Don't Look Back Read online

  Ella jabbed him in the ribs. “This isn’t funny.”

  He pulled her into an embrace. “Actually it’s quite revealing. I didn’t know you had such a sordid imagination. Tell the truth, you secretly like the idea of being watched.”

  She pushed him away, smiling herself now. “You wish.”

  “Look, if it’ll make you feel any better, I’ll go into the village tomorrow and talk to Rozen about the passageways.”

  Ella frowned as if she wasn’t comfortable with the thought of Adam talking to Rozen alone.

  “Don’t worry, if she tries anything on I think I’ll be able to fend her off,” teased Adam.

  He dodged away laughing again as Ella aimed another jab at him.

  Chapter 14

  Adam searched through the oil-smelling gloom of the outhouses until he found what he was looking for – a couple of lengths of wood and a saw. In a little crook at the back of an outhouse, he came across a perfect circular nest of twigs. Fragments of fragile turquoise eggshells were scattered over the floor below. He carefully pocketed them.

  He returned to The Lewarne Room, measured the wood to the width of the passageway and cut it to length. He wedged the lengths between the closed panel and the opposite wall. Then he left the passageway via the library. He tried to open The Lewarne Room panel. It wouldn’t budge. Next he pushed wardrobes in front of the mirrors in Henry’s and his and Ella’s bedrooms.

  He went in search of Ella and found her sipping wine on the patio while perusing Heloise’s book. “These drawings are beautiful,” she said. “Heloise clearly loved The Lizard.”

  Adam poured himself a glass of wine. “You say that as though she’s dead. For all we know she’s alive and well and has a family of her own.”

  “I hope you’re right.” Ella ran a finger down the inside of the book’s spine. “I think a page has been torn out here.”

  She handed the book to Adam. There was a rough edge along the spine. The following page was blank. Adam held it up to the fading sunlight. A faint impression of letters was visible on the page. “Have you got a pencil?”

  Ella went into the house and returned with a pencil. Adam lightly shaded it over the blank page, revealing a neat, unbroken trail of words. ‘Dear Aunt Rozen,’ he read out. ‘Please will you help me? I don’t know what to do. Two Frenchmen came to the house today to see Daddy. I could tell that he was scared of them. He took them into The Lewarne Room. I know that I should not have done so but I went into the secret passageways and spied on them. They spoke to Daddy in French. I do not remember much French but they said argent lots of times. Argent means money in English. Daddy kept nodding and saying je suis desole which means I am sorry. After the men left he called Mummy and me into the room and told us that he has decided to sell the house. I started crying. I told him that I don’t want to leave Fenton House. I want to stay here with Grandma. He said Grandma is just bones in a grave. But you and I know that is not true. Why doesn’t he believe us? Please don’t let him sell the house and take me away from my Grandma and my flowers and robins. I love you and know you will help me.’

  There was a moment of silence as Adam finished reading. “Wow,” said Ella, puffing her cheeks. “I’m not sure whether that puts my mind at rest or freaks me out even more.”

  “At least we know for certain that there was nothing strange about the disappearance of George and his family.”

  “Do we? George needed to sell this house to pay his debts, but that obviously didn’t happen or we wouldn’t be sitting here now.”

  “This house had been in his family a long time. Perhaps he couldn’t bring himself to sell it.”

  “Hmm.” Ella sipped her wine, her forehead creased with uncertainty. “George doesn’t strike me as the sentimental type.”

  “Me neither, but who knows, perhaps he held onto the house for Heloise.”

  “Then where is she?” wondered Ella. “Why hasn’t she come back here to claim this place for her own?”

  Adam shrugged. “Maybe she will one day.”

  “Which would leave us up the proverbial creek without a paddle.”

  Adam smiled. “Quite possibly, but you know what? Right now I couldn’t care less about the future. I’m just happy to be here with you and Henry. If Heloise was to reappear a week or ten years from now, then we’ll deal with it.” He reached for Ella’s hand. “As long as we’re together we can deal with anything.”

  Smiling back, Ella leant in to kiss Adam. They remained like that for a long moment, their cheeks flushed by the setting sun. When they drew apart, Ella glanced at the book. “Are you going to show that to Rozen?”

  “Do you think I should?”

  “She might want it as a keepsake.”

  Adam shook his head. “She won’t take anything else from the house, remember?”

  “Yes, but this is different.”

  Adam made a doubtful noise.

  “What about the police?” said Ella. “They might be interested to see it.”

  Adam frowned. “I don’t see how it could be of any help to them. Besides, I wouldn’t do anything like that without speaking to Mr Mabyn first.”

  Henry came sprinting across the lawn to the patio. “I’m starving,” he said. “What’s for tea?”

  Adam and Ella both smiled. Henry had shown no enthusiasm for food since Jacob’s death. It was good to see that his appetite had returned.

  They ate their evening meal on the patio, watching swifts dart and swoop overhead. All Henry talked about was the passageways. He was full of excited speculation about what they’d been used for. In his mind, secret passageways were associated with smugglers, pirates and hidden treasure.

  “This house was built just before the First World War,” Adam pointed out. “Hundreds of years after there were any pirates in these parts.”

  “I think we should save the rest of this conversation for the morning,” put in Ella.

  “Aww,” said Henry.

  “Mum knows best,” said Adam. Getting Henry over-excited before bedtime was a sure way to bring on his night terrors.

  They stayed on the patio until Henry was half-asleep in his chair. Adam carried him upstairs. “You’re getting too big for this,” he puffed as he lowered Henry into bed. Henry sleepily changed into his pyjamas and Adam tucked the duvet around him.

  Adam kissed his cheek. “Sleep tight. I love you.”

  “I love you too, Dad. And I love this house. I never want to leave here.”

  “Me neither.” Adam remembered about the eggshells. He gave them to Henry and told him about the nest. “I wonder if it belongs to your friend.”

  “I’ll go see if he’s there in the morning.”

  “Don’t touch the nest,” cautioned Adam. “Robins will abandon a nest if they think it’s been discovered. I learnt that from my dad.”

  Henry put the speckled shell fragments on his bedside table and curled up with the stuffed bunny. Adam headed downstairs. Ella was washing up in the kitchen. “He’s gone straight off to sleep,” he told her.

  “He’s not bothered by the passageways then?”

  “Are you kidding? He thinks they’re the best thing ever.”

  “Where are you going?” asked Ella as Adam opened the backdoor.

  “For a walk.”

  Ella looked at him uneasily. “Don’t go far.”

  Adam smiled. “Stop worrying. There’s nothing to be afraid of.”

  Returning his smile, Ella nodded as if to say, I know.

  Adam strolled around the garden like a king surveying his little kingdom. He stood for a while watching moonlight glitter on the sea, then he headed round to the front of the house. Bats flitted between the ghostly elms. His footsteps slowed as he caught a sound – a throaty moan. Stepping from the gravel driveway to the grass, he slunk to the gates and peeked around a gatepost. A black van was parked in the lane. The moan came again, drawing his eyes to two shadowy figures on the ground by the van. By the pale light of the moon, he made out a wo
man’s even paler face. It was the redheaded goth. She was straddling the long-haired man, rocking back and forth, her skirt hitched high.

  “Faith,” the man breathed huskily, running his hands up over her hips. “Faith.”

  Was that the redhead’s name? Adam wondered whether he should tell the couple to get off his property. Or should he just sneak away and leave them to it? He did neither. As the redhead’s movements grew more urgent, a throb of arousal gathered in his groin. Her breathing took on a staccato rhythm. She tossed her head back as if in worship of the moon. Finally she slumped against her lover. She lay on him for a few breaths, then stood up and smoothed her skirt down. She flicked a glance at the gates. Adam quickly drew back behind the gatepost, his heart racing. There was the sound of the van’s doors opening and closing. The engine started up. Without switching on its headlights, the van reversed along the lane.

  Adam returned to the house, his footsteps urgent. Ella was still drinking wine on the patio. In the soft light trickling through the French doors, she looked as if she’d barely aged a day since they first met.

  “What’s that look on your face for?” she asked.

  In reply, Adam bent to mash his lips against hers. He dropped to his knees, pulling her legs apart and kissing her inner thighs. His fingers sought out the buttons of her shorts. His head was reeling. He felt drunk with arousal. Shooting a glance at Henry’s bedroom window, Ella said, “What if he sees us?”

  “He’s fast asleep.”

  Adam started to pull Ella’s shorts down, but she pushed his hands away. “Let’s go inside.”

  She rose and headed for the French doors. He caught up with her in front of the fireplace, snaking his arms around her midriff. “You don’t get away that easily.”

  She glanced up at an oil painting of a centaur whose eyes camouflaged a peephole. She pressed back against Adam, shuddering as he slid a hand inside her shorts. Her gaze strayed to the painting again. Heaving a sigh, she drew away from Adam.

  “What’s the matter?” he asked.

  “I’m sorry, I’m just not feeling it.”

  “It’s the peephole, isn’t it? I saw you looking at it.”

  Ella nodded. “It makes me feel like I’m being watched.”

  “The only people in this house are you, me and Henry.” Adam smiled mischievously. “Oh and Winifred, but I don’t think ghosts need peepholes to see through walls.”

  “How many fucking times do I have to tell you not to joke about that?” snapped Ella, batting Adam’s hands away as he reached for her again.

  “Oh come on, Ella, don’t be so uptight.”

  “I’m going to bed,” came her terse reply. Without looking to see if Adam was following, she turned and left the room.

  He bit his lips in frustration. He knew the desire tingling through his veins wouldn’t allow him to sleep. He needed an outlet for it.

  He took his glass and a bottle of wine to the study, picked up his pen and poured everything out onto the pages. When he was done, his hand was warm with sweat but he felt cold inside. His gaze came to rest on the Diecast car. Suddenly Rozen’s request to say hello to her mother didn’t seem quite so absurd.

  “Hello Jacob,” he said, gently touching the car. His hand rested there for a moment, then he rose and went upstairs.

  He looked in on Henry and watched his peaceful, sleeping face for a minute before heading to bed. Ella had fallen asleep with the light on. He felt a twinge of guilt for teasing her about Winifred. She stirred as he got into bed. “I’m sorry,” he murmured, kissing her hair.

  Snuggling up to him, she said, “Forget it. Turn off the light.”

  Chapter 15

  Day Three

  Something was tapping Adam’s shoulder. His eyelids parted reluctantly. He found himself squinting up at Henry. The cold grey light filtering through the curtains seemed unreasonably bright, causing his brain to throb against his skull. He glanced at Ella’s side of the bed. It was empty. “What time is it?”

  Henry shrugged. “Can we explore the passageways now, Dad? Please can we?”

  Adam winced at Henry’s wheedling tone. “I want to hear what Rozen has to say about them first.”

  “But you said you’d show me them this morning.”

  “No I didn’t.”

  “Yes you–”

  “Enough with the backchat or you can forget about exploring the passageways,” Adam cut in more sharply than he’d meant to.

  Screwing his face up sullenly, Henry trudged from the room. A pang of remorse passed through Adam. His hangover wasn’t Henry’s fault. He rose and opened the curtains. The sky was overcast and misted by drizzle. He went into the bathroom, swallowed two paracetamol and took a bath, then dressed and descended to the kitchen. A soothing heat flowed from the Rayburn. He boiled the kettle and made a strong coffee. Ella appeared from the garden, her hands dirty with soil. “I was wondering when you’d surface,” she said. “How are you feeling?”

  “Like I drank too much wine.”

  “What’s wrong with Henry? I saw him sulking in the garden just now.”

  “I was a bit sharp with him. He was pestering me about the passageways. I’ll apologise to him when I get back from Rozen’s.”

  “I’ll be interested to hear what she has to say. Not just about the passageways, but about that too.” Ella pointed at Heloise’s book. “And I’m telling you this, Adam, if I don’t like her answers, we’re packing up and leaving. Agreed?”

  Even after only a few days, it tightened Adam up inside to think of life without the silence and space of the house or the sight and smell of the sea. “I honestly don’t think there’s anything sinister to it.”

  “Agreed?” persisted Ella. “Or would you rather I start packing right now?”

  Adam sighed. “Agreed.”

  He put Heloise’s book in a bag, gave Ella a peck on the cheek and headed out the backdoor. As he made his way along the coastal path, a salty breeze cleared away the clouds and his headache. By the time he reached Boscarne Cottage, he was smiling at the thought of the previous night. His sex drive had been in hibernation for the best part of a year. Was there any surprise that it had woken up ravenously hungry?

  Rozen answered the door in her usual turquoise dress. Adam wondered if she had a wardrobe full of identical dresses. Smiling, she wordlessly motioned him inside. The living room was sleepily warm. A log crackled on a bed of coals. Edgar lay so still on the hearth rug that he might have been stuffed with cotton-wool. Rozen insisted on pouring Adam a cup of tea before settling down in her armchair. “I’d like to think you dropped by for the pleasure of my company,” she said. “But I can see you’ve got something on your mind.”

  “Why didn’t you tell us about the secret passageways?” Adam asked, watching closely for Rozen’s reaction.

  She showed no surprise. “So you’ve found them. May I ask how?” Her smile broadened as Adam told her. “It sounds like someone wanted you to find them.”

  “Henry’s clumsy. So is Jacob. They’re always–” Adam’s voice died.

  His eyes grew distant. They returned to the room as Rozen asked, “Are you alright?”

  Adam heaved a sigh. “Even after all these months, I still sometimes use Jacob’s name as if he was still alive.”

  Rozen offered a nod of sympathetic understanding. “Mother’s been dead for almost thirty years and I do the same.”

  “Yes, but for you it’s different.”

  “Is it? Just because I could speak to Mother didn’t take away the pain of knowing she’s dead.”

  “So what does take away that pain?”

  “Let’s not dwell on such sad questions. You asked another question which I haven’t yet answered.” Rozen’s eyes twinkled with delight. “Well my answer is – where would have been the fun in telling you about the passageways?”

  Adam managed a smile although his headache was threatening a comeback. Such an answer was unlikely to satisfy Ella. “Ella’s having second thoughts abou
t the house. I was hoping you’d tell me something that would put her mind at ease.”

  “I could tell you that Mother asked me not to reveal the existence of the passageways, but I’m not sure that would help.”

  “No, I don’t think it would. How did you discover the passageways?”

  “Quite by accident. Much like Henry. I was seven-years-old. I was playing in the library one day, climbing on the shelves, pretending they were cliffs. I used to love nothing better than making believe I was an explorer searching for hidden treasure.”

  “Henry’s the same way.”

  “All little children are, if given the space to let their imagination run free. Anyway, all of a sudden a bookshelf pivoted on its axis to reveal the passageways. I’d accidentally touched the release mechanism. I went a few steps into the passageway. I was too scared to go any further. Suddenly there was a click and I found myself in total darkness. The shelf had shut behind me. I was terrified, frozen to the spot. I started screaming. I don’t know how long I was trapped in there for. It seemed like hours. Then the shelf opened and I was flinging myself into Mother’s arms. When I calmed down, she made me promise not to go back into the passageways. She too had found them as a child, but hadn’t explored them. She said she was claustrophobic. It wasn’t until after she died that I found out the truth. There’s something in the passageways.”

  “What? Ghosts?”

  “No. The passageways have a power all of their own. Mother sensed it herself as a child. Some children are susceptible, or perhaps it would be more accurate to say, open to its influence. Others aren’t. I was one of those others. I kept my promise until lure of the unknown became too great. Then I returned to the passageways armed with a torch and a ball of string. This time, I wedged the shelf open and tied the string to it. I fed the string out as I explored the passageways. I soon realised there was no need for it. The passageways run in a circle that takes in every floor of the house and brings you back to where you started.”

  “I know. I went all the way round.”

  “And how did you feel?”