Watch You Burn

by KA Richardson

  Smoke started filling the hallway as she unlocked the door using her dad’s keys, left the door open to allow oxygen flow to fuel the fire, and walked away without looking back.

  9th October, 0305 hours – Heather’s residence

  Edina stirred from a deep sleep as loud knocking persisted at the door. She and Kevin had fallen asleep on the sofa at her mum’s after telling her about Cam being arrested.

  The knocking continued.

  Giving herself a mental shake, Ed pulled herself out from under the blanket – her mum must have covered them while they slept. She padded to the front door, latched the internal chain, and opened it a crack.

  It was Ali and she took the chain off, standing to one side to let him in.

  ‘Sorry to wake you, Edina, it’s good you’re here though. Are you the only one up? Where’s Heather?’

  ‘Heather? She’s in bed. Everyone is. What’s up?’

  Ed was scared – she knew Ali, and her heart was still thumping as he stood in the hallway – she hated to think how it must feel for a normal person being knocked up in the middle of the night.

  ‘Can you wake everyone? I’d rather only say this once.’

  Ed motioned him into the living room and woke Kevin, before going upstairs to wake her mum and sister.

  When they were all seated, Ali began. ‘I’ve got officers parked outside the front of the house – they’ll be here until Susie has been caught.’ He moved his gaze to Heather. ‘We think Susie killed her parents last night – she set fire to them in bed. After the attempt to kill you the other day, we think she might try and hurt you and Janelle again. I’ve got officers with Janelle now also.’

  ‘Oh my god,’ whispered Heather, grabbing Ed’s hand and holding it tightly.

  ‘If need be we’ll move you to a safe house but for now it should be enough having the officers outside. If you need to go anywhere, you need to let them know. All of you.’

  ‘In the last few days, both of my daughters have been almost killed by two different psychopaths, Detective Inspector McKay – I had no control over that and I appreciate your help in stopping it happening. If I’d lost either of them I’d…’ Joanna took a shaky breath before continuing, ‘well suffice to say I would have been out for blood. I appreciate you posting officers outside, and I will make sure all of us adhere to your instructions, but what exactly are we supposed to do if Susie manages to get past the officers? She wouldn’t hesitate to torch this house with us all in it – that’s a given. She’s wily enough that she’s evaded you catching her up to now. What are you doing to catch her?’

  ‘Joanna, I know this is difficult. My sister-in-law was kidnapped a few years ago by someone we all knew – all I wanted to do was find him and kill him. Trust me when I say I will do everything in my power to make sure Susie is arrested and imprisoned. You have my word that I have people out looking, following leads. I’m hoping she’ll think twice before coming here, especially with the officers outside, but I have to put precautions in place. If she somehow manages to get past the officers, and I seriously doubt that would happen, then the first priority is getting out. The officers have been briefed and will take it from there.’

  It was a long speech and Ali wearily rubbed a hand over his eyes.

  ‘You need coffee, stay here.’ Joanna got to her feet and left the room.

  ‘Have you even been home yet?’ asked Edina, already knowing the answer.

  Ali glanced at Heather’s pale face and knew she couldn’t take anymore news. ‘Would you mind asking if your mum can spare a few biccies? I’ve not eaten in hours.’

  He waited till she left the room then shook his head, ‘No, I was wrapping up when the report about Susie’s parents came in. The Super is at the house dealing. Dan Slater is with Janelle – don’t envy him his job tonight either. They found the body of Ryan Bishop late yesterday – the PM today indicates that he hanged himself. He was distraught over Kelly-Ann’s death and left a note to that effect.’

  ‘It’s sad he felt the need to kill himself. Heather didn’t get on with him but it’s still not a nice way to go.’

  ‘Yeah – from speaking to his parents he’d been feeling low after his girlfriend was killed – the one in the car? They’d still gone on holiday leaving him alone though. Guess he felt it was the only option.’

  He looked up as Heather and Joanna entered the room with a tray.

  ‘Thanks,’ said Ali, nestling back into the chair with a sigh. For the moment anyway, he could take a minute to breathe.

  9h October, 0730 hours – Heather’s residence

  Susie had been watching Heather’s house for a couple of hours – she knew there was a police car positioned to the front of the house, and that there was no one to the rear. The garden backed onto a house in the street behind. She felt weary – but she knew she had to make Heather pay. Heather first, then Janelle. Then finally she would be able to move on and find somewhere to settle; to sleep.

  She’d booked into one of the crap bed and breakfasts on Corporation Road – the kind that asked no questions. They took the cash and gave you a key. She’d paid up front for three nights – it would be enough time. She’d left her bag in the room, making sure the scarf and hoodie were pulled up covering her face.

  It was sore now – the skin had started to crack and ooze across the surface of the burn. Her arms were the same. She’d bandaged her arms with some antiseptic cream which helped a little but it still felt like she’d run them over a cheese grater. The wind whipped at her skin just adding to her discomfort. For once, she didn’t want to stand in the cold waiting for the right moment to strike.

  When it started to rain, she decided it wouldn’t be today. She’d done her recon – now she intended to go back to the B&B and try to sleep through the banging doors, and rattling pipes.

  Her head hung low as she walked away from Heather’s house and she had to fight to stop herself crying.

  9th October, 1000 hours – B&B, Corporation Road, Darlington

  Susie rubbed her eyes. She’d been trying to sleep for a couple of hours but there was just too much noise. It wasn’t like she could open the door and yell at them to shut up either. The B&B housed scum – from what she’d seen anyway. She’d even put the chair under the handle of the door to prevent anyone coming in. No one had actually tried the handle, but she wouldn’t put it past them.

  She dragged herself out of bed and went into the tiny en suite. It had one of the old seventies suites, though there was no bath. The toilet and sink were a dirty-looking peach colour. The tiny shower was more modern but the door was hanging off – at best it provided lukewarm water at a low drizzle. Susie sighed as she stripped off to shower. She could have booked into a better hotel – but that would have meant being more visible and the last thing she wanted was to be visible.

  After she’d washed, she sat on the edge of the bed, listening. Someone was having an argument in the room below her – a female screamed then started sobbing hysterically. A man yelled at her. His voice was muffled through the floor, but Susie thought she heard him call the woman a slut. A loud bang sounded and the room below went quiet.

  This was the kind of place she wanted to burn down instantly – just get rid of the scum that lived there once and for all. There wasn’t one respectable person in any one of the ten rooms. Even the landlord was slimy – when she’d checked in he’d looked her up and down, his gaze leering. She was glad the chair fitted under the door handle.

  There was nothing else for it. If she couldn’t sleep she might as well just go and take care of Heather. All of Susie’s rage was now focused on that one act. Janelle’s indiscretions had faded in comparison – Heather had spurned Susie – the betrayal of her turning to Janelle of all people had Susie so angry she could see stars dancing on the edge of her vision.

  Heather would suffer – she would realise she’d picked the wrong side the second she knew Susie was there. And Susie had every intention of letting Heather see her comin
g.

  She pulled the hoody on and wrapped the scarf round her face.

  The only thing she had to worry about was how to get Heather alone.

  27

  Heather was sitting on the bed staring out of the bedroom window. Ed had told her about Ryan killing himself and then left her in her room at her request. She didn’t know what she was supposed to feel. Ryan had always egged Janelle on when she’d bullied Heather – always been scathing in his name-calling and jibes.

  She wanted to feel sad for him – but she couldn’t.

  It confused her. She’d been quick enough to speak to Janelle after everything that had happened. It was tentative at best, but they had the beginnings of some kind of friendship forming. Janelle had been at the hospital since not long after Ali had posted officers with her – she’d texted Heather from her mum’s bedside, worried for her mum who was refusing to eat or drink after the stroke. It was a friendship born of circumstance. She didn’t know if it would continue. It was tentative at best. But it was better than the scathing name-calling and bullying she was used to. So she’d invited her round for breakfast, knowing her mum wouldn’t mind. Janelle had said she’d be about fifteen minutes, said she needed a break from sitting beside her mum. Heather checked her watch – that meant she would be almost there.

  She could hear her mum clattering about downstairs. They’d not long been out of bed, and she knew her mum would be getting some breakfast ready – she grinned to herself. Her mum cooked when she was stressed – if Heather knew her mum, and she did, it’d be bacon and eggs with lashings of toast. Surprised to feel her tummy grumble, she got up from the bay window ledge she had been sat on, and made her way downstairs just as Janelle knocked at the door.

  Janelle followed her through, and they paused at the kitchen door.

  Ed was bustling around Joanna, setting the table and grabbing plates and coffee cups. Even Kevin had been roped into helping and was stood buttering toast as it popped out of the toaster while her mum pulled the grill tray out of the oven. Heather had been right – rashers of crispy bacon lay on the tray and she could see eggs done sunny side up in the large frying pan.

  Her mum glanced up and smiled. ‘Come, sit. Brekkie’s ready. I’ve already fed the officers outside so this is ours and there’s plenty. You know what I’m like.’

  9th October, 1215 hours – Heather’s residence

  Susie stood behind the large hydrangea bush in the garden watching as Heather’s mum dished up breakfast in the kitchen. Her tummy grumbled in response. She couldn’t remember the last time she’d eaten a decent meal. When she was done here, she would. She’d find a nice pub, and eat the biggest burger on the menu. She’d have reason to celebrate then.

  When to strike was her biggest worry – with five of them in the house, and two cops out the front, she knew it wouldn’t be easy. She needed a few minutes to get everything set up – and she knew fighting off that many people would be impossible.

  She knew she would have to wait.

  Tonight, she would find a way into the house – and she would make Heather pay for betraying her by making sure everyone in the house suffered a hot, burning death. She felt the shiver of anticipation flow down her spine – waiting wasn’t ideal – she was angry enough to do it right this minute. But she would wait, because she wanted it to be right. She wanted Heather to suffer. To feel the flames edge towards her and know there wasn’t a damn thing she could do to stop it.

  She pushed the confusion she felt back – one minute it was Heather then Janelle. Did it really matter in which order they died? A sudden moment of panic hit her, would she even get close enough to use the knife? Susie touched it’s outline in the pocket of her black combat trousers – she’d never used a knife before, had a small niggle of doubt that when it came down to it she wouldn’t be able to. But she couldn’t expect Janelle to be in the same place as Heather at the same time – it was a shame she couldn’t strike now – god knew she wanted to. And it would have been easy had she already been inside the house.

  But she wasn’t.

  She swallowed hard – trying to force her frustration to one side so she could think logically. Tonight Janelle would be at her own house, Heather and everyone else would be here. It made sense that she should strike under the cover of darkness – they’d be much less likely to hear her if they were asleep.

  She clenched her fists so tightly that her fingernails dug into her palms, leaving arced, bloody welts. Susie wanted to scream – she felt ready to burst with all the rage rushing round her body. It just wouldn’t stop. She could hear it rushing in her ears and tightening her chest. Her stomach was laden with acid and she actually felt hungry and sick at the same time. She needed to go – before she did something she would live to regret.

  Like getting caught.

  She hopped over the chest-high fence into the garden that backed onto Heather’s, ducked down along the house wall and walked out of the gate as though she didn’t have a care in the world. Making her way to the garage unit, she decided it would do her good to get prepared for the evening ahead.

  9th October, 2350 hours – Heather’s residence

  Susie had been stood in the garden for over an hour now – she’d waited as the lights had gone out and left what she thought was plenty of time for everyone to fall asleep.

  It was now or never.

  Creeping towards the house, she tried the handle on the back door.

  It was locked and she cursed softly.

  She hadn’t thought about how she would get into the house if the door was locked.

  She felt her way around the kitchen window and smiled in the darkness as she realised one side was open a tiny bit – on the latch, but still open. There was just enough room to slip the metal ruler from her pencil case inside and move the latch up – it took a few attempts and she was conscious of the faint noises, but eventually she felt the window give a little as it released.

  Susie pulled the window as wide as it would go. It stopped at roughly a forty-five degree angle from the frame and she knew it wouldn’t be easy to slip inside quietly.

  But she also knew it was her only chance.

  She stepped up onto the bench under the window and glanced inside, allowing her eyes to adjust until she could make out some of the shapes in front of her. She picked up the flower pot off the windowsill and put it on the bench beside her foot. There didn’t seem to be anything else on the sill, so she used the frame to pull herself up, balanced on the back of the bench, and stepped onto the windowsill, twisting her torso to fit through the gap. Gingerly, she stepped onto the draining board, and froze as it creaked slightly under her weight.

  Holding her breath, she waited.

  The house stayed silent.

  Twisting herself again, she sat on the drainer then lowered her feet to the ground.

  Glancing around, she happily noted the lack of red lights in the room corners – no motion sensors.

  She placed her backpack on the table and unzipped it as quietly as she could.

  Susie knew where everything was in the bag – it was packed a certain way – the only way for her. Everything easily accessible and in reach.

  She touched the knife in her pocket – she’d thought about it all day, eventually deciding that she couldn’t use it. This had to go right. There was no margin for error and a knife fight in the middle of a fire could be problematic. It was reassuring to feel it there though.

  She’d brought several small cans of lighter fluid – they were easier to manage than a jerry can and she could be more direct with where she was placing it. She’d even had the forethought to pack each one into a sock so they didn’t clink together.

  Her face burned as she frowned – but she ignored the pain. Now she just had to get all the fluid down in the right places. She wanted to see Heather’s face as the fire hit her again – but she knew she couldn’t. It was far too risky even going upstairs. She had to focus the burn so it would move hot and fast, and bloc
k any escape.

  Moving silently, she went along the wall in the hallway, touching the door handle of the cupboard under the stairs as she passed.

  She didn’t see the small table against the wall until she hit it with her hip – it jolted and wobbled a couple of times before settling with a loud thud.

  Susie froze – she heard someone move upstairs and a door click open. Thinking quickly, she moved silently back along the wall and opened the door to the under stairs cupboard.

  She just hoped there was room to hide – stepping inside carefully, she felt the top of a hoover dig into her back. She pulled the door closed, and listened.

  A faint whisper of a voice crept through the darkness.

  ‘Mum? Is that you?’

  Susie had to struggle to stop the anger rising – it was Heather. It bloody would be wouldn’t it – she’d already ruined everything else – why not her plan too?

  What will I do if she finds me? The voice in her head sounded pathetic and worried – she gritted her teeth in response to herself. You’ll damn well finish what you came here to do, regardless.

  She waited in the darkness – listening intently.

  Silence.

  She pushed at the door and squeezed out of her hiding place, concentrating on not making a sound.

  Creeping along the wall again, she made sure she didn’t bang into the hall table this time – where was Heather? Had she gone back to bed?

  She paused, a little confused. Should I leave and come back another day? Shaking her head she decided against it. The silence upstairs told her that Heather had gone back to bed. No – I’m here. I’ll get it done and find somewhere to watch from – then I’ll find Janelle and make her pay. She’s the main cause of all this. If she had just stopped none of this would be happening.