mean.”
He nodded. “Yeah, I guess so. But then your aunt being convinced that Melanie Parr spoke to her yesterday and then the vicar saying her name before he died and the way Paul reacts every time her name is mentioned. …” His voice trailed off. “I don’t know what I’m trying to say.”
Alex stared at him, her voice soft as she thought aloud. “I do. It’s like they’re all scared of her. Scared of her memory, at any rate. But why would they all be scared of a child that went missing all that time ago? It doesn’t make sense.”
Simon smiled slightly. “No, it doesn’t, but nothing’s making sense.” He paused.
“And I can’t talk about things being strange.”
“What do you mean?”
He looked awkward, as if he’d started saying something and now regretted it.
“You’ll think I’m crazy.”
102
Alex laughed, but there was no humor in it. “Trust me, I won’t think you’re crazy. I saw a little boy at the church gate that disappeared into thin air, remember?” God, if he only knew the rest. He’d think she was barking. “Go on.
What’s bothering you?”
“It’s about the children, actually. Something that I know can’t be right, but I just can’t shift it from my head.” He sighed. “You know those two kids we saw out in the rain this morning and I said that one of them seemed familiar?”
Alex nodded. “Go on.”
“Well, it’s been bugging me all morning, and it was only thinking about Melanie Parr that it suddenly came to me. Where I’d seen his face before.”
“You’re just beating about the bush now. Get on with it!” Alex smiled, trying to put him at ease.
“I did some research for a series of articles on a missing child once. You know, other kids that had gone missing in similar circumstances. The final piece wasn’t very good and never made it into the paper, but I did do some work on it.
Well, the thing I guess I’m trying to say is that I’m sure that boy that we saw on the way to the shop this morning was one of the children I researched. His photo was on all the papers with those glasses on, and that sweater. It was a school sweater he had on over jeans, did you notice?” He didn’t wait for a response. “I wish I’d seen it close enough this morning to see the school logo.
But how odd to wear a school sweater on holiday.”
Alex stared at the vicar’s things on the desk, casually abandoned before death, then thought of the message scrawled on the altar.
“I don’t think you’re crazy. I don’t think you’re crazy 103
at all.” She looked up at Simon. “That’s not to say that I think you’re right about the kid, because that’s just not possible, but I do agree that there’s some weird shit going on. When you heard me say something at the altar and I pretended I hadn’t?” He nodded. “Well, what I said was, I couldn’t move my legs.
Look how they move now. The problem is, I don’t know why I said it. It just seemed right.”
They stared at each other for a second, and then Alex smiled. “Maybe it’s the storm. Maybe it’s made us all a little bit crazy.” For a second she thought she might tell him about the little boy from the church gate, her little boy and how she’d seen him in her room the night before, but then stopped herself. Now that really would be crazy.
“You know the library here has a lot of old newspapers on microfiche. Nationals as well as locals. If that kid’s face is really bugging you, then you can always stop by and have a look. No one will mind. And it may help pass the time if the weather leaves you stuck here with us for a couple of days.”
Simon shrugged, looking slightly embarrassed, and once again Alex was relieved that she hadn’t told him about her strange experiences of the night before. If he thought what he’d seen was odd, he’d think she was a freak for what happened to her.
“It was probably nothing, but we’ll see. Maybe I will.” He grinned. “It’s probably just
He nodded. “Yeah, I guess so. But then your aunt being convinced that Melanie Parr spoke to her yesterday and then the vicar saying her name before he died and the way Paul reacts every time her name is mentioned. …” His voice trailed off. “I don’t know what I’m trying to say.”
Alex stared at him, her voice soft as she thought aloud. “I do. It’s like they’re all scared of her. Scared of her memory, at any rate. But why would they all be scared of a child that went missing all that time ago? It doesn’t make sense.”
Simon smiled slightly. “No, it doesn’t, but nothing’s making sense.” He paused.
“And I can’t talk about things being strange.”
“What do you mean?”
He looked awkward, as if he’d started saying something and now regretted it.
“You’ll think I’m crazy.”
102
Alex laughed, but there was no humor in it. “Trust me, I won’t think you’re crazy. I saw a little boy at the church gate that disappeared into thin air, remember?” God, if he only knew the rest. He’d think she was barking. “Go on.
What’s bothering you?”
“It’s about the children, actually. Something that I know can’t be right, but I just can’t shift it from my head.” He sighed. “You know those two kids we saw out in the rain this morning and I said that one of them seemed familiar?”
Alex nodded. “Go on.”
“Well, it’s been bugging me all morning, and it was only thinking about Melanie Parr that it suddenly came to me. Where I’d seen his face before.”
“You’re just beating about the bush now. Get on with it!” Alex smiled, trying to put him at ease.
“I did some research for a series of articles on a missing child once. You know, other kids that had gone missing in similar circumstances. The final piece wasn’t very good and never made it into the paper, but I did do some work on it.
Well, the thing I guess I’m trying to say is that I’m sure that boy that we saw on the way to the shop this morning was one of the children I researched. His photo was on all the papers with those glasses on, and that sweater. It was a school sweater he had on over jeans, did you notice?” He didn’t wait for a response. “I wish I’d seen it close enough this morning to see the school logo.
But how odd to wear a school sweater on holiday.”
Alex stared at the vicar’s things on the desk, casually abandoned before death, then thought of the message scrawled on the altar.
“I don’t think you’re crazy. I don’t think you’re crazy 103
at all.” She looked up at Simon. “That’s not to say that I think you’re right about the kid, because that’s just not possible, but I do agree that there’s some weird shit going on. When you heard me say something at the altar and I pretended I hadn’t?” He nodded. “Well, what I said was, I couldn’t move my legs.
Look how they move now. The problem is, I don’t know why I said it. It just seemed right.”
They stared at each other for a second, and then Alex smiled. “Maybe it’s the storm. Maybe it’s made us all a little bit crazy.” For a second she thought she might tell him about the little boy from the church gate, her little boy and how she’d seen him in her room the night before, but then stopped herself. Now that really would be crazy.
“You know the library here has a lot of old newspapers on microfiche. Nationals as well as locals. If that kid’s face is really bugging you, then you can always stop by and have a look. No one will mind. And it may help pass the time if the weather leaves you stuck here with us for a couple of days.”
Simon shrugged, looking slightly embarrassed, and once again Alex was relieved that she hadn’t told him about her strange experiences of the night before. If he thought what he’d seen was odd, he’d think she was a freak for what happened to her.
“It was probably nothing, but we’ll see. Maybe I will.” He grinned. “It’s probably just
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