Dark Desire - Part 4 of 4

Tony lied that there was a lot of work and he had some deadlines. But he assured her that he would be able to solve the problem easily. Kate soon fell asleep, but Tony could not sleep. He now bitterly regretted his momentary weakness with Helen and knew that if Kate came to know about it, his marriage will be over.
Around midnight, the landline suddenly rang. He hurriedly picked up the phone – it was Kate’s mother- her father had a heart attack and was hospitalized. He woke up Kate. Kate assured her mother that she would come as soon as possible. Her parents lived in Brighton. Early next morning Tony dropped her to the bus station in Heath-row airport from where she caught a bus to Brighton. Tony promised to come as soon as possible and tried to comfort her.
After the bus left, he felt relieved. At least if the police visited him she will not know. However that night he had good news. The serial killer had been caught by the police. There was CCTV cameras installed in Helen’s house and they had caught the killer come out in the hall with a dripping knife. He was Andrew Blair, the son of a well to do business man and Helen had probably invited him over unaware of his psychotic nature. Knowing that Helen was a sex addict, Tony thought that she had probably invited Andrew over for sex.
Andrew had also been seen near the other murders and hence there was enough proof to arrest him. Feeling relieved that he had got away with his infidelity and was lucky enough not to have been caught, Tony promised himself that he would never be unfaithful to his wife again.
Next day, Kate called and informed that her father was fine now and she would come back on Saturday afternoon. Tony was happy to receive the news. On Friday evening he went to a saloon, had a haircut and shave. He also bought a bunch of flowers and put it in a vase.
He ensured that the maid dusted all the corners of the house properly and it was properly cleaned. He also prepared Kate’s favorite dish of spaghetti Bolognese , salad , garlic bread followed by apple crumble. The house smelt of good food and the bedroom smelt of flowers. After the maid left, he went to the bus-stop to collect Kate. He felt particularly virtuous that the house looked so neat and tidy. Usually the house was a mess when she went away for a few days to visit her mother.
The newspapers were full of the serial killing and the murder of Helen. Tony felt safe for the first time since his nightmare had started after meeting Helen. With a feeling of intense excitement, he watched Kate get out of the bus. They waved frantically to each other. ‘Oh Tony’ – Kate said smiling at him happily. ‘Darling I missed you so much!’ – Tony said. She looked at him puzzled by his thinness. ‘You look so thin – have you not been eating properly?’ Tony grinned and said, ‘On the contrary, I have cooked your favorite meal. Now tell me about your father and what was happening in Brighton.’
He listened while Kate talked, and he felt at peace with the world. She need never know about Helen, he thought. It would never happen again. He had a narrow escape and had learnt his lesson. He felt very happy as he took her back to their warm and welcoming home.