Page 38 of Oleander

“I’m sorry,” he whispered against my ear. I was so beguiled that I didn’t even think about what he might be apologising for. A moment later, he pulled back and wiped his face.

My hands hung loose and useless at my sides.

“When did you last eat?” I asked in a strange voice.

He was avoiding my eyes now like he was embarrassed. “I can’t remember...”

“I’m going to go downstairs and make you a sandwich. Will you stay here?”

He gave me a look like maybe he didn’t want me to leave, but then slid backwards against the headboard and nodded.

“I won’t be long,” I told him and stood.

By the door I looked at him over my shoulder before bolting downstairs to the library where I’d left my bag and my mobile. My finger hovered over Luke’s number. Everything in me wanted to call him. I didn’t know what was wrong with Caspien or whether a sandwich was going to fix it, and my instinct in most situations was to call Luke. But then I heard his voice – soft and pleading – ‘please don’t’ and I stopped.

I slid my phone back into my bag and went to the kitchen.

I threw together a cheese and ham sandwich, poured a glass of cold orange juice, and carried it upstairs. Caspien was asleep, curled toward me this time so I could see his eyes were closed.

I sat down on the bed and watched him for a full minute, wondering if he was faking it, though I’d no idea why he would. He looked young while he slept. Small and wisp-like. There was no hint of the viperous, sharp-tongued boy he was when conscious.

Another of those weird protective flares lit up inside me.

Through the open window, I heard the sound of a car and I set the sandwich and orange juice down by the bed and went to look outside.

Gideon’s silver Jaguar was pulling into the courtyard, crunching over the gravel. I bolted downstairs. He took too long to get out, but when he did, he was typing something on his phone and didn’t notice me standing by the back door. He went to the boot and retrieved a bunch of designer shopping bags from it. He was almost upon me before he glanced up and saw me.

I saw it happen. The transformation in his face. A dark, cruel look lifting from his eyes, and another, softer – more familiar – look settling over it.

“Young Jude! How’s things? Keeping Caspien out of trouble, I hope.”

“Where were you?” I snapped before I could stop myself.

Gideon halted, staring at me. “Pardon?”

“There’s something wrong with him,” I said. “I got here and he was acting strange and didn’t know what day it was. He hasn’t eaten. He looks ill.”

There was no reaction on Gideon’s face at first; he looked stunned. But then he rushed forward and passed me into the house. I followed him upstairs to Caspien’s bedroom, where he went straight to the bed where Cas was still asleep.

He sat the shopping bags down by the bed and perched on the side of it, reaching out to brush Caspien’s hair off his head.

“I had to go to London last minute for some urgent business I had to attend to in person.” He smoothed an elegant hand over Caspien’s cheek.

“Why didn’t you tell us? We would have kept an eye on him?”

Gideon looked over his shoulder at me. “I did. I left a message on Luke’s mobile – I don’t like doing it – he’s not a babysitter, but because Elspeth has the week off, I didn’t like the idea of him being completely alone. Didn’t he receive it?”

Luke was responsible and always checked his texts and messages. I shook my head, confused. Then it hit me.

“Luke switched phones this week.”

“Ah, that’ll be it.” He looked back at Caspien and made a soft noise at the back of his throat. “He is so self-sufficient and yet somehow completely unable to look after himself.”

I wanted to say that he was fifteen. I didn’t think he was expected to look after himself.

Gideon stood, lifted the bags and ushered me with him out of the room.

“He doesn’t sleep well at the best of times, so I think knowing you were here has settled him. He must be exhausted.”