The Lost Boy and The Gardener's Daughter Read Online Free Page B

he still hid his arse intact, as far as he could make oot.  Some ae the boys who’d been returned in the past hid been raped by the brothers, oan tap ae receiving a severe hiding aff ae them.  It hidnae been long efter he’d been allowed back intae circulation and planning his next escape, that everything hid started tae go tae pot. 
      He couldnae put his finger oan when his nightmares hid started fur real.  He knew something wisnae quite right when he couldnae stoap thinking or dreaming, day and night, aboot seeing Mick Murphy go up in flames.  He’d started tae feel dizzy a lot ae the time and hid even fainted twice, which hid been really embarrassing, especially in front ae the other boys in the school.  He’d also started tae get sore heids and the feeling as if he wis coming doon wae some sort ae a fever.  He’d been walking aboot, as pale as a bottle ae milk maist ae the time, and hid jist withdrawn intae himsel.  While he’d thought he wis awright, the other boys in the school hid started tae gie him a body-swerve whenever he showed up at recreation in the evenings.  Wan night, he’d stood up in the dining room and gied a table full ae the Carlton Tongs the biggest sherricking they hid ever hid in their lives.  There hid been some tough basturts sitting in amongst them, bit they’d aw jist shrank back, looking at him as if he wis possessed or something.  He jist didnae hiv any control o’er whit he wis daeing.  Wan minute he widnae hiv a clue where the hell he wis and the next, he wid get aw excited and want tae kill everywan in the school.  It hid been bad enough that the other boys wur avoiding him like the plague, bit then he’d realised that there wis something definitely wrang when the Catholic brothers in charge hid started tae avoid him.  Two ae the wans who’d thrashed him the maist efter he’d arrived back efter his wee sojourn oan the run, hid jist aboot shat themsels wan day when he’d walked towards them.  Apart fae turning a whiter shade ae pale, wan ae them hid picked up a sweeping brush and hid shouted at him tae stoap exactly where he wis.  When Paul hid suddenly stoapped in his tracks, the other wan hid demanded tae know whit the fuck Paul wis up tae.  The two ae them hid made the sign ae the cross at him.  He’d been transferred later that same day tae Lennox Castle nut-hoose.  They’d put him through a lot ae tests and kept asking him whit the hell wis wrang wae him.  He’d tried tae tell them that that’s whit he wanted tae know himsel.  Efter a couple ae weeks ae being telt nothing, an army quack, who’d been across fae America and who wis visiting the joint at the time, hid come and spoken tae him.  The quack seemed quite decent and Paul hid met wae him aboot a dozen times o’er the next month.  Jist before the doctor hid been due tae go back tae the war in Vietnam, Paul hid asked him if he thought he wis ever gonnae be cured, seeing as nowan seemed tae know whit wis wrang wae him.  The doctor hid laughed and telt him no tae worry.  He’d said that he knew exactly whit wis wrang wae Paul and wis writing up a report wae recommendations fur his recovery.  The doctor said that he’d been surprised that Paul hidnae hid a breakdoon before then, given the length ae time that hid passed since Skull hid goat burned tae death.  In wan ae their sessions, Paul hid telt him aboot Skull’s death back in nineteen sixty five, bit no aboot Mad Mick, the human fireball, earlier in the year.  The doctor hid telt him that the symptoms that he wis displaying wur similar tae sojers in the second world war and in Vietnam.  He’d gied Paul the example ae wan ae his patients, who’d clocked wan ae his buddies being trapped and burnt tae death inside a tank that hid jist been hit by a shell.  The quack hid said that, although there wisnae a cure or a magic wand tae make him better, he felt that Paul needed a rest fae stressful situations and that he wis recommending