Clopwyck River - revised version

Epilogue

I still visit the mill, even though blue and white police tape criss-crosses every entrance, blowing in the wind like forgotten Christmas decorations. I climb down the wheel and listen to the rush of water as it babbles beneath me. I go there to be alone, and to think about Ruby, and each time I open the door, a tiny part of me expects to see her smiling face duck around the corner. But it never does.
The police began a search for Ruby's body following interviews with Dan and after they reviewed the recording that Ciara made. There was a lot of embarrassment on the police's part that they hadn't treated her disappearance as suspicious in the first place, instead taking the word of the parish priest. I can't bring myself to read the details, but Daria told me they'd found Ruby buried inside the mill. Her family was contacted and they came to collect her remains, taking her away from Clopwyck forever.
Elliot has asked me about Ruby a couple of times, wanting to know when she's coming over again. He was the only other person who could see her it seems as though seeing ghosts is a trait that I share with my half-brother. The only other person who could see her was Agnes, who I haven't seen since the night Elliot went missing, but she's a mystery for another time.
A few days after they found Ruby's body, I went to Nigel and asked him whether he believed in the afterlife. He didn't seem surprised by my question, instead he gave me a broom and made me sweep up as he wiped the tables down, giving me his opinion on life after death, and why Clopwyck might be a magnet for that sort of thing. He told me he'd felt a presence at Chancellor's for the last few years, but then it disappeared, like a puff of air.
He then offered me a job, and I've been working as a waitress there for a few weeks now. I really like it. It keeps me busy, and I can give Leo free hot chocolate whenever he comes in. We're nowhere near being back to what we got so close to, what with his Dad being arrested and his brother being investigated, but I'm more than happy to take things slowly.
I think about Ruby every single day. I feel particularly close to her at Chancellor's as I can just imagine her hanging around people's tables, listening to conversations and trying to be a part of life. I was having a pretty tough day there last week; a screaming toddler kicked me in the knee, I burned myself on the milk frother, and I dropped two milkshake glasses. Nigel could see that I was going to have a meltdown any second so he made me sit down at the table under the stairs.
I sat down and tried to block out the mayhem going on behind me and Nigel brought over a cup of hot chocolate. Before I could stop him, he picked up the full bowl of sugar, and whisked it away saying it needed filling up. I watched him bustle away then turned to my drink, a smile spreading across my face as I noticed something scratched in tiny, jagged letters on the top of the table.
Ruby the Newbie was here.
That was all the strength I needed to get through the rest of the day.
I let myself in through the front door, and sling my schoolbag onto the floor in the hallway, the sound of family life drifting from the living room. The television is on and Elliot is squealing between delight and panic; the unmistakable sound of a tickled toddler. Even though I yearn for the isolation of my bedroom, I look from the stairs to the living room door and force myself to at least say hello. I kind of want to see Elliot in the midst of his hysterical attack of the tickles.
​Andrew is lying on the sofa, his legs crossed in front of him, watching the TV with a discarded newspaper on his chest. Daria is on the floor by the open fire place, on her knees over Elliot as she tickles his little pot belly, both of their smiles getting wider with each of Elliot's squeals of delight. Elliot lies on his back, his Star Wars t-shirt bunched up under his armpits providing a better target for his Mum, his hair wet from an evening bath. His delighted laughter makes my heart smile, and I let myself be a part of it.
​"Hey."
​"Hi, Demi." Daria looks up at me and smiles. "Did you have a good time with Ciara?"
​"Yeah, I did thanks."
​Daria nods her head. "That's good."
"How's Ben doing?" Andrew asks, not taking his eyes off the TV.
"He's doing really well, apparently. Him and Leo are staying with their Auntie, who's a nurse so she's been able to make sure Ben gets what he needs while he gets tutored at home. He's obviously got all this stuff going on with his Dad and the police, but physically, he's doing better."
"Sounds good." Andrew shakes his head, blinking at screen. "I still can't believe what happened." He sits up and retrieves the remote control from down the side of the cushion. "What have we got tonight then?" He frowns at the TV guide that's popped up on the screen. "Fancy watching something with us, Demi?"
​"Peppa!"
​"No, Elliot, time for Daddy's programmes now. Bed-time soon."
​I loiter by the door, torn between wanting to run up the stairs to the solitude of my bedroom, and wanting to be with them. I think about what Ruby said to me, knowing that I just need to give myself time to be a part of this family.
"I'm ok, I think I'm going to head up now."

Daria stands up and grabs a comb from the mantelpiece, then sits of the armchair and beckons Elliot towards her.
​Elliot ignores his Mum, and stands up and heads towards me in the doorway, before suddenly turning back to Daria and confidently snatching the comb from her hand. He pads over to me, holding up the comb in his pink little hand.
"Dem-dem brush my hair."
It's an order rather than a question, and I don't protest as he takes my hand and leads me to the end of the sofa, showing me to sit where Andrew pulls his feet up. I sit down and Elliot stands in front of me, his feet together and arms by his sides, facing away from me before clumsily holding the comb up over his head. I take it and look at Andrew whose smiling eyes flick away from my face, and then to Daria who is watching us.
​"Ok." I comb through the mop of wet golden hair in front of me. "Tell me if I hurt you, Elliot."
​"Be ok, Dem-dem. You won't hurt."
I smile as the comb glides through his hair.
I think he might be right.​
​