by L. J. Fox
She looked at his eyes and saw a pleading, a sense of urgency and a distress. Troubled, she placed her hand on his to reassure him. Flashes. Split second flashes. She saw a woman sobbing. Again, in black and white. She saw the woman clutching a photograph to her chest, a photograph of a teenage girl, dark spiky hair. She saw the woman grasping at the detective’s arm, sobbing and pleading. All this happened in a few seconds. She let go of his hand and looked at him again.
“The teenage girl – is she … “ She hesitated, not sure of her wording. “Is she … alive?” she asked.
The detective drew in a breath surprised. His eyes widened.
“We don’t know. She is missing.” He said quietly.
“Oh” Layne said. “I don’t know if I can help, but I am happy to try.”
He drove her out to Doncaster. On the way he told her the story. The girl was fifteen-year-old Aimie Gray, his niece. His sister, Kerrie had reported Aimie missing five days earlier after returning from work on a Friday night to find Aimie’s bedroom in disarray, blood spots scattered around the room and there had been no sign of her since. The blood had been tested and belonged to Aimie. It appeared there had been a struggle in her bedroom sometime during Friday before 5pm, items had been knocked over in the room, and a small amount of blood had been found splattered on the bed head and drops on the bed linen, the floor and smeared on the hallway wall.
Aimie was going through a rebellious stage in her life, skipping school and going out with an older guy of nineteen years of age. Her mother had ordered her to stop seeing the boyfriend and they were fighting constantly. The police had interviewed the boyfriend several times as well as her friends and no one seemed to know where she was or what had happened.
The detective’s voice faltered as he told Layne how devastated Kerrie was. She was a single mother with Aimie, her only child. They worried that a predator had possibly followed her home, attacked her in the bedroom, disabled her and then kidnapped her.
They pulled up at a simple, neat 1950’s brick house in a quiet street not far from Doncaster shopping town. There was a small red SUV parked out the front, and Kerrie’s white Mazda was in the driveway. They parked and headed in through the front door which was unlocked. Layne drew in her breath, wondering how this would play out, and hoping she would be able to help in some way though not sure what she could do. Maybe she could find a clue to identify who had taken Aimie.
“Jim. Oh Jim.”
The woman wrapped her arms around the detective and leaned her cheek against his chest. He soothed her and hugged her gently. Layne felt teary at this display of sibling affection. The woman was an attractive dark-haired woman, around forty years of age. Her face was puffy and blotched from crying. After a minute, she pulled back and looked across at Layne, who was discretely standing back.
The detective turned to Layne.
“Kerrie. This is Layne Harrison. She has worked with me on another case and I wanted to see if she can help us.” He said carefully.
Kerrie looked across at Layne, a little puzzled. Layne could see she was wondering how old Layne was, assuming that she was a police officer as well. Layne stepped forward and held her hand out to Kerrie. She subtly nodded her head and closed her eyes briefly in sympathy. There was no need for words. Kerrie took her hand. Layne felt the familiar split-second flashes. She felt the love Kerrie had for her daughter. She felt the worry. Kerrie blamed herself. If she had been here, then someone would not have taken her daughter. If she had been a better mother, Aimie would not be mixing with the wrong crowd. She wouldn’t have skipped school on Friday. Layne felt the emotions and thoughts that Kerrie was experiencing.
Layne stepped back. “Is it ok if I see Aimie’s room?” She asked.
Kerrie nodded and looked up at her brother, trusting him and needing him. The detective turned and directed Layne through the lounge room, and down a narrow hall. It was a typical house of the era with bedrooms off the central hallway.
“There was a blood smear here.” He indicated an area on the white paint of the hallway.
He didn’t need to point it out to Layne. Although it had been tested and since, cleaned up, she could see the invisible blood smear and smell it. It was around the height of Layne’s head, and was around 8 cm long. Layne looked down at the floor. The polished wood floorboards looked spotless, but she could detect spots of blood, where they had been, and the ones that had congealed in the cracks of the wood. It was not a huge amount of blood, but it was there.
The detective stopped at the next doorway and Layne stepped though into Aimie’s bedroom. He stayed back at the door and watched silently. Layne closed her eyes and took in a deep breath, taking in the scents and the feel of the room. She opened her eyes. To the right was a double-sized bed, with a white bedhead. The mattress was bare as the police had taken away the linen for testing. The room was messy, with drawers open, clothes hanging out, clothes on the floor and an overflowing hamper of dirty clothes in a corner. There was no doubt that this was how Aimie’s room usually looked. The flat monitor of a television lay screen down on the floor where it had obviously been knocked over. Books, bags and a chair were upended, and part of the window blind had been pulled down. It hung at an angle down the window.
Layne looked back at the detective. “Is it ok to touch things?” She asked.
He nodded. “Yes. We are finished with forensics.”
Layne walked over and sat on the edge of the bed. She looked at the bedhead where the blood splatter had been. She closed her eyes again and concentrated. Then she touched the area where the blood splatter had been. Flashes.
“Was anything taken?” she asked.
“Yes. Her phone, laptop computer, some cash that Kerrie kept in her room …” He saw Layne suddenly look at him.
“Yes. The attacker rifled through the house and took a few items of value. We couldn’t find any sign of forced entry. We assume he followed Aimie in, or she left the door unlocked or he was already here when she came home …” He finished weakly. They had no idea.
Layne walked over to the dresser where the drawers were hanging out. She looked down and inhaled deeply. Then touched the t-shirt hanging out of the drawer. Flashes.
“Can I see the bathroom Aimie used?” She asked.
The detective pointed across the hallway to a door halfway down the hall. Layne made her way to the bathroom. She stood at the basin and looked down, opening one of the small drawers to the right of the cabinet. It contained toothpaste, toothbrush and a few cosmetic items. She closed it.
She turned to look at the detective. His eyes queried her, knowing she had found something and yet, terrified to know what she was about to tell him.
“Can we go outside?” she said not wanting to talk where Kerrie may hear.
They headed out the front door. Kerrie stood at the kitchen door watching.
“Jim?”
“It’s ok. I’ll be back in a minute.”
They walked out to the car where they had some space for privacy.
“Aimie was not taken against her will.” She started.
The detective exhaled loudly as if he had been holding his breath.
“She left with her boyfriend, the older one you mentioned. They had a friendly wrestle in her room and she had a blood nose.”
“But … we have spoken with him a few times.”
Layne continued. “They planned her leaving and took a few things to sell for the money. She is on ice.”
“WHAT?” he said loudly.
“Sorry. She is. I can smell it on her clothes and in her room. That is probably why her behaviour has been erratic lately.”
The detective stared at the ground, analysing what she had said.
“How am I going to tell her mother? Where is she?” he asked.
“I don’t know that.” Layne answered. “Her boyfriend knows. He is not going to tell you. You’ll have to stake him out to find out where he goes.”
“Why would she leave? Becaus
e of the drug use?” He asked.
Layne nodded. “Partly that … and partly because she is pregnant.”
Chapter 58
Andy had asked Layne to meet him for lunch in a small laneway near Melbourne Central. She hadn’t expected to see him until the weekend but the text message she received seemed a bit cryptic. He must have found something in the notebooks she guessed.
The laneway was abuzz with people enjoying the various cuisines. So many delicious smells from the specialist eateries. These lanes were a treasure trove of great places to have lunch. Layne found a small table outdoor at the café they had arranged to meet at. She couldn’t see any sign of Andy yet so she sat and was checking messages on her phone.
After a few minutes she looked up at the sky, letting the winter sun warm her face. It was not like Andy to be late. She felt the familiar prickle of a Bray in close proximity and kept her back turned. No doubt another Bray was eating at a table nearby. The person was low-level, very low. She looked at her watch and turned slightly to see if she could see him coming down the lane.
Immediately she saw Andy, standing only metres away and staring at her. Her face broke out in a huge smile at the sight of him, then she stopped, confused. He was not smiling at her. He was just staring. What was wrong? She stood up and he walked up to her and stood in front of her.
“Andy? What’s wrong?” she asked, worried.
He continued to stare at her for another minute then said. “Come on. Let’s sit.”
They both sat at the table and Layne reached across to take his hand. Confused she looked at his face trying to read it and work out what was wrong. Had something happened? Were his parents ok?
“Layne.” He said it softly and quietly.
She leant forward, paying attention and concentrating on him.
“Did you know I changed my deodorant today?”
She jerked her head back, confused, a frown on her face. What on earth was he talking about? He had lifted his eyebrows querying her. She shook her head in confusion and repeated his words.
“You changed your deodorant? Is that why you wanted to meet me for lunch?”
“What did I change it to?” He asked quietly.
Again, she shook her head as if dislodging cobwebs, not understanding. Instinctively she flared her nostrils to take in his scent. Nothing. She did it again. Nothing. She leaned forward to be closer to him and concentrated on smelling him. Nothing.
Alarmed, she sat back and stared at him. Shock registering on her face. He grinned a funny, not funny grin.
“Yep. I’m a Bray now.”
“No. That is not possible. No way!” Her eyes widened in shock.
“It must have been the blood. It has changed me somehow. I can smell and hear things that I never could before, and I can detect another Bray at close range.”
Layne stared at him, her mind racing through the implications.
“I’m sorry Andy. I didn’t realise that was going to happen. I never would have done it if I had known. I just thought it would heal you.”
Andy reached across and held her two hands.
“I know. It’s ok. I was upset about it at first, but I think this could work to our advantage. They don’t know. They think I am just a normal person so I have an advantage if I need it. Another Bray can sense me at close range, but they don’t know anything about me. They are not to know that I am a normal person.”
She was looking at him unconvinced. He was obviously the low-level Bray she detected earlier. How strange! They discussed this new outcome for a while over lunch. This was something they would need to monitor and discuss further. Eventually the topic of conversation got on to Andy’s study and her work at HQ.
He had finished telling her all the news from university, what the other students were doing and how he was faring with his studies. She sighed, missing the other students and the fun of the classes. She hoped she could catch up with them all one day. Andy was working part-time in a café in town, waiting on tables. She pictured him dressed in his black trousers and a black t-shirt bringing meals to people. Her emotions were roller-coasting between the excitement at seeing him, the shock at what her blood had done, the hilarity of some stories he told of the other students, a sadness at not being able to share days with him and a sense of loss that she could not describe. She had lost her normalcy completely. She was now a Bray, 24 hours a day, seven days a week. The thought filled her with such a sense of loss and doom. At least Andy could still lead a normal life without Bray interference. They must keep his new abilities secret at all costs.
Andy sensed her drop and held her hands.
“What is it Layne? Are you ok?” His eyes drew hers up to look at him.
“I’m sorry. I love hearing about campus and the others. It’s just … well … I miss it … and I miss you.”
She smiled sheepishly. He reached across the table and lightly kissed her lips. She wondered what would happen when she touched Andy now that her powers were developing so rapidly and he had developed a low set of powers. Would she get flashes? Could she ping him? What would she see? All she felt was a warm feeling, an all-encompassing heat envelope her. She felt that she could see inside his soul and it was full of good, and of love, of adventure and of spirit.
She went on to tell him about her developing powers and what she could now achieve, along with her concerns about privacy, and that she now had to learn to switch off pinging. She explained how worried she was that she was turning into a Bray and losing herself. Her held her hand tightly and his voice was firm.
“No. Layne. Listen to me. You are not a Bray. You are learning from them. You are not one of them. You are the kindest person I know. I know it. I have always known it. Don’t ever think you are one of them.”
She didn’t look convinced.
“We are going to work this out. We are going to find a way of being together.”
His voice was firm and confident. She felt a tear sliding down her cheek.
“Layne. Look at me.”
She looked into his green eyes.
“We are both working toward a goal. You are going to find out everything you can about the Brays and then, we will find a way of being together. We are meant to be together.”
He squeezed her hand. She smiled at him.
“Andy. It’s easier to kiss you when I can’t smell you.”
Chapter 59
The tram ride into work was more crowded on the Friday morning than it usually was. Layne was standing for the ride as usual, holding tightly onto the pole to keep her balance as the tram lurched on new tracks. She didn’t mind the short trip by tram each day. It was always interesting to witness the beginning of a working day for people, or in some cases, a shopping day.
There was a large number of teenagers in school uniform on the tram which is why it was so crowded. They were excitedly chattering away and Layne tried not to listen to their conversations. In a crowded situation, it was always difficult not to look at anyone. Layne found the easiest thing to do was to gaze out the window which was harder when standing. She had to bend slightly as she was just above the window height.
She became aware of a creepy crawling feeling at the base of her skull. It came upon her so gradually that at first, she did not realise. The feeling was akin to a large spider gently tapping its legs as it walked over the base of her skull. Her first instinct was to shake her head, as if to dislodge the spider, but she paused and forced herself to remain still. What was this feeling? She had never had a headache and she was sure this was not one of those. There was no pain associated with the feeling. It was more of a caress than pain.
The feeling continued getting stronger and stronger by the second. She pictured it as a large spider now trying to divide her head in order to enter. Still no pain, but definitely a pushing. This had to be another Bray doing this. There could be no other possible explanation. The Bray had to be on this tram. She was pleased she had not reacted and shaken her head when it first sta
rted. So far, the other Bray would not know if she was feeling anything at all. Discretely, she shuffled and gazed out the window at a slightly different angle. She could not just turn around and see if anyone on the tram was looking at her. Even if she tried, the tram was too crowded to be able to see anything.
The persistent pushing was forcing her to make a decision. She either let the Bray into her head, or she protected herself. It seemed a very obvious choice to make, however protecting herself was going to let the other Bray know that she was aware and blocking them. Was that a bad thing? Was this the same type of probing or pinging that she had been guilty of doing to less powerful Brays and to normal people? She had done this to others, but now someone was doing it to her, it felt like such an intrusion, such an attack. It made her angry. Why was this person doing this to her? Was it an actual attack? Was it searching for information? Was it a test? She was not sure but there was no way she was going to let anyone inside her head. If this Bray was about to know that she was aware of the intrusion, then she may as well do it with a bang. The anger got the better of her.
Without moving, she closed her eyes and concentrated, then not only blocked, but pushed back as hard as she could. In her mind she pictured it as stopping an electrified snowball and throwing it back to sender. She immediately heard a man’s loud shout of pain from somewhere behind her in the tram. It only lasted for a second but she now knew it was male, and he was approximately two metres behind her on the opposite side of the tram. She knew, and he knew that she knew.
She still refused to turn around as much as she was dying to see who this person was. Was it someone she worked with? Was it bad etiquette to do this to someone? Why had Narelle never mentioned this to her, or anyone else for that matter. She had not seen any Brays on her tram before, but it seemed logical that the two of them had to be heading to the same office. It was only a matter of time before she saw who this person was.