The Perfect Husband Read Online Free PDF Page A

thing, Isobel. It’s called
autoerotic asphyxiation. The trick is to let go before you
suffocate. I thought we might try it.”
    Her vision narrowed and stars burst behind
her eyes. She reached up and tried to loosen his grip, but his
fingers were like iron.
    “Nigel! I mean it! I can’t breathe!
Please…please…” Her heart thumped as hard and as fast as the
pounding of his hips. A moment later, he found his release and let
out a shout of triumph. His hands fell away and he collapsed
against her, bending her further over the vanity.
    With her head mashed against the cold sink,
Isobel sucked in desperate mouthfuls of air, her lungs screaming
for oxygen. She wheezed and coughed and swiped at her tears, too
distraught to even speak. Nigel moved away from her and blew out
his breath on a satisfied sigh.
    “Phew! That was something special, don’t you
think? We ought to try that one again.”
    As if only just noticing her distress, his
gaze narrowed on her face. “Why the fuck are you crying? Plenty of
women would be glad their husbands still want to fuck them after
nine years of marriage. You ought to be grateful. There is an ample
number of other willing takers, let me assure you.” He smirked.
    “That young blond theater nurse with the
perky tits can’t wait to suck my cock. I can see it in her eyes.
Today she was all over me, laughing at everything I said, brushing
her tits against my arm. I should have just taken her into the
changing rooms and fucked her.”
    Isobel wanted to press her hands against her
ears and block out his filthy words, but instead, she stood in
silence with her hands fisted by her sides and waited for it to
end. Nigel just looked at her. A moment later, he shook his head
and stalked out of the room. She collapsed onto the toilet seat and
held back a fresh rush of tears.
    Where had she gone wrong? Why was she being
punished? How had her life gone so far off the track?
    It was a long while later when she finally
found the strength to stand and finish her preparations for bed.
She longed for another shower to scrub away the feel of Nigel, but
didn’t want to risk waking him. Already, his snores filled the
silence.
    Instead, she stumbled to the sink and
splashed some cool water on her cheeks. She opened up the cabinet
above the sink and checked for a bottle of Tylenol. She usually
kept one in there. Her hand closed around an unfamiliar bottle and
she pulled it out into the light. She looked down at the label and
frowned.
    Diazepam. Otherwise known as Valium.
Why would there be sleeping tablets in her bathroom cabinet? She
certainly hadn’t requested them and Nigel had no trouble sleeping.
She turned the bottle over in her hands, but there was no name
attached to the prescription. The bottle hadn’t been issued by a
pharmacist. Which meant Nigel had brought them home. He’d stolen
them from the hospital. There wasn’t any other explanation. The
question she asked herself was, why?
    All of a sudden, she recalled the pile of
books she’d found on the desk inside his office. How to Get Away
with Murder, Secrets of a Serial Killer , and others similarly
themed. Her mind returned to their violent sex—when she’d thought
she was going to die. A coldness settled deep in her belly. Her
legs went weak, no longer able to support her. As the terrifying
realization hit her, she gasped and slid slowly to the floor.
    The truth was there for all to see, but she
was the only one who could. The tablets were meant for her, she was
sure of it. Nigel was planning to kill her…

CHAPTER
FIVE
     
    Dear Diary,
     
    Work has been my salvation and I thank God
for this escape. When I’m at the hospital, I can forget about the
horror of living at home. Apart from my children, taking care of
sick kids makes me feel human and gives me a purpose. It’s the only
time a little of my constant fear and paranoia leave me.
    Sometimes I catch a glimpse of my former
self in my patients’ laughter or see it in their eyes.