Consequences Read Free Page A

reflection of her white knuckles in the mirror. Who was this creep, this loony? Some ‘paedo’ they warned people about? How did he know their number, her name and, more to the point, Gemma’s? In his silence questions ping-ponged around her head. The mirror in which she had just admired herself now showed her frightened expression. She turned her back on it.
    ‘What?’ she said, her mouth dry. ’W…what did you say?’
    ‘You.’ Liz jumped at the growl. ’You heard what I said. Listen, I’m not a crank. Gemma must get her looks from you coz it definitely ain’t from Mal.’ He sniggered. ‘At the moment, she’s at school. Do as I say and she’ll remain there.’ Goosebumps appeared on Liz’s arms.
    ‘What do you want?’ she asked, not recognising her own voice as it rose in pitch. ’Speak to me…or I’ll hang up,’ she demanded.
    ‘Don’t fuck with me….’ he snapped, ‘or, little lady, you might just live to regret it. I’m watching you.’ Liz’s eyes flew around the room. There were no windows in the hall, which was the centre of their opulent Georgian home. So where was he watching from? She ran to the door and turned the key with desperate, trembling fingers. Had she opened any windows in the house? Were the deadlocks on the back door? She couldn’t breathe.
    ‘Liz…Liz look, just be a good girl; take off that fur coat…it does nothing for your figure love. Go into the lounge and sit down on your nice new leather settee. You need to calm down.’ She stood rooted to the spot in disbelief. Where the hell was he?
    ‘Do it.’ he screeched. She jumped.
    ‘I’m sorry…please, please, just don’t hurt us.’ She keeled over as if she had been punched in the stomach, trying to disentangle her self from the coat’s sleeves. She was sobbing now, quietly. She staggered, dropped the fur coat to the floor in the sitting room wanting so much to just hang up the phone, but not daring to disobey.
     
    Liz loved her lounge. An elegant Chinese rug sat in the middle of the solid oak wood floor, and upon it stood three huge beige Italian soft leather sofas. She’d chosen gilt Laura Ashley light fittings and lampshades with crystal droplets. The sun coming from behind a cloud suddenly burst through the full wall of windows that were framed with plush deep red velvet curtains making the room feel snug, until now. She stumbled like a zombie and sat on the edge of a cushion. Should she hang up? Drive to the school? Ring the police? Thoughts raced through her head, but she was under his control.
    ‘I’ve done what you’ve asked.’
    ‘I know…’ he whispered.
    Liz’s eyes scoured the room out through the windows to the garden beyond. Where was he?
    ‘What do you want? Why are you doing this?’ she asked.
    ‘Be quiet and listen.’
     
    Liz held her hand to her forehead trying desperately to think what would be best to say. She daren’t move; like a rabbit in a car’s headlights, she was frozen.
    ‘Firstly,you tell nobody about my call, do you understand…no one at all, because I’ll know.’
    ‘Yes...yes,’ she said. She gulped. Tears threatened. Where was Liz, the strong, confident woman who had coped with so much, she asked herself.
    ‘Later this morning you’ll contact your bank manager at Lloyds.’
    ‘Yes...but...but how do you...which?’
    ‘Never you mind,’ he interrupted, ‘...you just tell him that you’re calling to warn him that you’ll be with drawing a substantial amount of cash...soon. The amount and the day you’ll confirm, when I’ve decided.’
     ‘But...I can’t. My husband deals with the money… you’ll have to speak to...’
    ‘You stupid, stupid bitch,’ he shouted so loud in her ear that she almost dropped the phone. ’Don’t try playing games with me. We both know that he won’t be home for a long time yet, now don’t we? Not even on day release.’ Liz gulped hard. Who the hell …? How did he know so much?
     ‘Do as you’re told, or next