Be honest, Luc.I wasn’t absolutely sure he was human. And if he was in trouble…Also, if I was being completely truthful, this goth cutie intrigued me enough that I wanted to see more of him. My gaydar had twitched as we’d first made eye contact, but it had been known to steer me wrong before, so I’d play it cool ’til I was more certain which way his flag flew.
“I’ll drive you.” And there went my mouth, running away with me before my brain could catch up. “I’ve got a fast car and a credit card. It’ll be an adventure, right?” I clamped my lips together before any more insanity could escape.
“Are you mad?” But I saw the fine lines around his eyes ease slightly. “Actually, don’t answer that, it’s obvious. But yes, I’ll take you up on it. I’ll be quick. Lock your doors just in case.” He popped the central locking and exited the car, pulling a key from his trouser pocket as I heard him murmur, “Frying pan or fire? Christ, perhaps he’s working forthem.”Not wanting him to know about my hearing, I pasted what I hoped was a reassuring smile on my fizzog and caught his gaze as he inserted the key into a lock in the front door.
Seven minutes later, he tapped on my door. When I cracked the window, he asked, “Where d’you want this?” He swung a rucksack off his right shoulder and held it at arm’s length. Damn, he might be skinny but he was evidently packing some serious muscle under his clothing; another reason to suspect he wasn’t quite as he seemed. “Oh, I’m Charley, by the way, with a y, not i e.”
“I’m Luc, with a c. Wherever makes you happiest. Boot, back seat, I’m not fussed. Just get in and we’ll get moving.”
We took the ring road out of town, and headed west, mostly because Charley confessed it had never been a secret he’d always wanted to live in the north. South didn’t give us many options, and east would require a boat before we’d barely got going. As far as I was concerned, I was committed now, committed to protecting Charley, which meant anticipating what his pursuers would do, and keeping several steps ahead of them at all times. I wouldn’t leave him vulnerable to attack, not if I could help it. Until it all went to shit, my life had been lived around the concept ofpack. Even if the pack had all but abandoned me, I wouldn’t do it to someone else.
We drove in silence for a while, until I decided to ask him, “So, what have you done, or do they think you’ve done?”
Charley pushed his hood back from his face and ran his fingers through his hair: it curled under the collar of his T-shirt, and hung messily in points over his ears and forehead. “Killed someone.” He cut off my hiss of surprise. “I didn’t, but I can’t prove I was where I say I was at the time of the murder, even though there’s security footage thatshouldprove it.” His groan of despair sounded painful, and genuine.
I eased the engine into top gear as we headed up the slip road onto the motorway. “You weren’t in shot, or the footage is too grainy?”
This time his sigh was unmistakably forlorn. “Oh, I’d definitely have been in shot. But I don’t show up on the video.”
2
CHARLEY
I felt ratherthan heard Luc’s sharp intake of breath at my statement. And no wonder; it was pretty unbelievable. He glanced at me quickly, but returned his eyes to the road, which pleased me, because of all the ways I’d thought I might die over the past twenty-four hours, being mangled to an untimely end in a car crash wasn’t top of my list. Although, my comment when Luc had said he’d have killed me if he hadn’t stopped wasn’t as flippant as he probably thought. I’d begun to wonder if I’d been born under a lucky star, or blessed by a holy man, both of which seemed unlikely, but given the evidence to date, my life was either a series of incredible escapes, orsomethingwasn’t quite ordinary about me. Perhaps I just had good genes. Yeah, that was probably it. It wasn’t like I knew anything about my birth parents, so they could have been amazing athletes, honed to physical perfection by years of hard work which my arrival threatened to derail. I often lost myself in flights of impossible fantasy, but right now I knew I’d be better off keeping my wits about me and paying attention to our direction. Luc didn’t seem like anything but a kind stranger with a penchant for excitement, but it wouldn’t pay to assume anything. He’d need to prove himself before I could relax.
There was a comforting pale sliver of moon in the sky. The further from Tratton we went, the thicker the fog became, so the moon wasn’t much practical use, but I knew it was there, steadfastly shining away and watching over me. Stupid, because I knew we could only see the moon due to the effect of the sun, but I never was much impressed with that ostentatious ball of flame that kept the world turning. Obviously I was grateful for its power and heat in an academic way, but the moon?Shehad my heart. Her light warmed my soul, and energised my body in much the same way I knew my acquaintances celebrated the beginning of longer days and summertime.
God! Was it any wonder I was the local freak? Bad enough I’d been the town weirdo for years, and I was being literally run out of town by a gang who wanted me dead in retribution for slaying one of their own — which I hadn’t — but even this latest development in the life and times of Charley Entwhistle wasn’t enough to keep my mind on the dangers and not go wandering off on a tangent.
So no, I continued my unwise stroll down memory lane. My face had never fit. According to Nita, I’d been a ‘nightmare’ baby, a ‘challenging’ toddler, and the rest was a too-recent-for-comfort litany of missing invitations, bullying, and low-key suspicion that had dogged me since nursery school. A clean break was the best for everyone. I didn’t feel too bad about Nita and David, aka my adoptive parents. If they’d been different people, shown me the love that parents were supposed to show their kids, especially the one they’d apparently longed for, maybe I’d have been strong enough to shrug off the taunts and insults and confide in them. Not that even the best parents might be able to wrap their heads around their only son being invisible on security footage. Hell,Ididn’t know what to make of it, and I’d heard from a reliable source that the club leader had viewed the correct tapes. Still, it wasn’t as though Nita or David could have done anything anyway because they were currently in Tenerife.
I sighed, and shifted in my seat. Luc looked over at me. “You want a drink or anything? There’s snack bars in the glove compartment, and a pack of water bottles in the rear footwell. We can stop for coffee in a while if you like.”
“I’m okay thanks.” I wasn’t, but a random oat or chocolate bar and some bottled water would do jack shit for me right now. That was another thing; food and drink had become steadily more problematic. I’d heard whispers that I was anorexic. I absolutely wasnot.But I understood, because to the world at large I was fading away. I ate enough to keep Nita from commenting if she was at home, but otherwise it had ceased to cross my mind, unless I chose to spend some of my hard-earned wages on the only thing I really enjoyed at the moment — black pudding. Steak and burgers were an acceptable substitute, but the right to eat them under my own roof had been denied. Just my luck to land myself with devout vegetarians as parental figures. Which was a tad unfair of me, because until fairly recently I’d loved my veggies. But the ’rents were adamant that nothing made from dead flesh passed the threshold. Could human beings be obligate carnivores, like cats? I pondered. It didn’t seem to be an iron deficiency as I had tons of energy and none of the symptoms. Not that I’d ever let a medical professional near enough to extract any of my blood to check. Hell to the no getting near me with a needle! I’d never been ill. Not even had a filling at the dentist.
I pulled my mind back to the present. “Um, where are we headed? Do you want any money for petrol?” I had to offer. This man was quite possibly saving my life. At the very least extending it. I decided I’d ascertain his plan, then withdraw the maximum daily amount from my bank when we stopped at a service station. If I timed it well, I could lay a false trail leading to the West Country, then go dark and head north, paying only for essentials with cash, and, please god, picking up some work for the same.
Luc shook his head. His very lovely, very expensive head of dark golden waves. With his matching golden skin, chiselled cheek bones, and eyes like runny honey, oh yeah, I’d noticed. “Not a problem. I’m not short of a few bob. Let’s worry about getting you off the radar first. We can sort everything else later, if needs be.” He punched a couple of buttons on the dashboard and soft music filled the car’s interior. He flicked me another quick glance. “The music okay? I noticed you didn’t like the light. D’you have sensory issues? I can turn it off if it bothers you.”
Damn, I didn’t realise he’d seen my flinch. I went for honesty. “Having some bother with lights right now. It’ll probably settle down. The music’s fine.”
I was a liar, to myself as much as anyone. The lights problem had been increasing steadily since I’d hit puberty, much like my craving for black pudding, and I’d taken to wearing sunglasses everywhere. Tratton St Mary High School wasn’t bothered enough with me as a student to insist I remove them. Wasn’t like I was Mr Popular and everyone had copied me. My job, which I was going to miss, was at night, and once my boss had been assured I could see the screens just fine through my wraparounds, he’d rolled his eyes and left me to it. Fluorescents were a very specific form of torture, but I’d been pulling in a steady income at the warehouse since I turned eighteen, and it was a bit over minimum wage too, so I’d sucked it up.
“You said we’d head west. How far west?”
Luc cracked a grin, which even side-on made my pulse race. Fuck, he was gorgeous. “Tonight? Somewhere near Bristol suit you? We can hole up in a budget roadside hotel or something. Grab some kip, get rested for tomorrow, when we can make some proper plans.”
“Yeah, that’s great. Except I’ll have to give you cash for the room. And keep out of sight while you book us in. Is that all right?”
“Assumed you would, for both. No probs.”
I sank further into the leather upholstery, the adrenaline I’d burned through finally leaving my system depleted. I yawned several times, then decided Luc probably wouldn’t mind if I dozed for a bit. I was determined not to concoct any wild fantasies about him being not-straight enough to fuck me through a wall when we finally stopped for the night. Oops, failed already. Rearranging my arms loosely over my crotch, I shut my eyes.
When I opened them again, Luc was steering the car into a space in a leaf-strewn car park. A rectangular concrete and glass block indicated the presence of a Travelodge, confirmed when I squinted through the windscreen and saw the tell-tale blue and red signage. “We’re on the outskirts of Bristol. I figured that was far enough for tonight.”
“Yeah, sure.” I’d evidently had quite a nap. After a pause I added, “I appreciate it.”
The silence was deafening when Luc switched off the engine. I knew he was thinking, so I stayed quiet.
