Page 37 of Boomerville at Ballymegille

Melissa hung her head and Hattie had to lean in to hear.

‘I’m scared,’ Melissa whispered. ‘I think he’ll find me wherever I go and I don’t see the point of running.’

‘Nonsense, you can’t let a man ruin your life. Take control. Life’s too short.’ The food arrived and Hattie pushed a plate in front of Melissa. ‘We all have our downs but we climb back up.’ She touched Melissa’s hand. ‘You have everything to live for.’

Melissa stared at the sandwich.

‘If you can’t find a new lease of life her at Hotel Boomerville, perhaps we should send you over the water to Boomerville Manor. Jo needs some bums in beds.’

‘I don’t understand.’

‘There’s a new Boomerville about to open in Southern Ireland, with a grand party, and guests can stay for a long weekend. It would get you away from here for a bit.’

As Melissa digested Hattie’s words, her face lit up. ‘Do you mean that I could go too?’

‘Aye, why not?’

‘Oh, I’ve always wanted to go to Ireland.’ Melissa picked up a knife and fork. ‘It sounds such a beautiful place and I met lots of Irish people when I worked on the cruise ships; they’re so friendly.’

She began to tuck in to her sandwich.

‘That’s settled then.’

‘Are you sure it would be alright?’

‘Just so long as there’s no nonsense about staying in your room while you’re there,’ Hattie said. ‘There’s taster sessions over the weekend and I expect you to join in.’

‘Oh, Hattie, I can’t wait.’

Hattie watched Melissa munch on the club sandwich. She’d brightened beyond recognition. Perhaps she felt trapped here, Hattie thought, with the menacing shadow of Malcolm hovering like the grim reaper.

Hattie was pleased with her idea and decided to call Jo immediately. Raising her cup, she smiled at Melissa. ‘Here’s to Ireland,’ she said.

16

Malcolm Mercer lay on a lounger by the pool at his luxurious villa in Marbella and thought about his wife, who was still holed up at the hotel in Cumbria.

He glanced at his Rolex. They were an hour ahead in Spain but he knew that Melissa was awake, dressed and about to take her daily swim. He glanced at his phone and read a text message from a staff member who confirmed this. It was useful to have spies wherever he needed them and he knew that Melissa was unaware that she was being watched. The young waiter whom Malcom had approached at Boomerville was keen to trade information and his daily report earnt him more than his weekly salary. It suited Malcolm to know where Melissa was and he was happy to leave her there for the time being. The silly bitch thought that she’d got away from him but no one left Malcolm of their own free will.

When he was ready, he’d make her pay for her attempt to make him look foolish.

Malcolm had spent his childhood in care and his teenage years in various institutions. Systematically bullied throughout the years, as he clawed his way through business, he’d vowed to never let anyone get the better of him again. Drugs had killed his mother, an addict who’d abandoned him as a baby and he’d never known his father.

As the sun seared into his tanned skin, Malcom shrugged and walked over to the side of the pool. Sessions in the gym kept him toned and he knew that he looked good for a middle-aged man. Stretching his muscular body, he dived into the deep blue water.

As he swam, Malcolm thought about Melissa’s pale skin and how much he enjoyed beating his fists into it. There was a time when he’d stroked it with passion, but his business was in trouble and without the buzz of success, she was an easy target for his frustration. He felt a ripple of pure pleasure when his rage exploded and she quivered before him.

Pleasure that he’d previously felt when sealing a high-risk deal.

Malcolm turned and broke into a backstroke, squinting his eyes against the sun. As he swam, he had much on his mind. Business deals had become difficult and it was taking all his expertise to keep things stable.

But his thoughts soon strayed back to his wife.

It seemed an age since he’d met Melissa in a nightclub on the Costa del Sol. She was fresh, beautiful and looked like a model, her legs long and her body shapely. When she sang, she had the voice of an angel and her vulnerability had captured not only his attention but the eye of every man in the room. When she’d stepped off the stage, Malcolm had determined to make her his own and had swept Melissa off her feet. Several romantic encounters later and it took little persuasion to encourage her to give up her seasonal cabaret job and stints on cruise ships. In a few short weeks, Malcolm had asked Melissa to marry him and she’d readily accepted his proposal.

Malcolm moved through the water with ease. He could almost see Melissa sitting on the steps, her toes splashing water as he swam and her hair a golden halo against the Mediterranean sun. With a smile full of love, she watched her new husband in their pool. He’d been on his own for more than a year when they met and all traces of his first wife, Allegra, had been removed from the villa. He’d let Melissa spruce the place up and add new furnishings, for she’d a good eye for décor and had created inviting homes, both in Spain and Cheshire.

But as he turned and began a crawl, a ghost-like apparition of Allegra had taken Melissa’s place on the steps, her dark eyes taunting as she tossed her head back and her thick black hair fell across her Spanish skin. Malcolm felt as though Allegra was with him in the pool as her long shapely legs began to descend into the water, her beautiful body submerged, hair momentarily floating on the surface. He pounded the water, breathing heavily, pushing his body until his muscles ached and the vision faded.

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