‘Okay?’ the officer asked Demi as they stepped off the plane. Demi nodded and ran a hand over her face. As much as she was glad to be away from the hell of Amsterdam, and back on home soil, Demi couldn’t shift the strong feeling of anxiety that sat heavy on her chest. What if Donnie knew she was back and came to find her again? He might be angry enough to kill her. She knew he was in with the police, that no matter what he did he’d get away with it.
‘You’re safe here, Demi. You don’t have anything to worry about now that you’re home. We’ll do absolutely everything in our power to make sure that you never have to go through any of that ever again.’
Moving through the Arrivals terminal at Glasgow Airport, Demi couldn’t stop her eyes darting from side to side, looking for him. Donnie Black had ruined her life, taken every opportunity to be happy away from her. She wanted to know for sure that he was never going to be able to hurt her again. Ever.
Passport control let them through, and once they’d collected their luggage – not that Demi had much – they passed through the doors and out to the main terminal building. She’d been warned that the press would be waiting, that their cameras would flash and people would be firing questions at her left, right and centre. Demi had been instructed to ignore them. To keep her eyes focused on the door and get out to the car that would be waiting to take her home.
When she emerged into the open crowd, the first thing Demi saw was her family. Mum, Dad and Aunt Susie. They were actually there, waiting for her arrival. All three of them were sobbing as they saw Demi, and she dropped her bag and ran to them, falling into her dad’s arms. Her mum’s and Susie’s arms enveloped her too, and, for a few moments, she couldn’t hear the noise of the press, couldn’t see the flash of the cameras. All she could do was sob into the arms of her family and be forever grateful that she survived Donnie’s plan.
She was alive. She was home. She was safe.