The Former World Read online

  I scanned the rest of the club, which was slowly filling up as it got nearer to 11 p.m., looking for anyone I knew (or didn’t know in the case of the new resident). I noticed a few kids that I thought were still in high school and wondered how they’d got past the bouncers; I’d never managed to sneak into The Pit before I was legal. Apart from that, it was the usual crowd of misfits from Little Forest and the other towns and villages in Covershire County.

  Veronica raised her voice from beside me. “Oh I don’t know, Will… how about excitement? Opportunity? Better jobs? Meeting new people? Not rotting away here for the next sixty years?”

  I rolled my eyes at Rach, who’d looked up at the rising sound of Veronica’s indignation. She smiled at me and went back to talking to Max; she had no problem getting words out of him, at least.

  I was just about to turn back to Veronica and tell her to keep it down when I noticed a bright white shape hiding behind all the shimmering colours of people on the dance floor. I couldn’t tell what it was so I shifted my position to try and see past the crowd - it seemed to be the shape of a person, but it must have been a pretty short person.

  The group of under-age students suddenly moved en masse towards the DJ booth, uncovering the strange white form. It was a child.

  My first reaction was to laugh; how the hell did she manage to get in here? Sixteen-year-olds were one thing, but there was no way the bouncers would have missed someone who looked under five. I was about to turn and point this out to V when the girl looked straight at me.

  Her head cocked to one side and she suddenly stopped moving her tiny hand which had previously been next to her mouth, twirling her long blonde hair around her fingers. I wasn’t really a child person in general, but there was something about this girl, something about the glow of her skin and the sadness in her eyes, that made it hard to look away; no, impossible to look away. The girl was still staring at me but she seemed uncertain, and I watched as she silently raised her hand and held it up in a stationary salute.

  “Beth?”

  A hand suddenly appeared in front of my face and I lost my focus. It was V.

  “Finished staring into space?”

  I glanced at Veronica, who’d obviously got bored of fighting with Will. They were both staring at me, looking vaguely amused. “What?”

  “I think someone needs another drink.” I heard Veronica talking to Fred as I looked back at the girl. She was no longer staring at me but was now looking at everyone else in front of her with the same curious, wide eyes.

  I turned to the bar. “Freddie?”

  He answered without looking up from pouring the vodka. “Yeah?”

  “Do you realise you’ve got an extremely under-age girl in the club?”

  He stopped pouring at once. “Have I served her?” His eyes flickered to everyone who was in the vicinity of the bar. “My boss will kill me!”

  I laughed, deciding not to mention the high school kids. “Doubtful, she looks about four.”

  Fred raised his eyebrows. “Four?”

  I nodded and pointed at the dance floor. “She’s…” I turned to the space to find it empty. “Oh, well she was just over there by the speakers.”

  Fred shook his head. “Will one of you mind the bar for a second?” And with that he ran towards the dance floor without finishing our drinks.

  “There was a four year old in here? Never seen that before.” Veronica looked sceptical as she moved to go behind the bar.

  I nodded and turned away from her, watching as Fred dashed frantically around the club. I saw a blur of white appear just outside the women’s toilet doors and then it was gone.

  I thought about calling over to Fred but he was too far away. “I’ll be right back, guys.”

  I walked over to the toilets before anyone could ask where I was going.

  ***

  The toilets at The Pit were almost nicer than the actual bar; the walls were painted a deep crimson and the old-fashioned oval mirrors were draped in luxurious red and gold fabric. Each sink was an individual marble bowl with Victorian style gold taps, and at one end of the room was a dark purple chaise longue. The whole room was also large and spacious; a definite must for someone with acute claustrophobia (like me).

  I couldn’t see anyone from the doorway so I moved inside and stood in front of the four cubicle doors. They were all closed but none of them were locked, and I quickly crouched down onto the black tiled floor to peer underneath. There was no sign of life under the first three doors, but as I looked at the fourth one, I could see the girl’s ankle and tiny shoe as she lifted her foot out of sight. I walked over to the last cubicle as quietly as I could and held my breath as I listened for any sign of movement inside.

  After a few seconds of hearing nothing, I hesitantly spoke into the silent bathroom. “Are you OK?”

  A few more seconds passed. There was no response. I looked down at the small ‘vacant’ square of green on the silver lock and slowly started to push the door open.

  ***

  “What are you doing?”

  I jumped at the sudden sound and looked round to see Emma Harris standing in the main doorway, staring at me with distaste.

  I worked with Emma at the Little Forest Picture House but we’d never really been friends. She was the type of girl whom I’d been intimidated by at high school, and to tell the truth, I still was; she had gorgeous long, blonde hair, startling blue eyes, and perfect rosey skin. She was currently wearing a clingy red dress that showed off both her cleavage and her long, slim legs, but without looking cheap. She looked like she belonged on a New York catwalk.

  “Oh, hi Emma.”

  “Are you spying on someone?” Her speech was slightly slurred and her usual twinkly eyes were dull.

  I looked at the empty cubicle in front of me again and closed the door. “No, no one here…” I trailed off, not knowing how to finish the sentence.

  “Right.” Emma nodded, not seeming too suspicious of my explanation, and tottered over to the sinks.

  I looked at her heels, wishing I could get away with wearing some that high, and joined her in front of the mirrors. I glanced back at the cubicle door and tried to push away the image of the lost look on the little girl’s face.

  “So, how are you, Emma?”

  She stopped with her lipstick halfway to her mouth and tried to focus on my reflection in the mirror. “I’m alright… John dragged me here. We usually go into Willowton on Fridays but he wanted a change.”

  I smiled, nodding. Emma wasn’t exactly the type to hang around rock clubs, and she seemed to have decided to drink the night away just to get through it.

  Her boyfriend, however, definitely was the type to hang out at The Pit. He looked like a full on rock star and together they looked like a famous couple waiting to happen. He worked with Veronica at the Stars & Stripes Diner and I’m pretty sure a lot of the female customers only went there to stare at him as he went about his work.

  She started slurring again. “I swear to… to…”

  “God?”

  “Yes!”

  Oh Jesus.

  “I swear to God, all that boy cares about is…” she trailed off, her eyes glazing over slightly.

  “Emma?”

  She looked at me suddenly, as if remembering I was there. “Beth!” Her glazed eyes slipped down to look at my chest, and it took me a moment to realise why; V had made me wear a tacky ‘21st’ badge. It was huge and bright pink.

  “Oh, it’s your birthday? I thought John said Veronica…”

  I cut off her slow drawl, worried I’d be stuck talking to her all night. “Yeah, it was hers yesterday. Mine today.” I’d had to explain this a lot over the years.

  “Wow, that’s… weird. Really?”

  I groaned inwardly. I was done being nice to someone that drunk. “Well I’ll see you later, have a good one!”

  Emma nodded and waved vaguely. I turned to leave the toilets as she was staring at herself in the mirror, obviously tryin
g to focus on her own reflection.

  “Beth?”

  I stopped walking towards the door, sighed, and turned round reluctantly. “Yep?”

  She was staring at me, either trying to think of the right words to say, or trying to decide on something.

  Instead she smiled vaguely, shaking her head. “No matter, see you at work.”

  I smiled back as convincingly as I could. “Sure. Be grateful you’re not in tomorrow, if Hannah appears she’s going to kill me for being hung over.”

  Emma laughed. It was a loud, raucous, drunken laugh that completely detracted from her attractiveness. “I’ve got a plan for dealing with Hannah.” She pressed her finger to her nose and winked conspiratorially. “Tell you Monday.”

  I nodded, smiling again. Our boss, Hannah Green, was pretty much completely evil, and I couldn’t think of any plan that would ‘deal’ with her without it resulting in her spectacularly kicking our arses. I knew as soon as Emma got sober she’d either forget our conversation, or pretend she had. “I’ll see you next week.”

  I turned back to the mirror and saw in the reflection that Emma was still staring at me, squinting slightly. I could feel my flesh crawl as she tried to focus on my back; my scar wouldn’t have been visible in the darkness of the club, but in here, with these unflattering lights, I hated to think how much of it was on show.

  After a couple of seconds, Emma shook her head and headed out of the bathroom, leaving me sighing in relief and trying not to think back to a certain trip to Edinburgh.

  When I got back into the main club I searched the dance floor for the girl again, just in case, but of course she wasn’t there. I looked over at Freddie behind the bar as he caught my eye, shrugged, and went back to serving drinks.

  Another drink was exactly what I needed.

  ***

  The night continued like any other; there were the same old tunes, the same old stories, the same old faces. There weren’t, however, any more new ones. As far as the child in white went, I was glad she hadn’t appeared again. The lack of the young Irish man, though, was disappointing, and I started to think I may never meet the new Little Forest resident.

  At one point I realised I had a headache from the loud music and started feeling officially old. I said this to Veronica but she just laughed at me for being ridiculous and handed me another drink. Well, it was my birthday…

  We left around one o’clock, and in an attempt to sober up, headed to the Diner. It was also located on Main Street, the other side of the street to The Pit but the same side as the Little Forest Picture House where I earned my much-needed cash.

  I was following V and the others across the road when I heard a faint noise coming from round the corner of The Pit; it sounded like someone crying. The others were all talking and laughing together and I slipped away down the side of the building unnoticed.

  There was a woman curled against the rough brick, crying with her hand over her mouth. I gradually moved nearer, not wanting to scare her, and asked hesitantly, for the second time that night, “Are you OK?”

  There was no response from the woman, who continued sobbing into her hand. I walked closer to her, and from the slight glow coming off one of the street lamps on Main Street, I caught a glimpse of red in the darkness. “Emma?”

  Again there was no response and I wondered if I was talking too quietly for her to hear me.

  V was now calling my name from around the corner, but the sound was faint and unimportant in my mind.

  All I could focus on was Emma. She was shaking badly, but whether this was from fear or just the cold, I couldn’t tell. Her crying sobs were shrill but stunted, like she was desperately trying to stop making so much noise.

  I started walking nearer, slowly at first, not wanting to scare her away. Then I kneeled down until I was at a similar height to her hunched over form. “Emma?”

  This time she looked up, but not at my face. She was staring just to the side of me and I wondered how many more drinks she’d knocked back since I’d seen her in the bathroom. She had a smear of dirt along one cheek and her hair was matted and frizzy; not her usual sleek self at all. Where on earth had the dirt on her face come from?

  I was just about to ask her where John was when she backed away abruptly, clinging onto the wall for support. “What are you doing?” The same question as earlier, but this one was full of shock, worry, fear.

  Her shout was so piercing that I instinctively stood up and stepped back myself, vaguely wondering if the rumours of her doing drugs were true. I stood there in silence, not knowing what to say. Not knowing where to look.

  I lowered my gaze from her face and stared at her dress; the vibrant red was now dull and I realised that the previously bright fabric was also covered in dirt. The side seam had split and some of the scarlet material had been torn away, as if she’d snagged it on something. I was trying to make sense of this when she suddenly screamed, “Get away from me, you freak!” and ran off into the darkness, away from the bright lights of Main Street.

  I stood frozen to the spot, shocked by her behaviour and sudden movement, and torn between running after her and minding my own business.

  I decided I’d had enough weirdness for one night.

  ***

  “Beth, where were you?”

  I’d walked back to Main Street to find Veronica and everyone else waiting for me, huddled under a street lamp on the pavement. “Sorry guys, I just heard someone crying round the corner. It was Emma, she was really messed up.”

  Will started walking towards the Diner. “Messed up?”

  “Yeah, like really out of it. I don’t know if she was on drugs or what, but she ran away from me.”

  V laughed, following Will. “Wouldn’t surprise me; no one’s that perfect.”

  Veronica had never hidden her dislike of Emma. I secretly thought she was in love with John and just jealous of Emma, but she’d never admit it to me. She told me pretty much everything, but Veronica loved maintaining the illusion that she was totally independent and that nothing, and no one, could touch her. I’d never completely believed that.

  The Couple walked past and Rach smiled at me, gesturing to the Diner. “I’m sure she’ll be fine. Can we go inside now?”

  I nodded, needing to get into the warmth.

  The bright fluorescent lights of the Diner brought my headache back in an instant. There were only a couple of customers in there, including serial dater Sally Smith and her latest squeeze, who were sitting at the bar area drinking beers. I smiled at her to be friendly and then went to sit at our usual booth next to the jukebox in the corner. The others followed.

  The Diner had been a complete novelty when it opened in the village a few years ago; it had appeared at the same time as The Pit and the Picture House, and had pretty much made Little Forest ‘cool’ overnight. Most of our pubs and cafés were old-fashioned, country bumpkin type places where the older generations felt safe and comfortable. The Stars & Stripes was new, modern, and more importantly, American. It was themed like all those Diners we saw on movies and US TV shows, and it was about the most exotic place to appear in Little Forest and any of the surrounding villages. I realise how pathetic that sounds, but people around here really don’t get out much.

  The colour scheme of the Diner consisted of black and white tiled floors, red seats, stainless steel tables, and multi-coloured walls that were crammed full of 1950s and ‘60s American road signs, photos and posters. I usually found the décor in here fascinating (especially compared to the dark blue walls of my place of work), but now it just made my head pound even more.

  Justin Hanks, a tall, gangly guy with lots of spots and a dodgy haircut - which was threatening to become a mullet - came over to serve us, but Veronica stopped him before he’d even handed out the menus. “We’ll just have the usual coffees, thanks Just.”

  He smiled his tolerant end-of-the-night smile and nodded, possibly grating his teeth behind his forced grin. “Sure thing.”

 
My body shuddered at the thought of the coffee; I usually hated the stuff and only drank it in an attempt to sober up. When it came to hot drinks I was English through and through - give me a nice cup of tea any day.

  I was staring at the jukebox and trying to decide what to put on when Rach poked me in the arm. “Are you OK? Are you worried about Emma?”

  V spoke for me before I could open my mouth; she had an extremely annoying habit of doing that. “She’s probably disappointed that Mr Maguire wasn’t at The Pit tonight.” She winked at Rach and delivered her throaty giggle that I always thought of as her unnecessarily dirty laugh.

  Rach furrowed her eyebrows, twisting up her angelic face. “Connor? Of course he wouldn’t be there, he works Friday nights.”

  I looked at Veronica in surprise before turning back to Rach. “How do you know that?” I demanded, a little more loudly than I’d intended.

  She just shrugged her shoulders. “He told me.”

  “Rach!” V yelled, waking up Max who’d been slumped against Will, much to Will’s discomfort. “You’ve met him?”

  Justin came over with our coffees and handed them out while V literally bounced in her seat in anticipation of Rach’s answer. He frowned at Veronica and left without saying a word.

  “Of course,” Rach answered, looking smug. “He’s signed up to my book club.”

  I exchanged a disbelieving look with V and tried to stop myself from laughing. Rach was extremely proud of her ‘book club’, which before now had consisted solely of her and the local primary school head teacher, Daniel Fields.

  Will laughed, shirking Max off at the same time. “Well, that’s good. People were beginning to talk, what with you just hanging out with a middle aged man all the time.”

  Rach ignored him. “Connor saw my notice in the post office and turned up at my house on Tuesday for our weekly meeting. He just got a job at Cocktail, tonight was his first night-”

  Veronica jumped in before Rach had even finished her sentence. “What’s he like? Is he nice?” Then she shook her head almost violently. “More importantly, what does he look like?”

  Will shook his head too and mumbled under his breath. I think I caught something about ‘typical woman’.

  Rach seemed to really think about this, and although I wouldn’t admit it, I was just as impatient as Veronica to hear what she had to say. “He’s… nice, yeah. Quiet, I didn’t get much out of him, he seems a bit of a loner. But not in a lame way.”