AC05 - Death Mask Read Free Page A

had any operations?’
    Hannah exhaled. ‘No, I’ve rarely seen a doctor apart from the usual childhood coughs and colds. I’ve never had a filling, and I don’t have wisdom teeth either. The dentist X-rayed me and apparently they’re not even there.’
    Brett squeezed her hand and she stopped speaking.
    Anya smiled sympathetically. ‘Any family history of medical problems?’
    ‘Not that we know of.’
    ‘Can I ask when you had your last pap smear?’
    The infections could have been old and flared due to stress. A previous gynaecological exam may have picked something up.
    Hannah flicked a glance at her husband. ‘I was told I didn’t need one.’
    Anya raised her eyebrows.
    ‘I was told I should have one a year after we had sex. We took a vow of purity and didn’t have sex until our wedding night, six weeks ago now.’
    ‘What about before you pledged purity?’
    Hannah touched the crucifix around her neck. ‘I’ve always wanted to save myself for the man I married. That probably sounds old-fashioned, but my parents divorced and I wanted to make sure that didn’t happen to me.’
    Brett began to shift in his seat. ‘I had girlfriends, and got around a bit … you know … before we got together.’
    Anya was beginning to wonder whether Hannah was a great liar or in total denial that she had been unfaithful. Something made her uncomfortable about the whole story. Two sexually transmitted infections within weeks of getting married, with no previous sexual contact?
    Brett could have carried the infections from previous partners, but he had tested negative on two separate occasions.
    One option was that Hannah had been assaulted and not told anyone. Anya needed to speak with her alone.
    Brett didn’t hesitate when she suggested he go for a cigarette whilst she talked to Hannah by herself.
    ‘Please help me,’ Hannah implored, tears rolling down her face. ‘I’m going mad trying to understand how this happened. Brett’s been amazing and says he knows I wouldn’t have slept with anyone else. Did I get it from a public toilet seat? At someone else’s house? On a bus? What other explanation could there be?’
    This woman was pretty convincing. And there was little point sustaining an act without her husband present. Anya leant forward in her seat.
    ‘What you tell me now is completely confidential. Nothing you say will go further than this room. Not to your GP, Brett, family. Anyone.’
    ‘I just don’t understand.’ The tears flowed faster. ‘This whole thing has been a nightmare. I haven’t done anything wrong.’
    ‘I’m not suggesting you have.’ Anya locked her gaze. Figures showed that up to one in three women had been sexually assaulted but most incidents went unreported. The question had to be asked. ‘Did someone have sex with you without your permission?’
    The woman wiped her eyes with a tissue. ‘You mean like rape? No! I’d think I’d know if that had happened.’
    ‘Not necessarily,’ Anya offered. There was a chance she could have been drugged and not remembered an assault. ‘Did you have a hen’s night, for example? Out somewhere?’
    ‘Just dinner with my sister and a few girlfriends at a local pizza place. And no one got drunk, if that’s what you’re thinking.’
    ‘Have there been any times in the last couple of months when something could have happened? Someone who gave you a drink? Maybe being unable to remember aspects of the night before, even though you hadn’t drunk much?’
    Hannah stared at the carpet, rolling the tissue in her hand. ‘I went to the gym every day before the wedding. I lost sixteen kilos to get into my dress. We paid for everything; we didn’t go out for about six months so we could save the money. Brett went down to the pub with his friends some nights, but I stayed home. I’m the one who budgets anyway – Brett would spend everything he earns if I left it to him.’
    ‘What about work functions?’
    ‘I don’t mix much with people