A Vision of Green (Florence Vaine #2) (24 page)

“
Who's Karen Slater?”

“
I would have thought she was your mother, since she and your dad went out for most of secondary school,” says Vivian. “He never mentioned the name to you before?”

Caroline sighs as she grabs a packet of biscuits out of the cupboard and comes back to sit beside me. “Mum! Stop quizzing Flo, she didn't come here for you to interrogate her.”

Vivian gives her daughter a silencing look and then glances back at me, waiting for an answer. “I've never heard that name before, my mother was called Jacqueline. She's passed.”

Sympathy crosses Vivian's expression and she places her hand on mine for second. “I'm so sorry to hear that. Anyway, you should ask your dad about what happened to him and Karen. She still lives here in Chesterport I believe, though I haven't seen her in years.”

“
I will,” I say, thinking this Karen person definitely has the potential to be the friend of Dad's who'd been keeping a watch on me. Caroline changes the subject now, telling her mum all about our CSPE project. When Christian and Caroline's dad get home from their trip to the shopping centre Vivian serves up the dinner. We have mash potatoes, beef and gravy, and I'm stuffed to the gills by the time I'm finished eating.

Caroline and I get what we can of our homework done and then set off for Frank's house.

“
I'm warning you now,” says Caroline as she drives. “I'm not going near the forest again, so please don't bring up what happened last week. I like to think it was some kind of group delusion.”

I laugh and lie, “Me too, and I've no intention of going back in there.” It's best to keep Caroline in the dark, for her peace of mind if nothing else. I wouldn't know where to begin in explaining the truth to her. One day, perhaps.

When we arrive Frank answers the door to us, smiling and giving my hand a squeeze as I pass him by. There's meaning in the gesture, I'm just not sure what. Maybe he's trying to remind me of last night, silently letting me know that he's been thinking about it.

“
How's my favourite dirty minded red head?” Alex asks in a loud voice as Caroline enters the living room.

She blushes and mutters, “I haven't got a dirty mind, have I?”

Alex laughs and slaps his hand off his thigh, giving her a wink. “You most certainly do, my friend, so you might as well get used to the label.”

“
I'd rather not have a label like that,” she says, in full on snoot mode.

“
Relax. I won't tell anyone if you don't. It can be our little label secret.”

“
How can it be a secret if Flo and I know about it?” asks Frank, adding on to Alex's teasing of Caroline. She goes completely red in the face now, and I feel the need to come to her rescue. After all, she's come to mine so many times before.

I sit down beside her and whisper in her ear, “Look at Alex and pretend like I've just said something really funny about him.”

Immediately she bursts out laughing and gives Alex a sidelong, measuring glance.

He falls for it hook, line and sinker. “What was that about, what did Flo say?” he asks, brow furrowing a little.

“
Nothing,” says Caroline with a giggle. I join her. When I peer over at Frank he's wearing an amused expression. I think he might be onto us, but he doesn't say anything. Perhaps he enjoys watching Alex squirm too.

Alex has always been nice to me, for the most part, but I know he's slightly wary that I can see his aura. Just looking at him now I can tell he's wondering if I know something about him other people don't, like maybe he only changes his underwear every couple of days. He still seems to think I have some sort of mind reading superpower, he doesn't get that my skills lie solely in the emotional. Well, they had up until I'd heard a snippet of Frank's thoughts the other day.

We're interrupted by the arrival of Josh and Ingrid, who both flounce in laughing and joking, all over one another. I have a good look at both of their auras and what I see is a shocker. Well, maybe not so much shocking, but definitely interesting. Josh is flirting with Ingrid so that
I'll
notice him, and Ingrid is flirting with Josh so that Alex
and
Frank will notice her.

I never realised just how much the two handsome foster home boys intrigue her. And then something I haven't experienced before occurs, a surge of possessiveness for Frank passes over me. I don't want her and her lust filled aura anywhere near him. I thought she had her sights set on Alex, but seemingly Frank is just as appealing to her. Especially since Josh has probably spread the word that we're no longer together. Me sitting all the way across the room from Frank is probably reinforcing that fact. Great.

Ingrid gives me a blatant sneer and a critical look up and down. Clearly she hasn't forgotten our spat in the girls' changing rooms the other day. I briefly notice I'm wearing that same Joan Jett t-shirt, alongside my lavender skirt and black boots. Sort of mismatched, but most of my outfits tend to be mismatched in general. I'll take what I can get really.

I avert my eyes from her hostile glare, but I still hear her mutter under her breath, “The state of her.”

Caroline seems to have heard too, and her head, which had been submerged in a pamphlet about the charity we're using for the project, whips up. “The state of who?” she asks, placing a hand on her hip.

Ingrid snickers and rolls her eyes, standing in front of us wearing a denim mini skirt, UGG boots and a white top. “Both of you,” she retorts, and sits down primly on the couch beside Frank, unnecessarily close. My heart sinks. What if she manages to turn his head? Will he forget about me and focus his attentions on Ingrid, with her shiny blond hair and expensive clothes?

“
Hey Franklin, how's life?” she asks sweetly.

I sneak a glance at Josh to see if he's bothered by Ingrid flirting with Frank ten seconds after she'd been flirting with him, but he's thrown himself onto an armchair and is watching the drama unfold, arms crossed over his chest. He clocks me looking at him and gives me his usual cocky grin.

“
Good,” Frank finally answers her deadpan, throwing Alex a confused look.

“
Only good? Wanna see if we can make it spectacular together?”

The expression on his face is comical, it looks like he doesn't know whether to laugh at her or maybe switch seats. Laughing wins out and Ingrid scowls at him. “Was that a line? Are you chatting me up?” he smiles and laughs so hard he has to wipe a tear from the side of his eye. Relief floods me, he finds her advances funny, that has to be a good sign.

“
So what if it was?” she glares.

“
Come on,” Alex puts in. “You have to admit, as far as lines go that was about 110 on the cheesy scale.”

“
You should talk,” Ingrid spits. “At least I have lines, you just ogle girls' chests every chance you get.”

Alex mock huffs. “I'm actually quite proud of my chest gazing abilities.”

Frank laughs. So does Caroline. I remain quiet, still unsure how this whole situation is going to play out. If the colours in Ingrid's aura are anything to go by, she's determined to get what she wants, that being Frank and/or Alex.

“
Um, can we rewind this a minute to confront the fact that she just said Flo and I look a state?” Caroline interjects.

Ingrid turns her gaze to us. “Statement of fact,” she answers, flicking her hair over her shoulder.

“
If by a state you mean a state of pure unadulterated hotness, then I agree, you two look a
fine
state,” Alex says defending us, and winking at Caroline.

“
Hey, keep your eyes off my girl,” says Frank humorously, fake slapping Alex upside the head.

Alex raises his hands in surrender. “You know I would never touch Flo, not unless you like
died
and somebody had to do the right thing and step in to fulfil her womanly needs,” Alex jokes. I know he's being purely fictitious, but I still go a little red at the idea of having “womanly needs” at all.

Then something even more embarrassing happens, when Josh suddenly speaks up, “Who says she's your girl?”

Frank turns to face him. “What was that, mate?”

Josh shrugs. “Last I heard, you two,” he glances between me and Frank, “were no longer a thing.”

“
And where did you happen to hear that?”

Oh no, please don't. Josh is going to tell him I was the one who said it, and that will look like it's something it's not. I plead with him with my eyes, silently begging for him to shut his mouth. Miraculously, he actually back peddles when my expression sinks in. “Over the grapevine, can't remember exactly.” He acts all nonchalant when he says it.

Frank gives him a measuring, almost wilting look. I wouldn't like to be on the other end of it. Then I notice that Ingrid is absolutely glaring at me, something I wholeheartedly ignore. One of the first few things I figured out about this girl is that she doesn't like anyone being the centre of attention other than her. As far as I'm concerned she can have it. Attention is overrated. Especially the kind when two boys are on the verge of having a row over you.

A few long moments of absolute silence ensue, the room filling with tension. Caroline casually cuts into it by rambling on about the project, and surprisingly the rest of them listen to her. We get a solid half hour of work done, and I sit quietly writing notes into my pad. Then Hayley peeks her head in the door and asks us all if we'd like something to drink, so we decide to take a break for a bit. After she's returned with the refreshments she settles on the arm of the couch I'm sitting on and puts a comforting hand on my shoulder.

“
I've been meaning to ask you Flo,” she says in a low voice, while the others chatter around us, “how are you feeling after the other day?”

I think about it for a minute, feeling warmed over the fact that she's concerned about me. “I was sort of drained for a while on Sunday, but I'm okay now. I was speaking to Sam and he told me about,” I pause and glance around sheepishly to make sure nobody's listening in, “
healing
, and that if I try to do it with someone who's too far gone then I can hurt myself. I think that might be what h-h-happened.”

Her expression turns serious. “He's probably right. God, I should never have pushed you to work on Rita. If I'd known what was going to happen then I wouldn't have even considered it.”

“
It's not y-your fault. And no lasting damage has been done so it's all right.” I say, trying to make her feel better, a little of her guilt passes from her aura into mine, since she's sitting so close. “Seriously Hayley, don't worry about it,” I continue.

She shakes herself and gives me a soft smile. “I'm going to be a lot more careful with you from now on,” she says, her voice determined.

“
Thanks,” I mouth, touched by the sentiment, and she leaves the room.

I turn my attention back to the others just as Josh says, “Did you all hear about what went down in the woods on Saturday night?”

My nerves get the better of me and I jump a little at his mention of the forest.

“
No, what happened?” asks Caroline.

“
A few of my boys decided to go camping out there, thought it would be a laugh or whatever,” Josh explains. Both Alex and Frank assess him critically, not sure whether they should believe anything that comes out of his mouth.

“
And
?” Alex prompts, his expression cynical.

“
In the middle of the night they started hearing this roaring sound, like a wild animal or something. They got their flash lights and had a look outside and they all swear there was a lion there, only it wasn't exactly a lion, it had a human head.”

“
Such a crap lie,” Ingrid snorts.

“
And they had been taking which psychotropic drugs before hitting the sack?” asks Alex with a smirk.

Josh narrows his gaze. “All they'd had was a few beers, but this happened a couple of hours afterwards, they weren't even drunk any more. I don't know why you're not believing this,” he complains. “We all saw that horse thing dive into the swamp last week, and you were the one trying to convince us there was a bunch of dead rabbits there the night before.”