The Slay of the Land by Matilda Swift

Author:Matilda Swift [Swift, Matilda]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Matilda Swift
Published: 2019-10-08T16:00:00+00:00

20

Olly lived on the border between Heathervale and Grindleford. It wasn’t far to his house, but the hills, rivers, and train line all conspired to take Arrina and Julie on a scenic route to get there.

Arrina gripped her bag in her lap. It contained the CCTV tape that showed the events of that awful night. She would have to hand it over to the police when she took Olly in.

She thought very briefly about keeping it from the police. She could say that Olly had come to her—that he’d been too afraid to go to the police with the details of what he’d seen but that he’d told Arrina and she’d persuaded him to come in.

She couldn’t do that.

She couldn’t ask Olly to lie to the police. He was a good kid, and he deserved to get out of this mix-up as quickly and cleanly as possible.

Julie’s car zipped around a final corner and onto Olly’s road.

Outside his house was the unmistakable blue and white of a police car. Olly wasn’t getting out of this quickly and cleanly.

Julie slowed her car down as she drove along the narrow country lane.

Just then, the front door of Olly’s house opened. The boy with distinctive blue hair walked out with his hands behind his back. A police officer stepped out of the house next. It was Tony Mellor. His jaw was tightly clenched, and his eyes were watching every move that Olly made.

Arrina leapt from Julie’s car before it stopped completely. She ran towards Olly.

‘There’s been a mistake!’ Arrina shouted as she raced down the quiet street. Several curtains twitched in the cottages she passed, and one or two people even opened their front doors to get a better look. ‘Wait!’

Tony glanced down the road at her and frowned. He nudged Olly forwards, and the pair of them walked to the waiting police car.

‘You just need to watch this,’ Arrina said between gasping breaths as she reached them. She pulled the black VHS cassette from her bag and held it out to Tony. He ignored her and opened up the back door of his vehicle.

Olly looked over at Arrina. His eyes were red, and his lips were quivering. The kid was barely holding it together.

‘Don’t worry,’ Arrina said to him. ‘We’ll get this all straightened out.’

‘I didn’t do it,’ he said, his voice a hoarse whisper. A tear blinked over his eyelashes and landed on his cheek. He hunched up a shoulder to wipe it away.

Then Tony pushed down on the boy’s towering head and guided him into the back seat. Tony did not even acknowledge Arrina was there.

‘I’m telling you,’ Arrina said to him, ‘he didn’t do it.’ She held out the CCTV tape once again. ‘Just watch this, and you’ll see. He was there, but he left. He didn’t do anything to Hugo.’

Tony slammed the back door shut and stepped forward to open his own door. Arrina blocked his path. He stared past her and stood straight and unmoving, waiting for her to leave.

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