The Roommate (A Gripping Psychological Thriller with a Shocking Twist): The Roommate, #1

By Ann-Marie Richards

Keep calm and always watch your back…

 

Desperate to make ends meet after her husband vanishes, single-mom Lizzy rents out the spare room in her spacious house to a quiet college student, Brenda. That's when strange things begin to happen. Items start to go missing and people begin to disappear in the close-knit upscale neighborhood. Is Brenda behind all of this? Could Lizzy prove it?

Lizzy soon realizes her new tenant isn't who she appears to be…

• Language: English
• Publisher: Ann-Marie Richards
• Release date: Mar 11, 2023
• ISBN: 9798215568453

Book preview

Prologue – Saturday, July 1

Panic washed over her like the turbulent waves in the dark water as she stood dazed on the deck of the yacht.

It was self-defence, a soft voice whispered in her mind.

She glanced around nervously as the moonlight shone on the lake. Where was her mind?

She’d blanked out.

She’d totally blanked out.

What really happened?

He was gone.

When she’d awoken, fresh lake water washed over the deck after the wave crashed over them.

His body was gone, sunken deep into the dark water like a locked treasure chest filled with deep secrets.

She was only trying to free herself, she tried to convince herself.

He’d tried to drown her.

He said he would kill her—and she believed him.

But would the police believe that?

Why would they believe her?

No one would believe her.

No one.

She didn’t know what happened after the fall. She’d just woken up and he was...gone.

Chapter 1 – Tuesday, August 1

You could always change your mind, Claudette said to her friend Lizzy Daniel.

Lizzy sat in the kitchen hovered over the laptop with her two friends by her side, Claudette and Sally.

She was lucky to have friends who lived so close by, right on her street. They were always visiting each other ever since Lizzy moved to the neighborhood. She didn’t want to lose that closeness. It was a nice part of town. An upscale, close-knit community.

But now, it was a place she could no longer afford. Not anymore. Not since her husband vanished and his accounts became inaccessible to her.

Heat swept through Lizzy. Her belly tightened into knots. She drew in a deep breath. She had to do this. That huge mortgage payment was due. She needed a roommate soon.

Lizzy’s fingers tapped away at the keyboard on the Internet classified site. Earlier she’d been busy searching for remote job positions. Most companies wanted her to work in the office at least half of the time. That wouldn’t work with her obligations as a single mom and the cost of daycare.

Lizzy had many skills and did various odd gig jobs whenever she could—anything from freelance writing to clerical work, tutoring or admin stuff. She was a Jacklyn of all trades.

So, you think I should rent out a room in the house—to a stranger? Lizzy asked.

"What do you have to lose? I’ll tell you what you will lose—your home if you don’t make those payments." Claudette looked eager to help her.

Sally, the ever cautious one, shook her head, her eyebrows creased with worry. She was against this from the beginning, worried about Lizzy’s safety having a stranger in the home.

Claudette was right though. She needed to do something now. Lizzy was desperate. She could feel her pulse pound hard and fierce in her blood.

She needed money. Urgently.

She’d never been more desperate in her life. She had nowhere to turn. Like a caged animal trying to figure a way out to freedom.

Her hands moistened with nervousness as she glanced at the ad she’d placed on the Internet. Was she making a mistake? But it was too late to turn back now. The ad had already received over 100 views.

What was she doing? Was she crazy to let strangers into her home? And what about her private life? She couldn’t let anyone into her private life, her personal business—her personal space. There was a part of her life she would rather keep private.

But right now, she had no choice and could end up losing her home. She desperately needed to keep a roof over her daughter’s head.

Mitch was gone now and before his disappearance he’d been behind on the mortgage payments without her knowledge. She’d had to give up her job to take care of their daughter and she had been supportive of him with his business—not that he appreciated it. He’d always taken out his frustrations on her while she kept things together at home. Right now she had to figure this out on her own. Mitch was no longer in the picture.

And whose fault was that? A haunting voice slid into her mind.

She swept the negative voice out of her head and shifted her focus back to the present moment. It wasn’t her fault. She didn’t really know what happened that night. Mitch was out of control and pushing her around—physically. Hurting her. It wasn’t her fault. It was self-defence.

Did he drown that night? Or did he decide he no longer wanted to be in their marriage? Was he seeing someone else on the side? Another woman?

Maybe she had nothing to do with it. He had been deep in debt with his business and owed so many people. And not the kind of people you want to owe.

Lizzy drew in a deep breath and scanned the ad again to make sure everything was there and that she’d left nothing out.

The ad was simple:

Roommate wanted for a 4-bedroom home near the college.

$800.00/month including utilities.

Posted about 5 hours ago

Anneheim, Ontario (View Map)

Furnished: Yes

Pet Friendly: Yes

Description:

Looking for a female roommate for a four bedroom home.

Parking included. Tidy student preferred.

Non-smoker, pet friendly (we have an orange tabby).

House is a newly renovated Victorian home 10 minute walk to the college, a large private yard.

Looking for someone mature and responsible.

All utilities included, no cable, Internet only. A MUST SEE!

$800/month 

Are you sure you’re okay with this? Sally asked Lizzy again, nervously biting her lower lip.

Sally was the oldest of the three of them. She had no children of her own yet she often assumed the role of the motherly type in the group.

I have no choice, Sal. I’ve got to pay the mortgage.

But can’t you just get a job? You’re going to be letting a stranger into your home. You have a child.

I know. Lizzy’s tone was soft.

And she needs a roof over her head, Sal, Claudette interjected. That husband of hers didn’t leave her with a thing. I can’t believe he didn’t even have life insurance.

Well, he’s not...I mean...it’s not official yet. They still haven’t found his... Lizzy broke off, choked with emotion.

Her two friends looked at each other, sorrow in their eyes. It’s okay, you don’t have to say anymore.

Anyway, I know you’re trying to help, Sal. But a job is not the answer. It’s not that easy at my age and being a single mother with a young child... I’ve exhausted all my options.

What do you mean?

First of all, when my daughter returns from England, who’s going to look after her while I work? Even if I could get a temp job. I’m doing freelance work online and I know that it’s not reliable and it doesn’t cover all the bills but it’s something for now. Every little bit helps. Having a roommate would bring in a stable income.

I see.

"And before you suggest putting Tasha in daycare while I find real work, we all know the subsidy wait-list is a mile long. Some parents have been on it over a year. And the cost of daycare is rising in the city. The places I’ve enquired about cost $2,000 a month!"

Two thousand dollars a month?

Exactly. That’s like a second mortgage payment. I’d be lucky to even make that at a minimum wage job which is all I could get right now—despite having a college degree. I’ve been out of the workforce since Tasha was born. I’m not exactly what they call employable. Most of the HR managers weren’t even born when I graduated high school. It would scare them off to see my long work history. They want younger people. The market’s tight. When you get to a certain age it gets harder.

Oh, Claudette said. She looked as dejected as Lizzy felt. Who could blame her? She was only trying to help. Bless her heart.

I feel bad. Lizzy spoke after the awkward silence.

Why? Claudette asked.

Here you guys are helping me out and I haven’t exactly been friend of the year. I mean this is the first time we’ve sat down for a drink in like forever, Lizzy continued.

Hey, I totally understand. You’re a busy mommy and wife now. Things change when you have kids. Especially one that has a special need.

I know.

She’d alienated herself from her wonderful friends and neighbors in the last year thanks to Mitch. But that was over now.

You know there are a lot of work from home jobs you could do, Sally offered trying to change the subject as she massaged her own arms.

Sally had long scars along her arms that she’d gotten from childhood. She was always cautious of others and a little more self-conscious at times.

Bless her heart. Sally was the first on the street to welcome Lizzy into the neighborhood when she’d moved there two years ago with Mitch. She and Lizzy had hit it off straight away.

Sally was happily married to Ron who was a sweet guy stationed overseas in the military. They didn’t have any children yet, but they planned to start as soon as he returned home from his recent tour of duty. She was a wonderful aunt-like figure to Tasha.

Claudette was also a wonderful support. She too was married to a nice man. Claudette’s husband was the quiet type. You hardly heard anything from him. They didn’t have children but Claudette seemed okay with that. Claudette also had a habit of playing with her hair, twirling it all the time. It was as if her fingers had to always be on the move. She was the most spontaneous of the three, always the adventurous one.

Both Sally and Claudette had no trouble holding down jobs; they didn’t have kids to worry about. They were college-educated, both settled down and seemed content. They never had to worry about finances like Lizzy.

The truth was that Mitch’s business interests had taken a hit. They were struggling, even before he went missing. Now, things had gotten worse. She wasn’t working at the time. And he never told her about his other accounts. He kept those to himself. It wasn’t exactly a marriage made-in-heaven. It was more of a marriage teetering on the brink of hell.

Lizzy studied liberal arts. She loved sociology. Of course, she had intended to go to grad school but that never happened.

I looked into doing some work-from-home jobs, Lizzy said.

And?

I signed up with a tutoring company based in Asia.

Oh right. I know some people who are doing English language tutoring to kids in Asia and South America. That would be great! Why don’t you do that?

I just found out I can’t do the tutoring thing again.

And why not?

Because of my age.

Your age? What’s age got to do with it? Claudette’s brows furrowed.

I look young but my resume’s a bit dated. I heard many of those companies like younger newer graduates. The people hiring me will notice the date I graduated university that they weren’t even born yet.

Oh, right.

Not to mention, it’s not so simple competing with millennials when you have massive gaps on your resume from being a stay at home mom. I wouldn’t even have any recent work references they could check. I’ve been out of the workforce for so long and lost contact with most people. My LinkedIn page is not even up to date.

That’s too bad. It would’ve come in handy.

I know. Lizzy took another sip of her coffee then placed the mug back down. Besides, most work from home jobs do a lot of screening. They want all kinds of information. One overseas company wanted to scan my passport into their system. And they also insisted on downloading some app on my computer that may look like malware but told me not to worry and I should just ignore my computer’s warning.

Oh, no.

Oh yes. I also tried the call center route, but they required a credit check.

A credit check?

Yep.

What for?

To make sure you’re reliable and can pay your bills on time.

But without a job, who can do that?

She grinned at the irony. The trouble is, I always had great credit and paid my bills on time.

Until Mitch came into your life...

Exactly. Having him as a supplementary card holder was a grave mistake. I had no idea he’d run up so much in debt with his new business venture. He always hid the statements from me and told me he’d take care of it. He was sinking a lot of money into his business while I took care of Tasha, not realizing what was happening until it was too late.

"Oh,