Alice Parker & the Curse of Fate (18 page)

‘
You are right
there,’ agreed Ralph. As they walked to his family’s
quarters
he
whispered to Alice. ‘Promise me you will not worry about
Isabella from now on. You do not need to, I can assure you.’

Alice raised an
eyebrow. How could he be so sure? It was impossible not to worry
where Isabella was and what she would do next. But she nodded
anyway. ‘I’ll try.’

Chapter 15

The
Unknown Power

Christina insisted
that everyone make themselves comfortable while she prepared drinks.
Alice sat next to her grandad, who still looked troubled despite
claiming he felt better for getting everything off his chest.

‘
What’s
wrong?’ she asked while Ralph and Thomas initiated a game of
living-room-football with Daniela.

‘
Truth be
told, I’m kicking myself,’ admitted Grandad gloomily.
‘I’ve changed the course of people’s lives; you,
Thomas, Ralph and little Daniela. I feel it’s my fault this
poor family is hiding under ground. I might as well have put a curse
on them.’

‘
Not so,’
replied a man who emerged from Christina’s kitchen. Alice and
Thomas stared in amazement.

‘
Matthias!
What the ... what are you doing here?’ exclaimed Grandad.

‘
Fixing the
cooker,’ he replied with a wink.

‘
No, I meant
... er ... down here in this village.’

‘
I spend my
free time here. My life is fantastic now, thanks to you!’

‘
You’ve
lost me,’ murmured Grandad. ‘I’m afraid you’ll
have to explain.’

Matthias sat down on
a footstool; a comical choice of seat for such a huge man.

‘
So ... last
year my life changed – for the better. I think I even saved
lives this week. At the television tower
I
stopped
the restaurant rotating. Not you, Thomas. Excellent effort on your
part, though.’

Thomas looked
miffed. ‘Are you saying you’re one of us?’

‘
Indeed!’
confirmed Matthias proudly. ‘Since September. Quite late in
life for the metamorphosis, I believe. I am over fifty!’

‘
That’s
it!’ Alice realised. ‘I knew there was something
different about you. It’s your eyes!’

‘
I still don’t
see what this has to do with me,’ said Grandad. ‘I mean,
I’m delighted you’re a Finwip, but ...’

‘
Energy
transfer,’ interrupted Ralph. ‘Matthias changed after
staying with you for a week.’

‘
WHAT?!’
spluttered Grandad. ‘Finwips aren’t contagious, you
know! How did you come up with that far-fetched theory?’

‘
I didn’t,’
replied Matthias.

‘
I
did,’ said Christina as she carried in a tray of hot drinks and
Lebkuchen. ‘It is not a theory. I can see it. That’s
my ability.’

‘
See what
exactly?’ asked Thomas.

‘
I see a
special kind of energy – Finwip energy, you could say. It
radiates from the body and I see it as a glow.’

‘
So we all
have that, then?’ asked Alice.

‘
We all have a
little,’ explained Christina, halting the football game by
glaring at Ralph. ‘But last year I noticed yours was much
stronger than usual, John. Then just a few weeks later I visited my
dentist, who I noticed immediately had become one of us. He was
telling me about his holiday in England with his uncle John ...’

‘
And you
suspected I was responsible?’ said Grandad defensively. ‘You
think this energy transfer piffle is my fault too? Not just the
stones?’

‘
Oh, the
stones radiate a lot of this energy. I saw it in the piece you gave
me. That is why I passed it on to Kat. So if anything, I am to
blame for his multiple abilities.’

‘
Can you see
my glow, Christina?’ asked Thomas with scepticism.

‘
Very clearly.
Kat’s has also become stronger lately. But the most powerful
Finwip energy source I have ever seen is here in this room sitting
opposite you.’

Everyone stared at
Alice, who had been listening in bemusement to Christina’s
explanation of her ability. Startled, she looked around at the
puzzled faces.

‘
Me? What ...
what are you talking about?!’

Christina knelt down
in front of her and gave her a hug. ‘You have many abilities
Alice, I know. But you have not realised your full potential. The
energy radiating from you suggests you are capable of so much more.’

Alice’s eyes
grew wide. ‘I am?’

‘
Your Finwip
energy is so plentiful, it transfers to others. Normal humans are
immune. But some potential Finwips never reach the stage of
metamorphosis, for whatever reason. I believe that was the case with
Matthias, until your grandfather transferred the energy from you.’

‘
This doesn’t
make sense,’ said Alice, shaking her head. ‘You’re
saying it’s actually my fault Matthias has become a Finwip.’

‘
Well!’
began Thomas, raising his eyebrows at Alice and Grandad. ‘I
don’t think we should let you two out of the house. You just
can’t help causing trouble! I take it Brigitte doesn’t
know?’

‘
Do not say a
word,
please
!’
begged Matthias. ‘This would destroy her! She knows I have
changed somehow. I have seen her staring at you all; she can see the
similarity in our eyes, I am sure of it.’

‘
But she
hasn’t asked you why your eyes have changed colour?’
queried Alice.

‘
I do not
think she wants to know the truth. My mother is deeper and more
sensitive that she seems.’

‘
And the
shocks keep on coming!’ chuckled Thomas.

‘
So what now?
What does this mean? What do I do about it?’ flapped Alice.

‘
Absolutely
nothing,’ replied Christina reassuringly. ‘You continue
just as you are.’

‘
I ... I just
don’t get it. Why me?’

‘
I wish I
could tell you.’

‘
We already
know you’re important, Alice – important enough for Aunt
Jennifer to know that you would be born, and for her to feel the need
to document your life in detail,’ said Grandad.

‘
And I’ve
always known she was an odd one,’ added Thomas. ‘Though
I didn’t know she was giving off radiation!’

Alice contemplated
Christina with suspicion.

‘
This is
ridiculous. How do I know you’re telling the truth? I hardly
know you!’

‘
Alice!’
scolded Grandad.

‘
It’s
OK,’ Christina assured him. ‘That is a fair comment.
Come, Alice, I will show you what I mean.’ She walked towards
the door.

Without saying
another word, Alice followed her to the security room. Once inside
Christina sat down and gestured to her to do the same.

‘
I do not know
if Kat told you, but I designed this security system. We built an
extra level of sensitivity in to the camera filters – that is
how I like to see things. Look.’ She selected the screen
displaying her living room where the others were still sitting,
talking quietly. When she enlarged the live feed a hazy yellow-green
glow, perhaps an inch wide, could be seen around Thomas and Grandad’s
bodies. On closer inspection Alice noticed a paler outline of the
same colour around Matthias, Ralph and Daniela, though Ralph’s
was slightly brighter.

‘
Has ... has
Ralph seen this?’ asked Alice.

Christina nodded.
‘Anyone can see it if they enlarge these images. The lens
picks up ultra-high frequency radiation. But only I can see it in
person. I asked him not to say anything until I had the chance to
explain it to you. I had hoped to tell you in private, but Matthias
...’

‘
It doesn’t
matter.’ Alice stared at the screen in disbelief. Christina
held down the rewind button beneath another screen until she found
footage from a few minutes earlier. A bright light in the centre of
the corridor was moving across the screen. It was accompanied by a
female figure, comparatively in the shadows. How was she not blinded
by that light? As she approached the camera Alice realised that it
was Christina. The light itself also revealed a face and body. The
light was Alice.

She pushed back her
chair and leaped to her feet. ‘What ... what was that?’
she stuttered. ‘That can’t be me! What happened there?
Is there a fault with the camera?’

‘
There is no
fault, Alice. That is your Finwip energy. That is what I see when I
look at you. Incredible, is it not? Beautiful!’

In a state of shock,
Alice burst in to tears. ‘I’m sorry,’ she mumbled,
wiping her face in embarrassment. ‘But I can’t take much
more. I’ve had a few nasty surprises this week.’

‘
This is not a
nasty surprise, Alice,’ said Christina softly.

‘
It is to me.
Just when I thought I’d met someone the same as me, something
has happened to make me different again – a freak of nature.’

‘
The people
who love you do not mind, so why do you?’ She handed Alice a
box of tissues.

Alice blew her nose.
‘I thought I was happy with my life. Happy with who I am and
what I am. But after the last few weeks I’m not sure any
more.’

‘
Oh, Alice!’
Christina put her arm around her. ‘It is not easy being a
Finwip, I know. But Finwip or not, life rarely turns out how we
expect. That does not mean it will be disappointing! As for this
wonderful energy you radiate, it is nothing to worry about. No one
can see it when they meet you apart from me.’

‘
But I can
pass it on! I changed Matthias’s life through Grandad. I had
no right to do that!’

‘
Is he
complaining?’

‘
No.’

‘
He is
delighted to be a Finwip, Alice. Please, stop worrying. If I had
not told you about this, you may never have known. I thought I was
doing the right thing.’

‘
I suppose you
were.’

‘
There is
something truly exceptional about you, Alice. I just wish I knew
what it is.’

‘
Me too,’
said Alice glumly.

Chapter 16

The
Curse of Fate

The next morning
Brigitte surprised everyone with a fantastic farewell breakfast. Her
mood had certainly improved. In addition to the usual selection of
meats, sausage and cheese with fresh bread from downstairs, she had
prepared smoked salmon with scrambled eggs on rye bread, and baked a
poppy seed cake. She even presented Grandma with a glass of bucks
fizz.

‘
Crikey! You
must have been awake since the crack of dawn, Brigitte!’

Alice whispered to
Thomas as they followed her in to the kitchen. ‘I knew she’d
be glad to see the back of us but I wasn’t expecting a
celebration
before
we left!’

Brigitte looked at
her sternly. ‘In spite of what you think, your company will be
missed.’

Alice kicked
herself. Brigitte’s hearing was obviously better than she had
thought. ‘Oh. Sorry. This looks wonderful, thank you.’

‘
Nice one,
mouth almighty!’ said Thomas, tucking in to his scrambled eggs.

Red-faced, Alice
said nothing and kept her eyes down as she reached for a slice of
cake. Although she would miss Ralph, she began to feel glad they
were going home. They really had brought disruption to Aunt
Brigitte’s quiet, organised life. The poor woman had
experienced more chaos and destruction in the past week than she had
in several years. It would be kindest to let her return to her daily
routine.

While Alice
contemplated the daunting prospect of discovering the identity of her
future husband when she got home, a text message alert rang out from
her pocket. She glanced at the screen of her phone under the table.
It was from Ralph.

You can relax
during your flight home. Isabella is already back in England x