01

“I really think you’re groovy, let’s go out to a movie…”

Norah hummed along to The Turtle’s classic, fingers tapping away on the steering wheel as she drove through the night. The Blue Briar forest loomed on both sides of the road, the large trees melting into the dark and she drove below the speed limit, afraid an animal would jump out in front of her. Earlier she had passed a dead wolf on the side of the road which had put her stomach in more knots than it already was. There was something about seeing animals on the side of the road that upset her. If it had occurred naturally, it wouldn’t bother her but because it was humans who had ended those poor creature’s lives, it made her feel guilty in a way she knew she shouldn’t, but couldn’t help.

The other reason her stomach was in knots boiled down to one person ; Daniel. The last two weeks of her life had been a nightmare. After Adam had appeared on her doorstep, explaining what he had done, Norah knew things were only going to get worse.

She had been right in thinking his job with Daniel had been illegal. Apparently, they had planned on stealing some diamonds from a businessman who was passing through town that night to attend a fundraiser. Unfortunately, for Adam and Daniel, the businessman decided to return home early due to an upset stomach and had caught them in the act. The man had stopped Adam from escaping and Daniel, being the great ‘friend’ that he was, escaped and left Adam to fend for himself.

During their scuffle, the man had tripped and they both fell through the coffee table, smashing the glass top and the man cracked his head open on the foot of the table. In a panic, Adam had tried to stop the bleeding before realising the man was dead.

After explaining to Norah, she could see he didn’t know what to do, but she did. A situation like that, Norah couldn’t let it slide by. She loved her brother, despite his flaws, but she couldn’t keep this a secret for him. A life had been taken and Adam needed to turn himself in before things got out of hand. It took Norah seven hours of tears and shouting to convince him to do the right thing. She had half expected Adam to run the moment she turned her back but he hadn’t.

For two weeks she had put her life on hold to help Adam sort everything out. The case had gone through quickly as Adam had confessed and the only thing he left out was Daniel and the location of the missing diamonds. Norah thought Daniel would have skipped town with them by now and she didn’t care if they both never resurfaced.

Sadly, on the fifth day after Adam had been jailed, a knock had sounded at her door and there was Daniel, smiling his ‘innocent’ smile which shot a bolt of fear through her being. Despite her assurance that she didn’t want his help or ‘sympathy’, he continued to plague her. The first few visits had been standard Daniel, hovering too close, offering his version of pity at Adam’s situation when it wasn’t wanted. Every time she saw his face, she wanted to threaten call the police if he didn’t leave her alone, but was too afraid of how Daniel might react, and she also didn’t feel the police would believe her since no mention of Daniel had been made in the initial report.

Rain started to splatter across her windshield and she turned the wipers on as her brain went over what had happened three days ago.

Juggling with three bags of groceries, she managed to unlock the front door without dropping anything. Her fridge had been empty for three days but with Adam and an annoying subplot that wouldn’t sort itself out, she’d been too busy to care, simply surviving on what was left in her pantry ; cashews and museli bars. Walking down the hall to the kitchen, she was thinking of how to make her pasta when she stepped through the kitchen door and bit back a scream, dropping her bags and the ingredients rolled across the floor.

Daniel leaned against the kitchen island, her large cutting knife in his hand as he tested the tip’s sharpness.

“W-what are you doing in my house ?” She demanded, trying to cover the fear she felt coursing through her veins. She stood still, afraid to run in case he gave chase. The house phone was in the hallway but she knew she wouldn’t reach it before he reached her.

Daniel sighed, glancing at the knife before lowering his arm. “Norah, Norah, I’ve tried to be patient but I’m afraid I’ve run out. Now, let’s do this the easy way and no one will get hurt ; tell me where Adam hid the diamonds.”

Heart pounding against her ribcage, she was momentarily confused. “But I thought you already had them ?”

This wasn’t what Daniel had wanted to hear ; he moved fast, grabbing her by the shoulder, he slammed her against the wall, pressing the blade’s edge against her throat. Norah’s mouth went dry and she froze, terrified.

“Tell me where the fucking diamonds are, or I spill your pretty blood all over this kitchen.” He snarled.

“I honestly don’t know,” she croaked, the knife moved against her skin as she spoke and her hands trembled, wanting to reach up and shove him away. Norah wasn’t weak, she kept fit, but Daniel was larger and stronger ; she wouldn’t stand a chance against him. “Adam told me you had them, I’ve never even seen them !”

Daniel’s eyebrows furrowed and he glanced down in thought. “Clever bastard,” he muttered. Looking back up, he steadied his hand and pressed her shoulder harder into the wall. “All right, change of plan ; you ask your brother where the diamonds are and I’ll be back tomorrow to collect. Call the police and I’ll sneak into your room and slice this knife across your throat, ear to ear. You try to get me arrested and I have plenty of other friends who will come and do the job for me.”

The knife moved as he spoke and her legs threatened to collapse. “If the diamonds aren’t in my possession by tomorrow night, you’ll be dead anyway.” Stepping back, he placed the knife back on the island. “See you tomorrow, Norah.”

She waited until she heard the front door slammed shut before her legs folded, sliding to the floor and she burst into tears.

Her situation hadn’t gotten any better when she rang Adam straight away and he had denied knowing where they were. The fact that he obviously knew something about them but wouldn’t tell her set her on edge. Surely her life was more important than some stupid diamonds he was probably never going to see again ?

In the end, too afraid to call the police, she rang Alice, her best friend and only person she trusted with something like this. Alice was the only person who had ever seen her writing so far and was the one who convinced her to try and do it professionally.

Alice’s first reaction was to call the police but after hearing Norah’s panic, she looked at their other options. Her best option was to leave town until they could deal with Daniel. Coming around, she sat with Norah and explained her idea. “Ray’s father has a beach house in this place called Bellvale. The family won’t use it since he had an affair there for five years. It mostly gets rented out to holiday goers and it’s free at the moment.”

“So you’re suggesting I just run ? What if he follows me ?” She asked incredulously.

Alice squeezed her hand. “He won’t follow you, Ray and I will act as your cover story. I don’t want you to run, but this Daniel is a creep and without those diamonds, he’s going to keep hounding you until he gets them or you get hurt. At this point, apart from the police, running is your best option. You’ve still got your inheritance money from your dad so you won’t have financial trouble. Just head out there for a month or so, lay low and Ray and I will keep a look out for Daniel. If I see him hovering around and I’m sure he doesn’t know where you are, then I’ll get the police involved and get him put on stalking charges or something.”

“But he’s coming tomorrow, I won’t have time to organise everything –“

“No time for organising, sweetie only time for action. Leave everything to me. Now,” she said seriously, “how fast can you pack ?”

In one night, Norah and Alice had packed up her life, putting only what she needed in her car. Alice took whatever had value to keep it safe should Daniel break in again. As the sun had risen, Norah had hugged Alice farewell and directions to her safe house in hand, she got on the road. For three days she had driven nonstop, sleeping in her car when she got too tired, her kitchen knife resting on the seat beside her. It had now become her weapon and after waking from nightmares of Daniel finding her, she often touched it for reassurance.