Dark Night of the Soul

Chapter 20

William and Angus Joyce walk dolefully down the alleyway to the park. Angus has a football tucked under his arm but he can sense that William isn't in the mood. He is already feeling Dave's absence. When he had first knocked on Dave's door, he had been motivated solely by a selfish need for a new gaming device. But Dave's kindness had taken him by surprise. Although he had never thanked him, he had really appreciated all of the sweets. And the company. Dave was surprisingly good company, certainly not your average dad. How many dads could delve into the dark web and weave wonders in Sad Satan? But now William has lost him again and he feels the emptiness keenly.

Angus gives William a shove to bring him to his senses and they walk over to a group of boys standing at the edge of a worn football pitch. Angus drop kicks the ball at them. They duck and it goes flying over their heads into the nettles. 'Stupid,' mumbles William as Angus runs over to fetch it, pulling his sleeves down over his hands to protect them from stings. 'Alright,' he nods to the other boys, 'let's set up some goals'. He takes off his sweatshirt, gathers it into a clump on the ground, and runs off to help his brother get the ball.

'William, is that your phone? Sad Satan theme, innit?' shouts one of the boys as an improvised goalpost vibrates. Rummaging around in the pocket he picks up William's phone. 'Ha! Didn't know these still existed. Look at William's phone!' he beams, waving it for all the boys to see.

'Yeah I know. Stupid Mum won't let me have a proper one cos of the whole dark web thing. Give it here.' 'Hello?'

'Yes, good morning. Is that William? William Joyce?'

'Yes, who is this? Am I in trouble? Is Mum OK?'

'Yes please don't be worried, William. I am a friend of your Mother's. She is somewhat indisposed but has asked me to pass on a message. Could you go to the Co-op and buy her a bag of potatoes for a meal?'

'What? now? Are you sure it was potatoes? She doesn't even like potatoes.' He shouts over to Angus. 'This fella on the phone says that Mum needs potatoes from the Co-op. Should I go?'

'S'pose so,' Angus shouts back, still feeling his way through the nettles.

'Does she need them now or can't it wait 'til we've finished playing football?' he asks the man on the phone.

'Yes. She informed me that she will be making chips for lunch. So, be as quick as you can.'

'Oh, thanks for passing on the message. Angus, come on, we've got to go.'

Angus kicks the ball angrily to his friends. 'Keep it, I've got to go, apparently. William is a baby and doesn't like going to the shops on his own. I won't be long. Twenty minutes max.'

He and William march off at speed in the direction of the Co-op. William feels strange. Something isn't right. His toes are prickling; a kind of Spider sense. He gets the same prickles when he is gaming and about to lose a life. He stamps his feet and shakes his head.

'Blimey look at that,' says Angus as they approach the front door of the Co-op, digging his elbow into William's ribs to get his attention. 'Look. That fancy car. Is that a Rolls?'

'Merc I think. There's no badge at the front though. Bit weird. Look, the door's opening. Is he in a suit? They must be aliens or something, lost,' sniggers William.

'Ignore them. Let's go inside,' says Angus. But the tallest of the men is marching purposefully over to them with a phone in his hand. 'Is this your Dad?' he asks, showing them a blurry picture.

The boys turn reluctantly to look at the man, craning their necks to peer at his phone. 'Can't tell. Why? Who are you anyway?'

'We are associates of Dave. We are helping him because he has just won the lottery. He does not wish to make it public as yet but wishes his loved ones to share in his extreme happiness. And his money. Please, he would very much like to see you,' says the tall man, beckoning the boys towards the gleaming black car.