In disbelief at what he has just heard, Matthew replays the message. He drops the phone, and the vital signs machine starts bleeping uncontrollably. His heart rate has rocketed. Grabbing onto his chest, Matthew cries out.
Flinging the door open, Phil shouts down the corridor, “We need a doctor! Quickly!”
Dr Mizrahi rushes into the room, “Okay, Matthew, just breathe for me, please. It’s okay. It’s going to be okay. Just lie down for me and take deep breaths.”
Struggling to control himself, Matthew begins crying.
“What happened?” Dr Mizrahi shouts.
“Erm, I… I don’t know. He had his phone and then he just went like this,” Phil stutters.
“I think he’s having an anxiety attack. Nurse, get me the paper bag now.”
The nurse grabs a brown paper bag and passes it straight to Dr Mizrahi.
Snatching the bag from out of her hand, Dr Mizrahi places it around Matthew’s mouth and says, “Deep breath, Matthew, deep breath for me, please. Let’s try and regulate that breathing. In and out.” Dr Mizrahi simulates the breathing technique. “In.” He inhales deeply. “And out.” He exhales deeply.
Matthew repeats this, then coughs hard. His chest feels raw, and he’s overcome by a sense of light-headedness. After what feels like an eternity, Matthew’s chest pain eases and the machine returns to a normal, stable bleeping sound. Moving the bag away from his mouth, Matthew breaks down. Tears stream down his face as the internal emotional turmoil he feels releases itself in a painstakingly loud bellowing.
“Matthew, mate, what’s wrong?”
Trying to pull himself together, Matthew looks to his friend and says, “They’ve…” He breaks down again and is unable to speak.
“They’ve what?” Phil’s appears frantic. “Mate, seriously, what’s happening?”
Putting his head in his hands, Matthew takes a final deep breath and pulls himself together. “Crap. Okay. I’m okay. I’m okay,” Matthew says, as he wipes his face. “Doc, you can go, I’m alright.”
“Matthew, you’ve just had a panic attack. I can’t leave you just yet, I need you to please just keep breathing deeply for me.”
“Doc...” he says in between sobs. “I will, I promise. I just need a moment with my friends alone.”
Appearing to take the hint, Dr Mizrahi replies, “As you wish, but I will just be outside if you need me.”
“Sure, thanks.”
As Dr Mizrahi leaves the room, silence takes over. Picking up his phone, Matthew passes it to Phil.
“Listen to that.”
Appearing confused, Phil puts the phone to his ear. His eyes go even wider, and he gasps. “No, no, what? She can’t have. How?” Throwing the phone on the bed, Phil drops to his knees as he too breaks down.
Sitting in the corner of the room, Hermon says, “What is it?”
Clearing his face, Matthew says, “They’ve been found.” His emotions take over and he breaks down crying again. “I can’t believe it.”
“Good Lord,” Hermon replies.
“How? Mate, you have to call her,” Phil says through his tears.
Wiping his blotchy face for a final time, Matthew says, “What do you think I’m doing?”
Finding Alannah’s number as quickly as he can with his shaking hands, Matthew hits the call button, places it on speakerphone and anxiously waits for her to answer.
“Matthew!” Alannah shouts down the phone. “Did you get my message? I’ve found them.”
Crying, Matthew’s struggling to speak.
“Matthew?” Alannah asks.
“Yeah, I’m here,” he says, clearing his throat.
Hermon passes Matthew a glass of water and he takes a sip. He wipes his mouth and continues, “How? I mean… where?” He smacks himself in the head as he tries to get the right words out. “Alannah, where are they?”
“Matthew, you won’t believe it, they’re in an orphanage in Morrisville, which is two hours away from me.”
“What?” Matthew is stunned. “How is that possible…?”
“I don’t know. I was doing some research on The Smashing of the Clay Pots, and I received some guidance. I mean, I won’t go into that right now, but anyway, I searched just the word Moycullen on the internet and there it was. The sick, sick individual has kept the name Moycullen. I assume it’s as a trophy. They’ve only gone and built a whole brand-new orphanage, obviously to accommodate all the children from the nunnery, and have named it Moycullen Orphanage. There was a news article published on it because when it was built, the man who is running it was also assigned as the new principal of the local elementary school. They’ve labelled him the most selfless man in America. Matthew, the school has over five hundred children in it of all ages.”
“Oh, no, no, no, that isn’t good. Shit, shit, shit.” Matthew starts punching the bed.
“How soon can you and Phil get here?”
“I’m in hospital. We had a bit of an accident.”
“Oh no, are you okay?”
“Yeah. Nothing I can’t handle. I’m going to discharge myself and get on the first plane to New York.”
“Wait, it’s Christmas Eve,” Phil pipes up.
“We don’t have a choice!” Matthew snaps. “They’ll have a flight and we’ll be on it. I don’t care if we have to stop off four times. We will get there.”
“Brennan, my husband, actually has friends who live in the same village, Lisa and William.”
“Alannah, do they have children?” Matthew asks.
“Yes, they have twin boys around eight or something.”
“And do they go to the elementary school?”
“Oh my goodness, Matthew, I’m certain they probably do!”
“Those children could very well be a target. Right…” Matthew rips the wires out of his hands and off his chest. The machines are bleeping like crazy. “I’m getting out of here. Alannah, contact your friends and ask them as many questions as you possibly can. We’ll be on the first flight out there.”
“Wait, Matthew, do you even know how to defeat her? I haven’t managed to read the book.”
“Yes, it’s okay. We have an idea of how it’s done and… Well, I’m going to run with it and let’s see what happens.”
“Please keep me posted on your travelling.”
“I’ll call you when we’re at the airport.”
“Okay. Stay safe.”
“We will. Speak soon,” Matthew says as he ends the call. “Right, pass me my—”
Dr Mizrahi bursts through the door. “Wait, Matthew, what are you doing?”
“I’m leaving.”
“You can’t, you’re too weak.”
“Well, I’m a grown man. I have to go and I’m discharging myself.”
“Matthew, I cannot let you do that. It is my professional opinion that you should be resting and monitored for at least twenty-four hours. You still have a concussion, and your lungs are not operating at their full capacity.”
“Doc, I don’t have twenty-four hours.” Climbing out of the bed, Matthew goes slightly lightheaded and stumbles.
“Please, get back into the bed and let us fix your wires.”
“No! I’m leaving – end of.” Getting steady on his feet, Matthew says, “Now give me whatever form I have to sign to waiver all rights and let me get out of here now.” Looking to Phil, he says, “Pass me my top.”
“You’re making a big mistake,” Dr Mizrahi says.
“Just stop that bleeping and turn those machines off before I smash them up and get me the forms.”
Appearing to accept defeat, Dr Mizrahi switches off the machines and walks out of the room.
”Mate, I get that you’re stressed, but you didn’t need to speak to him like that. He was only trying to help.”
Matthew feels bad, but
he can’t bow to commands… The clock is ticking, and he’s got to get out of there now if he wants to stand any chance of getting his daughter back and not be left behind again. Sitting on the edge of the bed for support as he puts on his trousers, Matthew says, “I know what you’re saying, but he wasn’t going to let me out if I wasn’t so forceful and we have to go. Alannah’s husband has friends who live in the same village and his children attend the school where the sick bitch is posing as a principal. We must act fast. No more children can be taken. We will not be ten steps behind again. We are leaving now. I don’t care about my health.”
“Okay, I’m on your side, remember. Here, let me help you,” Phil says as he puts Matthew’s socks on for him.
“Thanks.”
“You’re welcome, mate. It’s going to be okay, we’re going to get them back.” Phil smiles. “Mate, I’m going to meet my daughter for the first time and we’re gonna meet our granddaughter. That’s exciting.”
Beaming from ear to ear, Matthew says, “That’s awesome.”
Sniffling as he’s ties Matthew’s shoelaces, Phil says, “I can’t wait to hold them all again.”
“I know, it’s going to be magical.” Matthew hops to his feet. “We’ve got a lot of work to do before that happens.”
Composing himself, Phil says, “For sure, mate.”
“Right, then, let’s get out of here.” Matthew looks to Hermon, who seems somewhat astonished in the corner of the room. “Can you drive us back to the hotel, so we can collect our things?”
“Erm, yeah, yeah, erm, for sure,” Hermon stutters.
“Why don’t we just go straight to the airport? Fuck our stuff, I’ve got nothing important there anyway, it’s just clothes,” Phil suggests.
Matthew is about to agree when he remembers he’s left the locket in his backpack. Having carried it around with him for almost three years since it fell from round Eve’s neck the moment she was taken, Matthew wants to shove it down Jezebel’s throat as she’s dying at his hands. He wants to rid the world of this tainted item.
“I’ve left something important there. It’s irreplaceable and I can’t leave it behind,” he says.
“Mate, fuck it. I’m sure the hotel will post it back if we ask them nicely, or they might just hold it in one of those lost and found storage places they have.”
Not wanting to tell Phil the true reason as he might try and talk him out of it, Matthew decides it’s best to leave out specifics.
“We can pick it up later.”
Thinking fast, Matthew says, “Our passports are there.”
“Oh, yeah. Shit.”
Feeling relieved, Matthew looks to Hermon. “So, are you coming with us?”
“Who, me?” Hermon responds, pointing at himself.
“Yeah, you… We’re going to need all the hands we can get. And you’re the only one who can read that scroll thing.”
Remaining silent for a brief second, Hermon replies, “Okay, I’m in.”
“Shit, Matthew, we’re going to have to call Terry.”
“Crap, right, I’ll call him on the way to the hotel.”
“Do you think he’s going to be able to come?”
“Doubt it. It’s Christmas tomorrow, and to be honest, I don’t want him to leave his family.”
“Yeah, true mate.”
“Right, fuck it, that doc is taking too long, let’s get out of here.”
Poking his head out of the door, Matthew checks that the coast is clear. He waves his arm and the threesome run out of the hospital as quickly as they can.
Chapter Twenty-One
“Strange Goings-on.”
“Brennan! Brennan!” Alannah shouts at the top of her lungs.
“What’s wrong?” replies Brennan, looking flustered as he rushes into the bedroom.
“Call your friends,” Alannah says, throwing the phone at him. “Call them now, quickly.”
“Wait, woah, woah, woah, breathe.”
“There’s no time, you have to call them now.” Rife with fear, Alannah starts crying. “Please just call them.”
“Hey, hey, hey, it’s okay, it’s all going to be okay,” Brennan says as he makes his way across the room and holds Alannah in his arms. “Shh, baby, just start from the beginning for me.”
“Your friends in Morrisville…” Alannah sobs.
“Yeah…”
“They have children?”
“Yeah, twin boys, Ashley and Kane. Why?”
“Oh crap, this is bad. This is real bad.” Pushing herself out of Brennan’s grip, Alannah sets off pacing the room. “You have to ring them and see how they are. You have to ring them now, Brennan. They have to get out of Morrisville.”
“And you need to calm down, baby, you’re going to give yourself a panic attack.”
“Brennan, please!”
“Look, I’m not calling them until you calm down. I’m not having you hysterical in the background and I’m certainly not telling them they need to leave their own home the night before Christmas.”
“Calm down! Calm down…” Alannah says. Her hands are on her hips as she circles the room.
“Yes, you’re acting crazy right now.”
“Brennan, their children are in danger. I’m not losing any more children on my watch. No way. Not a chance.”
“Right, and I totally agree with you, but please just try and calm down because I am not having you scaring them and their boys with your ranting. You have to remember we are the only ones who are involved in this world of evil. Outsiders are going to think we’re clinically insane.” Walking to Alannah and stopping her in her tracks, Brennan holds her by her shoulders. “Now if you come and lie down with me on the bed, I will call them, but you have to be calm, cool, collected and not have any form of outburst, okay?”
“Okay.”
As frightened as she is, she knows that Brennan is right. She cannot project her fear onto others, no matter how dire the situation is. It is imperative that this entity does not get tipped off that they know where she is. The element of surprise is what could potentially win this war for them. They need to get some information to feed back to help Matthew. Lying on the bed, Alannah closes her eyes and breathes deeply. Controlling her anxiety, she opens her eyes and looks at Brennan, who is lying next to her.
“I’m ready. I promise I’ll be cool and won’t say a word.”
“Well, they might want to say hello to you, and that’s alright, just don’t start shouting about demons, please. I beg you.”
“I promise I will keep my mouth shut.”
Retrieving his phone from his trouser pocket, Brennan finds William’s number and hits call. As the phone begins ringing, Brennan puts it on loudspeaker.
“Brennan, happy Christmas, man. So good to hear from you.”
“Hey Billy, Happy Christmas to you, Lisa and the boys.”
“Aw, yeah, thanks man. Oh shit, I heard you got married. Congratulations. That’s awesome.”
“Aw, yeah, thanks man. She’s a real diamond. Sorry, we didn’t invite you and Lisa, it was one of those run off and get married quick kind of scenarios. No one was invited to be honest with you.”
“Don’t worry about it. I’m just happy you’re happy. Oh, I heard she’s got a cool Irish accent.” William chuckles.
“Yeah, she has, I’ve got used to it now.”
“So… When am I going to get to meet this awesome Irish wife of yours?”
“She’s next to me now. You wanna say hello?”
“Oh yeah, for sure.”
As Brennan passes the phone to Alannah, he mouths, “Be cool.”.
“Hey, Billy, so good to speak with you.”
“Hey! How are ya? I hope that buddy of mine is treating you well.”
“Of course. A real gentleman all the time.”
“Gentleman.” William laughs. “We must be talking about different people.”
“Okay, okay,” Brennan says, taking the phone back from Alannah. “I think that’s enough from you.”
“Come on, I was just getting to the good stuff.”
“Yeah, yeah, yeah, we know what that means.”
“It’s good to hear from you.”
“Yeah, you too. So Billy, how are Lisa and the boys doing?”
“They’re all good. We’re just getting ready for the craziness of Christmas day. Lisa’s obviously super freaked out because she thinks she’s forgotten a million things, but she always pulls it off. You know what she’s like, a perfectionist.”
“Yeah, that’s our Lisa. So the boys, they looking forward to Father Christmas rocking up tonight?”
“You’d think, wouldn’t you… They’ve been quiet for ages. And they’re getting right attitudes on them. They’ll be lucky if Father Christmas brings them a lump of coal and an orange at this rate.”
Alannah grabs Brennan’s arm as she puts her ear closer to the speaker.
“No way. Why’s that? What’s been happening?” Brennan asks.
“Lisa will kill me for even telling you because she can’t bear people thinking our perfect little family isn’t so perfect. But the boys have been seriously hitting out. They’ve turned into evil little shits, and I know that’s not cool to say about your own children, but man, I’m praying this is just some sort of phase.”
“I’m so sorry. That’s terrible.”
“Yeah, the other day Kane bit me and Ashley went for his mom. They’re getting like violent and shit. I don’t wanna raise my hand to them, but it’s getting hard to hold back, ya know?”
“I can imagine.”
“Well, I suggested to Lisa that we should be thinking about getting them some sort of help like a therapist, to see what’s going on, but she’s too proud to even think about it. Just keeps saying they’ll be alright. It’s changed her, man, she’s a nervous wreck all the time. Doesn’t like asking them to do anything for fear of them hitting out.”
Alannah looks at Brennan. She knows this is not a good sign. “Have you noticed anything happening at night with them?” she asks.
The Broken IV: Vengeance Page 18