Please Don’t Leave Me Here by Tania Chandler.
It’s after midnight when Sam gets home, but she’s still awake. He places his watch and keys quietly on the bedside table. His clothes rustle as he undresses in the dark; the bed creaks when he sits on the edge to pull off his shoes and socks.
‘Aidan’s working on the case you were working when we met.’ The sound of her voice seems to hang in the darkness. ‘He thinks I did something. He says you did something, too.’
‘No,’ Sam says, ‘he’s just got things mixed up.’
‘I don’t know, Sam. He sounded pretty serious. Scared me.’
‘Is he out the back?’ He reaches for his clothes.
‘No, he hasn’t come home.’
He drops his shirt, and takes her hand. ‘I’ll sort it out tomorrow. And he can move out if he’s upsetting you.’ He slides into bed, and she snuggles up against him — warm, strong, a hint of sport deodorant and dried sweat. She needs him more than ever now.
‘Don’t worry.’ He strokes her hair. ‘Did Serra say anything about what he thinks happened that morning?’
‘Morning?’
‘Night.’
‘Not really.’
‘Have you remembered something?’
She fiddles with the corner of the pillow case. ‘No.’
‘Brig, there’s something I have to tell you about my father.’
‘Doug?’
‘No, my real father.’
She should be a good partner and listen, but she’s drained. ‘Can it wait till tomorrow?’
They lie awake for a long time without speaking.
‘Sam, I want to have another baby,’ she whispers. The twins brought them closer together. New life makes everything better.
Next door’s air conditioner whirs, a dog barks, and street-light creeps under the blind.
‘Let’s talk about that tomorrow, too.’
Please Don’t Leave Me Here by Tania Chandler, released in paperback on the 24th September by Scribe Publications. Click here to pre-order your copy or download the ebook now.
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