‘Your father always made all the big decisions,’ said Silvia, ‘He was the strong one. People laughed at him, said he was under the thumb, but he was always in charge. And when he was gone, I just didn’t have anyone to ...’ She looked down at her hands and let out a sob. ‘I didn’t have anyone to talk to.’
‘Oh, Mum,’ said April, stepping forward and putting her arms around her. ‘Don’t be so bloody silly. You’ve got me, you’ve got Gramps, Luke, about a zillion friends.’
Only that wasn’t true, was it? Thought April, not for her, anyway. She hadn’t been there for her mother, in fact she had been selfish and mean. Okay, so Silvia had deserved some of it, but April knew deep down she’d been a pretty poor daughter.
‘I know,’ said Silvia, ‘But the thing is I couldn’t talk to any of you, not really talk like I used to talk to your dad. I know you think we just argued all the time, but ... but that’s why I couldn’t leave Highgate. I just didn’t want to leave Will. God knows, I’d let him down enough in life, I couldn’t leave him behind here on his own.’
‘Mum, I do love you, you know,’ said April.
‘But you’re not leaving, are you?’
‘No, I can’t. I know you probably don’t understand, but I have too much here to just up and go. People are depending on me. I’m not sure I can make much of a difference, but I have to try.’
‘You’re talking about Gabriel.’
It wasn’t a question, it was a statement of fact.
‘Partly Gabriel, yes. I love him. And before you say it, it’s not just puppy love.’
Silvia held up a hand. ‘I may not be able to boil an egg or remember the date of your parent-teacher evenings, but one thing I do understand is what goes on inside a girl’s heart. I know it’s real to you.’
April was about to protest, but Silvia carried on. ‘That’s not to belittle it. I just mean all love affairs always feel right, they feel perfect – until that horrible moment they don’t and you realise how wrong you’ve been about a man. But that’s the tragedy of love. Every single relationship you have is wrong until you find the one that’s right. It’s that old cliché about how you have to keep kissing the frogs, otherwise you’ll never find your prince.’
‘Gabriel is right for me, Mum,’ said April.
‘I hope so. For all the right reasons, I truly hope so. But ...’
‘But what?
‘You asked “why now?” – why I left it until this boy Calvin was killed to get you out of here?’
The serious look on her mother’s face told April she wasn’t going to like what was coming.
‘Two nights ago, you found a boy strung up on a gate, his blood in a puddle on the floor. And look at you, you’re fine.’
April laughed nervously. ‘I’m not fine ...’
‘Yes, April, you are. And I can’t tell you how much that terrifies me. If any other seventeen year old girl had bumped into a corpse, they’d be blubbering in a corner, having nightmares and screaming fits; they’d need a lifetime of therapy. But with you, it’s like water off a duck’s back, straight back to school, not a care in the world.’
‘When you’ve been attacked as many times as I have ...’
‘Exactly. And that’s why I thought – I knew – we had to get away from here. This village, everything that’s happened here, it’s changed you.’
April knew she was right, but what could she do? Did she want to be a Fury? No. Did she want to know about the vampires? No, of course not. Who would want to know they were surrounded by undead killers? But you couldn’t go back, she couldn’t become innocent April Dunne again. It had changed her, of course it had changed her, but she was stuck with it, for better or worse.
‘So what are you going to do now?’ April held her breath at the question. She wasn’t sure she could stand it if her mother said she was going back to Scotland.
‘Don’t worry, I’m not going anywhere. If you’re staying, so am I. It’s not the sensible choice, but when did I ever choose the sensible route? I suppose I had to face the fact that you were going to grow up and start making your own decisions sooner or later – after all you do have your father’s stubborn streak.’
‘I do?’ said April, unable to hide her pleasure.
‘The two of you were like a couple of mules. Remember that time we went up to Loch Ness? You insisted on going out on the water in that horrid old rickety rowing boat looking for the monster. I tried reasoning with you, bribing you with candy floss and Barbies and God knows what else, but you stamped your little foot. You just had to see Nessy.’
‘I don’t remember that.’
Silvia put a hand up to stroke April’s face. ‘So like your father. I guess I’ll just have to find someone else to fuss around. Your grandfather probably. He’s not as well as he used to be; he could do with a bit of TLC.’
‘Gramps? What’s wrong?’ said April, but she knew. He hadn’t been looking well – and the stress of the last few days certainly wouldn’t have helped.
Silvia laughed. ‘Don’t worry, your grampa can still wrestle a grizzly bear. We just need to get him to slow down a bit. He is very old, after all.’
April about to say something else when her mobile rang. She looked down at the screen. Davina.
Silvia waved both hands at her. ‘You take it. I’ve got to put this shopping away.’
April stepped into the hallway as her mother began rummaging in her bags, pulling out variously-shaped wine bottles.
‘Hey ’Vina, what’s up?’ she said.
The moment Davina began speaking, April knew something was wrong. Badly wrong.
‘April ...’ she said, her voice almost a whisper. ‘It’s my dad.’
‘Your dad? What’s the matter?’
‘He, he ...’ she choked off into a sob. ‘He and mummy were arguing and then he jumped in the car and drove off. Oh God!’
‘What?’ said April, but she had guessed.
‘He’s dead, April. Daddy’s dead.’
Chapter Twenty-Two
Silvia drove April straight down to the hospital where a police woman in reception filled them in. Nicholas had not let up on his drinking and his bickering with Barbara had escalated into a screaming row. At the height of it, he had taken a phone call which had sent him into a rage. He had thrown the handset through a mirror, jumped into his car and skidded out of the drive, down Highgate Hill. As he approached the roundabout at Archway, he had lost control and flipped the car over. The policewoman said it was a miracle no one else had been hurt.
After a brief battle of wills with the staff nurse, Silvia and April had been allowed through to see Barbara, who was lying in a curtained cubicle, comatose through a mixture of alcohol, shock and sedation. Davina was sitting by her mother’s bedside, staring with mild interest at the sink.
‘Davina?’ said April gently, crouching down next to her. ‘They’re keeping your mum in overnight for observation, okay? She’s in the best place here. Why don’t you come home with us?’
‘Home?’ said Davina absently.
‘Our house on Pond Square,’ said April, glancing up at Silvia who nodded.
Silvia whispered, ‘I’ll square it with the police. I’ll go to the commissioner if I have to.’
April put her hand over Davina’s.
‘Come on, there’s no point you staying here,’ said April. ‘We’ll see if we can get some sleep.’
Davina just nodded. ‘Okay,’ she said.
It felt so strange to be comforting the queen of the Faces, a cold-hearted monster, someone who April felt sure had killed time and time again, possibly even slaughtered people she knew. But if this was vampire manipulation, then Davina Osbourne was an outstanding actress, worthy of Hollywood. Davina went to bed in April’s room. The girl was pliant and meek, like a woman sleepwalking. It was surprisingly poignant to see this self-confident, arrogant girl, reduced to a shell by grief, made all the more disturbing by the fact that she shouldn’t be this way. Vampires should be
as one with death, shouldn’t they? But what did April really know about vampires? Only what Miss Holden had told her, what she had read in Mr Gill’s dusty books and what she had seen in Gabriel. It wasn’t exactly a thorough education, was it? April left Davina curled up, her head turned to the wall, her eyes wide open.
‘Try to sleep, okay?’ she said as she gently closed the door, wincing at the creak.
April had intended to sleep on the sofa, but Silvia insisted she share her bed. ‘It’s quite big enough for both of us,’ she had said and April hadn’t argued too hard. The truth was, she welcomed her mother’s closeness and when Silvia casually threw an arm over her, April didn’t resist. She was asleep almost immediately.
April couldn’t tell what time it was. For a moment, she didn’t even know where she was. She turned her head on the pillow and was suddenly aware that someone was standing over her. April let out a squeak of surprise.
‘Shh, it’s me.’
It was Davina, wearing the old Minnie Mouse T-shirt April had given her to sleep in.
‘What is it?’ whispered April, sitting up and glancing across to Silvia who was still sound asleep.
Davina put a finger to her lips and beckoned her. Rubbing her eyes, April swung her feet out, careful not to wake her mother. She followed Davina down the stairs and into the kitchen.
‘Couldn’t sleep, do you think your mum will mind?’ she said, gesturing towards the half-empty bottle sitting on the counter top. She had evidently been up for a while. ‘Do you want one?’
April shook her head. ‘I think I’ll have some toast,’ she said, reaching for the bread.
She popped it into the toaster then looked around for a clean plate and knife.
‘So how did you manage it?’ said Davina quietly.
‘Manage what?’
‘When your dad died. How did you carry on? I mean, what’s the point?’
Davina was slurring her words a little. Perhaps that wasn’t her first bottle. April could hardly blame her – her brother and her father dying within weeks of each other – it was enough to send anyone to drink.
‘There’s always a point, Davina,’ said April. ‘There’s always someone to go on for.’
‘Who? My mother?’ Davina laughed, ‘I doubt she could motivate anyone to soldier on.’
‘She needs you, Davina. She might not say as much, but you’re going to need to lean on each other.’
‘What? Like you and Silvia have been leaning on each other, just one little happy nuclear unit?’
Ah, this is more like the Davina Osbourne I know, thought April as she began to spread Marmite on her toast.
‘That’s different, Davina. You know it is.’
Davina waved a hand in the air. ‘Sorry, sorry. Shouldn’t have said that. You’re being good to us – more than can be said of any of the others.’
‘I suppose it was hard for people when Ben died,’ said April. ‘I mean, they probably didn’t know what to say, none of the usual clichés applied, did they?’
‘Ah, cut the crap,’ snapped Davina. ‘My so-called friends? They loved the fact that little baby Benjamin went crazy. It gave them a perfect opportunity to push me out. That and the fact that my cheerleader at Ravenwood – Robert bloody Sheldon – was burnt to a crisp next to him. Chessy and Ling must have been doing cartwheels.’
April didn’t reply. She cut her toast in half and sat down opposite Davina.
‘Okay, so you’re finding out who your real friends are,’ she said. ‘That’s good isn’t it?’
Davina snorted. ‘I suppose I can’t complain. It’d be like a tiger moaning when one of the other tigers in the enclosure bit them. When you’re dealing with the undead, you can’t complain that they’re suddenly a tiny bit mean.’
April was just taking a bite of her toast and she stopped, her eyes wide. ‘Un-undead?’
‘Yes, April,’ smiled Davina. ‘Vampires. We are vampires; I am a vampire. There’s no point in pretending any more is there?’
‘But ... but I don’t understand.’
Casually Davina picked up April’s knife and, placing it against her open palm, sliced the skin open. April jumped backwards, knocking her stool over as dark blood welled along the deep cut and dripped onto the table.
‘Jesus, Davina, what are you doing?’
‘Making a point. Sorry, possibly overly dramatic. Can you throw me that kitchen roll?’
Mutely, April handed it to her and watched as Davina wrapped her hand in the paper and wiped up the pool of blood.
‘You knew, April,’ said Davina in a matter-of-fact way. ‘You’ve known for months. How could you be dating Gabriel and not know? And I know you and Caro have been trying to work out what’s going on at Ravenwood too.’
April’s heart was beating wildly. Not only from Davina’s display, but also from the fear – how much did she know? Does she know I’m a Fury? What would her next trick be? To reach out and cut April’s throat?
‘Relax, babe,’ smiled Davina. ‘I’m on your side. At least, I think I am.’
‘What side is that?’
‘I’m just guessing here, but I’m assuming you’ve been trying to find out who killed your dad, right?’
April nodded. ‘Do you know?’
Davina took a sip of her wine. ‘Afraid not. The truth is it’s all gone ape here over the last few months. Nothing has been working according to the rules and there are a million different factions fighting for control. Besides, I’m only a foot-soldier, no one tells me anything. Not any more anyway.’
April’s struggled to gather her thoughts, but her mind was reeling – right here in front of her was a vampire, casually confessing to her true nature. Never in her wildest dreams had April imagined anything like this would happen. But now it had, she found herself at a loss what to say, what to ask.
‘So, you’re like, really ... dead?’
‘Not really, no,’ said Davina. ‘It’s pretty simple, actually. An infection is killing us, but super-charging our metabolism at the same time. It’s like we’re being constantly remade. That’s why we don’t seem to age, and how we can do this.’
She watched, transfixed, as Davina unwrapped the wet kitchen towel from her hand and held it, palm out, towards April. The wound was already closed – just an angry raised scar where the skin was knitting back together.
‘Weird, huh?’ smiled Davina. ‘Bet you didn’t think you’d be seeing a conjuring trick like that tonight.’
‘No, not really.’
‘So when did you twig?’ asked Davina. ‘About the vamps, I mean.’
April frowned – when was it? She had seen the signs everywhere for weeks, months, but each time she had shaken her head and thought “No, that’s stupid, it can’t be.” Even after her father’s blood had painted the hall, she still hadn’t seen it.
‘The night of my dad’s funeral,’ she said. ‘I stabbed Gabriel.’
Davina’s eyes grew wide, then she threw her head back and laughed. ‘You stabbed him? Where?’
‘By Cleopatra’s Needle.’
‘No, I mean where on his body?’
Anyone else would have asked, ‘Why did you stab him?’ April pointed to her abdomen.
‘Oof, I bet that hurt,’ smiled Davina. But the smile quickly faded from her face and April knew she was thinking about her adoptive father. Nicholas Osbourne was no vampire; he could not spontaneously heal; he had no miraculous immortality. Humans were fragile.
‘You’re so weak,’ said Davina bitterly. ‘You see why we loathe you? It’s like walking through a flock of sheep; stupid frail animals, half out of your wits with fear most of the time, yet you have no idea just how much real danger you are in, that the wolves are all around you.’
‘We’re not all weak,’ said April, annoyed by Davina’s arrogance. Don’t be so bloody stupid, April, she scolded herself. What are you going to do, tell her you’re a Fury next?
‘No, I guess not,’ said Davina, raising her glass in a mock sal
ute. ‘Here’s to April Dunne, the heroic little girl who cheats death.’
April didn’t rise to the bait this time. Instead, she stood up and took a glass from the cupboard above her. ‘Actually, I think I will have that drink,’ she said.
‘That’s the spirit,’ smiled Davina, filling the glass and watching as April took a swallow. ‘Okay, what I want to know – what we all want to know, April Dunne – why is death so interested in you? Hmm? Why does he keep grasping at your throat?’
‘Maybe I just have very bad luck.’
‘No, I don’t think so,’ said Davina. ‘Quite the opposite in fact. When you find yourself in a burning building with two – no, three – vampires, and come out the other side smiling, that’s something special.’
April took another drink, partly because her nerves were jangling, partly to hide her face. Davina Osbourne had always seemed to know everything – who had been seen with whom, who had said what to whom, all the hottest gossip, almost before it happened – so April had no idea how much she knew about that night of the fire. But she couldn’t know about Ben, could she? She couldn’t know that April had killed him, boiled him alive in his own blood – she couldn’t ,could she?
‘Look, Davina,’ she said quietly. ‘I’m so sorry about Ben.’
Davina pulled a face. ‘Don’t be. He just got greedy, that’s all. Ben wanted power and he wasn’t prepared to wait. That’s why he hero-worshipped Sheldon. He was convinced Hawk was going to be the new vamp leader. I think Sheldon agreed with him, actually.’
April knew she couldn’t reveal to Davina the full extent of her knowledge – not yet, anyway. She had to act as if all this was news to her.
‘So you’re saying Sheldon wasn’t the leader? There’s someone else?’
Davina gave a thin smile, as if she was deciding whether to tell her something. ‘Yes, there’s someone higher up the tree,’ she said. ‘But Sheldon was arrogant, thought it was time he got rid of the old guard, thought he was better suited to the job and he used Ben as his loyal little soldier.’ Her words were bitter and angry, but also sad. She looked down at the table, running a fingernail through a droplet of blood she had missed.