The Shadow House(67)

Michael’s face grew dark. ‘Frank—’

‘Ephesians, chapter four, verse twenty-six. In your anger, do not sin.’

‘I’m warning you—’

‘And do not give the devil his foothold.’

‘That’s enough!’ In a movement that seemed both uncontrolled and wholly deliberate, Michael sprang forward and hurled his whisky tumbler to the floor.

Renee and her parents followed the trajectory of the glass, expecting an explosion of glittering shards – but it merely bounced off the shag pile rug with a dull thunk. They all stared, first at the unbroken glass and then at Michael.

‘This is my house,’ Michael said, raising a single finger. ‘And I won’t have you speaking that way here. You can’t terrorise me.’

‘Oh, Michael, don’t be so dramatic,’ said April. ‘No one’s terrorising anyone.’

‘The problem is not …’ Michael faltered, then started again. ‘The reason …’

And then, to Renee’s shock, Michael began to weep. He hung his head and made small animal-like noises. He put a hand on the wall and folded over as if he was about to vomit. Renee shut her eyes, unable to watch.

Nobody moved.

Moving slowly, as if he’d been punched, Michael straightened up and lumbered from the room. Without opening her eyes, Renee listened to his footsteps as they shuffled down the hallway. She heard the clink of the car keys, the squeak of the front door. A few seconds later, the car started in the driveway. Four tyres crunched over gravel. And then he was gone.

Renee collapsed. With no other option left, she surrendered to her parents’ hands on her back, around her shoulders, stroking her hair.

‘I tried,’ she managed between sobs. ‘I tried so hard.’

‘Shhhh,’ said April. ‘We all tried. We did everything we could to save him. But sometimes, evil just wins.’

Just as she had done so many times as a child, Renee cried into her mother’s lap. She curled up, broke down and let her father pray to his heart’s content, because the world was imploding and it all just hurt so much – and because for the past three days, everything had stopped. No more strange discoveries on the porch, no more footsteps. The prank calls, the trolling, even the rustling in the trees, suddenly it was all over, and Renee couldn’t help but think that her parents might be right. That whoever, or whatever, had been creeping around in the woods had finally got what they’d been after.





ALEX





30


When I arrived back at Pine Ridge, there was a buzz in the air. The gateposts had been decorated with yellow balloons and twin floral wreaths, and a handmade sign read Happy Solstice! Rows of white festival flags flapped on both sides of the main road, bunting had been strung between the trees, and a faint strum of guitar music lolled in the air.

I drove back to my unit slowly, the simmering disquiet in my gut contrasting with the happy hum of party preparation. After speaking to both Michael Kellerman and Dom Hassop, I still had no real answers – just more questions. Dom’s words rolled around in my head like marbles. Sometimes I think that maybe there was something going on in that house. I kept thinking of Michael’s thunderous face, the dull thumps and shuffling noises I’d heard, and the twitching curtains I’d seen as I drove away. If I’d been able to hear Mrs Kellerman moving around inside, then surely she would’ve been able to hear me talking about her son. So why hadn’t she come to the door? Gabe Kellerman was scared shitless. But of what exactly?

As I passed the community hall, a figure dashed into the road and I had to brake sharply to avoid a collision.

‘Alex, hi,’ cried Mariko, hurrying in front of my car with a bundle of colourful silky material in her arms. ‘Sorry, can’t stop!’

Paul and Simon followed, carrying a large trestle table between them. ‘See you in there!’ Simon said. ‘Don’t be late!’

At least three more people leaped into my path before I made it back to my parking spot, all carrying drink dispensers, paper plates, folding chairs and an array of musical instruments. What was the big rush? I wondered. But when I checked the time, it was almost 6pm. Shit. I’d told Jenny I’d be home by five.

As I got out of the car and began dragging my shopping bags from the back seat, I saw Kit standing a little way up the road, talking to a neighbour. Our eyes met before I could stop them, and my heart flipped like a Fortune Teller Fish. Ducking my head, I tried to pretend I hadn’t seen him – but when I next looked up, there he was, standing right next to me with an uncertain smile on his face. ‘Alex,’ he said. ‘Hi.’

I abandoned the bags and immediately forgot what to do with my hands. ‘Hello.’

Kit appeared to have the same problem. He jammed his fingers into his pockets like a kid in the schoolyard. I felt split in two: one half of me felt nothing but mistrust, and the other half wanted to touch him so bad my hands started shaking.

‘Can I help you with your …’ Kit peered into my bags. ‘Oh, wow. That’s enough Christmas to last you the whole year.’

I eyed the bags despairingly. ‘I know, I went a bit overboard.’

‘Here, let me.’ Kit grabbed the bags while I pulled the enormous fake tree off the back seat. Wrapping my arms around the box, I stood up and held it in front of me like a shield.