James
As soon as they stepped inside the house on Royal Street, Marina mumbled a hasty goodnight and told James to give Catriona a quick tour.
“Quite the day, huh?” James said.
“Aye, it’s been interesting for sure.”
They moved quickly through the house, skipping the garden area and the floor that was home to Marina. James smiled as he saw the look of wonder on Catriona’s face. It was the same expression that he saw every time someone new entered the property, and the same one he probably wore himself the first few days he spent in the mansion.
Leading her up to the next level via a wide, winding staircase, James led her to a room at the end of a long hallway. Throwing open the door, he flipped the switch and gestured for Catriona to go inside. “This will be your room. Bethany has already put away your clothes and added a few new pieces. Anything you don’t like, we can exchange later.
Wandering into the room, he pulled close the curtains on the two tall windows on either side of the four-poster bed. “There is an ensuite bathroom through there,” he said, nodding at a closed door on the opposite side of the room. “Bethany has added some basic toiletries, but again, we can get you anything else you might need tomorrow.”
Catriona stood in the center of the room and turned slowly, taking in all the tiny little details in wide-eyed wonder. “It’s gorgeous.”
“It’ll be even better when you make it your own. Bethany and I are at the opposite end of the hall. If you need anything, come and knock. Goodnight, Catriona. We hope you’ll be happy here.”
“Thank you for everything.”
“It’s all part of my job,” James said as he left the room and shut the door behind him.
He trudged down the hall, the hours of concentration on the road settling into his bones and making him weary. He was almost out on his feet when he stepped inside his room and saw Bethany sitting up in bed, waiting for him. “How was your day, beautiful?”
She jumped off the bed, made it across the room in a couple of steps, and grabbed him around the neck, smothering his face in kisses. “I’m so happy you’re home,” she said between pecks.
“Me, too. I’m ready to crash.”
Bethany pushed away and held him at arm’s length, staring at him for a moment before saying anything. “We need to talk first.”
“This can’t wait, can it?”
Shaking her head, she moved back to the bed and patted the space beside her.
James stripped quickly down to his boxers and hopped onto the bed, the mattress threatening to suck him down and hold him in a tender embrace. “Okay, tell me what’s up.”
Bethany sucked in her breath and exhaled slowly. “I’m leaving tomorrow.”
“Where has she got you going this time?”
“No, I’m leaving for good, and I want you to come with me.”
Suddenly wide awake, James sat up and pinched the bridge of his nose. “Wait, where are you going?”
“I called my parents and told them I was coming home for a bit. I cleaned out my bank account today,” she said, nodding at a stuffed backpack sitting in the corner of the room. “I have more than enough to buy a nice little house and do nothing for a few months. If you do the same, we can pool our resources and…”
James held up his hands and shook his head. “Bethany, I can’t just up and walk away from here on a whim. I am in charge of a team that will be left high and fucking dry if I leave. Have you told her yet?”
“I’m not telling her anything. I’m getting in my car tomorrow, leaving, and never looking back.” Tears began to fall as she spoke. “I cannot take this anymore. I love you, and I feel sick when she touches me, but I feel powerless to stop it,” she sobbed.
Not sure what to say, James pulled her in close and let her cry. A million thoughts ran through his mind, not the least of which was how to react to her profession of love. He wasn’t sure that he felt quite the same way. He did care for her, but running off and living the happily ever after life felt like a bit of a stretch.
Bethany pulled away and dabbed at her nose with the back of her hand. “I know you don’t love me, but I’m willing to wait until you do.”
“I…look, I need some time with this. If I am going to leave, I’ll need to wait until she finds my replacement.”
“Have you not been paying attention? She is going insane. That Irish waitress is just another in a long line of decisions. Marina will kill me if I stay, and she’ll eventually kill everyone who knows her secret.”
James thought about the conversation he had heard in the car earlier and felt a knot form in his stomach. “She is a little off right now, I’ll grant you that, but she has these weird little spells every so often.”
“We should kill her,” Bethany blurted out.
James hopped off the bed and began pacing the room. “Now who’s talking crazy?” he asked.
“Think about it, James. Could you take a moment and think about it? How much longer do you believe she can get away with what she is doing? If the cops catch up to her, no amount of money will save her from the death penalty, and we’ll be right there alongside her. It’s only a matter of time. This house is cursed.”
Voices from the street below carried up to the bedroom. James moved over to the window and pulled back the curtains, just in time to see a young couple walk up the street hand in hand, laughing at some shared joke. He often looked at other people and wondered about the normality of their lives. He imagined that they were all bored senseless, working 9 to 5 jobs in some dreary office space. His job was dirty and violent at times, but it made him feel alive. Still, that gnawing at his gut that began with the journal and the Irish girl persisted. Maybe it was time to move on.
“What are you thinking?”
James pulled over the curtains and returned to the bed. “How do we kill her?”
Smiling coyly, Bethany said, “That’s not really my area of expertise, now is it?”
His brain kicked over into work mode, all the possible means of murder running through his mind as though he were flipping through a Rolodex. He spent a lot of alone time with Marina, so overpowering her and strangling her was a possibility, but it was an idea that didn’t appeal to him. He wasn’t sure he could look his boss in the eye as he took her life. Poison was another option, but that would mean getting her personal chef involved or trying to slip it in when no one was looking. The Rolodex turned and turned until it landed on the newest card, the one with Catriona’s face and the flames on it. He took Bethany’s hand and squeezed it. “I’m not promising you a life together, but I can promise that we will both be free of this place tomorrow.”
“That’ll do for now. Get over here and kiss me.”
That final shift from wanting to escape to planning Marina’s murder was genuinely chilling. And now I’m very curious what James has in mind for Catriona.