Sally?
‘It would have to be someone you see on a regular basis,’ he continued.
Sally.Emily’s blood ran cold. She didn’t see anyone else on a regular basis. Certainly not anyone she regularly drank or ate with.
‘In answer to your other question …’ He turned back to her.
Emily looked at him, confused. Had she asked another question?
‘The one that’s eating away at you,’ Jake clarified. ‘I’m not cheating on you, Emily. I love you. Sadly, I can’t seem to make you believe it, but I do.’
He held her gaze, such palpable sadness now in his eyes, it tore another hole in her heart. She had no idea what to say. She wanted to believe him, to bring a stop to all of this and just hold him, be held by him; she longed for that, but …the email.The intimacy between him and Sally. She hadn’t imagined it.Wasn’timagining it, however addled her mind was. It was a fact that he hadn’t told her about his relationship with Sally. As much as she wanted to, she couldn’t believe it had just slipped his mind. She hadn’t imagined his involvement with someone else years ago either. No matter how innocent he’d claimed it was, the fact was, he had been seeing another woman.
‘Can we talk?’ he asked her, his expression hopeful. ‘Calmly, rather than arguing?’
They had to. They couldn’t go on like this. For the sake of Millie and Ben – for their own sakes – they needed to try to communicate amicably, whatever the future might hold. That thought causing her heart to wrench afresh, Emily closed her eyes and answered him with a small nod. She was about to ask him if he could come home early when there was a knock on the door and Nicky peered in.
‘Sorry to bother you,’ she said, her eyes gliding curiously between them. ‘It’s just that I need the keys to Tom’s filing cabinet. I have some notes to type up for him and I need to cross-check an address.’
‘Yes, of course. Sorry.’ Realising the keys were still in her bag, which actually they shouldn’t be, Emily got to her feet.
Jake smiled ruefully as she passed him. ‘I have to pop out to take a sample to the hospital,’ he said, nodding towards the vial of blood he’d just taken from Emily. ‘We still have that patient treatment plan we need to discuss, though. We’ll talk later, yes?’
‘Okay.’ Reading between the lines, Emily nodded. He was taking the sample personally. He’d clearly guessed that she might be concerned if he didn’t. Managing a small smile back, she followed Nicky out.
Once in reception, she found her bag and the keys therein, handed them to Nicky and, reminding her to sign the file out, braced herself to face Sally. There were two patients due in for blood tests immediately after lunch, she recalled, thankful that her brain seemed to be functioning on some level. With the police due back and a full evening surgery ahead, they needed to get organised. People were scared. They would need reassuring. Emily was determined to offer that reassurance, whatever rumours might be flying around. Also to be the epitome of efficiency. The person responsible for all this wanted her to fall apart, for her life to fall apart, just as the lives of the recipients of the letters had. They wanted things at the practice to fall apart, for which Jake would then blame her. Emily had decided she would die before she allowed that to happen – although, she pondered, given how seriously the other victims were suffering, perhaps that was the intended outcome.
Was it her?Seeing Sally appear from the treatment room, looking as attractive and immaculate as ever, she gave her a guarded look. Was she the one who was drugging her? Sending out those disgusting letters? It had to be the same person.
‘Ah, at last.’ Sally beamed and hurried towards her. ‘I was wondering where you’d got to. Do you fancy a quick cuppa?’
‘No,’ Emily said, panic hitting her as the reality of being slowly poisoned sank in. ‘I’ve not long had one, thanks,’ she added quickly, not wanting to alert Sally to the fact that she knew she was being fed drugs. She wasn’t likely to catch her in the act if she did that.
‘Oh, right.’ Sally eyed her curiously. ‘Not to worry, I didn’t really want one anyway. I’ve been peeing all morning as it is.’
Emily eyed her curiously in turn as Sally came around to hook an arm through hers. ‘I wanted to let you know I’ve confirmed the sixties band for Ed’s birthday bash. I hope that’s okay?’
‘Yes, fine,’ Emily said, feeling slightly derailed by her friendliness. Also relieved, she conceded, that Sally appeared to be acting perfectly normally, chatty and bubbly as always.
‘Brilliant.’ Sally nodded, pleased. ‘I thought with it only being a week away it might be better to grab them rather than relying on Dave to DJ. Don’t get me wrong, he’s good – until he’s on his third pint, at least – but I thought it would be nice to make things a bit special for Ed and Joyce. He does so much for the village, after all.’
Listening to her friend, who, for all her tittle-tattling, was still the caring person she’d thought she was, Emily swallowed back the lump of guilt lodged in her throat. She’d been wrong about Sally. Wrong about Jake. She’d played right into the hands of the psychopath who’d sent the email and those vile letters. It seemed almost as if they’d known she would. As if they really knewherand the insecurity she felt; her deep-rooted belief that no matter how many times Jake told her he loved her, he couldn’t possibly. She’d lived in fear that one day he would find out her secret and realise that whatever feelings he had for her were misplaced. She still felt that fear.
Her mind went to Kara and the plaintive look in her eyes when she’d reached out to her in her dream; she was sure her sister had been trying to convey a warning. She thought of the man she’d loved in her youth, who had reciprocated with the worst kind of twisted love that became control. Even now, she could remember clearly and with a cold dread his parting words to her. ‘I know you, Emily! I fuckingloveyou!’ he’d shouted, right there in the courtroom, his face contorted with rage as they’d tried to lead him away. ‘I’ll find you, I’m warning you. You belong to me!’
‘So, how are you?’ Sally asked, snapping her back to the present. ‘I called you last night, but your phone went to voicemail.’
‘Yes, sorry.’ Emily drew in a breath, attempting to banish her demons from her head. ‘I felt a bit off colour, so I grabbed an early night.’
‘Oh no.’ Turning to face her, Sally blinked at her sympathetically. ‘But you’re all right now?’
‘Fine.’ She mustered a smile. ‘It’s just a virus I can’t seem to shake off, I think. How’s things with you?’
‘Well …’ Blushing, Sally glanced down and back. ‘I wasn’t going to say anything yet, but … we’re expecting a happy event.’
Emily stared at her, cold foreboding clutching her stomach.
‘I’m pregnant,’ Sally announced, and waited.
