Even Angels Fall (36 page)

“It was all great at first, better than great, it was amazing… and I was so happy. But then Alex got into some trouble and he needed money fast. It went fine the first time, it worked and they got the money but then the second time it all went wrong and Tom got hurt and now he’s in hospital and he might die and everything’s changed. It isn’t the same anymore, everything’s changed and no one knows what to do, I don’t know what to do, and I can’t keep going on like this. I’m just so scared all the time…” Abbey gasps for breath on the verge of a full blown panic attack as the words come flowing out of her in one continuous, rambling confession. Mr Harper grips her arms and holds her steady, struggling to understand a single word she is saying.

“Shhh… it’s OK, it’s alright, you’re OK…” He pulls Abbey forward and hugs her tightly as she rests her head on his shoulder, rubbing her back while rocking her gently until she eventually calms down. The minutes pass and they remain that way as the silence between them becomes deafening.

Abbey sits up and slowly pulls away, lifting her head so that her cheek brushes against the side of Mr Harper’s jaw. She turns slightly and they stare at each other with their faces close and their lips parted. She can feel his breath on her face and the atmosphere between them is charged, full of longing. He reaches up and carefully pushes her hair back, lingering again as he searches her eyes. ‘What the hell is happening to me?’ Abbey questions herself, quickly snapping out of the intense and surreal moment before pulling away and running her hands through her hair as she rises shakily to her feet.

“God, I’m sorry…” She stutters and Mr Harper stands as well, holding his hand out towards her.

“No…” He gasps, closing his eyes and cursing under his breath, “No I’m sorry Abbey, I truly am that was so out of line, I don’t know what I was thinking…”

“I have to go. I should go…” She turns quickly and rushes towards the door but he races after her, gently grabbing hold of her arm and spinning her back round to face him.

“Please, please don’t go… I didn’t mean to… Christ…” He half laughs while shaking his head and rolling his eyes at the ceiling and Abbey smiles up at him feebly, “Stay. Stay and talk to me… let me help you…”

“Thank you…” Abbey whispers appreciatively, reaching up and gently touching his face with her hand before dropping it back down at her side, “But I really shouldn’t have come here…” She turns again and rushes out of the classroom before he has a chance to react.

“Abbey, Abbey wait…” He shouts after her down the empty hallway, but to her relief he doesn’t follow.

Abbey spends the entire bus ride back into town in a complete and utter daze. She is so unsure of what just happened - or what could have happened - between her and Harper and she is all the more confused and messed up because of it. She loves Alex. She knows she does. She still gets those crazy butterflies in her stomach whenever she thinks about him despite everything else that is going on in their lives. So what on earth was that all about?

She strides with determination down past the train station and towards the dark arches in order to get back to the flat as soon as possible. She wants to see Alex; to hold him, kiss him, and remind herself that he is who she wants, no one else… and certainly not the head of sixth form at Eden Comprehensive High School.

As she turns onto the road and approaches the flat complex she suddenly becomes aware of a set of footsteps behind her. Could it be Harper? Could he have followed her? Impossible. He was nowhere in sight when she boarded the bus and he wouldn’t have a clue where she lives. Then another, much scarier realization dawns on her and her stomach drops. Could it be Marcus? Surely not, seen as all reports indicate that he is house bound and will be for quite a while, but that doesn’t mean he can’t send one of his cronies to reap his revenge on Alex. That is entirely possible and doesn’t seem far-fetched at all.

Abbey picks up her pace and is almost home, only a few yards away, but as she keeps her head down and charges forward the footsteps behind her quicken also, getting louder as the gap between them closes. Should she scream? Should she fight? Should she try and run? Panic and fear start to take over and she scolds herself, trying hard to keep a level head so that she actually has a chance to get out of this. She finally reaches the gate but before she has chance to open it, a hand grabs hold of her jacket and tugs her backwards. She turns, ready to fight the bastard off any way she can, but as she looks into the face of her would be attacker she becomes as still as a statue and her mouth falls open with shock.

“Hello Abbey…” He states, rather formally, and she tries to force her brain and mouth to function again. She doesn’t know how much more she can take today.

“Pete…” She finally gasps, and he smiles sadly at her obvious surprise, “What the hell are you doing here?”

“Mum… she saw your friend, the blonde one and followed her here. Anna said that you’d mentioned a flat in Leeds, so I knew it was only a matter of time until you showed up too…” Peter shrugs almost apologetically, and Abbey frowns. She isn’t used to seeing her brother so reserved.

“Why?” She blurts out without thinking and Peter’s face shows a brief flash of pain.

“What do you mean why? Why did I wait for you once I knew where you were? Because I’ve been going out of my fucking mind worrying about you, of course I waited…”

“Sorry, I just… I’m surprised that’s all…”

“It’s good to see you…” He confesses, and Abbey softens slightly, “Can we go somewhere? To talk…”

“You can’t force me to come home…” Abbey snaps, considering for a moment that this might be an ambush and that her mum and Anna could be waiting round the corner in a van ready to kidnap her. Her paranoia seems to know no bounds these days. Something she has no doubt picked up from Alex. ‘Alex…’ Abbey sighs inwardly. She wants to see him so badly but she can’t just turn away from her brother, can she? Besides, if he carries on loitering outside the flat and the lads see him he could end up in some serious trouble.

“Fine…” She relents, “We can talk, but I haven’t got long…”

“OK, good, that’s fine…” Peter shoves his hands in his pockets and waits for Abbey to lead the way. She can’t get over how agreeable he is being. It is something she certainly isn’t used to.

She doesn’t want to venture too far so decides to take him down the road to The Locke. Alex had told everyone to be vigilant and to stay away from the usual haunts in case they were being staked out, but Abbey dismisses it as his over active imagination and that infamous paranoia coming into play. Perhaps if she had taken his warnings more seriously and her head wasn’t spinning from the events of the afternoon, she would have noticed the dark blue van parked up at the end of the road with Gazza and Tommo sat in the front, waiting patiently, but as she is still reeling from the shock of being confronted by her brother and her bizarre encounter with Harper, she doesn’t spot them.

Peter holds the door open for Abbey and they enter the pub as Tommo sits bolt upright, suddenly alert and on edge. He picks up his mobile and dials a number from memory.

“It’s me. We’ve spotted the girl; she’s at The Locke. Yeah, Ok… will do, no problem…” He hangs up and Gazza turns towards him expectantly, “Marcus says to wait and to follow her when she leaves…”

The pub is warm and inviting and Abbey sits at a table in the corner of the bar as Peter buys them both a drink. Steve the landlord smiles and nods hello with pity in his eyes and Abbey smiles back at him kindly. Of course all the locals now know that something has happened to Tom and that he is in a serious condition in hospital. They just don’t know exactly what happened to put him there.

Peter places Abbey’s vodka and coke in front of her and she takes a large sip, feeling as though she needs a substantial amount of alcohol after the day she has had.

“So you’re a big drinker now?” Peter raises an eyebrow as he takes a smaller sip of his half a lager.

“Not particularly…” Abbey lies, irritated at the assumption, even though it is right.

“So how are you?”

“Fine thanks, you…?”

“I’ve been better…” He admits.

This is unbelievably awkward and Abbey really doesn’t want to be here. Peter is annoying her as usual but seeing him also makes her realize how long it has actually been since she has spoken to her own family. She does miss them, in spite of everything, but she really doesn’t have the strength to deal with all of those hurtful and conflicting emotions right now, not on top of everything else that has been thrown at her today.

“I’m sorry…” Peter blurts out unexpectedly - and Abbey stares at him, taken aback by the words she never thought she would hear her brother say in a million years, “I’m sorry about everything Abbey. I screwed up. We all did. It’s taken me a hell of a long time to realize that. To see things from your side and to understand why you acted the way you did. I appreciate now how hard it was for you… is for you… and I’m sorry I didn’t see it sooner…”

“What’s brought this on?” Abbey gasps, still not completely trusting what she is hearing.

“Losing my little sister as well as my little brother…” He answers honestly, before taking another swig of his drink and looking Abbey straight in the eyes, “There were a lot of things I needed to work through. You weren’t wrong, when you asked me why I couldn’t say Ryan’s name. It hurt too much…” Abbey flinches at the mention of her beloved twin brother and sighs sadly, shaking her head.

“You were so stubborn, so convinced that you were handling it and you wouldn’t listen to me, or talk to me, about anything…” Abbey reminds him, angrily.

“I know…” He agrees, “I thought by looking after Mum, I was dealing with my grief but I wasn’t… I wasn’t helping her or myself. I just didn’t want to face it. I know that now…”

“Well, I’m glad…” Abbey nods, “I’m glad you’re finally dealing with it properly. It’s important to grieve and move on…”

“We’re all doing a lot better… when it comes to Ryan I mean. I guess losing a second sibling really shocks things into perspective and forces you to admit your mistakes…”

“You haven’t lost me…” Abbey whispers, unconvincingly.

“I hope not. Not anymore anyway…” Peter reaches across the table and tries to hold Abbey’s hand but she pulls it away. She is unsure whether she is ready to let her brother back in to such an extent and it would also be extremely bad news if one of the locals saw her holding hands with a mystery man and reported it back to Alex. Maybe she shouldn’t have brought him here after all? She will have to tell Alex now anyway in case they have already been spotted by someone they know.

“Will you come home…?” Peter asks, abruptly.

“It isn’t that simple…” Abbey shakes her head and sips nervously at her drink.

“Why not…?”

“Because I have a life here now…”

“I miss you, Abbey. We all do, so much. You haven’t even met Amelia yet and she’s getting so big now, she’s growing and changing, everyday…”

“Is this why you came here?” Abbey snaps, “To guilt trip me? To make me feel bad?”

“No…” Peter holds his hands up defensively, “No, Abbey, that isn’t why I’m here. I’m not playing games with you and I’m tired of arguing. Things really have changed, I’ve changed, and I mean it when I say I want you to come home…”

“Me too…” She sighs sadly.

“You want to come home?” The hope in Peter’s voice causes guilt to lance through Abbey and she immediately regrets her choice of words.

“No… I mean, I’ve changed too…”

“Well…” Peter sighs, unrelenting, “seen as we’ve both changed, hopefully for the better… maybe we can formally introduce ourselves and start again from scratch as the brand new, well-adjusted people we are today…?” He holds his hand out to Abbey across the table and she breaks into a smile despite herself, gripping it lightly in hers before shaking it firmly as they both nod in agreement. She sits back in her chair, laughing to herself, and Peter’s expression becomes serious once more.

“Please think about it Abbey. We want you to come home… I want you to come home, where you belong…”

Abbey has no idea what to say. She can’t agree to that but she doesn’t want to dismiss the notion entirely either. Did she always believe deep down that one day she would go back home? Maybe.

But the truth is right now, she has no idea where she belongs and she has never been more confused. Before she can find the right words to respond, the loud buzz of her mobile breaks the tension and interrupts her train of thought.

‘One Missed Call: Alex’

“Something wrong…?” Peter asks, curiously.

“No. But I have to go… you should go, I mean…”

“OK. If that’s what you want…”

“It is… I’m sorry…”

“But you’ll think about what I said…?” They both stand and Peter grabs his jacket from the back of the chair, hooking it over his arm.

“I will. I promise…”

“Thank you for talking to me today, I’m sorry I ambushed you in the street. I just really needed to see you…”

“No I understand, and I’m glad we talked…” Abbey actually means what she says and as Peter steps forward to hug her, she lets him, returning it briefly before pulling away. He nods once, and with a grateful glance back he leaves the pub.

Abbey drops back into her chair, feeling exhausted and emotionally drained. When she woke up this morning she never expected that she would have such an eventful day. She only went for a walk to clear her head. God, that was hours ago. Alex must be out of his mind. And right on cue, her phone rings again.

Peter stands outside in the doorway of the pub feeling cheerfully optimistic. That went better than he had hoped and talking to his sister, seeing first hand that she is safe and well, has temporarily put his mind at ease. He can relax now, knowing that she is OK, and hopefully once she has had time to think things through and process the idea that their relationship can and will improve, she will be in touch.

As he throws his jacket on and zips it up against the cold, he is totally unaware of Gazza and Tommo still sitting in the blue van parked up across the street. Tommo dials through to Marcus again as they lurk in the shadows, watching him closely.