"I think, without that, she would have gone mad." India said in a melancholy voice which she rarely used.
Rob sighed and lit another cigarette, going out into the cool night on the fire escape.
"Anyone would think she was the murderer."
India smiled like a cat. "Have you not worked it out yet? She's like a martyr. She doesn't do it deliberately. But she will gladly suffer so that other's don't have to."
And then India laughed to herself. A month ago she used to read about this man beside her, and think of how handsome he was when she watched his films. And now he was just Rob. And she could speak to him as freely as any friend.
"What you laughing at?" He asked, managing to raise a smile of his own.
"Nothing." She said, trying to brush it off. "Just that my life has descended into madness."
"I can't argue with that." He agreed.
She looked at him then, at the lines around his eyes when he smiled. The small moles on his cheek and the long fingers which held the cigarette to his puckered lips. There was nothing special about him. In fact, he was less handsome than most regularly good looking men. But there was something about him. When he spoke, when he moved. She wasn't particularly captivated by him the way she had been before knowing him in the flesh, but she understood why others were. And why Seren was.
"She's been keeping all that inside for seven years. I can't begin to get that." Rob said, flicking his cigarette over the side.
"At first we thought it was delayed shock, but then the years went by and we tried...god knows we tried...to get her to talk about it but it was like she'd completely moved on and after she gave her statement to the cops, she never spoke of it again. Except court, but still it was only because she had to."
"Where is he? Seren's Dad?"
India picked up another cigarette, not caring that she had just finished her last one. She lit it like a novice, her hands still trembling.
She laughed slightly. An ironic laugh. "There's only one place you go for murder in the state of Texas." And she winked.
"This happened in Texas?"
"Yeah. I hadn't seen them in months, we were living in Alaska for a while. My brother Todd, he got a job up there and after seeing him settle I wanted to do the same but my parents wouldn't let me until I was 18. So we went to Texas to meet up with My Aunt Greta, I was hoping to stay in Alaska but Seren asked me to be there. They were only passing through. But we were going to stay there a few months. Needless to say we were back in Alaska within days."
Rob's face was pale in the New York light, his eyes staring at the ground listening intently. She knew she had his full attention. "Uncle Silas was a sick man. And I only say that because once I loved him and so did Seren. I don't think anyone could have loved their Dad more."
"What....What did he do?" And his face was apprehensive, even as he wanted to know.
India sighed and looked down. "He waited until Seren had finished singing. It was pretty late so everyone started going back to their tents and vans. David asked me to go back to his with him but I was too tired. Told him I would see him in the morning. It was the last time I saw him alive. She never told me what she saw, I only heard her in court. And even then she didn't give the details. Just that she had gone to the van with Ezra. Her brother, he's almost blind, he can't get around with help. Aunt Greta was already asleep and Uncle Silas wasn't there. She went to find him. He wasn't anywhere around so she walked to the edge of camp into the farmers fields. She said she had her portable cd player on. Sour Times by Portishead was playing. I remember that, because I hated Portishead. But she loved them. She said she wasn't worried, just curious. She wasn't ready to go to bed and thought if she found her Dad, she could stay up and join him in whatever he was doing. Funny, really. When you consider he'd got talking to David. And took him to the farmer's fields to kill him. She said there was a weird smell, like something you wouldn't find out in the fields. She switched off her music and that's when she heard the wretch sound. No screams, no cries of agony or anything just a sound like the wind had been taken out of his lungs. She saw the shadows by the edge of the tree's and went over. She said she didn't know it was her Dad at first, just that she thought someone was doing something sneaky. Then she saw him, standing over something. He had something in his arms. She said it was like he was rocking something backwards and forwards. It wasn't until she reached them she realised it was the stabbing motion. He saw her and dropped David. She said his body went straight down and Uncle Silas dropped the knife. She ran back to camp and came straight to me. Told me to call 911 but wouldn't say why. And then....well, you can imagine how the rest went."
Rob didn't speak. She could see the shock on his face but didn't pay any attention to it. He would have to process it and deal with it, as anyone who got close to Seren would.
"I blamed myself, and Seren blamed herself. Naturally."
"What? Why would you blame yourself? And would she for that matter?" He asked then, shaking himself from his reverie.
"Because if I had gone back to David's tent like he asked he wouldn't have been talking to Uncle Silas. And of course Seren blames herself for some innane reason that her singing was the cause. I suppose it was, inadvertently. But nobody goes around committing murder because of music. Well, I suppose some people do. But I think they would regardless anyway. They're not human, are they? Not really. People who can murder like that."
Rob shrugged. "I don't know. He was obviously unhinged somehow. Nobody does that because someone looked at their daughter in a certain way."
India nodded and went inside. Effectively ending the conversation. And Rob knew he probably wouldn't hear more about it.
When the light began to shift through the curtains, Seren stirred. She was laid on Rob's chest. She recognised his smell, the way his chest rose and fell. She couldn't quite believe what had happened, and for a second she forgot. Until it came flooding back and she pinched her nose against the memory of the smell of that blood... He was asleep and she watched him for a moment. He had shaved a little, but only enough to take off the excess. There was still the usual stubble there. His head was tilted back, so his mouth had parted slightly. She kissed him lightly and apprehensively waited for him to stir. When his eyes flickered open she thought she would never get used to the way it felt when they were on her. She was becoming accustomed to his ways now, and she knew he would smile, then yawn, then outstretch his long arms before taking her into them. And then he would sigh, contentedly. But today he didn't. She sensed his apprehension too.
"What time are you working today?" He asked.
"I'm not." She yawned back.
"Call your boss and get the weekend off. We're going away."
She laughed at his presumptuousness. "I'm sure that wont disrupt filming at all."
But he shrugged. "It would only be for three days. And I've got the weekend off anyway."
"Where are we going?"
He smiled wickedly and then he let out that contented sigh. "Just away. I think we need it."
She was too tired to protest. And slightly excited. She had adapted to city life, but she wasn't fully initiated yet and still sometimes found herself looking out across the park and the open spaces wishing they were broader.
"Pack a bag, I'll be back in tonight." Rob said, his lithe body moving across hers.
"Where are you going?" She enquired.
He began to button up his shirt and only shot her a knowing look. "I'll be back." He said.
He dashed to the film set and threw himself into work. Emotionally charged already, he managed to do each scene in one take. Emilie asked about Seren, and he couldn't contain his secret. She looked at him like he was crazy of course. They finished early, as he had predicted. And as he stuffed his script into his bag and made his way out the building....he couldn't escape the crowd waiting for him.
"Robert! Robert! Can you take a picture?! ROBERT!" They yelled.
He looked at Dean and Dean rolled his eyes. "They've been here three hours." He said.
Their faces were expectant and longing. But rampant and terrifying. He waved to them and smiled as they approached him.
"The car's down there." Dean said, leading him in the opposite direction.
The crowd followed, and Rob's heart began to race the way it always did in these situations. Dean's hand came across him, and as he looked up a woman stood before him. She was speaking to him but he couldn't make out what she was saying. He smiled at her but she moved closer. Dean stood between them but she insisted. It was times like these he had to keep himself in check. What piece of him did they require? He was just trying to get to his car. He could see the paparazzi in the corner of his eye and knew this would be global within minutes. He sighed and accepted it straight away before Dean moved the woman aside completely. Once inside the car he allowed himself to breathe.
"We need to get some stuff from the hotel and then pick Seren up."
Dean nodded, and checked he was ok. He was flustered, but ok.
"Then what?" Asked Dean.
"Airport." Rob said, finally smiling.
"L.A? Are you insane? It's all on the other side of the country!" Seren said, almost shrieked as she stood in the doorway holding her bags.
"It's ok, we're taking a plane it will only be about 5 hours."
India's hysterical laughter sounded from the kitchen.
"What's so funny?" Rob asked, passport in hand.
"You can't expect me to take the plane." Seren said, as if the whole idea was ludicrous.
But he looked at her confused. "What's the problem?"
India appeared from the kitchen. "She's never been on a plane before."
"Oh...."Rob said. "Well that's ok. So this will be your first time. No big deal, its like a huge bus in the sky."
He had thought that would make her smile but she didn't budge. "Oh come on!" He said.
"I don't like heights." She said indignantly.
"So we'll put the shutter down on the window. You wont be able to tell how high up you are."
She looked at him sidelong. "You're gonna have an answer for everything aren't you?"
He couldn't help but smile. "It'll be fine. We'll have a drink, do some shopping or whatever you want to do then we'll just slip onto the plane and sleep the whole way there. Then we'll have three wonderful says in the sunshine. And Kristen can't wait to meet you."
Her heart sank. She almost wanted to slam the door and not leave the apartment. Suddenly it wasn't the flight that terrified her.
"Kristen?" She asked.
But he didn't understand her tone. "Yeah. I called her and asked if we could visit. Is that a problem?"
She somehow made her voice sound steady. "No....no problem."
And if anyone knew she was lying in that moment, she prayed it wasn't Rob.
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