Page 11 of The White Octopus Hotel
“Auntie Pam,” she said, tugging at her aunt’s sleeve. “Where’s Mum? When’s my party?”
Her aunt crouched down by her side. “We can’t have a party today, Eve. There’s been an accident. Bella got hurt. Do you understand?”
Eve didn’t. Not really. Bella was always hurting herself because she was always falling into things, and bumping her head, and tripping over. Normally their mum just popped a rainbow plaster on the scrape, gave Bella a kiss and a cuddle, and then everything was fine. She felt a flash of anger. Her little sister was ruining things again. She was always ruining things.
“But whereisBella?” she asked.
Auntie Pam swallowed. There was something wrong with her voice because it came out all dry and husky. “She’s…they’ve taken her away in an ambulance.”
“But what about myparty?” Eve’s voice rose to a wail again.
She could feel hot tears filling her eyes. It wasn’t fair. This was theone daythat was about her, and Bella had spoiled it. In that moment, she didn’t merely dislike her little sister, she hated her.
“Eve, stop it! This is, listen, this is serious. Bella is…She got out into the road.”
Don’t forget to close the gate….
Eve saw the blue gate in her mind, with the purple banner andballoon. An icy, tingling feeling crept over her skin, despite the heat. Some of her anger and hurt ebbed away and she felt a flash of concern for Bella instead. Then an idea occurred to her, and she hopped down from the dining room chair.
“It’s okay, Auntie Pam,” she said. “I’ll get the plasters.”
Eve had tropical fish plasters, but Bella liked the rainbow ones best and Eve knew where they were kept in the bathroom cabinet. Auntie Pam put a hand on her shoulder.
“It’s not that kind of…A plaster won’t help, dear. Anyway, Bella isn’t here. I told you, the ambulance took her away.”
Eve frowned, more confused than ever. “But when will she be back?”
Her aunt rubbed her temples. “That’s enough questions now, Eve. We just have to wait, okay?”
So they did. They waited for what seemed like hours. Eve was allowed back into the living room at some point, but her aunt had drawn the curtains so that she couldn’t see outside.
“To keep the sun out,” she said.
She put cartoons on the TV for Eve and then she and Uncle Ben were talking in the kitchen in hushed, urgent voices. Auntie Pam brought a plate of sandwiches out for her a short while later. Eve asked about her party a few more times, but Auntie Pam just shook her head and said there wasn’t going to be one.
Eve really didn’t know whether to feel angry and upset about the party or worried about Bella, so she ended up feeling a weird mixture of both. The afternoon dragged on and then Auntie Pam made her fish fingers and chips for tea. She’d just put the plate down in front of her when the telephone rang. Eve listened as her aunt had a brief conversation that ended in a strangled sob.
“Yes,” she said. “Yes, I will.”
She hung up the phone and Eve carefully set down her knife and fork, even though she’d barely started her dinner. She knew,somehow, that she was about to be told something that she wouldn’t like. Something that would change things. Something that there would be no coming back from. The plate remained untouched on the table and she was relieved to hear the front door open a short while later as her mum and dad came in. They would explain things to Auntie Pam. They probably had Bella with them. Eve decided then that she’d let her sister keep the purple balloon she’d taken. In fact, she could have all the balloons.
She shook off her aunt’s hand and ran out into the hallway, eager to see her sister…but it was only her parents standing there. Eve flew to them. Her arms wrapped tight around her mum’s legs and she let out a whimper as all the fear and confusion and upset of the day bubbled to the surface. Finally, at last, she would get the thing she most wanted in that moment—to have her mum’s arms wrapped around her, keeping her safe and telling her not to worry and that everything would be okay.
But instead, her mum grabbed her upper arms and yanked her roughly off her legs. She crouched on the doormat and leaned close to her daughter. Eve shrank back because for a moment she truly thought this wasn’t her mum at all. She looked so different. There was something wrong with her face, something ghoulish and frightening.
“Did you close the gate?” her mum hissed.
Her voice was wrong too; she didn’t sound like herself at all. Eve stared at her, too afraid to answer. Her mother’s hands tightened hard enough to leave bruises and then she was shaking Eve.
“Did you?”
“Jane, don’t!” her dad exclaimed. “For Christ’s sake!”
Eve started to cry. She had no idea what was happening. The next moment, Auntie Pam was ushering her mum into the kitchen and her dad was picking Eve up and carrying her upstairs. Heclosed the door to Eve’s bedroom and she was relieved that it muffled the sound of her mother’s sobs.
“Daddy,” she whimpered.
He wrapped his arms around her, reassuringly warm and solid, yet she could feel that he was trembling, and when he spoke his voice was shaking too and each word made him gasp.
