Chapter 17

Lucy was a freckled strawberry blond who smiled and laughed often. When Carl walked into the bar where she worked, he had immediately caught her eye. She went to serve him and could not look away from his mesmeric gaze. He gave her his shy but interested grin and by the end of the evening she had agreed to go on a date with him.

It had looked like the day had been wasted. No one suitable had crossed Carl's path. There were women with light, but they had been too old or too young, married, had children or he was not truly attracted to them. Going into a bar, needing a drink, he found Lucy. She lit up the room and he put all of his effort, over the next few days, into seducing her.

Each day Carl visited the bar and engaged Lucy in conversation. Touching her hand and staring into her eyes, his spell had been cast. Their first date had gone very well and tonight Lucy had agreed to his offer of a coffee at his place. The intimate contact which would happen later, would reinforce his hold over her and he would be able to progress things quickly from then. He liked Lucy a lot and, in another time or place…but she was not Hannah.

Three weeks after he had walked into the bar, Lucy was moving into Carl's home. The circumstances had been just right for him to move quickly. She was living in a shared house and was thoroughly fed up with other people's mess and noise. Her low wages meant that she could not afford to live anywhere more salubrious, so she had been eager to accept Carl's offer of accommodation.

"Oh, this is a beautiful house. I can't believe I get to live here." Lucy surveyed her new home.

"If you want to change anything, decorate or whatever, you can." Carl said.

"No, everything is perfect. You have really good taste."

"Thank you."

"You were serious when you said that I didn't have to work anymore?"

"Yes. I want you here with me as much as possible."

"I'm so lucky to have met you. I'll do housework and cooking. I'll look after you really well. We are going to be really happy."

After a couple of days at home with Lucy, to stock up on her virtue, Carl set about finding out where Hannah had gone. The search would start in the town where Hannah's family lived. Going straight to her parent's house, he hoped to find her there and was immediately disappointed.

"Well look who it is. Where's Hannah?" Jim peered up and down the road searching for his daughter.

"She's not with me." Carl saw a frown form on Jim's face.

"Who is it? Oh, Carl. Is Hannah with you?" Sue's smile faded as Jim replied.

"No, she's not. We haven't seen or heard from her for 2 years. There better be a bloody good explanation."

"Of course. I'm sorry about that. Let me come in and I will explain everything."

"She's alright, isn't she?" Sue was getting worried now.

"Oh yes. Let's sit down and talk."

Carl smiled and touched Jim and Sue's arms. The emotional tension came down a notch and they moved to the lounge. Midge growled and left the room as they went in.

"When we moved away the house that we rented needed lots of attention. Hannah was very busy with decorating and buying new things. She has an eye for how to make a house a home. You were always in her thoughts, but there was so much to do. You know how hard working she is. It was difficult for her to leave the job half done."

Jim and Sue were still staring at Carl stony faced. He would have to work harder to win them back to his side. After 2 years any influence that he had exerted was long gone. Reaching out he touched them again and saw them relax.

"Sadly, Hannah recently had a miscarriage. She was, understandably, upset and depressed. She has taken herself off somewhere to recover and I hoped that she had come here. You haven't seen her then?"

"No, we haven't." Jim and Sue exchanged a fearful glance.

"As you know, I love her very much. I have always cared for her and I want to carry on doing so. I know she loves me, too and will eventually come back. I thought I would come here, let you know what has happened, and see if she had come home. I'll write down my phone number for you. If she appears, please contact me so that I know she is safe."

"Poor Hannah. She always wanted a family. Losing a baby would have really upset her." Sue said.

"You said you want to know that she is safe. That makes me worried." Jim was proving difficult to appease.

"Sorry, I didn't explain that very well. Hannah has been in contact with me since she left. We have spoken on the phone and she explained that she just needed to get away for a few weeks. I know that she is okay, but it would be good to hear from you if you see her." Carl told the lie easily and his reassurance made Jim and Sue smile.

"I'll make a cup of tea. Do you want a bite to eat, too?"

"That will be lovely Sue. I haven't had a chance to ask about you and Will. How are you all?"

The conversation carried on over lunch and, by the time he left, Carl knew that Jim and Sue would do exactly what he had asked. They hugged him before he left and as he walked down the path, their promises were ringing in his ears.

There had been a moment when Carl had felt something as he had approached Hannah's home. His instincts had led him to believe that he would find her inside. Then the feeling dissipated. The family had been convinced that he had her best interests at heart and had promised that they would let him know if they heard anything. It seemed that Hannah had been cautious. Once again, he had underestimated her.

Not finding her had been a disappointment. Carl could go straight back to Lucy and relax or he could vent his fury on some hapless passer-by. After the murder of the man in the park, it was best that he returned home and calmed down. Lucy would be waiting for him and he would bask in her light.