13 Curses by Michelle Harrison Read Free Book Online Page A

warm, and it’s gone!”
    Nell sat up, suddenly looking nervous. She heaved herself out of the chair and lumbered toward Florence.
    “Well… you see, er…” she began. “I thought… well, I mean, I assumed that… oh,
dear
…”
    “Yes?” Florence inquired, her eyes beginning to narrow.
    “I thought it was for the old man,” said Nell. “Amos—I thought it was meant for him… that he hadn’t wanted it… and well, I was doing the washing up anyway, so—”
    “Where is it?” snapped Florence.
    All eyes were on the housekeeper as she very slowly turned toward Oberon.
    Over the crackling of the fire, a loud gurgling could be heard from the dog’s stomach.
    “Oh!” said Florence.
    “It was drying out!” Nell squeaked.
    “You gave my dinner to the dog?” Warwick said thunderously.
    “I didn’t bleedin’ well know it was yours, did I?”
    “But I told you, Nell!” said Florence. “I thought I’d made it quite clear what the eating arrangements are—Amos has his meal very early on in the afternoon. Warwick takes care of that!”
    Nell looked as though she was about to cry.
    Warwick stared disbelievingly at the two pieces of bread before him.
    “It’s my favorite too,” he said, glaring at the housekeeper.
    “Well, it’s done now,” said Florence. “And, Nell, please don’t do that again—it’s a terrible waste. Plus, that stew was full of onion and will probably upset Oberon’s tummy.”
    “And he’s fat enough already,” Fabian pointed out, yelping as Tanya elbowed him in the ribs.
    Nell gave a miserable little nod. “I’ll just go to bed now then, shall I?” she said in a small voice.
    “Good night,” said Florence abruptly.
    Nell’s footsteps faded as she sloped off down the hallway. Warwick stalked over to the toaster andpushed the two pieces of bread into it before opening a tin of beans.
    “She’s a strange one and no mistake,” he said. “Whatever were you thinking of, hiring her?”
    “Oh, I don’t know,” Florence answered, irritably. “I just met her at the market one day, and we got talking. She said she’d had trouble finding another job after being laid off and I felt sorry for her. She needed work and a roof over her head, and we needed a housekeeper. It seemed ideal.”
    “She’ll be more trouble than she’s worth,” said Warwick darkly. “You mark my words.”

 
    The place Rowan and James were taken to was gray and cold, a Victorian building that smelled of disinfectant and beds that had been wet. It had once been a school. Now, it was a children’s home.
    Rowan was numb by the time they arrived. James clung to her, his head heavy on her shoulder. Rowan’s good arm ached from carrying him. Over the past twenty-four hours he had cried for his mother and screamed when anyone tried to take him from Rowan. And so he had remained with her the entire time—during the questions and examinations at the hospital following the crash and the introduction to their social worker, a young woman named Ellie.
    Ellie put her hand gently on Rowan’s free shoulder.
    “Want me to take him?”
    Rowan shook her head. Her red hair hung in greasy tendrils and her swollen eyes were sticky with tears.
    “He’ll wake up.”
    Ellie led the way toward the back of the building, and finally they stopped outside a door on the right. Its paintwork was chipped, and from underneath it, light could be seen in the dim hallway. Ellie put down the suitcase containing Rowan and James’s belongings and knocked. The door opened almost immediately and a gray-haired man beckoned them inside and offered them seats in front of his desk. Rowan sat, glad to rest herself from James’s weight. She readjusted him in her arms, the movement wafting the smell of a full nappy to her nostrils. The gray-haired man sitting opposite regarded her kindly, and though she thought she saw his nose twitch too, he did not mention it. Ellie sat down beside Rowan.
    “I know this is a terrible time for you