A House Without Windows (25 page)

“Don’t dwell on the past darling, just enjoy the present.”  Beth smiled. “We’re going to have a lovely time over the next few days.”

“But don’t you ever think of it; of him?”  Amy stood up to help her mother decorate the tree.

“No.  I try not to.  It’s all in the past now.  It’ll do us no good to keep thinking about it.”

“How’s it going in here?  Liam came into the room carrying an aluminium ladder from the garage, with Toby following behind. “Come on Joss, you can help out eh?  Can you hand me up some of those ceiling decorations? Hold the ladder steady, Toby.”  Liam climbed up the ladder holding a large silver bell.

“Can’t I just sit here and watch?”  Joss sighed and stuffed a warm mince pie in his mouth.

“It’s ok, I’ll help you.” Tara stuck her tongue out at Joss and handed Liam up a glittering ‘Merry Christmas’ sign.

“Thank you Tara.  It’s a good thing someone wants to help.”

“I’m eating.”  Joss took another mince pie and remained seated.

Beth looped fairy lights around the tree and switched them on, hoping against hope that they still worked after a year packed away in the loft.  A cheer went up around the room as the bulbs sprang to life.

“Who’s going to midnight mass tonight?”  She stood back to admire her handiwork.

“We’re all going aren’t we?”  Amy looked at Paul, who nodded.

“Of course.  It’s a Darrah family tradition!”  Liam stepped down from the ladder. “Ok with you Toby?”

“Sure.  Mom and Mike usually go.  Christmas Eve wouldn’t be the same without midnight mass.”

“I’ll do dinner for eight o’clock then.  Pork and apple sauce, roast potatoes, and vegetables.  Volunteers needed to help set up and clear away.”

“Joss and I will help, Beth.”  Tara sat down next to Joss and gave him a kiss.

“Did my lips move?  Did I agree to this?”  Joss chewed on a third mince pie.

“Yep!”  Tara and Beth both spoke in unison.

CHAPTER 64

A light blanket of snow lay undisturbed on the quiet road.  Edwin shivered inside his black duffel coat and pulled the hood well over his head as he walked towards the house on the opposite side of the road.  He could see a light on in the porch, but otherwise the rest of the rooms were in total darkness.

Crossing over the road he opened the garden gate quietly and tiptoed unnoticed around to the back of the house, where he found that thankfully several large leylandii offered him good cover. 

Switching on his torch, he tried the patio doors but found them locked.  He then tried the handle of the double-glazed kitchen door, but it did not budge.  Moving along past the kitchen there was a door to some kind of outbuilding.  Edwin pulled the handle down and was surprised when it yielded.  He opened the door and found himself inside a garage-cum-workshop. 

Flashing his torch around the inside of the garage he could see the outline of the family car;
one of those flashy Range Rover jobs
.  Ladders and tools were hung on hooks on the walls, and he could see some old tins of paint and used paintbrushes on a long workbench that ran along the left side.

Moving past the car towards the front of the garage he came across a door on the right hand side of the wall.  Somebody had left a ladder propped up next to the door, which somehow looked out of place. Shining his torch on the handle, he turned it and found himself inside the house near to main entrance.  He could see the light in the porch shining through the half-glazed inner front door.

There were no sounds of life in the house at all. Looking about him, he could see a white burglar alarm sensor in a corner above the inner door.  He noticed there was no usual red light flashing indicating that it had been turned on, and Edwin decided to take a chance.

Keeping away from any likely pressure pads near the front door or at the foot of the stairs just in case, he crept onto the first step and inched his way upwards towards the bedrooms. He could hear nothing apart from clocks ticking away the moments until his hated and lonely Christmas Day.  He stepped over another likely pressure pad at the top of the stairs, and had another look around.

Five doors were open along the landing, and another one right at the end was closed.  Creeping on tiptoe Edwin looked in the first one; a bedroom with a double bed in it and various items of men’s clothing scattered on the duvet, probably pulled out of the suitcase he could see lying on the floor.  There was a guitar by the bed on a stand.

He moved along to the room next to it; a boy’s room judging by the posters on the walls and the masculine décor. 
His son’s room!  The little shit whose fault it had all been in the first place! 
There was no sign of the boy.  Edwin’s sense of orderliness baulked at the sight before him; the unmade bed, the dirty cup and plate on the bedside table, and the possessions strewn haphazardly about the room.

The room next to the boy’s room was a bathroom and toilet.  Edwin noticed how clean the room was, and how the matching pink towels and flannels were the same colour as the soap and the shower curtain. 
Did she use this room?  Was that her perfume in the air?
  He became aroused, imagining her soaping her naked body. He had to turn away as his mind started to wander from its goal.

His goal!
  Walking confidently along the upstairs landing, now certain that the house was temporarily unoccupied, Edwin investigated the next two bedrooms at his leisure.  They were definitely occupied by females; the rooms both had en-suite bathrooms, large double beds, and were fluffy, frilly and flouncy.  He opened drawers and cupboards, fingering lacy panties, slips and brassieres.  He felt a rage starting deep within him at the sight of men’s clothing hanging up on one side of both built-in wardrobes, and he had to sit down on one of the beds and take a deep calming breath as he had been taught to do years before at the hospital.

He opened the door to the last bedroom, which he decided was obviously a spare single room as all it contained were a bare mattress and empty cupboards and shelves.  Edwin grinned to himself; it would be a perfect place to wait until the family were settled and asleep.  Nobody would think of going in there, and there was even a comfortable-looking armchair next to the bed for him to sit in.

But first his bladder needed emptying; there could be a long wait until the family returned.  Edwin went into the bathroom, turned on the light, lifted up the toilet seat, and relieved himself.  He flushed the toilet, lowered the lid, and washed his hands at the sink.  Before he went back to the spare room he straightened the mat around the toilet, wiped the sink, and lined up the towels neatly side by side, He folded the flannel and placed it next to the soap, turning off the light as he went out.

His rucksack was heavy on his back.  He went back into the spare bedroom, closed the door again and unbuckled the rucksack; sighing with relief.  He took off his duffel coat and sank into the armchair, undoing the zip of his rucksack and taking out a round of ham and tomato sandwiches and a bottle of water.  After he had eaten he packed any rubbish back in his rucksack, making sure the knife in its leather sheath was within easy reach. Then he turned off his torch, sat in the dark, and waited.

CHAPTER 65

“All that singing’s made me thirsty!”  Amy took off her gloves and scarf and hung her coat up on one of the hooks in the hallway.

“Hot chocolate before bed anyone?”  Beth smiled and looked around at her brood.

“Yes please.”  Toby and Liam spoke almost simultaneously.

“I will.  How about you, Paul?”  Amy looked towards her fiancée.

“Sure.  Thanks, Beth.”  Paul ran his hands over Amy’s smooth blonde locks and gave her a kiss. “Happy birthday sweetheart; did you think I wouldn’t remember?”

“I knew you would!”  Amy gave him a hug.

“I’ll say goodnight and go on up.  I want to phone Tara. Merry Christmas everyone! Happy birthday Amy!”  Joss threw his jacket on the floor and bounded up the stairs.

“Merry Christmas little brother!”  Toby’s distinctive tones echoed up onto the landing above.

Joss closed his bedroom door and quickly changed into a t-shirt and shorts. Pulling the duvet around him he picked up his mobile phone, found Tara’s number and pressed the call button.

“That’s quick; I’ve only just got in!”  Tara gave a chuckle.

“I just wanted to make sure you and your mum got home ok.”  Joss spoke in uncharacteristically soft tones.

“Of course we did; it’s only round the corner!” 

“Well, you never know who’s about do you?” 

“Don’t be such a twat.”

“Alright.  Merry Christmas Tara: Love you loads.”

“Love you too.  It’s going to be a great Christmas.  I’ll see you tomorrow – oh no, wait.  See you later on today!”

“Yeah, night night babe.” 

“Night night.”

Joss switched the phone onto vibrate mode, and put it in its usual place under his pillow, just in case Tara woke up and sent him a message during the night.  He lay back on the pillow and closed his eyes.  He heard the rest of the family coming upstairs, followed by the familiar sound of water running in Amy and Paul’s en-suite shower.  Over this he could distinctly hear Toby playing a few chords on his guitar.  He felt safe and happy, surrounded by his loving family.  He thought ahead to his 18
th
birthday coming up after Christmas. He fell asleep in no time at all with a small smile playing about his lips.

Amy dried herself, cleaned her teeth, and rubbed aqueous cream into her skin:

“I should be doing that!”  Paul laughed from the depths of the shower.

“Too late, mate.  I’ve already done it.”  She brushed her hair and stepped into her nightdress.

“I won’t be long.  Warm up the bed for me, ‘cos I’m coming to get ya!”  Paul turned off the water and emerged dripping from the shower.

“This is my parents’ house. No hanky panky.  They’re just next door.  It’ll be too embarrassing.”  Amy chuckled as she climbed underneath the duvet.

“Not even a little bit?”  Paul swung the towel over his head and dried his back in a vigorous side-to-side motion, thrusting out his hips and making his penis swing back and forth.

“Will you stop it!  No; they can probably hear every word you’re saying!”  Amy reached out to try and grab the undulating member, but Paul jumped backwards out of reach just in time.

“Looks like I’m going to have to tie a knot in it then.” 

“I can do that for you.”

“Bugger off.”  Paul found some pyjama bottoms in his suitcase and snuggled into bed beside Amy and turned off the light.

“Give us a kiss then, if nothing else.”

“Alright.”  Amy pursed her lips but then opened her mouth to receive Paul’s tongue.

“Love you. And happy birthday again darling.  I’ve got a blinder of a present for you later on.”

“Love you too.  I can’t wait!”

“I can’t wait for some hanky panky.”  He pulled Amy’s head onto his chest and closed his eyes, enjoying the feel of her body close to his.

“Did you put the burglar alarm on?”  Beth sat up in bed at the sudden thought.

“No, I forgot.  I’ve got a feeling I didn’t lock the door to the garage either. Did you?”  Liam was already getting out of bed again and putting on his dressing gown as he spoke.

“I didn’t know it was unlocked in the first place.”

“I opened it to get a ladder out of the garage earlier on. I’ll go and check now.”  He opened the bedroom door and went downstairs, returning after a few moments.

“All locked and bolted. No-one’s getting in here tonight.” 

“Glad to hear it.”  Beth turned on her right side, enjoying the feel of Liam’s warm arms encircling her. “Did you leave the landing light on?  Amy still doesn’t like the dark.”

“Yes I remembered that. Goodnight darling.  Merry Christmas.”  Liam kissed the back of her neck. “Shall we give Amy her birthday present at dinner tonight?”

“Yes, lovely. She’ll be so excited! Goodnight.”

CHAPTER 66

He switched on the torch and looked at his watch; the hands showed twenty five minutes to three. 

Time to claim what was rightfully his!

Edwin stood up from the armchair, slightly stiff after having sat for so long.  He put his duffel coat on and buckled the rucksack to his back, after taking out the knife and putting it into his pocket.