Shiverton Hall, the Creeper (25 page)

At the end of the lesson, as the students gathered their things, Arthur approached Long-Pitt’s desk.

‘Can I talk to you for a minute, Professor?’ he asked. ‘It’s very important.’

Long-Pitt waited for the last student to file out, and then looked up impatiently at Arthur.

‘Yes?’ she said.

‘Did you bribe the Forge triplets to look after me this term?’ Arthur asked.

Long-Pitt’s cool demeanour was momentarily compromised. ‘I don’t know what you’re talking about,’ she said finally.

‘No?’ Arthur said. ‘And it’s just a coincidence that you happened to be in the woods all those times that I was there too, is it?’

Long-Pitt remained silent, but her expression dared Arthur to go on.

‘Why?’ Arthur asked. ‘You don’t even like me!’

‘You flatter yourself that I have any opinion of you whatsoever,’ Long-Pitt replied.

‘OK, fine,’ he said. ‘But after what happened last night I think I at least deserve to know what’s been going on round here.’

Long-Pitt sighed. ‘At the beginning of this term, I was contacted by someone who quite forcefully impressed upon me the importance of keeping you out of harm’s way.’

‘Who?’

Long-Pitt smiled.

‘
Who?
’ Arthur repeated.

‘Your father,’ Long-Pitt said finally.

Arthur frowned.

‘What do you mean?’ he said. ‘That can’t be right. My father is dead.’

Long-Pitt raised her eyebrows. ‘He didn’t look dead to me,’ she said.

Arthur groped the desk behind to steady himself.

‘You’ve met him, I believe. You’d remember; he is rather distinctive-looking.’

‘The burned man,’ Arthur whispered.

‘Indeed. Not a pretty face, but then, it is a miracle he survived the accident at all.’

‘I don’t . . .’ Arthur stammered. ‘Why didn’t he tell me?’

‘I’m sure he felt it would be . . . confusing for you if you knew.’

‘So he scared me half to death instead?’

‘In order to try and keep you safe,’ Long-Pitt corrected. ‘Once he realised that you were determined to come back to Shiverton Hall, he asked me to meet him in London. He felt it was too dangerous, being a male Shiverton, to come here himself.’

‘But I saw him,’ Arthur said, suddenly realising. ‘On the hill, when we were doing CCF volunteering.’

‘I believe he did come once, yes. Quite a risk for him to come to this place. It’s not all that safe for one of Lord Shiverton’s descendents, as I’m sure you’ll have noticed.’

‘Where is he now?’ Arthur asked.

‘I haven’t the faintest idea,’ Long-Pitt said coldly. ‘Will that be all?’

‘Yes,’ Arthur said. ‘That’ll be all.’

Arthur walked out on to the quad with hesitant steps. It was warm, spring was finally beginning, and his friends were taking their break on the lawn, in a longed-for patch of sunlight. Penny spotted Arthur and waved him over, but Arthur found himself faltering. The sunlight hurt his eyes and the thought of joining his classmates filled him with a sudden intense revulsion.

It was happening again – the poisonous thoughts, the hotness in his blood, the flash of anger like a capillary bursting. But this time he didn’t resist; he let it flood through him, feeling it lap at every corner of his body.

It felt good.

Without a glance back at his friends, he retreated into the darkness of Shiverton Hall.

Emerald Fennell
is a writer and actress. She started writing scary stories when she was a child – much to the horror of some of her teachers. She studied English Literature at Oxford University but chose to spend most of her time reading spooky tales of terror. Emerald likes to write the Shiverton Hall books in the middle of the night.

Also by Emerald Fennell

Shiverton Hall

Bloomsbury Publishing, London, New Delhi, New York and Sydney

First published in Great Britain in June 2014 by Bloomsbury Publishing Plc

50 Bedford Square, London WC1B 3DP

This electronic edition published in June 2014 by Bloomsbury Publishing Plc

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Copyright © Emerald Fennell 2014

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A CIP catalogue record for this book is available from the British Library

eISBN 978 1 4088 3695 8

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