The hand holding his mug of tea trembled a little. It disturbed me. Charlie didn’t strike me as the nervy type, yet this tree business seemed to have really affected him. Nothing else for it, I had to get this sorted out.
“Do you know any professional arborists at all?”
He blinked. “I’m sorry I don’t, but you should be able to find someone online.” He set his mug down and looked away—over my shoulder in the direction of the cellar door. I turned to see what had attracted his attention. Nothing there. I looked back. Still avoiding my eyes, he stood. “Ah well, back to what I understand.”
After he’d gone back upstairs, I was left with my own thoughts.
Dark thoughts.
Chapter Three
July 1976
Maddie’s—so-called—best friend, Diane, frowned at her. “You’re mad, you are. You talk to yourself.”
“I don’t.”
“Yes you do. I’ve heard you. Your lips move. You were doing it just now. You didn’t know I was watching.”
“That’s not true.” Lying didn’t come naturally to Maddie. She had been talking to—well, not herself exactly—but Diane would never understand. Diane Fraser, with her freckles and her perfect blonde plaits. Diane with her older sister who wore sheer black tights and looked terribly grown up, even though she was only fourteen. But fourteen did seem grown up to nine-year-old Maddie.
Diane looked past Maddie. In the school playground, all the other kids were dashing around, playing games, laughing. The boys were kicking footballs and scoring pretend goals. Diane looked bored. Maddie’s spirits plummeted, as they did every time she realized that her best friend didn’t understand her.
“It’s because you don’t have any brothers and sisters,” Diane said. She always said that. It was her answer for all Maddie’s shortcomings. “I don’t know why your mum and dad didn’t have any more children. My mum says it’s not right to just have the one, and you’re the only one in the class who’s on her own. All the rest of us have got at least one brother or sister.”
Tears welled into Maddie’s eyes. She turned away, not wanting Diane to see them. If only she could be more like her imaginary self—Kelly. She wouldn’t stand for this nonsense from anyone. She would stand up for herself and tell Diane to get lost. But Kelly had a brother and three sisters. Diane wouldn’t have taunted her about being an only child.
At home, Maddie’s mother wasn’t sympathetic.
“What on earth have you two fallen out about now?” she said as she washed up the dishes after dinner and handed them to her daughter for drying.
No way was Maddie going to tell her mother the real reason. That Diane thought she was strange for talking to herself. Mother was always going on at her about that anyway.
“She said I was different because I was the only one in the class who didn’t have a brother or a sister. Why don’t I have any brothers or sisters?”
“Oh, for heaven’s sake. Not that again. I’ve told you before. After I had you I was told I couldn’t have any more. Let’s not have this conversation again, please. It upsets me.”
Maddie opened her mouth to ask another question but shut it again. Mother would get cross. She always did. Maddie handed her the damp tea towel.
“I’ve finished,” she said.
The corners of her mother’s mouth twitched in a hint of a smile. “Good girl. Now you can have your treat.”
Maddie followed her mother to the tall kitchen cupboard. Her mother reached in and took out a small strawberry-flavored lollipop. Maddie took it from her, eagerly. “Thank you,” she said. It would be her only candy that day. Her parents were strict about her sugar intake—another thing Diane teased her about. Never mind though, Maddie would have the last laugh when her friend’s teeth all dropped out. And they surely would one day. Mother had said so. Not in so many words, of course. But she said that too much sugar made your teeth rot, and they would all fall out, like Tom the cat’s did on the cartoons, when Jerry the mouse hit him in the mouth with a mallet.
Maddie smiled. Diane had such perfect white teeth, but not for long if she kept eating all those Jelly Babies she liked so much. That’d show her!
Maddie’s mother rubbed moisturizing lotion into her hands. “Now run along to your room and decide what you would like to take to Aunt Charlotte’s. School finishes on Friday and you’re going down there on Saturday, so there isn’t long if anything needs washing or ironing. Your father and I need to make some final preparations for our safari, so we’ll be busy until your bedtime. Make sure you have a bath and brush your teeth and I’ll come to tuck you up at nine o’clock. Off you go.”
Maddie trotted out of the kitchen and up the stairs to her room. She closed the door and felt the familiar thrill and rush of adrenaline. This was her haven. Her world. In here, she was Kelly—ready to have adventures with her sisters and brother. Right now, they were in the middle of a case. They were staying in an ancient castle and had been exploring the rambling corridors. Last night, Kelly had opened a door into a dimly lit room. They’d just crossed the threshold when Mother had called her for her bath. It was time to discover what lay waiting for them.
First, though, she would have to obey her mother and get out the clothes she wanted to take. None of them would need washing as everything was clean anyway.
Maddie wasn’t particularly interested in what she wore. That was another thing she and Diane didn’t have in common. In fact, as Maddie opened drawers and took out knickers, short white socks, T-shirts, and shorts, she couldn’t think of one interest they did share. Apart from David Cassidy of course. Diane said when she grew up she was going to marry him. She’d become quite upset when Maddie told her he already had a girlfriend. It had been in one of her comics so it must be true. In fact, that was the start of their latest falling out. Maddie sighed, grabbed a handful of dresses out of the wardrobe and plonked them on her bed. She began folding all her clothes and putting them in neat piles on the linen chest that held her bedding. Mother would pick them up, go through them all, and pack a suitcase for her in the next day or two.
On Saturday her parents would drive her the fifty miles or so down to Aunt Charlotte’s house, stay for an hour chatting about boring grown-ups’ things and then go on to the airport. A little thrill surged through Maddie. This was the second year of staying with her aunt and, if last year was anything to go by, she couldn’t wait. At home here she had a tiny garden to play in and Mother was always coming into her room and telling her off.
“Stop talking to yourself, Maddie. People will think you’re simple,” Mother would say.
Aunt Charlotte’s house was so enormous, Maddie could chatter away to her heart’s content and never have to worry. Besides, Aunt Charlotte seemed to find it all amusing. She understood. Who cared if Diane Fraser didn’t want to be her friend anymore? Maddie had Aunt Charlotte.
Maddie slipped into her cotton nightdress and climbed into bed. She glanced over at the bedside clock. Just before nine. She cuddled down with her toy panda and waited. Mother would be up soon.
At nine twenty, there was still no sign of her mother and Maddie lay wide awake, staring at the ceiling. Maybe if she got herself a glass of water that might help her sleep, but she wasn’t supposed to get out of bed except to go to the bathroom. Of course, if Mother had come up when she said she would, she could have brought her the water. Maddie decided that in the circumstances, she couldn’t really be in trouble, and scrambled out of bed. She started down the stairs and her parents’ voices wafted up to her from the open living room door. All thoughts of water flew out of her mind when she realized what they were talking about. She sat on the stairs, hugging her knees to her chest and listened.
“I’m not really happy about it, Marjorie,” her father said. “I can’t help thinking that Charlotte could be a bad influence on Maddie. You said yourself she’s had a pretty colorful life.
”
“Only when she was younger,” her mother said. “We lost touch for a few years when she went to London and I’ve no idea what she got up to there. Then our mother died and we met up again at the funeral. Charlotte put willow on her grave for some reason.”
“You told me she was into the occult. Ouija boards and all that stuff. I don’t want her filling Maddie’s head with a load of mumbo jumbo.”
My mother laughed. “Oh, she won’t do that. That was all a lot of daft stuff she did when she was a child. I’m sure she’s over it by now.”
“What about that spell book you told me she’d got? Doesn’t seem as if she’s over it to me.”
“Look, don’t worry. Anyway, it’s not a spell book, it’s a Book of Shadows. All perfectly harmless. She writes recipes and poems in there, and she keeps it in a drawer in her bedroom when Maddie’s around. Not that it would matter if she found it anyway.”
“Well, we’ll see how it goes this summer,” Maddie’s father said. “But the first sign of any weirdness and we’ll have to rethink our plans for next year.”
Maddie’s mother let out a deep sigh. “If she doesn’t go to Charlotte’s, we won’t be able to go on safari. It’s as simple as that. The child loves her aunt and the feeling is clearly mutual. She was fine last summer, wasn’t she?”
“Well…yes…but she’s getting older and takes more in. She understands more.”
“She’ll be fine. Oh heavens, look at the time! It’s after nine thirty. I was supposed to tuck Maddie in at nine!”
Maddie scampered up the stairs and dived into bed. She screwed her eyes shut and didn’t open them when her mother tiptoed into her room and kissed her lightly on her forehead.
* * * * *
“Don’t go wandering off too far, Maddie. Your dinner will be ready soon.”
“No, Aunt Charlotte. I won’t.” The child stared up at her aunt and blinked her clear brown eyes. She glanced over her shoulder. “Come on, Sonia. Let’s go upstairs and play in our room.”
Maddie skipped out of the kitchen, into the hall. Her Aunt Charlotte smiled, shook her head, and returned to her beef casserole.
On the second floor, Maddie reached up to the door handle. This one was stiffer than the others and she needed all her strength to turn it. The tip of her tongue protruded from her lips as she put all her concentration and both hands into her task. She felt the catch give and smiled in triumph.
Again, she looked over her shoulder. “Come on. Let’s play!”
Coming.
Maddie hopped and skipped to the far side of the room and opened the cupboard door. She stepped back just in time to miss a heap of board games and books spilling out onto the floor. She put her hands on her hips as she had seen her mother do countless times when admonishing her daughter for the state of her bedroom.
“Oh dear, Sonia. Looks like Veronica’s been naughty. We shall have to punish her.”
We’d best tell Thelma. She’s the oldest. It’s her job to tell her off.
“You’re right. Where’s she got to?”
Probably gone out. Buying makeup. Or a new dress.
“I expect so.” Maddie sighed. “Oh well, I suppose I’ll have to put everything back. Aunt Charlotte will be cross if she sees all this.”
I’ll help you, Kelly.
“Thank you, Sonia.”
Invisible friends were all well and good, but when it came to clearing up messes, they weren’t much help. Maddie did her best, accompanied by a lot of sighing and tutting. Cluedo was stacked on top of Spirograph, on top of Monopoly, on top of Bunty and Tammy Annuals for Girls.
Maddie smoothed her dress and stepped back to admire her handiwork. “There,” she said, in a near perfect imitation of Aunt Charlotte. “All shipshape again.”
She knelt down and took a few seconds to flick through the pages of The Book of Strange Stories, which she had perched precariously on the top of the uncertain pile. She found it. Her favorite story. All about a Siamese cat who helped to solve a mystery. Of course this cat wasn’t like the aloof Siamese her mother’s friend, Mrs. Walters, had. Her cat, Simba, always licked his paw and sped out of the room whenever Maddie went near him. She wondered if he had any adventures or solved any mysteries. She also wondered what it would be like to have a cat of her own. Or a dog maybe.
“Mother won’t let us,” she said out loud. “She says she would have to look after it and she doesn’t have time. I keep telling her I’d take care of it, but she doesn’t believe me. It’s not fair.” Tears filled her eyes and she wiped them away with the back of her hand.
Never mind, Kelly. You’ve got us. We’ll never leave you.
Maddie sniffed and managed a wobbly smile. “Thank you, Sonia. You’re all my best friends in the whole world.”
“Maddie! Dinner’s on the table!” The voice drifted up from far away downstairs.
“Come on, I’m starving!”
Downstairs, Aunt Charlotte was dishing up in the kitchen. The comforting, rich smell of beef casserole made Maddie’s tummy rumble. Outside the sun shone during one of the hottest summers on record but inside this house was always chilly. Sometimes Aunt Charlotte even had to light a fire in the evenings, despite the season, so—while everyone around them might be eating salads and praying for rain—inside Hargest House, Charlotte Grant and her niece found a warming casserole more appropriate fare.
Maddie clambered onto her chair. Her feet always dangled and she swung them for something to do while she waited for her aunt to spoon the steaming casserole onto her plate and add fluffy mashed potatoes, and green beans fresh from the garden.
“There you are. Now eat it all up. That’s a good girl.”
“Thank you, Aunt Charlotte. Can Sonia have some?”
“Yes, of course,” Aunt Charlotte said, and proceeded to pile an imaginary plate with invisible food. “There you are, Sonia,” she said, setting the “plate” in front of an empty chair.
Thank you.
“Sonia says ‘thank you’,” Maddie said between mouthfuls of food. The meat was so tender, it melted in her mouth. Not that she would ever say so to her mother, but Aunt Charlotte was a much better cook. She enjoyed working in the kitchen and especially when it meant she could cook something she had grown herself—like the green beans. They had so much more flavor than any of the frozen supermarket variety Maddie’s mother served up at home.
“Have you had a nice day?” Aunt Charlotte asked. “What did you get up to?”
Maddie swung her legs backward and forward as she recalled her activities since the morning.
“I went down to the tentacle tree and I met a nice boy. I think he’s a bit older than me. We played ‘I Spy’ and he showed me how to skim stones on the river.”
“That sounds nice. I hope you didn’t get too close to the edge though.”
Maddie gave Aunt Charlotte what she hoped was a “withering” look. She’d read about someone giving a parent such a look once and she’d always wanted to have an opportunity to practice it. Unfortunately, as Aunt Charlotte merely smiled and gave a little cough, Maddie didn’t think she’d managed the desired effect. In fact, she could have sworn her aunt was suppressing a giggle.
“What was this boy’s name?” Aunt Charlotte asked. “Maybe I know him.”
“Um.” Maddie thought but, try as she might, she couldn’t remember it or recall if he’d even told her. “I don’t know,” she said, her eyes downcast.
“Never mind,” Aunt Charlotte said. “If you see him again, you can ask him. There are quite a few children around your age in the town. It’ll be nice if you can make friends for the summer. Your mother said she’s a bit concerned that you always seem to be on your own. You never bring any school friends home.”
Maddie looked down at her plate and concentrated on spearing a piece of carrot followed by a small chunk of meat. She r
aised her fork and filled her mouth. That way she didn’t have to answer her aunt. After all, mustn’t talk with your mouth full. She could feel Aunt Charlotte’s steady gaze, but kept on chewing, longer than necessary. Her aunt sighed and carried on eating. Maddie swallowed.
Maddie didn’t want to talk about her recent falling-out with Diane. Besides, her sometime friend had only been to Maddie’s house once and then all she’d done was complain about how cold it was.
“Don’t you even have central heating?” she had said, holding herself and shivering with exaggerated effect.
“Yes, of course we do,” Maddie said, feeling a strong urge to slap her. “But my mother doesn’t like it turned up too high. She says it’s unhealthy.”
“I bet it’s ’cause your parents are poor.”
“They’re not poor and you’re not to say things like that.”
Diane stopped shivering and sniffed. “I’ll say what I like. You can’t stop me.”
After that, Maddie vowed she would never bring anyone home again. Especially when Diane started telling all their classmates about her friend’s freezing cold house and Spartan conditions. The other children pitied her. Maddie could read it in their eyes and cried herself to sleep that night. It wouldn’t be the last time.
No doubt Diane would complain about Hargest House too if she came there. Not that Maddie would ever invite her. This was her special place.
It was simpler to keep the other children away. If no one came home with her, they’d have nothing to talk about. It was true that there weren’t many luxuries at home. No fancy freezers or color televisions in every room. Maddie kept pulling threads out of the battered sofa and catching her toe in that threadbare bit of the carpet in her bedroom. They couldn’t be poor though. Not really poor, because there was always money for her parents’ safaris, and she never went hungry, even if the food was a bit plain and basic. Not like this delicious casserole. Maddie’s mother bought the cheapest cuts of meat and there was always some gristle and chewy fat spoiling the meal. Aunt Charlotte bought only tender cuts, from the butcher up the road.
The Devil's Serenade Page 3
