Sara Foster - Beneath the Shadows

‘Grace, talk to me,’ Ben insisted, alarm plain on his face. ‘I don’t understand – why are you so worried about Millie? She’ll be fine, I promise – I know my family can be difficult, but I wouldn’t have left her there if she was in danger.’

‘I know you wouldn’t,’ Grace said hastily as the car pulled onto the gravel drive. ‘I have to get Millie back first, and then I’ll explain.’ She opened the door before he’d even stopped, leapt out and ran towards the house.

As she neared the front door, she saw there weren’t many lights on. She nearly barged right in, but at the last minute something told her to play it a little cooler, at least until she had Millie in her arms.

Ben came up behind her as she knocked. ‘Grace, what the hell -’

The door opened and Claire stood there. She looked worried. ‘Grace – are you all right? Ben told us you got stuck.’

‘Yes, thanks, I’ve come for Millie.’ Grace was trying to act normally but she could tell it wasn’t working. Her voice was strange – high-pitched and too rushed.

‘Right,’ Claire said. ‘She’s in the dining room, with Jenny.’

Headlights illuminated them all as another car roared onto the gravel. Grace looked to see Meredith climbing out of her four-wheel drive, and for once her face was a true picture of uncertainty. ‘Grace – I saw your car up there. Has something happened?’

‘I’m here for Millie,’ Grace said. She turned back to Claire. ‘I’ll just go and get her.’ She headed inside without waiting for Claire’s answer, aware of worried voices close behind her. Footsteps followed, but all she wanted was to find Millie.

The corridor was dim, only a halo of light shining through the crack of the closed dining-room door. She flung the door open, rushing into the brightness of the room, praying that her fears were unfounded, and that she was only being foolish.

The room was empty.

Claire came in behind her, her curiosity edging towards concern as she took in the empty space. ‘They were just here… I’ll go and find them.’

As Claire went back into the corridor, Ben and Meredith appeared. Ben looked confused, but Meredith regarded the room evenly.

‘Where are they?’ Ben asked Grace.

She went across and gripped his arm. ‘We have to find Jenny,’ she said, her panic increasing with every word. ‘I think she’s taken Millie.’

Claire rejoined them. ‘They’re not in the kitchen…’ She registered what Grace was saying. ‘Why on earth would she take Millie?’

‘We need to find them quickly,’ Grace shouted. ‘I can explain later. Where the hell have they gone?’

‘They can’t have gone far.’ Claire looked frightened now. ‘She hasn’t got a car.’

‘Ben,’ Meredith’s voice was controlled and low, ‘I think you should take the monks’ trod to the Leap, now, check she hasn’t gone there.’

‘Why would she go to the Leap?’ Claire asked, sounding totally confused. ‘It’s pitch-black and snowing outside.’

But Ben took one look at his mother’s face and sprinted into the hallway, with Grace right behind him. He raced through the front door, heading for his car. Grace rushed around to the passenger side, but he said, ‘No, Grace, I’m just getting a torch. I have to go on foot.’ As he spoke, Bess bounded out of the car and began springing at his heels.

‘I’m coming with you,’ she insisted.

Ben slammed the door shut and came around to her, pulling her to face him. ‘Listen to me. I know the trod well. I’ll be faster on my own.’

‘You don’t have to wait for me,’ she panted. ‘I’ll keep up.’

‘Let’s go then.’ He was already dashing towards the path.

It was impossible to sprint through snow, but Grace was running as hard as she could, thankful that the outlines of the uneven flat stones were still just about visible. Ben jogged beside her, shining the torch to light their way. Bess was yapping, disappearing into the night and occasionally reappearing around them again, enjoying the unexpected exercise.

‘How much further?’ she gasped.

‘We’re nearly there,’ Ben urged. ‘Come on.’ And he quickened his pace, haring off into the darkness with Bess at his heels, the dog’s barking becoming increasingly frenzied. Then Grace heard something ahead – a whimper that rapidly grew into a full-blown wail. ‘Millie,’ she screamed as she fought past a thick bush of sharp, deadened twigs that scratched and tore at her hands and face.

She slammed into something solid that almost knocked her off her feet. She staggered backwards, recovering her balance, and saw that Ben was ahead of her, standing stock-still, his back to her.

She walked closer. ‘Ben?’ She put a hand on his arm. He didn’t move. Then the noise came again, and she looked past him.

In the silvery moonlight, she could make out a figure sitting in front of them, legs dangling over the edge of the drop ahead. In her arms, something was moving, and Grace knew straight away that it was Millie.

Without a second thought, she began to creep forward. Ben tried to pull her back, but she shook him off and kept going towards the ledge. She saw Bess had gone over to Jenny and was nudging her, but Jenny seemed mesmerised, staring out into the night, swaying gently back and forth.

Grace tiptoed slowly, keeping her eyes on Jenny all the time, terrified that she might cause her to startle. She was operating purely on instinct, knowing she couldn’t stand back and do nothing.

She deliberately aimed for a point a few metres away. As she reached the edge, she tried not to look down, but her feet dislodged a pile of snow and it fell away into the hidden maw below. All Grace’s senses screamed at her to get back, but she couldn’t. Not yet.

Jenny’s face was just visible, and she looked calm and dreamy – which was more terrifying to Grace than tears. Millie was crying and wriggling, and Jenny was patting her back absently, as though to pacify her.

‘Jenny?’ Grace said softly into the night.

Jenny gave no response, just stared out towards nothingness. Millie didn’t appear to hear Grace either, and kept squirming to be free.

Grace edged towards them. ‘Jenny?’ she said when she was only a couple of metres away. ‘Millie is cold and frightened. She needs to go inside. May I take her?’

‘He moved on without a second thought…’ Jenny said abruptly. Her tone was eerily composed. Grace began to shuffle closer, not stopping until she could almost reach out and touch them.

‘I’m really sorry, Jenny,’ she said. ‘I think we should talk about it. But first we need to get Millie inside where it’s warm.’

Jenny looked up at Grace as though she had only just realised that someone was there. She frowned. ‘He married you.’

‘Yes.’ Grace’s voice shook. She had a flash of Adam’s joyous face on their wedding day, and felt a tear slide down her cheek. ‘And then he vanished, Jenny. I lost him too – so did Millie. I understand exactly how you feel. And now I need your help. We have to get Millie out of the snow.’

Grace moved within range of them and held her arms out. Give her to me , she implored silently.

Millie suddenly seemed to realise that her mother was there. She screamed and pushed away from Jenny violently, trying to get to Grace. For a moment Jenny lost her hold on the child, caught unawares by Millie’s unexpected movement, and Grace’s terrified heart passed over a beat as she saw Millie rock backwards. She lunged forward to grab her daughter, feeling herself lose her own balance as she did so. She plucked Millie from Jenny’s hands and willed herself upright, but it was too late, her momentum was forwards, they were going together. To right herself she needed to let go of Millie, so there was no hope, and they were tipping towards the edge. While panic ripped through her body, her mind began to accept the inevitable. This is it, then .