Strings
The night sky was littered with bright points of
light. In the countryside, if you
stopped to look, there was a whole different universe above your head. Most people didn’t stop, or look. Madeleine Happer tapped out a cigarette and,
taking a long drag on it, shook her head, blowing the smoke out between her
teeth. Only now could she feel her
muscles soften and the knot in her brain loosen. She was thirty, exceptionally clever, and in her element out
here, leaning against the bonnet of her car, watching the imperceptible progress
of the constellations, identifying stars with a familiarity that would impress
any amateur astronomer. But Madeleine
was no amateur.
She groaned and put her head back, feeling the
stretch in her throat, the crackling in her neck, squeezing her eyes shut.
“Where are you? What are you! What the hell is
going on?”
She knew that no one was listening. That her questions would go unanswered. For now, at least. The silent night closed
in around her and eventually she shivered, pushing off the car to feel the
earth balance beneath her feet. She
made one last circular sweep of the sky before sighing deeply and climbing back
inside the car. Her body felt heavy and
her mind was exhausted from going round and round, chasing an idea that would
not come to her.
She checked her watch - 1.00am. Hugh would be
waiting up. He would ring soon. She looked at herself in the rear view
mirror. Was she losing it? The engine coughed into life and the lights
of the dashboard flashed on, making Madeleine stare and frown for a moment
longer. In the pit of her stomach was a
feeling she could not explain. It was
as though everything around her had suddenly become more precious.
“God damn it!”
As she drove, the shadows changed from lumpy ground
and strangely lit undergrowth to the grey-black sheen of pleasant country roads
lined with tangled trees and the mysterious spaces between. Still she struggled
to bring her thoughts out into the light.
She took the next turn to the right and, two
minutes from home, the telephone rang. There was no point in answering. Hugh was waiting, a slight, comical figure in the open doorway, his
dressing gown tied loosely, his feet bare on the pale step. Madeleine killed the engine and saw him
wave.
“Hugh, you have to believe me!” she murmured to
herself.
And then he opened the driver’s door. Hugh would never believe her.
*****
“Ratch nor dwl! Ratch!”
“Maddy. Wake up.”
Madeleine opened her eyes and
burst into tears. It wasn’t like
her. It wasn’t like her at all.
Hugh put his arms around her. “It’s all right. Come here.”
Madeleine sobbed uncontrollably,
not because she was upset, but from sheer frustration. She knew that, if she looked into her
husband’s face, all she would see would be fear and concern. Fear and concern for her state of mind, when
there was something so much bigger, so much more important for him to worry
about.
“We’re going to see the doc
tomorrow. I’ve got the morning
off. Best get this sorted out. Come on,
I’ll make the coffee. Come on.”
With a final deeply felt shudder
and a strange, low growl, Madeleine allowed her husband to help her up and put
a dressing gown around her. Hugh was
having a hard time believing her. Hell,
she was having a hard time believing herself!
Outside, the sky was white. Cloud cover was complete. She scanned for breaks, unable to resist, in
spite of the fact she knew that Hugh was watching. She craned her neck and thought about going out into the garden
to see the clues she was missing. It
was foolish not to be looking out. Looking out for signs of… what? What exactly was she expecting to see? Still she searched the sky, but found nothing.
“Christ!” She felt as though she were the only person
in the world who knew
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