Up until now Alice had been anxious. Wary. Now she was scared.

"He’s found me" She choked, "the wedding ring – the photograph!"

She dropped the picture and slumped to the tiles beside it. Her head was aching, buzzing, and she could feel her chest tightening. As it did the room grew dark and swirled around her. Her mouth filled up with water - salt-water - and the gloss-patterned tiles swished into dark foamy waves.  She could hear him laughing, hoarse insensate laughter. It made her uneasy.

 "Don’t’ She begged, ‘Please - leave me alone!"

 He didn’t, he was enjoying himself. She could feel his broad heavy hands around the back of her neck, his thick lumpy fingers pressed hard into her skin. It hurt. But she hardly felt it; she was concentrating, getting ready for the dunk. The wind rushed through her hair and bumped the waves, she shivered and chattered but was confident; she’d been practising holding her breath in the tub. However, now to her horror seconds before impact, just as she drew in a deep breath of cold sea-air, he stopped and whispered in her ear.

  "You’re getting good at this Alice, too good. I think we’ll try longer today."

Chattering her teeth together Alice now rocked back-and-forth on the tiles wishing the salt-water from her mouth and nose, wishing his hands loosen their grip from around her neck, just as she had done when she was ten.

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