Thyla - Kate Gordon [47]
And I hope also, whatever the actual circumstances of Tessa’s escape, that she now finds herself in a happy place.
Regards,
Isaac Livingston
‘I saw them,’ I said, as you put the book down on your lap.
‘What do you mean, Tess?’ you asked, your voice quiet and thin as tissue.
‘I saw the creatures,’ I repeated. ‘Thomas Walter was not mad. I saw them too, and I have a feeling – a really strong feeling – that they have something to do with Cat disappearing.’
I only knew this to be true as I said it.
I had a flash, even as my mouth was opening, of a girl, tall and freckled just like you, running through the bushland, her face white and twisted with fear. I heard her heavy shoes crunching through the leaves and twigs. I heard her laboured breathing. And then I heard more footsteps, racing behind her, gaining on her more and more with every step. Almost reaching her, almost catching her …
And then the memory faded.
‘Do you remember, Tess?’ you asked. ‘Do you remember Cat?’
‘I think so,’ I said.
You nodded slowly. ‘And you say you’ve seen these … oh, Tess, look, I’m trying hard to stay calm but what you’re telling me is … What are you telling me, exactly?’
‘I think that Tessa Geeves – I don’t know how to explain this, Connolly, but I know Tessa Geeves is me. When I woke up after my accident, I knew my name was Tessa. I didn’t know how, but I knew. Now, in the same way, I know my name is Tessa Geeves, and that the girl in this book is me. I know it seems impossible, but –’
‘It is impossible,’ you interrupted. ‘But you really do believe it, don’t you?’
‘I do. I also believe these creatures are real. Because I’ve seen them. And I’ve seen Cat.’
‘Do you remember … did she seem safe?’ you asked, and I saw veins begin to press hard against the thin skin on your temples.
I remembered again: the running, the fear.
I shook my head. ‘No, Connolly. I’m sorry. I don’t think she was safe.’
Tears sprang up in your eyes. ‘Do you think – with your memories – we can find her?’
‘I can try,’ I said and then, thinking of Rhiannah and her bushwalks, ‘I think I know where to start.’
Your eyes drifted to the clock on Rhiannah’s bedside table. ‘Oh, no,’ you whispered. You turned to me. ‘I have to go now,’ you said, getting up unsteadily. ‘I have to get back to the office. Vinnie is, well, you know what he’s like, but he’s in an especially bad mood at the moment. I don’t think he’s sleeping and so everything I do seems to be wrong. I can’t be late back. But you’ll call me, won’t you, Tess? You’ll let me know if you remember anything more about Cat. Anything at all.’
‘I’ll call you,’ I said. I stood up too, and wrapped my arms around you. ‘I’m going to figure this out,’ I said.
‘Thank you,’ you replied, kissing me on the cheek.
‘Thank you,’ I whispered. ‘For believing me.’
‘I trust you, Tess,’ you said. ‘So I believe you, even though it’s really hard.’
As you walked out of my bedroom door, you turned around and asked me one last thing, ‘Tess, will you call yourself Tessa Geeves now?’
I shook my head. ‘No, Connolly,’ I replied. ‘I want to stay being Tessa Connolly, if that’s okay with you.’
You smiled. ‘I’m so glad.’
You hugged me once more, and then you walked away, leaving me alone and wondering what to do next. Something was wrong with me. Something magical. Something terrible. I had been a girl in 1851, and I was a girl now. And I had stripes.
I thought of Rhiannah and Harriet and Sara and what I had seen. I knew now they had jumped that wall. I sensed now that something big and wondrous was happening and it involved all of us. But my instincts told me that Rhiannah and Harriet and Sara were a different kind of being from what I was. They didn’t have stripes like mine, and their scent was … wrong. Bad. Were they the enemy?
Where were they going on those bushwalks? Did it have something to do with Cat? Had they been involved in what happened to her? Even though Rhiannah was her friend? Had Rhiannah betrayed her?
I couldn’t think about it. The idea filled me with a