Lisa’s dad was silent for a long time. When her foot began to itch, she longed to shift her weight and reach into her shoe to scratch her heel, but she didn’t dare move. Finally she heard his voice, low and calm and deadly serious. “I’ll get it back,” he said, his voice almost a growl. “I don’t care what I have to do or how long it takes, I’ll get it back even if I have to kill Pickering to get it.”
Suddenly he had spun around and Lisa heard his quick footsteps crossing the patio. He slammed the door behind him when he went inside their small house.
Moments later Lisa had slipped into her bedroom window, still shaking from the inconceivable words that had come from her father’s mouth. She had tried to sleep for hours after that, but every time she had begun to drift off, the words forced their way back into her mind, “I’ll get it back even if I have to kill Pickering to get it.”
Chapter 15
Why would Lisa not tell me what is troubling her? Is she protecting someone? Is she afraid to tell me? Only one thing is certain, she does not really believe it is nothing.
There is so much yet I can not see. So much that the horses can not tell me, because they do not know. How can I keep them safe if I do not understand what threatens them? How can I keep Lisa safe if she does not tell me what she fears?
I must watch and listen and learn. Quickly. Lisa’s life may depend on it, as well as the lives of Jupiter and the others. Lisa and the horses are the truly innocent ones. I must protect them. But from whom? From where does the danger come?
Chapter 16
It’s finally time to do something about him, tonight around 10 p.m., if all goes according to plan. And it will. There aren’t any holes in my plan. It’s perfect. He’s just waiting there for me, like a fly in my web. Finally, after all these years of waiting, satisfaction.
Chapter 17
Lisa tried to phone Mr. Pickering when she got home and then again just before supper, but both times the phone just rang and rang. The second time she phoned, she let it ring more than 20 times before she hung up the receiver.
When supper was finished, Lisa cleared away the dishes and began her homework. She had so much to catch up on. By 8:30 p.m. she only had two pages of math questions left and an English assignment to do that she had been putting off. When her mom put Molly to bed at 9, she was almost finished her math homework. Lisa finished the last question as her mom walked back into the kitchen and began to empty the dishwasher. She leaned back in her chair and closed her eyes. Now just my English assignment, she thought. And all I have to do is write a paragraph that describes a person’s character.
She could hear the gentle noise of her mom moving around the kitchen and putting the shining cups and plates away in the cupboards. The sound was comforting. Lisa sighed with her eyes still closed. Peaceful moments at home in the evenings were rare these days. Usually she ended up doing her homework in her bedroom so she wouldn’t have to be around her dad. Even when he didn’t say anything she could feel his anger. She pictured it like a dark swarm of bees buzzing around him, with one or two occasionally zipping out to sting someone in the family. But today was different. Her dad was gone. Her homework was almost completed. The horses had had a wonderful day. And Angelica was there to help take care of them.
“Mom,” she said, opening her eyes and sitting up straight. “Who should I write about? I have to write a paragraph for English class that describes someone’s appearance and the way I describe them has to tell about their personality.” Lisa’s mom put the last dish in the cupboard and sat in the chair across the table from Lisa. She pulled her feet up onto the chair and settled there, cross-legged.
“Write about me,” she said and smiled with her small perfect teeth.
“Okay,” said Lisa slowly. “Let me think of what to write.” She looked closely at her mom’s face, like a painter studying her subject. Her mom’s eyes were large, her nose and chin small and pointy. I wish I looked more like her and less like Dad, thought Lisa as her mom yawned in her chair. While Lisa’s eyes were almond-shaped and blue, her mom’s and Molly’s were round and a rich brown. Lisa’s hair was dark blonde, long and thick, unlike the wispy reddish brown curls that belonged to her mother. Lisa watched as her mom stretched gracefully in her chair. Just like a cat, thought Lisa. While I always look so clumsy.
“You look a lot like Molly,” said Lisa.
“Poor kid,” said Lisa’s mom with a smile.
Lisa didn’t argue with her mom or tell her she thought Molly was lucky. Her mom would have argued back, but Lisa knew the truth. Molly and her mom were the pretty ones in the family. But I’m the artist, she reminded herself. And honestly, I think I’d rather be artistic than pretty. Especially after what Angelica said today about the down side of being beautiful. And besides, being artistic is a lot of fun.
“I think I know what to write,” said Lisa. “I can tell about your personality by comparing you to a cat.”
“A cat!” exclaimed Lisa’s mom, laughing.
“Yeah, you’re pretty like a cat, and you stretch like a cat, and you move quietly like a cat. In fact, there are a lot of things about you that are catlike, Mom,” said Lisa.
Lisa’s mom smiled again. “So that’s why cats are my favourite pet,” she said. She fell silent as Lisa began to write, her pen skimming over the page. Every few seconds, Lisa would look up and search her mom’s face as she tried to find the right descriptive word. When Lisa was almost finished, her mom spoke again. “Are you still going over to visit the horses?” she asked quietly.
For a moment, Lisa was taken back. While she didn’t think her mom would be as unreasonable as her dad, she wasn’t sure her mom wouldn’t tell him. An uncomfortable silence swept into the kitchen.
“Okay, you don’t have to tell me,” Lisa’s mom continued. “Just make sure you’re always safe.” She dropped her feet quietly to the floor and reached over the table to touch Lisa’s hand. “Don’t do anything risky, okay? Promise?”
Lisa looked up from her paper. “I wouldn’t do anything stupid, Mom,” she said. “Don’t worry.” She remembered trying to squeeze around Angelica in their hiding place, when Jimmy was pretending to beat Jupiter. But next time I’ll be more careful, she decided. I know how sneaky he can be now.
Her mom smiled. “Thanks, honey,” she whispered. Then her voice came louder. “Well, I’m off to read my book in bed.”
“I’ll just do my good copy,” Lisa said, motioning to her English assignment. “Then I’m going to bed too. I’m tired.”
“Goodnight then, sweetie,” said Lisa’s mom. She touched her daughter on the shoulder and walked toward the door, but abruptly she paused and turned around. “How is he?” she asked. “How is my Topper?”
Lisa’s eyes searched her mom’s face. Does she want to know the truth, she wondered, or should I just tell her that they’re fine? That would probably be the smartest thing. But how can I lie to my mom?
She looked down at her hands. “He misses you. He doesn’t understand what’s happened. None of them do,” she whispered. “They want us to come home.” Silence followed her words and after a moment, Lisa looked up to see her mom fighting back tears, her eyes large and luminous. Should I tell her about Jimmy? she wondered. Should I tell my mom how he’s been mistreating them?
Suddenly a car pulled into the driveway, the light from its headlights streaking across the wall. “Let's talk about this tomorrow,” said Lisa’s mom. “It looks like your dad’s home. How odd. I thought he had a meeting in the city early tomorrow morning.”
“Don’t tell Dad I’m still going over there,” pleaded Lisa. “Please Mom.”
“I won’t,” said her mom, brushing her tears onto her sleeve. “I promise.”
The first thing that Lisa noticed about her dad when he walked in the door was that he looked exhausted. Dark circles hovered under his eyes like black half moons, and the rest of his face was lined and pale. His mouth was drawn in a tight, tense line.
“Are you
okay, sweetheart?” Lisa’s mom asked him as he gulped down a glass of water at the kitchen sink. “I’ve never seen you look so tired.”
“I had a hard day,” he replied and tried to smile. Lisa turned away. His smile looked so fake, just skin stretched over teeth. That’s all. He muttered something about his meeting being cancelled and how all he wanted to do was go to bed, then left the room. Lisa drew in a big breath of relief when he was gone.
Lisa’s mom stopped beside her before she followed him. “It’ll be okay, Lisa,” she said reassuringly. “We’ll get through this tough time. That’s another promise I’ll make.” She reached out to stroke Lisa’s hair as if she was a kitten. “We’ll all be okay.” Then she followed her husband out of the room.
Left in the quiet kitchen, Lisa forced herself to concentrate on finishing the last of her homework and then organized her school books in a neat pile on the table. She turned out the light and hurried to her room halfway down the dark hallway. Once the door was shut, she felt a little better. She switched on the light and tried reading to pass the time until 11 p.m., but she kept thinking of her mom and dad. Will we really be okay? she wondered. Can I believe my mom? How can she know?
Lisa sighed and dropped the book on the bed. It was no use. She couldn’t concentrate. Her eyes strayed to the clock. It was 10:40 p.m. Dad’s probably asleep and, even if Mom isn’t, she knows I go visit the horses anyway now, Lisa thought as she slipped a dark sweatshirt over her yellow T-shirt. Somewhere in the back of her mind, she knew her mom wouldn’t want her to be wandering around in the middle of the night, and she knew her mom certainly wouldn’t want Lisa visiting the horses if she knew how horrid Jimmy was. But Angelica will be with me, Lisa reasoned, stuffing the thought down. That makes it safer.
Lisa threw back her covers and pushed her pillow into the centre of the mattress. Then she positioned a couple of stuffed animals beside the pillow and drew her quilt back over top. It looked almost exactly like someone was sleeping under the blankets. She turned off the light switch and, in the darkness, walked to her window and quietly pushed it open.
The damp smells of the night flowed into the room, and Lisa took a deep breath. She swung a leg over the windowsill, sat on the ledge, and then swung the other leg over. Quietly, she lowered herself to the ground. Neptune came to greet her with a whine in his throat.
“Shhh,” whispered Lisa as she bent to stroke the dog. After scratching him behind his ears, she turned back to the window and pushed it so that it was almost closed. Neptune followed her along the back of the house and watched silently at the end of his chain as she moved around the corner.
Soon Lisa was standing beside the road in front of the house. The road was deserted. Because she didn’t know which way Angelica would be coming, she sat in the tall grass beside her driveway and waited. The moon hadn’t risen yet, but the sky was beginning to brighten as it came closer and closer to the horizon. Stars glistened in the sky. Lisa lay in the grass and pillowed her head on her arms. The stars were so beautiful—countless as the sands on the seashore, going on and on forever. The hill that she and Molly had climbed that morning was dark against the sky, the moonglow coming from behind it edging it in a thin outline of light. She could hear a cricket nearby fiddling a melody on his back legs, but other than that, the night was hushed.
Then a shaving of light topped the hill. The moon was rising, huge against the horizon. Lisa watched as the shaving grew larger and rounder and fuller, and finally, the full moon topped over the hill. The moonlight changed everything to liquid silver. Lisa held up her hand, her fingers spread. The glow streamed between them and fell onto the grass like pools of fluid light.
The world becomes magical under a moon like this one, thought Lisa. It’s as if anything could happen on a night like tonight. Anything. Maybe my mom is right. Maybe we will be okay.
Chapter 18
It’s mine. It’s finally mine. The Manor. The land. The money. No one can stop me now. All I have to do is find that new will and destroy it. And I will find it. No one knows it exists except me, and I can look for it while I sell off all the furniture and other stuff in the house. My uncle almost made this too easy. I didn’t even have to carry him down to the stable as I planned. He went down all by himself before I got there.
But come to think of it, that bothers me. Why was he in the stable when I got back tonight? I know now I didn’t give him enough of the drug to keep him unconscious, but why did he go to the stable instead of going for help? It’s probably nothing, I know. But it bugs me. Maybe he just wanted to see the horses, to see if they were all right. Worrying about horses when he’s the one in trouble…old fool! Or maybe, just maybe, he was trying to leave a message for that kid. I wonder if I should go back right now? Or stick to the plan and return later?
Chapter 19
In the distance Lisa heard a car pull out of a driveway and tires squeal on pavement as it sped away. Then, in the silence that followed, she heard the whisper of footsteps on the road. Lisa lay still and listened as the feet turned into her driveway, barely crunching the gravel. She turned her head and watched as Angelica stopped in the driveway beside her. Angelica made no greeting, and Lisa wondered if the older girl had seen her hidden in the long grasses. She watched as Angelica took a deep breath, closed her eyes and raised her face to the night sky. Her golden hair rippled in the moonlight and her skin was as white as milk. Angelica stood still and allowed the moonlight to wash over her, just as Lisa had been doing only moments before.
“Hi,” Lisa finally said. She sat up in the long grass.
If Angelica was surprised to see her beside the driveway, she didn’t show it. “Hello,” she said, opening her eyes and turning to Lisa. “Sorry to be late.”
“You’re not,” said Lisa, climbing to her feet. “I think I’m early.”
As they walked to Evergreen Manor, the two girls spoke little. Lisa told Angelica she hadn’t been able to reach Mr. Pickering on the telephone and then let the peaceful silence surround them once more. The night was too glorious for mere speech. It inspired awe and hushed whispers, reflection and stillness, not words. Just breathe the silver air, thought Lisa. Breathe beauty. She knew that Angelica was probably waiting for her to talk about what had been bothering her. But I just can’t tell her. Not yet, Lisa thought. The night is too beautiful to ruin with ugly thoughts and words.
The magic stayed with Lisa until they turned into the driveway at Evergreen Manor and she looked at the dark house. It squatted behind the paddocks like a giant black toad. Lisa felt tears spring to her eyes. The house looked so different now that Jimmy lived there, though nothing outwardly had really changed. It wasn’t her home anymore. She was no longer welcome.
But it’s even more than that, she thought. It’s more than just not homey. It’s as if something dark lurks behind the shadows and stares at us now and, if we turn and look suddenly, trying to catch it, it’s gone. It’s as if there is something there, whispering terrible things to us we can almost hear. Mr. Pickering changed the house a bit, but not in a bad way. It was Jimmy. He’s the one who really took my home away from me. Not Dad or Mr. Pickering. Jimmy’s the one who made it seem evil.
Her eyes searched for his car parked in its usual place in front of the Manor, but if he had returned, his car was out of sight in the garage. As her eyes roamed over the dark house, her face became puzzled. Even if Jimmy’s gone and Mr. Pickering is asleep, there still should be a light on somewhere, she thought. The house is too dark. Too quiet.
“Something is wrong,” said Angelica, her voice hushed.
“The lights are all out,” said Lisa. Her throat tightened, and she felt the poisonous vapour of fear float higher and higher inside of her, shutting off her breathing. “The house is too dark.”
“No. Not in the house. In the stable,” said Angelica, her voice now loud in the stillness. “The horses are afraid. I can feel it!”
Lisa didn’t hesitate to ask how Angelica knew. She just ran. She
wasn’t worried about being seen anymore. If there was something wrong with the horses, she didn’t care if Jimmy was there, didn’t care if he was hiding somewhere waiting for her. She had to get to the stable as fast as she could. She had to save them.
She glanced back once to see Angelica running swiftly and silently behind her. The moonlit stable grew larger in front of them as they ran. Then Lisa’s hand was on the handle and the door was open. The stable interior gaped black and cavernous before her. The horses’ fear rolled out and hit her like a wave. She could hear them thumping and pacing in their stalls as she fumbled for the light. She felt Angelica standing beside her.
“Jupiter,” Angelica whispered. “It is Jupiter.” When Lisa found the light switch, she saw Angelica already walking toward Jupiter’s stall at the end of the stable row.
Jupiter neighed loudly when he saw them, calling them to him. “What’s wrong?” cried Lisa as she ran toward him, passing Angelica. She tried to sound normal, but even she could hear the panic in her voice.
I’ve got to be calm for Jupiter, she told herself. He’ll be even more frightened if I panic. And there’s nothing to be afraid of anyway. There’s no one here. Everything looks fine. She concentrated on stopping her hands from shaking as she leaned over the stall door to stroke his neck. She moved to the side as Angelica came up behind her, so she could help calm Jupiter. It was then she noticed the bundle of clothing lying on the straw inside Jupiter’s stall.
Dark Fire Page 5
