Be Careful What You Hear Read Free

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explanations were scary - that it had been James saying those
things, and planning to do something terrible to us all. Or, that I
hadn’t been dreaming, or hearing my husband for real, but
hallucinating. Hallucinations, both visual and audible, were
serious symptoms of post-natal depression. Thankfully I hadn’t
suffered from either during my four months of hell. But what if my
recovery wasn’t total? What if the horrors were returning, worse
than before?
    ‘We’re okay,
aren’t we?’ I said, looking right into James’ eyes. ‘We’re through
the bad times.’
    James didn’t
hesitate. ‘Of course. The bad times are behind us.’
    I smiled as I
placed my head on his chest, closed my eyes and listened to his
heartbeat.
    ‘I’ve been
dreaming,’ he said, holding me close. ‘Of getting away from it all.
Just the three of us. Alone with ourselves, where no one can find
us.’
    My skin
prickled and my body stiffened.
    We’re all
going away…
    And that’s
where it will all end.

 
     
    3

     
     
    James left at
seven, his usual time for heading out to the practice by tube. The
ten mile journey from our home in Balham to the practice in Tower
Hamlets took around fifty minutes on a good day. But when there was
trouble on the lines, which there frequently was, then it could be
much longer. In summer, the journey underground would be hellishly
hot, as well as packed. James had talked of buying a bicycle, but
I’d managed to dissuade him – the fatalities in the capital over
the last few years had been enough to convince me that the trek on
the tube, although sometimes uncomfortable, was preferable to lying
crushed beneath the wheels of a lorry. We did have a car, a six
year old Volvo, but rarely used it for travel in and around the
city – neither of us liked driving that much, and driving around
the city streets was certainly not something we enjoyed. We had
toyed with getting rid of the vehicle, but had decided we used it
enough to warrant keeping it.
    I had woken
with a new perspective on the evening’s events. In the cold light
of day, it was easier to rationalise what had happened. I didn’t
think I had been hallucinating, but neither did I think that what
I’d heard had been anything sinister. By the time I had fed and
changed Grace, then taken her downstairs, I’d decided that it had
either been a dream, or I had misheard in my half-wakened state.
Maybe James had been talking to Grace about wanting to get away,
just as he had voiced to me just over an hour later, but my mind
had confused the words.
    It was now just
before nine. In an hour I was due to meet my good friend Sophie at
one of our favourite cafes in the high street. Then it was on to Bounce and Rhyme , the singing group for parents and babies,
which took place at the local library.
    I knelt down
with Grace, who was lying on the play mat, and let her grasp gently
at my fingers.
    ‘I know I’m
incredibly biased, but you’re the most beautiful little person I’ve
ever had the privilege to set eyes on.’
    She smiled at
me, her blue eyes twinkling. With my free hand I stroked her
super-smooth cheek. Nature knew what it was doing when babies were
designed.
    Someone rang
the doorbell.
    ‘You’ll have to
come with me, poppet.’ I scooped up Grace and made my way to the
door.
    ‘Hi, Georgina.’
It was our neighbour, Max. Recently retired from a job in banking,
Max and his wife Audrey were back in town between holidays. They’d
just returned from a cruise around the Mediterranean, and were due
to fly out to Vancouver in three weeks’ time for a trip around the
Rockies on the Rocky Mountaineer railroad.
    ‘Hi.’ Grace
nuzzled up against my neck, as I watched Max struggle for the right
words.
    ‘I wasn’t sure
whether to tell you now, or wait until James gets home. But I
decided it was better to let you know as soon as possible.’
    Max’s manner
set me on edge. Instinctively I held Grace closer. ‘What’s