Chapter 84

Should I have the locks changed?

No… find out what she's been doing first…

There's only so many ways in and out of the house.

So, I set myself to wait. And watch.

*****

And there she is, heading for the gate, my housekeeper's vehicle, a white van, crunching over the gravelled drive at less than a walking pace.

To make no sound?

She's sneaking out?

Sprinting back down the stairs, I snatch keys from the hall table, dashing past my startled Master… "Eliza…"

But I'm gone.

In the garage, Ross, his feet up on a table, marks something onto a crossword puzzle. My Master's BMW gleams beside my own, much smaller and more modest, model. "Ross, my car. Quick!"

"Beth?" He sounds as startled as my Master.

"She's getting away!"

"Who?"

"Mrs Martin!"

He swings up, grabbing at keys. "Let me drive. You can navigate."

"No navigation. Just follow her van." Gravel sprays as, jaw set, Ross swerves us down the drive and out. "You know there's something going on, don't you?"

He grimaces. "I don't know anything