Once the Prologue has
established a rather unpleasant nameless villain, Sudden Vengeance moves to a cemetery, where the Knight family is
burying Gran, who died while being burgled. The Knight family comprises Paul, a
policeman, Mark, Stuart, Lisa, Mum (Cathy) and Dad (David). The narrative is
sometimes omniscient, the better to view the whole picture, then at
particularly emotional moments it drops into the point of view of the main
character in any scene. We’ve seen Paul described here and there follows David and Cathy.
Treating the
descriptions and character studies in a similar fashion to a film director, the
camera lingers on their appearance and then delves into their thoughts – and
hearts. Each character sequence then segues into another in the family, so the
ending of Cathy, the Mum’s sequence runs: ‘Standing next to Paul was Mark, the
young rebel who, surprisingly to most people but not to her, was taking Gran’s
death hardest of all the family.’
***
Mark was almost Paul’s
height, with the same though considerably longer dark hair, partly covering his
left earring. He also had his older brother’s sharp penetrating brown eyes.
There the similarities ended, for where Paul was heavily built and big-boned,
Mark was lithe, narrow-shouldered and possessed a lighter frame; an inheritance
from his mother. His crooked nose was the result of a childhood accident – Paul
had fished him out of the harbour after he fell off the Alverbank ferry
pontoon.
Mark’s face was grim,
a cast of features unusual for him, as he tended to be happy and carefree, with
the beginnings of laughter grooves at the corners of his mouth and eyes.
He was bitterly angry.
For all his seventeen years, his life had been wound up with the family and
especially with Gran. She’d nursed him when Mum went off to work. She’d shared
his interest in books and nurtured a deep-rooted love of reading.
He felt cast adrift,
without a sea anchor – a term he’d picked up from Hornblower. Gran had wanted him to become a writer, but
it seemed to him to be a bit precarious as a profession – even if your name
wasn’t Salman Rushdie – as was acting, the career he really wanted to follow.
Maybe Gran’s prejudices against the stage were due to her interpretation of
J.B. Priestley’s The Good Companions? He didn’t think it strange to be mulling over these subjects. Gran had
always said, “Enjoy reading, my boy, and you have the world at your
fingertips!” How right she was. Though now his fingertips itched to get round
the neck of the bastard who had murdered her!
He glanced away
guiltily as the vicar’s words impinged, “...deliver us from the bitter pains of
eternal death. You know the secrets of our hearts: in your mercy hear our
prayer, forgive us our sins, and at our last hour let us not fall away from
you.”
Oh, Gran, Mark
thought, I’m sorry, but I can’t forgive him, whoever he is.
For all his rebellious
attempts to break away from parental expectations – such as long hair, an
earring, and studying arts instead of “proper useful technical subjects” – Mark
was conservative deep down, and Gran had sensed this all along. “You may fool
all your pals, and even your sister and brothers, Mark,” she said, “but you
don’t fool me!”
Mark’s fingers tensed
into knuckles at his side.
God, he was so angry –
with everyone, especially those he loved, including Gran for getting herself
robbed and killed in the first place!
He let his tears run
freely, and blinked to see Lisa standing next to Paul. Why can’t you get the
bastard, you’re the oldest, the cleverest, and the best? What are you doing
about it, Paul?
Mark stared down into
the dark grave, feeling amidst his family alone with his anger and his grief.
Through a mist of tears, she watched the coffin being lowered into the ground. She tried telling herself, without conviction, that Gran wasn’t in the ground, her soul had left her shell; now she was with Grandad.
Soil scrabbled down
and made an awful resonant thudding sound on the coffin. There was also the
damp smell of freshly-turned earth. Dimly she could hear sobbing and hiccoughs
of grief.
It didn’t seem right. Barely a month ago, she’d celebrated her nineteenth birthday, with Gran in attendance – “let out for the day and for good behaviour,” Gran had remarked, winking.
Gran had been proud of
Lisa’s offer of a place at Sussex University. “You take full advantage of this
women’s liberation, my girl!” Lisa had refrained from saying that phrase was passé; now it was feminism. “I had to make do – very
well, mind you – with reading about the world beyond Hampshire, but if you get
good marks at your studies, the world can be yours!” Lisa hadn’t the heart to mention
the many unemployed graduates, or the large debts most students built up while
on campus. Think positive, that’s what Gran always advocated.
For the few days
around the funeral, Lisa had left her friend, Viv, to take notes at their
lectures.
For most of her young
life Lisa had resented being endowed with similar genes to Paul. She wanted to
be feminine and petite, but being big-boned and tall – five-ten – with a full
figure – (Warren said he liked proper curves in a woman), Lisa resigned herself
to becoming the best Human Sciences student the university had ever had. She
was also a good sportswoman, being successful at swimming, discus, fencing and
javelin. Right now, she would dearly love to hurl a javelin at the junkie freak
who’d murdered Gran!
Again, Gran had said, “Think positively, my girl! Think what you can do, not what you can’t!” Lisa smiled without humour and wondered what Gran would have said about her sleeping with Warren, a fellow student. Probably applaud it, but hand out useful advice as well. She’d taken Aunt Sarah’s sexual preference in her stride, after all, which had surprised even Mum and Dad.
Lisa’s long auburn
hair blew in the wind, even though swept back under a black bandeau. The
freckles she detested over her nose were finally starting to fade. Her big blue
eyes, which usually sparkled, were now awash with tears. She thought her full
mouth was a little on the large size, but Warren disagreed completely and
enjoyed what she could do to him with it.
She shook herself guiltily, dismissing erotic thoughts of Warren just as Stu on her right linked her free arm.
… which leads on to Stuart – and the end of the first chapter.
Each family member is
important to the story-line in a number of ways. This method of revelation
helps establish them at the outset, and hopefully provides enough insight and
emotion to draw the reader into empathising with some if not all.
There are many ways to
start a book. This felt the right way for me. Creating atmosphere, suppressed
anger, and grief and showing a family unit being strong together in adversity.
***
Sudden
Vengeance published by Crooked Cat - here
Amazon UK here
Amazon COM here
Smashwords here
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