He stared intently at the rear-view mirror and watched as Amie perched against the wall at the front entrance to Oakham Police Station.
He’d picked the perfect spot. The parking bay on Station Road meant he could watch her in his mirrors and there was no way she’d be able to see his face. She wouldn’t recognise the hire car, either. She never did. His positioning gave him the best chance of getting away quickly, should he need to, but he got the impression that wouldn’t be necessary.
She looked different. Her soul seemed heavier. Burdened. It wasn’t the same kindly soul he’d known for all those years, loved for all those years. He could see what this had done to her, and it ate him up inside.
He hadn’t wanted it to work out like this. Of course he hadn’t. She was never meant to be a suspect. He’d allowed everything to get too close to home. And now he’d had to take risks in order to protect her. He knew what that meant. He knew the consequences.
He’d have to tread carefully — far more carefully than he had until now. It might not be long before they’d worked out it wasn’t Amie who’d killed Martin. Not long before they worked out it had been him. He didn’t know what he’d do at that point. He hadn’t thought it through that carefully. But he knew he needed to. He had to have a plan. An escape route.
Everything he’d ever done had been for her. Seeing her happy, angry, upset — it had all given him ultimate clarity on what he’d needed to do at every stage. Seeing her face, how things affected her, always led him towards the right decision. And he knew that would be the case now, too.
She flicked her hair from her face, almost nonchalantly. Anyone else watching would see a woman casually waiting for a lift. But he saw so much more. He knew her better than anybody. He knew her ways, her mannerisms. He knew when they had added weight.
He didn’t want her to feel like this. If only he could take her pain away… Still, he had a feeling things were going to turn out just fine in the end. After all, the new cogs were starting to turn.