Seven for a Secret Never to be Told

Mia was relieved to tell Safi about the daydream she’d had in the bath where she was re-living the game that they’d played. How it had become frightening when water started bubbling out of the ground and she thought she was going to drown. She told him how she was somehow under the water in her real bath and how for a brief moment she struggled to get up and catch her breath. She told him about the dripping water turning into an icicle and how she held it in her hand until it melted.

Safi didn’t laugh. Safi believed her. Mia was sorry she hadn’t told him at school. She took a breath and went on to tell him about the wet swimsuit that had turned up in her bedroom…

‘…and then there’s the crying. I sometimes hear someone crying in the middle of the night.’ Safi was quiet for a moment.

‘Did anything like this happen before you and your Nan moved house?’ he asked almost in a whisper.

‘No…do you think it’s something to do with the cottage?’ asked Mia.

‘I don’t know…look try and get some sleep tonight and we can talk tomorrow. I might have some more ideas by then.’ Mia was glad Safi was her friend. She knew he would try to help her find out what was happening.

‘Ok…thanks for listening.’

‘That’s what friends are for,’ he said. ‘I will think about this tonight and maybe I will get some inspiration. And Mia…’

‘Yes.’

‘Have a shower next time.’ Mia laughed. ‘See you tomorrow.’

‘See you tomorrow,’ said Mia, ‘and thanks for believing me.’ She disconnected the call. It felt good to have told Safi what happened. She knew she could trust him and that he would try his best to help her. But although she felt relieved to have told someone, saying it out loud made it much more real. She shivered.

Mia’s Nan and Miss Jaggers came indoors. It was getting cold outside, the sun had almost disappeared and a ribbon of red stretched across the horizon of an ever darkening sky.

‘Do you want some hot chocolate Mia?’ asked her Nan.

‘Yes please.’

‘Go and get your pyjamas on then and I’ll fill the kettle.’ Miss Jaggers and Mia’s Nan were bringing in the old photographs and Mia could see that the ones Miss Jaggers held were beginning to slip from her grasp. Within seconds photos were falling to the floor and Mia rushed to catch them. Mia’s Nan and Miss Jaggers put their photos on the table and Mia knelt on the floor picking up the ones that had slid under the chair. ‘There’s one more, just over there,’ said Mia’s Nan pointing at an old curling photograph that was caught under the skirting board. Mia picked it up and looked at it.

It was a black and white picture of a group of boys. They were wearing shirts and all but one of them had short trousers. The ones with short trousers had long grey socks and heavy boots. A couple of them wore sleeveless stripy jumpers over their shirts and one of them had a heavy jacket that was a bit tight. They all had short hair with neat partings.

Mia looked closer.

‘Look Nan…there’s our house.’ Mia’s Nan peeped over Mia’s shoulder and a look of recognition spread across her face. The boys were all stood in the field behind the row of cottages. They had their backs to the cottages and the camera captured not only the boys but the little dwellings behind them.

‘Do you know anything about these boys or this photo Mary?’ asked Mia’s Nan. Miss Jaggers took the photo from Mia and looked at it really carefully.

‘Well I never,’ she exclaimed. ’That’s my brother Bernard.

Mrs Marshall gave me these photos for the history group when her husband died and I just put them in the history group box.’ She looked at Mia. ‘Bernard’s the one with the jacket on. He loved that jacket, even when it was too small for him he squeezed into it. And that one there with one sock down his leg that’s Dennis Gregory. He was a looker, he’d come round our house to call for Bernard and my heart would beat so fast…’ She broke into laughter like barking.

‘Oh Meg, look – there’s Bobby Bassett…the old chap that kept you up all night at the old folks home.’ She hesitated – ‘Or is this one Bobby? I remember now, he was one of twins. He had a twin brother so I don’t know which is which.’ Mia’s Nan squinted trying to see if either boy resembled the old man she looked after.

Mia looked closely and noticed something strange. All the boys were holding something up in front of them to show to the camera. A small object held between their fingers like a large coin or a round cracker or…

‘The token, look Nan, their all holding something that looks like the token we found.’ Mia picked up the wooden disc and held it up in the same way as the boys in the picture.

‘It certainly looks the same shape and size Mia. But we’ll never know for sure because the picture’s too small. We can’t really see exactly what they’re holding.’

‘It’s the talisman. I know it is.’ Mia was trying to work something out in her head. ‘They’ve all got one. That means the one we found isn’t the only one. Just think one of these boys is holding this actual one. But who? Who did this one belong to?’ Mia’s Nan was deep in thought.

‘There are seven boys. Seven…’ She repeated.

‘Seven for a secret never to be told,’ whispered Mia to herself.