The Three-Month Rule

Chapter 23 - Homeward Bound

Needles. That's what they felt like. Thousands of tiny needles pricking her eyes in the form of tears. She was unable to wipe them away – frozen to the spot like an ice sculpture. Every cell in her body on pause; her heartbeat slow; her breathing delayed.

"Tom..." she breathed. "Tom..."

He paced back and forth in front of her; his palms pressed together; his middle fingers fingertips stuck to his lips as he thought.

"How could you not tell me?" was all he replied.

"I didn't want to worry you –"

"Worry me?" he repeated mockingly, coming to a stop and staring at her in disbelief. "This is dangerous, Allegra."

"I know," she wept.

Suddenly, his stance changed, and he relaxed, releasing a huge sigh as his anger escaped his body.

"Our car is picking us up in an hour," he said eventually, walking to a suitcase and putting it on the bed.

"What?"

"We're going back to England."

"What? No!"

"I'm not giving you a choice, Allegra," he told her as he turned to her again, making her freeze once more.

"I don't remember asking for your help," she argued.

He stood up straight, playing with a folded t-shirt in his hands, and looked up at the ceiling.

"This is happening because of me," he said quietly.

Allegra walked around the side of the bed so that she could look at his face. She'd never seen him look so pale before.

"No, it's not," she told him firmly, clenching her fists. "It's clearly someone jealous trying to scare me."

He shook his head and took a moment before responding.

"You got one in England, that's one thing. But we are in a different country."

"Perhaps it's just a strange coincidence –"

"It's written exactly the same as the other letter."

Allegra looked at him with wide eyes, biting her lip and playing with the hem of her dress.

"What?" he asked her nervously.

"Letters..." she whispered.

Tom dropped the t-shirt on the bed and stared at her.

"What?"

"Letters," she repeated louder.

He observed her for a moment before sitting on the bed and staring at his feet.

"How many of these have you received?"

Allegra looked down again, trying to think of a miracle conversation changer.

"It doesn't matter, we are leaving," Tom said suddenly, standing up again and opening a drawer, pulling all the contents out impatiently.

"You haven't finished your business here! We're staying," she shouted, beginning to cry again.

"No, we are not," he told her, an unamused laugh in his voice.

"Tom!" she pleaded.

"ALLEGRA!" he slammed the drawer shut, making her flinch, and clenched his jaw in anger.

Once more, his stance changed, and a wave of calmness washed over him.

"You're clearly being stalked," he explained. "We need to involve the police."

"No!"

"How are you so calm about all of this?!" he asked her, panic evident in his once velvet tones.

"I'm not!"

He shook his head, walked over to the bed, and began to fill his suitcase with his clothes.

"I'm not doing this with you anymore, Allegra," he said.

"What?" Allegra asked, nausea hitting her like a train.

"Arguing. I'm not arguing," he said calmly. "We are going back to England and we are going straight to the police."

"They're anonymous letters, Tom!" she reminded him. "They won't be able to do anything –"

"Then we'll arrange 24/7 police surveillance on your apartment."

She laughed and threw herself heavily on the bed beside his open suitcase, burying her wet face in her hands.

"There's no point," she mumbled.

"Why not?"

"My let..." she began shakily.

He walked round to her and crouched down in front of her, resting his forearms on her knees and trying to pry her hands away from her face.

"What about it?" he asked, fearful of the answer.

"It runs out in a couple of weeks."

He stopped. For a moment, it felt like he couldn't breathe, as if the wind had been knocked out of his lungs. His chest became heavy and his eyes started stinging.

"What?" he managed to say.

"I have to go back to Carlisle," she cried.

"No..."

"Tom –"

"No," he stood abruptly, looking desperately around the room to try and fight back tears. "You can't. You..."

A tear fell from his eye and he dropped to his knees, his eyes a focused blur on his lap.

"I'm sorry this is happening," he said. "I won't let you suffer any longer."

"Please don't do anything irrational," she pleaded. "Maybe we should just..." she trailed off, causing Tom to look up at her. "Stop this," she whispered.

Tom let out a heavy breath, her words hurting him like razorblade cuts.

"I don't want to put your career at stake," she explained to him, tears running down her flushed cheeks.

"I want this to work," he replied. "No... This has to work."

"Why?" she cried.

"Because I am not going to live without you," he said firmly. "I'm not."

He grabbed her face, their tears mixing together as their lips crashed against one another. He threw her back, pinning her down on the bed with one hand, and ripping her dress with the other.

"You're normally such a gentleman," she smirked through old tears.

"Not tonight," he said.