Love in the Shadows

Prologue

(May 1998)

(Lucy's POV)

A loud pounding on our front door jolted me awake. I tried to shake off the cobwebs. I didn't have to look in a mirror to know that my eyes were swollen. There was a good chance, after last night, that I didn't have any tears left.

My head stayed cushioned on my now dry pillow, and I lay disoriented, debating a plan of action.

Do I get up to see what is going on or pretend that I'm sleeping?

Pretending was sounding like the better option because realistically, in my heart, I knew exactly what was happening.

They've come for him.

When the doorbell interrupted our dinner earlier in the night, my parents had sent me to answer the door. They were assuming it was Jazzy, my best friend and next-door neighbour, asking if we were done and if I could come out to play.

That would have been our normal. But, no. Instead of my bestie, I opened the door to find myself face-to-face with two police officers.

I squeezed my eyes, refusing to let any more tears out. My thoughts raced. I wasn't upset that our dinner had been interrupted. Or, that they had questioned my dad about his whereabouts last night. I didn't even care about the fact that my mom lied when she confirmed the fact that my dad had been home and in bed for the evening prior.

These were tears of relief. I had always known there was something seriously wrong with my dad.

Now, everyone else would know too.

He was the life of the party. A doting husband and father, who loved me to bits, when we were out in public. But 'Super Dad' was an act he put on. As soon as the doors closed, his true self came out. I had long ago figured out, I was safest when we were around other people. Only then was his mask firmly in place.

A monster.

Tonight, it appeared that I wasn't the only one suspicious of my dad. Officers were questioning him about a dead body which had recently been discovered. He didn't didn't bat an eye as my mom lied for him and his smug look as they left tonight had left a horrible taste in my mouth.

I had known then, they would be back. I just hadn't thought it would be quite so soon.

A murderer.

I covered my ears, trying to tune out the loud voices downstairs. I had noticed the looks the officers had given each other earlier. My mother was the only one in the room who hadn't known that my dad was guilty as sin. Most nights she took her sleeping pills down with a bottle of wine, there was no way that she knew he was in bed next to her last night, or any night for that matter.

As I lifted my hands away from my ears, I was surprised that I could no longer hear anything. I swung my legs out of bed but paused, letting them swing.

The nerves and fear fought for control inside my chest.

What was I going to find out there?

I took a deep breath as my toes curled into the carpet and I moved as slow as possible.  Then as I pushed my door open, a gust of cool air caressed my face. The air in the hallway was ice cold compared to my bedroom. I peered down and immediately found the cause. The front door was hanging open.

My fists clenched at the scene in front of me. My mom was sobbing, curled up at the bottom of our stairs and through the open door I could see the lights flashing on the front drive.

I inched down the stairs; my feet heavy with worry.

How was I supposed to help my mom with this?

As I reached her hunched form and sat down, her body heaved with utter devastation. The officer standing at the door gave me a look of sympathy when we heard her whisper, "They took him, Luce."

Because he's a monster, Mom.

I was saved from having to respond when Jasmin's mom, Ronnie appeared. She took one look at my mom and addressed her question to me, "What in the world is going on?"

I blinked at her stupidly. The words tangled in my throat, refusing to release.

Her appearance seemed to calm my mom down, as her sobs slowed and she breathed deeply and explained, "They took Carl in for questioning. They're saying he murdered a girl."

My mom wasn't looking at Ronnie but I couldn't tear my eyes away as I watched her recoil. Her eyes widened and her mouth opened and shut more than a few times.

My mom raised her head, her voice raising in excitement. "Can Lucy come to have a sleepover with Jazzy tonight? I should go down there, try to get to the bottom of this nonsense."

Not nonsense. Wake up Mom.

Ronnie normally loved when Jazzy and I spent time together and it wouldn't be the first time that an emergency happened and one of us spent the night at the other's house.

Jazzy was seven, so two years younger than me but she was my favourite friend. We could spend hours in our pretend worlds. Best of all, when I was there, I felt safe. Cared for. I was someone who mattered. But right now, Ronnie shook her head, as if unsure of how to say no. "I don't know, she's already asleep."

She looked over at me and her eyes were filled with an emotion that I hadn't seen before. Was she scared?

I didn't do anything wrong?

I released my breath as she finally answered. "I guess so, go get your things Luce."

I hustled upstairs before she could change her mind, tossing things carelessly into my backpack and making my eyes widen as much as possible to stop the flow of tears. My dad was guilty. He wouldn't be getting out and I knew it was a good thing that he got caught. He wouldn't be able to hurt anyone.

Not anymore.

Yet, I couldn't shake the bad feeling in the pit of my stomach.

Why would anyone be scared of me?