‘Jesus, are you hurt? What’s happened?’ cried Nancy in a panic as she ran over to her child, her baby, desperately trying to find the source of all the blood. It was horrific; it was all over her, blood running down her neck, her arms, her legs, smeared across her face. The shock was stopping Nancy from thinking straight; but she needed to find out where Lara was bleeding. On some numbed level, Nancy was faintly aware that Lara didn’t seem to be in any pain, but she couldn’t make sense of it all.
‘It’s fake, Mum,’ said Lara.
Nancy slowed, the information sinking in. ‘What?’
‘It’s fake blood.’
Fake blood? How has Lara got covered in fake blood?
‘Who did this to you?’ asked Beth.
Lara looked at Mia.
‘Her?’ said Beth.
‘No.’
‘It was Rosie, wasn’t it?’ said Nancy, her voice dangerously low.
‘They wore masks, so I wasn’t completely sure . . .’
‘They?’ asked Nancy, incredulously. She turned to Mia, standing a distance away, reluctant to get too close. ‘Were you there?’
‘No . . .’ she stammered. ‘I mean, I wasn’t throwing the blood.’ She backed away a little, cut an anxious glance to Lara and then turned and ran.
‘Mia helped me,’ said Lara. ‘Afterwards.’
‘Did they hurt you?’ asked Nancy, her rage growing. ‘What did they do?’
She felt Beth place a calming hand on her arm.
Lara burst into tears.