She backtracked through the ship in case she had missed anything. Then, she came across an open door which led to the balcony where Aoife and Worm had previously been.
Cora remembered what Kieran had told her; “There was blood in the railings.”
Rolling her eyes, she stepped out onto the balcony and carefully examined the railings from left-to-right. “This is ridiculous.” She mumbled to herself.
But then, she saw something drip off from the underside of the railings farther right. Without thinking, she swiped the drippage with her index finger. Pulling it up to her eyes, she realised the liquid was red.
“It’s not how you think.” Aoife murmured from behind, startling Cora and prompting her to turn around. “Just hear me out.”
Cora looked at her ‘friend’ in disbelief. “Whose blood is this?”
Aoife swallowed hard, “Worm’s…”
Cora gasped, “So Kieran was right… You are the killer.”
“No!” She clenched her fists. “Worm was going to hurt me! What happened here was purely self-defence.”
But Cora was sceptical, “Why didn’t you come and get me?”
“I tried to! But you were on deck with the others! If I tried to get you away from them, people would begin to get suspicious and make the same assumption that you did.” Aoife guilt-tripped her.
Cora looked back at the railings and then pointed to them. “Where is his body?”
Aoife looked away shamefully.
“How…? How were you even physically able to lift him over the railings?”
Still, Aoife remained with her eyes to the floor.
Cora’s eyes softened, “What did you do to Naomi?”
Instantly, Aoife looked back up. “Nothing! I swear to you, Cora, whatever happened to Naomi, it had nothing to do with me!” Technically, she was both lying and being truthful at the same time. “Cora, I beg of you, don’t tell the others about this.”
Though she was disgusted initially, Cora quickly understood Aoife’s reasoning and nodded. “Tanika’s done something with Naomi we think… I suppose we can put Worm’s demise down to her as well.” As she said this, she felt immense guilt.
“Thank you.” Aoife raised her hand to her heart and politely smiled. As she turned around and headed back inside, her polite smile turned into a conniving one; she was now underneath the group’s skin and completely off of their radar.
Corey had led Kieran, Valorie, Richard and Mac into the nearby cottage. Tanika was still unconscious and was now tied to a chair in the living room.
The cottage was rather old. The floor was carpet covered in rugs with Edwardian patterns engraved in them, the walls were brick with wooden beams supporting the upper floor, and all of the doors were wooden planks with splinters shooting out. There were also corks buried into the woodwork and the beams.
Corey sat in the armchair in the corner, whilst Kieran sat on the sofa opposing the fireplace which Tanika was tied down in front of.
“…So yeah, that’s it basically. That woman,” Kieran nodded to Tanika, “Is a murderer.” He was explaining his story to Corey and had told the theory that Tanika had killed Naomi and Worm as fact rather than opinion.
“Hmm. That’s a shame.” Corey affirmed. “I thought she had such an honest voice as well.” He referred to their radio conversation.
“Naomi and Worm would beg to differ.” Kieran was adamant about repeating that point; possibly to keep himself convinced, or possibly to stop Corey from becoming partial to Tanika’s lies.
“But you say that you could not find the body of either one?” Corey questioned.
Kieran nodded, “Because she probably left Naomi back at the port and threw Worm overboard. There’s no bodies to be found.”
But Corey wasn’t entirely certain that Kieran had gotten it right. “You’ve made what is called a logical fallacy, my friend – Naomi was not on board your ship, so you assume that she is dead. Why?”
Kieran squinted at him in confusion, “Tanika gave the game up the moment she said ‘seven’ passengers, rather than eight.”
Corey laughed, “But in what way does that mean your friend is dead beyond doubt?”
Kieran wasn’t understanding him.
“For all you know, your friend could have… Well, she could have chosen to say behind, she could have wandered off and not made it back in time, or she could currently be lying passed out, assuming that dear Tanika really is as bad as you say she is.” The last part of his hypothesis was something which he did not believe still.
“Why?” Kieran retorted. “Why would she leave Naomi behind? Why single her out? And even if you’re right, how the hell did Worm disappear ‘mid-voyage’?”
Corey tapped his nose and winked, “That would be telling.”
This cryptical exchange was rubbing Kieran the wrong way. Although he knew Corey was doing this to help him reach the conclusion by himself, he wasn’t really in the mood for playing mind games when two of his acquaintances were still uncounted for.
Night turned back to the day, and eventually Tanika had come back around. Much to her surprise however, she did not awake to one of her captors, but rather, her new supposed ally: Aoife.
“What happened?” Tanika asked breathily in a panic.
Aoife glared at her ominously, “They think you killed Naomi and Worm.”
Tanika caught her breath again, “Worm… What really happened to him?”
Aoife shrugged and raised an eyebrow at her, “Well, what really happened to Naomi?”
She squinted at Aoife, not following what she was getting at.
“Do I really have to spell it out?” Aoife prompted with widened eyes.
Then, an assumption hit her, “Does Gale have him too?”
Aoife laughed, “Worm’s gone, but not in the same way as Naomi.”
“I’m not sure I’m following you.”
“Well, Naomi’s alive and, as you said, in Gale’s ‘care’, but Worm – isn’t.” Aoife grinned and got up from the sofa.
Tanika’s eyes widened, “You killed him?”
She rolled her eyes, “Don’t act you care. You knew him for all of an hour.”
“No.” Tanika tutted, “If you’ve killed him, you’ve blown my cover.”
Aoife laughed and crouched down in front of her, “Don’t be so melodramatic. You’re purely the scapegoat… But, don’t worry, the Director has big plans for you and me both.”
Tanika’s face lit up.
“Exactly… And he’s making his final play soon. If you want in, just go along with it. Believe it or not, this lot aren’t the only group left in the world.” Aoife reasoned, and slipped a butterfly knife into Tanika’s hand, “Make it look convincing, okay?”
The rest of the group were discussing matters in the kitchen.
“I don’t trust him or her.” Kieran made his opinion on Corey and Tanika clear. “He’s too shady, and she’s a murderer.”
“Don’t be too hasty.” Cora warned him. “From what I’ve heard, you shot a child when you first met Naomi.”
Kieran fell silent.
“What about you two?” Cora aimed the question at Richard and Valorie now.
“Naomi’s the reason we’re still standing.” Richard affirmed. “Worm and Kieran could’ve killed us, but they became allies, thanks to her.”
Valorie nodded in agreement, “We were wrong to try and ever fleece her. She showed us another way, one that didn’t involve stealing and killing.” She cast a deathly stare at Kieran, “It’s a shame she couldn’t teach that lesson to you.” This comment was in reference to her late friend, Harry, who died as a result of Kieran’s actions.
Cora steered the subjected back on course to defuse the situation, “So where do you two stand with regards to Tanika?”
“Whatever she’s done to Naomi, we want the truth.” Richard began.
“But at the same time, if the unthinkable has indeed happened, we should be mindful of what Naomi would want.” Valorie
added, “We only want the truth from Tanika, not her head.”
Kieran groaned angrily, “Naomi and Worm could be dead, their killer in that very room, and you’d let her walk?”
“Keep your voice down!” Mac insisted. “If she figures out what we’re gonna do, she’ll find a way to counteract it.”
“Well then, it’s settled.” Cora clapped her hands together. “We’ll interrogate her for the truth, but we won’t--”
“Cora!” Aoife desperately cried out from the living room.
“Aoife!” She shouted back as the group all rushed through the cottage.
“Oh god!” Cora remarked as she swung open the living room door and saw Aoife lying on the ground with a gash across her cheek. Instantly, she dropped down to her friend’s side and produced a cloth from her pocket, using it to clean the wound.
“Dammit!” Kieran cursed upon seeing an empty chair on the other side of the living room with cut ropes surrounding it.
Aoife was shaking, pretending to be terrified, “S-she attacked me…”
“It’s okay, I’ve got you!” Cora continued wiping away the blood. “Mac, get some alcohol or something! A needle too! We’re gonna need to stitch this up…”
Now, Kieran’s eyes softened, as he began to accept the possibility that his accusations of foul play about Aoife were incorrect.
Chapter 4: You’ll Find It
Gwen stood at the very edge of the cliff and gawked at the deep blue ocean ahead of her. Her lungs were refreshed by the salty sea air, and her soul was healed by the feeling of freedom.
Silently, Annabelle took her mother’s hand and then stood by her mother’s side.
Then, her other hand was met by another; Elliot’s.
The three of them all breathed in deeply as they felt surges of wind rush through their hair, bringing them a sense of peace.
“I know what you’re looking for,” Annabelle mumbled.
“But you’re looking in the wrong place.” Elliot completed her sentence.
Gwen looked from one of them to the other, breaking the trance of surrealism.
“You’re trying to prove yourself to us,” Annabelle said mystically, as though she could read her mother’s mind.
“And you’re trying too hard in doing so.” Elliot’s follow-up was no less eerie.
The siblings continued to speak in this ‘one-two’ pattern as Gwen looked between the two of them.
“You went away for almost a year,”
“And then we found you in Prague.”
“Elliot lost his sight,”
“Annabelle lost her mind.”
“Was it worth it?”
“Was it worth it?”
Gwen stuttered out of both confusion and regret.
“Reed died and you were elsewhere.”
“Zach and Celeste died, and you were elsewhere.”
Gwen let go of their hands and instead used hers to cover her face. “Stop it. We’ve been through this.”
“But it’s okay!” Annabelle’s voice turned gentle.
“We don’t begrudge you for that.” As did Elliot’s.
“You want to make up for all the time you were away,”
“You blame what happened to us on yourself, but it’s not your fault I lost my sight.”
Gwen turned around and began storming away from the cliff.
“I know what you’re looking for,” Annabelle repeated herself.
“But you won’t find redemption through revenge.” Elliot became stern.
Finally, Gwen snapped, and turned back around, “It wasn’t about revenge dammit!”
Both her daughter and her friend-turned-stepson fell silent.
“It was about protecting you! Both of you!” She explained. “Whatever they did to you, Annabelle… I didn’t go after Jaxon to get revenge, I did it to make sure he couldn’t hurt you again… That’s why!” She stomped as she shouted.
Annabelle smirked.
Then, Gwen turned to Elliot, “If I’d have just stayed… Sonia wouldn’t have won. She wouldn’t have hurt you the way she did. I’m so sorry Elliot.”
But he too smirked. “And then I never would’ve let Sonia go. I never would’ve been able to be better than who I was. I may have lost my sight, but I found something so much more valuable.” He began walking towards her.
“And me,” Annabelle step towards her as well, “I’ll be far stronger now. However long I live, what J.V.’s family did to me, it’ll harden me.”
Elliot offered his hand out to his stepmother, “Come.” His smirk turned into a welcoming smile. “Take a step back, just for a while…”
Back at the town, everybody had gathered in the church, which was farther down towards the end of the riverside. It was quite small and medieval, comprised primarily of stone.
Erica and Tina stood in the pulpit, addressing those gathered in front of them. The congregation had been prompted by the sighting of the fighter jets in the skies above them.
“We all know what we saw!” Adela called out. “Five fighter jets! Clear as day!”
Erica nodded, “That’s right!” She responded in kind. “Make no mistake, we’re not going to try and cover this up to you. No doubt about it, something rather bizarre happened earlier today.”
“So why are we still standing here?” Oliver criticised with his arms crossed. “They headed East! There’s not much more of this country in that direction. One scouting party wouldn’t hurt!”
Tina shook her head, “We’re standing here for that very reason: Nobody is to go and investigate what we saw.”
They all began to mumble in confusion with each other.
“That’s a joke, right?” Adela asked.
“Nope. Not a joke.” Tina asserted seriously.
A younger girl emerged from behind Adela; it was her sister, Tia. “But the soldiers can help us!”
Tina and Erica looked to each other awkwardly; they had encountered evil militias before, but how were they supposed to explain this to a child?
“It isn’t…” Tina stuttered. “It isn’t like that, Tia.”
“Why?”
“Some people…” She swallowed hard. “Some people just don’t want to help others.”
An awkward silence then encumbered the church.
Elliot and Annabelle guided Gwen to an open area within a forest.
“Do you remember this place?” Elliot asked his mother.
She looked around at the dying Autumn trees and felt the sun as it beaded down on her through them, but the place remained unfamiliar.
“Perhaps this will jog your memory.” He produced a bloodied axe from seemingly out of nowhere.
Gwen was taken aback by this sight. Cautiously, she took the weapon from his hands and examined it.
“Anything?” Annabelle prompted as she observed the weapon from over her mother’s shoulder.
“I remember…” Gwen nodded slowly. “Vincent…”
And sure enough, her memory had served her correctly.
“G-Gwen…” A voice from her past called out hoarsely from behind her.
“Ignore him.” Elliot bluntly advised her.
But still, Gwen slowly turned around; and there he was. Vincent was slumped up against the tree, completely draped in blood from head to toe.
“Help me… Please.” Vincent begged.
Gwen began to shiver, and her eyes widened extremely.
“Don’t.” Elliot breathed into her left ear.
“Do.” Annabelle countermanded, speaking into her right ear. “You’re looking for redemption, mum. Start here. This is the only way you’ll find it; by letting go of the past and doing something good.”
“No.” Elliot grunted. “If you want redemption, the only way you’ll find it is by doing what has to be done. If he lives, he’ll just try and kill Olivia again. But if he dies, he will never hurt another soul.”
Gwen’s eyes jittered, conflicted between her angels and her demons.
“He won’t get any
where near Olivia. You can save them both.” Annabelle reasoned as she caressed her mother’s shoulder.
“He’ll find a way. They always do. He doesn’t deserve to be saved. Let him die. Let him die, save Olivia, redeem yourself.” Elliot then caressed her shoulder as well, though his touch was far more aggressive.
“I’m so… So sorry.” Vincent choked as he apologised. “I did something b-bad… But I don’t deserve to die, do I?”
Gwen’s eyes dipped into dismay.
“It’s now or never.” Annabelle informed her. “Go to him, mum. Now!”
“Don’t do it Gwen! Let him rot.” Elliot gritted his teeth.
“You can’t stop us from trying to find them.” Adela broke the silence. “Like Oliver said, there’s not that much east of here. If we double-down, we could have the whole area mapped within two days.”
“They were jets, Adela.” Erica reiterated. “There’s no reason to think they’re based in this country. Yes, sure, they were headed east, but that could also mean they were headed for Poland, Slovakia, maybe even Ukraine or Belarus. We just don’t know. So, unless you really want to trek across the continent to find them, then we need to just let this sighting slide.” She clenched her fists and thumped them as she concluded this statement.
Oliver nodded, “If there’s an army still, then I’m willing to take that bet. Tia could be right! They may be able to help us!”
“Tia’s a twelve-year-old girl! She’s spent most of her life in this dead world, she doesn’t know what evil really is!” Tina retorted.
“She is also right here!” Adela angrily snapped back at her, as Tia began to cry into her chest.
Tina sighed and shook her head, “Tia, I didn’t mean that in bad way… Adela, tell her.”
“Tell her what?” She remained aggressive. “You know what, I don’t care what you say – I’m headed east for my sister’s sake, and anybody who wants to join me is welcome to!”
“Right behind you Adela!” Oliver clapped and called out, followed by the majority of the group agreeing with her as well. The split was roughly 70/30, with the minority understanding Erica and Tina’s concerns.
Human Nature (Book 4): Human Nature IV Page 3