Page 39 of The Truth Will Out
“We don’t know what her motive was, Sam.”
“I know. I’ll see you in the morning. Have a good evening.”
“I doubt it. Take care, Sam. None of this is your fault.”
“Thanks, Bob. See you tomorrow.”
Sam went homethat evening and immediately took Tilly out to the park for a long walk, more to clear her head than anything else. Tilly was eager to run after the squirrels, but Sam felt it was far too soon to let the little one off the lead yet, especially as her recall wasn’t really showing signs of improvement. She sat on the bench, Tilly at her feet, and reflected on how her day had panned out. From the earlymorning discovery of Claire’s body in the harbour, to finding out that she had been digging into information about Pendle House behind Sam’s back. That news might sound insignificant to some of her colleagues ranking higher than inspector, but to her, it had proved to be a kick in the teeth.
Now she had the daunting task of having the dreaded conversation with Rhys about his involvement at the notorious children’s home.
Tilly gently pawed at Sam’s leg and whined. Sam bent to kiss the tip of her cute nose and hugged her. “Sorry, sweetie, am I ignoring you? Let’s go home.”
She left the bench and spotted Rhys entering the park with Casper. “Hi, I thought I might find you here. I nipped home to prepare dinner. It’s already to go when we get home.”
“Thanks. That’ll save me a job when I get in. I’ll see you back there.” With that, she walked off.
She could imagine the shock on his face at her departure. To be fair, she couldn’t give a toss and was determined not to look back, despite him calling out her name. Tears bulged and trickled onto her cheeks. Right now, she felt as miserable as sin.
“Come on, Tilly. Let’s go home. I’ll give you one of your special treats to make up for letting you down on your walk.”
Tilly trotted along beside her without a care in the world, the way it should be for a dog. It got Sam wondering what horrors her little rescue dog had dealt with back in Romania before she was swooped off the streets and put into the care of the sanctuary. Dogs deserved a better life than most were given.
Sonny had had the best life ever, or had he? He should have spent his days with me, not Doreen, but work commitments prevented that from happening. Now Tilly’s in the same boat. Stop it! No regrets, remember? I’ve saved Tilly from a life of hell. She loves and appreciates all that I’ve done for her ever since. She adores Doreen as well, so it’s a win-win situation.
Sam approached the row of cottages and summoned up a lacklustre smile as she waved at Doreen, who was watching out for them to return. They gave each other a thumbs-up and blew kisses.
“See you in the morning,” Sam mouthed.
Inside the cottage, Sam removed Tilly’s new harness before taking off her own shoes and jacket. Then Tilly followed her into the kitchen to the treat cupboard. Sam withdrew the packet of sausage-shaped morsels. She cut off a link and gave it to Tilly to eat in the garden. Sam had a mooch around the kitchen to see what preparation Rhys had made for dinner. Chicken stir-fry. At any other time, she would have been thrilled with the menu. Not so much today, though. Her appetite had been absent all day. She cast her mind back to what she had consumed at work. It amounted to half a sandwich that Bob had picked up from the baker’s. He’d eaten the rest after she pushed it aside. Leaving the kitchen door open for Tilly to come and find her once she’d finished the treat, she went upstairs to get changed.
She was surprised to hear the front door open and slam ten minutes later and prepared herself for a tongue-lashing from Rhys. His footsteps sounded on the stairs. Sam slipped her velour top over her head and was brushing her hair when he appeared in the doorway.
“Do you mind telling me what I’ve done wrong?”
“Nothing. Why?”
“Why? You really need to ask that question after the way you’ve just blanked me at the park, as if I were a complete stranger, I might add?”
“I didn’t.”
He crossed the room and spun her around to face him. “Don’t lie. What the hell is going on?”
Sam wriggled out of his grip and tripped over Casper in her attempt to get away from him. She landed on her backside on the floor. “Leave me alone. I need time to think.”
Rhys shooed Casper out of the way and held out a hand to help her to her feet. Sam grudgingly accepted it and brushed herself down.
“Why am I in the doghouse? I barely saw you this morning and, as far as I can remember, everything was all right between us whenwe went to bed last night. Forgive me if I’m confused, but I need to know what’s happened to make you turn against me since then.”
“We’ll discuss it after dinner. I haven’t eaten much today, and I’m feeling light-headed.”
“Is that why you fell? Are you sure you don’t need to see a doctor? Is there something medically wrong with you, and you’re too scared to tell me in case I dump you? Is that it, Sam?”
“No. Nothing could be further from the truth. I’m fit and healthy. A lot has happened today, and I need to get my head around it before I tell you what’s going on.”
“And yet, you can treat me like shit while we’re out. How in the world do I deserve that? After all we’ve been through together, I never, ever, thought you would turn your back on me, literally, and refuse to speak to me.”
“I’m sorry.” She ran out of the bedroom and down the stairs.
