Smiling, he inhaled. It must be destiny. ?Hold that thought. I’m going to come and live in it myself for a few months. Sorry to give you such short notice, but I only decided this morning.?

  The voice at the other end remained friendly. ?No problem. I can have the keys ready for you to pick up in a couple of days. That’ll give me time to make sure all the work’s been done properly. Are you going to write a new book while you’re up here??

  ?Something like that. I just need some peace and quiet to get my ideas in order. I’ll see you in a couple of days, then.?

  As soon as he’d hung up, Rob started making the next call. He didn’t need his address book for this one. Michael had been his agent for so long that even if they never spoke again Rob probably would be able to recite the number on his death bed without any difficulty at all. His grin stretched as he heard Michael’s laconic drawl at the other end. His agent was just going to love this.

  13

  Streatford wasn’t a town that had much going on for teenagers during the weekend. Not unless you counted the youth center on London Road, but no one over the age of ten who didn’t want to get beaten up at school would even think about going there. Not even the nerds, or the posh kids who lived in the village rather than the estate on the outskirts. Their parents normally drove them and their friends up to Fat Sam’s at the city center or the big multiplex cinema for their Saturday nights. But Sharnice wouldn’t go there even if her mum offered to take her. Not that that was very likely.

  The evening was chillier than she’d expected, and although the walk down from Gallows Hill had warmed her up, as she waited for the boys in one of the alleyways behind the small high street, she shivered, pulling her denim jacket tighter around her thin mini-dress. What was taking them so long? It had only just turned six, so the liquor store wouldn’t be too busy, and they hadn’t done this for ages so the cashier should be off his guard. There shouldn’t be a problem. Darren and Lee had been experts

  14

  at nicking since they’d been about eight, around the time the three of them had started hanging out together. The liquor store jobs always took two people, and she couldn’t do it because her mum went in there too often.

  It worked like this. One boy would go in and start to browse the shelves. A couple of minutes later, the other one would follow. They would act as if they didn’t know each other. The first boy would take a bottle of something expensive, like champagne, from the shelf and make a run for it. There was only ever one staff member working at that time of the evening, and he would invariably give chase. Then the second boy would take a bottle of something they really wanted, like Thunderbird, and saunter happily away. The first boy would abandon the champagne farther down the road to save being chased further, and go and meet the others where agreed. Job done. It never failed. On the couple of occasions that the shop assistant had been too fat and lazy to give chase, it just meant they’d had a huge bottle of champagne to drink. But nice as it was, the Thunderbird was more in line with their fifteen-year-old palates. It got you drunk quicker.

  Moving from foot to foot in an effort to shake off the cold, Sharnice smiled as she saw Lee strolling toward her. He unzipped his large Puffer jacket and tugged out the bottle with the red label. ?Worked like a fucking dream. Those wankers will never learn.?He pulled a packet of Marlboros from his pocket, took two out and lit them before handing her one. They smoked in silence until they heard the pounding of Darren’s sneakers on concrete as he emerged from the increasing gloom. He stopped, and leaned against the wall, panting as he laughed. ?Christ, that bastard could run! I thought he was going to fuck the champagne and come after me.? His acne-ridden face was sweating as he paused and grinned at the others. ?He was severely pissed off. Next time, you can do the running.?

  Lee laughed and slapped him on the shoulder. ?Only if you think you can’t handle it, you fat bastard.?

  15

  Sharnice watched them play wrestle each other for a few moments, their carefully gelled hair glinting along with the gold earrings they each wore in their right lobe. She ground the finished cigarette out beneath the sole of her sneaker. ?So where shall we go then??

  The boys separated and Darren snorted and then spat the phlegm away onto the pavement. ?I dunno. The cemetery??He looked at the others for approval, but they didn’t seem too enthusiastic.

  Lee shoved his hands into the pockets of his baggy jeans. ?Bored of that. We always go there. Why don’t we go down to the river??

  Darren and Sharnice shrugged and without the appearance of a better idea, it seemed the plan for the evening was fixed. They made their way through the village toward the lane that led down to the fields and the water, the crunching of gravel beneath their feet the only sound to invade the comfortable silence that came with years of unexamined friendship. Before long, the track meandered past the last of the houses and down to the small overgrown path along the riverbank. The evening air was dimmer here away from the streetlights and as Sharnice followed the boys across the old wooden bridge covering the slow-flowing Ouse with its wild, living borders, it seemed as if the edges of their bodies had blurred with the grayness of the fields in front of them. She moved faster to keep up with them as they strode across the grass to the old playground where they had played as children. Darren sat on a swing that came barely up to his knees, and lit a cigarette, before hawking and spitting; a habit rather than a necessity.

  ?Give us a drink before I die of old age, mate.?

  Lee laughed, and pulled the bottle out of his coat, opening it with a flourish before taking a long swig and passing it to Darren. He nodded in Sharnice’s direction. ?Ladies first.?

  She smiled, and the sweetness of it transformed her plain

  16

  face into something almost pretty. Darren and Lee were like the brothers she never had, like the family she never had. Especially Darren, whose home life was like a reflection of her unhappy own. Things perfectly understood without ever having been spoken. Lee was slightly different. His parents were together for a start, they both worked and they never got drunk and hit their kids. Sure, they may live on the estate and they might not have much money, but it wasn’t the same. It definitely wasn’t the same.

  She took the Thunderbird and a satisfying swallow, feeling the liquid warming her insides. Still she was cold, the wind stronger here on the edge of the countryside. Flicking her mousy hair out of her face, she screwed up her nose. ?We’re not going to stay here all night, are we? I hate this fucking place.?Her tone was dull, belying her unease. When she was seven, she’d almost frightened herself to death here. She had come down to play alone after school, her mother unable to control her daughter’s unruly behavior or her own. While Sharnice was throwing rocks into the water with a child’s enjoyment found purely in the splashes, the old man had called out to her with that papery voice, making her jump and turn to see him shuffling toward her on the bank smiling a terrible, old wrinkly grin, those old withered hands reaching for her

  Oh, how she had run. She had run and run until her breath burned in her chest, her ankles twisting under her, threatening to give way as her feet pounded all the way home. She had run from his oldness and his terrible smile and all his yellow and brown teeth. She had dreamed of those teeth for months, getting closer and closer to her as if that awful mouth could swallow her whole. And although real life soon put that small episode into perspective—the old bastard probably was only going to ask where her mum was or something—it had left her with a nervous dislike for these wide-open spaces surrounded by bushes and trees. Dark areas where anything

  17

  could be watching and waiting. Old things with yellow teeth.

  Lee scuffed at the ground with his sneakers. ?God, this town is shit. There’s nothing to fucking do here. We might as well be fucking dead.?He took another mouthful from the bottle.

  Sharnice wrapped her arms around herself. ?Well, if you two are just going to hang around here, then I’m going home. It’s too fucking cold to sit around in a pissing field.?

  Darren scowled at her. ?Sometimes, Sharny, you sound like all those other dumb bitches at school. What do ya want to go home for? Your mum’s only going to have some drunk bloke there.? He ignored the sharp look that came at him through the murky twilight. ?Well, isn’t she? At least we’ve got booze and fags. So what if it’s a bit cold? Get over it.?

  ?I told you. I hate this shithole.?Leaning on the climbing frame so she didn’t have to look directly at him, she sniffed loudly, her nose beginning to run. ?Anyway, I don’t have to do what you tell me,? she said to the invisible ground. ?I don’t have to do what any wanker tells me. So go fuck yourself.?Pushing herself away from the metal, she got ready to head home.

  ?I know where we can go. Somewhere we haven’t been before.?

  Sharnice stopped and looked at Lee. Darren was looking, too. ?Oh yeah? Where’s that, then??His curious tone was tainted with annoyance that Lee had come up with an idea before him. ?It’d better be good.?

  Lee stuffed the bottle back inside his jacket and zipped it up. ?It is.??Come on, then.?Grinning, he started walking down to the towpath. Sharnice and Darren looked at each other, their disagreement forgotten while they decided whether to follow their undeclared leader. Lee had stopped at the bridge. ?Well, come on!?

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  The other two started walking like they’d known they would. ?Aren’t you going to tell us where we’re going??The dampness of the grass was soaking through Sharnice’s shoes and she was glad to get back onto a dry surface, pleased to see the pale yellow of the path reflecting the last of the dying light.

  Lee poked her in the ribs. ?I’ll tell you when we get there.?Looking at his friends’ doubtful faces, he held his hands up in supplication. ?You’ll like it, I promise! You’ll both like it, honest. I just wish we’d thought of it before. Now get your arses moving!?Laughing, the three of them started out on the towpath.

  They had only been walking for about five minutes or so when the path came to a T-junction and disappeared into a gravel track just wide enough for one car to drive down. Darren and Sharnice instinctively turned left to head up toward the main road, but Lee called them back. ?We’re going this way.?

  Sharnice giggled. ?But there’s nothing down there. Just that old house on Toombes Meadow. And that’s all boarded up.?

  Lee was smiling. ?So? You reckon I can’t get in if I want to??

  Darren was looking doubtful. He’d heard that place was alarmed. They used to have dogs patrolling it, although he had to admit, that was a long time ago. To tell the truth, like most of the town, he’d kind of forgotten that the house was there. ?I dunno, Lee. Maybe it’s not such a good idea.?

  Sharnice said nothing, but Lee’s enthusiasm was infectious. In the end, he took the decision out of their hands. ?Don’t be a pair of pillocks all your life.?He started to jog away from them, calling over his shoulder, ?I’ll race you. Last one to the gates has to go to school for the whole day tomorrow. Now come on!?

  Sharnice was laughing as she broke into a sprint. ?Just don’t drop that fucking bottle!?

  19

  Darren watched her tearing down the lane, kicking dust up in her wake, before grinding out his cigarette. ?Stupid bastards,?he muttered to the empty air, before starting to run himself. ?Oy! Wait for me!?It wasn’t long before he caught up.

  After easily climbing over the old chin-high wrought-iron gates, ignoring the tatty ?Keep Out?sign hanging limp from the railings, the three of them stood panting on the neglected drive gazing at the house. It wasn’t yet dark, although the moon was beginning to show her face, and the building was like a rebellious shadow reaching up toward the sky instead of clinging despairingly to the ground.

  ?Fuck me, it’s huge, innit??Lee said.

  Darren shrugged and coughed, the run in the cold air hurting his lungs. ?Nah. It’s not that big. Just looks it ‘cos it’s all by itself.?

  Sharnice was glancing nervously at the hulking shapes of the sprawling plants and trees that surrounded them. ?Got a big garden, though. Does the wall go all the way around??

  ?Yeah, I think so. I guess they must have wanted their privacy, building a house out here. Let’s see if we can get in.?

  They walked three abreast, sniffing in the chill, until they were close enough to see the huge sheets of stained wood that covered the windows. Lee took the two stone steps leading up to the chipped front door in one bound. ?Well, there’s no padlock or nothing,?he called to Sharnice and Darren, who were off to his left trying to find a weakness in the nails hammered down tight years ago. He gave the heavy wood a shove, then stood there for a moment. ?Hah! Fuck me! It’s fucking open! I don’t fucking believe it!?He laughed, before disappearing inside.

  Standing behind Darren, looking at the curving staircase in front of the open doorway, Sharnice licked her lips apprehensively. ?Don’t you think it’s a bit weird??Her voice wasn’t much more than a whisper.

  The boys were moving away from her, eager to explore

  20

  their new territory. ?What are you on about??Lee was behind the stairs and opening a door that may once have led into the kitchen, but was now just another ripped out room.

  Sharnice didn’t move. ?Well, don’t you think it’s a bit weird that the door was open? I mean, all those windows boarded up, but the door is fucking open? Maybe there’s squatters here or something.?Or maybe just something old and horrible with yellow rotting teeth. She shivered the thought away.

  Darren had come down the stairs and met Lee at the bottom, the two of them opening the door to their left. Lee smiled at Sharnice and shook his head. ?No squatters here. There’s no water or electricity or nothing. It was cut off years ago.? His arm vanished inside the room and he flicked the switch. Nothing happened. ?See??

  She stuck her tongue out at him, then followed them into the room. They sat down in the middle of the dusty floorboards, the boys cross-legged, Sharnice with her legs tucked sideways under her. Lighting cigarettes for all of them, Lee passed around the bottle of Thunderbird.

  ?It’s warm in here. Feels like someone’s had a fire going or something, don’t you reckon??Darren was staring up at the high white ceiling. ?This house must have some kind of insulation to keep it warm when it’s empty.?

  Sharnice took several gulps from the bottle. She didn’t like this house. She didn’t like it one little bit, and she didn’t know why. ?It wasn’t warm when we came in. It was freezing. It’s only just got warm.?

  The two boys looked at her for a second, and then at each other and laughed. ?Sappy cow. Are you going all psychic on us??Darren said.

  She didn’t get a chance to answer as the bulb above them flickered for a few seconds and then came on, bathing them in yellow light. ?I thought you said this house didn’t have no electric??she breathed.

  Lee shrugged, looking slightly confused. ?Well, that’s

  21

  what my dad said. He must have got it wrong.?He grinned. ?Lucky for us, eh??

  Darren stretched out backwards, resting his elbows behind him. ?How would your dad know anything about this house anyway??

  ?He does the cleaning at that law place on the high street, you prat. They look after this place.?

  Darren snorted into his drink. ?I wouldn’t exactly call this ‘looking after the place.’ It’s a fucking abandoned ruin! Why don’t they let it out or sell it??

  Lee took the bottle. ?You don’t know much about this place, do ya? Didn’t your mum tell you the story when you were a kid? Mine’s still got the old newspaper pages. It was the biggest thing to ever happen in this shitty town.?

  Sharnice frowned at him. ?Our mums never told us stories when we were kids. And the closest mine gets to a newspaper is when she buys her fags at the shop.?

  Darren laughed. ?You’re right there, Sharny. I know exactly where you’re coming from. So come on then, posh boy, what’s the story??

  ?If you want to hear it, then you can cut out the ‘posh boy’ shit, all right??

  Sharnice edged in closer. ?He didn’t mean it. Come on, tell us what happened.?It was definitely warmer in here now, and she took off her jacket. Maybe it was just the booze heating her up from the inside. That’s what she liked about Thunderbird. It gave her a comfortable muggy buzz in her head. She had that now, here with her old friends.

  Lee sniffed. ?All right then. Some of this I know from what my mum told me, and some of it’s what my dad said from what he’s heard when he’s cleaning.?He paused to make sure he had his audience’s full attention. ?This house belonged to some woman who was married with a kid. Her dad used to own that mill, you know, the one that burnt down a few years ago, the one at the other end of the towpath??

  22

  Sharnice and Darren nodded. They knew the one. It had been closed for years before the fire destroyed it.

  ?So anyway, he was pretty rich and he bought Toombes Meadow and built his house here. When the woman grew up, she got married, and when her parents got too old to manage by themselves she put them in some posh old folks home and her family moved back in.?

  Sharnice raised an eyebrow. ?Charming. She could have at least looked after them.?Not that she’d do it for her mum, but then her mum was different. Her mum was a cow. She took another drink from the bottle. Yeah, drunk was good.

  ?Yeah, well maybe her husband didn’t want two droolers around the place, who knows??He inhaled hard on his cigarette. ?And it wasn’t like they couldn’t afford to pack them off. The husband was pretty wealthy. Worked in London in stocks and stuff.?

  ?Lucky old him,?Darren said.

  Lee laughed. ?Not so lucky as it turned out. One day, the wife stabbed him fifteen times in the chest while cutting up the vegetables for dinner. Their kid was playing outside. My mum says she was still screaming when the police turned up. Standing in the kitchen over her dad’s dead body, screaming her guts out.?