by Tim O'Rourke
“Jealous, Jack?” I heard someone say over my shoulder.
I glanced back and fell straight onto my arse at the sight of the bride standing amongst the trees a few feet away. She held the posy of pink roses in her white-laced glove-covered hands.
“Don’t you wish you had someone to hold and love like that?” she said just above a whisper. The veil that hid her face moved like it was caught in a gentle breeze as she spoke from behind it.
“Fuck you,” I breathed through clenched teeth. I wiped the hot puke from my chin and stood up. I looked back at where the bride had been, but she had now gone. She had never been there, I told myself. Coming through the cracks had messed things up. It had fucked my head up. That was the last thing I needed. I knew I had to find this photographer and get back before I completely lost my mind. I looked back through the trees to find that Isidor and Melody were no longer standing on the shore. I came out from my hiding place, and being careful just in case both Isidor and Melody were still close by, I stepped out on to the sandy shore. It was then I saw both of them crawling through a nearby clump of bushes, set back against the treeline.
“Good boy,” I whispered with a smile. Perhaps I had underestimated Isidor and he was taking the girl into the bushes for some humpty-dumpty. This I had to see, I thought, crouching low and heading towards the bushes Isidor and Melody had disappeared into. Noah had told me not to hurt the girl. But had he seen her? He described the rose as being beautiful. He must have been talking about someone else entirely. This girl was no freaking rose, she was more like some annoying weed. Reaching the bushes, I crouched low. I was surprised to hear Melody giggling.
“Are you laughing at me?” I heard Isidor ask. He sounded hurt.
Don’t say he has a small pecker too, I thought. You couldn’t make this shit up. Didn’t the boy have anything going for him? No brains and no cock!
“Well, it’s kind of a dumb thing to do, don’t you think?” Melody giggled again, unable to figure out what she meant. Then she added, “Who would choose a book if they didn’t know what it was called or what it...”
Book? I wondered. Who takes a book on a freaking date? Perhaps it’s porn? But I doubted it somehow.
“You think I’m stupid, just like the others do,” I heard Isidor say.
Yep! I thought to myself.
“Oh, my God, Isidor, I didn’t realise. You didn’t know what the book was about because you couldn’t read the title, could you?” the girl said from the other side of the bushes.
“No,” Isidor said back.
Oh this just keeps getting better and better. I didn’t know whether to laugh or cry for the boy. Not only had he been robbed of his coat, not only did he have a small dick, but he couldn’t read, either. No wonder he had brought a porno book to read, they could both just sit and look at the pictures.
“I don’t think you’re stupid,” I heard Melody say to Isidor.
You must be about the only one who thinks that, I thought.
“I think you are the sweetest guy that I’ve ever met,” she continued, and my stomach lurched again. “You are the only person in this town who doesn’t avoid me because of the way my mother makes me dress. Even the people in church keep away from us. No one dresses the way we do. You didn’t judge me, Isidor, and I’m not judging you. You helped me mend my necklace, you went and chose a book for me – it had a rose on it just like my name. No one has ever done anything like that for me.”
The book definitely wasn’t porn. I’d never seen a porno book with a rose on the front. The idiot had probably bought her a gardening manual. Shit, he couldn’t read, was he freaking blind, too? I wondered. When I thought I couldn’t stomach any more, the conversation took another turn for the worse.
“Why did you laugh then?” Isidor asked her.
“Because I wanted to cry, but I just couldn’t let it show,” she whispered.
“Why did you want to cry?” Isidor asked softly.
“Because I just can’t stop hurting... that is...” she stopped mid-sentence.
“What?” he asked her. “What stops you hurting, Melody?”
“You do, Isidor,” she said. “When I’m with you, I stop thinking.”
“Thinking about what?” Isidor whispered.
“Come with me and I’ll show you,” Melody said, and I heard them heading out of the bushes.
I slunk back into the growing darkness and watched Isidor and Melody head away, hand in hand, up the shore.
“What would stop you from hurting, Jack?” I heard someone whisper.
I looked back over my shoulder to see the bride slowly walking away from me and back into the woods, where she disappeared again.
“Fuck you,” I breathed, shutting my eyes.
Chapter Sixteen
Potter
“Sparky!” I whispered in disbelief again. He was a freaking werewolf. What was Kiera dating him for? Not only was the guy covered in zits and wore those crooked-looking glasses, he couldn’t be trusted. He had led Luke and the others to Hallowed Manor where they had killed and slaughtered the half-breeds – two of which had been Murphy’s daughters.
Part of me wanted to sneak across the road and peer in through the restaurant window, just to make sure I had seen what I thought I had seen. But what was the point? My eyes hadn’t lied to me. Kiera – for some unknown reason – had hooked up with Sparky. Had the Potter in this pushed world treated Kiera so badly she had lost all faith in men and fallen into the arms of Sparky? I’d also been away from the apartment block for far too long already. What would be the point in coming back to endure seeing Kiera with another man – Sparky – only to miss the photographer and go back empty-handed? Heading back behind the pub, I rolled back my shoulders, released my wings, and tore up into the night sky. The night air was cold against my face, and the rain jabbed it like ice-cold pellets. I soared over the town of Havensfield and headed back to Kiera’s apartment. However much I tried, I couldn’t get that picture of Kiera kissing Sparky out of my head.
He was a fucking wolf!
But was he a wolf in this world? I suddenly asked myself. People were different here, weren’t they?
Once a wolf, always a wolf! I told myself.
But I knew I couldn’t be sure of that. Was the Potter in this world a Vampyrus? No – they didn’t exist here. Wolves did, though. The place was overrun with them. Should I warn Kiera somehow? No I couldn’t. Lilly told me not to get involved with the Kiera Hudson of this pushed world. She wasn’t my Kiera. No, she was Sparky’s. I’d already screwed up by waking up in her apartment. But was that my fault? Had I had any control where the train pushed me through the cracks? I didn’t think so. Whatever, I should keep out of this Kiera’s life. What she chose to do was her problem – not mine. I should concentrate on getting back to my Kiera and making things right for her. This Kiera had nothing to do with me. The Potter of this world had had his shot, and by the sounds of things, he had fucked up. That was his problem – not mine.
Convincing myself not to get involved, I landed back in the alleyway opposite Kiera’s apartment. The lights were still out. Was that a good sign? Had I missed the photographer? I doubted he would have walked into Kiera’s apartment and switched on all the lights, lighting up the place like a freaking Christmas tree. All I could hope was that I hadn’t missed him – her? The rain had eased a little, so I took my pack of cigarettes from my coat pocket and lit one. The warm rush of smoke felt good as it filled my lungs. I tried not to think about Kiera and Sparky, but whenever I closed my eyes, all I could see was Kiera reaching up on tiptoe and planting a soft kiss on Sparky’s zit-ridden face. It wasn’t that I was jealous – how could I be? I didn’t love that Kiera. I was just concerned about her and I didn’t trust Sparky in this pushed world or any other, for that matter.
“Why are you so concerned about someone you don’t love?” a voice said from behind me. It was childlike and I knew I had heard it someplace before. I spun around to discover a little girl st
anding at the other end of the alley. She waved at me with a hand that was as white as a fish’s belly. I knew at once that it was the little girl who had been hiding in the smoke on the platform.
I pitched out my cigarette and slowly headed up the alley towards her. “Hey, little girl, what did you say to me?” I tried to make my voice sound as nonthreatening as possible so as not to scare her away.
“You love her, don’t you?” the little girl giggled. “Kiera is very pretty.”
“She’s not my Kiera,” I said, continuing down the alley towards her. Now that I had drawn nearer to the little girl, I could see she couldn’t
be any older than about seven years old. She had long dark hair that had been weaved into plaits which hung down on either side of her pretty face. Her eyes were as dark as her hair. She wore a red dress, white knee-length socks, and black patent shoes.
“Who are you?” I breathed, coming within touching distance of her.
Raising her corpse-white hand again, she waved at me and giggled, “Be seeing you later, alligator.” Then she was gone, like smoke drifting up into the night air.
“Who told you to say that?” I called after the puff of smoke. “Why did you say that to me?”
The only reply I heard was the faint sound of giggling melting away into the distance. Taking another cigarette from my pocket, I sparked it up, then turned back to the entrance of the alleyway. I slouched in the darkness and looked at Kiera’s apartment. Her car was back, parked outside the front. She was back already? I thought, flicking away the cigarette I had lit only moments before. Why had she come back so quickly? I wondered. Had she brought Sparky back with her? They couldn’t have even had time to order dinner and eat it. Had they come back so soon as they were desperate to jump each other’s bones? I feared. I pushed that thought and the images it created out of my head. I lit another cigarette.
I looked up at the windows, but no lights came on. They had gone straight to bed. I dropped the cigarette and ground it out with the heel of my boot. I immediately lit another. She was entitled to sleep with Sparky if that’s what she wanted, I told myself, wrestling with the thought of the werewolf running his filthy hands all over her body. I suddenly had the urge to vomit and I tossed another half-smoked cigarette away. I leant against the rain-soaked wall of the alleyway. Even though it wasn’t my Kiera in the apartment on the other side of the street, I couldn’t bear the thought of her and Sparky having sex. It wasn’t right – it wasn’t natural.
I paced up and down the alleyway, wringing my hands together.
Is this how Kiera felt when she learnt I had sneaked away to see Sophie? I guessed it was, and I felt ashamed. The little girl, whoever she was, had been right, whether the Kiera living on the other side of the street was my Kiera or not – my feelings for her were just as strong – just as raw, and I couldn’t bear to think of her having feelings for another man – Sparky or not.
Unable to rid myself of the need to know if Kiera and Sparky were together in the apartment, I stepped from the entrance of the alleyway and crossed the street. I climbed over the front wall and crept around the back of the building. Feeling safe in the knowledge that I couldn’t be seen, I released my wings and floated silently upwards. Reaching Kiera’s bedroom window, I peered around the edge of it like some kind of peeping tom. And what I saw made my heart ache. Kiera lay on her side, tucked beneath the blankets that covered her bed. She was alone. Her face was turned towards the window, her eyes shut tight against the tears which spilled silently from them. Her body trembled with uncontrollable sobs.
Had she rowed with Sparky? Is that why their date had ended so suddenly? Had he hurt Kiera in some way?
I wanted to force open the window, take her in my arms, and tell her everything was going to be okay, but I couldn’t. Not because Lilly had told me to not get involved, but because I couldn’t lie to her. I knew everything wasn’t going to be okay for the Kiera in this world. I knew that sometime soon, she was going to be shot dead attending the scene of a robbery.
Turning away from the window, I went back to my hiding place on the other side of the street and waited for the photographer.
Chapter Seventeen
Jack
Melody led Isidor into the night and I followed at a distance. To be honest, the pair were so fucking loved-up with each other, I could’ve walked beside them singing the ‘Hokey Cokey’ and neither of them would’ve noticed I was even there. I cringed every time they gazed sideways at each other. As the night grew darker, it got colder. The town I followed the two lovebirds through was closed for the day, and the streets were empty and silent.
I crept behind them as the girl led Isidor across town. At the edge of it, they seemed to suddenly disappear ahead of me. Had they realised they were being followed after all, and ducked into some front yard or alley to avoid me? Slowly, I placed one foot in front of the other and continued forward up the road leading out of town. To my right I noticed a narrow track. I stopped and listened. I could hear them ahead, the sound of their footfalls on the rough, uneven ground. Both sides of the narrow lane were sheltered by trees and I darted into them to keep hidden from view. The moon was now up, and on such a desolate strip of road, should either of them suddenly look back, I would be seen. In the distance on a small hill, I could see the outline of a house set against the starry night sky. Staring ahead and not down at the ground, I tripped on a large fallen branch. I put my hands out and gripped a nearby tree trunk to stop myself falling flat on my face. A bird screeched in the branches overhead and soared away. This was followed by an ear-piercing scream of terror. What had happened? Had the girl, Melody, just been murdered or something? It sounded like someone was in fear of their lives.
Bent double at the waist, I made my way through the bushes and trees as quietly as possible. Isidor and the girl were just inches away from the other side of the scrub which lined the track. I could see Isidor was clutching his chest, a look of dumb horror on his face.
“What’s wrong? Isidor?” I heard the girl gasp.
“That bird scared me,” he breathed.
“I’m meant to be the girl around here,” I heard Melody laugh nervously.
Oh for fuck’s sake! I thought. The kid shit himself because he heard a bird flutter its wings. The way he was carrying on, I thought some pervert with an axe and a hard-on had jumped out of the bushes. I just hoped he didn’t come across a fluffy-eared bunny rabbit next, or Isidor might just shit his pants like he’d overdosed on laxatives. If I ever got the chance, I knew I had to tie Isidor to a chair and put that movie ‘The Birds’ on repeat. I smiled at the thought of doing that.
Once Isidor had caught his breath, they moved on in the dark and I followed, hidden by the trees. I guessed the house Melody had led us to was where she lived, as she confidently pushed open the front garden gate and headed up the path. A white fence surrounded the front garden, which was neatly kept. The whole scene was something you’d find printed on a postcard. It all looked too fucking perfect for my liking. There was something about the house that didn’t sit easy with me. From my hiding place amongst the nearby trees, I watched Melody push open the front door and flip on the light.
“Holy moly!” I heard Isidor whisper as Melody closed the front door behind them.
I waited in the dark, just in case the girl flashed her tits at Isidor and he came screaming out of the house in fear, leaving a trail of steaming shit behind him. After several minutes of waiting for Isidor to suddenly appear, I crept from between the trees. Keeping low, I made my way around the edge of the white picket fence to the rear of the house. Checking over my shoulder to make sure I wasn’t being spied on, I hopped over the fence and made my way across the backyard. As I neared the back of the house, a beam of light seemed to come up from out of the ground. Curious, I crouched and made my way towards it. The light was coming from a basement beneath the house. There was a dip in the ground, and a small wall. I climbed over it, and dropped. There was a window that was hid
den from view, and I would’ve never known it was there if it hadn’t have been for the light which had been switched on from inside. Hunkering down so low that I was almost lying on my stomach, I peered through the small grime-covered window. With my face pressed almost flat against the glass, I could see Melody and Isidor standing in what looked like a small basement room… no… what looked like some kind of makeshift church.
And I thought the boy had issues. When are these two kids gonna learn that you don’t take books to read on a first date and you never, ever go to church! That has got to be the biggest freaking passion killer I’ve ever heard of. What was the girl planning on doing, for crying out loud? Was she gonna get on her knees and ask God why he saw fit to send her an illiterate, spineless, and dickless wonder of a boyfriend? Christ, I knew each of us had been given a cross to bear – but Isidor just took the piss. I was starting to feel sorry for the girl. She needed to offload her burden – and quick. But then again, maybe Isidor had his own question to ask of God. Like, why had he been saddled with the Hunchback of Notre Dame masquerading as a freaking nun! In a fucked-up kinda way, Isidor and Melody were made for each other.
Peering through the tiny window, I could see half-melted candles scattered about the place. They had been fixed to the damp-ridden walls and stood on tiny china saucers. I could see two small pews in front of what looked like a makeshift altar. Over this had been draped a crimson piece of cloth. There was a statue of Christ and the Madonna. But the thing that drew my attention was the huge cross which had been fixed to the wall behind the altar. It was massive – big enough to crucify a living person on. I could see Isidor and Melody’s lips moving as they spoke to one another, but I couldn’t hear what they were saying. Perhaps they were praying. Who knew? And did I really give a shit – not really. If the conversation they were having was anything like the one I’d overhead by the lake, then it would be about as interesting as watching paint dry. After a short time, Melody and Isidor left the weird basement, turning the light out.