by Lizzie Rose
The Weapon Within
by
Lizzie Rose
First published in Great Britain in 2014
Copyright © Lizzie Rose 2014
This book is copyright under the Berne Convention
No reproduction without permission
All rights reserved.
The right of Lizzie Rose to be identified as the author of this work has been asserted by her in accordance with sections 77 and 78 of the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988.
This book is a work of fiction. Names, characters and incidents are either a product of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously. Any resemblance to actual people, living or dead or events is entirely coincidental.
Sci Fi. Fantasy. Dystopian. Paranormal. Psychic. Action and Adventure. Romance. Cults. Young Adult. New Adult.
Prepared for publication by LionheART Publishing House
Cover design by: http://www.coversbykaren.com
Thank you, to Laura who helped me out in the early stages and gave me the confidence to believe that I could actually write a book, to my true friends who have stuck by me through thick and thin (you know who you are), to Karen in LA for my fantastic cover, to Karen in England for all your hard work and encouragement and finally to my family, especially my wonderful parents who have supported me always.
For my Georgia
Contents
Chapter One
Chapter Two
Chapter Three
Chapter Four
Chapter Five
Chapter Six
Chapter Seven
Chapter Eight
Chapter Nine
Chapter Ten
Chapter Eleven
Chapter Twelve
Chapter Thirteen
Chapter Fourteen
Chapter Fifteen
Chapter Sixteen
Chapter Seventeen
Chapter Eighteen
Chapter Nineteen
Chapter Twenty
Chapter Twenty One
Chapter Twenty Two
Chapter Twenty Three
Epilogue
Contact the Author
Chapter One
The path ahead was barely visible through the rain. My feet squelched through deep, sticky mud and my hair was plastered to my skin. Since leaving the city I’d been running solidly for four days and nights. Every inch of me ached and I desperately wanted to sleep.
I had a small cloth bag tied around my waist, inside which was my only possession – a small hand-drawn map. The city I had come from was circled in red ink, as was a town on the north-east coast called Betnor. On the back were two words: Go North.
I had tried to avoid populated areas as much as possible, but that meant I’d been forced to run across some pretty unforgiving terrain. Climbing a particularly steep hill, I reached the top and registered the expanse of wilderness in front of me. I caught my ankle, twisting it, and I tumbled forwards, rolling all the way down the other side. Unable to summon up any more energy, I closed my eyes and lay where I had fallen.
*
I shivered as a blast of icy wind hit me and something very close by moved. Slowly, I raised my head off the ground and looked straight into the face of an enormous black cat-like creature. As it crouched, ready to spring, drips of rainwater trickled down the length of gleaming white teeth, emphasizing their sharp points.
‘Please don’t hurt me,’ I whispered, trembling with fear and cold. It leapt backwards, its eyes widening with shock.
Pushing myself up into a sitting position, I wiped the rain out of my eyes with the back of my hand and warily watched it. To my surprise, a strange rattling noise came from deep within its body. Head lowered and paws sliding across the slippery ground, the creature approached me. Bringing my hand up, I gently placed it on the soft, warm fur between its ears.
‘I need to find a town called Betnor,’ I murmured. ‘Can you help me?’
Pushing gently against my hand, the creature momentarily closed its eyes and began to walk away. For a moment I thought it was leaving but then it turned back.
‘Do you want me to come with you?’
The yellow eyes blinked, then it continued to move slowly down the track. Not knowing what else to do, I got up and followed.
*
The animal knew the land well and guided me carefully through the moors. We’d walked throughout the night and well into the following day before I saw the first signs of life: a rather battered sign welcoming me to the village of Molpan.
‘I need some food,’ I murmured. ‘I’m going to check out this village. If all goes well, I’ll meet you at the other side soon. Whatever happens though, you must stay hidden.’
He rattled loudly and pushed his head against my legs, then streaked away into the undergrowth.
The houses at the outer edge of the village had expansive gardens bordering the moors, whilst the ones nearer the centre were smaller but still very pretty. Other than houses, there really wasn’t much to see. Trudging further along the road, I figured that I may as well just keep going. But then the most wonderful scent caught in my nostrils, stopping me dead in my tracks. I was standing outside a small shop. Just outside the door was a stand holding several boxes containing fruit and vegetables. Picking up a particularly juicy looking red apple, I held it to my nose and inhaled deeply. The smell made my stomach growl and my mouth water.
‘I hope you’re going to pay for that.’ A cross looking woman glared out at me from the shop doorway. Startled, I turned and ran.
I winced as an awful metallic screeching filled the air. As I skidded to a halt, the apple dropped out of my grasp and rolled underneath the wheel of a small red car, the front of which came to a stop just centimetres from my legs.
‘Are you crazy?’
The car door swung open and a young man with long blond hair and piercing blue eyes climbed out. He looked furious. Backing away, I took one last look at the smashed remains of the apple before making my escape.
*
The cat joined me as soon as I’d cleared the village. We walked in silence for about ten minutes before I spotted more buildings up ahead. Gentle lights shone from the windows and street lamps as the sky darkened. Once again, the cat went into hiding, leaving me to explore.
The first thing I came across was a large park with an enclosed bus shelter by the entrance. Taking a moment to gather my thoughts, I sat down on the bench inside, curled up into a ball, and rested my forehead on my knees. Up until now, my focus had solely been on finding this town. Now I’d reached it, I didn’t have the faintest idea of what to do next. Deciding to have a brief look around then come back in the morning, I uncurled, stood and stretched. Then I screamed.
Faces were looking in at me, encircling the bus stop. They were young people – teenagers like me – and they all wore expressions of hatred.
‘What are you doing here?’ one of the boys shouted, slamming his fist against the glass. ‘You shouldn’t be here.’
I backed up a step but one of them hit the glass behind me, making me jump. One by one, the others joined in, hitting the glass so hard that it shook in its frame. The noise was deafening. As another scream tore from my lips, every single pane of glass shattered. For a moment they stood with their hands frozen in mid-air. Then they all moved at once, leaping through the frame towards me.
‘Leave her alone!’
A vaguely familiar face appeared behind them. He grabbed one of the boys by the scruff of his neck and threw him to the ground. Ducking my
head down, I shoved my way through the others. A couple of them chased after me – too close for comfort. Several bicycles leaned against the park fence and, snatching one up, I swung my leg over it and pushed hard on the pedals, speeding away into the town. A siren sounded and a car with flashing lights pulled out of a side road. It followed me, keeping close to my back wheel. Pedalling with all my might, I hurtled down a hill towards a crossroads.
As I reached the junction, a truck loomed up from the right. I slammed on the brakes, making the rear wheel swing up into the air. Letting go of the handlebars, I felt myself soar. For just a moment I felt a wonderful sense of freedom – until I slammed against the truck’s windscreen. White-hot pain ripped through my body as I hit the ground, and the tarmac tore at my skin. Bumping and rolling down the road, I finally came to a stop.
‘Holy crap! Did you see that? I think I’m going to be sick. Is she dead? She’s got to be dead after that. There’s no way . . .’
The voice swam in and out of my head. Grimacing with pain, I gingerly got to my feet, swaying on the spot.
‘Stay where you are, miss. Do you hear me? Stay right there.’
Squinting at the man shouting at me, I tried to force myself into a jog.
‘Hey! I said stay where you are, miss. I mean it . . . stand still!’
‘It’s ok,’ another voice came from behind me, ‘let me talk to her.’
‘Talk to her? You want to talk to her?’ the harsh voice bellowed.
‘Just stop shouting at her, ok? Can’t you see she’s scared?’
The young man from the village stepped in front of me, his hands held up, palms towards me. ‘It’s ok,’ he said softly, ‘we just want to help you. Please, don’t run any more.’
Pain seared through me and I knew I couldn’t go any further. My knees buckled and I slumped to the floor. He knelt beside me, and as my body shut down I felt his arms wrap around me before everything went dark.
Chapter Two
Something was biting my arm. Thinking it was an insect or something, I swiped at it with my other hand.
‘It’s ok, it’s just something to help with the . . . dammit!’ A woman dressed in green was standing over me, a syringe in her hand and a look of frustration on her face. ‘That’s the fourth one that’s broken. Must be a faulty batch of needles. Let me find the other box and I’ll try again.’
Forcing myself up, I pushed against the wall behind me, shaking my head furiously.
‘Now then, there’s no need to panic,’ the woman said in an exasperated tone, ‘I’m just trying to give you something for the pain.’
I shook my head again and her frown deepened.
‘Well we’re here now anyway. They can take a look at you inside.’
A door opened and a man peered in. ‘We ready?’ he muttered, glancing curiously in my direction.
‘Guess so,’ the woman replied. She bent down for a moment then shifted the entire bed I was sitting on towards the doorway. The man took the other end and between them they manoeuvred me into a large building.
*
The lights were blinding and there was an awful, acidic smell in the air. Instinctively, I curled up into a ball, shielding my eyes with my hands.
‘What have we got here then?’ a deep voice asked.
‘RTA’, the woman in green replied. ‘Came off a bicycle into the path of a truck. I’ve no idea how she’s alive, unless . . .’
‘Have you given her anything?’ the voice interrupted.
‘No, the needles kept breaking and then she woke up and flatly refused to let me near her.’
‘Ok, side room three is clear, let’s put her in there for now and see if we can’t get her to calm down a little.’
The bed moved again. After a few minutes the noise lessened and the pressure on my eyes eased.
‘There now, that should be a little better.’
A large woman in a white uniform stood in the doorway.
‘We need you to swap beds, honey,’ she gestured to the bed in the room. ‘Do you need us to help you or can you manage?’
Determined not to let them near me, I pushed myself up, grimacing as a wave of pain flooded through me, then hopped across to the new bed and sat down.
‘I’ll go and see if there’s a doctor free.’ She turned away.
‘Are you sure it’s safe to leave her alone?’ The woman in green frowned.
‘Don’t worry,’ the nurse replied, opening the door and gesturing pointedly at it. ‘I’ll keep an eye on the young lady to make sure her condition doesn’t worsen. That was what you meant, wasn’t it?’
‘Oh!’ The woman in green blushed slightly. ‘Yes, of course.’
‘Don’t you worry about a thing,’ the nurse said vaguely before following them out into the corridor.
*
A clock on the wall ticked loudly. Barely five minutes passed before the nurse tiptoed into the room, closing the door quietly behind her.
‘You ok?’ she asked quietly. When I didn’t respond, she took another step towards me. ‘Look, I know you’re hurt, but you need to get out of here. I’ve managed to hold them off this long but they’ll be coming any minute. I’m sorry.’ She slipped out of the room and hurried away.
Frowning, I moved silently to the doorway, half expecting people to jump out at me in some kind of elaborate trap. When nobody appeared, I crept down the corridor, my heart thumping wildly with every step. The reception area was fairly busy; a handful of people were sitting in plastic chairs, waiting to be seen, and a couple of nurses hurried about, looking harassed. Keeping to the edge of the room, I made my way to the door and slipped out into the fresh air. An ambulance was approaching the entrance, its lights cutting through the gloom. I branched off into the car park, hoping to find a more discreet way out. My heart skipped a beat as I realised someone was watching me.
‘You know, you really shouldn’t wander around in the dark on your own.’ Leaning against his car was the young man from the village. ‘Sorry, I didn’t mean to startle you,’ he added quickly.
Rolling my eyes I clutched at my sides, waiting for my heartbeat to slow. He stood up straight and took a small step towards me. ‘I’m really sorry. It’s just that I had a feeling you would find a way out of there.’ He nodded towards the hospital entrance. ‘And the thing is, this really isn’t a safe place at night.’ He paused as though hoping I would say something.
‘Well,’ he continued, filling the awkward silence, ‘my name’s Oscar. I’m sorry about nearly running you over too, by the way, and for shouting at you. I haven’t had the best of days but that’s no excuse. Will you let me make up for it? I can find you a place to stay for the night and get you some food. I’m guessing you didn’t take that apple for fun.’
I blushed and dropped my gaze to the ground.
‘It’s not a problem, but if you come with me I’ll find you something a bit more substantial. What do you reckon?’
The road was calling me but, at the same time, the idea of leaving this strange man made me feel empty. With a sigh I nodded.
We heard shouting from somewhere near the hospital entrance. Quickly, Oscar ran to the passenger door and flung it open. He stepped back as I scrambled inside then slammed the door shut. My back smarted against the fabric of the seat, bringing tears to my eyes but I barely had time to register it because seconds later he was sitting beside me and then we sped away into the night.
‘I’m going to take you to my place to start with,’ he informed me. I didn’t respond. I was too busy gripping the edge of my seat as the street lamps whizzed by and I wondered if, in fact, I was going to end up dying after all.
As we entered the village, the car slowed, but only marginally. We turned into a road and sped right to the end before veering off into a short driveway. The sudden reality of being at this stranger’s home hit me and I hesitated. But then he smiled at me and I couldn’t help but follow him out of the car.
Oscar led me inside a small bungalow and flicked
a switch. The light revealed a tidy little kitchen with a large table and four chairs squashed into one end, and the appliances and work surfaces at the other.
‘Oscar? Is that you?’
A figure appeared in the doorway. It was unmistakeably the woman from the shop, but she was dressed rather differently in a white night dress, dusky pink dressing gown and fluffy pink slippers. ‘Oh, you found her. Well done!’
I backed away.
‘It’s ok, I’m not going to hurt you. Would you like something to eat?’ Slowly, she walked across the kitchen to the refrigerator and rummaged about. ‘I saved some shepherd’s pie for Oscar and there’s enough for two. It won’t take long.’
A few minutes later there was a loud ping and a delicious smell wafted through the air. The woman spooned food into two bowls and handed one to Oscar, who took it over to the table, leaving the other one on the worktop for me. The smell was too much. Snatching up the bowl, I carried it over to the corner of the room and sat down on the floor with my legs crossed.
‘You can sit at the table if you like, my dear.’ There was sadness in her eyes as she gestured to a seat. They were both staring at me, Oscar with his fork poised in mid-air. Standing shakily, I sat on the edge of the chair. When neither Oscar nor the woman moved, I gave in and began to eat.
‘Where did you find her?’ the woman asked.
‘At the hospital,’ he replied around a mouthful of food. ‘They wouldn’t let me in to see her so I waited outside in the car park.’
‘Thank goodness you weren’t stopped on the way back. Has she said anything?’ Her eyes flickered across the table to me. Oscar shook his head. ‘What are you going to do?’
He finished his food and set the fork down gently on the table. ‘I’m going to take her to the farm.’
‘Now?’
He nodded slowly. ‘I think we’re going to need some help.’
‘Well be careful, won’t you? And if you need to come back here,’ she looked at me and smiled, ‘you’re more than welcome.’