Page 63 of Broken Beyond Repair
Peter recoiled. “Fifteen? There was only ten.”
“You only assaulted ten?”
“Yes.”
Sydney took her phone from her pocket, unsurprised the bastard kept count. “Thanks for confirming — for the record.”
Peter’s face reddened as he realised he’d been tricked into incriminating himself. “What the fuck! You’ve been recording this the whole time?”
“Shortly after I kneed you in your tiny bollocks. I wouldn’t want to incriminate myself, would I? Even though technically it was self-defence. What would Alex make of his dad being a dirty letch? I wonder if any woman would touch you in the future if they knew what you were like.”
Peter lunged at her, trying to snatch the phone. She was too quick for him and slipped it down the front of her shorts as she stepped back.
“Come and get it if you dare.” She egged him on with a twitch of her hip.
“You bitch!” Peter hissed.
“I won’t be here forever…” She paused. Saying it aloud kicked her in the gut, reminding her she would have to leave in a few weeks. “So I’m going to make sure every PA that follows knows about you. I suggest that you don’t come around here anymore. You clearly upset Beatrice. Unless she approaches you, stay away in future. Alex will soon be old enough that you’ll never need to speak to one another again.” Sydney turned towards the house, calling over her shoulder, “You have until Alex’s birthday to sign those divorce papers.”
“I’ll sue if you use that recording.”
“Use it? I don’t need to use it; this is for my own entertainment. I have a line of women ready to tell all at the press of a button. It would be easier for everyone if you signed the papers and moved on with your life, you sleazy prick.”
As a parting remark, Peter kicked gravel at her back. She was tempted to kick some back at his car but couldn’t bring herself to damage the paintwork — Peter’s taste in cars was as fine as his taste in women.
As she shut the front door, she allowed her thoughts to finally settle on what she’d learned. Her heart drummed even harder than it had when she confronted Peter. Beatrice was into women. Not one to listen to idle gossip, she’d never hoped more for something to be true — not that Beatrice would ever give her the time of day in that department. She would still consider it a win for womankind.
Beatrice had said herself Peter held something over her, so it must have been true. It would explain why he had such an effect on her, and why she was so upset the first afternoon that Peter showed up. When the woman was at a low point, Sydney had waltzed in and given her another kicking. She was as bad as the rest of them.
To hear Peter confirm he’d driven away anyone that Beatrice relied on, just to undermine her confidence. It was tantamount to cruelty. Of course, the question could be asked: Was Beatrice particularly ‘challenging’ for her PAs because she knew they would leave her anyway, as she claimed, or did Peter simply make it easier for already disgruntled PAs to leave? From the woman’s behaviour over the last few days, she already knew the answer. There was nothing wrong with Beatrice Russell and everything right about her.
She knew she was going to have to tell her about what transpired. She toyed with how much to allow Beatrice to hear of the recording, only to realise she must play it all. She wanted her to know that she knew everything, that she didn’t have to hide herself from her. That she wasn’t alone.
CHAPTER25
Beatrice opened her eyes, immediately sensing something was different to other mornings. A smile forced its way onto her lips at the familiar sound of light snoring, this time coming from beside her. Her assistant was lying on top of the duvet, fast asleep in pyjamas shorts and a vest top, looking perfectly dishevelled.
She’d come to her room last night to clarify some things surrounding Naomi’s death. Beatrice recalled inviting her onto the bed to talk through it only for sleep to take them both.
Beatrice couldn’t recall waking that night, the first time in a long while, even before the annoyance of the cast. Whether that was a result of Sydney spending the night beside her she couldn’t answer, even though Sydney made her feel safe — more than anyone else ever had.
She also made her feel cared for, something all her other PAs failed to achieve — if that was even part of a PA’s role. They were there to assist, make life easier, but to make someone feel cared for, wasn’t that above and beyond? The role of looking after someone with a broken leg required a level of personal care not required of her other PAs. In a short space of time Sydney had seen her physically and mentally exposed. She’d told her everything — well, almost everything. There was one secret she kept to herself, and with the woman lying beside her on the bed, that was becoming increasingly difficult to hide.
Sydney’s morning face was soft, not yet hardened against the day’s demands. The urge to reach out to it and stroke it was so overwhelming that before she realised what she was doing, her hand was brushing the hair from Sydney’s face. Her eyes opened, locking onto Beatrice’s and creasing a little at the side as she smiled. A second later panic washed over her face.
“Sorry.”
“It’s fine.” Beatrice placed a hand on Sydney’s upper arm to prevent her from bouncing up.
“It’s not. I shouldn’t be here.”
“Sydney, it’s fine. We were working late; we fell asleep and… overslept, it seems.”
Sydney sat up, scrabbling for her phone. “Rosie will be here soon.”
Finding her laptop further down the bed, she was gone from the room in a flash, leaving Beatrice to hold on to that initial hint of pleasure on Sydney’s face at waking up beside her.
The only sight Beatrice had of Sydney before Rosie’s arrival was when she brought a coffee back up to her room. Again she was gone in a flash. Beatrice found her own way down the stairs on her backside.
