The Uninvited (37 page)
Authors: Tim Wynne-Jones
“Who knew?” said Mimi, and grinned a little maniacally, as she flicked on her indicator light to pass a truck. “But, apparently, it’s always like this.”
“Oh, really?”
“Well, not quite like this. Jamila said something to me the other night when we were talking. She said when her younger brother was born, it really pissed her off. It was such an intrusion.”
And they thought about that. About intrusions. How Mimi had burst into Jay’s life two troubling months ago and how Cramer had been there already like something circling, planning to land, and then been born into their lives two weeks ago in a startling and bloody birth. Each of them had been unwelcome, uninvited. And yet they knew—Mimi and Jay did, anyway—that they were ready to spend the rest of their lives learning how to do this, how to welcome in the outsider and to become family. This most unlikely of families.
Had he heard the other shots when he lay in the bottom of the hidey-hole? Had Mavis spoken to him, apologized, cried over his battered body, said some final words? Or had he only overheard what had happened to her, while lying here in this dim room drifting in and out of consciousness? Had Mimi explained to him about his mother’s death, or was it just her absence that let him know she was gone?
However it was that he knew, he had grieved alone in his darkness. He has missed her and ached for her and been furious at her for dying and finally, all on his own, come to a place of her being gone. The only question was how long she had been gone. It seemed like a long time now.
Mimi’s hand was on his chest. She loosened the sheet that the nurse had just tightened. Jay was there, too, a little way off, as always. But his voice had sounded okay when he’d said hello. Like he wanted to be there.
“Do you know who I am?” Mimi asked, her voice soft and yet firm. “Do you know, Cramer, who I really am?” He wanted to nod. He wanted to take her hand and grip it tight and let her know. “How much did you hear before you opened the trapdoor?” she asked.
He had heard enough, enough to know who Mimi was. It changed everything and didn’t change anything. He would have to try to explain that to her somehow. Find words to let her know that it was okay. Not to worry. There were so many words he was going to have to find. Words to apologize with, for one thing. He would somehow have to find a way to repay them for the harm he had brought upon them, the evil he had brought into their midst.
“We’re here for you,” said Mimi. “Right, Jay?”
“Right,” said Jay. “But you’re going to have to come out of hiding.”
That made Mimi laugh. And maybe it was the sound of her gritty laughter or maybe it was hearing that they were there for him, but suddenly, as if he had been holding back, Cramer found the will to open his eyes—his one good eye. And it filled up with Mimi’s face, and she was smiling. His sister.
This book is for
the wonderful Lunbergs,
my other family.
Chris Creighton brought the word
snye
into my life, and not just the word, either, but the actual place. She and her husband had bought a house on “the snye,” and when I went to look at it, I was utterly enchanted. It was, as Mimi says, a magical place—a place where anything might happen. Thanks so much, Chris. I also want to thank Hadley Dyer, whose editing classes at Ryerson University looked at two early drafts of this story and provided some very useful advice. Fran van Oort helped with the guitar stuff; Jack Hurd helped me to program Jay’s synth; John McFarlane gave me some good computer info; and Geoff Mason supplied all the canoe know-how a person could ask for. If I got any of it wrong, it was my fault, not theirs. Thank you, friends and neighbors. I have read excerpts from this story to my wonderful colleagues and the equally wonderful student body at the Vermont College of Fine Arts—the world’s best audience. What would I do without you all? And finally, as always, endless thanks to Amanda Lewis, the person who suffers through those earliest drafts without complaining and then is gracious enough to be my first reader. And still, after thirty-four years, stays with me.
Uninvited
TIM WYNNE-JONES has won numerous awards for his work, including an Edgar Award, the Governor General’s Literary Award, and a
Boston Globe–Horn Book
Award. He is a faculty member at Vermont College, teaching courses in the MFA program in Writing for Children and Young Adults, as well as the author of more than twenty books for children and young adults, including the popular Rex Zero books. Tim Wynne-Jones lives in Ontario, Canada with his family.
EXPOSURE
Otello: black, South America’s top footballer.
Desmerelda: white, pop star daughter
of a right-wing politician.
Their sudden and controversial marriage propels them centre stage where they burn under the media spotlight. But celebrity attracts enemies, and some are very close to home. When a young girl is found murdered, Paul Faustino witnesses the power of the media in creating – and breaking – lives.
“Peet’s thrillers, with their blend of sport and homicide, are irresistible to teenage boys.”
The Telegraph
WINNER OF THE GUARDIAN CHILDREN’S FICTION PRIZE
MAL PEET
CITY OF BONES
It’s after dark in New York City, and Clary Fray is seeing things. The best-looking guy in the nightclub just stabbed a boy to death – but the victim has vanished into thin air. Her mother has disappeared, and a hideous monster is lurking in her apartment. With her life spiralling into darkness, Clary realizes that she has stumbled into an invisible war between ancient demonic forces and the secretive Shadowhunters – a war in which she has a fateful role to play…
“The Mortal Instruments series is a story world I love to live in.”
Stephenie Meyer
CASSANDRA CLARE
THURSDAY’S CHILD
During the long, hungry years of the Great Depression, Harper Flute’s family struggles to cope with life on the hot, dusty land. Her younger brother Tin seeks refuge in the contrast of an ancient subterranean world. A world that nurtures but – as disturbing events in the community reveal – can also kill. A world that is silent, yet absorbs secrets. A world that has the power to change lives for ever.
“A novel you can’t leave alone while you are reading it, and one that won’t leave you afterwards.”
The Sunday Times
WINNER OF THE GUARDIAN CHILDREN’S FICTION PRIZE
SONYA HARTNETT
This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places and incidents
are either the product of the author’s imagination or, if real, are used
fictitiously. All statements, activities, stunts, descriptions, information
and material of any other kind contained herein are included for
entertainment purposes only and should not be relied on for
accuracy or replicated as they may result in injury.
First published in Great Britain 2010 by Walker Books Ltd
87 Vauxhall Walk, London SE11 5HJ
Text © 2009 Tim Wynne-Jones
Cover photograph (house) © Keith Levit/Photolibrary.com
Cover photograph (paddle) © Hugh Whitaker/Photolibrary.com
The right of Tim Wynne-Jones to be identified as author of
this work has been asserted by him in accordance with
the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988
All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced,
transmitted or stored in an information retrieval system in any
form or by any means, graphic, electronic or mechanical,
including photocopying, taping and recording, without prior
written permission from the publisher.
British Library Cataloguing in Publication Data:
a catalogue record for this book is
available from the British Library
ISBN 978-1-4063-3043-4 (ePub)
ISBN 978-1-4063-3044-1 (e-PDF)