by Tim O'Rourke
“When you’ve finished, Doctor Phil,” Potter said looking at me, “perhaps we can get going?” Then, throwing a soggy-looking cigarette to the ground, he walked away.
“Are you coming?” I asked Isidor and with a faint smile, I tugged at his arm.
Without saying a word, Isidor turned and started off in the direction that Potter had taken. Glancing at me from the darkness, Murphy winked at me and then walked away. Taking me by the arm, Luke whispered, “Thanks.”
“What for?” I asked him.
“For being you,” he smiled, and we made our way after the others.
All of us walked in silence for a time, not a word was spoken between us. It had stopped raining, but the fields were boggy and uneven and it made our progress slow. Our feet made squelching sounds as we made our way from the abandoned car across the fields. During the weeks since leaving Hallowed Manor, Murphy had led us across country, avoiding all major towns and roads. Most of our journey had been made during the night on foot, sleeping the days away in cheap motels. Once or twice, Potter had managed to haggle the price down on second-hand cars and we had made part of our journey in those. They were the better days, as often I could snuggle-up on the back seat and sleep against Luke. Murphy had led us to the north west of the country and we now found ourselves in Cumbria, where we had spent the last two days crossing the rugged terrain of the Lake District. The scenery at times was breathtaking as we reached a high summit and looked out across the lakes and the streams that threaded their way through the hills like silver strips of silk. Murphy had made much of the journey in silence. Since discovering the bodies of his two daughters and those other children in the attic at the manor, Murphy had seemed different – distant. He hardly spoke to any of us and when he did, it was usually a command or a brief summary of where we were headed next. Even though we followed him, he never once said where he was leading us, and none of us asked. When we did have the luxury of a car, he did most of the driving. For hours he would go without sleep, and often I would wake while the others slept crammed in the car around me. Sometimes I would steal a quick glance at him. He looked drawn and tired in the gloom of the car, his face severe-looking as if it had been carved from alabaster. But despite his wan complexion, his eyes shone the fiercest of blues, like nuggets of ice, as if his soul had frozen over with rage. I couldn’t even begin to understand his suffering. How would any father come to terms with the murder of his children? On those lonely nights, when the others were huddled asleep on the back seat, I often felt like talking to him, but I couldn’t think of one thing to say. So I would close my eyes and pretend that I, too was asleep and leave him to his thoughts and pain.
Often in those quiet moments, I would think of my mum and wonder where she was. Since meeting Kayla and Isidor, I understood that I wasn’t the only one who had one of my parents taken. Like I’d often thought about confiding in Murphy, I thought many times about talking to Isidor about our missing parents, but like with Murphy, I just couldn’t find the right words to say. Maybe I couldn’t find the right words because I didn’t truly understand what was happening myself. I would often watch Isidor, and despite his cocksure demeanor, the tattoos that covered his neck like black flames, the eyebrow piercing and trendy little beard, I knew much of it was bravado. But if I were to be honest with myself, I hated that part of me, too. It was more than just hatred – I was scared of what I might yet become. Out of all of us, Isidor, Kayla, and I had much in common, and as far as I knew, there were only the three of us. I wished that I’d had a chance to speak with Kayla about it – maybe I could’ve helped – maybe we could’ve helped each other come to terms with the fact that we were both half-breeds. I had so much I wanted to talk to her about, I had so much to tell her, but the hardest thing I would have to explain to her was that her mum wasn’t coming back – that her mum was dead – murdered by my ‘friend,’ Sparky.
By the time the first shards of daylight filtered through the rain-swollen clouds, I was almost numb with cold. My hair and clothes were still wet from the heavy rainfall, and they clung to me like a heavy layer of skin. It seemed that we had trekked for miles through the night. Murphy had always impressed on us the importance of finding shelter by daylight, as since being banished from The Hollows, their skin had become hypersensitive to daylight.
Just as the night began to turn grey, I could sense Murphy, Potter and Luke’s fear that we wouldn’t find a place to hide and get some much-needed sleep and shelter from the sun. But as Potter began to light one cigarette after another, and Luke started to claw at the scars that marred his face, we came across an empty battered barn on the outskirts of a farm. The barn itself looked disused and housed a broken-down tractor, and to my delight, masses of dry hay to rest on. From the doorway of the barn, I could see the farmhouse someway off in the distance. The warm glow of lights seeped from the windows and smoke tumbled up out of the chimney. I imagined sitting by the warmth of that fire, curled in a large comfortable chair and falling into a deep, refreshing sleep. Not only was I tired and cold, but also incredibly hungry. I couldn’t remember the last time that I had eaten anything and I wondered how many days Luke, Potter, and Murphy would last without blood before they started craving for it.
Murphy beckoned us into the barn and closed the door behind us. We sneaked to the back where Luke and I lay on the large piles of hay next to each other. Isidor sat against the barn wall. He pulled the baseball cap down over his eyes and cradled the crossbow in his lap. Murphy sat by the barn door as if on guard and Potter sat beside him.
“How are you doing?” Luke whispered in my ear.
“Tired,” I said, resting my head against his chest.
“Try and get some sleep,” he hushed and gently stroked my damp hair.
Listening to the soft beat of his heart, I looked across the barn at Isidor who was already asleep. His knees were drawn up, and his hands laced together with his head resting against them like a pillow. Then I heard the gentle sound of Luke’s breathing and I knew that he had fallen asleep. Trying not to disturb him, I rolled onto my back and stared up at the large wooden planks that formed the underside of the barn roof. I wondered where Kayla was and I hoped that she was safe. Where had Phillips taken her? What had he done with her? Then I turned my thoughts to Sparky and it still hurt me to think of how he had betrayed me – betrayed all of us. How hadn’t I seen it coming? I was meant to be able to see things, right? But I was glad of one thing, over the last week or two, my eye had stopped bleeding. I still got the visions – if that’s what they were, but no blood and I was grateful for that. When the visions did come, they seemed more controlled. They still came suddenly and when I least expected it – but somehow I seemed to be able to have power over them. When they came, it was like I was looking through the lens of a camera, which I could pan, tilt, and turn three hundred and sixty degrees. I was able to focus the images too – almost as if I could zoom that lens in and out.
The nightmares came too, but they were less frequent now –all of them portrayed twisted glimpses of an apocalyptic future where Vampyrus had over taken the cities of the world. I still didn’t know if these nightmares or visions were snapshots of horrors yet to come or just my fears and anxieties manifesting themselves inside of me. And it was with these thoughts charging around the corridors of my mind that I fell asleep.
Chapter Five
The crying at first was faint. A gentle sobbing that dripped into my unconsciousness like a tap that hadn’t been turned off probably. I moved through the darkness, one careful step in front of the other. The walls of the corridor were covered in pale green wallpaper that hung in long, tattered strips. It was spattered with dark patches of mildew. My trainers made a whispering sound as I passed along the corridor. Although I was in complete darkness, I didn’t need the aid of a torch or lantern to see my way – I could see perfectly in the dark now.
Moving forward, I followed that sound – the one that sounded as if someone was being hurt. With my
heart racing like a trip hammer in my chest, my breath came out of my mouth in short shallow bursts.
“Hello?” I called out, my voice echoing back at me from down the corridor. “Is anyone there?”
“Help me!” a voice came back, but it sounded as if it came from behind me. Spinning round, I saw just the briefest glimpse of something large move in the darkness behind me.
“Who’s there?” I called out.
Whoever it had been didn’t make a sound. Wringing my hands together, I retraced my steps and headed back down the corridor towards whatever had been lurking in the dark.
Then the sobbing started again, but this time it was more than sobbing, it was yelps of pain that I could hear.
“Help me!” the voice came again, but this time it sounded cracked and broken – raw as if the person calling out were in agony.
“Where are you?” I cried out, my voice sounding shrill from the fear that was creeping into it. “I can’t help you unless I know where you are!”
“This way,” the voice called back, and again it had switched direction and was now coming from behind me again.
Turning, I caught sight of that large shape again – but for just a moment longer this time. It was huge and bristled with hair. Then it was gone again, almost slinking into the darkness.
With my legs feeling like lumps of lead, I headed towards it, my heart now feeling as if it might just explode inside my chest.
“Hurry!” the pained voice called out, echoing all around me.
Quickening my step, I headed back down the corridor, now feeling disorientated.
“Please!” the voice came again, but in the confines of the corridor, it was distorted, and I couldn’t tell if the voice were male or female.
Heading towards it through the dark, the strips of wallpaper almost seemed to clutch at me, like clawing hands. Starting to run, I raced down the corridor, my hands stretched out in front of me. Ahead of me in the blackness, I could see a door. It looked old and warped in its frame.
“Help me!” the voice came again.
Reaching the door, I pushed against it with my shoulder and it swung open on a set of rusty hinges. Flying into the room, and nearly losing my balance, the voice called out again.
“Help me!”
Scanning the darkness, I could see a bed in the far corner of the room, and there was someone lying in it.
“Quickly!” the voice came again.
Heading towards the bed, I could clearly make out the shape of…
Chapter Six
…I woke to the sound of Murphy’s voice and the smell of pipe smoke. He was whispering. I then heard Potter speaking back to him. Then Murphy continued, “The situation is far worse than I first thought.”
I kept my eyes closed, and lying perfectly still next to Luke, who still slept, I listened to their conversation.
“How do you mean?” Potter asked in a hushed voice.
“Those police officers that were chasing us…some of them are obviously Vampyrus,” Murphy said, his voice tinged with fear.
“We’ve always known that our race has infiltrated positions of authority within human society,” Potter said emotionlessly. “After all, we’ve been masquerading as cops for years.’”
“I know that,” Murphy almost seemed to snap at him. “But we were trying to live honest lives above ground – we weren’t eating one another.”
“But what about Rom and Phillips?” Potter said. “They did their fair share of killing.”
“That’s just my point. I thought that it was just them who had wormed their way into the police force, intent on using the power that the job gave,” Murphy sighed. “But it appears that many more Vampyrus have imbedded themselves into positions where they will be able to pave the way for…”
“But who is he?” Potter asked.
“That’s the million dollar question, Potter,” Murphy said. “If we knew the answer to that, then we wouldn’t be banished from The Hollows, chased across the length of the country, and hiding out in this godforsaken barn.”
“But we don’t even get close,” Potter whispered. “The agents he sends after us are agents of agents. It’s like the one that we need to find is invisible.”
“But whoever he maybe,” Murphy said, “I fear that his plans are far more advanced than we originally thought.”
“Because of those cops?” Potter asked.
“Not just because of that. He always seems to be several steps ahead of us,” I heard Murphy say. “He manages to maneuver his agents into position…Phillips, Rom, Mrs. Payne, this friend of Kiera’s – Sparky, to name just a few. It’s almost as if he has…” Murphy tailed off.
“Has what?”
“The answer is too troubling to think of,” Murphy whispered.
They sat in silence for a moment, I kept myself as still as possible so they didn’t suspect that I was listening to their conversation. After a few moments, I heard Potter ask, “Sarge, where are you leading us to?”
“There is a saying that my father used to tell me when I was a boy,” Murphy said. “If you want to know where a man is going you stay behind him. But if you know where he is going you need to get ahead of him.”
“And?” Potter said.
“This invisible man, whoever he may be, is not the only one who can maneuver people into place,” Murphy whispered.
“What’s that s’pose to mean?” Potter asked, sounding intrigued.
“I have a friend…someone who, let’s say owes me a favour,” Murphy said.
“And what’s this favour?”
“Let’s just say that I know where Kayla is,” Murphy said.
Hearing this, my ears pricked-up and my whole body stiffened.
“Where is she?” Potter asked.
“You don’t need to know…not yet,” Murphy told him.
“Why won’t you tell me?” Potter hissed, sounding confused. “You can trust me.”
There was a pause, then Murphy said, “I’m sorry Potter, I no longer know who I can trust.”
“After everything we’ve been through,” Potter almost seemed to gasp. “I can’t believe what I’m hearing!”
“Keep your voice down!” Murphy barked. “I’m not saying I don’t trust you…it’s…”
“It sounds exactly like you don’t trust me,’ Potter said and I could hear him stand up. “I’ve always had your back, Jim – I’ve always done everything that you’ve asked me without question and now you say that you can’t tell me where Kayla’s at.”
“I’m sure that’s what Kiera thought about her so-called-friends…Phillips…Sparky and -”
But before he had a chance to finish the list of those who had betrayed me, Potter said, “I’m nothing like those people…I am your friend.”
Then, I heard the barn door swing open and then close as Potter stormed away. Lying perfectly still, I thought of those I had put my trust in…my friend and colleagues, Phillips and Sparky. But Murphy was going to add another name to that list before he had been cut short by Potter. I wondered who else it was that had betrayed me.
Suddenly, Isidor shot bolt upright and screamed. I opened my eyes to see him sitting, clutching his crossbow to his chest and panting wildly. Sweat was streaming from his brow and his eyes were wide like saucers. Murphy darted across the barn and was on him in an instant. He threw one arm around his shoulder and covered his mouth with his free hand.
“Shhh…we can’t afford to let anyone hear you,” Murphy hushed.
Isidor looked nervously about, as if he were totally unsure of his whereabouts. Slipping out from beneath Luke’s arms, I got up, crossed the barn, and crouched down in front of Isidor.
“What’s going on?” Luke said, looking up from the hay, bleary-eyed.
“Shhh, Luke,” Murphy told him.
“Isidor, it’s me, Kiera,” I told him, taking one of his hands in mine.
His eyes met mine and I could see the fear in them.
“Calm down. It’s okay…we
’re safe,” I tried to reassure him.
His breathing began to slow and his body began to loosen. Seeing this, Murphy removed his hand which was still covering Isidor’s mouth.
“I was having a nightmare…it was horrible…” he gasped, pulling his hand free of mine.
“It’s okay…you’re safe…it was only a bad dream,” I reassured him.
“No, you don’t understand…it wasn’t me in danger…it was Kayla…”
“Kayla?” I whispered. “What do you mean?”
“She’s being kept in a darkened room at the end of a long corridor. She’s in a bed and calling out for us to help her,” he said, looking wide-eyed between Murphy and me.
Looking back at him, I said, “I think I just had that same nightmare.”
“So you know it’s a trap then?” he asked, still sounding breathless.
“What do you mean, kid?” Murphy said.
“Someone has already told them that we are coming,” Isidor gasped.
Hearing this, Murphy looked at us and said, “Get your stuff together, we’re moving out.”
Chapter Seven
While we had slept the day away, more rain had fallen and we sunk into the mud outside the barn. The night sky was now clear of clouds, and was shot with a speckling of stars. The moon sat high, looking bright and perfectly round against the night. Potter was lent against a nearby tree, a cigarette winking on and off in the dark as he sucked on the end of it. He looked alone, and a part of me felt sad for him. A part of me wanted to go to him. I hated those feelings. Looking away, I glanced at Luke who had been watching me. I smiled at him and he winked back.
“This way,” Murphy said, setting off across the fields, a trail of blue smoke wafting from his pipe.
I stole one more quick glance back over my shoulder at Potter, who had stepped away from the tree and was now following us. His hands thrust into his coat pocket and his face looking grim.