‘I saw a man come out of this building, heading that way. I was jogging and have been round the block since, but I’ve just come across this bunch of keys over there.’ I turned and pointed towards the main road before continuing. ‘Do you think they could be his?’

‘Oh. I’m not sure. What did he look like?’

To say a monster would have been an exaggeration, to a stranger at least.

‘About five seven, dark hair. Looked like he was going to the gym.’

‘That’ll be Ian. He’s at number six. Do you want me to take them for you?’ She reached out to take the keys, her fingertips brushing the swinging bottle opener.

I snatched my hand back. Her lips parted as though she was going to speak, but no sound came out.

‘No. Thank you, but no. Just in case they aren’t his. Perhaps I’ll head over to the gym and if I can’t find him, I’ll hand them in to the police.’

‘Yes. I think that’s best,’ she said as she backed up, away from me. Her mouth formed into a tight smile.

‘Thanks for your help.’ I waved as she retreated, desperate to get away from the mad woman on her doorstep.

I pocketed my keys and began my walk home. I had what I came for.

My attacker’s name was Ian. A perfectly normal name, too normal for the animal I knew him to be. Now his apartment number had been confirmed, I used my phone to type his full address into the search engine. No results. I did the same again, this time using his first name and full address. Still nothing. Fuck. Everyone had a digital footprint, didn’t they? He might be on Facebook, but typing in Ian followed by Sutton didn’t bring up anyone who looked like him either. At a loss, I tucked my phone into my pocket and carried on home.

Ben would be back today, and I wanted to be waiting for him when he arrived. I was a little too late though, as I opened the front door I heard voices from the kitchen. Ben’s distinctive laughter carried through to the hallway, followed by a girly giggle. My heart sank. This was a first. Don’t look, just go straight to your room and close the door. I couldn’t, it would be rude, plus I had to see who she was. I popped my head into the kitchen, plastering the broadest smile I could muster across my face.

‘Hi.’ Ben looked pleased to see me and my heart lifted a little. The girl, sat across the table in my chair, didn’t look quite so pleased. She corrected her expression into one more friendly when Ben glanced at her. ‘Eve, this is Amy. She’s been on this course with me in Manchester.’