Betrayal by Margaret Bingley

edge towards Toby . 'Get them out of here or I'll cut your face to ribbons, Toby Walker,' she said softly. Candy gave a scream of fright and started to move towards Roger. 'You too, Candy,' continued Lisa, never taking her eyes off the frozen Toby. 'If you don't get out of here I'll cut your face as well, and let's be honest, that's about all you've got going for you, isn't it!' With one final frightened squeak, Candy wisely fled. After a brief delay, Roger followed, leaving husband and wife alone. 'You wouldn’t do that,' said Toby quietly. 'You haven't got the guts to cut me. I'd break your arm before you got near enough.' 'Try me.'
    He looked at her face and tried a change of tactic. 'O.K. I'm sorry, I shouldn't have… '
    'Too right. I don't know why you married me, or why you're behaving like you are, but I've had enough. I'm leaving here and now, and nothing you do or say will stop me.'
    'You can't leave me. People will ask questions!'
    'What people? I don't know anyone who cares what happens to me, and I'm certainly not going to go round boasting about what's gone on in this house during the past few months. All I want is peace, and that’s something I'm never going to get with you—you're insane! Now get out of my way.'
    'You've made a big mistake, Lisa, and you’re going to be sorry,' he snarled, and suddenly lunged towards her. Startled and terrified she jabbed the bottle forward and up, feeling the impact as it came into contact with his face, and hearing a dull tearing sound.
    Maddened beyond any sense and shouting furiously, he began to pursue her round the room. She managed to cut him twice more before he cornered her, but eventually found herself trapped against the wall, and at the sight of the blood pouring from his torn face she lost her nerve and began to scream, a scream that turned to a shriek of terror as he caught hold of her arm and twisted it, forcing her to drop the bottle to the floor.
    She heard a bone snap and felt a blinding flash of pain shoot up into her shoulder, but still she kicked out, trying desperately to keep him at a distance, certain that he was going to kill her and her unborn baby.
    'You cow!' he whispered as he closed in. 'You're going to wish you'd never been born.'
    She screamed again but there was no point because there wasn't anyone within earshot. As the first blow landed on her stomach, she felt certain that she and her baby were about to die.
    After a few minutes she began to lose consciousness. She could no longer try and protect the baby and her screams started to die away as she slid slowly down the wall. Her soft whimpering only infuriated Toby more, and he was yelling obscenities at her as he picked up the broken bottle, holding its jagged edge lightly against the skin beneath her left eye.
    'If you think you're leaving me, you're wrong,' he hissed furiously. 'I'm not giving up after everything I've been through for you. I'll make such a mess of your face that for the rest of your life you'll be grateful if a man's even kind enough to speak your name.'
    'You haven't done anything for me!' she cried, attempting to twist her face away but finding it caught between the fingers of his left hand.
    'Of course I have. Where do you think I went on all my evenings out? Pub crawling? Stupid bitch! I was… '
    'Get away from her, Walker,' said a quiet voice. Toby froze, the bottle still by her face but his expression suddenly one of fear. 'Step back slowly,' the voice continued. 'Any sudden moves might frighten me, and when I'm scared I tend to shoot first and see if I was right afterwards.'
    For a second Toby hesitated. Lisa actually felt the glass prick her skin but was too terrified to utter a sound because the voice that had interrupted her nightmare was deadly despite its softness. Deadly and familiar. He was the man she'd seen in Simon's hall on Boxing Day. 'Don't make any more mistakes, Walker, you can't afford them. Step away from her.'
    'I'll get you one day,' whispered