Page 34 of A Secret Escape

I can’t help but wonder why we’re going to a library, but decide it’s better not to ask .

As if reading my mind, Marcus turns his gaze from the window to face me. “Do you trust me?”

“Yea, I do,” I say softly, and I mean it.

I don’t have a history of trusting people easily, but even though I barely know Marcus, something with him just… clicks. Like when I’m with him, I’m right where I belong. I’m safe.

He squeezes my leg gently and turns to look back out the window.

Nearly twenty minutes later, the taxi pulls up outside a large, impressive-looking old building. Marcus thanks the driver and we climb out, his hand instinctively reaching for mine as soon as we’re on the pavement, like it’s second nature to him. A warm flutter passes across my chest.

We enter the library, and I instantly love the feel of the building. There’s a large open space on the ground floor, with rounded bookshelves creating a cosy reading space in the middle and an impressive balcony wrapping around the room from the floor above.

Marcus doesn’t slow down, pulling me along with him as he walks in between rows of bookshelves and up a staircase at the back.

We emerge on the upper floor balcony and walk past a few rooms with glass doors that all have people in, until we come to one that’s empty.

Marcus opens the door and walks in, holding it open for me.

The room is a pleasant meeting space with four chairs on either side of a rectangular wooden table. I sit down as Marcus takes out his phone and starts looking something up.

Several minutes of silence pass by when my curiosity gets the better of me. “Marcus… I do trust you, but… what are we doing here?”

“We need to go away,” he says. “Somewhere they won’t follow us. Give it a few days for all this to blow over. ”

My heart starts to race as a red heat flushes across my face, my eyes growing wide.

Go away? That is not what I was expecting him to say at all.

I take a deep breath and realise he’s right.

If they found his car, they would find his house too. Or they’d follow us to it. We’d be sitting ducks.

“What about work?” I ask.

“Can you take some time off?” he says, not lifting his eyes from his phone.

My thoughts race around what Angela and Carter would say. What would Stephen say?

“I think so. I’ll message Angela,” I say, pulling out my phone. A barrage of thoughts fly through my mind so quickly I can barely make sense of them.

Company policy is to request annual leave at least two weeks in advance. I could call in sick, but that wouldn’t be believable. Angela would know something was up. I could say it’s an emergency. A family emergency? A personal emergency? How do I explain whatever this is?

“How long are you thinking?” I ask.

Marcus is silent for a moment, his eyes fervently moving from side to side as he reads something on his phone. “A week should give it enough time,” he says.

Despite the fear, panic and adrenaline that are fighting for control over my entire body, a smile manages to creep onto my face at the thought of being alone with Marcus for an entire week.

How the fuck is this happening?

I pinch myself to see if I’m in a dream.

It hurts .

Opening my work e-mails on my phone, I type a quick message to Stephen, checking it over twice before hitting ‘send.’

I then text Angela.

Hey babes. Shit’s hit the fan over here. I’m with Marcus, but my flat was broken into and we’re being followed. Marcus looking to go away somewhere for a week to hide. I e-mailed Steve and said I’m taking 5 days for a personal emergency. Let you know more when I can xx.

I press send, then quickly type out another message.

Don’t tell anyone xx

“Alright, I think I’ve got something,” Marcus says.

I look up at him, eyes wide with curiosity. “Yea?”

“It’s up north. A little cottage in the woods, totally off the grid. It’s available tonight.”

Our eyes lock on each other and I sit frozen, unable to read his expression as a mix of conflicting emotions runs through me.

It almost feels as though there’s a smile that’s trying to fight its way through the fear that we’re both all too aware of, and I feel an answering pull in my chest – hope trying to break through despite everything.

“I realise this sounds mental… but I do think it’s the best thing. They won’t follow us that far, and if we leave late, we’ll be able to see if there’s anyone behind us. We hide out, lie low, keep a close eye on the news, and once it’s over, it’ll be safe to come back.”

“What about my flat?”

“I don’t want you going back there while they’re still watching. We can sort it after we’re back. Do you have insurance?”

I shake my head, eyes growing wide as I curse my past self for not listening to the estate agent’s advice to take out contents insurance.

“Don’t worry. We’ll sort it. ”

The assertiveness in his voice warms my heart, and I know in that moment that I would trust Marcus with my life.

“Okay,” I say. “Let’s do it.”

Marcus’s face lights up with a smile.

“Alright, give me a few minutes. I’ll get this booked and sort the car out.”

I nod and look back down at my phone, which has been buzzing repeatedly in my hand. There’s three texts and a missed call from Angela.

What?!? Are you ok?!?

Call me NOW!

Where are you??

I quickly message back.

I’m ok. With Marcus. Will call when I can. Don’t worry xx

A few minutes of silence go by as I scroll anxiously through my Instagram feed while Marcus calls to arrange a tow for his car. After he hangs up, he continues typing on his phone in silence, tension hanging thick in the air.

My anxiety feels at an all-time high and I can’t help glancing nervously out of the glass door, watching for anything suspicious.

Are they here in the library? Are they still following us? What if they try to attack us the moment we leave? Should we have a knife on us to stand a chance at self-defence?

My heart races as my thoughts grow more and more panicked until I spot something out of the corner of my eye that fills my entire soul with dread.

A man is sat on the ground floor of the library, reading a newspaper, and he had been looking up at us, I was sure of it.

When I turn my head to look at him fully, he’s focused on the newspaper.

I can only see the side of his face, and it’s from a considerable distance away, but something about him looks familiar, tightening my stomach into a knot.

It’s not Chris, that much I’m sure of, as the man’s hair is brown.

Is it one of the people Chris is working for? Is it the driver of the car from the other night?

“Uh, Marcus,” I say hesitantly, not taking my eyes off the man.

“Yea?”

“I think… they may have followed us here,” I say, my voice barely more than a whisper.

He looks up from his phone and takes a step towards the glass when I quickly jump up and grab his hand to stop him.

“Don’t make it obvious!” I whisper, despite knowing that there is no way we could be heard all the way downstairs.

“Who?” Marcus asks, straightening his back as he tries to look out towards the ground floor.

“In the red chair,” I say. “Reading a newspaper.”

“Where? I don’t see anyone.”

I turn back to look and gasp as the man has gone and the chair he had been sitting in stands vacant.

I jump up to the door to look around, but I don’t see him anywhere.

“He’s gone.”

“Was it him?” Marcus asks.

“No. But he looked familiar. I think it may have been the person who was following me in the car this morning.”

“Are you sure?”

My heart is pounding in my chest and I feel like a dark cloud is hanging over our heads .

“I couldn’t see him very well. I just caught a glimpse and thought he was looking at us.”

Marcus is silent for a moment.

“Hopefully it was nothing. Either way, they can’t hurt us here,” he says.

I nod, sinking back down into the chair.

“Are you alright?” he asks, his voice full of concern as he reaches out and rests his hand on my shoulder.

I shake my head.

“Hey, it’s going to be okay. I promise,” he says.

I take a deep breath and try to steady myself.

“The cottage is booked. The car is being towed to a garage not far from here. They said it should be ready by six. We’ll stop back at my place, I’ll check that it’s all clear, get a few things packed and we’ll set off once it’s dark.”

I nod, the room feeling like it’s starting to spin as I think about everything that’s happened and everything that lies ahead.

My heart is racing and my head is a jumbled mess of thoughts and emotions.