Dead Famous

DAY NINETEEN. 8.00 a.m.

Kelly did not go to bed. Having changed out of her wet clothes, she made herself a cup of tea and sat down on the green couch, trying to put from her mind the suspicions with which she had awoken.

It was here that Dervla found her an hour later as she made her way to the shower room. Dervla, like the rest of them, had been up late, but she did not want to sleep in, she never slept in, she always wanted to get to the shower room first. She wanted to look in the mirror.

“Good morning, Kelly,” Dervla said. “Things got a bit close with Hamish there for a bit, didn’t they?”

“What do you mean? We were only having a laugh.”

Kelly’s defensive tone made Dervla smile. Perhaps something had gone on, after all.

“Well, you were both pretty drunk, weren’t you? And he was drooling over you all evening, tongue fair hanging out, so it was. If the poor fella hadn’t have nodded off first I think you’d have had to beat him off with a stick.”

“Nodded off first. Is that what he said happened?”

“That’s what he said… Are you all right, Kelly?”

“Yes! Yes, absolutely fine,” Kelly replied, about twenty times too eagerly, and lapsed into silence.

Dervla headed for the shower room, left Kelly to it. She could hear the camera moving about beyond the glass.

“Morning, Mr Cameraman,” she said as she soaped herself beneath her T-shirt. “I hope you feel better than I do.” She slid a slippery, sudsy hand inside her knickers.

Beyond the glass the camera’s electric motor gave a little hum as it pulled focus. Dervla might have heard it had the shower not been running.

The message was already being written as Dervla approached the basin to brush her teeth. The writer’s tone had changed.

“K is your enemy,” it said. “Fucking slut is still ahead. She cock-teases the boys to avoid nomination.” And then the unseen finger underlined the first four words…

“K is your enemy.”