Meagan stepped backwards, terrified he’d catch her out here. She ran as fast as she could back to the house and up to her room, shutting her bedroom door tight.
The following morning, Meagan got out of bed and headed into her mother’s room. It was empty. The covers were made, and the room was spotless, as if she hadn’t been here for a while.
Meagan listened from the upstairs hall, her father talking in his room. His occasional laughter, then whispers.
Suddenly, there were footsteps coming towards her. Meagan stepped back into her room, shutting the door.
Her father called out. ‘Meagan. Are you awake? I’m popping out; I’ll be back in a while. Don’t open the front door to anyone. I’ll be as quick as I can.’
She heard him move down the stairs and leave the house a minute later. The smell of his aftershave made her sneeze.
‘Okay. You wait here, bunny, I’m going to find Mummy. Daddy told me not to open the front door. He didn’t say anything about the back door.’
Meagan walked through the kitchen, still in her night clothes.
She remembered her father had walked down by the water, going into the caves with her mother slumped over his shoulder. That’s where she wanted to go.
Meagan stood in the back garden, pleased to feel the warmth from the sun, which had finally pushed through the clouds, making everything much brighter. In the distance, she saw a boat far out, and the lighthouse was clearer. Its light was just a dim glow in the distance.
She looked above at the scattered clouds moving fast across the sky. The shapes amazed her; she could see sheep. Another one seemed to form the picture of a genie.
Meagan reached the hill, peering underneath at the caves. They reminded her of a dark grey cauldron from a story her mother had read to her. She watched the clear water flowing, rolling back and forth, like a baker kneading dough, pushing it away, pulling it, rolling it outwards.
She removed her slippers, placing them to the side to make sure they didn’t get wet. She pulled her dressing gown tight, adjusting the belt.
From the mouth of the cave, she called out. ‘Mummy. Where are you? Are you still here?’ The echo made her jump, and imagine that there were more people inside. Meagan crouched, pushing her way inside. She could hear the shriek of bats hanging overhead.
Meagan suddenly heard a whining sound in the distance, underneath where she stood. ‘Mummy. Is that you?’ Quickly, she went further inside the cave. She found steps towards the back that led below.
Once at the bottom, the cave became wider, the ceiling higher. A large wooden container like a coffin lay on the floor at the back. Meagan opened the heavy lid.
She fell backwards with the fright of seeing her mother, a gag placed around her mouth, rope holding her hands behind her back. Tricia was lying down on her stomach, her head resting to the side, struggling to manoeuvre onto her back.
Meagan panicked, stood up and helped release the gag from her mother’s mouth. She wriggled the rope until Tricia’s hands were free. ‘I’d never have found you Mummy, only I peeked. I saw you both last night. That’s a great place to hide.’
Tricia burst into tears, clutching her daughter harder than she ever had before.
Once back at the house, Tricia asked Meagan to pack a small case with the clothes she wore the most.
‘Are we going away, Mummy?’
‘Quickly, Meagan. Just do as I say.’
‘Is Daddy coming too? Can I pack Arthur the bunny?’
‘Meagan. We don’t have much time. We need to leave. Now.’
‘Are we hiding from Daddy?’
‘Yes, you could say that. It’s why you need to go and pack, so stop with the questions. Hurry now.’ Tricia hoped that where they were going, she and Meagan could hide from Sean for the rest of their lives.
She raced frantically, pulling clothes from the washing line outside, emptying her belongings from the bedside drawer upstairs, grabbing a few items from the bathroom, placing them in a case, struggling with the zip. ‘Come on, close for crying out loud. Meagan, are you done?’
‘Nearly. I’m leaving a note for Daddy telling him we’re hiding.’
‘No. Don’t do that. It will ruin the game. Give me the piece of paper, quickly.’
Tricia glanced at the huge writing in felt tip.
Daddy. It is yor tern. You hav to find us. I hop you don find it hard.
Tricia folded the note, struggling to stem the lump in her throat, fighting back the tears. ‘Okay. Let’s go. You ready?’
Meagan nodded, holding Arthur the toy bunny under her arm and the small holdall in the other. Tricia closed the back door and led Meagan across the vast green behind the house.
17
Present day
Oliver was standing by the lift, watching over the dead body in the trunk. He’d placed the phone on silent, pushing the side switch to mute the calls. The phone had been ringing continuously.
Meagan had been gone ten minutes and Oliver was panicking. Any minute now the guy on the other end of the phone could turn up, find the body, and they’d be another two stiffs joining gloved-man in the lift.
Sweat trickled along the side of his face. His arms were numb from dragging the body from the second floor.
Suddenly, he heard footsteps coming towards him, moving down the stairs. He stepped into the lift, pulling the body closer to the back.
‘Right. You ready?’ Meagan asked. She was puffing, struggling to take breaths, her hands placed on her hips.
‘You took your bloody time. Let’s move. We haven’t got long.’ Oliver explained the phone calls as he watched the horror on Meagan’s face. She spun towards the front door, expecting it to open any second.
‘Give me the keys to your car; I’ll bring it to the fire escape. Wait a minute and if you don’t hear from me, presume it’s safe and come out.’
‘A minute? It’s not the bloody egg and spoon race, Meagan. Do you know how heavy this guy is?’ He tossed her the keys, telling her where the car was parked.
She disappeared along the communal hall. Oliver heard the fire door open at the back of the building, then slowly close. He checked gloved-man’s phone. The last call was two minutes ago. Whoever was ringing was possibly on their way over.
He waited a few minutes, then went to the back door and held it open. He was pleased to see the barrier rise, and Meagan driving to the back of the building.
He could hear the car running, pumping out fumes from the exhaust. Meagan was sitting high on the driver’s seat; her body pushed forward, frantically wiping condensation from the windscreen. The screech of the wiper blades grated through his head.
He checked once more, moving to the front of the building past the lift on his right side. He then returned, got a firm grip on the trunk and dragged it to the car.
Meagan was standing outside with the boot open. ‘Quick, lower the seats, chuck him in and let’s go.’
She stood by the passenger door, keeping watch as Oliver fought to lift the leather trunk. Oliver used his legs, keeping low, crouching, then turned his body and heaved, pushing the trunk into the back of the car.
Then he jumped into the driver’s seat, opened the passenger door so Meagan could get in, and they drove away from the building and towards Kensington High Street.
Oliver and Meagan were quiet; the events of the last couple of hours had justified the silence. Oliver’s brain felt like it was about to explode. How could this happen? He was sure Meagan had said the top of the stairs and turn right.