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Shining
Girls
Lauren Beukes
Boston
London
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iii
harper
17 July 1974
Shining Girls F1
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Lauren Beukes
Shining Girls F1
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Shining Girls F1
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Lauren Beukes
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two cans. Big old bug like this should be able to pull his feet free,
but itll be sticky enough to stop him falling. You got some flypaper?
He sets the bumblebee down on the rim of the cup. It clings to
the edge.
Why did you do that? She hits his arm, a fluster of blows,
palms open.
Hes baffled by her reaction. Arent we playing circus?
You ruined it! Go away! Go away, go away, go away, go away.
It becomes a chant, timed with each slap.
Hold on. Hold on there, he laughs, but she keeps on whacking him. He grabs her hand in his. I mean it. Cut it the fuck out,
little lady.
You dont swear! she yells and bursts into tears. This is not
going like he planned as much as he can plan any of these first
encounters. He feels tired at the unpredictability of children.
This is why he doesnt like little girls, why he waits for them to
grow up. Later, it will be a different story.
All right, Im sorry. Dont cry, okay? Ive got something for
you. Please dont cry. Look. In desperation, he takes out the orange pony, or tries to. Its head snags on his pocket and he has to
yank it free. Here, he jabs it at her, willing her to take it. One of
the objects that connects everything together. Surely this is why
he brought it? He feels only a moment of uncertainty.
What is it?
A pony. Cant you see? Isnt a pony better than some dumb
bumblebee?
Its not alive.
I know that. Goddammit. Just take it, okay? Its a present.
I dont want it, she sniffs.
Okay, its not a present, its a deposit. Youre keeping it safe
for me. Like at the bank when you give them your money. The
7
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Lauren Beukes
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The characters and events in this book are fictitious. Any similarity to real persons, living or
dead, is coincidental and not intended by the author.
Copyright 2013 by Lauren Beukes
All rights reserved. In accordance with the U.S. Copyright Act of 1976, the scanning, uploading,
and electronic sharing of any part of this book without the permission of the publisher constitute
unlawful piracy and theft of the authors intellectual property. If you would like to use material
from the book (other than for review purposes), prior written permission must be obtained by
contacting the publisher at permissions@hbgusa.com. Thank you for your support of the
authors rights.
Mulholland Books/Little, Brown and Company
Hachette Book Group
237 Park Avenue, New York, NY 10017
mulhollandbooks.com
First Edition: June 2013
Mulholland Books is an imprint of Little, Brown and Company, a division of Hachette Book
Group, Inc. The Mulholland Books name and logo are trademarks of Hachette Book Group, Inc.
The publisher is not responsible for websites (or their content) that are not owned by the
publisher.
The Hachette Speakers Bureau provides a wide range of authors for speaking events. To find out
more, go to hachettespeakersbureau.com or call (866) 376-6591.
Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data
Beukes, Lauren.
The shining girls / Lauren Beukes. First North American edition.
pages cm
ISBN 978-0-316-21685-2 (hardcover) / ISBN 978-0-316-24521-0 (large print)
I. Title.
PR9369.4.B485.S55 2013
823'.92 dc23
2013003018
10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1
rrd-c
Printed in the United States of America
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