Read Online The Blissfully Dead by Mark Edwards, Louise Voss - Free Book Online Page B
Authors: Mark Edwards, Louise Voss
Ads: Link
I’m full.’
‘Eat your broccoli first.’
Chloe had so known her mum would say that. It was as predictable as being told to put her iPhone outside the bedroom door every night at 10 p.m. She decided to wait until Brandon had left the table.
Her phone beeped with an incoming text and she snatched it out of her back pocket as Brandon gingerly poked a stem of broccoli into his mouth, making disgusted faces throughout.
‘No phones at dinner, Chloe!’ admonished her mother.
‘It’s urgent!’
‘I don’t care. Put it away.’
But Chloe had seen that the text wasn’t from Jess. She must have looked upset because her mum gave her a long searching look, and let Brandon get down without clearing his plate. He scampered off immediately with his Transformer, thumping up the stairs to his bedroom before she changed her mind again and made him sit there until the broccoli was cold and limp and even less appealing.
‘Everything all right, Rog?’
‘Don’t call me that!’
Her mum smiled. Chloe’s dad had a habit of adapting everyone’s names, so Chloe had, as a baby, become Chlo, which he had lengthened into Clodagh Rogers – who had apparently been some sort of ancient singer – and then shortened again to Rog. She hadn’t minded it when she was little, but now she loathed it.
‘Sorry. Is everything all right? You seem a bit on edge.’
Chloe swallowed hard, still undecided about whether or not to unleash this potential shit storm. Her mother pressed her advantage, knowing that it must be something major if Chloe hadn’t immediately bitten off her head and told her to mind her own business.
‘Are you still upset about that poor girl who was killed, honey? You know, I thought it was really sweet of you and Jessica to go to the vigil last night.’
At the sound of Jess’s name, Chloe knew she couldn’t dither anymore. Worst case scenario, Jess never spoke to her again – well, she could deal with that. There were plenty of other OnTarget fans she could hang out with and chat to. Jess didn’t go to her school, so she wouldn’t have to face her ire in person if she really got her into trouble. And sometimes she was a bit of a pain anyway.
‘It’s just that me and Jess were meant to meet up today and she didn’t turn up,’ she blurted. ‘And now I can’t get hold of her.’
‘You haven’t fallen out, have you?’
‘No. We did sort of have a fight – but, like, it wasn’t a real fight . . .’
Her mother looked thoughtful. Chloe knew that her mum didn’t much care for Jess. On the couple of occasions that Jess had been to her house, she hadn’t made much of an effort to be polite to her mum, and hadn’t even thanked her for the flapjacks that she had made specially for them one day when they’d come back to hang out in her room and watch the new OnTarget movie.
‘I wouldn’t normally be worried,’ Chloe said. ‘But after what happened to MissTargetHeart . . . Rose.’
‘Do you know her home phone number?’
‘Oh. Yeah, I do actually.’
‘Why don’t you call it, then?’
Chloe pulled a face, she was a bit scared of Jess’s mum. Jess’s mum was vague and a bit of a hippie, but not a mellow one – a sort of bitter, neurotic one who drank too much and didn’t tell Jess off when she said ‘fuck’ and ‘shit’.
Her mum smiled softly. ‘OK, I’ll do it.’
Chloe stood in the kitchen doorway, biting her thumbnail as she listened to her mum call Jess’s mum.
‘Hello? This is Rebecca Hedges, Chloe’s mum . . . No . . . Sorry, I think we’re talking at cross-purposes. Jess isn’t here.’
She looked across the hallway at Chloe and Chloe felt her heart drop into her stomach.
‘No, she hasn’t been here at all today. She told you she was coming here?’
As Chloe’s mum continued to talk to Mrs McMasters, Chloe sat on the bottom stair and hugged herself.
‘Please God,’ she whispered. ‘Please let Jess have gone off to meet a boy. Please don’t let it
‘Eat your broccoli first.’
Chloe had so known her mum would say that. It was as predictable as being told to put her iPhone outside the bedroom door every night at 10 p.m. She decided to wait until Brandon had left the table.
Her phone beeped with an incoming text and she snatched it out of her back pocket as Brandon gingerly poked a stem of broccoli into his mouth, making disgusted faces throughout.
‘No phones at dinner, Chloe!’ admonished her mother.
‘It’s urgent!’
‘I don’t care. Put it away.’
But Chloe had seen that the text wasn’t from Jess. She must have looked upset because her mum gave her a long searching look, and let Brandon get down without clearing his plate. He scampered off immediately with his Transformer, thumping up the stairs to his bedroom before she changed her mind again and made him sit there until the broccoli was cold and limp and even less appealing.
‘Everything all right, Rog?’
‘Don’t call me that!’
Her mum smiled. Chloe’s dad had a habit of adapting everyone’s names, so Chloe had, as a baby, become Chlo, which he had lengthened into Clodagh Rogers – who had apparently been some sort of ancient singer – and then shortened again to Rog. She hadn’t minded it when she was little, but now she loathed it.
‘Sorry. Is everything all right? You seem a bit on edge.’
Chloe swallowed hard, still undecided about whether or not to unleash this potential shit storm. Her mother pressed her advantage, knowing that it must be something major if Chloe hadn’t immediately bitten off her head and told her to mind her own business.
‘Are you still upset about that poor girl who was killed, honey? You know, I thought it was really sweet of you and Jessica to go to the vigil last night.’
At the sound of Jess’s name, Chloe knew she couldn’t dither anymore. Worst case scenario, Jess never spoke to her again – well, she could deal with that. There were plenty of other OnTarget fans she could hang out with and chat to. Jess didn’t go to her school, so she wouldn’t have to face her ire in person if she really got her into trouble. And sometimes she was a bit of a pain anyway.
‘It’s just that me and Jess were meant to meet up today and she didn’t turn up,’ she blurted. ‘And now I can’t get hold of her.’
‘You haven’t fallen out, have you?’
‘No. We did sort of have a fight – but, like, it wasn’t a real fight . . .’
Her mother looked thoughtful. Chloe knew that her mum didn’t much care for Jess. On the couple of occasions that Jess had been to her house, she hadn’t made much of an effort to be polite to her mum, and hadn’t even thanked her for the flapjacks that she had made specially for them one day when they’d come back to hang out in her room and watch the new OnTarget movie.
‘I wouldn’t normally be worried,’ Chloe said. ‘But after what happened to MissTargetHeart . . . Rose.’
‘Do you know her home phone number?’
‘Oh. Yeah, I do actually.’
‘Why don’t you call it, then?’
Chloe pulled a face, she was a bit scared of Jess’s mum. Jess’s mum was vague and a bit of a hippie, but not a mellow one – a sort of bitter, neurotic one who drank too much and didn’t tell Jess off when she said ‘fuck’ and ‘shit’.
Her mum smiled softly. ‘OK, I’ll do it.’
Chloe stood in the kitchen doorway, biting her thumbnail as she listened to her mum call Jess’s mum.
‘Hello? This is Rebecca Hedges, Chloe’s mum . . . No . . . Sorry, I think we’re talking at cross-purposes. Jess isn’t here.’
She looked across the hallway at Chloe and Chloe felt her heart drop into her stomach.
‘No, she hasn’t been here at all today. She told you she was coming here?’
As Chloe’s mum continued to talk to Mrs McMasters, Chloe sat on the bottom stair and hugged herself.
‘Please God,’ she whispered. ‘Please let Jess have gone off to meet a boy. Please don’t let it
Similar Books
