Stop Dead (DI Geraldine Steel)

aware that her legs ached painfully from running. They were shaking so violently she could barely stand.

     
    He burst in, slamming the door against the shed wall. With a roar he launched himself at her, dragging her onto the ground. She hit her head as she fell, but she didn’t care. All that mattered was that he was there. She grappled feebly with him, but was no match for his vigorous assault. It was happening again and she was powerless to stop him.

     
    Over his shoulder, through her tears she saw a figure hovering in the doorway, one hand raised in a futile gesture. But there was no point calling out for help. Scrabbling on the ground, her fingers closed on the handle of something very heavy. In that instant, she knew what she had to do. With a surge of adrenaline she raised the hammer as high as she could and swung it down.

     
    There was a loud crack, like a window breaking, and he slumped forwards. Whimpering, she struggled out from beneath him. It wasn’t easy. His inert body weighed down on her, but she managed to crawl free. Groaning, he rolled away from her, onto his back, exposing his genitals. Yelling in fear and ecstasy she raised the hammer again.

CHAPTER 1
     
    A my glanced fearfully at her watch.
    ‘I’ve got to get going. He’ll be expecting me.’
    She sat up and swung her slim legs out of the bed.
    ‘Stay a bit longer. You only just got here. Stay.’
    ‘You know I can’t.’
    ‘Of course you can.’
    Guy propped himself up on one elbow and leaned across to pat her pillow with his free hand.
    ‘Come back to bed. Can’t you forget about him for once? What’s he going to do? You’re not his bloody prisoner.’
    Amy twisted round and caressed his smooth chest delicately with the tips of her dark red nails. Blonde curls swung around her face as she shook her head.
    ‘You don’t know him like I do. You don’t know what he’s capable of when he’s in a temper.’
    Guy lunged forwards, grabbed her by the wrist, pulled her back down onto the bed beside him and kissed her, savouring her perfume and the smell and feel of her body still warm from lying in bed.

     
    Guy had never met anyone like Amy before: on the surface so intimidating with her sophisticated, knowing manner, yet beneath that show of confidence more vulnerable than anyone he had ever known. At twenty-three his previous relationships had been short-lived affairs with shallow ignorant girls, mannequins with screechy voices. Amy was a mature woman, wealthy and classy, informed about life and the wider world. It seemed to him almost miraculous that she would treat him as an equal.

     
    ‘So who’s this mystery woman of yours?’ his mates clamoured to know.
    ‘I can’t say.’
    ‘She married then?’
    When Guy shrugged the lads had chuckled and slapped him on the back. Only one had warned him to take care.
    ‘What about her husband?’
    ‘Don’t be a prick,’ another one chipped in. ‘He’s getting his leg over, isn’t he? She must be a looker at any rate, and that’s all there is to it. Guy’s not going to be banging her forever, are you? Get out before the problems kick off, and you’re alright, mate.’

     
    ‘It’s not like that,’ Guy had begun then stopped, embarrassed to admit that he was in love.
    His mates had roared with laughter.
    ‘He’s got it bad.’
    A few months earlier, Guy would have shared their amusement if any of his friends had turned soft but since meeting Amy his perspective had changed completely. He couldn’t stop thinking about her. Not having her to himself was driving him crazy.

     
    Amy shook her head, pushing him away.
    ‘Stop it, Guy. I’ve got to go. I’m late.’
    Extricating herself from his embrace she slipped out of bed and he lay back, watching her blonde hair skim the top of her round white shoulder. Her profile didn’t do her looks justice, emphasising her straight nose which was a shade too big and her pointed chin, while her long hair concealed the piercing grey eyes which were her most striking feature.

     
    ‘Maybe we should just forget the whole thing,’ he grumbled, watching the curve of her vertebrae as she crouched down to gather up her clothes.
    ‘What do you mean?’ she asked without turning round.
    ‘You’re never going to leave him, are you? It’s the same thing every week. I mean, what the hell are you doing, staying with him? What are you waiting for?’

     
    She turned and looked down at him, her grey eyes troubled.
    ‘I’m