Rania Algafari never asked to be different, and when she escaped the war in Syria and moved to the UK, her only goal was to live her life in peace. Get up, go to work, avoid talking to the dead - that sort of thing.
But not everyone dies quietly, an...
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Talk about sleepless nights. At three a.m. I almost resorted to Shannon's vodka. Two days ago, I thought I'd found my anchor, but now I realised I was the anchor and I'd drag Will down with me if I kept taking advantage of his good nature. No matter what he said.
And last night, he hadn't said anything. After I'd left him in the bathroom, he'd disappeared, and I'd been ready to walk to the bus stop when I found him sitting outside the door of Daylesford Hall in his BMW. Since it would have been rude to walk right past him, I'd climbed into the car, but like earlier in the day when he'd sent me a text message and I hadn't known what to say in reply, I'd kept quiet, and he hadn't spoken either.
Part of me—the grown-up child who still believed in fairy tales—wanted to tell him I'd been stupid when I turned down his dinner invitation, because the idea of going to one of those upmarket places just once in my adult life held a morbid appeal. And I couldn't deny I craved his company. I even had a dress I could wear—a black strapless number Shannon had treated me to when she insisted I go on a double date with her and Slick Dick and one of his friends.
But I'd got out of the car and walked into the flat alone, ignored Shannon's questions about why Will hadn't come in to eat with us, and gone straight to bed.
***
At five thirty in the morning, her usual time despite it being Saturday, Shannon walked in with a cup of coffee, Aisling toddling along behind her.
"Okay, you've had time to wallow in self-pity. What's wrong?"
"Nothing."
I reached out for the coffee, and she held it out of reach.
"Fine. Everything."
"On a scale of one to Slick Dick?"
I grimaced at the comparison. "Maybe a three?"
She handed over the mug, and I sipped gratefully.
"Go on, tell me. I thought you and Will were getting on so well. What did he do?"
"It started when one of the cops who first interviewed me wanted to ask more questions. I know Will doesn't like him, so I'll admit I didn't go out of my way to be helpful, but he kept asking me who I'd seen Helene spending time with in the evenings, and I never saw her spending time with anyone."
"So tell him that."
"I did, and he put me on a guilt trip. Gave me this lecture about how if I wanted to stay in England, I needed to act like an upstanding citizen and assist with upholding the law."
"Sounds like a real asshole."
"He is, and he wouldn't let it drop. Then Will heard part of the discussion and came barging in."
Shannon's voice turned dreamy. "Aw, your knight in shining armour."
"Well, sort of. He and the cop had words, and I got out of there while I could, but I waited outside the door for Will."
