Read Online Accidents Happen by Louise Millar - Free Book Online Page B
Authors: Louise Millar
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volume with every sentence. Every time he did it, it felt like he was blowing things up.
Pow! Pow!
The power was exhilarating.
There was a loud sniff from his mother’s direction. He glowered, looking for his trainers. He didn’t care if she was upset. She never helped him. The truth was sometimes he felt a bit scared about the idea of walking to school on his own, but she should be making him feel better about it, not more worried. Helping him.
Jack saw his PE trainers by the stairs and grabbed them.
‘Jack. Please. You haven’t even done your teeth,’ she said. She was trying to say calm grown-up things in a voice that was all wobbly and confused and hurt.
As he took his blazer off the banister, he looked up and saw the stupid cage gate.
He was sick of it. Everyone feeling sorry for him. For his Dad. For having a weird mum, and now a stupid house.
He turned and scowled at Kate.
‘YOU go to London!’ he shouted, unbolting the door. ‘I’m not staying in this stupid house any more. I want to live with Nana. She said I could. I heard her. Nana’s kind.’ And, then, before he could stop himself, ‘AND, she lets me go to the shop on my own.’
He heard Kate gasp. ‘She WHAT?’
‘She LETS ME GO!’ he yelled defiantly. ‘EVERY Saturday at twelve o’clock when the baker in the village opens to get bread for lunch!’
His mum opened her mouth wide, eyes furious. ‘Bloody Nana,’ she spat. ‘How DARE she? I KNEW this had something to do with her. What else has she done? What has she said?’
He shook his head furiously. ‘It’s NOT Nana. It’s YOU. You’re . . . you’re . . . just the worst mother EVER! I just . . . HATE YOU!’
Turning to find the Chubb key for the lock, he saw his mother’s face. It looked as if it had dried on to her bones.
At that moment, the little boy realized with a strange curiosity that she was not in control after all. The power had always been his to take. He could blow her up whenever he wanted.
He turned and shoved the Chubb key in the lock and tried to turn it.
Behind him came a low moan. It sounded like the cat from across the back when it went into a coma in their garden.
He stopped.
He had seen her worried, seen her eyes furiously blinking back tears, but he had never heard that noise before. A picture came into his mind of that terrible earthquake he had watched with Granddad on the news, where everything was blown up and broken, and the people on the news said that nothing would ever be the same again.
A cramp tightened in his stomach so painfully that he bent over and grunted.
What had he done? He’d told her about Nana letting him go to the baker’s in the village. And now they’d fight about that, too.
To his shame, Jack felt tears coming into his own eyes. Desperately, he tried to grab the door knob and get out before she said anything else.
‘Jack!’ his mother gasped. ‘No!’
He turned the Chubb key and a piercing sound exploded into the air.
Jack jumped back, shocked.
The burglar alarm.
She hadn’t turned it off this morning.
The ear-splitting din filled his head, and he lifted his hands instinctively to cover his ears. At the same time he felt his mum grab the shoulder of his school shirt, pulling him back from the door. He jerked away from her.
‘No, Jack!’ she yelped.
His movement threw him off-balance. His body swung around in her grasp and veered sideways. He felt her try to grab him tighter to stop him falling, but he twisted loose out of her fingers.
Jack saw the hall radiator coming towards him out the corner of his eye. Before he could put out a hand, his forehead glanced off the side of it. It was sharp, and it hurt.
‘Oh my God – Jack!’
He landed on his knees, and stayed there for a second, jolted. He touched his forehead and felt something wet. There was blood on his finger.
The house alarm was squealing at full pitch now, stabbing inside his ears.
It all felt too much. All this blood and power and noise
Pow! Pow!
The power was exhilarating.
There was a loud sniff from his mother’s direction. He glowered, looking for his trainers. He didn’t care if she was upset. She never helped him. The truth was sometimes he felt a bit scared about the idea of walking to school on his own, but she should be making him feel better about it, not more worried. Helping him.
Jack saw his PE trainers by the stairs and grabbed them.
‘Jack. Please. You haven’t even done your teeth,’ she said. She was trying to say calm grown-up things in a voice that was all wobbly and confused and hurt.
As he took his blazer off the banister, he looked up and saw the stupid cage gate.
He was sick of it. Everyone feeling sorry for him. For his Dad. For having a weird mum, and now a stupid house.
He turned and scowled at Kate.
‘YOU go to London!’ he shouted, unbolting the door. ‘I’m not staying in this stupid house any more. I want to live with Nana. She said I could. I heard her. Nana’s kind.’ And, then, before he could stop himself, ‘AND, she lets me go to the shop on my own.’
He heard Kate gasp. ‘She WHAT?’
‘She LETS ME GO!’ he yelled defiantly. ‘EVERY Saturday at twelve o’clock when the baker in the village opens to get bread for lunch!’
His mum opened her mouth wide, eyes furious. ‘Bloody Nana,’ she spat. ‘How DARE she? I KNEW this had something to do with her. What else has she done? What has she said?’
He shook his head furiously. ‘It’s NOT Nana. It’s YOU. You’re . . . you’re . . . just the worst mother EVER! I just . . . HATE YOU!’
Turning to find the Chubb key for the lock, he saw his mother’s face. It looked as if it had dried on to her bones.
At that moment, the little boy realized with a strange curiosity that she was not in control after all. The power had always been his to take. He could blow her up whenever he wanted.
He turned and shoved the Chubb key in the lock and tried to turn it.
Behind him came a low moan. It sounded like the cat from across the back when it went into a coma in their garden.
He stopped.
He had seen her worried, seen her eyes furiously blinking back tears, but he had never heard that noise before. A picture came into his mind of that terrible earthquake he had watched with Granddad on the news, where everything was blown up and broken, and the people on the news said that nothing would ever be the same again.
A cramp tightened in his stomach so painfully that he bent over and grunted.
What had he done? He’d told her about Nana letting him go to the baker’s in the village. And now they’d fight about that, too.
To his shame, Jack felt tears coming into his own eyes. Desperately, he tried to grab the door knob and get out before she said anything else.
‘Jack!’ his mother gasped. ‘No!’
He turned the Chubb key and a piercing sound exploded into the air.
Jack jumped back, shocked.
The burglar alarm.
She hadn’t turned it off this morning.
The ear-splitting din filled his head, and he lifted his hands instinctively to cover his ears. At the same time he felt his mum grab the shoulder of his school shirt, pulling him back from the door. He jerked away from her.
‘No, Jack!’ she yelped.
His movement threw him off-balance. His body swung around in her grasp and veered sideways. He felt her try to grab him tighter to stop him falling, but he twisted loose out of her fingers.
Jack saw the hall radiator coming towards him out the corner of his eye. Before he could put out a hand, his forehead glanced off the side of it. It was sharp, and it hurt.
‘Oh my God – Jack!’
He landed on his knees, and stayed there for a second, jolted. He touched his forehead and felt something wet. There was blood on his finger.
The house alarm was squealing at full pitch now, stabbing inside his ears.
It all felt too much. All this blood and power and noise
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