I said nothing. I wanted her to reach where she needed to on her own. And she did.

Seconds later she admitted, “But the truth is I’d been afraid of him for a while. He was changing.”

“Go on.”

“His parents both died within about six months of each other. There was some family stuff that went on for him around that time, a problem with a will, I think, and it hardened him. Money seemed to become more important to him than anything else. And then Peadar got sick, and he hit me. After that he seemed to just retreat into himself. He just stopped talking to me. It was as if he was disappointed in me.”

“Did you tell anyone that you saw him here, or thought you saw him?”

She shook her head.

“What about your sister? Couldn’t you tell her about all of this?”

Lissa looked down. “Sue is going through a rough patch – she’s had some news she’s been struggling with. I don’t think she could cope with anything else at the moment. She and Chris used to get on, but now he hates her for some reason.” She trailed off. “I can’t tell her.”

My tone was firm. “You need to go to the guards, Lissa. Trust your instincts. If your life is being threatened, you need to tell them. You have no choice.”

Her eyes widened and she looked suddenly panicked. “I can’t – I’m afraid he’ll do something to the baby. I just need to talk to him. Persuade him that I’m not going to do anything, that I don’t have the numbers or any of the information any more – they were all on the phone he destroyed. That all I want is to be left alone.” The words came out all in a rush.

But I stated vehemently, “From everything you’ve told me, that just doesn’t seem safe.”

“I can do it. I just need to do it without my father finding out.”

“But Lissa, that just doesn’t make sense. You said it yourself. It’s a question of your own safety and the safety of your baby. The guards are here to protect you.”

She looked at me askance. “Two guards in a town that’s completely cut off, who are already trying to investigate a murder? And find a missing snake?” A wry smile hinted at a lighter side to her personality that must have been there before all this happened. “With the best intent in the world, how on earth are they going to protect me?”

I hated to admit it but, damn it, the woman had a point.

“There are orders we can apply for in court …” I began but I trailed off. I was floundering. I knew it and so did Lissa. She’d be long gone by the time I’d applied for any Protection Order.