Chris paled, taking in his wide eyes.
He was afraid of her. Had been afraid of her ever since finding his father’s body. He really thought that she’d harmed Lester.
She couldn’t remember the day that Lester died. She’d lost time. Hours she couldn’t account for. Hours she must have spent staring at Lester’s body, but she couldn’t remember, no matter how hard she tried.
Tom had found her covered in blood later that day.
But that didn’t mean she’d hurt Lester. She would never—
Tom took a step back, and she forced herself to speak. “What is it, sweetie?”
Chris had only ever blacked out once. At the age of sixteen, she’d lost several hours, and her brother Stuart had taken her to see a psychiatrist, but surely she’d never—
Tom’s breath hitched. “You look…upset. Is everything okay?”
Chris forced what she hoped looked like a reassuring smile. “I’m just worried. What if James’ family doesn’t have space for us? And Sarah really hurt my head.” She rubbed the painful lump at the back of her head and winced. “I’ll feel better once we reach the farm. Once we’re safe.”
The river glinted in the pale moonlight. Tom nodded and kicked a stone into the water. Ripples spread in a circle.
Relief flooded her at the sight. After everything, he was still a boy who enjoyed kicking pebbles into the water. He was afraid of her, but she was his mum, and he loved her.
She just had to continue protecting him, and one day he’d understand that everything she’d done, she’d done for them. For him.
He’d understand that they couldn’t bury Lester. That they couldn’t go back home. Not now.
“Remember what I said to you a few days ago?” she asked, waiting for him to meet her eyes. “I’ll have to make some tough decisions in the coming weeks, and I need you to trust me, okay? Everything I do is to keep us safe.”
“You tied Anna to a chair, Mum,” he whispered. “You were going to kill her.”
“She tried to poison me.” Chris took a deep breath. “Look, this new world is confusing and scary. I get it. Everyone is just trying their best to survive, and we’re all making mistakes. I’m proud of you. You’re doing really we—”
Movement in her peripheral vision caught her eye, but before she could turn around, something hard hit her between the shoulder blades. With the wind knocked out of her, she staggered and dropped to her knees.
Crack.
The second blow was to the back of her head.
The world went dark.
3
Anna dropped her torch. It landed on the small rug in front of the bed and switched off.
“Who are you?” the woman asked again, clutching the serrated knife with both hands as if holding an axe. It shook in her grip.
Anna’s eyes darted to her unconscious father’s face. His features were indistinct in the dim light of the candles that flickered on the bedside table. The only sound in the house was his rapid, shallow breathing as everyone else stared at one another.
“Who are you?” Sarah retorted sharply. “And what have you done to our father?”
Anna took in the stranger’s appearance. Her long, brown hair was tied into a messy bun. She wore a bathrobe and slippers. The skin on her forehead glowed in the candlelight as though she’d slathered on moisturiser in the last ten minutes. White cream caked her nose and cheeks. She’d obviously been in the middle of her skin routine.
The stranger was clearly at home here. Had probably been here for a while.
A new girlfriend perhaps?
Anna frowned, her eyes drawn to the shaking knife.
The woman ignored Oreo who sniffed her legs, then nudged her thigh with his nose before sitting in front of her as if waiting for a treat. Her eyes darted from Sarah to Anna, then to their father, and finally settled on the gun at Sarah’s hip.
Her features tightened, eyes narrowing, but she lowered the knife. “I’m Nellie,” she whispered. “I’m Frank’s…he’s my partner.”
Before Anna could process this information, the expression on the woman’s face changed. She—Nellie, Anna reminded herself—started sobbing, pressing the back of her hand against her mouth in an overly dramatic gesture. It sounded more like a hiccup than a sob, and the way she swayed as her shoulders shook looked almost theatrical.
“You’re his daughters? Thank goodness. I’m so glad you’re here. I didn’t know what to do. Frank is out of insulin.” The words tumbled from her mouth, her high-pitched voice growing more alarmed with every syllable.
Anna’s stomach dropped. How could he be out of insulin already? It had only been two weeks. But the overwhelming smell of fruity nail polish was unmistakable. His sugar levels had to be through the roof for the smell to be this strong.
She still remembered the ambulance her mother had had to call when Anna first learned that her father had diabetes. Her mother had picked her up from nursery and found him passed out at the kitchen table, his head resting on top of the newspaper. The bowl of soup her mother had prepared for lunch had long gone cold.
“What’s wrong with Daddy?” Anna had asked, but her mother hadn’t replied but instead shaken his shoulders and screamed at him to wake up.
“He really shouldn’t be drinking,” one of the paramedics had said in passing to her mother as they’d left an hour later.
Anna had taken this to mean that her father shouldn’t be drinking anything and had promptly told him off for having a glass of water the next day. His reply turned out to become the first time she remembered him raising his voice at her.
It was only when she was an adult that she understood that he hated weakness, hated appearing weak—especially in front of his daughters.
“How long has he been like this?” Anna asked, biting her lip. What she really wanted to ask was why Nellie was standing there moisturising her face as if nothing was wrong.
She didn’t feel any affection for the man lying in that bed. In fact, she realised as she was standing in his bedroom, watching his chest rise and fall that she detested him.
Anna took a deep breath. She’d never even said that out loud to her therapist. That she detested her father. That she hated her own blood. Her family.
But in spite of this realisation, she knew she didn’t want him dead.
Nellie sniffled and wrung her hands. Again, she sounded overly dramatic. “Since yesterday evening. He collapsed after dinner. We tried to reach his diabetic nurse, but the surgery is all the way in Broxbourne, and the phones are still dead.”
Anna didn’t appreciate the sounds Nellie kept making, didn’t like anything about her.
She bent down and retrieved her torch from where she’d dropped it. Behind her, Frank moaned softly, and the hairs on her neck rose. You don’t have a lot of sense, Anna. A shiver ran down her spine, and the room suddenly felt cold.
Being in a room with him brought back a wave of memories, and her breath hitched. Her chest hurt in the very spot where he’d kicked her and cracked a rib almost two decades ago.
Anna closed her eyes.
Stop!
She wouldn’t allow him to get inside her head again. She was only here because of Sarah. She’d promised her sister to check on him and make sure he was okay.
Then they’d move on.
And that’s exactly what she would do.
“We tried to reach his diabetic nurse?” Sarah asked, bringing Anna back to the present. “Who’s we?”
“Me,” Nellie stammered. “Sorry, I just—” She gestured, and the knife clattered to the floor where Oreo inspected it.
Sarah placed a hand on her hip, frowning. “Don’t I know you? I think we’ve met before.”
Nellie’s eyes widened. “I…I don’t think so? Frank has told me about you, of course. He’s shown me photos, but I don’t believe we’ve—”
“Did you ask the army for help with getting insulin?” Sarah asked, clearly not interested in anything Nellie had to say.
“Didn’t they distribute supply crates over here?”
Nellie paled. “I haven’t…I haven’t seen anyone in uniform.” She worried her lip, then asked, “They gave you supplies?”
Sarah nodded.
Nellie wiped her eyes with the back of her hand. “After the power went out, we waited. Waited for someone to come and tell us what to do. But…nobody came.”
Anna narrowed her eyes as she observed the stranger. Sarah was right to be suspicious. Was Nellie telling the truth? Or was it all an act? It definitely sounded like an act. “Have you seen any of Dad’s neighbours? Louisa for example. She usually helps him with his paperwork.”
Nellie shook her head.
“When did you realise you were out of insulin?” Anna asked. “Didn’t you try and ration it? Surely he must have known this would become an issue.”
“I didn’t know. He didn’t tell me.” Nellie’s bottom lip quivered as she spoke. “When he said he’d run out, I…I tried making low-carb meals, but he only got worse. He drank so much water, and his heart just wouldn’t slow down. I didn’t know what to do. Yesterday evening he passed out, and I haven’t managed to wake him since.” She wrung her hands. “I’ve tried…I’ve kept trying.”
Sarah turned to Anna. “What can we do? If he’s been unconscious since yesterday, we don’t have a lot of time.”
Anna rubbed the nape of her neck. “Chris said the hospital has insulin, and that it’ll keep for about a month at room temperature, perhaps a bit longer. We could be there and back in—”
Sarah scowled and turned her attention back to Nellie. “And why are you here wearing a bathrobe and a pair of slippers instead of being out there looking for help? The hospital is only an hour away. Why didn’t you go out to find help the moment he passed out?”
Nellie sank to her knees.
“More drama,” Anna muttered as she watched the woman running her fingers through her hair.
“I didn’t know what to do. Please…”
Sarah swore under her breath. She traced Frank’s bottom lip with a finger. “They’re brittle. He’s dehydrated.”
Nellie’s eyes hardened as she looked up at the sisters, a tight smile appearing on her lips. “Why didn’t you come sooner?” Accusation had seeped into her tone, and there was a definite edge to her voice. “Shouldn’t you have been checking on Frank before now? What kind of daughters are you?”
“I don’t owe you an explanation.” Sarah lifted an eyebrow. “But cars aren’t currently a thing, and I live in Colchester. Surely Dad has told you that.” Her tone was defiant, and she pulled her mouth into a defensive grimace. Anna realised her sister felt guilty for finding their father in this state. Guilty for not having come here sooner.
Nellie’s eyes bulged with incredulity. “You walked all the way from Colchester?”
“I cycled the first bit,” Sarah said, “but there are soldiers and roadblocks all over Essex and I had to leave the road.”
Anna blinked. “You own a bike?”
“It was my neighbour’s. She gave it to me. But this is hardly the time, is it?”
Anna noticed that Nellie’s gaze kept flicking to the hallway as if she were waiting for someone. “And you’re here alone?” Anna threw a glance in Oreo’s direction. He’d settled at the foot of the bed, panting slightly as if stressed.
Nellie nodded. “Yes. I moved in with Frank about”—she used her fingers to count—“four months ago.”
“How come he’s never mentioned you?” Sarah asked, still frowning. She took a step towards the kneeling woman, her eyebrows knitted in suspicion.
Nellie opened her mouth, closed it again.
“Never mind that now.” Anna avoided looking at her father. “Without insulin, he’ll be dead by tomorrow.”
On cue, Nellie started sobbing at hearing the word dead. She was still kneeling in the doorway, the edge gone from her voice. “I’m so glad you’re here,” she repeated.
Anna didn’t believe her.
“I’m not leaving Dad alone with her,” Sarah said. “I’ll go to the hospital on my own. You wait here.”
“I’m not letting you out of my sight again,” Anna protested. “What if something happens to you?”
“I’ll take Oreo,” Sarah said. “He’ll keep me safe.”
Anna shook her head, watching Oreo lick his paw. “Chris tied me to a chair, and he let that happen without even trying to bite her.”
They had to train him first. Teach him to snarl and show his teeth on command. At the very least, he’d be a deterrent, but even then, Anna wouldn’t trust Oreo to keep Sarah safe on her way to the hospital.
“We don’t even know if the hospital is still open. If there’s still staff. It could have been raided. And then? What will you do?” Anna asked.
“Do you know what you’re looking for?” Nellie asked, as if trying to be helpful. “They’re these little—”
“Yes. I know what a FlexPen looks like,” Sarah snapped. She looked at Anna, her eyes pleading. “Dad will die without insulin. What else can we do?” She placed a hand on the gun in her belt. “Besides, I’m armed. Would you be happier if I took Nellie with me?”
Anna scoffed. “And you think I’d leave you alone with her?”
“Look at her. I can take her if she tries anything.”
“I’m right here.” Nellie wrung her hands, suddenly appearing frail and deflated. “You don’t have to be so mean.” She pulled the bathrobe tighter around herself. “I don’t understand why you don’t want me to stay here with him. I’m sorry Frank’s never told you about me. He made it sound like you were estranged.”
Anna pursed her lips. Another lie. Nellie seemed to wring her hands every time she said something in a high-pitched, melodramatic voice that belonged on stage, and Anna was certain that was her tell.
The woman was lying.
“Tell me what to do and how to help him, and I’ll look after him while you two go to the hospital.” Nellie got to her feet and fussed over the duvet, tucking Frank in again. “Quickly. The sooner you go, the sooner he’ll be better.”
“You’ll look after him like you did before we arrived? By putting on moisturiser?” Anna asked dryly.
Sarah scoffed. “As I said, I’m not leaving you alone with him.” She didn’t look like she cared about hurting Nellie’s feelings.
Anna knew it was pointless trying to argue with Sarah once she had made up her mind. At least her sister was armed. “My camping gear should still be in my old bedroom. I think there’s a more powerful torch in there, and a Swiss Army Knife. I’ll grab those for you.”
Anna moved past Nellie who was still fussing over Frank. Oreo trotted after her like a shadow.
“Wait,” Nellie said. Anna turned. The smell of Nellie’s perfume tickled her nose. “You can’t—”
“What? Go into my old bedroom? Have you transformed it into a beauty spa or something?” Anna laughed. She wouldn’t have cared either way. She’d never really considered it her bedroom anyway. Just like she didn’t consider this house a home.
Anna opened the door to her old bedroom, half-expecting to walk into what could have been a showroom for a craft’s shop and froze.
At the foot of the bed, a pair of heavy, mud-covered black boots sat on a newspaper.
She sniffed. Musky aftershave lingered in the air. Nellie wore a cheap, flowery perfume. Something made of roses. This scent was earthy.
Sandalwood.
Anna’s ex-boyfriend had used a similar aftershave.
She felt a pang of sadness as always when she thought of Dan. The scent brought a fleeting memory of his face to her mind. She briefly wondered if he was all right. If he’d found the happiness he’d been looking for. The happiness she hadn’t been able to give him.
Nellie entered the room and cleared her throat. Anna switched on her torch, aiming it at Nellie’s face. She pointed at the boots. “Are these yours? You said you were here on your own.”
Nellie paled. “I was—I am. Gus…he’s uh, he’s not here currently. He’s…he’s uh my brother. He lives in Epping Green. He came to help after the power went out, and Frank was kind enough to let him stay.”
Her words sounded rehearsed and after all the lying, Nellie seemed to have developed a stutter. Anna frowned. “And where is he now?”
“He is out looking for…for insulin. For Frank.”
Anna clasped her hand over her mouth, suppressing the hysterical laughter bubbling in her chest. She peered over Nellie’s shoulder and exchanged a long look with her sister who was standing in the doorway.
Nellie had only been too keen for them to leave the house and go to the hospital. She’d insisted that she was here alone.
And now there was a brother.
And he was out looking for insulin? For their father? While she was at home applying moisturiser?
The story didn’t make sense, and Anna’s patience was wearing thin.
“Why didn’t you say so?” Sarah asked.
Both Anna and Sarah took a step towards Nellie. Backed into a corner, the woman brought her hands to her face, then, without warning, collapsed. Sarah rushed to her side and patted her cheek.
“Wait—” Anna blinked. “Did she just faint?”
“Apparently so.” Sarah placed a finger below Nellie’s nose. “She’s breathing. Let’s put her on the bed and make sure she doesn’t accidentally swallow her tongue.” Sarah removed the gun from her belt and placed it on the bedside table. Anna put her torch next to it and rolled up her sleeves.
Wrinkling her nose, she knelt next to Nellie. “I’ll grab her legs.”
Together, the two of them managed to lift Nellie onto Anna’s old bed.
“There is no way she managed to lift Dad onto his bed.”
Sarah raised an eyebrow. “What do you mean?”
“She said he collapsed after dinner. What? Conveniently onto his bed?”
I’m sure I’ve seen her before,” Sarah muttered. “She just…she looks so familiar, but I can’t place her.”
Nellie’s robe had come undone, and something shiny slid out of one of the pockets. Anna picked it up. It was a gold ring. She grabbed Nellie’s left hand and pulled it towards the torch so the light shone directly at her fingers. “Look. You can see where she’s worn her ring.” She angled the ring towards the light and frowned. “The inscription reads N & G.”
Darkness Ahead of Us | Book 2 | Darkness Falling Page 3