Ava felt the baby squirm in her hands and a glow swept through her.
‘Are you OK?’ Heather said.
Ava nodded.
Heather glanced at the sky, empty and blue, the gulls still scared to take flight. ‘What was that?’
‘I guess it was Xander,’ Ava said. ‘Lennox must’ve asked for help.’
Heather frowned. ‘Did you hear anything?’
Ava hadn’t.
Heather shook her head. ‘Where did they go?’
Ava looked at her baby, then at Heather. ‘I can’t believe she’s here with me, finally. My Chloe.’
Heather’s face softened and she leaned in to get a better look. ‘She’s beautiful. It’s a lovely name.’
Ava stared at Chloe’s closed eyes, wrinkled skin, felt the warmth of her. She was so exhausted but at least the pain was gone, just a low-level ache throbbing through her body. She stared at Chloe, tried to get her head round the fact that she’d been inside her a few minutes ago. The umbilical cord was still attached, the placenta still inside Ava, still working to feed Chloe. Ava loved that they were connected for a few more moments.
Heather left a trailing hand and walked to where Lennox had been. The jetty concrete was covered in puddles like a rainstorm had passed through. Fellowes lay with his arms out, legs curled under him like a Victorian lady after a dizzy spell.
Ava sat up slowly, feeling every ache. She shuffled to the edge of the truck to see better, supporting Chloe’s head.
Heather went to the cage, touched it, picked up the gun and put it in her pocket. She looked at the sky and Ava followed her gaze. Where were Lennox, Sandy and Xander?
Heather crouched next to Fellowes, touched his neck. Ava looked around, some of the bystanders were inching closer to the pier, many staring at the sky, some holding phones. She wondered if it was on the internet yet, whether folk were already calling it a hoax.
She heard a snuffle and looked at Chloe, closed her eyes as another wave of exhaustion swept over her.
‘Well.’
Her shoulders tightened at the voice.
Michael. Standing there smiling like he meant well. She’d forgotten about him and it had been bliss. Now she was right back in the shark tank, her body tense. She covered her groin, feeling exposed.
‘No need,’ he said, stepping closer. ‘I’ve seen it all before.’
She angled her shoulders to hide Chloe from him, pointless but instinctive.
‘Admittedly, this is new,’ he said, reaching out to the baby.
‘Don’t.’ Ava felt herself harden, something rock solid at her core.
Michael acted like he didn’t hear her. ‘Our baby daughter. Margaret, after my mother.’
‘She’s called Chloe.’ It was a mistake to speak. Don’t engage, don’t give him ammunition. She couldn’t believe she had to deal with this.
‘I don’t think so,’ Michael said. ‘Chloe is too common. Margaret is much more suitable.’
‘Ava?’ Another voice she recognised, a similar feeling of dread.
She turned. ‘Mum?’
‘Darling.’ Her mum stepped from the other side of the truck. She stared at Chloe, eyes wet.
Ava felt tears coming, thought about her mum giving birth to her.
‘Thank you,’ Michael said, wrestling Chloe from her arms before she even knew it was happening. The baby started to cry. She was tiny in Michael’s hands and he was holding her all wrong, her head lolling.
Michael didn’t even look at Chloe, just stared at Ava. He batted her away as she lunged forward. Then he looked down, saw the umbilical cord, frowned in disgust. He pulled out a penknife, one Ava gave him as an anniversary present, and cut the cord, leaving a few inches dangling from Chloe’s belly, the rest flopping between Ava’s legs.
Ava had expected that to hurt but there was no pain. But feeling separated from Chloe, she wanted to die. Or kill.
She glanced at her mum who looked confused, as if it had never occurred to her that her son-in-law was a bad man.
‘Michael?’ she said.
‘Let’s go,’ Michael said to her, ignoring Ava. ‘I’ve got what I came here for.’
Ava slid from the back of the truck, felt her legs wobble, her groin burn. She reached for Chloe but Michael stepped away. This was so easy for him, just like his whole life. He was going to take what he wanted and that was that. She wouldn’t let that happen.
‘Stop.’ Ava turned to see Heather a few yards away, pointing Fellowes’ gun at Michael.
Michael laughed and shook his head. Chloe cried. ‘Who the fuck even are you?’
Heather stood still. ‘Give Chloe back.’
Michael looked at the crowd watching. ‘You won’t shoot me in front of these people. What if I drop her?’
The world shrank around Ava as her focus narrowed on him and Chloe. She was still leaning against the truck, trying to stand up. Heather said something but the sound had turned down on her universe, she didn’t catch it. Michael replied, smug and confident, like always. They were talking as if this was a negotiation. But this was her daughter’s life, there was nothing to discuss.
Heather stepped forward and Michael stepped back. He was just a few feet away. Ava inched along the back of the truck, her hand sliding on the metal, the bloody umbilical cord dangling between her legs. Her knuckles touched something and she turned. A heavy wrench, spilled from an open toolbox. Must’ve shaken loose in the crash. She lifted the wrench, the cold metal at home in her fist, the weight of it like something holy. She gripped it tight.
She stepped up to Michael and swung the wrench onto the back of his skull with every ounce of strength she had. She heard the crack of metal on bone, blood spraying from his scalp. She dropped the wrench with a clang, took two steps forward while Michael swayed, and gently lifted Chloe from his hands, held her to her chest. Michael stared at her, blood pouring down his neck as he crumpled to the ground, head hitting the concrete with a thunk that made Ava’s heart sing.
‘It’s OK,’ she whispered to Chloe. ‘Mummy’s here.’
She sensed things happening around her. She heard Michael gurgle on the ground, felt Heather’s hand on her shoulder, heard her mother speak. Eventually she realised the world had darkened. She looked and saw Xander descending from the sky, casting a shadow over the shore and the jetty. The giant creature came to a stop fifty feet above their heads, flashing blue and green like some crazy fairground show.