Charley Chambers

by Rachel Kennedy

  ‘Oh, I see,’ Tabitha said impassively, and Aiden raised his eyebrows in surprise, mouthing, ‘Well done’, to Charley when his mother wasn’t looking. ‘You might as well stay for this, Charley, as I’m sure you were aware of my niece’s unexpected arrival before I was.’

  ‘Charley was the first one to see her,’ Quinn blabbed, and Charley sent daggers her way.

  ‘Oh, she was, was she?’

  ‘Yeah,’ Charley said quietly, her head held low, ‘Dru met me on my way home when I was, well . . .’

  ‘Playing with fire?’ Dru smirked, and Tabby frowned.

  ‘What are you talking about?’

  ‘Nothing, Aunt Tabitha.’

  ‘Aiden, why did you keep this from me?’

  ‘She only got here last night, Mum. You were still out and I was tired, so I went to bed. I told Dru to bunk with Quinn and said we’d sort it in the morning.’

  ‘That wasn’t your decision to make.’

  ‘You weren’t here,’ he snapped.

  ‘You could have called me.’

  ‘Next time, I will. Anyway, what’s the big deal? It’s only Dru.’

  Tabby ignored his question.

  ‘What happened to my windows?’ she asked suspiciously, looking from her son to Charley and lastly to her nieces.

  Quinn and Dru had tried to fix them after Aiden had lost his temper and smashed them into a thousand pieces, but they knew Tabitha would probably still be able to tell the difference. Whether it was the finish of the glass that gave it away, the joint where ledge met window or the glazing of the frame, one way or another Tabitha was bound to notice. She always did, and this time was no different.

  ‘Your windows are fine,’ Aiden huffed, suddenly grumpy as he remembered the reason why he’d smashed them in the first place.

  ‘They are not fine,’ Tabitha protested. ‘What happened? Did you break them on purpose or did you just explode again?’

  ‘Leave it, Mum. They’re fixed now, aren’t they?’

  ‘Thanks to your cousins.’

  ‘Are we done here?’ he asked. ‘I need to walk Chambers home.’

  ‘I’ll be all right,’ Charley started to say, but Aiden nudged her to be quiet.

  ‘Shut up,’ he whispered. ‘I need an excuse to get out of here.’

  ‘I heard that,’ Tabitha frowned. ‘Take her home. We’ll speak more about this later.’

  Aiden didn’t wait around, immediately elbowing Charley towards the door. Tabitha stormed up the stairs, telling Fergus that she didn’t want to be disturbed, and Dru grabbed Quinn’s hand, tugging her sister out the door.

  Charley slowed to a halt round the corner from her house and turned to kiss Aiden goodbye.

  ‘You’d better not come any further or my mum might start asking questions.’

  ‘Call me later?’ he said, gently stroking her cheek with the back of his hand, making it awfully hard for her to leave him.

  ‘Of course. Good luck with, well, everything.’

  ‘I’ll be sure to fill you in,’ he sighed, but then smirked as Charley wrapped her arms around his neck, giving him a final kiss.

  She took off round the corner, disappearing out of sight. ‘Last night was wonderful!’ she shouted, and although Aiden couldn’t see her, he couldn’t help but smile.

  ‘Yes it was,’ he replied, turning and walking back the way they’d come.

  Charley burst through the front door, her heart pounding at the risk of being found out. She hadn’t planned to lie to her parents, but she didn’t regret it either; sleeping in Aiden’s arms all night was the best thing she’d ever done. It was the best she’d ever felt. Even being away from him now hurt, though it had only been for a minute.

  ‘I’m home!’ she yelled, kicking her shoes off and leaving them in a heap in the hall. ‘Mum?’

  ‘Charley, we’re through here. Quickly!’

  Charley raced through to the living room to find Jess on the floor, her face turning purple. She was writhing in pain, her mother crouched over her in floods of tears.

  ‘I don’t know what to do, Charley. I don’t know what’s wrong with her.’

  ‘What happened? Where’s Dad?’

  ‘At the supermarket. He left an hour ago but I can’t get him on the phone.’

  ‘How long has she been like this? Did you call an ambulance?’

  ‘Yes, they’re on their way. It only started about ten minutes ago. She just collapsed, said she couldn’t breathe. Oh, Charley, she’s been clawing at her throat like . . . look! She’s doing it again.’

  Charley bent down beside Jess and laid a hand on her forehead. ‘Jess, it’s me. It’s Charley. Can you hear me?’

  ‘Get away from me!’ Jess screamed, lashing out, her fingernails scratching Charley’s arm. ‘Don’t touch me! Go, get out!’

  ‘What’s wrong with her?’ Linda sobbed, her heart breaking as she watched her little girl twisting and crying in agony.

  ‘I don’t know . . .’

  ‘Ahh!’ Jess bellowed, her hands now clawing at her chest. ‘Get it out of me!’

  ‘Get what out?’ Linda bawled. ‘Baby, talk to me.’

  ‘Jess, tell us what hurts.’

  Three loud bangs sounded on the door, and suddenly there was someone else in the room.

  ‘Jess?’

  Charley’s head whipped round, her expression one of disgust. ‘What the hell are you doing here?’

  ‘I came by to apologise. Jess came to see me earlier and I . . . I think I upset her.’

  ‘Why would Jess visit you?’ Charley snarled, but Marcus just shrugged in response.

  ‘Your guess is as good as mine. What’s wrong with her?’

  ‘I don’t know, now get out.’

  He didn’t listen, instead shoving Charley aside and kneeling down next to Jess.

  ‘Listen, kiddo, it’s going to be okay. I need you to breathe. I know that seems impossible, but I’m going to help you, all right? Now, take my hand and count to ten.’

  Jess tried, the first few numbers coming out in a hoarse growl. By the time she got to five, her breathing was steadying, and by eight she sounded almost normal again.

  ‘Nine, ten,’ she gasped.

  ‘That’s it. Well done, trouble.’

  ‘How did you . . .?’ Jess stammered, but Marcus put a finger to her lips, which were slowly regaining their colour.

  ‘Try to rest for a moment. I’m sure your mum can take it from here.’ He got up and nodded to Linda, who was staring at Jess in disbelief.

  ‘How did . . . what did you do?’

  ‘Just kept her calm, Mrs Chambers, nothing more. I’ll call back later to check she’s okay.’

  He walked from the room, closing the door as he went, but it was quickly yanked back open by Charley who came racing down the path after him.

  ‘How did you know?’ she demanded in an accusatory tone. ‘How did you know what was wrong with her?’

  ‘I didn’t. I told you, I only wanted to apologise,’ Marcus said, still walking.

  ‘Bullshit. You don’t apologise for anything.’

  ‘Is there something else I should feel bad about?’ he smirked, turning so Charley could see only half of his face.

  ‘Bashing me up in an alley, you could say sorry for that. But why would you? You don’t feel guilty. You don’t feel anything.’

  ‘I would say sorry for that, Charley, but I don’t think you really want me to. See, I think deep down you enjoyed it.’ Charley screwed her face up and Marcus spun round so he was now right in front of her. ‘That’s it, pull faces, make jokes. I’m not playing though, not this time. You want me to say I don’t feel guilty? Easy, I don’t. But do not turn round and say I don’t feel anything, because that couldn’t be further from the truth. I feel everything, Charley. Everything you feel. Love, longing, desire – a thirst for something I shouldn’t be craving. Someone.’

  ‘Stop it . . .’

  ‘See, you say that. But they’re just words. If you mea
nt them, I’d be gone by now.’

  ‘How did you heal Jess?’

  ‘Magic.’

  ‘Why can’t I do that? Why did it have to be you who helped her?’

  Marcus sighed. ‘Because it’s black magic. You don’t want to have the powers that I have, trust me.’

  Charley squinted as the sun caught her eyes.

  ‘Tell Jess I hope she feels better soon.’

  He started walking again, and this time Charley didn’t stop him. She just stood, watching.

  Ever since Quinn had been small, she’d wanted to hold a star.

  ‘Why?’ Dru had asked.

  ‘I don’t know,’ she’d answered. She was a child. Children were allowed to have impractical dreams.

  Her mother had scolded her. ‘You mustn’t wish things like that, Quinnie.’

  ‘Why? You said that we’re magical. Can’t magic people do anything?’

  ‘No, Quinn. Magicians should never use their magic for personal gain.’

  She hadn’t really understood what her mother was telling her; she’d only been four after all. But she’d never asked to hold a star again, although she thought about it all the time.

  Today though, she had more important things on her mind: demons, curses, and the most terrifying of all, Dru.

  ‘Are you planning on telling me where we’re going?’ Quinn asked, as Dru led her up a grassy hill.

  ‘We’re nearly there, I promise.’

  Dru stopped when they reached the hill’s summit and Quinn looked around, unimpressed.

  ‘And you brought me here because . . .’

  ‘Sit down.’

  ‘Why?’

  ‘Quinn, just sit down, please. And close your eyes.’

  Quinn sighed and did as Dru asked, sitting on the grass with her eyes firmly closed. Everything was already dark, yet somehow it seemed to get darker still.

  ‘Dru, what’s going on?’

  ‘I think that’ll do. You can open your eyes now.’

  Quinn did, and she gasped at what she saw before her. The sky was black, a giant sheet speckled with tiny glistening dots.

  ‘I don’t understand,’ Quinn uttered. ‘You made it night?’

  ‘Yep.’

  ‘But we can’t, people will see. How will we explain–?’

  ‘It’s only night for us,’ said Dru, taking a seat beside her sister.

  ‘Dru, what’s all this for?’

  ‘To say sorry. I know I haven’t been a very good sister.’

  ‘Yes you have . . .’

  ‘I’ve been awful, Quinn, let’s not sugar-coat it. But I do want to try and make it up to you. I owe you that much, at least.’

  ‘You don’t owe me anything. You saved me before you were even born. How could I possibly ask for anything else?’

  ‘You’re not asking, I’m giving.’

  Dru stretched her arm out in front of Quinn and slowly uncurled her fingers, revealing a round, shiny object the size of a marble.

  ‘Is that a . . . ?’

  ‘Yep, Quinnie, it’s a star.’

  ‘How did you . . . ? We aren’t meant to–’

  ‘I didn’t do it for me. This is for you. It’s what you’ve always wanted, isn’t it?’

  ‘For as long as I can remember.’

  ‘Go on then, take it.’

  Quinn reached out and took the star.

  ‘How does it feel?’ Dru asked, smiling at the joy plastered across her sister’s face.

  ‘Incredible,’ Quinn breathed, ‘I’ve never felt anything like it.’

  ‘Wait ‘til you feel this then,’ Dru said, and she laid her hands over the top of the star.

  Immediately, Quinn felt what she was talking about. It was like a surge of energy, buzzing through her body like electricity.

  ‘What is that?’ Quinn asked, staring into Dru’s eyes – a mirror of her own.

  ‘That’s us. That’s who we are.’

  ‘It’s so strong . . .’

  ‘It’s power, our power. We were always meant to be a part of each other. I didn’t know it until . . . well, that doesn’t matter.’

  Quinn frowned. ‘What doesn’t matter?’

  ‘Never mind. It may have taken me a while, but I finally realise the point in all this. Apart, Quinn, we’re powerful, but together we’re unstoppable.’

  ‘Where’s all this coming from, Dru? You’re worrying me.’

  ‘Just something I did, or rather, didn’t do. It made me look at things differently.’

  Quinn gazed at her sister, the star still firmly in her grasp. ‘Think we can take on a demon, then?’

  Dru smiled. ‘Let’s find out, shall we?’

  Today, the hospital smelled like body odour, Charley decided. Body odour and dirty hair. She’d spent far too much time in the building of late, what with Abbie, her gran and now Jess.

  ‘I think I need a holiday from this place,’ she said quietly as she pushed the door open.

  ‘You need a holiday? I’ll crack the jokes around here.’

  Charley smiled at her friend’s familiar sense of humour. She’d missed it.

  ‘How you doing, Abbs?’

  ‘Me? I’m splendid. The days just fly by in here. More to the point, how are you?’

  ‘I’m getting there,’ Charley smiled, giving her friend a hug and perching herself on the end of the bed. ‘I’m sorry I haven’t been in to see you. I was going to come down and visit last time when . . . well, you know. Everything was so sudden.’

  ‘Charles, I’m so sorry about your gran. I couldn’t believe it when I heard. I wanted to come to the funeral but–’

  ‘Don’t be silly. I just want you better. Have the doctors said anything new?’

  Abbie couldn’t help but smile. ‘I’m going home, Charles. They’re letting me out.’

  ‘No way? That’s fantastic!’

  ‘Yep. They said I’ll need to use a wheelchair for a while, but it shouldn’t be for too long. I just can’t wait to get back to my own bed. My room, my things . . . I never want to see the inside of this hospital again.’

  ‘I know the feeling,’ Charley said quietly, and then looked up quickly. ‘Sorry, it’s just been . . . difficult.’

  ‘Don’t you dare apologise. You’ve no idea how much I hated not being able to support you.’

  Charley smiled, although her eyes still seemed sad. Abbie took her friend’s hand gently in hers.

  ‘So, what made you come see me today? Having a day off from the supernatural detective agency?’

  ‘Not really, no. Jess had some sort of seizure again. She’s in getting checked over.’

  ‘Oh my God, is she okay?’

  ‘Don’t know, to be honest. I’ve never seen anything like it. It was Marcus who ended up saving the day.’

  Abbie frowned. ‘Marcus? Any more info on him?’

  ‘God, we haven’t talked for a while,’ Charley said, rolling her eyes.

  It took her a while to fill Abbie in. She told her about the fight with Marcus, Quinn’s arrival and Dru’s unexpected appearance. She spoke about her gran’s death and what had happened at the boathouse afterwards. She talked a lot about Jess: her mood swings, her weird behaviour, her crazy panic attacks, or whatever they were. Before she knew it the nurse was poking her head round the door, telling Charley that she would have to leave.

  ‘I won’t be much longer,’ she said, her eyes pleading.

  The woman nodded, deciding to give Abbie a little longer with her friend. ‘Jeez, Charles, I don’t know what to say. Things sound . . . hectic.’

  ‘I know. They are a little crazy.’

  ‘And Marcus still hasn’t talked about the nost yet? He hasn’t said who it’s for?’

  ‘Nope, just said it’s no one I need concern myself with, whatever
that means.’

  ‘God, what a loser,’ Abbie scoffed. ‘I still can’t believe he attacked you.’

  ‘I took care of it,’ said Charley. ‘Besides, he did save Jess. Maybe he isn’t–’

  ‘Don’t say it, Charley, don’t you dare say he’s not all bad.’

  ‘I didn’t–’

  ‘You have a beautiful blue-eyed boy at home who loves you to pieces. Don’t go ruining that for some devilishly handsome demon who beats up girls and kills people for fun.’

  ‘Will people please stop saying that? I am not interested in Marcus, and it was you who said he was handsome, not me. I just don’t know . . . maybe he had a good reason to make the nost. What if it was for someone bad, someone who deserved it?’

  ‘Even if it was for some scumbag, do they really deserve to die? Marcus is still a murderer, or he will be, no matter what way you look at it.’

  Charley sighed.

  ‘You’re always trying to see the good in people, even when there’s no good to see. Whether he’s all bad or not, I’m still going to smash his skull in for hurting my best friend. I swear, the minute I’m out of here–’

  ‘You’re gonna what? Roll right up to him and clobber him from your chair?’

  Abbie shrugged. ‘Something like that, yeah.’

  After leaving Abbie and visiting Jess once more, Charley left the hospital feeling slightly deflated. She wasn’t sure why, she just felt flat, as if someone had stolen the good mood she’d woken with earlier.

  She called Aiden, but he wasn’t free to talk. Her mother had asked her not to leave the hospital, but Charley couldn’t bear it; she couldn’t stand seeing Jess like that: weak, feeble, frail. Jess was in such a vulnerable position and Charley, an incredibly powerful magician, felt completely helpless for the first time in ages. She had all this power, yet she couldn’t even help her own sister.

  Just like you couldn’t save your gran.

  ‘Quiet,’ Charley growled, trying to clear her head. She didn’t want to think about Jess. She didn’t want to think, full stop.

  She walked through the streets of Newford until she reached the outskirts, where large fields were all she could see for miles. Then she let go. She let the magic pour out of her fingertips in the form of fireworks, a sparkling storm of colour which was barely visible in the daytime sky. But the relief she felt was enormous, her muscles relaxing as her fingers flickered, sending bright flashes dancing towards the clouds.