Page 7 of The Happy Family

And then I see her slip.

She falls on the staircase, hitting her head hard on the bottom step.

Then it all goes quiet.

She isn’t moving.

Is she okay?

FIVE

REID

I open my eyes and stare up at the ceiling, trying to figure out why I just heard my ex-wife’s voice. A nightmare? Perhaps. Most divorcees would probably say that any dream that features elements of their ex-wife qualifies as a bad one. But something feels off. I’m not totally convinced the voice was in my dream. It felt closer. It felt more real.

But it can’t have been.

Sadie doesn’t live here anymore.

I share my bed with Luna now.

I look to my right, to where I expect to find my new partner lying beside me. But she’s not there. That causes me to look towards our ensuite bathroom, but I don’t see a light on in there, nor hear any noises, suggesting she isn’t in there either.

Where has she gone?

A quick check on my bedside clock tells me that it is just after midnight, so I calculate that I have been asleep for around an hour or so. Nowhere near enough rest to prepare me for another day, but at least I got something. But what about Luna? Why isn’t she able to rest?

‘Daddy?’

The small and surprising voice from the doorway gives me a fright. It’s Ruby, my dainty daughter, in her baggy pyjamas, holding her favourite teddy bear and looking sleepy. I guess something woke her too. Then I see her brother appear behind her.

‘What was that noise?’ he asks me and that tells me I was not dreaming. My children heard something too. That fact, along with Luna not being where she should be, makes me get out of bed quickly. I’m starting to sense danger.

‘Everything’s okay,’ I say to the little visitors in my bedroom, but that’s more because I’m trying to be a good parent and ease any worries they might have, rather than I know it to be true. The truth is, hearing unexpected and unexplained noises at this time of night is rarely a good thing, so now I’m worried too.

I’m worried that there might be an intruder downstairs.

If so, is Luna okay? Or is she in trouble?

I’m just about to call out for her when she speaks.

‘Reid,’ she calls, but her voice is low and weak-sounding, as if it took a lot of energy for her just to make that sound.

It came from below, so I rush to the top of the stairs, closely followed by Arthur and Ruby, who are sticking tightly to me. Just before I look down, I hear Luna utter my name again, sounding even worse than she did the first time. Then I look and I realise why I thought I heard Sadie a few seconds ago.

It’s because she’s here.

‘Mummy!’ Ruby cries when she sees what I see. Sadie’s limp – and possibly lifeless – body is lying at the foot of the staircase. Standing just past her, with her back to the wall and a hand over what looks like a bloody wound on her arm, is Luna. She stares up at me, her face pale, eyes vacant, looking like a ghost wandering the halls of the house at witching hour.

‘Mum?’ Arthur says, confused.

Then his sister takes off, scampering down the stairs towards the stricken Sadie. Arthur rushes after her and I follow them, uncertain about what exactly has happened but certain that it is very, very bad.

‘Is she…?’ I say to Luna, but she doesn’t answer me. She just watches the children as they reach Sadie and try their best to wake her up.

They pull at her arms and touch her face and call her name. They’re only doing what any frightened child would do if they saw their mother struggling, but I suddenly worry they might be doing more harm than good.

‘Leave her alone. Give her some space,’ I cry. ‘Mummy is hurt and she needs to rest while we get her some help.’