by Ryan Casey
A flash of light filling her vision.
She lay there on her back, tasting blood. She couldn’t hear through the ringing in her ears. Couldn’t see much for the remnants of that burning light filling her vision.
But as she lay there, heart racing, pain splitting across her head, staring up at the sky, she knew exactly what she’d seen.
And she knew how wrong it was.
She lifted her head, feeling dizzy, shaky, and looked ahead.
When she saw the scene in front of her, she felt a sinking feeling that she hadn’t felt in a long, long time.
The podium was covered in flames. There were people scrambling off it. Being escorted away. Flames rose from the remains. Smoke rose into the air.
But it was what was in front of the podium that made Aoife’s skin crawl.
Up ahead, the crowd that was gathered before were flattened. Loads of them were dead on the ground. Bleeding out from gaping holes in their necks. Or lying there, eyes staring emptily up at the sky. Some of them were barely even in one piece anymore.
And as Aoife stood there and stared, the ringing in her ears turned into screams. The screams of people staggering around her. Some of them limping and wounded. Some of them just unrecognisable with the terror in their eyes. Panic. Chaos. Confusion. It reminded her of the estate over a year ago. Losing Max. The conflict with Grace…
She thought of Kayleigh. Looked around for her. She was right beside her a moment ago. Or at least it felt like a moment ago. Maybe she’d passed out. Maybe the fall had knocked her unconscious.
She had to reach her.
She had to find her.
Then she had to get them both the hell away from here.
She searched through the pile of bodies, panicked people racing past her, almost knocking her to the road. She didn’t even know if the attackers were still close. That’s what it felt like—like they were under attack. Every now and then, she swore she heard gunfire.
And her instincts told her to get her gun and help defend this place if that’s what needed doing.
But even greater instincts screamed at her to do something else entirely.
To find Kayleigh.
To find her friend.
She couldn’t leave her behind.
She scrambled over the bodies. Faces of people she recognised. Faces of friends. And she couldn’t shake the fear or the denial. This couldn’t be real. This couldn’t be happening. This had to be a nightmare. It just had to be.
Because things like this didn’t happen at Sanctuary.
This was their safety.
This was their home.
Things like this weren’t supposed to happen here.
She searched even more for Kayleigh. Sifted through the bodies. Pushed past the crowd, which was thickening, suffocatingly so. People screaming. People covered in blood. The stench of blood so strong in the air. Children wailing for their parents. Dogs barking.
The smell of flames and the heat of fire and the stench of smoke…
This was a nightmare.
It couldn’t be happening.
“Kayleigh,” Aoife shouted.
But her shout was weak. Half-hearted. Because deep down, she had a bad feeling. A horrible feeling in the pit of her gut.
A horrible, sickening feeling that she didn’t want to face.
But a feeling she couldn’t deny.
A feeling that she was already too late.
She looked around and went to shout for Kayleigh again when she saw someone lying there right up ahead.
The blonde hair.
Face down. About Kayleigh’s size.
Aoife shook her head. “No. Not you. Please, not you.”
She didn’t want to walk towards her. Didn’t want to see.
But she knew she had no choice.
She went to take a step, a familiar feeling growing inside. A sense of inevitability that she’d felt so many times before. Everything around her dropped into the background. Nothing seemed to matter. Everything seemed to fade into insignificance. Nothing made any clear sense.
Just this woman, lying face down on the ground.
“Kayleigh,” she said. “Please. Not you. Not you.”
She went to take another step towards her when she felt a hand on her shoulder.
“Aoife?”
She turned around, and she saw her.
Kayleigh stood there, right before her.
A small cut above her left eye.
But on her feet.
Alive.
She was okay.
“Kayleigh,” Aoife said, launching herself at her. Hugging her. Holding her amidst all the chaos. “You’re okay.”
“Aoife.”
“You’re okay.”
Kayleigh hugged her back. But then she pushed her away, just slightly. There was something wrong. She could tell from the look in Kayleigh’s eyes.
“What is it?” Aoife asked.
Kayleigh lowered her head.
“Kayleigh? What is it?”
Kayleigh lifted her head then turned to the front. Right by the podium. “The people up top. I don’t think… I don’t think any of them made it.”
Aoife didn’t understand what Kayleigh was getting at initially. She was so caught in the adrenaline of the moment that it didn’t quite click.
And then it hit her.
“Gregg,” she said.
She started running towards the front of the crowd.
“Aoife!” Kayleigh shouted.
But there was no stopping her.
She had to get to Gregg.
He was up top.
The last thing Aoife remembered before being blown back was looking at Gregg. Seeing him at the front, smiling.
And then…
No.
She kept on running.
Trampled over bodies and felt so fucking guilty about it.
Pushed past the tight crowd of people heading in the other direction, so many people that she was suffocated by the smell of booze, sweat, fear.
She pushed and pushed and kept on going until she reached the front of the crowd, and she saw him.
He was lying there on the ground.
Staring up at the dark sky above.
Wide-eyed.
Spluttering blood.
“Gregg,” Aoife said.
She ran to his side.
When she got there, she realised it was already too late for him.
There was a huge chunk of metal debris through his throat. Another, right through the middle of his chest.
And as she sat there beside him, all she could do was hold his hand.
Hold his cold, shaking hand and be there with him.
He looked into her eyes. A tear rolling down his face. A smile on his blood-soaked face.
“I’m sorry,” she said, as he spluttered away, as she tried to hold back her tears. “It’s going to be okay. Don’t worry. It’s… it’s all going to be okay.”
She had no idea how long she held his hand and comforted him.
But eventually, Gregg stopped spluttering, and the light in his eyes went out.
CHAPTER TEN
Aoife stood in the middle of the graveyard.
It was afternoon, but it was dark already. Thick black clouds overhead. Rain lashed down from above, cutting through the stuffy, humid air. The storm that threatened to rear its head yesterday was well and truly here now. And it seemed fitting. Fitting after everything that happened last night. Fitting, after everything had fallen apart.
Aoife looked at the church up ahead. Looked at the old headstones sitting there amidst the muddy grass. And she saw the survivors all standing around. All dressed in black. Heads lowered. Eyes down.
It felt like the bubble they had been living in for the last year had well and truly burst.
And after how it’d gone down… Aoife wasn’t sure they’d ever be able to return to that bubble again.
Everyone was silent. They were gathered here just to pay their respects
. There were holes in the ground where they’d buried some of the bodies. Or at least, what remained of the bodies, anyway. It wasn’t like they could do anything on the main square, where the explosion at the podium had erupted. Because there were still remains there. There was still blood on the streets.
And there were still memories.
Memories of the blast.
Memories of the screams.
And memories of the look in Gregg’s eyes as he lay there, dying.
In the middle of the graveyard, standing there covered in cuts and bruises, Harvey stood. He’d survived. A miracle, considering how close he’d been to the explosion. Had to be dragged from under the rubble and survived without even a broken bone.
That was one positive, at least. One bright spark in the insufferable darkness.
At least they still had their leader.
At least they still had Harvey.
He looked up at the crowd that was gathered. In the background, Aoife could still hear crying. The grieving cries of so, so many. There was a depression hanging over Sanctuary. And it was only going to get even stronger as the days went on.
As the shock rose.
And all Aoife could think about were those insurgents, who must’ve breached the walls, somehow. Who must’ve planted a bomb. Attacked the south wall and destroyed the south generator, then left without a trace. A suicide attack, some speculated—but that didn’t explain the attack on the podium. Someone on the inside? The thought made Aoife sick.
It felt wrong. It filled Aoife with anger. And while she knew to be wary of a lust for vengeance nowadays, she felt nothing but hatred towards the insurgents. Nothing but detestation.
Because they were selfish. They were selfish and ruthless, and they’d crossed a line.
They’d been knocking at the door for far too long, and finally, they’d crossed a line.
“I don’t know where to even start,” Harvey said.
His voice didn’t fill Aoife with the usual reassurance.
The illusion of safety and comfort had been shattered completely. It’s like what’d happened had totally broken things. And she wasn’t sure how things were going to go back.
“We’re still unsure of the numbers exactly,” Harvey said, his voice shaking, the remorse and the pain clear to hear. “We’re still finding more today. But… but every one of those people was a credit. They were a credit to this community. And they are a great, great loss. And I am so sorry.”
“Sorry’s not enough,” someone shouted.
Aoife looked around. Everyone did, clearly a little shocked to hear any kind of mutiny against Harvey. Everything was usually so coherent here. People didn’t disagree with one another, and when they did, it was politely and diplomatically.
It was Remi. His eyes were bloodshot. She could see tears glistening on his cheeks. He looked mad. Really mad.
And Aoife could sense anger in Remi’s voice.
She could sense anger deeper within the group.
A sense that something was going to change.
“I know apologies can’t bring anyone back,” Harvey said.
“But killing the fuckers who did this might stop anything like this happening again,” Remi barked. “Because it should never have happened in the first place. Never.”
Harvey stood there, eyes wide, staring out at the crowd. And Aoife felt bad because she could feel the atmosphere shifting. She could feel the mood shifting. From grief to anger.
And she felt it herself.
Anger that something hadn’t been done sooner.
Anger that the insurgent threat hadn’t been dealt with before now.
Not a mere lust for revenge. But a feeling that this should not have been allowed to happen. And that it should never be allowed to happen again.
“Those terrorist fucks have fucked with us for too long,” Remi shouted. People clapping along. Cheering. Clearly well on board. “And we can’t let it go on. Because if we let it go on, we’ll lose more people. It’ll happen again. We need to send out a message. More than a message if we can. We’ve dicked around with diplomacy for so long. And my wife is dead. So many people are dead.”
Aoife heard the claps. She heard the applause. She heard the angry roars.
And all she could do was look at Harvey as he stood there, staring out at his people, a single teardrop rolling down his face.
He closed his mouth. Nodded. Waited a while without saying a thing.
“I tried to avoid this day,” he said. “And I did it because I thought I was doing what was best. Truly.”
Another pause. The crowd waiting on with bated breath.
“But now I see something more needs to be done.”
A mumble amongst the crowd.
“Now, I see it’s no longer can the insurgents terrorise us.”
The mumble becoming shouts. Cheers.
“It’s time to do something different. For the ones we love. It’s time to go after them. And it’s time to wipe them out. Once and for all.”
CHAPTER ELEVEN
Aoife and Kayleigh stood outside Harvey’s office and waited to be invited inside.
It was late. She had no idea why she and Kayleigh had been called up, especially so late. The plan was to launch an attack on the insurgents as soon as possible, but realistically that meant waiting until tomorrow at least. Harvey and some of his closest were putting a plan together. It seemed like the entire community of Sanctuary was channelling their grief into their vengeance. Aoife knew the perils of going down that road. She thought of Grace and all the pain revenge had got the pair of them into.
But this time felt different. This time, the actions of the insurgents felt totally unjust.
And it wasn’t just about revenge. It was about protection, too.
Protecting this community from future attacks.
And if that meant taking the insurgents out, then that’s what had to be done.
Aoife stood in the corridor outside Harvey’s office, Kayleigh by her side. It felt like she’d been standing here and waiting forever. Besides, neither of them knew why they were here. They’d just been picked out at random and told to come here because Harvey wanted to speak to them about something. He had a job for them. A very important job that he wanted to keep quiet. Something he could trust them with.
Aoife wondered what it could possibly be. She appreciated Harvey’s trust. But still, there was an uncertainty over what all this was about.
She stood there. Nervous. Tired. Shaking a little after everything that had happened. She could still see flashes in her mind of Gregg and the look in his eyes—the dead look in his eyes. The fear, in his final moments.
And it filled her with anger. Filled her with pain.
But then she took another deep breath. She had to stay strictly on task here. She couldn’t let vengeance get the better of her. She couldn’t let it cloud her judgement. Not again.
She heard a creak up ahead and saw Harvey at the door.
He looked pale. Exhausted. He was usually so pristine, but his hair looked greasy and his shirt untucked and scruffy. Actually looked kind of pitiful. Didn’t give off the biggest leadership vibes, that was for sure.
“Aoife. Kayleigh. Glad you could make it. Come inside.”
He held up an arm and gestured for them to enter. They both went into his office, which smelled of sweat. There was a sleeping bag on the floor by his antique oak desk. Looked like he’d been holing up in here while planning the response.
“I don’t want to go home until I’ve got a proper plan in place,” Harvey said, closing the office doors. “And if that means staying here until next Christmas … then that’s exactly what I’ll do.”
“You should get some rest,” Aoife said. “You won’t think as clearly without it.”
“I can get by on a few hours just fine,” Harvey said. “Besides. I’m not sure I deserve much sleep right now.”
He lowered his head, and Aoife saw the guilt all over him.
“You need to stop blaming yourself for what happened.”
“How can I not blame myself? I’m the one who’s called for diplomacy. I’m the one who called for watchful waiting. I’m the one who belittled the insurgent threat. Who undermined it completely. And now look. People are dead. People are dead, and the south generator is destroyed too, and that’s on me.”
Aoife didn’t know what else she could say to reassure Harvey. Truth be told, it looked like he’d already made his mind up about all this. And Aoife knew it was nigh on impossible to get through to someone when they’d already made their minds up. Knew that much damned well from first-hand experience.
“I’m sorry you feel that way. I know there’s nothing I can say to change your mind. But... but all I can say is there’s nothing we can do but channel it into our next step. Which is what it looks like you’re doing.”
“And that’s exactly why I’ve invited you here,” Harvey said, nodding along. “Soon, we’ll launch an attack. But the problem is, we still don’t know exactly where these people are located, their numbers, or anything like that. I’ve tried requesting support from some of our other Order colleagues, but we’re on our own with this one. Self-sustaining, you know the spiel they usually give. So we need to tread carefully. They attacked us in a way we didn’t think they were capable of. That should be a warning sign in itself.”
“Where are you going with this?” Kayleigh asked.
“I want you two to go out and find these people tonight. I’m asking you because I trust you. You’re loyal. And you can be relied on. And if you can scout them out, if you can locate them… then maybe we can understand more about these people before they become a problem again.”
Aoife felt a nervous tension in her chest. Everything was suddenly getting very real.
“I’m asking you both because, like I say, I trust you both. And I trust that you’ll act appropriately. That you won’t be poisoned by these folks. It’s clear someone intercepted us. I mean, they must have. Whether someone on the inside or a suicide bomber… we’re still trying to work that out. I don’t want this to happen again. And I trust you both.”
“I don’t see what good this will do,” Kayleigh said.
Harvey frowned. “What?”