Chapter 51: NOW - The Safe Room

Peter takes Sophie back into the living room where Emily is sitting on the sofa with her arms folded. I sit down in the chair by the desk before my legs give out. I grab a bottle of water and gulp it down. My skin is hot and slick with sweat. I’ve shed the blankets and even my cardigan because it’s suddenly hot in the cellar.

Either I’m getting a fever or the air is even worse than before.

“Why are you taking the kid to see her mother?” Emily snaps. “We want her to forget the mother. That’s what we discussed.”

He shrugs. “The kid seems upset. I thought it would be best for her to know her mother’s still alive.”

Sophie sits down on the carpet in the corner of the room. She lowers her head to the ground. She’s scared. She knows these two are volatile and that they’re about to start fighting again.

Emily gets to her feet and gestures for Peter to follow her out of the room. I find them in the kitchen and turn the volume up. I keep one eye on the other screen, where Sophie has raised her head and is listening.

Emily stands behind the dining table. She seems agitated. She grabs hold of one of the chairs, her grip tightening. “You promised me that we’d get rid of the mother. You said that she had it coming and that she was a terrible mother. You said, I would get to be a mother. That’s what you said.”

Peter’s head is down, staring at his feet. “Yes.”

She moves closer to him. “I feel like the plan is falling apart.”

He glances up, rolls his eyes. “It’s not.”

“Sure it is, mastermind. Connect that big brain of yours and realise we’re running out of time. We need to get the kid, sort out the bitch downstairs, and then go.” She jabs him in the shoulder with her index finger. “That’s what we planned.”

He leans forward and nudges her with his forehead. “Stop. Telling. Me. What. To. Do.”

Even I flinch at the growl in his voice. This is it. I’ve been waiting for the wheels to come off this thing and now it’s starting to happen. Yet I can’t think straight. My head swims and the room feels fuzzy. I swig on the water again and try to concentrate. Sophie is on her feet now, listening to the fight next door.

“I will when you stop lying to me,” Emily says, not backing down. “You told me that Amber is a psycho who doesn’t deserve a kid. Your kid. That’s what you told me. But that isn’t true is it?” She points a finger towards the living room. “She looks nothing like you.”

Peter grabs her by the throat. His hand wraps around her neck with ease. Emily’s eyes widen, her mouth gapes open, searching for air.

“Are you calling me a liar?” He pushes her back against the kitchen counter.

I’ve never seen him truly out of control before. I’m witness to my greatest fear, Peter’s wrath, only I always thought it would happen to me first. There’s vindication running through my mind—I said he was capable of anything—but I can’t help but feel sorry for her. And then I feel very, very afraid, because even on the small monitor I see the way his eyes turn dark.

Emily is in grave danger.