Nayxana Alien Woman

by Cotterell, Genesis

  “Ah, Jack and Ixola,” Curtis said as he came into the kitchen. “Sit down, you two. Come on now – what will you have to drink?”

  “I’ll have whisky, if you have any,” Jack said. “What about you, Ixy?”

  “I don’t drinks whisky,” she said. “Can I haves some coffee?”

  Janux laughed. “Of course you can, love. I’ll make you one.”

  Curtis came back with the bottle of whisky and poured one for Jack and himself. “Get this down you, lad,” he said, passing a glass to Jack.

  “Cheers, mate.” Jack took a large gulp.

  Curtis was pleased to see Jack looking better now, and glad that he and Ixola were hitting it off. “So, what’ve you got for us?” he said, looking from Jack to Ixola.

  Jack took another swig of whisky before replying. “It happens that the guy who borrowed Dave Nabb’s van didn’t leave a name,” Jack said. “He walked in and paid cash. Dave told me he was feeling sick and knew he’d be having the next day off, so he said okay. This guy took the van that same evening and dropped Dave home on the way.”

  “Did Dave describe the guy?”

  “He said he had a bad limp. Dave reckons the guy’d had one too many.”

  “But he still let him hire out his van?”

  “Yeah, I asked him about that. He said he needed the money so he wasn’t too bothered.”

  “What about you, Ixola? Did you find out anything at all about The Controller?”

  Ixola smiled and looked triumphant. “I saws Mrs Gortix. She lets me sees my friend, 14, and I spends a little time talking withs hers. 14 knows alls abouts this man. She says he’s a nasty man. Very wants thems alls the time. He comes oftens to the house and always wants to sees 14. She’s very beautifuls. Sometimes Mrs Gortix feels sorrys for 14 and tells the man she’s nots there. He always comes and asks for hers.”

  “Has 14 found out anything about him?” Janux asked, her pen ready to take notes.

  “Yes, 14 says he’s stayings at a house in Cliffside Drive. He tells her he wishes she could stays there withs him so he could sleeps with her every nights.”

  “You’ve done very well, you two. Now come on, let’s tuck into the spaghetti bolognaise. It looks delicious.”

  Janux put down her pen, smiling. How good it was to know your enemy, she thought, and know where he slept every night. Perhaps it was at 9B Cliffside Drive.

  CHAPTER 26

  Aidan came over unexpectedly and knocked on Curtis’s front door at 9.15 a.m.

  “I’m worried, Mr McCoy. Any day now Dad could be summoned to court for his trial. Do you have any leads yet, sir?”

  “Come inside, Aidan. Let’s go into my office.” He noticed how agitated Aidan seemed. His eyes were dark-rimmed and his clothes looked unwashed and crumpled. As they passed Janux’s room, he could hear her tapping at her laptop. Probably doing out the report he’d asked for last night. A summary of the facts was the way he had put it and wasn’t surprised to see how despairing Janux looked although she tried to mask her feelings.

  “I’m sorry for the surprise visit, Mr McCoy but I’m getting worried about Dad. He begged me to come and see you.”

  “It’s okay. I’m actually glad you’ve come. You see, I wanted to ask you a few questions, if you don’t mind.”

  “Go ahead, sir.”

  Curtis picked up his notebook and flipped through the pages. “About this third man who your mum said was watching her - any idea who he might be?”

  Aidan looked puzzled. “No, I don’t have a clue. Mum never mentioned him to me either. Mind you I was probably back at university and she didn’t want to worry me with such things. So who is the main suspect?” Aidan was eyeing up the whisky bottle.

  “Have a glass,” Curtis said. “We’re getting warm, that’s all I can say.”

  Then the phone on his desk rang. He picked it up and turned away from Aidan, who was now drinking the neat whisky he had poured for himself.

  It was Claudette. “Curtis, I’m worried. Spryz came round this morning to see if Vandy was with me. I’ve no idea why he thought that. I said I hadn’t seen Vandy for months. In fact, after Mistle’s arrest I never saw Vandy again. He sent me a letter once from Perth, telling me he still wanted me as his girlfriend. I didn’t reply and he never wrote back.”

  “Did Spryz say why he was looking for him?”

  “He said he wanted Vandy to work in the shop while he was away. Spryz is taking a trip back to Australia, he said, on business.”

  “So Vandy hasn’t been to see you?” Curtis was trying to work out why Spryz thought Vandy might have gone to Lighthouse Drive and why was Spryz going across the ditch.

  She hesitated. “Not yet.”

  Curtis knew how hesitation often meant a lie was coming. He began to wonder about Claudette. If she was lying, was it through fear?

  Baxy watched from his jeep as Lodax boarded the ferry for the mainland. He wanted to make sure she was safely off the island. The Controller, whom Baxy had never met, seemed to want to cleanse the world of such women, though Baxy himself couldn’t see the point in it. And her stand-in, Enya, would be just a bit of fun for him until Lodax returned. Enya hadn’t supplied an address yet, but that didn’t matter. He’d keep her waiting for a while, so that when he finally rang her to arrange a meeting she’d know who was in control.

  Back in Ngahere Road, Baxy went into Sly’s room to see what he wanted for lunch. Sly was sitting up in his armchair, studying the list with a serious face. He tapped the piece of paper with a bony finger when he saw Baxy and said, “Hey, how about you get this one, brother? She’s only down at Seal Bay, just waiting for you to introduce yourself. Maybe you could take a trip round there? After all, I told The Controller we were going to pull our weight in this matter.”

  “What’s her name, master?” Baxy sat on a chair nearby.

  “Eurwyn Nepase. There’s only a few freaks left on this list now, brother – look for yourself.”

  Baxy felt the hilt of his hunting knife and thought about Janux Lennan. If only he could get her alone, preferably at the bach but anywhere would do. Her stupid geek of a boyfriend had no idea that once he was off the island Janux was going to get a big shock. He’d show her what full-blood manhood meant to a half-blood Ryxin woman, and make her squirm even more when she saw his knife.

  He smiled to himself as he looked at the list. Lodax was by now halfway to the mainland. “Perhaps I could practise on this Eurwyn vermin just to test out my knife,” he said pretending to be confident. “Do you want lunch now, master?”

  Sly glared at him. “No, I don’t want lunch today. I want you to go out now and deal to one of these sluts. And don’t come back until the job is done. That’s an order.”

  Baxy could see how angry Sly was. He wasn’t going to be satisfied until Baxy finished one of these women off. He looked at the name Eurwyn Nepase again. Her address was 7 Akeake Drive, Seal Bay, and her husband was currently away on the mainland. “Yes, master. I’m on my way.”

  On his way through the kitchen he stopped to take a large swig of whisky. He was going to need it. He took his knife out and inspected it carefully. He tested the blade by shaving off a few hairs from his arm – thrust it back into the leather sheath attached to his belt and began the drive to Seal Bay.

  Once he reached Akeake Drive he could see the sea in the distance. It made him think of his mother and the times she’d taken him and his sister to the seaside for the day. While his father was in prison for beating a Human man almost to death, his mother found solace in her freedom from constraint. They all did.

  He found 7 Akeake Drive, a white house standing on a well-kept lawn. Baxy didn’t hesitate to go straight up to the front door and knock. There was silence within the house. He waited a while and knocked again. Once again there was silence.

  After a while he heard a phone ringing somewhere inside the house and suddenly it stopped. He knew from instinct that someone had answered it. He strode quickly around to the back of t
he house and saw her getting into a car and slamming the door. It was Enya, the black-haired, tawny-eyed beauty he’d made a contract with yesterday.

  In a flash he was at the car door, tearing it open. “Where’s Eurwyn Nepase?” he said, reaching down and pulling the keys out of the ignition.

  “Hello, Baxy,” the woman said, her face pale and her eyes large with fear. “Eurwyn’s not here. She’s gone over to the mainland today.”

  Baxy didn’t believe her. He closed a meaty hand tightly around Enya’s right wrist and dragged her from the car. She tried to resist but was no match for his strength. “We’re going inside,” he said. “Open the door.”

  With her free hand, Enya scrabbled inside her handbag and found the key. She unlocked the door and Baxy pushed her in ahead of him, not letting go of her. “Okay, Eurwyn, tell me the truth. Enya’s not your name, is it?”

  She struggled and squirmed, trying to release her hand, but to no avail. “Let go of my wrist and I’ll tell you the truth,” she said.

  “No, you tell me the truth first and I’ll see what I can do for you. Come on.” He twisted her arm painfully.

  “All right, I’m Eurwyn,” she finally said.

  Baxy released her arm and she massaged her wrist, standing in front of him. He wasn’t going to let this one get away. A picture of the master in his chair flashed before Baxy’s mind. He secretly hated Sly Onyx because the truth was he knew he was controlled by him. Sly always told him what kind of opinion he must have about everyone. Insisted Baxy see them as he did – bad, worthless, a slut, vermin… The list went on. Baxy felt compelled to do Sly’s bidding, but now for the first time he asked himself why? And he knew the horrible truth. It was because Baxy was afraid of Sly, just as he’d been afraid of his tyrant of a father.

  “I want you to give me your services,” he said to Eurwyn. “You’ve signed a contract and Lodax has gone away. Now it’s time to keep your side of the bargain.”

  She led him into the bedroom where there was a king-sized bed. He stood watching while she took off all her clothes and then waited for him to do likewise. Baxy felt himself wanting this woman, badly. She wasn’t Lodax but he didn’t care. And once it was over he was going to plunge his knife into her and search her face for the disbelief he knew would be there. The thought of this made him want her even more.

  He saw her eyes resting on the knife sheath attached to his belt. “Come here,” he commanded and she came to him, slender and yielding. He enveloped her in his arms, and he felt her hot breath while he caressed every inch of her yearning body. He wanted her even more than Lodax and he didn’t know why that was. He loved Lodax and was used to her. He could predict in advance what kind of things she would say and how she would look when he made love to her once a week. But this one was different. She was unpredictable and he could sense her fear, which made him excited. She didn’t resist him at all, even though he wanted her to.

  When it was over, he felt satisfied that she’d given him everything he wanted. Then he lay back on the bed and reached for his cigarettes. This was his ritual – to smoke one or sometimes two cigarettes and savour the feeling of satisfaction he gained from taking a woman such as this and having her do his bidding. He found himself looking forward to the next time.

  But he remembered. There wasn’t going to be a next time. His job was to finish Eurwyn Nepase off and leave the house undetected. And when he returned to Sly, his master would be pleased and that was all that mattered.

  He looked over at Eurwyn who lay still on the bed. He could see she was still breathing heavily from the exertion of their lovemaking. She was also watching him smoke the cigarette. “Are you satisfied, Eurwyn Nepase?” he said.

  She smiled at him. “Yes, you have satisfied my every need.”

  He saw she meant it and felt sorry there wasn’t going to be another time. “Why did you lie about your name?” he asked her.

  “Because I’m married and I wanted to pretend I’m single.”

  “Your services are satisfactory,” he said, crushing his cigarette butt into a dish on the bedside table. He wondered how she’d react when he stood over her with his gleaming knife.

  “Thank you, Mr Hurzy,” she replied.

  Baxy lit another cigarette and gazed into her tawny eyes. “Go and make me a sandwich and a cup of coffee,” he said.

  Eurwyn pulled on her robe and as soon as she left the room, he reached for his knife. He removed it from the leather sheath and placed it under the pillow then waited for her to return. When his lunch was eaten he’d show her the cold truth about his visit.

  But before she came back into the bedroom he heard a muffled cry and a male voice, saying, “Shut up, bitch. Now get down on the floor. Go on – down. Lie down and say your last prayer to Kieran. You don’t deserve to breathe the same air as the rest of us. Now answer me a question. What is your name?”

  “Eurwyn Nepase,” she answered, sobbing out the words.

  “Thank you. That’s all I wanted to know. You’re so honest, you women. You sluts, saying your names to me are the biggest jokes I’ve heard for ages.”

  Baxy heard the man laugh, long and loud. “You’re the one I wanted – you pathetic bitch.”

  “Help me!” Eurwyn screamed.

  Baxy could still hear him laughing as he rushed, naked, into the kitchen and lunged at him with his hunting knife. The guy was standing over Eurwyn with his own knife raised, ready to plunge it into her chest. But Baxy missed his mark. The would-be-killer must’ve seen him in his peripheral vision and he spun round and slashed at Baxy with his knife.

  Baxy saw the flesh on his left forearm split open. He backed away, wanting to vomit. The man made as if to take another stab at him and Baxy said, “I’ve told them where I am and they’re coming now, from the next street.”

  The man bolted from the kitchen and disappeared.

  Baxy helped Eurwyn to her feet and held her close. She fetched her first-aid kit from the bathroom and bandaged his arm and he knew he’d never kill her. She was just like Lodax. He also knew he’d fallen headlong in love with Eurwyn and there’d be no turning back. It was part of his essential nature as a Ryxin man.

  Eurwyn was shaking and sobbing. Baxy didn’t even know who this man was. He’d been wearing a balaclava, though he was almost certain he’d heard that voice before. Where and when had he heard it?

  CHAPTER 27

  Curtis didn’t tell Janux but he had received several telepathic messages from Baxy Hurzy telling him what had happened at Eurwyn’s house. So he arranged to meet Baxy at The Deer’s Antlers later that day. Secretly he was looking forward to a drinking session. The intense immediacy of everything coupled with his very real feeling of helplessness was just about overwhelming him. They hadn’t found Nayxana’s killer and what about the other murdered women? He wondered if Baxy could prove to be an ally after all.

  Curtis asked himself if there could be another motive for the murders besides the telepathy gene. He suspected that Oonagh Bleyis was killed for a different reason than the others. Her name wasn’t on the list and Eurwyn had already told them Oonagh hadn’t possessed the gene. So why had she been chosen as the first to die? And why death by knife? Sure, it was the Ryxins’ traditional way of dispatching their enemies, but it seemed barbaric to Curtis to use it to kill unarmed, defenceless women. At least in battle the enemy would be armed and could fight back.

  “Stay here, Janux and don’t open the door to anyone,” he said as he picked up his car keys. “And don’t leave the house.”

  Janux felt put out. After Curtis insisting she was never to remain alone he was now leaving her without explanation. She remembered the visit from Baxy. What if he was watching the house and tried again? The weather was fine today meaning there was no chance of a storm to freak him out. “You’re just going to go off and leave me on my own when you know the danger I’m in?”

  Curtis stopped and looked at her. “It’s okay, I’m meeting Baxy Hurzy.” He then told her about the me
ssage he’d received from Baxy concerning the attempt on Eurwyn Nepase’s life.

  “But you’re supposed to be protecting me – and after all, we still don’t know who the killer is,” Janux protested. “What if he comes while you’re out?”

  “You’re right. You’d better come with me.”

  Janux grabbed her pack and ran after him.

  Curtis drove first to the police station to look for Constable Melvyn. There was no one on reception so they walked through to the main office.

  Detective Soubert waved to them. “The guilty one is to be punished soon,” he called out cheerfully.

  Curtis felt his ire rising. “Who are you talking about, Detective?”

  “Vasco – he’s the killer, of course. We’re all delighted that within a week he’ll be sentenced to death. Best thing for an animal such as him. Even the guards know he’s a killer and are reluctant to give him food. They say he only deserves their scraps. Yes, they’re right to think that way.”

  Curtis saw the mad gleam in Detective Soubert’s eyes - a kind of gloating satisfaction and terrible surety in his own righteousness. He pictured Oskin, alone in the cell used for those who were soon to be transferred to death row in the mainland prison. A pathetic, ugly man who was easy to dislike – and anyway, hadn’t he abused Nayxana, his lovely wife? Perhaps he deserved to die after all.

  Curtis pulled himself together. “Where is Constable Melvyn?” he asked.

  “He’ll probably be having lunch, Mc McCoy. You can both go through to the lunchroom. He’ll tell you the same thing. We’re rejoicing in the fact that we have a murderer to eliminate any day now. Yes, he’ll tell you, sir. We do our work well here.”

  Curtis didn’t reply but went through to the staff cafeteria. There was Constable Melvyn, sitting alone, reading a magazine.

  “Can you tell us any more about Oonagh Bleyis, Constable?”

  “Her name was Oonagh Brown before she married Sam Bleyis,” Constable Melvyn said between slurps of coffee. “I’ve seen her case file. Sam Bleyis is a very important man. He’s going to become a QC soon, they say. His wife’s murder is not to be discussed or put into any of the newspapers until they find the killer. I’ve heard rumours they think he’s Ryxin, and if that’s the case then the law forbids the H-police from getting involved anyway. That’s why it’s being kept quiet. But I’ll tell you now, Mr. McCoy, there’s a special squad working on the case. Because of who her husband is, you see.”