“Of course. I’d known you years before you met Daniel. There was a very clear benchmark of what your normal, if slightly erratic, overthinking and melodramatic behaviourwas—”
“—Melodramatic?”
“—So, I could tell how you changed, became a shell of yourself.”
I pause. This was true.
“And you’ve known Pete for like twenty minutes and you’re, what, trying to swoop in like Batman and save the day?”
“But I feel like I’ve known him forever. He knows so much about me. My life, Dad. I told him about Guy.”
“Oh,” Craig says.
“Everything, about how I was seeing Guy behind Daniel’s back. The truth.” I stop for a moment before continuing. “Well, nearly everything. I didn’t talk about what happened when Daniel found out.”
Craig just nods.
“Or how he found out,” I add.
“No, I suppose that’s not important.”
“No, but it is to me. Even now, I’d love to know how he found out.”
“Maybe solve one problem at a time, hey?”
“Yeah,” I agree. “And now Pete’s my main priority. You should have seen the bruises. Over his face. I can’t just leave him in that house.”
Craig leans back in his chair. “I get it,” he says. “You want to help Pete. But you’re not equipped to fix this. None of us are, not in the way he needs.”
That hits like a slap, though not an entirely unfair one. I open my mouth to argue, but he keeps going.
“If Pete’s in a violent relationship, he needs professional help. Proper safeguarding. People who do this day in, day out.”
I sigh. “So what? Helplines? Leaflets? It feels so… impersonal.”
Craig shakes his head. “It isn’t. Refuge run a twenty-four-hour line. Completely confidential. They’ll talk him through safety planning, even housing if he needs it. He doesn’t have to commit to anything, just… talk. And there’s Galop—they specialise in LGBTQ+ domestic abuse. There’s local services that can give him counselling, legal advice, the whole lot. If Pete ever feels ready, I can make a referral. But it has to come from him.”
I chew on that. It feels useless, like giving someone an umbrella in a hurricane. But Craig’s tone softens.
“His GP could help too. You’d be surprised how often people disclose to doctors first. It goes on his record. And if he ever wanted to log incidents with the police — even without pressing charges —we’ve got safeguarding teams for that. It builds a picture. If things escalate, that picture matters.”
He says it like it’s all practical, simple. But the weight behind it is anything but.
I laugh nervously, trying to cut through the heaviness. “You’re telling me to stop playing the knight in shining armour, aren’t you?”
Craig’s mouth quirks. “Pretty much. Leave the armour to the people trained for it.”
I nod, pretending I can do steady when inside I feel like a washing machine on spin cycle.
“Well…” I hesitate, because I’m already asking too much. “Can you look into Chris? Emma said the police think he left by choice, but… I don’t know. She’s convinced there’s more.”
Craig stares at me a long beat, then nods once. “I’ll see what I can dooff the books. And if I findanything, you letmedecide what’s actionable. Promise.”
I nod, which we both understand is not legally binding.
He takes his notebook and scribbles a few lines. “And if James contacts you, or if you see him near your house—”
“I call you,” I recite. “Or 999 if he’s wearing gloves.”
