Page 35 of The Beast's Heart

“It’s okay to be frightened,” I say to the children. “Sometimes it’s good. It helps to keep you safe.”

“Sometimes.” The way Adam’s looking at me… are we talking about more than just the storm? No, I’m probably just readinginto it. You do enough literature analysis and you start to see subtext everywhere.

Ray returns and instead of marshmallows they’re bearing the Easter eggs. Whatever fear the children may have been feeling melts away instantly in their excitement.

Ray catches my eye. “I’m going to go ahead and call the hunt off on account of the weather.”

It’s a pity, but even if the weather clears up, no one wants muddy chocolate. I feel an odd stab in my chest though. It’s not like they’ll have the opportunity again next year.

Ray also produces a bottle of wine, “for the grownups”, and starts pouring generous helpings into ceramic mugs.

I catch Adam looking at me. “You were going to do Easter?” he murmurs.

I tense, my mind running through all the arguments he could possibly have against it. That it’s technically a religious holiday, that it wastes their valuable learning time, that it’s a waste of resources, that he doesn’t want them eating sugar. “Just something small,” I say, weakly.

Although the amount of chocolate currently being consumed gives lie to that immediately. Ray may have gone overboard with the shopping.

Adam doesn’t seem angry though. If anything, the tilt of his mouth is regretful. “I… I didn’t think of that. I should have.”

Oh.

Ray hands us our mugs and pulls up a chair beside Meredith, where they recline like royalty. “Now, who has a good ghost story? It’s not a campfire unless there are ghost stories, is it?”

“I saw a ghost,” Ben volunteers. “He was standing at the end of my bed.”

I glance back at Adam. He’s so still it’s as if he’s stopped breathing.Fear or… hope?

Mal speaks around a mouthful of chocolate. “Lily-Iris said she’s seen him too. He’s probably here with us right now.”

I know he’s trying to frighten Ben, but it’s Adam who looks around our little circle of light.

“Okay, okay,” Ray raises their hands, “I’ve changed my mind. No ghost stories.”

There’s a beat of silence that no one knows how to fill. Then Mal pipes up, “I wanna hear wrestling stories.”

“Yeah!” Ben agrees.

Instead of boldly grabbing the spotlight, like the celebrity he is, Adam drops his gaze to his lap and seems to draw into himself.

I’m opening my mouth to dissuade the children, when Ray says, “What kind of a story do you want?” They mimic flicking hair over their shoulder. “Because I have alot.”

“You were a wrestler?” I ask.

Geoff laughs and rolls his eyes. “For about ten minutes.”

Ray kicks him. Clearly not hard enough, because Geoff laughs harder.

“Oh yes,” Ray says. “That’s where we met.” His gesture includes Geoff and Adam. “Geoff did promotions for the promotion. PR, you know? The Beast was my nemesis.”

“For about ten minutes,” Geoff repeats, with a shit-eating grin.

Ray ignores him. “We put together this one match where I got choked with my own silk cape.”

“Then you covered me inglitter,” Adam says, as if this was a crime the likes of which the world has not seen since.

“Fairy dust! You have to admit it looked great all mixed up in your blood.”

I feel my eyes stretch. This doesn’t seem like an appropriate topic for children but Mal laughs in delight.

---