The New Uncanny by Etgar Keret, Ramsey Campbell, Hanif Kureishi, Christopher Priest, Jane Rogers, A.S. Byatt, Matthew Holness, Adam Marek Read Free Book Online Page B

pace.
    I raced down the stone steps, crossed the old platform and dropped down into the abandoned line, pausing only to adjust my vision once more to the surrounding darkness. I moved off carefully, the noise of my footfalls interrupted only by the soft rush of wind moving through the nearby treetops. It took me longer than usual, but I eventually found the small hidden pathway into the trees and walked along it, noting that the ground here, like the school lane, was wetter and more broken up than before.
    I found the place again instinctively, clear as the event still was in my memory, and stood up straight upon the spot, making sure I didn’t slouch or bend my back in any way. I unzipped my coat and drew out the small lunch box I’d filled secretly after Christie had left the house, having failed once again to force open the lounge door. I removed the lid and, one by one, thrust my peeling hands into Possum’s ashes, noting the sharp, unpleasant smell my skin now emitted. Once I was satisfied that the remains were truly soiled, I tipped the powdered mess onto the ground where the man had first shown himself to me, and smeared what was left into the earth, tossing the empty box into a nearby bush, where he’d dragged me.
    It was while I was wiping my hands clean with my handkerchief that I heard the dog. It had followed me through the empty station and was nosing through the bushes behind, tracking my scent. I thought of playing dead, but instead strode out into the footpath, holding out the diseased hands he had hated touching. I shrieked loudly at the top of my voice and this time the dirty creature stalking me ran a mile.

    I mouthed words into the receiver as my fingers tapped nervously on the dull, metallic surface of the dial pad, flashing blue lights from the distant caravan site reflecting against it. When I looked up again, the policeman who’d come over to watch me hadn’t moved.
    ‘He put me in his bag,’ I said aloud, to the faint electric buzzing of the dial tone. ‘And took me to his caravan.’
    The rain had returned. I peered out across the grass slope, trying to look preoccupied, as he began walking towards me.
    ‘Always had something on his face,’ I said, starting to sweat. I nudged the door ajar to inhale the fresh sea-air.
    ‘…he never took it off.’
    I hung up.
    Foolishly, as the officer reached me, I smiled.
    ‘On your way,’ he ordered, studying my face. As I walked back to town, one of the their cars followed me home.

    Christie was drunk when he opened the door, and laughed openly at the state of my hands.
    ‘That won’t help you this time.’
    I snatched the bottle from him and wandered through into the kitchen, swigging heavily from it as I sat down.
    ‘I’m leaving tomorrow,’ I said.
    ‘Are you now?’ he replied.
    ‘Thanks for putting me up.’
    ‘Always a pleasure.’ He grinned inanely, performing an awkward, drunken dance. ‘Always was.’
    He began to sing an obscene song.
    ‘Why don’t you go to bed?’ I snapped, taking another swig from the bottle. I stood up, swaying, and put what was left back in the cupboard beneath the sink.
    ‘Your present’s in the lounge,’ he said.
    I felt like I’d been hit.
    ‘The lounge?’
    ‘Sorry everything’s so late.’ He stopped moving long enough to light a cigarette. He appeared to be gasping for breath.
    ‘They’ve found something up at the site,’ I said.
    ‘They have indeed.’ He inhaled heavily, and blew the smoke back into my face. ‘I’ll have a car collect you tomorrow.’
    Suddenly sheepish, he stumbled off in the direction of the stairs, moving up them much faster than I’d thought he was capable of.
    I didn’t go in immediately, as the whiskey had made me feel nauseous. I smoked a couple of cigarettes and listened for a while to Christie crashing about in my room above.
    When I did finally venture into the lounge, unlocked for the first time in thirty years, I noticed that our tree remained in