Burning Bright by Sophie McKenzie Page A

I crept in through the front door, Mum, Dad and Dad’s girlfriend Gemma all emerged from the kitchen. They stared at me in silence. Mum cleared her throat. I braced myself,
waiting for her to explode, but she didn’t say anything, just looked at me, her expression a weird mix of relief, frustration and misery. With a twinge of guilt I realised there were dark
shadows under her eyes and her face looked unnaturally pale.
    Dad strode across the hall and pulled me into an enormous hug. ‘Oh, River,’ he said. ‘Thank goodness you’re safe.’
    ‘Of course I’m safe.’ I hugged him back, breathing in his smell of incense and musty clothes. ‘I texted Mum last night. What are you doing here?’
    Dad drew back. Above his beard his skin looked even more weatherbeaten than usual. His expression was as miserable as Mum’s. Gemma appeared at his shoulder. Her long black hair was tied
back in a ponytail and she was wearing a blue top that brought out the colour of her eyes. She smiled at me then touched Dad lightly on the arm. ‘I’ll wait in the living
room.’
    She disappeared through the door, shutting it behind her.
    Dad led me into the kitchen. Mum followed. She still hadn’t said anything.
    ‘Sit down, River,’ Dad said.
    I sat opposite him and Mum at the table. ‘What’s going on?’ I asked.
    ‘What’s going on?’ Mum hissed, breaking her silence at last. ‘You run away with your criminally violent boyfriend, stay out all night and don’t bother to show up at
school, and you’re asking what’s going on?’
    ‘We were worried,’ Dad said. ‘
Really
worried. The police came round earlier looking for Flynn. They thought he might be with you. Can you imagine how terrified we felt
not knowing where you were?’
    My mouth fell open. In as far as I’d thought about it at all, I hadn’t imagined for a moment that my parents would get this anxious about me.
    ‘But I sent a text, Mum,’ I said. ‘I’m really sorry I didn’t go to school today. I won’t do it ever again. It was just all a bit heavy for Flynn yesterday
and—’
    ‘Heavy for
Flynn
?’ Mum jumped up from the table. She turned to Dad, gesticulating wildly. ‘D’you see what I mean? He’s totally brainwashed her.’ She
turned back to me. ‘Your precious Flynn nearly killed his own father yesterday, River. He beat his face to a pulp. He broke his nose.’
    I stared at her. Flynn’s da’s face covered in blood flashed back into my mind. I felt sick.
    ‘You don’t know what Flynn’s dad did to him.’ I gripped the table between us. ‘What he did to their whole family.’
    Dad put his hand on mine. ‘We do know, River. We spoke to Flynn’s mum yesterday. She told us something of what happened in the past . . .’
    ‘If I’d known, I would
never
have let you get mixed up with him . . .’ Mum shouted.
    Dad held up his hand to stop her. ‘The point is that even his own mother admits he’s out of control,’ he said. ‘That there was no—’
    ‘His dad was frightening Caitlin,’ I said, my heart in my throat. I couldn’t believe Dad was backing Mum against me.
    ‘For God’s sake, River!’ Mum yelled, red-faced.
    ‘Listen.’ Dad’s voice was low and serious. ‘The police have a church full of witnesses who all say that what Flynn did was unprovoked. That
he
was the aggressive
one.’
    My hands shook as I thought about the serious-faced young officer who’d arrested Flynn earlier.
    ‘As far as we could work out from what the police said, there are no plans to charge him yet and the lawyer at Gemma’s therapy centre thinks there’s a good chance that
won’t happen, but it’s still very serious.’
    ‘You mean prison?’ I gasped.
    ‘No, that’s not what I’m saying. The background with his dad, the grades he’s getting at school and his potential are all in his favour. But the police will want to make
him realise there are consequences.’
    ‘He
should
be sent to prison,’ Mum snapped. ‘He’s