The phone in my pocket rings, making me jump. I pull it out to see Paige’s name flashing on the screen.
Her voice is edged with panic. ‘Have you got to the house yet?’
‘Oh, thank goodness you’re OK! I’m here now,’ I say, my own anger rising fast. ‘The place is a bloody mess, Paige. What the hell is going on? Where are you?’
There’s a pause that stretches long enough to make my stomach twist.
‘I’ll explain everything, I promise,’ she says eventually, her voice uncharacteristically sheepish. ‘I haven’t stayed there for a few days, Merri.’
It’s been a lot longer than a few days, I feel like snapping back. Instead, I bite my tongue in the interest of finding out exactly what’s been happening here.
‘Meet me in an hour at the café near the health centre. You know the one.’
‘Wait, what about the –’ I’m about to ask her about the opened mail, but she ends the call before I can finish.
I stare at the phone in disbelief before glancing back at the mess that surrounds me. Part of me wants to storm out and leave her to deal with it all before giving her a week to move out. But another part – a quieter, more insistent part – knows something isn’t right. This is not the organized, motivated Paige I’ve worked with for the last few years.
I’ve got plenty of time to get to the café, so I spend the next fifteen minutes trying to make the place look halfway normal again. I go through the mail, most of it junk or the odd thing that’s slipped through the redirection we’d set up.
I tackle the dirty dishes first, trying not to breathe in as I load them into the dishwasher. In the lounge, I start gathering the scattered papers and belongings, shoving them back into the drawers.
Dev will lose it when he finds out. He didn’t want Paige to move in from the start, and now I can’t defend my decision. She’s let me down. Letusdown and it’s all my doing.
By the time I lock up and step outside, my boiling anger has dulled to a simmer. I walk in the direction of Brew, the café, for about ten minutes to clear my head. Then I call an Uber.
The café hasn’t changed, though I suppose I hadn’t expected it to. A lot has happened but it’s only a few weeks since I was in here with Paige.
The warm glow of its familiar interior and the smell of ground coffee beans helps me to relax. I order tea and exchange polite words with the barista, who recognizes me immediately. ‘Hey, welcome back! Hope some of your luck rubs off on me.’ He grins. ‘The house you won – how amazing! Living in a place like that must be a dream come true.’
I smile, offering the usual platitudes that people want to hear.Yes, we can’t believe our luck…such an incredible house…worth buying a ticket!
Inside, I feel disconnected from my own descriptions of life at Lakeview House. Nobody wants to hear about betrayal and death and how it feels to be largely shunned by the locals.
55
I retreat to a table in the far corner, away from the friendly chatter and clinking cups.
The door opens a few minutes later, and Paige arrives. My heart sinks at the sight of her. She looks … diminished. Her vibrant energy has been replaced by a subdued emptiness. Her clothes hang loose on her frame and dark shadows are etched beneath her eyes.
I stand to hug her, but the gesture feels awkward. She barely meets my gaze as I go to the counter to get us a couple of lattes. ‘You look worn out,’ I say carefully, sitting down. ‘Have you been ill?’
Her eyes fill with tears almost instantly, and she shakes her head. Her hands tremble as she reaches for the latte I’ve placed in front of her, her movements jerky and uncertain.
‘Paige, what’s going on?’ I ask, keeping my voice calm and level. ‘I know something’s wrong, so just start at the beginning.’
She looks down at her hands, twisting her fingers together until her knuckles go white. Then she looks up quickly and her whole body tenses. For a moment, I think she might bolt.
‘Paige.’ I lean forward, softening my tone. ‘You’re scaring me. Whatever it is, you can tell me. We’ll figure it out together. You know … like we used to do.’
‘It’s not safe at the house,’ she whispers, looking around the café furtively.
‘Why not?’ I prompt gently, though my pulse has already begun to race.
She pushes her hair back from her face. ‘I did something really stupid.’
I open my mouth to say something, but she puts up a hand to silence me.
‘Please, Merri, just let me say this because … I’ve been too scared to talk to you, and now you’re here, I need to tell you what I did.’
