Arrow (Knife) by Anderson R. J

Author:Anderson, R. J. [Anderson, R. J.]
Language: eng
Format: mobi, epub
Published: 0101-01-01T00:00:00+00:00

www.discoverthetruth.co.uk

www.orchardbooks.co.uk

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ULTRAVIOLET…

zero (is translucent)

Once upon a time there was a girl

who was special. Her hair gleamed

like liquid honey and her eyes

were blue as music. She grew up

bright and beautiful, with clever

hands and a confidence that

impressed everyone she met. Her

parents adored her, her teachers

praised her, and her schoolmates

envied her many talents. Even the

oddly shaped birthmark on her

upper arm seemed like a sign of

some great destiny.

This is not her story.

Unless you count the part where

I killed her.

one (is red)

When I woke up this morning, I felt

like myself again. The fluorescent

lights didn’t freeze my skin. People

had voices, instead of barks and

roars. I washed my face, and

brushed the tangles out of my hair.

I felt good for a whole ten minutes,

and then I remembered.

Dear God, what have I done?

My first glimpse of Pine Hills came

through a lattice of evergreen

boughs and the orange haze of

migraine. The van bumped along the

forest road, loose stones popping

beneath its tires, while I pressed the

side of my face against the window

and breathed shallowly. Then

something pale flashed at the corner

of my vision, and I struggled upright

for a better look.

The whiteness turned out to be a

sign, with embossed letters that

shifted into rainbow hues as I

squinted at them: PINE HILLS

PSYCHIATRIC

TREATMENT

CENTRE. A line of complacently

looped

script

beneath

read

Bringing Hope to Youth in Crisis.

Beyond the sign, a cluster of

institutional buildings sidled into

view. At first they looked separate,

a

peak-roofed

longhouse

surrounded by cabins; but as we

drove closer I saw that they were

all connected, like a hydra in the

process of budding. In front of the

hospital the trees surrendered to

grass and asphalt, and behind it the

forest recoiled from a clearing

enclosed by chain-link fence. As the

van edged past I saw a girl pacing

around the courtyard, all skinny

limbs and hair like a splatter of ink,

talking and gesturing wildly with

her cigarette.

There was no one with her.

I put a hand to my forehead,

flinching as my handcuffs clinked

and starbursts filled my vision. This

was not happening to me. I didn’t

belong here. I wanted to hurl myself

at the driver, rattle the bars between

us and cry, There’s been a mistake,

you don’t understand, take me

home.

But that would only make me

look every bit as crazy as everyone

thought I was. So I squeezed the

panic down inside me, forced the

lid back on and snapped it tight.

Calm, Alison. Whatever happens

from now on, you have to stay

calm.

The van slowed to a stop, and the

side door rumbled open. Humid,

pine-flavoured air washed over me,

to the tune of droning cicadas and

the liquid burble of a chickadee. I

stepped out into the grip of my

police escort, who marched me

across the asphalt to a door at the

side of the building. It growled

open at our approach, and closed

behind us with a steely click.

As the officer took out his key

and fumbled with the cuffs on my

wrists I looked around, shivering a

little in the air-conditioned chill. At

first glance the room looked like a

dentist’s

office,

with

plaque-

coloured walls and wintergreen

furniture. But the sofa bled stuffing

from a gash in its side, while the

chairs and table looked as though

they’d been flung across the room at

least once before anyone thought to

bolt them to the floor. The wall

beside the reception desk had a dent

in it the shape of a size twelve

running shoe.

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