Fourteen Days(73)

Peter pointed the gun to the floor. “I’m listening.”

“I came here…” He hesitated, unable to believe what he was about to say. “…to steal your car.” Shaking his head, he looked down at the floor, as if ashamed. What a stupid lie, he thought. He’s never going to buy it. What’s wrong with you? You’re going to get yourself killed. You idiot!

The room fell silent.

“You came to steal my car?” Peter asked, suspicion in his tone.

“Yes. And I’m sorry. Please don’t call the police. It was a stupid mistake.”

Clearly still wondering whether or not to believe his story, Peter sat back down on the sofa chair, glancing at the sleeping baby. He reached into the cot and caressed the boy’s head. “The last thing I want to do is shoot you,” he said, eyes still fixed on the child. “I wouldn’t want to hurt this little one’s ears.”

Richard, still fighting to loosen his restraints, kept his eyes on the shotgun, which was still firmly in Peter’s grasp. “Thank you.”

He turned to Richard. “Don’t thank me yet—I said I didn’t want to shoot you—doesn’t mean I won’t.” Taking his hand out of the cot, he sank back in the chair, making a clicking sound with his mouth, as if mulling over what to do next. “Whether you’re telling the truth, or whether you’re here for some other reason doesn’t really matter. What matters is that you trespassed—on my land, and spied through my windows.” He scrutinized Richard up and down. “You don’t look like a car thief. Car thieves are usually scummy teenagers, wearing baseball caps and gold chains. But you look at least thirty. And you’re reasonably well-spoken and dressed.” He shook his head. “So I’m stumped. Something about you just doesn’t add up.”

“Please Peter,” Richard said, sounding worn-out, “can we just forget about—”

Peter stood, his eyes wide with fury. “How do you know my name?”

Richard’s heart sank deep, unable to think of a fast response. How could he have made such a foolish error? After all the quick thinking, all his lies, trying to hide his true intentions, how could he trip up on such an obvious thing? Of course a car thief wouldn’t know the victim’s name. And even if he did, Peter was in no way going to advertise his presence after what he had done to Christina.

Aiming the shotgun again, Peter walked forward, stopping about a meter from Richard’s helpless body. “Well—talk!” Suddenly the sound of a baby crying made him look over his shoulder at the cot. “Now look what you’ve done!” He turned his attention back to Richard. “You woke him up!”

“Please, just let me go,” he pleaded loudly over the cries.

“You’re not going anywhere.” He winced as the baby’s shrieking increased. “I wanna know how the hell you know my name. And no more bullshit, or I swear to God I’ll blow your brains out all over that wall! And no one’s gonna hear it.”

Finding it difficult to breathe, Richard could feel tears trickle down his cheeks, onto his lips. He wanted to answer his question—but how could he? No one would ever believe it. But then, how could he not say with a shotgun pointed directly at him? He decided to go for broke. “I know what you’ve done.” He couldn’t quite believe what he was about to say, but was unable to stop himself. “I know what you did to Christina Long. And so do the police.” He glanced at the window. “The house is surrounded by them.”

Peter’s face changed from a look of anger to shock. “What the hell are you talking about?” he said, without conviction. “Who’s Christina Long?”

Unconvinced by Peter’s failure to come clean, Richard continued. “You know exactly who Christina Long is. There’s no point denying it. The police know everything about what you did to her. They’ve been watching you for weeks.”

With an unsure look on his face, Peter continued aiming the gun at him and walked backwards over to the window, pulling the curtain slightly to the side. The sun shone through the open curtain as he scanned his farm. “There’s no one out there. You’re full of shit.”

“Do you really think they’d let you see them? They’re hiding. They’re not stupid.”

“I don’t know who you think I am, but I’ve never even heard of this woman.”

“You can deny it all you want, but they’re out there. Waiting for you.”