Trapped

TRAPPED~Siân Mole Content compiled for publication by Richard Mayers of Burton Mayers Books. Cover artwork designed by Richard Mayers using NightCafe Studio Copyright © 2022 Siân Mole First published by Burton Mayers Books 2023. All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, distributed, or transmitted in any form or by any means, including photocopying, recording, or other electronic or mechanical methods, without the prior written permission of the publisher, except in the case of brief quotations embodied in critical reviews and certain other non-commercial uses permitted by copyright law. A print version of this book is available: ISBN: 9781739630942 This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, and incidents either are the product of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously. Any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, events, or locales is entirely coincidental. www.BurtonMayersBooks.com◆◆◆ Dedication To my rhyming family - Ste, Phi and T AcknowledgementsWriting a book is not a solo endeavour and I would like to thank the people who have helped me make this book what it is today. Huge thanks go to my wonderful critique partners, Amy and Tracy, who pushed me, reassured me and encouraged me to keep going. This book would not exist without your talent and support.I would also like to express gratitude to everyone who read early drafts: Gina, Lorraine, Margaret, Marta, Aaron, Esther, Emily, Richard and my mum, Bobby.Thank you to my wonderful family, Steve, Sophia and Tommy, who have always supported me with my writing and never batted an eyelid when I went running off to a conference for the weekend or forgot to make tea when engrossed in writing that last chapter (fortunately I have a family who would prefer a pizza from the freezer than anything I cook!).My appreciation goes to Richard Mayers, who saw something in my work, helped me edit and tidy up all the final parts, and produced this wonderful book.My final thank you goes to my late Granny Elene and Grandad Frank for living in the fantastic house that inspired this spooky story! Chapter OneThe benefit of having a tragic life was that it made you untouchable. Things could only get so bad, right? A dead brother and a dad who’d disappeared meant you were at rock bottom. At least that’s what Jess had thought when she woke up that morning.Bleary-eyed, she poked her way through the debris in the fridge, looking for breakfast. Mouldy cheese, half an onion, something questionable wrapped in foil.Jess sighed loudly, shutting the fridge as her mum walked in. “There’s nothing to eat. Again.”“There’s cereal.” Mum pulled a box of bran flakes out of the pantry and placed it on the kitchen table. She looked terrible.Jess bit the inside of her cheek. “Milk?” she asked quietly.Mum frowned, the crease between her eyes dark and deep. “Sorry, love. I need to go to the shop.”“I can go,” said Jess putting the cereal box back in the pantry. She turned back to Mum. “If you let me have the money, I’ll get some milk.”“I don’t have any cash.”“I do, I don’t mind using…”“No,” her mum cut her off sharply. “Groceries are not your responsibility. I’ll go this morning.” She walked towards Jess and touched her arm softly. “I promise.”Jess nodded.Up close, Mum looked even worse, like she hadn’t slept for months. The skin under her eyes sagged and her face was pinched and gaunt. Jess remembered when her mum’s cheeks were rosy and her eyes sparkled. Jess ached for that.“Look Jess, sit down a minute,” said Mum. “There’s something I want to talk to you about.” The words caused a small whirlwind of fear in Jess’s stomach. She backed into a seat at the kitchen table and mum sat down opposite her.“So,” Mum began, “I’ve got a new job.”Jess frowned. “What’s wrong with the job you have?” Her mum had only just gone back to her part-time office job in town. After Daniel died, they’d let her have leave which she’d used to hang around the house in her tracksuit bottoms, staring at the walls. Jess couldn’t imagine her getting dressed up smartly and wowing someone in an interview.“It doesn’t pay enough now I’m on my own.” Mum looked down at the table tracing a groove in the wood with her finger. “Plus, I wanted a fresh start.” She looked up suddenly. “For us both,” she added.Jess felt nervous. “Why would your new job be a fresh start for me?”“Because we have to move,” said mum quietly.“What?” Jess jumped from her chair. “No Mum, I don’t want to move.”“I know you don’t, but this will be a good thing. This house holds too many memories.”“But Mum,” Jess sat back down and reached for her mum’s hand. “It holds good memories too.”An image formed in her mind of Daniel sitting on a beanbag in the space under the stairs, cramming a cookie into his mouth, while she sat beside him, nibbling hers, making it last. It was their secret hidey hole - where they went to chat, read their books with a flashlight and eat junk food they weren’t meant to have. Of course, it wasn’t really secret. Mum and Dad knew they were in there. But they never came in.Whose secret hidey hole would it be now?Mum took her hand away pulling Jess out of her thoughts. “I knew you would feel that way, but I’ve made the decision.”“But…”“I’ve made the decision.” Mum’s voice didn’t waver.Jess crumpled in her seat. “Where?” Her mind imagined distant places. Far away from Wales. Far away from school. Far away from Flo. She didn’t have many friends, in fact she only really had one. But surviving without Flo didn’t seem possible.“A few miles away,” said Mum, “a place called Newton.”Jess hissed a sigh of relief. “I thought you meant a long way away.” Her heartbeat calmed and she took a deep breath. “If the job is so close then why do we have to move?”Mum got up from her seat