Soul Storm Read Online Free PDF Page A

to say.
    But Ade smiles. ‘About Alice’s chances tomorrow, of course.’ He lies to her effortlessly. Perhaps it’s a skill he’s had to develop to keep her calm.
    Sahara laughs. ‘Not
that
again. You’re going to walk it, Alice. Now, Adrian, I think it’s time we get going. We need to buy some flowers for Meggie’s grave. And
then the traffic across to Greenwich on a Sunday is murd— I mean, bad.’
    ‘I’ll just use the bathroom, first,’ Ade says.
    He’s leaving the two of us alone? I begin to form a question in my head: what is the most important thing I could ask Sahara?
    ‘Must go and say bye to your mum before we head off, Alice,’ Sahara’s saying, and before I can stop her, she’s heading for the garden. But not before I’ve caught a
glimpse of her face.
    The fake smile had faded completely. She looked anxious. Does she know I suspect her?
    And does that make me her next target?

 
     
     
     
6
     
     
     
     
    It’s raining, hard.
    The windscreen wipers stay on through my whole test. I remember to indicate earlier, to brake sooner, to give pedestrians extra time to cross the road.
    The rear window keeps steaming up so I can’t see through it, but I
know
I’m being watched, and not just by the examiner. Though, however many times I check my mirror, I
never catch a single glimpse of Sahara.
    ‘Would you pull over, please?’
    It takes me a second or two to realise that I’ve arrived back at the test centre. The examiner – a woman, perhaps the one who ‘fancied’ Lewis – is smiling. I can
tell before she speaks that it’s going to be good news.
    My instructor drives me home – ‘I’ve had more than a few of my candidates crash immediately after passing; it puts you in a funny state of mind.’
    Mum opens the front door as soon as she spots the driving-school car turning into the close. When she notices I’m in the passenger seat, her face falls, but by the time I get out,
she’s wearing a sympathetic smile. ‘Never mind, Alice, all the best drivers pass second time.’
    I can’t keep up the pretence. A grin is spreading across my face.
    ‘Must make me a
terrible
driver, then, Mum, because I PASSED!’
    ‘Oh, Alice, you’re a star! Come here!’
    She hugs me and I hug her harder, and Mr Gregory gives me a brief pat on the back.
    ‘Come back to me for your free motorway-driving class, Alice. And happy driving. Safety first, safety always, right?’
    I’ve rung Dad at work, and am about to text Cara and Lewis, when the doorbell goes.
    Mum calls up from the hallway. ‘Alice, I think this is for you.’
    I feel dread, like ice down my spine. Visitors freak me out. Probably because most of our unscheduled visitors in the past year have been police officers bearing bad news.
    Halfway down the flight of stairs, I realise who it is, or at least, what they’re here for. I can’t see the person, because of the big bouquet of flowers in the way.
    It is
seriously
huge. Someone’s entire back garden must have been chopped down to make it, and Mum’s already sniffing from the pollen.
    No one’s ever bought me flowers before. These are worth the wait. Red roses, white lilies, lush tropical leaves in deep green.
    The florist has to lower the bouquet to see over it. ‘Alice Forster?’
    It weighs so much I almost drop it. Meggie would have done this more elegantly; she was
always
being sent flowers.
    ‘Well done on passing your test,’ the florist says, and then turns to go. ‘Oh, the card’s buried in there somewhere.’
    Mum closes the door, and takes the bouquet from me, heading into the kitchen. She sneezes. ‘Wow. A five-hanky job, at least.
Someone
thinks a lot of you.’
    I laugh. ‘Someone, eh? Thanks, Mum. They’re beautiful.’
    She puts them down on the counter: there’s a bag of water tied underneath which keeps them upright. ‘No, they’re not from us.’
    ‘You sure Dad hasn’t . . .’
    Mum pulls a face. ‘Come on, Alice. Your dad’s a prince among men