Page 29 of The Little Cottage by the Cornish Sea

What the actual…?

He rubbed his forehead, seemingly trying to pull himself together.

‘We had an argument about something stupid— I can’t even remember, maybe it was about a party I didn’t want to go to…

but she left while I was at work. I’m worried sick about her.

’ I rolled my eyes, and Piers gave me a look I couldn’t decipher.

‘To signal her whereabouts, please contact the nearest police station.’ Then he leaned closer to the camera.

‘Please, Kate, come back. I promise everything will be all right! I just need to know you and our unborn baby are alive… I don’t care about the documents.

Just come back.’ He began to really bawl.

‘And please, please don’t hurt our child! ’

And then the image winked off.

‘I don’t believe it,’ I cried, dropping my head into my hands again, panic squeezing my throat. ‘He mustn’t find me! He mustn’t find me!’

‘And the baby? You said he didn’t know about the baby,’ Piers whispered.

‘He didn’t! He doesn’t! There’s no way on earth he could know!’ Tamsin would have never told him in a million years.

‘So he’s just shooting in the dark?’

‘Yes!’

‘And the theft? And the blackmailing?’

‘Lies! All lies! Piers, I promise I can explain everything if you’ll just let me.

’ Piers was silent, and so I did. I explained the years of Will’s abuse, how I had gone to his house that day to end things for good.

I explained how Tamsin had called me, how he’d framed me by hiding the documents in my place, and how I had escaped to Cornwall on a whim.

Piers listened intently, giving nothing away.

‘But I had no time to run home and pack, so I took some of his fiancée’s things. His real fiancée. Her name is… Sophie. Sophie Graham.’ The fact that I’d lied to everyone, as horrible as it was, only came second to my baby’s safety. ‘If he finds me, he’ll have my baby taken away from me!’

Piers’s face paled instantly. ‘Jesus wept…’ He stood up and took my hands. ‘That is not going to happen. You have my word.’

‘But… But…’ I was sobbing so hard by this point that I could barely speak.

‘Come on, look at me. Do you actually think I’d let anything happen to you? I’ll protect you. I have excellent security. No one will get in without my permission.’

I shook my head, swiping at another tear.

‘You don’t understand, Piers. He’s already won.

Sending me into this panic, terrifying me, it’s what he does.

Now anyone in Starry Cove with internet will know the truth.

I can’t lead a normal life for fear of being found.

If I know him as well as I do, he’s already got a private investigator on my tracks.

I should have never come here; what an idiot I am!

I came here for a new start and it’s all falling apart! ’

Piers’ dark eyes searched mine. ‘Do you trust me?

‘Yes,’ I said in earnest.

‘Okay then, Soph— sorry, Kate: listen to me. We will get through this. I promise you.’

He pulled out his mobile phone.

‘What are you doing?’

‘I’m calling my lawyer.’

I shook my head. ‘That’s no good. Will is a lawyer. A very important one. He belongs to a huge firm. He’ll eat us all up for breakfast!’

‘From now on, I’m taking care of this. You can leave it with me.’

‘But…’

‘Trust me, you’ll survive this. This isn’t going to be easy, but you will get through this.

Because otherwise, you’re letting him win all over again.

Hang on, it’s ringing… Lee? It’s me. I’ve got a bit of an emergency at Rosestones.

It’s a private matter. How soon can you get here? In thirty minutes? Perfect.’

He hung up and smiled at me. ‘We’re going to find out exactly where we stand. See if we can get some leverage.’

‘Leverage?’

‘To get him off your back.’

‘You mean blackmail?’

‘Leverage, blackmail, tomato, tomato …’

I stared at him blankly. Wasn’t I already in trouble for blackmail? Why make my fake crime a reality?

‘Sometimes, you have to do anything you can to protect yourself. You wouldn’t do this for your baby?’

I sat up. ‘Absolutely, I would. I’ll tell your lawyer all I know. Only…’ I didn’t have that kind of money.

Piers read my mind and lifted his hand. ‘No worries. I’ve got your back.’

‘Thank you for understanding.’

‘I actually do… understand what you’re going through.’ I wondered what that meant, but I was in no state to ask questions. I know Piers and I would have to have a conversation about what this meant for us at some point, but right now, I was just glad that he was taking action.

‘Thank you. I can’t believe you have your own lawyer on call, though. Who the hell are you: the prime minister?’

He chuckled. ‘We need to get you sorted so you can live your life in peace. Now go and wash your face. I’ll see you downstairs in the drawing room, okay?’

‘Okay,’ I whispered as I made my way to the door.

‘Hey,’ he called after me.

I turned.

He was smiling. ‘Chin up, Kate Miller. We’re going to get you through this.’

Through my tears, I smiled back at him. It was good to have someone who really cared.