The Blackwood Curse: A Night Shades Novel, page 13
He scrolled the screen like a seasoned pro, far faster than I could have done. ‘It’s how I keep busy all night when I can’t sleep,’ he explained, reading my mind.
He was unbelievably perceptive, I was beginning to realise. I wondered again what it must be like having to sift through hundreds of voices to think inside your own head. ‘Are there so many?’ I said, needing to say ‘of us’, but still feeling it was too strange. ‘Why are they all here? In this area, I mean?’
Wax stopped scrolling and thought about it. ‘That’s true. I don’t know why … interesting.’ He went back to checking the newspapers for a while and then rolled backwards on his chair. ‘Come on, let’s go down.’
He took my hand and I went with him, bewildered. I mean, I liked it and all, but I was still getting used to the closeness and, at the same time, not really knowing him. It was weird. Not that I would have given it up. No. I couldn’t.
Everyone was congregated in the kitchen again. I discovered that, despite being dead, they loved their food and alcohol. Plus, as Wax explained, ‘It’s the furthest room from my uncle’s bedroom. They’re noisy assholes.’
They seemed to think of the uncle as some sort of ogre and yet he was the one person there to look after Wax. My mind went straight to the meltdown of the other day. I had to constantly remind myself it was the same boy.
‘What do you want?’ Wax asked, taking a loaf of bread from a box and a cooked chicken from the fridge.
‘Yes please,’ Joe said.
‘Not you,’ Wax said, and the boy put his hands up in surrender, looking genuinely scared. I got the impression that many of them were no more used to interacting with Wax than I was.
I was starving and nodded. ‘A sandwich would be great.’
I looked around at the others and they were openly staring, as if I’d sprouted another head or something. Tallulah was sitting on Ollie’s lap with her arms still around his neck. Then, as if the spell had been broken and I wasn’t going to enlighten them, they returned to their conversations and swigging beer.
I couldn’t comprehend what it was to be a Shade. I mean, I was there. I ate and drank real food and drink.
Wax passed me a sandwich bulging with lettuce and tomatoes. My stomach even rumbled.
Wax must have seen my expression. ‘You feel pretty real, I guess.’ He took a bite of his huge sandwich and shrugged. ‘For all intents and purposes, you are,’ he said, chewing. ‘It’s just not everyone can see you.’
I took a bite of my sandwich. ‘It’s pretty good,’ I said, trying not to grin with my mouth so full. It tasted wonderful.
He passed me a bottle of coke and grinned wider. I took a sip and marvelled at how good it tasted. ‘So, if your uncle came in here now, all he’d see is you, a bottle and a floating sandwich?’
Wax burst out laughing. ‘Yeah. I guess he would. Hey! Next time he tries to lock me up I want you to do just that. I want to see his face.’ He seemed to laugh harder with every thought and it was lovely to see. It did something to my butterflies knowing that he wanted me there with him.
It briefly struck me that he wasn’t fond of his uncle, when I noticed everyone staring open-mouthed again.
‘What are you all looking at? Never seen a girl eat a sandwich before?’
They all looked around them exaggeratedly, like it was all still part of a silly joke. I’d have to weasel it out of Tallulah later.
Wax just rolled his eyes and didn’t seem angry at all.
We finished our sandwiches and I put my plate in the sink. ‘Come on,’ he said. ‘I’ll show you about the place.’ We started to walk towards the door.
‘Where you going?’ Ollie called.
‘Guided tour,’ Wax said, without turning around.
Ollie pushed Tallulah off his lap. ‘We’ll come.’
Wax shook his head wearily and picked up my hand. ‘Be quiet then. If you wake him up there’ll be hell to pay.’
I worried for the first time then. As Shades, we’d be safe. It would be Wax who’d have to face him.
The house seemed huge – even after my aunt’s place. However, despite the large modern kitchen, it was just as antique-looking everywhere else. There were a lot of creaky floorboards that someone managed to continually set off. There would then follow a loud ‘Shh!’ every time.
‘I wonder whether you’ve got any secret rooms here?’ I said as I dragged my plastered leg slowly up the stairs; I’d left one of my crutches at the bottom. Wax held my other arm.
We relaxed when we reached the landing. Wax just pointed and said, ‘There’re another three bedrooms and a bathroom that way and the same on the other,’ he said, turning. ‘My uncle’s is the furthest one,’ he finished, turning back, pointing in the original direction.
‘What’s the other one?’ I could just see a door squashed into the corner next to his uncle’s room.’
‘That’s nothing. Just the stairs to the attic. We shouldn’t risk waking him going up there.’
I nodded, seeing the sense in that.
‘Hey, let’s check out my room,’ Ollie said, pulling Tallulah to the door next to Wax’s.
It was a little smaller than Wax’s and not as grand. It was decorated in blue, with posters of Chelsea football team and various bands on the walls. It looked surprisingly lived in but, conversely, frozen in time, which was exactly what it was. It made me feel sad for Ollie. He was here, but, to the world, he’d gone.
It made me think of my own parents then, for the first time in ages. Now their lack of interest in me made sense. They didn’t ignore me because they were mourning Pete, they didn’t see me. I was gone too. I quickly wiped a stray tear before anyone saw.
I looked at Wax, who watched me knowingly.
‘So when did you … you know?’ I said to Ollie, not able to bring myself to finish the sentence.
‘About a year and a half,’ he said, understanding completely.
I looked at the others, who all nodded. ‘About the same,’ Joe said.
It made me frown. It was a little odd. I mean, a school trip accident I got, but not the others as well. Something about it wasn’t right, but I couldn’t work out what yet.
I looked at the neatly made bed. ‘Do you still sleep here?’ I asked.
‘Not really. I don’t get tired. I watch TV and go on the internet mainly.’
The others all nodded, as if it was a familiar story for them too. I looked at the small TV and computer that was more dated than Wax’s. Then I noticed Wax looked uncomfortable. I guessed then that he must get in trouble a lot with all the antics going on with everyone here. ‘Where next?’ I said.
‘Downstairs,’ he said, smiling, clearly a little relieved.
He helped me down as he had going up and then he showed me to two similar reception rooms. One decorated blue and the other green. It was all dark wood with velvet upholstery that seemed the theme in these old houses. One had a piano in though.
There was the library that Ollie had smuggled us in when Wax had trashed the place and a locked room that Wax said was his uncle’s study. Then there was just the little sitting room we'd listened to music in earlier and we were back in the kitchen. All pretty mundane really – except maybe the study. I wanted to take a peek in there.
Ollie grabbed something from the fridge, and I noticed there was a narrow door next to it. ‘Where does that go?’
‘Oh, that’s the pantry,’ Ollie said. ‘It goes down to the cellar, I think.’
I looked at Wax. ‘Can I see it?’ I needed to check everything out in this house. So far, nothing had helped.
Wax shrugged. ‘I guess so. My uncle just keeps his wine down there, though.’
‘I’d like to see anyway.’
Wax walked over, opened the door and flicked a switch just inside. We all followed him into the room that was no more than about six by six feet in size. It was dingy and smelly with shelves filled with tins and jars of food. There were wooden boxes containing fruit and vegetables which gave the room its dusty greengrocer’s smell.
There, on the far side, was a door smaller and more rickety than the first. Wax opened it and it scraped the floor where it had swollen with damp. A wall of blackness waited on the other side until Wax got out his mobile phone for its torch. ‘Shit,’ he muttered. He ducked under a huge cobweb and pulled a cord. A lightbulb came on, barely illuminating the top few wooden steps leading downwards to the inky blackness below. ‘Be careful,’ Wax said, leading me down by the arm. ‘Leave that there.’
I saw what he meant. The stairs would be easier to negotiate without my crutch. ‘Can we die again?’ I asked, seeing how dark it was down there.
Ollie laughed from behind me as we descended. ‘I dunno. We’ve never tested it.’
I held onto Wax, tightly, and he hugged me even closer. I liked it, revelling in the heat of him. The lower we got, the more it smelled of earth and dampness. I was sorry when he released me at the bottom. It was weird how I sought any excuse to touch him.
Wax found another pull-string at the bottom, pulled it and an old florescent strip light flashed on and off, with a glass ringing sound, until it finally came on with a soft hum. The others came down the steps and crowded around us. We looked around. There didn’t seem to be anything out of the ordinary. Just a rack on one wall filled with wine, a large chest freezer, boiler, mop and other cleaning equipment. Basically, everything you’d expect to find in a basement in a house like this.
Except Wax looked troubled. ‘What’s the matter?’ I asked. ‘Is something wrong?’ My heart was already speeding up in anticipation of something bad.
He frowned. ‘I’m not sure. I don’t come down here that much.’
Ollie came up to his other shoulder to see if he could see what it was.
‘But my uncle does. All the time,’ Wax said to himself as if he was working something out in his mind.
Then I got what he meant. Unless he was an alcoholic, there was absolutely no reason to come down here.
Tallulah pointed at the freezer. ‘Maybe there’s a dead body in there.’
Everyone groaned. Ollie chuckled. ‘You’re not serious?’
Tallulah pulled a face. ‘What? It’s always in the films.’
Ollie sighed, shaking his head and going over to it. He took the handle and pulled, but it wouldn’t budge.
‘Is it locked?’ Wax said.
Ollie shrugged, then gave it one final heft. It flew open, Ollie leaned over and suddenly yelled as if someone were pulling him in. We all shouted and ran to him.
He immediately dissolved into laughter. Wax checked the chest was empty; it wasn’t even switched on. He clipped his brother round the head with his hand and the wind ruffled his hair. ‘Asshole,’ he said. ‘You’ll wake Uncle.’
It felt like we all let out a collective breath to relax and my heart went back to normal. ‘Let’s look around for anything out of the ordinary,’ I said.
We split up, even picking up pots and old boxes to look inside, but nothing seemed weird or out of place.
I turned a slow circle, trying to take everything in. Then it came to me and literally stopped my heart for a couple of beats. ‘It’s small,’ I said.
‘Not as big as yours, eh, Miss Lah-di-dah,’ Ollie said, sashaying over to me.
‘No, what I mean is, in comparison to the size of the house.’
Wax nodded, immediately getting my drift. ‘This is less than half the floor space above.’
Tallulah continued to look blank.
‘This can’t be all of it,’ I said, looking into all their faces. Their eyes widened with sudden understanding. ‘Look for a secret door or panel, however small.’
Tallulah immediately caught on and began tapping on the wall. I went over to the furthest wall, where I knew the house continued above. I was right; it sounded hollow. Wax followed me and did the same.
Ollie started pulling out dusty wine bottles, looking behind for a hidden switch. There were a lot of bottles, so Tallulah and a couple of the others helped.
Wax stood with me, watching. ‘Wait!’ he said, taking a step forward.
Ollie and the others immediately stopped what they were doing and looked at him. ‘What?’
‘They’re all dirty, except one,’ Wax said, pointing to one in the top left-hand corner.
He was right. It looked clean and new. Wax tried to pull it, but it wouldn’t budge. I came forward to try, but I couldn’t reach up that high.
I hitched a breath when I felt Wax’s large hands grip my waist and lift me easily. Instead of pulling, I pushed in and then downwards. There was a loud clank, then a cranking sound. A huge panel in the wall next to it slowly slid to the side. Wax put me down on my feet and we all turned to look at the huge room it revealed.
It was deepest red and illuminated by tens of thick white candles. There was a huge sideboard on the far side with mounds of melted wax where candles had burned in the same place for a very long time. It reminded me of an altar.
We all crept forward as one unit. Something made us pause at the boundary of the room. It was as though we sensed something evil there; an invisible barrier. I took a breath and continued on. When I went to take another step, already looking around the room, Wax shouted, ‘Stop!’ He pointed to the floor.
There was a perfectly drawn white circle made of some sort of powder with a five-pointed star inside. In each compartment there was a symbol in the same powder. Then there was some sort of artefact at each point of the star: a human skull, a metal chalice, a lit candle, some sort of herbs in a metal bowl. The last one had nothing at all. It was very curious.
‘What is it?’ Nicola whispered.
‘It’s witchcraft, I think,’ I said.
‘Black magic,’ Wax said, so quietly I could barely hear.
I had no idea how he could possibly know that. I was about to open my mouth to ask when there was a click and the sound of a door closing coming from the top of the stairs. ‘Someone’s coming,’ I whispered, panicking.
Everyone started to run in every direction, looking for anywhere to hide themselves. Only Wax didn’t move. ‘Stand still! Don’t make a sound,’ he hissed.
We did as we were told and froze. Then I watched in absolute terror as he walked over to the wall and closed the panel by smacking a button and went behind a red velvet curtain. While we stood rooted to the spot, my insides went to liquid. My mind had lost all thought except to run and I was hyperventilating. Ollie grounded me with his eyes, put a finger to his lips and we stood like statues as the panel clanked and slowly opened.
Chapter 14
My hands flew to my mouth to stop my involuntary whimper and I tried to stay glued to Ollie’s eyes as I lost my balance for a moment. My knee started to shake with the effort and sweat trickled down my neck. Terror at the clonk and crank of the mechanism held me still and stopped me breathing.
The wall slowly opened.
I swear my blood froze in my veins and yet sounded like a train in my ears. I closed my eyes and felt Wax’s uncle stalk into the room. I cracked them open a little to see the tall, brittle-looking frame turn and look around.
Ollie widened his eyes to keep me focussed on him.
‘I know you’re in here,’ the uncle said. As if he’d been really clever, finding us in a game of hide and seek. ‘You left the lights on out there.’
I closed my eyes. Of course. Wax didn’t have enough time to turn them off when we heard him coming. I took a small swallow and turned to look at the others, but they kept their positions. The uncle began a stroll around the room.
‘Bret!’ he said, making me jump. He was so close it was hard to believe he couldn’t see us at all. ‘I know you’re in here so you may as well come out.’
I wanted to shout ‘No!’, but Ollie clamped his hand over my mouth as he shook his head.
I was forced to watch helplessly as the red curtain moved and Wax stepped out from his hiding place. My heart broke as he came and stood next to me and took my hand secretly, next to his leg. I could feel him shaking.
Tears prickled my eyes when I looked up to see him looking intently at his uncle. It was clear to me then. The years of fear and reprisals. His uncle was his abuser and his jailer. He knew exactly what Wax could do and medicated him anyway. He didn’t care that the world thought Wax was unstable.
I studied his blank, unreadable face in disgust. The memory of Wax in bed with the nurse bent over him was burning a hole in my heart. How I hated his uncle then. I knew in that moment, that Wax was as trapped as we were and his uncle wanted it that way.
‘What is this place?’ Wax demanded.
I gripped his hand tighter.
‘What are you doing down here?’ his uncle threw right back.
Wax’s eyes narrowed. There was no love lost between them; it was clear to see. ‘I came down for a bottle to drown them out.’ Then he smirked and shifted his weight to his hip. ‘Then I remembered one of them whispering about secret rooms and that the cellar was too small for a house of this size.’ He shrugged. ‘Didn’t take much to find it.’
My heart skipped. However, he worried me. His handsome, hard face, the punching pulse at his neck and the tight grip he had on my hand belied the bravado he was showing his uncle.
His uncle nodded and half-smiled while he began a slow pace of the room. ‘Clever boy. I can see I underestimated you.’ He was complimenting him, but even I could tell it was fake and that Wax shouldn’t trust him for a moment. ‘No matter. To the world you are a paranoid schizophrenic in my care, so no harm done.’
My hatred for the man took great long roots as I felt Wax’s discomfort. Embarrassment initially, then as if he was readying himself for something. I was so proud as he didn’t cower before his uncle.
‘But we know the truth, don’t we? You still haven’t answered my question.’ He let go of my hand and stepped forward. His uncle whirled round and came up in his face. Any joy I held in Wax standing up to him quickly evaporated.
I stayed behind him and felt the others join me in formation. It felt like we were an army on his side. Just for a moment, it felt like we were strong. Then his uncle spoke and broke the illusion. ‘Tough boy, eh? A few tattoos might scare the teenagers in the village, but this is me.’ They were a similar height, but his uncle began to bear down on him, pushing him backwards, menacingly, against the wall. ‘This room and everything you see here is for her. Do you understand?’
