The Attic Room: A psychological thriller - Huber Linda - Страница 50
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For a long moment she gathered her strength, then at last she managed to open her eyes. Nina was sitting by the bed, eyes closed and her face pale as… as death. Claire feasted her eyes on her girl. All she needed to do was tell Nina that Robert was alive. Nina must have felt her gaze, for she opened her eyes and leaned forward, clutching Claire’s hand.
‘Mum? Is there something you want?’
Thank God, Nina had realised she wanted to speak. Claire opened her mouth but no sound came out. She tried a whisper.
‘I’m sorry. I should have told you.’
‘Don’t worry, Mum, it’s all right. You can tell me later.’
‘Robert.’
But her voice was gone again, swallowed by the hissing of the mask on her face, and Nina didn’t understand. Claire tried again, with the same result.
Nina patted her shoulder.
‘Relax, Mum. Have a rest for now. I’ll go and phone home, tell them you’re awake. Morag’ll be so…’
Claire’s eyes closed again and she felt herself drifting as Nina continued to speak. Dear God, if she went to sleep now she’d never be able to tell Nina about Robert. All at once she knew that was exactly what was going to happen. The darkness was different now… This wasn’t just floating towards sleep, this was… distancing… leaving… listening to the person she loved most in the world, and knowing she would never see Nina again, or Naomi… She should have told Nina right at the start… or at least, when she had grown up… but Nina would forgive her, Nina loved her…
The world was closing in… her world – Edinburgh, and Bedford… and Arran; she was standing at the top of the hill now, the Firth blue and sparkling down below. Nina was running towards her… how terrible to leave with no goodbye…
Chapter Thirty-Two
‘Nina!’
David’s voice came from upstairs, and Nina stumbled through the cluttered kitchen. Her breath hoarse in her ears, she thundered past the ancient coffee machine on the counter, the old-man slippers by the Aga, and upstairs past the trio of framed embroideries on the stair wall. Two policemen at the top motioned her into a room facing the front of the house. Three more strides and Nina gathered Naomi into her arms, feeling the terrible tension in the girl’s body. Naomi was sitting on the double bed, shivering, her eyes wild, but she was alive, thank Christ, she was alive. Sheer, blessed relief flooded through Nina as she rejoiced in every heave of Naomi’s chest as they sat there clutching each other, both trembling. Her baby was here; she was holding her little girl.
David touched her shoulder and spoke quietly. ‘She was locked in, Nina, but the key was in the door. We need to find out if she knows where Wright has gone – she didn’t answer when I asked.’
Nina stroked the hair from Naomi’s face. ‘Do you know, sweetie?’
Naomi shook her head then burst out crying, and Nina couldn’t prevent her own tears.
For a few moments she and Naomi hugged and sobbed together, then Nina wiped her eyes. Time for supermum.
‘Sweetheart, you’re safe now. We’ve got you. Naomi – are you hurt? What did he do to you?’
The million dollar question, and Nina leaned back to look into Naomi’s face. Her daughter was pale and wide-eyed with fear, her face tear-streaked and filthy, and she was clutching Nina with shaking hands. Hell, no child’s hands should ever have to shake like this.
‘He kept grabbing me and pushing me around,’ she whispered. ‘And he wouldn’t tell me where we were or nothing, he was horrible, Mummy, why did he do that?’
Nina stroked the tangled honey-coloured hair back from the pale face, feeling the tightness inside her gut begin to ease. It didn’t sound as if Paul had abused Naomi, but the girl’s use of the word ‘Mummy’ showed how insecure and frightened she was. Nina swallowed. What, oh what was she supposed to say to make the situation less frightening for her child?
‘I think he’s a – he’s not normal, lovey, he’s not well. Darling, did he touch you under your clothes? Did he make you touch him? Did he – ’ Hell, Naomi wasn’t a baby, she would know the word – ‘Did he assault you?’
Naomi burst into noisy tears and Nina could barely make out what she was saying. ‘No. But he kept pushing me around everywhere and shouting and then laughing. And at the first house he took photos of me and he said they were the before photos, and he was going to use them to catch some bad men who wanted me to look different afterwards – after what, Mummy, what did he mean?’
Nina closed her eyes, hugging Naomi tightly. Christ, Paul could have returned here at any time, and who knows what would have happened to her lovely daughter if they hadn’t arrived here before him. Thank God for Emily and her efforts with the photos.
David Mallony was standing in front of the window. ‘That’s what we’re going to find out, Naomi. The main thing is you’re safe. We’ll get you three out of here now, Nina. The police doctor will check Naomi soon.’
Nina felt Naomi’s body relax a little. David sounded so authoritative and in control, just what they both needed right now. Sam was standing in the doorway, and he moved back as she led Naomi from the room.
‘Sam, thank you,’ she whispered, and he touched her cheek as she passed.
Back at the police station, Naomi told what little she knew and then they were allowed to go back to Sam’s flat, well away from all frightening associations for Naomi. It was a good couple of hours before the wildness in the little girl’s eyes began to diminish. Sam phoned round their families and friends while the same police doctor who’d seen Nina the day before questioned Naomi closely and conducted a brief examination which involved some very personal questions but fell short of removing any of Naomi’s clothing. Afterwards Nina took the doctor into the kitchen to talk. The woman’s first words were what she wanted to hear.
‘She hasn’t been sexually assaulted,’ said the doctor. ‘She spoke quite openly about her experience and what Wright had said and done. She wouldn’t have been able to do that if anything had happened. It’s been a terrible shock for her, though. Naturally. Talk to her about it, but don’t force any confidences, take things at her pace. And it might be an idea to tell her a little about your own encounter with Wright; she doesn’t know anything about that yet and it would give her the feeling that the ordeal wasn’t hers alone. No gory details, though, play it down. I’ll leave some tranquillizers. You can each have one at bedtime and they’ll give you a good night’s sleep.’
Nina went back to the living room, where Sam was with Naomi on the sofa, carefully sitting well round the corner. Naomi had a fat cushion clutched across her chest, but Nina noticed that the trembling had stopped.
‘Come on, you,’ she said, putting a hand on Naomi’s head. ‘Bath time. Sam doesn’t have any smellies that you’d like, but we’ll put a good squirt of my shower gel into the water and you can lie in the bubbles and I’ll tell you about Paul Wright locking me up in a horrible house all night.’
The doctor was right. Hearing about Nina’s imprisonment jolted Naomi out of her own situation. They discussed mental illness and child abuse quite openly, and Nina’s last lingering fear vanished. Naomi’s behaviour in the bath was the same as always, and her body was unmarked. Nina left the girl drying herself with one of Sam’s massive bath towels.
Sam was in the living room with a bottle. ‘Wine,’ he said, pouring her a large glass of red. ‘If anyone deserves it it’s you. Are you okay?’
Nina sipped, then put the glass down and looked at him. He stepped across the room and took her in his arms, holding her tightly, and she could hear his heartbeat and the sound of his breathing. She fitted her forehead against his neck, feeling how their breathing coordinated. In, out. Slowly, she began to relax. Now if she could stay right here for about four months she would be okay again.
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