Beth looked over at Jonan.
Jonan sighed. ‘Charlie, there are no spirits attached to you. Amelia has manipulated you. She’s made your own fears feel foreign, and that makes you fear anything different. We can help you, but you need to understand: Amelia is not telling you the truth.
‘She’s not lying. She’s protecting us.’ Charlie’s jaw was tight now. His face was flushed and his hands clawed around the edge of the table in a death grip. ‘Who is this man, Beth? Why are you with him?’
‘He is my friend and you should listen to him. He knows what he’s talking about. You don’t have to do this event. Walk away. No job is worth this, Charlie.’
‘If I do that, we’ll both be out of a job.’
Beth shrugged. ‘So be it. I’m out of a job anyway. Your only client refused to have me on her account. You’d find something new without any problem. It’s the best thing for you, and you know it. You could go to a company that isn’t fighting for its life. Go somewhere with big budgets and huge clients. This company is done.’
‘This,’ Charlie said through gritted teeth, ‘is going to be the most important charity event ever held in St Albans. It may be the most important event held ever. But you know it will fold without someone organising it. Why are you trying to sabotage it? What do you have against Amelia? Are you in league with the spirits?’ Charlie’s gaze was flickering around the room, his breathing fast. Even Jonan’s protections weren’t enough to stop Beth feeling this amount of fear and her heart was starting to pound. This was not going to work. Amelia had him too firmly in her grip.
Beth sighed. ‘No, Charlie, I’m not. And I’m sure you’re right. Ignore me.’
Charlie slumped. He nodded, his head hanging heavy as though he wanted to fall asleep where he sat. ‘Well, good.’ He looked up at Jonan. His eyes narrowed. ‘I still don’t know who you are.’
‘I’m someone who can help you feel normal again, if you want me to.’ Jonan was so still he didn’t appear to be breathing. He radiated a magnetism that outshone his chiselled features. He was otherworldly.
Beth’s breath caught.
Charlie jumped up, tensed now in spite of his earlier lethargy. He backed away, wringing his hands in front of him.
‘If you change your mind, Beth knows where to find me.’ Jonan spoke quietly, but his voice carried across the restaurant like a wisp of smoke.
Charlie swallowed, nodded, and backed all the way to the door. Then he was gone.
Beth sighed. ‘She’s got to Charlie now. She’s hemming me in, throwing me off the project, but not leaving me a free exit. I can’t do right, can I?’
Jonan shook his head. ‘Not by Amelia, but you can do right by everyone else.’
‘By Charlie?’
‘I’m not sure about Charlie. He has so much fear circulating through his system that everything you say will feel like a threat unless you agree with him. The best thing we can do for Charlie is to deal with Amelia.’
There was a crash from the doorway. Beth frowned and scooted her chair backwards. ‘That’s the man who’s been watching me,’ she whispered. ‘The one in the doorway with the pointy face and the hood. Do you see?’
He was arguing with a large, waiter, gesticulating wildly. He pointed at Beth, but the waiter shook his head. Suddenly he made a dash for Beth. His hood fell back from his face, exposing greasy hair shoved back from his pale, stubble-lined face. He shoved a phone in Beth’s face.
‘Tell me, what’s Amelia’s secret?’ he demanded, looking back over his shoulder at the waiter closing in on him. ‘Tell me, Beth. I know you know something. What happened in that theatre when you were alone with her? Why were you there for hours after she’d left? Are you in league with her? What are you planning?’
‘You’ve been following me,’ Beth said, her voice steady despite the adrenaline pumping through her system.
‘I’m sorry, ma’am.’ Another waiter, even larger than the first, strode up to the table. ‘He won’t bother you again.’ The two men hooked their hands under the man’s armpits and hauled him out.
‘You know something!’ he yelled as they dragged him towards the door. ‘That woman is evil and if you don’t speak up, you’re no better than she is.’
‘We have to go after him,’ Beth whispered to Jonan. It felt as though the whole restaurant was watching her.
The waiter came over, pad in hand, and raised his eyebrows. ‘Can I get you anything to drink?’
‘I’m sorry, I need to speak to that man. Thank you so much for your help. No need to keep the table for us.’ She stood up and pulled her coat on.
‘Are you sure?’ Jonan said, standing up. ‘That man was under Amelia’s influence too. I could see it. He is probably coming more from fear than knowledge.’
‘I’m sure, but he’s been following me and I want to know why.’
Jonan nodded to the waiter. ‘Another time.’
Beth wanted to duck her head as she walked out the door, to avoid the inquiring looks of other diners, but Jonan held his head high, smiling at everyone who met his gaze. A kind of glow surrounded him. It was invisible to most, but people watched him anyway, drawn irresistibly to him.
Outside, the sky was clear and black, the stars undimmed by the street lamps nearby. The black-and-white Tudor buildings looked wonky at the best of times, but now the shadows made them look weirdly malformed. Jonan’s hand found hers, the warmth grounding her as she stepped into the silvery shadows of the full moon.
Beth squinted down the road in both directions. ‘We have to find him,’ she murmured to herself.
‘You mean the man we just threw out?’ One of the waiters came up behind her.
Beth nodded.
‘He’s over there in the doorway to that shop. He’s been waiting for you, I guess. We’ve called the police so he won’t be there long. I suggest you stay inside. Eat something. Drink. We’ll let you know when it’s all done out here.’
‘Thanks, but no.’ Beth started out into the street.
A horn blared. Brakes screeched as a car spun out of nowhere, just stopping before it hit her.
Beth barely registered Jonan’s hoarse shout, or the yelling of the driver. She had seen the man. He was in the doorway of an old Tudor shop, hands shoved in his pockets as he watched her. His face was blank.
His thin lips spread into a tight smile as she approached. His hair was once again hidden under the hoody that shadowed his features, but the expression on his face as he yelled at her in the restaurant was branded into her memory. His clothes all seemed too big, as though they were hand-me-downs from an older and larger brother.
‘What do you know?’ Beth asked, stopping in front of him.
‘I know you were at the theatre,’ he snarled. ‘I was there, waiting at the door. I saw you go inside, but you didn’t come out. At all. Amelia left by a side door, a scarf wrapped around her head, huge sunglasses covering her face as though she were some 1950’s film star. She signed a few autographs, posed for selfies with the girls who had been waiting by the stage door, and then disappeared. I have no idea how, but one minute she was there, and then she was gone.’ He glared at her, hands clenched into tight fists at his sides.