Diana Wynne Jones by Black Maria

Author:Black Maria [Maria, Black]
Language: eng
Format: epub, mobi
Published: 2012-06-05T13:13:44+00:00

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Chapter Nine

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The Mrs Urs made me sick this afternoon. They sat in an anxious circle round Aunt Maria asking how she was after her terrible experience. They were all there, even Elaine. They all must know about Chris – I’m sure they do – but none of them seemed to care at all about his terrible experience. It was all Aunt Maria and had their dear Queen Bee been harmed. Mum is right about her being Queen Bee. The zombies are her drones. I suppose that makes the clones into bee-grubs waiting to hatch. I wonder if they are.

I sat thinking this with my chin in my chest, looking at all their pairs of legs as they sat – fat legs, skinny legs, legs with purple scaly patches, smart legs in nice tights and Mum’s legs in jeans. And mine in blue tights with wrinkles at the knees. Twenty-six legs, making thirteen of us, all female. As soon as I realised that, I wanted to go away.

‘You loog dired, dear,’ Zoe Green said to me. ‘You shouldn’t. Your star is in the assendand juzt dnow.’

‘I’m very well, thank you,’ I said. She looked at me in a puzzled way, wondering why I was being so icy-polite. I don’t think she realises.

Then Corinne West said, ‘Poor Phyllis Forbes sends her apologies. Something terrible seems to have happened at the Orphanage. That wolf came out of the woods and savaged one of those poor little children.’

I thought, oh no! Everyone else exclaimed a bit, then Aunt Maria said, ‘It was bound to happen, with a savage beast like that on the loose. Isn’t anybody doing anything about it?’

One of them said, ‘We should hold a Meeting about it.’

‘Yes,’ said Aunt Maria. ‘We should, dear. Elaine, see about it, dear. Get Larry to organise the men.’

‘Will do,’ Elaine said cheerily.

By that time I had had enough. I stood up and said, ‘I’m suffocating in here, Mum. Is it all right if I go out for a bit?’

Elaine looked at me suspiciously, but Aunt Maria said, ‘That’s right, dear. You look peaky. Go out and get some fresh air.’

The fresh air was full of little drops of rain, but I didn’t care. It was one of those times when it seems suddenly warmer outside then indoors. The rain gave the sea a gentler smell than usual. There was the gluey bud-smell in the air and even a smell of flowers. You couldn’t see the sea for the white mist of rain over it. I wandered about sniffing, thinking maybe Chris hadn’t had such a bad time in the woods if it was like this.

They arranged the Meeting about him while I was out. The reason I’m writing this now is that Aunt Maria has gone in her dead-fox and wheelchair procession to the town hall. I keep hoping Chris will have the sense to come here while they’re all discussing him. I don’t know what they’ll decide, but I know I must warn him.

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