Page 5

Eaton Square

Tuesday night

She heard nothing.

She started to call out Benny’s name but stopped herself. She kept listening, not moving, barely breathing. It had to be nothing, had to be, but still she was so scared she couldn’t get spit in her mouth. Suddenly the bedroom door slammed open against her, knocking her backward against her bed. She yelled, “Benny, help!”

Knife man jerked the poker out of her hand, came down on his knees over her, and raised the knife again.

Benny’s voice came from the doorway. “Get off her now or you’re both dead!”

Knife man jerked around and hurled the knife at Benny in a move so fast it was a blur at the same time Benny fired. Knife man fell to his side, gasping for breath, cursing, this time not in English, but in Arabic, a curse she’d heard Samir say. She didn’t think, kicked him off her, grabbed the poker, and struck out at him again. He backed away from her.

Elizabeth raced to the wall and flipped on the light switch.

“Benny? No!”

She dialed quickly, hearing his labored breathing as she spoke to a woman and told her to hurry.

They waited together, Benny with a knife in his chest, Elizabeth with blood running down the arm of her white pajamas as she pressed as hard as she could against her wound.

Two days after that, she disappeared.