Scared Yet? by Jaye Ford

others standing around somewhere. She was too shaken up to pay much attention.
    â€˜I tell Gino I no go back out to that car park.’ Mariella swung an arm in the direction of Prescott and Weeks further down the hall. ‘You girls no go back there, either. It’s not safe.’
    Liv imagined Mariella lying on the cold, hard concrete. ‘No, the police said we shouldn’t use the car park for a while.’
    â€˜I heard about it on the news this morning.’ Scott, the mortgage broker from the front office on the left, had stuck his head into the hallway. He was tall and lean and without thinking about it, Liv checked his face for bruising. ‘Lenny said it was you. The news mentioned a council car park.’He pointed to the security exit, raised his eyebrows. ‘Our car park?’
    â€˜Yes,’ Liv said.
    â€˜Bloody hell.’ He came all the way into the corridor, smoothing his tie down with his hand. ‘What happened?’
    Liv glanced back at Mariella, saw more faces gathered in the corridor. Ally from the orthodontist’s, Mandy from the travel agency, Chad the dietician and Ray the maintenance guy. Her eyes moved automatically to the faces of the two men. Chad was short and stocky, all the wrong shape, but Ray was several centimetres taller than Liv. Neither had bruising. Why would they? They were nice people. All the neighbours were. And seven of them were crammed into the narrow space now, like an impromptu occupants’ meeting, looking to her for a report.
    But she’d had enough of talking about it.
    â€˜Sorry, I’ve got to go. Ray can probably fill you in on the details.’ He was standing in the centre of the hall, greying sandy hair neat as usual, hands on the tool belt he always wore. ‘Mariella said you spoke to the police. Thanks for that. Anyway, I’ve just talked to a detective and she said we should all avoid the car park for a while. I know it’s a pain finding parking but the man who attacked me is still out there. We all need to be careful.’ She shuffled sideways through the bodies, pushed the third door on the left into Prescott and Weeks.
    The phone was ringing at reception. The desk behind it was empty. ‘Teagan, phone!’ As the teenager ran from the kitchenette/storeroom, Liv said, ‘Hold my calls. I need a few minutes.’ She glanced towards Kelly’s office on the leftside of the back wall. The door was shut but she could see someone with her so she headed for her own office, was almost there when a pencil flew past her and hit the wall. She spun around.
    Teagan covered the mouthpiece of her headset. ‘Sheridan . . .’ she whispered at Liv then removed her hand, spoke louder. ‘Yes, I’ve . . . Yes, yes, I’ve . . .’
    Liv smiled. Sheridan talked so fast, it was sometimes hard to get a word in. She pointed at herself, raised her eyebrows at Tee, wondered how long Sheridan had been trying to call.
    Teagan held up a finger, telling Liv to wait as she spoke into the phone. ‘Yes, well . . .’
    â€˜Put it through,’ Liv said.
    â€˜But . . .’
    â€˜It’s fine. I’ll take it.’
    Tee pulled a face, a mixture of frustration and annoyance. She was a good kid and handling the job well for a beginner, but she was seventeen and anyone older than, like, twenty was, like, an idiot. Even if they were your boss.
    â€˜Put it through, Teagan,’ Liv said firmly. A second later, the phone on her desk was buzzing. She dropped her handbag and picked it up. ‘Hey.’
    â€˜What have you been saying to the police about me?’

7
    Liv gripped the receiver hard, fighting an urge to slam it back in its cradle. ‘Yes, thanks, Thomas, I’m feeling a little better this morning.’
    â€˜Jesus, Livia. What do you expect when I’ve got the police ringing my office, wanting to talk about my