Free Behind Closed Doors: The gripping debut thriller everyone is raving about by B A Paris

one of his million-dollar questions. ‘Not really.’
    ‘Not even the dessert you were so looking forward to?’
    I swallow hard. ‘Not as much as I thought I would.’
    ‘It’s lucky Esther was able to help you out then, wasn’t it?’
    ‘I would have eaten it anyway,’ I tell him.
    ‘And deprived me of so much pleasure?’
    A tremor goes through my body. ‘Absolutely.’
    He raises his eyebrows. ‘Do I detect a renewal of your fighting spirit? I’m so glad. To tell the truth, I’ve been getting quite bored.’ He gives me an amused glance. ‘Bring it on, Grace—I’m waiting for you.’

PAST
    T hat evening, the evening of my wedding day, when I stepped into the bedroom after my bath, I was dismayed to find it empty. Presuming that Jack had gone off to make a phone call, I felt irritated that something could be more important to him on our wedding day than me. But my irritation quickly turned to anxiety when I remembered that Millie was in hospital and in the space of a couple of seconds I managed to convince myself that something terrible had happened to her, that Mum had phoned Jack to tell him, and that he had left the room because he didn’t want me to hear their conversation.
    I ran to the bedroom door and flung it open, expecting to see Jack pacing up and down the corridor, trying to work out how to break some tragic news to me. But itwas empty. Guessing he had gone down to the lobby and not wanting to waste time going to find him, I searched through my luggage, which had been dropped off at the hotel by the chauffeur, dug out my phone and rang Mum’s mobile. As I waited to be connected, it occurred to me that if she was talking to Jack, I wouldn’t be able to get through to her anyway. I was about to hang up and call Dad’s mobile instead when I heard her phone ringing and, soon after, her voice.
    ‘Mum, what’s happened?’ I cried before she’d even finished saying hello. ‘Has there been a complication or something?’
    ‘No, everything’s fine.’ Mum sounded surprised.
    ‘So Millie’s all right?’
    ‘Yes, she’s sound asleep.’ She paused. ‘Are you all right? You sound agitated.’
    I sat down on the bed, weak with relief. ‘Jack’s disappeared so I thought that maybe you’d phoned with bad news and that he’d gone to talk to you in private,’ I explained.
    ‘What do you mean, “disappeared”?’
    ‘Well, he’s not in the room. I went into the bathroom to have a bath and when I came out he was gone.’
    ‘He’s probably gone down to the reception for something. I’m sure he’ll be back in a minute. How did the wedding go?’
    ‘Fine, really well, considering that I couldn’t stop thinking about Millie. I hated that she wasn’t there. She’sgoing to be so disappointed when she realises that we went ahead and got married without her.’
    ‘I’m sure she’ll understand,’ Mum soothed, and I felt furious at how little she knew Millie, because of course she wouldn’t understand. I was appalled to find I was near to tears, but after all that had happened, Jack’s disappearing act was the last straw. Telling Mum that I would see her at the hospital the next morning, I asked her to give Millie a kiss for me and hung up.
    As I dialled Jack’s mobile, I told myself to calm down. We had never rowed before and shouting at him down the phone like a fishwife wouldn’t achieve anything. Something had obviously come up with one of his clients, a last-minute problem that he needed to sort out before we left for Thailand. He would be just as annoyed at being disturbed on his wedding day as I was.
    I was relieved when I heard his phone ringing, relieved that he wasn’t on the phone to someone, hoping it meant that the problem—whatever it was—had been sorted. When he didn’t pick up I stifled a cry of frustration and left a message on his voicemail.
    ‘Jack, where on earth are you? Could you phone me back, please?’
    I hung up and began to pace the room restlessly,