Thieving Fear

He was doing his best not to lose patience by the time she interrupted the distant bell. 'Rory? Yes, it's me.'

'No need to sound ashamed of it.'

'If you say so.'

'I bloody do, and you ought. Has anyone been saying different?'

'I suppose not,' Ellen admitted, and with even less conviction 'Not that I've heard.'

'That'll be because they haven't been.' When he didn't hear agreement Rory demanded 'Has Charlotte been making you feel bad about yourself?'

'Charlotte,' Ellen said with an approximation of a laugh. 'Why would she want to do that?'

'Doesn't want to doesn't mean she hasn't, the way she's been getting you out of shape. Sounds like she's treating your book like she owns it just because she paid for it. Watch out or there'll be nothing of you left. You won't recognise yourself.'

She was silent for so long that even Rory wondered if he'd said too much until she spoke. 'They haven't paid me yet.'

'Then they're treating you like you're their slave and you shouldn't bloody let them.'

'Oh, Rory, I truly don't think so,' Ellen said, more in the manner of her old self. 'Charlotte says it's how publishers have to work. I think she's helping me find out there's more to me as well.'

He might have been persuaded by her enthusiasm if he hadn't caught a laugh, so odd that he didn't recognise her voice. Rather than acknowledge it he said 'Have you heard from Hugh?'

'What about?'

'I don't know what you talk about.' This sounded ridiculously jealous, and Rory tried to amend it by adding 'Maybe your next book.'

'I haven't heard from him for days, and it wasn't about that. What are you trying to get at now?'

Rory could see no way to avoid saying 'He thought where you could make it happen.'

'So have I.'

For no reason Rory could define he was reluctant to ask 'Where's that?'

He was assuming she preferred not to discuss it until the book was written, unless her answer had been inaudible, when she said 'Thurstaston.'

'That's weird. It's his as well.' Rory refrained from mentioning that it was also his own but said 'He was going to look it up and tell you what he found.'

'Do you know what he did?'

Her voice had grown so faint that Rory couldn't judge whether it was urgent or wary or both. 'I don't,' he said.

He shouldn't mention Thurstaston Mound or Arthur Pendemon in case his brother would. Just the thought of doing so seemed capable of shutting him inside himself, blanking his vision and filling his ears with an utter hush, but he heard Ellen say 'I went there.'

'Any use?'

Presumably she answered him. As he strained his throbbing ears he managed to distinguish some kind of mutter. He wouldn't have said it was Ellen except for knowing it had to be. 'I didn't get that,' he complained. 'Say it again.'

The response was so incomprehensible that he could have imagined it was mocking him. He shut his eyes in case that helped him concentrate his hearing, but it felt like cutting off another sense. He widened them until they stung and gazed at the blank sky. 'Can you hear me?' he said. 'Something's up with someone's phone, it sounds like. Tell me another time.'

Had she gone? Rory pressed the mobile hard against his ear. Surely her phone was the problem, because he was able to hear his brother, or at least the message with Hugh's voice embedded in it. 'Me again. Where are you? Lost your phone?' Rory said without raising an answer. He'd had enough of waiting. It would be Hugh's fault if Rory disturbed him at work.

'We're your Frugo superstore at Huddersfield. Competing to be cheapest. This is Doreen serving you. How can I help you today?'

Rory had already tried to interrupt, but there was no stopping the formula. 'Can I speak to Hugh Lucas?'

'Who wants him, please?'

'I'm his brother.'

'Hold for a moment, please,' she instructed Rory and gave way to Vivaldi performed on an instrument centuries younger than the composer. After a number of seasonal bars and two assurances that Rory's call was important to someone, Doreen said 'Putting you through.'

As soon as the acoustic fell away, not down a hole but into the body of the supermarket, he said 'Hugh.'

'It's not, no. Wouldn't be.'

'He'll be here in a moment,' another girl called. 'Is that the can man?'

'I'll ask him. Tamara wants to know –'

'I'm Rory Lucas.'

'Says it's him. Doesn't sound that mad.'

'Ask him if he's after any models.'

'Tamara –'

'I heard,' Rory said with the impatience he'd been reserving for Hugh. 'Are you offering?'

'He's asking if we're offering.'

'Tell him there's plenty of his kind on the shelves.'

'Maybe we can give him a bulk deal. There's plenty of your kind –'

'I'll do without your bulk, thanks all the same.'

'What's up, Mishel? What did he say?'

'You don't want to know. Skitting how we look and he can't even see us. Can't see anything worth seeing if you ask me. He's as rude as his brother,' Mishel said and directed her voice at the phone. 'If you've got anything else to say you won't be saying it to us.'

He could hardly wait to begin speaking until he heard his brother take the phone. 'Christ, are they the sort of twats you have to work with? I thought it was just that wanker that got himself promoted over you. Don't let anybody tell you you haven't got it hard. I wouldn't be able to keep my gob shut if I had to put up with the likes of them as well as whatever you said he was called, Dustbin, it ought to be. Sounds like waste all right. A load of crap that thinks it's better than the rest of you.'

'Who do you think you're talking to?'

Rory shut his eyes and had to open them at once. 'I wouldn't know. Who?'

'I won't use the words you've been using.'

'Hugh doesn't either, so don't take it out on him.'

'What's he saying, Justin?' Rory heard one of the girls enquire with something like concern.

'Back to work, ladies, please. This isn't for your ears.' To Rory the supervisor said 'I take it your brother has been claiming he's been victimised.'

'He's said nowt about it. Doesn't mean he hasn't been. I'm warning you not to, that's all. Anyway, why am I talking to you? I asked for him.'

'I'm assuming you aren't very close.'

'You do a bloody sight too much assuming, pal,' Rory said, all the angrier for feeling that the accusation was related to the truth. 'What's your reason if you've got one?'

'If you were you'd know not to ring here for him.'

'I know we're not meant to ring him at work. I just want a quick word to see if anything's up with him.'

'Plenty, I'd say, but you can't do it here.'

'Why not? Spit it out, for Christ's sake.'

'I'll terminate this call if there is any more abusive language.' When Rory squeezed his eyes shut in an attempt to keep his lips that way, Justin said 'He was sent home yesterday until further notice. It looks very much as if he's been doing something to his brain. I don't know who's responsible or who he thinks he has to impress.'