Above the Vaulted Sky - Page 41

            He says the words with an unexpected ferocity. Seeing Yates as a teenager, when my only knowledge of him is much older, is a little unsettling. The presence of the man is clear, but the words coming out of a teenage mouth sound arrogant. I know it’s not his fault, but I struggle to like him.

            ‘I thought you might want to see the annotations,’ I say.

            He lifts the book and opens it, leafing through the first few pages. He sees the opening paragraph and his face softens as he reads aloud:

            ‘There are more types of silence than there are grains of sand in the world. The streets of London after the great fire, families digging through the soot and remains of their homes. The silences of a child’s bedroom after a nightmare is one of the greatest silences of all. No greater however than the silence on the streets on Christmas day.’

            He smiles, holding the book closer to him. ‘Don’t you just love the way he captures things you never really think about?’

            I nod. It’s why I love him. Thacker saw the world in a different way. I’d had so many conversations with Penny about it. Sometimes an author speaks to you in a language only you understand; the best authors do that without even knowing they are.

            ‘Why do you stay here, Yates?’ I ask. But he’s looking closer at the page.

            ‘This…this is Thacker’s handwriting,’ he says. My stomach twists, uncomfortably. ‘I’ve read every book on him. I’ve seen his handwriting, you…you stole this from the museum didn’t you?’

            ‘I…’ I start, but he doesn’t let me finish.

            ‘Any true Thackerite wouldn’t dare do such a thing!’

            ‘Well maybe I would!’ I snap. ‘I’m trying to help you Yates, and you just push me away! Let me help.’

            ‘I don’t need help, I don’t need company.’

            ‘So turn your lights off. Live by candlelight like Cecily when she sees Roland for the first time in the attic. If you didn’t want people to come here, it wouldn’t be lit up like a Christmas tree at all hours. I’m trying to make a friend. I know it’s lonely, I’ve felt it myself.’

            ‘Oh right,’ says the teenager. ‘Your girlfriend.’

            ‘Yes, my girlfriend,’ I confirm. ‘But you can’t go around hating everyone just for having a girlfriend, I know, I’ve…’

            ‘That’s the thing with people like you! You always claim to understand when all you want to do is see how much better you have it. Don’t you think I know that!’

            ‘Oh for god’s sake,’ I say and grab his arm. This is the only way it will work, I just hope my theory is correct. I grip his skinny wrist tight and close my eyes.