Forget Me Never

to death then. I’m off.’
    ‘I’ll text you tomorrow!’ Reece called as I pushed my way through people to the alley leading out to the road.
    I didn’t bother replying. As I stepped through the gate on to the street I felt fingers close around my wrist and found myself pinned against the wall, staring up at Aiden.
    ‘Don’t make a noise,’ he hissed. ‘I saw you in the garden. What the hell are you doing here?’
    My eyes darted over Aiden’s shoulder, hoping there was someone to raise the alarm – but there was no one. The street was dead, and I wasn’t sure the people at the barbecue would hear if I screamed. I could see Aiden’s car, parked on the other side of the street. Terrified he was going to force me into it, I struggled, pulling away with all my might. Aiden grabbed my other wrist. He was stronger than he looked; his hands on my wrists were firm and unyielding.
    ‘Stop it! I’m not going to hurt you.’
    ‘I don’t believe you. Let me go!’
    He pushed me back against the wall with a force that winded me. ‘You and your mate have got to back off, OK?’ he said. ‘What you’re doing’s going to get you hurt.’
    ‘Like Danielle?’
    Was it my imagination, or did he wince? ‘This isn’t just about me. There are other people – really nasty people. They wouldn’t think twice about shutting you up.’
    ‘You mean Cherie?’
    Aiden laughed. ‘You’re better off not knowing. Listen –’ he released one of my arms. ‘Dani’s dead. You can’t fix that. Leave it there. Look upon this as a friendly warning.’
    I yanked my other arm away from him. He took a step back and I bolted down the road, glancing over my shoulder – but Aiden was just standing by the house, watching. There was a weird expression on his face. I didn’t waste time working out what it meant – I ran all the way to the tube station. Only when I was on the train, safely heading home, did I allow myself to relax.
    I didn’t sleep that night. I kept feeling Aiden’s hands on my wrists, the texture of brick on my back. Several times I got up and lifted the curtain, convinced I was going to see a Mini parked outside. At half three I went downstairs and made a cup of milky cocoa and sat sipping it in the darkness, trying to get a grip. Aiden had only been hanging about before because he wanted to get hold of Edith. I wondered what he’d done to her – wiped the files and then chucked her in the bin? It didn’t seem important now.
    There are other people. What had Aiden meant? Was he talking about the mysterious Patrick or were there more? This thing had to go beyond Vaughan-Bayard – and Danielle, for that matter. But what kind of scale were we talking? Brazil had been mentioned – was this an international conspiracy or was that too fanciful?
    The milky drink must have worked because I fell asleep on the sofa and only woke when Julie came down and switched on the morning news.
    ‘Too hot in your room?’ she asked as I sat up rubbing my eyes.
    I mumbled something about not being able to sleep. Julie perched on the armrest and muted the telly.
    ‘What’s on your mind?’
    Most other girls probably would have told her. But Julie wasn’t my mother. It wasn’t fair to burden her with this. And I was scared she’d tell me I was being silly or, worse, mention counselling again. In fact, I realized, I didn’t tell Julie much at all. She didn’t know how much I was dreading going back to school, or even what I got up to when I was out of the house. I’d been living here a year and a half and she didn’t really know me, and I knew that was my fault. Suddenly I felt very alone.
    ‘I should get up,’ I said, swinging my legs off the sofa.
    ‘Did you and Reece have a falling-out?’
    That was typical; assuming the cause of all this was boy trouble. If only!
    ‘Sort of,’ I said. ‘He’s just being stupid. He doesn’t get that having a family is a privilege you don’t play about with.’
    ‘Maybe you should give each other a bit of space. I was going to take the kids to the zoo today. Why don’t you come? It’d be nice to spend some time together.’
    Part of me was tempted. But I knew Julie would try to get me to talk; she always did. It was easier to say no. If Julie was disappointed, she didn’t show it; all she said was that if I changed my mind, they were setting off at eleven. Wishing I didn’t find stuff like this so difficult, I headed upstairs to shower.
    Should I back off, like Aiden