Beneath the Moon and the Stars (33 page)

‘Wait, wait.’ Joy found her voice. ‘He won’t believe for one minute that I’m involved in this, he’ll know you’re here. I’m not going to let you shoot him, just because you’re stupid enough to get caught.’ She ignored the furious look on Crazy Bitch’s face. ‘Just go out the window now and I’ll give you five minutes head start before I raise the alarm.’

‘The window has locks on it you idiot, I can only open it an inch, something I only found out when I heard you coming up the stairs.’ Crazy Bitch looked around panic stricken and quickly turned off the light. ‘When he comes, you’ll attack him – wait for him to get into the room and then launch yourself at him. As he tries to fight you off, I’ll slip out. But one word from you and you’re both dead.’

‘No listen…’ Joy trailed off as they both heard footsteps come quietly and quickly up the stairs.

Crazy Bitch moved behind the door, priming her gun with a sickening click. ‘Not one word,’ she whispered.

Joy stood in the moonlit gloom, feeling sweat prickling across her neck. Her heart was roaring, her mouth was dry. Casey’s shadow stole across the landing as he moved slowly towards the room and she saw to her horror that he had a gun too. Nice, sweet, laidback Casey, holding a gun at arm’s length, his eyes cold as he listened and approached the doorway.

That’s when she struck. Joy charged forward and at the movement from the shadows, Casey swung the gun to the right in her direction. Wincing she leapt through the air and threw her whole body weight against the door. It slammed backwards, a gun went off, Casey threw her to the ground, landing hard on top of her and everything went black.

*

Joy was aware of pain before she could open her eyes. Aware of voices too; she tried to tune into them as she became more conscious.

‘I knew she was trouble as soon as I met her, it was only a matter of time before she did something stupid like this,’ Casey said.

Another voice answered from further away and she couldn’t make out the words.

‘Yeah, you can take her now. I’ll come down and interview her at the station tomorrow when she’s less groggy. She’s going to have a hell of a sore head.’

That was the understatement of the year, her head was pounding.

Suddenly she was aware she was moving. The police were taking her away? That meant that Casey thought she was involved. Did that mean that Crazy Bitch was still in the house waiting for her chance to attack?

She struggled. ‘No, wait.’ Her words sounded so muffled and slurred.

The movement stopped.

‘That’s ok, you guys go. I’ve got this. Cheers boys,’ Casey said.

The movement started again and as she struggled against the strong arms that were around her, the movement stopped and it felt like she was being laid on a bed.

She forced her eyes open, the light was so bright, she immediately closed them again, struggling to sit up. She had to tell Casey.

‘Hey, keep still for a moment,’ Casey’s voice came from close by and she felt herself being pushed back down.

She forced her eyes back open again and blinked against the bright lights a few times. Slowly the room came into focus. She was lying in what appeared to be Casey’s bedroom, with Casey sitting next to her watching her carefully, his eyes filled with concern.

‘Where is she?’ Joy tried to sit back up and again was pushed back down.

‘Do I need to tie you up? Stay still. She’s gone, you’re safe.’

She groaned. It was actually Casey’s safety she feared for most but regardless, they were both safe now.

She felt her heart rate slow, the panic ebbing away.

‘Are you in pain?’

She nodded. ‘My head is killing me.’

‘Stay here a moment, I’ll get you some ice.’

He quickly scooted out the room and she took the opportunity to raise herself on her elbows and look around. Crazy Bitch had been right; Casey had placed candles over every surface. They weren’t lit but the intention was clear.

Casey came running back in and helped her to sit up, then pressed the ice to the back of her head. ‘I’m so angry with you right now, what the hell were you thinking?’

‘I didn’t want her to get away with it. You’d said the robberies were personal, that they were aimed at you. I wanted to stop her.’

‘And you honestly think that a few hundred pounds, some silver cufflinks and a few letters regarding stocks and shares were more important than the life of my friend. She could have taken every single penny I have and I’d still want you over all that crap.’

‘I wasn’t thinking.’

She eyed him, his eyes were angry now.

‘Evidently. I could have shot you when you leapt out at me from the darkness.’

This all seemed a bit unfair – she had been acting in Casey’s best interests, trying to keep him safe. ‘I wasn’t leaping out at you. I was trying to stop her from hurting you. She said if you knew she was there, she’d kill you.’

He sighed, as he shifted the ice slightly. ‘I already knew she was there, why do you think I came upstairs with a gun? You should have let me handle it.’

She took the ice off him, but kept it pressed against her head as she shuffled back so she could lean against the headboard.

‘How did you know? What happened?’

‘The phone call, it was my security team. I have sensors on all the windows and doors – if one of those gets tripped, my security team get notified and they contact the police immediately. She arrived about ten minutes before we got home. Reinforcements were already on their way.’

‘That seems a bit over the top for a few hundred pounds and a pair of cufflinks,’ she muttered.

‘As I said before, I knew the robberies were aimed at me. So I had these special measures installed so we could catch her if she tried anything. My security team tried to contact me straight away, but as I was out, my phone was off. When they phoned, they said the sensors had been tripped on the downstairs bathroom window and on my safe. I thought you were in the bathroom, so I grabbed my gun and went to face her. Next thing, a screaming banshee leaps out of the darkness, a whirlwind of red hair and flailing arms and legs. I aimed my gun. You threw yourself into the door, broke her nose, knocked her out cold, her gun went off and I threw you to the floor where I knocked you out. Sorry about that.’

She arched an eyebrow. ‘Banshee?’

‘Good god yes, you sure can scream.’

‘I didn’t even know I had screamed.’ She giggled with embarrassment. ‘Did you throw me to the floor because you thought I was attacking you?’

‘No, it took me about a split second to realise the banshee wasn’t aiming for me. When I realised it was you and the gun went off I threw you to the floor so you wouldn’t get shot.’

Joy smiled. ‘So you really are my hero?’

He laughed. ‘Looks like you were more mine actually.’ He leaned forward and kissed her forehead. ‘Thank you.’

‘She was trying to plant the diamonds on you, they were all in your safe. Did you know her?’ Her head was feeling better now, so she placed the bag of ice on a small set of drawers, amongst all the candles. Suddenly she smiled to herself as she realised what Casey’s intentions had really been for that night.

‘Yes. Do you remember me telling you about Bonnie and Clyde?’

‘The husband and wife crime duo?’

‘Yes, it was her, Bonnie. She was pissed off at me for putting poor Derek in prison and wanted to get back at me. She wanted me to go to prison too. The great thing is, we now have all the diamonds she stole so they can be returned to their owners. I honestly thought she would have sold them.’

‘Do you think she would have killed you?’

‘I doubt she was the murdering kind. But then you never know what some people are capable of.’

‘Well, at least you can tell Finn now that it definitely wasn’t me.’

Casey rolled his eyes. ‘I take it you still haven’t forgiven him for that yet. You have to let that go. You’ve got to remember that he was prepared to cover for you, to lie to me and to the police for you. The only reason he got upset was when it affected me.’

‘Some things are hard to forgive.’

‘Yes, being unfaithful and physical violence are two things that I would find very hard to forgive. This is a mistake. To be fair, if I hadn’t seen the chainsaws and I saw you going out dressed in black on the night of the robberies, I would be quite suspicious as well. If you love him then you have to move past this now.’

‘Loving him isn’t enough. He has to give me something here. It can’t just be about the amazing sex.’

Casey smirked. ‘I don’t see why not.’

She scowled at him.

‘He loves you Joy.’

Her heart leapt. ‘Has he told you that?’

He hesitated. ‘Yes.’

The pause was just enough to make her think he was lying.

‘Did he actually say those words?’

‘Yes, after he saw you in the woods, he called me the next day to say what an idiot he’d been and then he told me you were leaving and that he loved you and couldn’t bear for you to go.’

She stared at him, somehow finding that impossible to believe.

‘I need to hear it. It’s not like I want a big proposal or it written across the sky in a hundred foot letters, I just need to hear him say it. I need some glimmer of hope that we have some future together.’

‘You can see it – think about all the lovely things he’s done for you over the last few weeks, how many times he’s been there for you. Surely it’s better for him to prove he loves you, than say those three little words.’

Joy picked at a stray thread on the duvet. Casey was right. What Finn had done for her birthday had been wonderful. How he had been there for her with Craig Peters and the nonsense from the villagers. But were those three little words too much to ask for?

Casey stood up. ‘I think it’s time to call it a night. I’ll just go and check everything is locked up downstairs and then I’m taking you to bed.’

She quirked an eyebrow up and Casey laughed, breaking the tension. ‘To sleep. You’re really not my type.’

She smiled as he walked out the room and then waited patiently for him to come back before she tackled the most important subject.

‘Casey.’ She stopped him as he walked back in the room and she gestured to the candles. ‘So what was your intention for tonight?’

He flushed. ‘You know?’

‘I do now.’

He fiddled with the cuff of his shirt. ‘Are you ok with it?’

She felt her mouth fall open. ‘Oh my god, Casey, of course I am. I couldn’t be happier. But I thought you were taking things slow?’

He visibly relaxed at her blessing. ‘I don’t know Joy, we were both wary of getting involved in a serious relationship. But when we’re together… that wariness, the fear of getting hurt or rejected… it just goes away. We both decided that being together was more important than taking things slow. Carpe Diem, seize the day, and we’ll deal with the consequences later if we have to.’

She smiled. ‘That’s a good philosophy. My dad always used to say that we should worry about tomorrow, tomorrow.’

‘Alex said that too.’

‘So I really ruined your plans tonight then?’

‘Not one bit, I love spending time with you. Besides, nothing kills a night of romance quicker than a crazy lady wielding a gun. It will keep.’

She smiled as Casey disappeared off to the bathroom. So it seemed that Casey at least might get his happy ever after. She just had to work on her own.

*

Joy woke late the next day. Casey had already gone, leaving her a note saying he had to go down the station to sort out the Bonnie debacle, but that he had left out towels and a new toothbrush for her and there were croissants downstairs, if she wanted them for breakfast. She smiled, he was the perfect host.

She quickly got washed and grabbed a taxi home. She hadn’t slept well the night before. The natural noises of the house, the pipes creaking and floorboards settling kept making her jump. In her half asleep state she kept thinking it was Bonnie coming back. But the main thing that kept her awake was what Casey had said. That Finn loved her. Would she stay in Bramble Hill if he told her he loved her? Was that all it would take? There were an awful lot of coincidences that made Finn think she was the thief and as Casey said there was no such thing as a coincidence. She couldn’t really blame Finn for thinking that. Everyone makes mistakes. But Finn had to give her a reason to stay now, he had to give her something.

Darcy greeted her joyously when she walked in, and Joy grabbed her lead and headed out.

*

It was early evening as Joy stood staring out of her bedroom window, watching the sun sink behind the hills. She hadn’t seen Finn at all, though she knew he was in. Sad, haunting music drifted out from the open windows and she’d heard him clanging around in the kitchen earlier. She had wanted to tell him about Bonnie, to maybe start back off on friendly ground, but she hadn’t quite forgiven him enough to face him. She had tried to keep herself busy all day, planning some strikes, correspondence with future customers, taking Darcy for a long walk – but the more time alone, the more she had a chance to think. If he loved her, wouldn’t he tell her? He knew she was leaving, that she was only going to be there for a few more days. Wouldn’t he do something to stop her from going?

She sighed sadly and moved to go downstairs to start dinner. At the top of the stairs she stopped in confusion as something was being posted through her letterbox. It looked like a bundle of rags tied together, with one end of the rag still sticking out through the letterbox. Something else horrible from the villagers, no doubt. Furious at their continued hatred, she stormed downstairs to finally give at least one of them a piece of her mind. But halfway down the stairs, the sharp smell of petrol hit her nose and she froze. The rags were soaked in it. And as she watched, a flame quickly travelled through the letterbox, down the rags towards the bundle. She stood paralyzed with shock and fear. Then her brain finally caught up with what was about to happen.

She tore down the stairs and everything happened in slow motion. As the flame hit the rags, a great ball of fire engulfed the front door.

Chapter Nineteen

She threw herself back, hitting the floor hard as the fire licked hungrily up the door. The heat was immense.