They both half turned towards the empty doorway and I launched myself out of the chair, reaching for Beth, for the gun, for anything I could get a hold of to push those twin black barrels away from me. There was a split second when everything seemed to slow down: Mel let out a little shriek of surprise, Beth turned back and I was lunging towards her, grabbing for the gun, my hand almost on it, the barrels dipping away out of my grasp, empty air, but I was almost on her, almost –

And that was when she shot me.

Chapter 83

83

The blast hit like a sledgehammer and spun me face first onto the carpet. I groaned and clutched my thigh, blood oozing stickily through my jeans. Mel threw herself on me, which was pretty much the last thing I was expecting to happen.

‘No, Bee!’ she said, using her body to shield me. ‘It was never supposed to end like this!’

‘Your husband didn’t give us any choice, Mel.’

‘No! He was just supposed to be a distraction for the police while we got everything sorted. That was what we agreed.’

‘He’s our fall guy.’

‘But I thought that meant in court, with the police, solicitors and everything! Not like this!’

‘He took that choice away from us when he turned detective. As soon as he found your second phone and told the police about it, he was signing his own death warrant – you knew that. We both knew it.’

In a small voice, Mel said: ‘I never wanted him hurt.’

‘We don’t have any choice now,’ Beth said. ‘We have to play this out. All the way.’

Mel didn’t move.

‘Melissa? It’s time.’

My wife turned to me, tears on her face.

‘I didn’t mean this to happen,’ she said to me. ‘Not like this. I tried to warn you.’

‘It hasn’t happened yet,’ I said, my voice hoarse. The pain was excruciating, like a red-hot branding iron held against my leg. ‘You can still stop it. Stop her.’

She shook her head, a tiny movement.

‘I can’t,’ she whispered.

There was a dull void in my chest in counterpoint to the burning agony of my leg. My wife was here, next to me, protecting me, touching me, and I felt nothing for her.

I didn’t love her any more.

It was clear that she had not loved me for months, or years.

And now I finally understood, and the bond was broken.

William and I were on our own now. I was his only hope.

Beth snapped the shotgun open and dropped the spent cartridge, still smoking, to the floor. Blood from her arm continued to drip onto the carpet, the bed sheet, her dressing gown.

‘Remember your choice, Mel. You know you’ve already made it.’

‘Mel, don’t do this,’ I said. ‘It’ll follow you forever.’