The Genius Wars (50 page)

‘Have you checked?’ asked Cadel. When he received no answer, he realised that he’d scored a point. ‘Wilfreda’s still out there somewhere,’ he continued. ‘For all we know, she might be living at Laguna Beach. He might have gone to stay with her. It’s possible.’

Saul gave a startled grunt. ‘I thought you said she was in Mexico?’ he exclaimed.

Cadel coloured.

‘I did,’ he had to admit. ‘That’s what I assumed. But it isn’t what
Prosper
said.’ Hearing Judith snort, he became more strident. ‘Prosper said that
we
were going to Mexico – him and me. He said he’d call Wilfreda when we got there. Which might just mean that he wanted her to drive down and meet us.’

‘Sweetie …’ Suddenly Fiona spoke up. She squeezed Cadel’s hand again, gazing into his eyes with anxious compassion. ‘Listen to me for a minute,’ she said. ‘I realise that you’ve spent your whole life in Prosper’s shadow. I realise that in the past, whenever you’ve started to feel safe, he’s always come back to spoil things. I realise that. And I understand why you can’t let go of the feeling that he’ll
keep
coming back, no matter what.’ As Cadel stiffened, she took a deep breath. ‘But this time, I swear to
you, he won’t come back,’ she promised. ‘He won’t. He’s gone. You’re free now.’

‘Because he’s not bloody Superman,’ Judith agreed. ‘If he’d made it to shore, he would have been found. And since he wasn’t found, then he must be dead.’

No
, thought Cadel.
No, no, no
.
That can’t be right.
There was a bitter taste on his tongue.

‘If Prosper drowned, why didn’t I?’ he snapped. ‘Prosper was a good swimmer! He had a lifejacket! Why would
he
drown, and not me?’

‘Because you were lucky,’ Saul replied. His voice roughened a little as he added, ‘Because we were all lucky. Incredibly, unbelievably lucky.’

‘Or because Prosper saved my life!’ Cadel blurted out. When Saul turned to face the windscreen, it was as if he’d passed judgement. Cadel felt panic-stricken, and close to despair. ‘It makes sense!’ he cried. ‘It does!’

‘It does
not
,’ said Judith. She glanced up into the rear-view mirror. ‘Prosper took the lifejacket. He tried to kill you. What about Sonja’s wheelchair? What about the runaway bus?’

‘I – I –’

‘He was going crazy, Cadel. You said it yourself. I’ve read your statement.’ Saul’s tone was deep and weary. ‘He practically confessed, when he mentioned that bus. He had it in for you.’

‘Yes, but –’

‘He was using you as a hostage. That’s why he didn’t shoot you in the house,’ Saul went on, much to Fiona’s annoyance. She shot a fierce look at her husband, then placed a comforting arm around Cadel’s shoulders.

‘We’ll never know what
might
have happened,’ she said, soothingly. ‘All we know is what
did
happen. Which is that you’re home safe, with your family, and that the danger is well and truly past.’

‘No thanks to Prosper,’ Judith added. ‘He didn’t save you, Cadel. I mean, why on earth would he have done that?’

‘Because he loved me,’ Cadel whispered. The words came
unbidden; for an instant he thought that they’d simply crossed his mind, and hadn’t been uttered aloud. But then he heard Judith hiss, and Sonja squeak, and he realised that he must have spoken after all.

‘You don’t believe it because you don’t understand,’ he said hoarsely. ‘Prosper was different. He wasn’t like other people. He might have hated me, but he loved me too. In his own way. He couldn’t help it; not after raising me for all those years.’ When no one responded – when he saw nothing but expressions of disbelief on the faces around him – Cadel wailed, ‘He
did
! He did! I know he did! He only wanted to wreck my life because he wasn’t a part of it!’

And as sympathetic hands reached out towards him from every corner of the car, Cadel began to cry like someone whose heart was breaking.

Catherine Jinks was born in Brisbane in 1963 and grew up in Sydney and Papua New Guinea. She studied medieval history at university, and her love of reading led her to become a writer. Her books for children, teenagers and adults have been published to wide acclaim all over the world, and have won numerous awards.

Catherine lives in the Blue Mountains in New South Wales with her husband, Canadian journalist Peter Dockrill, and their daughter Hannah.