The Doll's House: DI Helen Grace 3 (34 page)

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Authors: M. J. Arlidge

BOOK: The Doll's House: DI Helen Grace 3

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Staring at the beautiful beach, framed perfectly by the rugged cliffs, Ruby couldn’t help remembering those lonely nights of her incarceration when she’d imagined herself here, daydreams from which she’d been brutally ripped time and again. The fact that her abductor had died twice – first at Helen Grace’s hand and then in the fierce conflagration that followed – didn’t make Ruby feel any better, or any safer. The memories of her isolation and despair were still too strong to stop herself shaking when she thought of him and her terrible ordeal. He still came to her at night – in vivid, appalling nightmares – and Ruby had hardly slept a wink as a result. Weeks after her liberation, she still felt weak, damaged and unsettled.

But her abductor had not won and in time she hoped to expunge him from her life completely. It would be a long road – removing the tattoo in hospital had been the easy bit – and the worst was yet to come. But she
had
won – she must keep telling herself that – and the most eloquent testament to that fact was the view that now stretched out in front of her: this place, this cove, no longer an illusory retreat for her fractured mind, but something real and reassuring. Ruby crouched down, running the wet sand through her fingers over and over again, fighting back tears of relief.

A cry made her look up and there they were – Mum, Dad, Cassie, Conor – meandering their way towards her. They let her have her moments of solitude but were
mindful to ensure she felt loved and supported every moment of every day. Wiping the tears from her eyes, Ruby straightened up and started walking towards them. This was her future now, her happiness.

Finally, she had come home.

142

Helen had never seen anyone look so happy. As they strolled across the Common together, the pristine red pram cutting a swathe through the fallen leaves, Charlie chatted animatedly about little Jessica’s arrival. She laughed at the indignity of a hospital birth, her naked terror during the days immediately afterwards and the many lies she had been told about what parenthood was going to be like. The whole process had clearly been bewildering, scary, painful, but through it all slightly amazing too. Given Charlie’s history, there was much more riding on this pregnancy than there would normally have been and Helen was more pleased than she could say that things had worked out so well for her.

Helen had been totally unaware of Charlie’s labour, as it had played out during Ruby’s rescue. In fact, Helen had first become aware of Charlie’s good fortune while lying in the same hospital as her, awaiting surgery on her ear. The wound it transpired was not too deep and – though it still looked gruesome – would heal in time. Charlie had asked Helen about it, but Helen had moved the conversation on fairly swiftly. After the events of the last few weeks she wanted to focus on happier thoughts.

So much had changed in such a short period of time. Ceri Harwood had resigned with immediate effect and had not been seen since. The search was under way for her replacement – Helen having already been offered the post and turned it down. Harwood’s disappearance only served to underline the continuing mystery as to Robert’s whereabouts – now when she thought about Harwood’s unpleasant machinations she didn’t feel any anger, just a deep sadness that Harwood had exploited a vacuum in Helen’s life for her own selfish ends.

Helen pushed the thought away. She knew she had a tendency to obsess about things that were painful and difficult but she would not give in to the darkness. Today was a day for celebrating the good things in life. Like the fierce joy Alison Sprackling had exhibited on being reunited with her precious daughter. Or the quiet, but equally fierce love that Charlie felt for her baby girl.

Helen had no family to speak of now and at times like this she was wont to distance herself from life, to retreat and hide. But for once she didn’t want to. It was a beautiful day and she felt at peace with the world. More than that, she felt connected to it, Charlie having sprung two momentous surprises on her, during the course of their morning together. First by asking her to be godmother to Jessica, a request that had rendered Helen temporarily speechless. She had happily accepted the role of course, once she had recovered from the
shock – and a good thing too – for in a subsequent nod to their ever-deepening friendship, Charlie topped off the day’s surprises by revealing Jessica’s middle name.

Helen.