Woods

Bethan pulls in to the car park at Mill Lane Woods. It's not a place she knows well. She wonders why Dave has chosen it. On seeing it, she wishes she'd told Katie where they were meeting but it's too late now.

She can see Dave, sat, in his car. There's no-one else in the car park. It's just her and him.

She gets out.

He hasn't noticed her yet. He seems preoccupied, his head lowered. She takes the time to look at him. She feels a pang, remembering time shared. He is grey, thinner. He looks worried, harassed. She wonders what he wants to tell her. For some reason, she wishes she'd brought pepper spray.

He turns to look, with a furtive jerk of his head, and his eyes alight on her. Before the mask comes down, she registers the haunted, desperate look in his eyes.

Her gut clenches and she wonders whether to leave but she's curious and she doesn't know if she's being paranoid. She's never thought that Dave had anything to do with Laney disappearing. He was as worried as she was, at first. He just didn't hold on to his grief. She resented him for that, she realised. But looking at him now, his face no longer showing the anxiety it did a moment ago, she is wondering whether she knew him at all.

He smiles at her, a thin smile of recognition, rueful and tinged with embarrassment. She stops, thinking that she should smile back but unable to do so. It would feel false and she feels like she'd be giving him something warm and she doesn't want to share that with him. Her hurt at being abandoned by him is threatening to unbalance her and she fights with herself to keep her emotions under control. Her shoulders betray a deep breath to anyone looking closely at her but Dave has never been an intuitive man to the feelings and nuances of others.

He looks at his ex-wife, her inexpressive face, and irritation at her steeliness in that moment threatens to ripple his carefully cultivated calm. Instead, he buries it.

He steps out of his car.

"Hello, Bethy."

***

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