‘They’re scrappy,’ Miles agreed. ‘But Great Grandfather Eugene, he was… he was sadistic. People who didn’t know him would never assume he took glee in crushing people under his boot. And I think it broke Grandpa George. That’s why he could never bring himself to stand up for himself or even his children. I have tried so hard to not follow in either of their footsteps?—’
‘We both have,’ I cut in. ‘We have tried to bring you up in a healthier way than we were.’
‘You’ve done a great job,’ Martha said to both of us.
‘Absolutely,’ agreed Callum. ‘We always feel safe and loved.’
‘Yes, but all of this…’ Miles said sadly. ‘I worry that you use your phones, or your gaming, Callum, or talking to your girlfriend, Martha, to escape. I want you to be able to open up to us. When I saw Tristan lying there… I felt so desperate. So desperate that the brotherly bond we could have had was well and truly gone forever. I just knelt next to him…’ Miles’s chin quivered, tears welling in his eyes. The three of us gathered around him and surrounded him in the cage of our arms.
So that’s why he had blood on the top of his boots… Thank God.
‘You’re right, Dad, we do numb ourselves. Let’s make a pact,’ Martha said, ‘that at least once a week we make time for each other; no distractions, just talking.’
Miles and I nodded, smiling. I knew he was thinking the same thing as me… in a few short years they would be moving on, and our time with them was well and truly running out.
* * *
After Callum and Martha headed upstairs, Miles pulled me into George’s old office. Checking no one was around to hear, he closed the door softly.
‘What’s the matter?’ I asked, concerned by his expression.
He pulled out a large kitchen knife.
‘Mrs Harlow—’ he started. ‘She was changing the bedding, and she found this under… under my mother’s mattress.’
I frowned, watching the light glint on the knife’s edge. ‘That’s the one that’s missing from the block.’
He nodded.
‘Under the mattress…’ I pondered out loud. ‘Do you think she planned to use it? Or is it for protection?’
He shook his head. ‘I don’t know,’ he said simply.
I stared at the knife in Miles’s hand, my mind racing. ‘We need to put it back,’ I whispered urgently. ‘If your mother realises it’s gone…’
Miles nodded, his face pale. ‘You’re right. But what if she…’ He trailed off, unable to finish the thought.
‘We don’t know anything for certain,’ I said, trying to sound calm. ‘Maybe she just feels unsafe with everything that’s happened. Let’s replace it and keep a close eye on her.’
‘But what if she uses it?’ he said gravely.
‘Then … well, then we’ll know that the recent deaths weren’t an accident. We won’t let her anywhere near us so that she can use it.’
‘That’s crazy, Liv. What if she hurts someone?… We should put it back in the block.’
‘But if sheisup to something, she will know that Mrs Harlow was the one who found it. She might do something to Madge! Also, even if we put it back, she can still use it. We can’t hide every knife in the house.’
Miles paled at that. If there was one person other than me and the children he couldn’t bear to see hurt, it was Mrs Harlow.
‘I don’t know,’ he said, contemplating the options. ‘Do you think this means that… my mother might be a killer?’
My silence spoke volumes.Ifthese deaths weren’t insane freak accidents, then the only person who was mad enough to be behind them would be Jeannie. We weighed our options, discussing the pros and cons of replacing the knife in the block or putting it back under Jeannie’s bed to catch her out in some way. We were no Sherlock and Watson, that’s for sure.
In the end, we crept upstairs, our footsteps muffled by the thick carpet. The house was quiet, most of the family having retired to their rooms for the night. As we approachedJeannie’sdoor, I held my breath, straining to hear any sound from within.
Miles slowly turned the doorknob, wincing at the faint creak. We peered inside the dark room. Empty.
‘What do we do?’ I hissed, suddenly having second thoughts again about putting the knife back. I didn’t fancy waking up in the night to a knife-wielding Jeannie.
