What Goes Around: A chilling psychological thriller by Julie Corbin Page A

David’s two messages. ‘We really need to talk, Leila.’ Pause. ‘Call me.’ Followed five minutes later by, ‘I’m going out for a walk. Meet me in the Botanic Gardens?’
    The message was left over an hour ago so I call him to check he’ll still be there. We arrange to meet in the cafe and I drink a glass of water and then head off. It’s only a five-minute journey in the car so I’m there in no time.
    ‘It’s looking beautiful out there,’ I say, finding him at a table by the far wall. ‘Especially the wildflower garden.’ He is dressed in a suit and his hair is tidy, his beard trimmed. ‘You look very smart.’
    ‘I went for an interview today.’
    ‘Oh? You didn’t tell me you were looking for a job.’
    ‘John Lewis. It seemed to go well.’
    ‘I thought you were only staying in Edinburgh for another couple of weeks?’
    ‘I changed my mind.’
    My heart is able to do strange things where David is concerned, it’s able to sink and soar at the same time. Sink because of the trouble he could cause me and soar because he’s my brother and despite all our differences I love him.
    ‘You’re doing a lot of that these days, changing your mind.’ I stand up. ‘I’m gasping for a cuppa.’
    ‘It’s waitress service.’
    ‘I’ll just go to the loo quickly, then. If the waitress arrives, order for me.’
    The loo is downstairs and I head off almost at a run. I feel chilled, as if I’ve just passed through one of those industrial freezers. I examine my face in the mirror; my lips have lost all their colour and I look panic-stricken. I stare into the black of my eyes and see myself reflected back at me, my grown-up self not my teenage self. The teenage Leila Mae would have known how to deal with this. She was resourceful.
    ‘Stop it!’ I whisper to my reflection. ‘You’re overreacting.’
    He’s cornering me, is the thought that comes back to me.
    ‘He’s not,’ I whisper. ‘David has never been your adversary and he never will be.’
    David will bring Gareth back into our lives. The fallout from that will destroy me.
    I shiver and step away from the mirror. My peace of mind relies on me moving forward, always moving forward, never dwelling, never standing still.
    When I went through therapy I had the decency not to inflict myself on David. I worked through the wreckage of our childhood with Maurice my therapist and no one else. David needs to do the same. He needs to leave me out of his process. I take my make-up out of my bag and add colour to my cheeks and lips, then return to the table determined to be strong with him.
    ‘I’ve ordered us tea and cake,’ he says. ‘I wasn’t sure whether you wanted anything to eat.’
    ‘I’ll have a small slice.’ I take a deep breath and smile at him. ‘So where are you living?’
    ‘A shared flat in Gorgie.’
    ‘Is it nice?’
    ‘Not especially. But it’ll do for now.’
    ‘It’s all happening so fast, David! I only saw you a couple of days ago.’
    ‘I was hoping that if I stick around we could see more of one another.’
    ‘Okay.’
    ‘Perhaps I could even meet Tom.’
    ‘Perhaps.’
    The waitress brings our order and we both sit back while she places everything on the table. We hold eye contact throughout but it doesn’t help me to feel less anxious because I’ve never been able to work out what David is thinking. His feelings, on the other hand, are written all through his body language – tension concentrates in his fingers, they move constantly as he shreds a napkin and arranges the pieces in a pile next to his left hand – but his plans? His intentions? His thoughts? They remain impenetrable.
    ‘So how’s Tom?’
    ‘He’s good.’
    ‘Is he married like all your other men?’
    ‘He’s getting divorced.’
    ‘He left his wife for you?’
    ‘His marriage was already over bar the actual separation.’
    ‘And is he good with Alex?’
    ‘Of course. He’s a parent himself. He has two children of his own – Chloe