The Dark Master of Dogs by Chris Ward

Author:Chris Ward [Ward, Chris]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: AMMFA Publishing
Published: 2019-04-21T16:00:00+00:00

21

Patrick

‘I can tell the two of you are sisters,’ Patrick said, trying to summon some amusement into his voice but finding none. Then, when Kelly looked up from where she sat in Suzanne’s arms and gave him a smile, he added, ‘I don’t think I’ve met two braver girls in my life.’

‘Try to tell me what happened,’ Suzanne said, stroking the hair out of Kelly’s face, while nodding at Patrick to fetch a wet cloth from the sink. ‘Take it slowly. Don’t worry, you’re safe now.’

‘They took Mum and Dad,’ Kelly said. ‘And they left that man behind.’

‘Who did? The Department of Civil Affairs?’

‘Yes. Five or six. When Mum saw the van pull up, she told me to wait in my room and stay quiet.’

‘Aren’t you supposed to be at school?’

‘They showed up while we were eating breakfast. Dad always drops me on the way.’

‘What happened next?’

‘I’m not sure. They were downstairs, talking to Mum and Dad. I heard some raised voices, Mum shouting that she didn’t know anything. A few loud thumps and I heard Dad cry out, so I think they were hitting him. Then the next thing I know the van’s leaving. I looked out of the window but I couldn’t see who was inside, so I went downstairs.’

‘And you saw the man left behind?’

Kelly wiped her eyes. ‘Not at first. I went into the living room and it was a bit messed up, a couple of chairs overturned, the TV pushed off its stand. I thought they’d gone, but he was in the kitchen, eating our leftover breakfast.’

‘He was probably left behind to wait for us,’ Patrick said, but Suzanne frowned at him to stay quiet.

‘What happened next?’ Suzanne said to Kelly. ‘After you saw the man?’

He looked shocked at first, then he got up and chased me. He was laughing and I think he meant to … I don’t know. The kitchen and the living room have that joining door and both connect to the hall, so I ran away from him. I knew if I went upstairs he’d corner me, so I went in through the living room and looped around. The second time I ran through the kitchen, I grabbed the knife Mum had been using to slice the bread.’

‘Couldn’t you get outside?’

‘I tried, but he caught me. He started tearing my T-shirt off, but he didn’t know I had the knife.’

‘And you stabbed him?’

Kelly’s eyes filled with tears. ‘Will I go to prison, Suzanne? He’s dead, isn’t he?’

‘He was a very bad man,’ Suzanne said. ‘You’re not allowed to attack little girls, so you were just defending yourself. You did the right thing.’

Kelly started to cry. Suzanne pulled her close, whispering to her, so Patrick left them to have a little time together and went to look around the house.

It was elegant and spacious, the very opposite of his own. More books than he’d ever seen in his life lined long shelves, and all manner of electrical items that required a permit lay sitting around.

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