The Collector Book One: Mana Leak

by Daniel I. Russell

The Prowlers followed, screeching and snapping their claws in the air.

  The car fast approached the whirlpool.

  This is going to hurt, Joe realised. It’s going to hurt a lot…

  He released his foot from the accelerator. Still clutching the wheel to hold the car straight, he climbed onto his seat and crouched on the padded leather.

  He shook, the adrenaline coursing through his system and sending his heart into overdrive. Screaming, he pushed hard with his legs against the seat and released the wheel. The car whipped away beneath him as he jumped.

  Joe turned in the air and struck the ground. Pain burst through his ribs. His ankle struck the road with a sickening snap.

  Joe roared, rolling to a stop. He lay panting on his back, staring up at the cloudless sky. He heard the approach of the Prowlers. The fire in his ankle throbbed. He suspected it had broken, maybe a few ribs too.

  At least I get to watch that bastard’s portal get blown to high heaven.

  He watched as the car continued up the street. Without the accelerator pedal depressed, it slowed considerably, but still moved at a good pace. The front tyres passed from solid to liquid road.

  “Go on,” prayed Joe. “Go on!”

  The car splashed into the black whirlpool. The front end plunged in, and the rear of the car bounced upwards. The road splashed across the bonnet and speckled the windscreen like tar. A second later, the rear crashed back down.

  Joe braced himself.

  A mighty, dark wave cascaded out from underneath the car, flowing out to the very edge of the road. The car bobbed a little.

  “Go on,” shouted Joe again. He heaved in a great breath as pain ripped through his chest. “Blow!”

  The car levelled and floated on the surface.

  It hasn’t worked. It was for nothing! All this was for nothing!

  The vehicle drifted, slowly turning on the currents of the whirlpool.

  Joe turned his head the other way.

  The Prowlers had slowed their advance up the street, as if they knew he was a sitting duck. They could afford to take their time.

  Still full of Frank, thought Joe with a grimace. He rested his head back on the road and closed his eyes.

  All this for nothing! Nothing!

  His eyes sprang open again at the growing sound of an engine from the top of the street.

  Jake?

  He tried to sit up, but agony flared in his chest. He fell back down and turned his head.

  A moment later, Jake’s bike turned the corner and sped down the street.

  Joe watched as Jake, clutching onto the handlebars with his right hand, raised something in his left. It sparkled gold in the sun.

  What is that? What the hell is he planning?

  Jake drove closer, approaching the whirlpool.

  It’s his lighter. That means…

  Jake popped the lighter open with a flick of his wrist and flung it at the floating car.

  The golden box spun in the air, its flame flaring out behind it in a small, flickering cone. It vanished inside the interior of the car.

  Jake continued on past the whirlpool.

  Flames fanned out across the seats of the car. They licked along the body, dancing on the shiny paintwork.

  “Jake,” cried Joe, fighting the pain that roared in his chest. “Move! It’s going to-”

  The car disappeared in a fireball. A second later, the sound of the explosion spread out on a colossal wave, imploding the windows of the Dean house and Frank’s Honda.

  Joe shielded his face from the bright light and burning wind that swept across him. A second explosion blasted the street. He watched in horror as Jake, speeding away from the burning car, was knocked from the bike. He hit the ground on his side and skidded a few feet. The bike continued driverless a little longer down the road before toppling. It slid on its side, sending a shower of sparks out from behind.

  The steady advance of the Prowlers had stopped at the first explosion. The creatures waited, transfixed by the rising flames. The bike spun towards them and hit the group, travelling on through. The Prowlers that survived scattered in panic. The bike eventually slowed and came to rest in front of the McGuire house, the engine still rumbling.

  Jake lay on the ground, not moving.

  “Jesus!” Joe tried to crawl towards the boy, but his ribs felt like they were coated in spikes, and his ankle screamed in protest with white-hot pain. He fell back with a scream.

  “Joe?”

  Jake sat up, looking dazed. The entire length of his side had been ripped open, ruining the T-shirt and the jeans. The flesh of his legs, arm and side looked red raw and shredded, seeping with blood in places. The short slide down the road had effectively skinned him.

  “My God, Jake!”

  “I’m fine…I think.” The boy shook his head. “Just a little dizzy.” He stood up and swayed a little, but remained on his feet. He slowly walked over to Joe.

  “Jake, you’re a mess!”

  “I know,” he said, looking at the damage done to his side. “At least I fell on that side, though.” He turned, revealing the hammer in the loop of his belt. He then patted his pocket, as if to check it.

  If he’d fallen on that side, thought Joe, the hammer would really have ripped him up.

  “Does it hurt?”

  “Like a bitch,” replied Jake. “You?”

  “I’ve been better. Ankle, ribs and shoulder.”

  “Need a hand?”

  Joe nodded.

  Jake crouched down and hooked an arm around the back of Joe’s neck. He cried out as Jake lifted. With the boy’s help, Joe managed to stand on his good leg and leant against his undamaged side. They hobbled over to the wall surrounding the Harper’s garden and fell upon it. Joe released a huge breath.

  “Fuck me,” said Jake. “This is hard work.”

  They sat in silence for a moment, watching the car burn.

  “We did it, Jake. Our bodies might be ready for the knacker’s yard, but we did it.”

  “Not yet. He’s still here, remember?”

  Joe turned to look at him. “I thought he was after you?”

  Jake coughed and winced, holding his side, before answering.

  “He was, but then he gave up. I figured he’d come back to go after you. I haven’t seen him for a while.”

  “I haven’t seen him either,” said Joe. “I don’t suppose he could have gone back, do you?”

  The both looked at the blazing car.

  “Be sweet if he did,” said Jake. “Maybe Frank knows something.”

  Joe closed his eyes.

  “Well…something happened in my grandmother’s house. Frank is…he’s…”

  “Joe! Look!”

  Joe opened his eyes and followed Jake’s pointing finger to the car.

  The surface of the road flowed up the sides of the burning vehicle as it lowered. A hole swelled beneath it and sucked the car down. In seconds, only the top of the twisted windscreen frame could be seen just above the surface.

  “If the door was blown shut,” said Jake, “shouldn’t the road be back to normal?”

  “I…I presume so…”

  The last of the car slipped beneath the coal-black surface. The road returned to a lazy whirlpool.

  “It’s still there,” said Jake, looking at Joe with wide eyes. “And if it’s still there…”

  “It’s still open,” finished Joe.

  They both jumped in surprise as the front door of the Harper house flew open with a clatter.

  13.

  Anne opened her eyes at the sound of an explosion from outside. She blinked and scanned the dark landing from the floor. Her mouth had filled with a coppery taste. She spat on the carpet and licked her lips.

  What happened?

  Anne sat up. She raised her hands to her face and winced at the pain she found there. Her skin felt tender and swollen. A thin trickle of blood ran from the corner of her lip and down her chin. She wiped it away.

  What happ
ened last night? It’s not like Frank to just leave me lying unconscious on the landing. He would at least put me to bed to stop the kids from seeing.

  The kids.

  Anne glanced at the closed door to Bronwyn’s room.

  Oh no, she thought, climbing to her feet. The ground shifted, and the wall tilted before her eyes, but she stayed balanced. It all came back in an instant: the chase, the creature, the children.

  Anne kicked the door.

  “Get out here right now, Jenny!”

  There was no reply.

  “Fuck you,” cried Anne, kicking the door harder. She turned and headed downstairs, clutching at the banister to save diving down the steps headfirst.

  A thin figure lay crumpled at the bottom.

  “Eleanor!”

  Anne rushed down the last few steps, jolts pounding through her fuzzy head. She crouched beside the still body of the old woman.

  “Eleanor! Are you awake?”

  Eleanor groggily opened an eye.

  “Anne? Is…that you?”

  “Yes! Are you hurt?”

  Eleanor writhed slightly on the floor.

  “Yes…but only a few bruises, I think. Nothing serious.”

  “Where are they, Eleanor?” cried Anne. “My children! Where are they?”

  Eleanor shook her head.

  “I…I don’t know. That…thing threw me down the stairs and then…I don’t know.”

  Anne stood up and spun away from her. She ran through the kitchen and into the back garden. No sign. She returned to the hall, and Eleanor had managed to sit up. Anne poked her head into the living room.

  “They’re gone. There’s no sign of them anywhere!”

  “They could be in the bedroom with Jenny,” Eleanor offered.

  “That bitch won’t answer me,” said Anne. “I doubt she had the guts to open the door anyway. Eleanor, it’s…it’s…”

  “Don’t think the worst,” said Eleanor. “There would’ve been some sign if it had…”

  “If it had eaten them? Like the blood of my children splashed up the walls?”

  Eleanor hung her head.

  “I’m sorry, but yes. If there’s no sign upstairs, it hasn’t…well…you know…”

  Anne dashed past her and clicked the lock on the front door open.

  “Anne? What are you doing?”

  “I have to go after them,” she wailed. “I have to find them.”

  Eleanor held up a shaking hand.

  “Wait. You can’t just go out there!”

  “I have to get my kids!”

  “Getting yourself killed won’t help anyone,” Eleanor shouted. “Anything could be out there.”

  “My children are out there, that’s all I need,” said Anne. She swung the door open and stepped outside.

  Sat on the wall, Joe and Jake looked back in surprise.

  Thank God…

  “What are you doing here?” asked Joe, shouting across the garden. “You’re meant to be gone!”

  Anne ran over, tears cascading down her throbbing cheeks.

  “Oh no,” said Joe. “What’s wrong? What’s happened?”

  Anne tried to talk, but her sobs raked her body, leaving her words unformed. She released a long wailing noise.

  “My mum!” cried Jake. “Is my mum all right?”

  Anne just wept.

  Jake jumped off the wall and ran up the garden, not looking at Anne as he passed her. He vanished into the house, calling his mother’s name.

  Anne staggered over to Joe.

  “Is it my grandmother?” pleaded Joe. “Please tell me she’s okay!”

  Anne nodded.

  “Speak to me!”

  “They’re…gone,” she gasped. “My kids…they’re gone…”

  “No,” said Joe. “No, they can’t…”

  From behind them, Eleanor stepped out of the house.

  “Joseph? She limped closer. “Joseph? Look at you!” She hobbled down the garden path.

  Anne broke down in tears again.

  “The children,” Joe said to his grandmother. “What happened to the children?”

  “His creature, his pet. It got into the house and took them. Have you seen anything?”

  “Only a few Prowlers, but then we blew up the car…” Joe nodded to the whirlpool.

  Eleanor turned and set eyes on it for the first time.

  “It’s the doorway,” said Joe. “It swallowed the car and stayed open. All this was for nothing.”

  “Where are my children?” Anne screamed, falling against the wall. Eleanor slid her arms around her shoulders.

  “We’ll find them,” she said. She looked around. “Maybe Frank knows. He’s not here so I presume…”

  Joe shook his head and looked away.

  “Joseph?”

  Anne looked up through shimmering eyes. “Where’s Frank?” She sniffed.

  Joe stared at the whirlpool, refusing to meet her eyes.

  “They…they got him. Frank’s dead.”

  14.

  Jake banged on the bedroom door again.

  “Mum, open the door!”

  Looking at the state of Anne and the old woman, he was glad his mother had the sense to get to safety. He held her wedding ring tightly in his fist. He pounded the door again.

  “Mum! Come on! It’s me!”

  Unease stirred in his guts. His mum had always let him inside. What if something was wrong? What if she’d had a stroke or heart attack because of all of this? Jake was aware his mother was not a fit woman and her body might have finally given into the stress.

  He knocked again.

  “Mum. You’re scaring me. If you don’t open this door right now, I’ll smash it down!”

  He held his ear against the door and listened for any sign of movement. The only sound was his own ragged breathing.

  “I’m coming in,” he called.

  Jake took a few steps back and ran at the door. He leaned in at the last movement, smashing the wood with his uninjured shoulder. He hissed as the impact sent vibrations through his body, irritating his raw patches of skin.

  The door shook in its frame. Another three barges and it loosened. Growling, Jake kicked the door just below the handle. The door swung open.

  Jake stepped inside the bedroom.

  He shielded his eyes from the sunlight that flooded the room. The door, which had previously been nailed against the window, lay on the carpet. It had been split in two. The glass contained a jagged hole, the edges catching the sun in pinpricks of light.

  Jenny sat on the bed, looking out of the window. Her hunched back faced Jake.

  “Mum?” he asked, stepping further into the room. “What happened?”

  Jenny sat still.

  “Anne’s outside going fucking hysterical, saying the kids are gone. Tell me what’s going on!”

  He reached for her shoulder and squeezed it.

  Jenny fell back on the mattress, and Jake sprang back. Her open eyes stared into space. A thin line of blood ran from the edge of her lip and down her chin, emerging from her open mouth.

  “Mum? No!”

  Her stomach shuddered. Looking down, Jake saw a large eye within the folds of her ripped T-shirt. With a squelch, it turned to look at Jake.

  He froze.

  A long and slender claw emerged from the hole the Prowler nestled in. A flap of ragged skin caught on its tip as it poked out. The Prowler’s legs, glistening red, slid from Jenny’s stomach. With a noise that sounded like a kiss, the Prowler popped its body free.

  Jake slowly moved his hand around to the side and feeling the cold head of the hammer, tried to pull it out of his belt.

  The Prowler stepped out of Jenny’s body, leaving behind a pulpy, wet pit. It walked across the bed, spattering blood across the mattress.

  Jake slid the hammer upwards, out of his belt. He grabbed the handle.

  The Prowler saw this quick movement and fled for the window.

  Jake leapt forwards, the hammer raised. />
  The Prowler skittered across the wall and disappeared through the hole in the window.

  Jake dropped the hammer and fell to his knees beside the bed.

  She can’t be dead. She can’t be.

  She’s my mum!

  He raised his head and looked at her.

  I’m sorry. I’m so, so sorry.

  Jake trembled. He released a long howl.

  “Not you,” he cried, punching the bed. “Not you!”

  Jenny stared up at the ceiling, her mouth a perfect circle.

  Jake wiped his soaking eyes with the back of his hand and reached towards his mother’s face. He unhooked her glasses and folded them neatly, placing them beside her body. He gently closed her eyes and took her hand. It felt heavy and clammy.

  “I…I found this,” he said, holding up her wedding ring in his other hand. He sniffed. “I wanted to make you happy. I wanted you to be proud.”

  He burst into tears and collapsed against the bed, his forehead resting on the edge of the mattress. Tears and mucus covered his face. He banged a fist on the floor.

  “Why?” he sobbed. “Not my mum. Not my mum!”

  His cries erupted as hacking coughs. His chest tightened. He took a deep breath, sucking in enough air to fuel the next fit of weeping. He squeezed his mother’s hand.

  Jake looked up as a sigh escaped Jenny’s throat.

  He waited, unsure if he had heard the sound, or if his grief-addled mind teased him. He swallowed and gazed at the damage the Prowler had done to her. So close, he saw the dark pink and purple organs packed together. It smelled like tripe.

  Jake dropped his mother’s hand and scooted back across the carpet. His back hit the wall, and he retched. A slimy string of spit flew from his mouth and dangled from his bottom lip. His stomach clenched again, but being empty, nothing more came out. He wiped his mouth and turned back to his mother.

  What’s happening?

  Blue light shone out of Jenny’s mouth as though from a gas-powered pumpkin head. The light grew intense in seconds, leaping out of her in blue flames. The fire rose from her face and gathered in the air above her, suspended like a flickering cloud. It burned in silence and drifted towards the window.

  Jake quickly stood up.

  Not my mum, he thought again. She’s not going to end up like the rest.

  He approached the floating mana. It had reached the glass of the broken window. His hands passed through on trying to grab it, his skin instantly chilled by the flames. The fire began to seep through the hole, escaping outside.