wings | bbc ghosts

30 | april showers

Violet never knew how she was able to see ghosts. From a young age, they always seemed to be there, and she vividly remembered her mother calling her a freak, and her grandparents fondly smiling at her when she spoke about her 'imaginary friends'.

But they weren't a part of her imagination. She knew that when she saw a ghost they were real, just not to everyone else.

So when she woke up in an all too familiar living room with a throbbing headache, and she saw a ghastly looking Kelly Jenkins with a needle sticking out of her neck, she knew.

"Took ya time waking up."

Violet warily sat up, holding onto her head as she saw April Goodall wearing a smirk on her face as she stared down the girl.

"What did you do?" Violet frowned, staring at the ill looking woman huddled in the corner of the room.

"Ha! Darling, I think the real question you should be asking is what did you do?" April bit back, snarling.

Violet, although she wouldn't want to admit it to herself, was taken aback.

What did she do?

"Don't play dumb with me now. You were late, and we had an agreement. But of course you always have to go rogue and do things your own way," April tutted.

"I don't see what bringing me here is going to achieve," Violet replied, but as she did so she saw Kelly nervously shaking her head as if to say 'don't provoke her'.

"It'll bring your perfect little family here. And when they arrive they'll give me everything they have, or they'll end up like the last person that messed me around. That is if they arrive on time."

She is crazy. This woman is crazy.

But the other thing Violet noticed was that she didn't even bat an eyelid at their once neighbour staring into space, just like she always did. That only confirmed everything Violet already knew.

"Like Kelly Jenkins?" Violet pushed her luck and tested the waters, not breaking eye contact with the crazed woman in front of her.

"What did you just say?"

You could cut the tension in the room with a knife.

"Kelly Jenkins. She's right there. She's got a needle sticking out of her neck. And it's because of you, isn't it?" Violet pushed even more, watching as her mother's jittery figure suddenly went rigid, and she looked like she would pounce on the girl at any second.

"How do you know that? It's one of your weird freak things again isn't it? You always did this, since you were little, and you still haven't changed. My, my, little Vi, I would have thought you'd have grown out of that by now," April barked, half in disbelief and disgust.

"At least you remember something," Violet began, "out of all things you remember the very reason you'd push, and punch, and kick me for."

April shrieked in anger and stormed to the corner of the room where Kelly resided, retrieving a shard of glass that she must have shattered in another angry fit.

"You're a liar!" she whipped round with her weapon, her figure teetering as she waved her arm around to threaten her daughter.

"I never lied about anything. I was just blinded my whole life that I was wrong about you," Violet shook her head, biting her lip.

"You didn't know me, girl!"

"I never got to know you! You were too busy getting boozed up, drugged up!"

"And why do you think I did that?! Why do you think I still do that, ay?" April threw the piece of glass away, sinking to the ground sat next to her victim.