Page 70 of The Merry Christmas Project

‘It’s ten-thirty now,’ he said. A full thirty minutes since he’d realised he needed the loo. He tried not to think about it. ‘How long will it take him to get here ?’

‘Twenty minutes. Oh God,’ she sobbed. ‘I have to get out of here.’

There was a sudden scrabbling noise followed by the door handle rattling again.

‘Merry !’ he called over the racket. ‘Take some deep breaths and focus on the light on the floor from my phone. I’m right here with you, you’re not on your own.’

He heard her breathing shakily, in and out, in and out and matched his breath to hers. He slid to the floor, with his back against the bathroom door, taking care not to disturb the beam of light from his phone. Ironic really, he’d been looking for an opportunity to spend some time with her, to get to know her, but Merry having a panic attack on the other side of a locked door had not been on his wish list. On the up-side it would certainly be a memorable night for them both.

‘Arrrggghhh !’ She gave the door another thump.

Cole grimaced ; it sounded as if she was getting angry. Was anger better than fear ? He wasn’t sure, but he did know that he ought to try and take her mind off things. He wondered what had triggered this phobia of the dark ; it was obviously bad because even Nell had brought it up. He suddenly remembered that article his sister had sent him, the one about questions to ask on a first date. Maybe he should read it for inspiration, have a look at that and see if he could keep her talking by going through them.

‘Hey, Merry ?’ He turned the torch on her phone on, shone the light under the door and picked up his own, quickly finding the article. ‘Let’s talk, it’ll make the time go quicker.’

She sighed heavily. ‘What do you want to talk about ?’

‘Um,’ he scrolled down the article, rejecting rubbish ones like : are you a picky eater ? and are you reading anything good right now ? ‘If you could time travel to any moment in history what would it be ?’

‘Half an hour from after I’ve been let out of this bloody room,’ she shot back immediately.

‘Fair enough.’ Cole pressed his lips together hard to stop a laugh from escaping ; he couldn’t help it, he just loved how sparky she was.

He checked the time again ; only another eighteen minutes to go. Put your foot down, Olek …

Chapter 22

Merry

21 NOVEMBER

I sent a silent plea to Olek to hurry up. I was exhausted and shaky and wanted to get out of this bathroom more than life itself. I pressed my ear closer to the door but I couldn’t hear anything ; Cole had better not be laughing at me.

My eyes had become accustomed to the dark a bit now and I could make out the shapes of the toilet and wash basin, but still panic washed over me in waves. It felt as if there was a tight band across my chest constricting my lungs and making it hard to breathe, and there was a solid blockage in my throat at the little dip between my collar bone. My heart was racing and when I put my fingers in my ears I could hear the blood rushing through my veins. My body was in full-on fight or flight mode but it couldn’t do either. It was hard to explain how terrifying it was for me to be in the dark, locked in the dark in this case, which turned the fear factor up by a hundred per cent. I shook off the memory of where this phobia started, not wanting to give it headspace.

The small bathroom was draughty and smelled of lemon-scented bleach with a faint undertone of eucalyptus around the door lock, thanks to my repair which I’d been so proud of. I was sitting on the floor leaning against the wall, with my legs bent and my hoodie pulled over my knees for warmth. The cold had seeped into my bones and my bum was already beginning to go numb. Talk about a rude awakening. I’d been taking a break between pouring one lot of candles and melting the next lot of wax and hadn’t noticed that I was drifting off to sleep. The next thing I knew heavy footsteps were pounding up the bare wooden stairs. I was only half awake when I ran and locked myself in the bathroom ; I’d thought it would be the safest place. I’d got that right ; so safe that no one could get in or out …

At Holly Cottage I kept a light on somewhere at all times. I was ultra-conscientious about checking lightbulbs and replacing them as soon as they went out. It was just my thing. I was kicking myself for what I’d done; normally I left the door ajar when I went to the loo. And I’d known that this bulb wasn’t working; I’d twisted it half out of the socket before nearly falling off the chair I’d been standing on. I’d given myself such a fright that I’d abandoned the job.

But if I had to be locked in at all, I was glad it was Cole who was waiting it out with me. Arguably, if he hadn’t come, I wouldn’t be in this mess at all, but even so, his presence was reassuring. Whenever he moved, he cast shadows on the ribbon of light beneath the door and I put my hand on the floor to connect us.

At least Olek was on his way ; never had I been more grateful that Nell had married a locksmith. I was sure Cole could do it with the right tools, but there was no way I was letting him leave me here while he went back to his van to collect them. What if he had an accident and I was stranded here all night ?

It struck me then how odd it was that he was here at all.

I swallowed and tried not to sound wobbly. ‘Cole ?’

‘Yes ?’

‘What are you doing here ?’

‘You mean what am I doing in the old bank late at night ?’

‘Yes. You didn’t bring tools, so you weren’t planning on doing any jobs and you didn’t think I’d be here, so … ?’

He coughed. ‘Well, it’s a bit awkward. Obviously I thought the place was empty.’

‘Checking I hadn’t left any naked flames ?’