Dylan emerged slowly from a dark fog. He was in a world of pain and his head felt like it had been cracked open like an egg. He was lying in a heap on the floor. It took a moment for him to orient himself.
Izzy’s house. The struggle with Adam.
When Dylan touched his hair, his fingers came away bloody. Not a lot of blood, but enough to confirm that he’d been clobbered.
Shouts came from upstairs. A bang, a scream.
Dylan staggered to his feet. His first instinct was to rush upstairs but the logical part of his mind told him to ring for help first.
He took out his mobile and dialled 999. He crossed the room while the recorded message played. As soon as he was put through to the operator, he began speaking rapidly.
“I need help quickly. I was attacked. I think my girlfriend is being attacked now.”
A calm woman’s voice replied. “What’s your address?”
Dylan was giving it to her as he walked to the hall. At that moment, the front door opened, and a man Dylan didn’t recognise walked in.
*
Robert Murphy used one of the spare keys to enter Elaine’s house.
He had seen a suspicious-looking man heading towards Elaine’s property. The one who was wearing his jacket. A terrible suspicion was creeping its way up Robert’s spine.
After he found Louise wasn’t in bed, he looked in her secret hiding place. Robert wasn’t stupid. He knew she had secrets. Usually, he tried to convince himself that he was better off not knowing.
Maybe he was.
Tonight, though, he was in the mood for the truth.
On the top shelf of the laundry cupboard, he found two handbags and a diary. After a quick glance at it, he figured out that it had belonged to Elaine. A lot of the entries spoke about work she was doing for the County Council.
He wasn’t sure why Louise had it. The fact that she was hiding it didn’t reassure him either. He figured it was all connected to the man wearing his jacket.
Who was this guy, though?
Was Louise sleeping with him?
Robert was quite drunk and didn’t feel like reading any more of the diary. Instead, he made his way across the road, the spare key in one hand and a bottle of beer in the other.
He knew he shouldn’t be following the mystery man into Elaine’s house. He needed answers, though.
Someone upstairs was yelling and banging on a door.
Robert saw a suspicious-looking Asian fellow in the front room. Was this the man Louise had been cheating on him with? He wasn’t wearing Robert’s jacket now, but he could have taken it off since coming inside.
Robert’s mind filled with wild imaginings. Maybe Louise and Izzy were having a threesome with this guy?
“Where’s my wife?” Robert demanded.
The Asian fellow gave a confused look. Robert saw that he was on the phone.
No doubt he was calling friends for backup.
“Oh, no you don’t.”
Robert swung his beer bottle at the guy, who dodged the blow, but dropped his phone.
“Hello? Are you there?” a woman’s voice said from the phone.
Robert stomped his foot on the screen. It gave a satisfying crunch as it broke.
“You idiot,” the guy said. “I was calling for help.”
“I bet you were.”
Robert swung the bottle again. It flew harmlessly by the guy’s nose, spilling foam across the floor.
The guy threw himself at Robert. A hard blow hit him in the chest, driving the air from his lungs.
Despite being winded, Robert lashed out too. One blow caught the guy on the chin and knocked him down.
Robert hurried to the stairs to see what the hell was going on above his head.