was able to treat me any way he wanted, and I never complained. How sad does that make me? But in the early days, each time he was horrible, I withdrew a bit from him, and he had to woo me back to being in love with him. And then it would all start again; I would withdraw some more, and he would court me. It was a cycle, but when he was trying to coax me back to loving him, he was amazing. In the early days, each time he turned nasty I would start to think of leaving, and then he would lay on the charm. He brought me flowers, jewellery, took me out, cooked for me - you name it, he did it. He became a gentle and considerate lover, instead of demanding what he wanted all the time. And then when I was his again, he would gradually start to have the odd mean moment. It was as if he wanted to see how far he could push me.’
Penny stopped and took a sip of water. Leo didn’t move. She wanted nothing to distract Penny. It was almost as if by telling this tale, she was seeing Gary for the first time. She put the glass down.
‘Eventually, it stopped working. I neither withdrew, nor could I be wooed. It was always just more of the same, and I was no fun anymore. But by then, we had children. I’ve never worked. Not really. If I left Gary, I have no idea what I would do. I’m not a strong person who’s organised enough to find somewhere to live, pack up everything for the girls and move out. And he doesn’t do it all the time - usually he stops when he has a distraction. That’s where the other women come in. He woos them until he wins them. He chooses the most difficult people because then it will take time for him to succeed. You know how good looking he is. And he can be so charming. Those flowers that we brought to Ellie’s on Saturday night - you should have seen the care he took in selecting them from the garden. They were all our flowers, not bought ones. He said he wanted every bloom in the bouquet to be absolutely flawless - we had to impress our rich friends. So he spent ages selecting each one. That’s how he used to be with me - always making sure that everything he did for me was perfect.’
‘What makes you think he’s got a new woman now, if he’s still being aggressive with you?’ Leo asked.
‘Because I don’t think this relationship is going to plan. I don’t think she’s falling under his spell. She’s resisting, and he’s taking it out on me.’
‘But how do you know this if he hasn’t told you?’ Leo asked, with a sick feeling in the pit of her stomach.
‘I told you the other night that I don’t take a sleeping pill if Gary’s out. He doesn’t know, though. I always pretend to be fast asleep, and I know he thinks I’m dead to the world. On Friday, he was out until very late. It was after one o’clock when he got in, and he was in a foul mood. I pretended to be asleep, but he stomped around the bedroom and banged the bathroom door with such force that I thought it was going to come off its hinges. I knew he’d been with a woman. Nothing else would make him so mad.’
31
The hospital canteen was busy, but fortunately there was nobody there that Ellie knew well, so she was able to grab a corner table and sit by herself to have her break. The progress that day with Abbie had pushed all other thoughts to the back of her mind until now. She was so pleased that the girl was showing signs of recovery and the doctor was talking about taking her off the ventilator the next day, if all went well.
The story of how Abbie had been abducted was infinitely more disturbing, though. The village had always seemed such a safe place to live. Apart from what had happened to Fiona, of course - but that was different. Ellie had lived in Little Melham all her life, and knew practically everybody. Suspicion would be rife everywhere, and she could only imagine the havoc it was wreaking in some households as doubt was cast on the integrity of friends and