“I’ll mute the sound,” he said, waving her over as he stood. “Tell me when it’s finished. I can’t watch.”

Lauren sat, took the laptop, a feeling of danger coming over her.

“Can I unmute the sound?” she asked.

Markus groaned, pacing over to the opposite chair. “You’ll change your mind.”

Lauren looked at the still frame of the security footage. When she clicked play, she saw a cat come into frame, a gorgeous British Shorthair, and then Casey walked into view. She was stumbling strangely, wearing an ill-fitting dress flecked with dirt; she had a garden tool in her hand, a trowel.

Markus was right; Lauren muted the sound.

But she watched, even as her instincts tried to make her look away. She watched as Casey marched over… And she did evil and terrible things to the poor cat. She was laughing as she did it, her lips parted, as she paraded around the garden. The kitty struggled. Casey didn’t care.

It lasted a couple of minutes, but it felt like forever.

At the end of the clip, Casey stared down at the lifeless lump on the ground. Her expression was vacant.

Tears streamed down Lauren’s cheeks. She was thinking of her own cat, Zora.

“That bitch.” Lauren stood, shaking all over. “That monster. That pathetic, that, that…”

She deflated, sitting back, as the screen went dark. Lauren knew the video would be imprinted on her mind forever. Casey had done it all so casually, so matter-of-factly, as though killing an animal was just another chore. Lauren could imagine Casey going inside and washing her hands, humming a tune, as the innocent creature lay lifeless in the garden.

“Is it over?” Markus asked.

“Yes.” Lauren forced the word past her tears. “She doesn’t deserve to breathe. She should be executed.”

“Agreed.” Markus swiftly walked over and grabbed everything. “Polly loved that cat. I had to tell her he ran away. When I confronted Casey, she didn’t care. She laughed, telling me to grow up, telling me caring about pets wasn’t healthy.”

“Can I make a copy of this video?”

Markus’s demeanour changed. “No.”

“Why?”

“She’ll know it came from me. I can’t risk that. I’m finally getting my life back. Me and Polly, we’re in a good place.”

“We won’t release it. We’ll threaten her with it.”

Or Lauren would use it on Scott to get the full story about Natalie. If that was even worth it now; everything seemed pale and pointless after the video.

“I’m guessing that’s what you did, at the book club?” Lauren pressed.

Markus glared. “Her whole life is based on tricking people. It’s hard to do that when they’ve seen you kill a cat.”

She wanted to tear Casey’s throat out; she wasn’t used to violent thoughts like this. But cats were the most wonderful creatures, with entire personalities, each one unique, skilled and graceful and beautiful and loving if they’re in the right mood.

To do what she did…

“Threaten her, fine,” Markus stated flatly. “Then what? She’ll still know it came from me. I know Casey. She’ll want revenge. I can’t–”