The Possession of Mr Cave by Matt Haig Read Free Book Online Page B

his schoolbag. Perhaps Reuben resisted George
because he hated Mr Weeks. Or perhaps it was simply out
of allegiance to his tribe. I don't know. I have no answers.)
    I wondered if Mrs Weeks knew her son mixed in such circles.
I wondered if she knew her asthmatic child was a smoker. I
wondered what she would do if she did know these things.
    Anyway, there he was, being loud and boisterous, trying
like all the others to steal your attention. And there I was,
peeping around the corner of Marks & Spencer, as invisible
to both groups as the thousand shoppers and tourists that
swarmed around.
    It would have been a risk to move any closer so I had to
stay there, unable to hear a word except for those of the
African lady with the loudhailer, filling that carless street
with the Book of Revelation.
    'The kings of the earth, and the great men . . .' she raged
with her fundamental anger, giving proof of nothing except
its own doubt.
    Denny's group began to laugh at the woman, and throw
chips at her. All except Denny himself, whose dark, unreadable
eyes were still staring at you.
    '. . . and the rich men, and the chief captains, and the
mighty men, and every bondman, and every free man, hid
themselves in the dens and in the rocks of the mountains . . .'
    I saw Denny walk away from his group, past the doors to
the toilets and over towards you. The boy with the cadaverous
face, the Uriah Heep face, turned and said something that
Denny ignored. And then Denny spoke to you and you spoke
back and I wished I could have read your lips, but all I had
were the words of warning boomed angrily in my direction.
    '. . . And said to the mountains and rocks, Fall on us, and
hide us from the face of him that sitteth upon the throne . . .'
    The words bulging her eyes, her eyes bulging her words.
    '. . . and from the wrath of the Lamb: for the great day
of his wrath is come, and who shall be able to stand?'
    Uriah Heep pushed Denny away and Denny pushed him
back, as the others tightened around them. Chips and insults
flew through the air. Denny won the push and Uriah fell at
your feet. I saw another of Denny's tribe wade in. It was the
shaven-headed boy whom I had seen at the tennis courts,
kicking Uriah in the stomach.
    You looked at Imogen, scared, stranded in the middle of
all this.
    I had to do something.
    I started walking, towards you, but things calmed.
    Denny's tribe pulled the skinhead away as Denny himself
disappeared out of the scene. Imogen helped Uriah to his feet.
    I stood stuck to the ground as you walked away with your
companions, to the rising cheer of Denny's friends. Any
moment you were going to see me and I would have no excuse
for leaving the shop. None that you would have believed. And,
after Rome, I couldn't afford to push you further away. Inside
the sun-red darkness of a blink I saw Reuben, crooked on the
ground, and I took this as a final sign.
    'God shall wipe all tears from their eyes.'
    My watch told me it had been an hour. And enough of
the old Terence was there to return me to the shop, to help
Cynthia on this busy afternoon.
    'Where on earth have you been?' she asked me, in a hiss
quiet enough not to disturb the old couple having a browse
around the furniture.
    I found it difficult to answer. 'I had to . . . I went to . . .
Bryony was . . .'
    Cynthia closed her eyes and released an exasperated sigh.
'You didn't follow her, did you?'
    The old couple glanced towards us, and made their silent
decision to leave.
    'Yes,' I said. 'Yes, I did. I followed her. But I'm back now,
aren't I?'
    'I don't know. Are you? Are you back , Terence?' The 'back'
was given further emphasis with her ascending eyebrows.
    'What is that supposed to mean?'
    Cynthia inhaled, preparing for a verbal onslaught, but she
changed her mind. Her tone softened. Her eyebrows lay back
down. She stared over towards the spot where the old couple
had been standing only moments before. 'Nothing, Terence.
Nothing. I just think you might need someone to talk