He was staring at me, unblinking, and all of the muscles in my upper body tensed up so much I nearly crushed my still-full paper cup of tea. I tried to think what his tone of voice was reminding me of. “Will…”
“You just think you’re so great, don’t you? So superior to everyone else, but you’re not!”
Where was this coming from? And who was he reminding me of?
“You just, you have no idea!”
I took a step back as I realised. Connor. He was speaking to me exactly as Connor had on that deserted Main Street, the same anger and bubbling rage. The only difference was this Main Street was filled with drunk teenagers and small children stuffing their faces with doughnuts. That, of course, and the fact that the person yelling at me was not Connor, but my best friend.
“Will, can you calm down?”
“Calm down? You can’t just kiss someone and then pretend it didn’t happen. You could at least have talked to me about it! And I know you think I’m a pathetic idiot, but it doesn’t give you the right to mess me around. I’ve been too good a friend to you to be treated like crap.”
I was starting to feel physically sick; this was not a Will I even knew existed. “Look, I’m sorry, OK? But I’ve kind of had other things on my mind…”
He snorted; a horrible sound that reminded me of Norman laughing in the pub. “Right, right. The, er, seeing dead people thing.” His voice was high and almost hysterical-sounding.
“Will you shut up? Just because you don’t believe it, doesn’t mean…”
“It’s not a case of believing, Beth. You must know yourself that none of this is possible. It’s, it’s just… ridiculous! You’re crazy!”
I hit him.
I did it without thinking, and without caring what the consequences were. Luckily I missed his face, but I did get him pretty good in the right ear.
Will glared at me, speechless for a second or two. Then he put his hand up to his ear and shook his head in amazement. “You’re crazy, do you know that?”
Urgh, I hated the ‘C’ word… not the C word, obviously, but somehow this one was worse. “I’m… not… crazy.” Tears were threatening to emerge, but I didn’t want to give Will the satisfaction.
He mumbled something under his breath. It sounded a lot like, “Could’ve fooled me.”
I took a deep breath, trying to calm down. “Look, I’m sorry for hitting you, OK? But Will… you don’t understand. I needed you yesterday, I needed you to say you believed me, and you couldn’t. I needed you to say it, even if you didn’t really, because that’s what friends do.”
“So you wanted me to lie to you? Because I’m pretty sure that’s not what friends do.” He shook his head again. “God, Beth, you’re like a walking contradiction. You can be so infuriating. And Veronica! You’re both as bad as each other. You find out this huge news, and you don’t even try to speak to her?”
I tried to get my head around the change of subject. “I do try. I have been trying…” I trailed off.
Will was nodding, but kind of sneering at the same time. “Yeah, well let me know when you finally make it up with her. I’m sure, after all this, you’ll be closer than ever and I’ll go back to being V’s annoying little friend that you can’t wait to get rid of.”
“Will, you know I wouldn’t…” I couldn’t get the words out. The tears that had previously been threatening to make an appearance were now rolling down my face.
My pitiful crying seemed to stop him in his tracks, but only for a split second before he started shaking his head again. “Won’t work on me this time. And to think, I’d had Connor pinned down as the manipulative one.”
I took a sharp intake of breath as he turned round and walked off.
I desperately wanted to stop him. “We’re not done here!”
He looked over his shoulder. “Yes, we are. Get over yourself, Beth. The world doesn’t revolve around you.”
I stared at him in despair as he walked off in the direction of the castle.
There was nothing left for me to say.
***
I slowly ambled back to where I’d last seen Max and Rach, but they were nowhere to be found.
Instead I saw V, who was surrounded by both her and my parents. None of them were dressed up as ghouls or goblins, but they all looked sufficiently creepy to me; they seemed to be talking desperately to Veronica, a mixture of fear and anger carved on each of their faces.
Everyone was starting to congregate in front of the makeshift podium for the usual Last Night at Fright Fest Welcome Speech, but I only vaguely noticed the hushing of the crowd. Wiping away my tears, I walked over to V. Will had upset me, but he had pissed me off too, and I was going to put that anger to good use. I was not going to remain in the dark any longer.
“Veronica!”
She turned round when she heard my voice, and so did the parents, both pairs. V looked almost relieved, but the others looked nervous. No, they looked downright scared. I got to them all and stood right in front of Veronica, determined to be heard.
“V, this has gone on long enough. Just what the hell has been going on?”
V looked at her parents, then mine, then took a deep breath and stepped towards me.
My mum spoke up. “No, Veronica, please. Think about what you’re doing.”
Anger flittered across V’s delicate features. “Think? I’ve done nothing but think about it for two months! And you know what? I’m pissed off. Really pissed off.” She looked at me again. “B, there’s something you need to know.”
This time it was her mum who interrupted. “Veronica! Please don’t, you know why you can’t.”
V hesitated, but she still looked incredibly angry. She took a deep breath and nodded to herself, seemingly making a decision.
She looked at her parents. “No. Beth’s right; it’s gone on long enough. And if you’re as terrified of… that woman… as you seem to be, go to the police. I’m pretty sure death-threats, or blackmail, or whatever it is she has over you is a criminal offence. And don’t worry about me; I don’t even know her, remember?” Her words were dripping with venom and it shocked me badly - not just because I didn’t have a clue what she was talking about, but because I’d never heard her speak to her parents like that, ever.
Her mum seemed to pipe down after that, but she kept glancing nervously at her husband.
Veronica tried again. “Beth, we’re…”
All four of the parents rushed towards her at the same time, trying to cut her off. I barely noticed that the entirety of Main Street was now watching them. Watching us.
All I could think of, all that kept going round my mind, was that I’d been right. Even with the photograph, even with all the comments, I hadn’t let myself believe it. But the behaviour of the two sets of parents was just too much to ignore.
Veronica dodged their attempts at blocking her and shouted something above the scuffling noises of the supposedly more mature adults.
I couldn’t quite hear her. “What?”
The parents had stopped now, defeated. It went deadly silent and I was dimly aware that pretty much the whole village was staring at us.
Veronica took a deep breath. “Adopted. We’re both adopted. We’re sisters.”
I nodded, tears springing to my eyes as I walked towards her. “I know.”
***
I glanced at V, trying to gauge her reaction, and then at my parents, both of whom were in tears. I’d never seen my dad cry in my whole life and somehow that scared me more than anything else.
“You knew? And you didn’t say anything?”
I shook my head, thinking how I could best explain it. “I didn’t know, not for sure. I kind of guessed. And I found a photograph… of the day we were born.”
V’s eyes widened and she started rummaging in her pocket, eventually pulling out a piece of paper which she handed to me. I took it with my shaking hand and looked down; it was the same photo.
I heard Veronica’s mum gasp. “Why did…”
/> V cut her off. “Because I was planning on telling her anyway, OK?”
I didn’t notice if her mum responded to her outburst or not, I was too busy studying the photograph.
She spoke to me again. “I found this in the loft. Where did you…?”
I waved her question away. “So it’s true, then?”
V came and stood next to me so we could both see the photo, smiling encouragingly. “The woman in the background, that’s our real mother. Her name’s Samantha.”
I nodded automatically. Samantha. Our real mother. Right.
Veronica carried on talking, more softly this time, as if loud noises would scare me off. “She couldn’t afford to bring up twins, and neither could our parents. But they could each afford to raise one child.” Her voice faded on the last word.
I glanced over at my parents and were greeted with two pale, blank faces. They looked like they were in shock.
I stood there in silence, trying to take it all in. Veronica put her arm around me and waited for me to speak. I couldn’t face talking to my ‘parents’, so instead I looked at V. “Why didn’t they tell us?”
She glanced over at the fake parents with a look of almost hatred on her face, and I could tell she’d asked the same question before. Of course she had. The anger took all the concerned softness out of her voice. “Apparently our actual mum’s a real piece of work, isn’t that nice? And she didn’t want us to know about her, so she started threatening everyone.” The malice was back in her voice. “She sounds like a real gem.”
V’s parents looked beaten but her mum tried speaking again. “You have no idea, Veronica. We didn’t have a choice.”
V looked at me again, the anger still in her voice, but nothing but sadness in her eyes. “Oh, that’s the best part, B. Not only has she been threatening them, but my so-called parents have been threatening me.”
My mind was reeling. “What?”
“They made me promise not to tell you, they begged me. I’ve been wanting to tell you ever since, I swear. But I knew if I was around you… you know how bad I am at lying, I just couldn’t risk it.”
I couldn’t believe what I was hearing. “You avoided me for two months with no explanation because your parents asked you to? Oh no, sorry. Not your parents. Just a couple of people who have been lying to us for our entire lives.” I shook my head, trying to understand. “How could you side with them?”
V shook her head too, mirroring my body language. “It’s not about sides. You should have seen how terrified they were,” she gestured to her parents. “They went to see her - our mother, she lives in Birston - and when they came back…” another tear rolled down her cheek. “Even though I was angry at them, I couldn’t put them in any danger. I couldn’t put you in any danger. Our birth mother sounds like really, really bad news. Like pure evil. Even Norman Carter warned me against her, told me that getting involved with her would be the worst thing I ever did, and that if I told you I’d be dragging you into the whole twisted, dangerous mess, too. He’s met her, he knew about the whole thing.”
“Norman?” I couldn’t handle much more. All I knew at that moment was that I had to get away; I had to go somewhere and assemble my thoughts.
I suddenly turned and ran away from V and my parents, or whoever they were, pushing my way past various badly-dressed ghosts and corpses as I went. I heard Veronica yell my name as I rushed off, but all the other onlookers were too shocked or concerned to say anything to me.
I could have gone home to sort my head out, and in hindsight I definitely should have done that, but I knew my ‘parents’ would go looking for me there.
So instead, I weaved through the rest of the crowd and headed towards the castle.
Chapter Ten
I shivered and started walking up the path towards the eerily lit castle, trying to remember at which point Will usually veered off the trail into the trees. Finding the stone that I thought marked the turning off point, I walked into the darkness.
I’d only gone a few metres when I realised just how dark it was. I’d been able to see the full moon on my way to the castle but now it was hiding behind a thick veil of clouds, and the torches at the castle had long since been swallowed up by the trees.
Taking my phone out my pocket, I used the display as a feeble light as I carried on walking deeper into the woods. I’d just started thinking that I must have taken a wrong turning somewhere when I heard a faint rustling sound. I turned round wildly but couldn’t see anything in the dinginess.
Holding my phone out as far as I could, my arm trembling slightly, I squinted into the gloom, my eyes roaming over every visible inch of tree and grass. I figured it must have been an animal and turned back again, right into the chest of someone standing next to me.
My scream was muffled by the person’s smooth-feeling jacket and I stepped back in shock, looking up to see Connor - who seemed just as surprised as I was. He held a torch pointing down at the ground which half illuminated us both from below in a spooky circle of light.
“Beth? What are you doing wandering around the woods on your own? It’s pitch black!”
I couldn’t speak for a few seconds, and I tried to get my breath back. My heartbeat felt so erratic it made me wonder if you could have a heart attack at the tender age of twenty-one. If Connor did have anything to do with Emma and John, I was well and truly screwed. I decided to pretend that Will and I hadn’t spent the last two months discussing Connor’s potential involvement in the case; it might be my only shot at getting out of this.
“Christ, Connor. Didn’t you see me? Why didn’t you say something? You nearly gave me a heart attack!”
He didn’t answer my questions, and his facial expression turned from shock to anger. “Why are you here? Didn’t I tell you to stay out of the woods?”
I took a step away, and heard my own voice trembling as I turned the question back on him. “Why are you here, Connor? What is it with you and these woods?”
He groaned and reached out for my hand.
I whipped it away from him and held it behind my back, trying not to look directly into his eyes; I was worried that if I looked at his face, I wouldn’t be able to look away. As if he were some kind of vampire who could glamour me into doing his bidding. Well, around here, you never knew.
“Beth.”
I kept my focus on the ground.
“Look, I know I’ve not exactly given you any reason to trust me…”
A short laugh escaped from my lips before I knew what I was doing, and I looked up quickly to gauge his reaction, still avoiding eye contact as much as I could. Connor’s own lips were ever so slightly turned up in one corner, creating an amused kind of half smile.
“I wanted to call you, after Hill Top… you know, about what happened. I guess I’ve been tryin’ to pretend it didn’t happen. I’m sorry for draggin’ you there. But you don’t need to be scared o’ me.”
I wanted to yell out that of course I did, why wouldn’t I be? But I just looked down at my shoes again, not saying anything. My pulse was slowly returning to normal but I still didn’t feel like I was getting enough oxygen.
I breathed in deeply. I was trying to figure out how far I could get if I just ran off now, but Connor had a torch and much longer legs than me; he’d catch me in less than five seconds. If I didn’t knock myself out on a tree or something first.
Stepping towards me, he put his hand under my chin before I could stop him, and it reminded me of Will doing the exact same thing just one night ago. It seemed like weeks had gone by.
His skin was ice cold. “Look at me.”
I reluctantly did what he said, noticing that he seemed more worried than angry now; his previously screwed-up, tense features were softer, more relaxed. “If you come with me, I’ll explain everythin’.”
I shook off his hand. “You must be joking. I’m not going anywhere with you.” My voice was trembling, but at least I was standing up for myself. Why on earth I felt I could provoke a poss
ible psychopath, however, was beyond me. Maybe I really was losing my mind.
Connor looked more peeved off than anything. “Come on, Beth. I swear on me mam’s life that I’m not dangerous, and I’m not goin’ to hurt you. I would never…”
Swearing on his mum’s life… it seemed like such a school boyish thing to say, it almost made me laugh. I thought back to their cinema trip, and Connor getting his car so he could give lifts to Jackie. He obviously loved her very much, and wouldn’t say a thing like that lightly, but then again… I tried not to think of movie psychos and serial killers that were mummy’s boys - Norman Bates, anyone?
Connor wasn’t giving up. “Just let me explain. Isn’t that what you’ve been wantin’ all this time? Answers?”
Answers would be good. Actually, anything would be good at the moment if it stopped me from thinking about Veronica and the Evil Birth Mother… if it stopped me from thinking about my argument with Will.
I stared at Connor’s face in the semi-darkness; it looked much thinner and paler than when I first met him (although that could have just been the effect of the torch light), but he looked sincere enough.
“Depends on the kind of answers you have.”
He looked relieved. “I’ll tell you everythin’. Come on, I can find the way back to the castle.”
I really didn’t like the idea of going to the castle with him alone, but at the moment I just wanted to be out of the woods. I nodded and he grabbed my hand before leading the way out of the dense forest.
***
Five or so minutes later we emerged from the trees onto the path and started walking towards the castle, the torches that were surrounding the ancient building quickly erasing my fear. Well, some of it. I went to sit on one of the benches next to the visitor’s plaque so I could have a good view - and easy access to - the path, but Connor stopped me before I could sit down.
“No, in here.”
I looked at him in disbelief. “Are you going to break the door down? Because it’s closed off to visitors at night.”
He flashed me a cheeky smile, which reassured me slightly, and led me to the back of the castle. Lifting one of the rotting wooden boards that were propped against the wall, he revealed a hole just big enough for a person to wriggle through.
He motioned for me to go in but I shook my head vehemently. “If you think I’m getting into an old ruined castle with you, then you’re sadly mistaken.”