Hikers - The Collection (Complete Box Set of 5 Books)

by Lauren Algeo

  ‘It’s pretty cool,’ Adders agreed. ‘I wouldn’t mind checking out the steps when we’ve had something to eat.’

  ‘I didn’t realise you wanted a geography lesson too,’ Ellen chuckled. ‘I only brought notes for Daniel.’

  Adders gave a bellowing laugh, even though what she’d said wasn’t particularly funny. Brewer wondered if maybe he’d been serious about trying to hit on Ellen during the trip. Having Adders following her around would make things harder.

  ‘Let’s just have some lunch first,’ Brewer smiled tightly. ‘You must be hungry, Daniel?’

  The boy nodded without looking up at him. Brewer suspected that Daniel didn’t like him very much after the incident at the charity dinner.

  Marie had bundled her son up too warmly for the mild weather, in a black jumper, blue jeans and a thick black coat. Brewer could see a white t-shirt collar poking out from under his jumper too yet Daniel hadn’t removed any layers during the long car journey. He knew that hikers didn’t really feel the cold so they must not react to heat either. He couldn’t see any trace of sweat on Daniel’s brow or a flush in his cheeks.

  They walked to the café and Adders held the door open for everyone. It was lunchtime but there were only three people in the place: a bored-looking waitress behind the counter and an elderly couple near the window. The café was warm and smelt of fresh coffee. Brewer led them to a table in the corner. If he chose to ditch Adders in there then he didn’t want him seeing which way he went.

  He sat down nearest the wall and Ellen took the seat opposite him. Daniel slid in beside her, leaving Adders to park himself next to Brewer. There was a menu on the table and the waitress gave them a couple of minutes before sidling over. She was in her early twenties and had her brown hair tied into a tight ponytail that enhanced her angular features. Brewer wondered if she was a local girl whose summer job had turned into her life.

  ‘Hi, what can I get you?’ Her accent was definitely West Country.

  Adders instantly ordered a pint of coke and a cheeseburger. Ellen asked for a cup of tea and a ham sandwich. Daniel pursed his lips before ordering a glass of water and some chips.

  ‘Is that all you want?’ Ellen asked. ‘You can get a burger too.’

  She knew full well that Daniel didn’t care for food but put on a show for Adders’ benefit.

  ‘No, thank you,’ Daniel said politely. ‘Chips are fine.’

  Brewer wasn’t hungry or thirsty yet he asked for a black tea and a cheeseburger none-the-less. They had to keep up their normal little act for another hour or two.

  He scanned the room while the waitress went to make their drinks and give their orders to the kitchen. Brewer couldn’t imagine there being more than one chef – there wouldn’t be much for them to do. The older couple were finishing their sandwiches and crisps so they would be moving on soon. He could check to see which way they went when they left and try to send Ellen in the opposite direction.

  There could be no prying eyes on the cliffs when it came to injecting Daniel. It had to appear to be an accident. Some nosy rambler would ruin it all if they told the police that they saw a man attack Daniel before pushing him over the edge. He would be extra careful when he crept up on them.

  Ellen had taken some geography case studies out of her bag and was showing them to Daniel. The boy was keeping up his persona and to the untrained eye, actually looked interested in what she was saying. Brewer could tell from his vacant expression that he wasn’t really taking it in.

  Adders was peering at Ellen intently and Brewer knew he wasn’t the least bit interested in erosion either, he was studying Ellen’s face and body. Brewer’s blood bubbled with rage and he fought down the irrational emotion. Adders was like this with every woman. He thought Ellen was single and that he might have a shot with her. He had no idea she was Brewer’s wife. There was no reason for jealously, it was only distracting him from his real purpose.

  The waitress came back with a tray of drinks and Brewer picked up his steaming mug of tea. He took a sip of the bitter liquid and barely noticed as it scalded his tongue. His eyes were trained on Daniel and his mind was focussed. It was nearly time.

  Chapter 45

  Ellen ploughed through the long grass at a brisk pace. Her bag slapped against her thigh as she walked and she kept one hand on the strap. The wind was stronger this close to the cliff edge and it pulled strands of hair out of her ponytail and whipped them across her face.

  She glanced over her shoulder to check that Daniel was still on her heels. She could see the mop of blond hair as he bowed his head to concentrate on where he was stepping. He was usually immaculate however the wind had tousled his carefully combed hair.

  ‘It’s only a little further,’ she smiled through gritted teeth.

  The pain of having him so close throughout the day was unbearable. It had taken all of her will power to choke down her sandwich at lunchtime. Her stomach was in knots and threatened to eject the food she’d eaten. She couldn’t wait for the unsettling sensation to be gone.

  Scott had tried his best but only managed to eat half of his burger, which he’d covered up by saying that he’d eaten a large cooked breakfast earlier. Adders and Daniel hadn’t seemed to notice how pallid his skin was or how much he kept fidgeting. She’d had to put a hand on his knee under the table to remind him to keep his legs still.

  The small talk throughout the meal had been excruciating. Adders had fired off question after question and she’d politely answered while trying to ensure that her mind was protected, just in case Daniel got curious again.

  Eventually, but all too soon, it had been time for her to take Daniel off for his lesson. Leaving Scott sitting there was hard. She could see from his wide eyes that he hadn’t wanted to let her leave alone with the boy. He needed to be close to keep an eye on them. Ellen had given him a reassuring smile but inside she was a wreck. Her body was trembling in anticipation and she was on the verge of panic. She’d concentrated on walking and breathing slowly. Right leg, breathe in. Left leg, breathe out. If she kept moving then everything would be ok.

  She’d led Daniel left when they’d exited the café, on the pretence that she’d seen a good spot for their lesson on the drive in. They’d been walking closer to the cliffs for the last five minutes and so far she hadn’t seen another soul. Her eyes scanned the landscape repeatedly and nothing was moving in the distance. They were further down from the road now and she hoped that Daniel wouldn’t realise she hadn’t possibly been able to see this spot from the car.

  Her steps began to falter as they got nearer to the sharp edge. She didn’t want to go too far in case Scott couldn’t find them. She’d loudly told Daniel to walk left at the café door so he knew which direction they’d gone in. She gazed quickly around and decided the area was perfect. She could just about make out the Trust site in the distance but there were shrubs and bushes breaking up the field they’d walked across. If she kept Daniel focussed on the sea and his workbook, Scott should be able to sneak up on them unnoticed. If Daniel did happen to turn around, there were at least a couple of hiding places en route.

  ‘This looks good,’ she said brightly. ‘We can get a great view of the rocks and sea from here.’

  Daniel peered around with his inquisitive eyes. ‘Yes, this is better than the area outside the café,’ he agreed.

  Ellen settled him down on the grass on a blanket she’d brought from the car and talked through the notes on erosion and coastal habitats she’d printed out. She’d spent the weekend rehearsing what she would say so she could do it on autopilot through her nerves. Daniel listened quietly and wrote the odd note in the margin. The minutes ticked by agonisingly slowly and she wondered if Scott had managed to escape from Adders yet. She didn’t want to keep checking for him behind her in case Daniel turned around too.

  Ellen’s hand snaked down to her handbag again. She had her syringe of insulin tucked safely inside. If Scott didn’t manage to make it to them then she would take the
opportunity to inject Daniel herself. There was no way she’d be able to get away with pulling out the syringe while he was sitting beside her but if she got him started on some questions then stood up to stretch her legs…

  ‘If you feel ready, do you want to try some of the test questions?’ she asked.

  Daniel consulted the notes once more then nodded. ‘Yes please.’

  The questions would pose no real challenge for his level of intellect but he had to keep up his charade. She knew that he wanted this trip to be over as much as she did. She talked through the next section of notes briefly then gave him the mock test paper she’d found online.

  ‘Here you go. I’m just going to scout around for anything of interest we can check out after. Let me know if you have any questions or need any help.’

  Daniel didn’t reply. He merely picked up his pen and started tapping at the paper as he read the first question.

  Ellen got slowly to her feet and put her bag over her shoulder. A quick glance behind told her that Scott still wasn’t approaching. The area was deserted and she didn’t want to let this chance go to waste. Walkers could come by at any moment and disturb the peace. If she moved a few feet away from Daniel, she’d be able to transfer the syringe to her cardigan pocket without him noticing. When she sat back down, she could swiftly inject it into his neck. He wouldn’t have a clue what was happening.

  Scott hadn’t agreed to it but this was her original plan. She would inject Daniel herself then push his body over the edge of the cliffs. It was only twenty feet or so away, she was sure she could drag him there without him managing to take control of her mind. He would be confused and weakened by the fast-acting insulin. That first hiker she’d shot with it all those years ago had died within minutes.

  The second syringe was just a back up; she didn’t think they would need both doses to take Daniel out. Once he had disappeared under the waves, she would run for the café, screaming for help. No one would ever suspect that a nice, caring tutor would have anything to do with his death. She could sob wildly when Connors and Marie showed up. She would be inconsolable that this tragedy had happened on her watch. She could beg for their forgiveness and they would reassure her that it wasn’t her fault; Daniel had simply lost his footing in his eagerness to see over the edge.

  Ellen moved closer to the vast drop and discreetly transferred the syringe from her bag to her pocket. The weight of it against her leg was comforting. Another check behind showed her that Daniel’s head was still down as he scribbled away on the paper. She stared back at the sea for a moment, admiring how far it stretched into the horizon. It was a long way down from the cliff top though – Scott was extremely lucky to have survived a fall like that. Not when her poor Lucy hadn’t. She hoped that she would never have to experience a…

  ‘Who’s Lucy?’

  Daniel was suddenly standing beside her and she jumped in shock. She’d only looked at him a few seconds ago and hadn’t heard him get up and approach her. The pressure in her gut was as consistently strong as ever but she hadn’t felt him enter her mind. Had he been in her thoughts for long or just picked up one word? Had he heard her plan?

  ‘Oh, umm,’ she stuttered, not sure how to play it. ‘Lucy was my daughter.’

  If he hadn’t heard what she was intending to do, part of the truth about Lucy might be enough to appease him.

  ‘Where did you hear that name?’ she asked, to keep up her pretence of not knowing what he was.

  ‘You whispered it as you gazed at the sea.’ Daniel’s unwavering dark eyes were locked onto hers. ‘You seemed sad so I thought I’d check if you were ok.’

  Ellen was positive that she had done no such thing. Her cheeks were warming as the blood rushed to her head and she tried to calm her flustered mind.

  ‘Thank you, Daniel,’ she nodded. ‘I was sad. You see, Lucy died when she was young and I miss her a lot.’

  ‘How did she die?’

  There was no fake sympathy from Daniel and his voice had a hard edge. Had he seen everything or was she reading too much into it?

  ‘She fell,’ Ellen told him. Her palms were sweaty and she fought the urge to wipe them on her jeans. It was a huge effort to keep her mind from thinking about the insulin in her pocket. ‘We were on a nature hike one day and she slipped from the edge of a steep rock face. The cliffs here reminded me of it.’

  ‘I’m sorry for your loss.’ His tone suggested that he was anything but.

  ‘Thank you.’ Ellen’s mouth was dry and her tongue struggled to form the words. ‘Shall we get back to the test questions?’

  Daniel nodded and headed back towards the blanket. For the briefest moment, as he angled his head away, Ellen thought she saw the hint of a smirk on his lips. A cold chill surged through her body as she turned to follow him. Had he been fooled by her explanation or was he just toying with her? Her eyes rapidly scanned the horizon. Where the hell was Scott?

  Chapter 46

  Brewer hurried across the field with his head ducked against the breeze. Adders hadn’t stopped talking in the café and it had been nearly impossible to get away from him. Eventually he’d managed to edge towards the door on the pretence of getting a better signal to call Richards and check on the team.

  Adders kept talking about Ellen so it wouldn’t have been wise to say that she’d left something that he needed to get back to her – Adders would eagerly have tagged along. He’d left him ordering more drinks for them so that should keep him in the café for a while. He might get impatient in ten minutes or so when Brewer didn’t come back but by then it would be too late.

  Brewer squinted into the distance. He’d heard Ellen say they were heading this way as she’d left with Daniel and he hoped she hadn’t gone too far. As he jogged, he moved his syringe out of the case and in to the back pocket of his jeans for easy access. There were bushes and shrubs around so he might be able to use them as cover to sneak up on Daniel.

  ‘Sit.’

  The instruction was clear in his mind and Brewer’s legs almost buckled in automatic obedience to the command. He caught himself at the last moment and stood still, breathing hard. Daniel’s voice was strong, and the power in that single word was undeniable, even second hand. Had he said it to Ellen? Was she in trouble?

  Brewer broke into a sprint and the wind whipped past him. He kept the cliff edge on his right and desperately searched for any sign of them. He hadn’t heard any whispering prior to Daniel’s command – what the hell was going on?

  ‘Ellen is in trouble,’ Daniel said firmly. ‘Get the car.’

  Brewer’s heart hammered with fear at those words. His wife was in trouble. He’d thought Daniel was telling her to sit but why was he now talking about the car? Unless… his stomach somersaulted as his mind registered what was happening.

  The Grand had been powerful enough to control both he and Georgie at the same time – is that what was going on here? Daniel had instructed Ellen to sit and then told someone else that she was in trouble… oh god, Adders. His legs moved faster and his body lurched forward.

  Daniel must have latched on to Adders’ thoughts and found out that he liked Ellen. He was going to use it to manipulate the man. There would be no resistance. Adders would be desperate to save Ellen, like Brewer had done at Chequers, in an attempt to impress her. He would be a willing puppet for Daniel.

  There. Brewer’s eyes landed on two shapes in the distance, barely visible in the grass. One was sitting down and the smaller silhouette was standing. Daniel had indeed taken hold of Ellen. Brewer raced towards them, noting how close they were to the cliff edge. He just had to get near enough to inject Daniel then he could launch his body into the sea.

  Surely the boy wasn’t strong enough to control three minds at once? He would have to let one of them go in order to latch onto Brewer too, and if it was Ellen, she had her own syringe of the deadly insulin.

  ‘You have many secrets that you’ve tried to keep from me.’ Daniel’s voice slithered through his mind.
The boy was talking to Ellen again. ‘I will find out everything. Why don’t you stop fighting and open up for me?’

  Brewer gritted his teeth and pumped his legs harder. He had to stop Daniel.

  Ellen felt the warm tears rolling down her cheeks but she couldn’t bring up her arms to wipe them away. Her body was paralysed on the ground. Daniel was inside her mind, trying to pry his way into her locked memories. Her jaw was clenched tightly with the effort of keeping him at bay. He’d never come across mental blocking like hers and she hoped it would take him longer to break her down. She was adamant that she wouldn’t give up the truth without a battle.

  She could hear his voice all around her head as he hunted for answers and she tried to distract him with other information. She was an only child. She’d fallen out with her mother over an affair with a married man. She’d given birth to a daughter who weighed 7lb 12oz. Lucy had gone to a local kindergarten.

  Daniel gave a roar of rage at the constant onslaught of facts. ‘Hurry,’ he growled. ‘Drive.’

  Ellen knew those instructions were directed at someone else – his presence in her head faded as he spoke to the other mind. She could only assume that it was Adders; there hadn’t been many other people around. She prayed that Scott was close enough to get here first. He must have heard what was happening. She wanted to turn and look for him but her body wouldn’t cooperate. She would have to wait for another lapse in Daniel’s hold to try and move.

  ‘So he’s your husband,’ Daniel smirked out loud. He’d been moving slowly back and forth across her field of vision and now he stopped directly in front of her. ‘Why would you hide it?’

  No! Ellen attempted to push him from her mind again. She couldn’t let him snatch any more memories about Scott – that would open the gateway to everything.

  His eager fingers poked at her thoughts, trying to uncover what he craved. ‘Poor Scott won’t make it here,’ he tutted in her head. ‘I have someone to keep him occupied while you tell me what I want to know.’