A Villain for Christmas (The Holyoake Christmas Series, Book 2)

An Almost Cutaway Shot

Quick author's note: Margo Adley, mentioned in this chapter, is a character of my unfinished story, the mother of the protagonist of my book You and Me, Me With You, which I will finish one day, I swear. She's yet another of my in-verse celebrities, like Olivia Dane and Jack Richards. You really don't need to know anything about her at this stage, except that her writing is the sort of Hilary Mantel meets Patricia Highsmith. As an author, she's edgy, popular, highbrow, and constantly surrounded by scandal. 

***

It definitely had not been the snogging and flirting - presumably flirting, because what does Sybil know of this sort of thing? - that had convinced her to let him help her into her coat, to open the door of his car for her, and to offer her his hand to climb in said car. Also, one hand hadn't been enough, and he still had to pick her up and hoist her inside.

It had started snowing about an hour ago; and he drove slowly, his car crawling through the sideroads like a gargantuan beast of sorts. A komodo dragon, for example.

"Growing up," Billie started, and he hummed showing he was listening. "Did you spend a lot of time with Ms. Spruce?" Billie asked, greedily peering at his face.

He nodded. "My mamma had lost her parents early. They took her in when she married papà."

"I've heard and read so much about her!" Billie couldn't hold back her excitement. "About her adventures! She started a mobile library in the county and smuggled banned literature to Fleckney! It was the fifties, and she openly carried Lady Chatterley's Lover with her!"

He guffawed. "Of course you'd c-care about that. More than catching a Soviet spy or apprehending a b-band of robbers."

Billie pouted. "If you want someone to discuss your Nonna's sleuthing, you might want to spend time with Imogen Oakby, née Fox, our Mayor's wife. She even started an Esther Spruce fan club when we were in the secondary." Billie crossed her arms in front of her chest. "To me, Ms. Spruce's literary and educational achievements are much more significant."

"Well, you are a librarian," he drew out teasingly, clearly mimicking her phrase from earlier. "But I get it. Going against the status quo? Opposing one's f-family? It's hard. Takes c-courage."

Some sort of a shadow ran over his features.

"I wish I could be like her," Billie sighed.

"You could," he said.

Is that judgement in his voice she's detecting?

Billie immediately bristled. "Not everyone can be a spearhead, you know," she grumbled. "Some of us are doomed to remain mediocre and obscure."

He opened his mouth; she could see that he had a counterargument - but then he pressed his lips and said nothing. Not worth wasting his breath, is she? Billie turned away and stared at her reflection in the window glass.

"I'm her favourite grandchild," he said after a few minutes of silence.

Billie whipped her head towards him.

"I've got six siblings," he added pointedly.

Billie exhaled, "Blimey..." He chuckled. "What are they like?" Billie asked.

"They are... Holyoakes," he answered with another warm laugh.

"Ah." Billie shook her head. "This properly doesn't require any additional explanation."

She momentarily wondered if those hadn't been just his cousins that he'd been hiding from twenty years ago.

"So are you," she pointed out after a short pause. "At least now, you are a fully fledged Holyoake."