remainder of our possessions to fund new identities and false references, and how she’d planned to ruin Anthony Ashcroft’s name. By the time I’d finished, his jaw was wide open, shock clear in his eyes.

Meeting his gaze, I pleaded with my eyes. “I need to fill in the blanks. I need you to tell me what happened. Please.”

He blew out a heavy breath, his hands shaking violently. “I didn’t kill that woman, Elena. Whatever else happens, you have to believe that.”

“How were you convicted if you didn’t do it?”

“Because I was there. I tried to stop her, but it was too late.”

My stomach churned, dread rising up inside me. “Tried to stop who?”

He whispered two words that sent fractures through me, widening until I was ripped apart all over again. It hurt. So, so much.

“Your aunt.”

“B-but how? What?”

His head bowed. “Your aunt and I were taking a late evening stroll. We were…disagreeing…well, arguing, I suppose. She had some ideas in her head, and I was trying to discourage her. She accused me of things…things I’d never done. She said I’d been looking at other women. Having affairs behind her back.”

Shaking his head, he exhaled sharply. “A woman was walking towards us, and I was so sick of the accusations she was throwing at me, I said, ‘I’ll give you something to accuse me of,’ and then I looked directly at the woman in what I suppose was a suggestive way. Your aunt…she had one of her episodes. It was like the red mist descended. She snatched up a loose brick and jumped at the woman, knocking her to the ground, and then hit her over and over and over again. There was so much blood.” His words became choked, and his eyes filled with tears. “I can still hear the sound of the brick connecting with the woman’s skull. Her screams will haunt me to my dying day. The only reason I think that no one heard us was because the dogs at the house across from the library were causing a racket—probably foxes again. They’d often start barking madly at all hours of the evening, so no one would’ve thought anything of it.”

“Didn’t you try to stop her?” My arms were clasped tightly across my stomach in an attempt to make my nausea subside, but I could feel the bile rising in my throat.

“Of course I did! Your aunt was in a frenzy, but I managed to pull her off. By then, though, it was too late. She came back to herself as soon as I had her upright again, and she broke down like I’d never seen her break before. Honestly, Elena, it tore me to pieces. I told her to run back to the house and make sure that nobody saw her, and I’d deal with the rest. I said that if anyone questioned her, she was to say she’d been at home all evening. She’d been wearing leather gloves, so I hoped…well, I hoped there wouldn’t be any evidence that she was there. When she’d gone, I tried to do chest compressions, tried to get the woman to breathe again, but it was too late. She was already gone.” A tear tracked down his cheek. “Her name was Annie. She was only twenty-one, you know? Just graduated from university. She was about to start her life. And we took it away from her.”

“I don’t—I can’t. I don’t even know what to say.” My voice was a shaky whisper.

“I threw the brick into a hedge, and I continued out of the alley, walking back round a circular route until I was home. Everything after that, you already know. Your aunt took her life the day I was sentenced, and the secret died with her. You’re the only other living person who knows what really happened.”

“Fuck.” I dug my nails into my palms, welcoming the tiny sting of pain. “Why did you do it? Why did you take the blame?”

“People do crazy things for love, you know. Things that you’d never think they were capable of. Good things, and sometimes, very bad things. She was my wife. They would have sent her to Broadmoor or something. I couldn’t do that to her. I thought…I truly believed that Anthony Ashcroft would be able to help. Get me a manslaughter conviction so I could at least have some semblance of a life once I’d served my sentence. Make things right with you and your mother. And…there was another reason.” He paused. “A reason that I’m not very proud of. You see, it was partly my fault that your aunt snapped. Not because we were arguing but because she was right. I loved her so much, and yet, I was also in love with another woman, and she was in love with me.”

“Who?” Even as I whispered the word, I already knew the answer. The final piece of this nightmare puzzle slotted into place to give me the full, bloody picture.

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