by Sue Allerton
Hell’s Rising
Sue Allerton
Prologue
It’s human nature to try and better ourselves. To want to help people, whether that be family, friends, partners or those in need. It’s human nature to want nicer things, a better car, and a bigger house. Some people just want to walk, or to beat an illness. Greed rules the human race and the matter of fact is none of them want to admit it. Some people want wealth. Some people want to save the world. Some people want to help everyone.
And some people…
Just want to watch the world burn.
Chapter 1
The bell rang, startling him out of his reverie. People all around him rushed to shove their laptops and notebooks into their bags. Many of them chattering amongst themselves, talking about how they’re so glad that lecture was over. What could possibly be interesting about the industrial revolution? He watched as the professor rubbed his balding head. He had been teaching for twenty years after travelling around the world trying to discover more and more history than any book would teach him. He was an award winning historian, yet his applications failed when he applied for jobs at bigger, more prestigious schools. And yet, the students couldn’t wait to leave the room. He ran his hand over his balding head, almost as if he forgot he had no hair there anymore. He wondered why this man, this great man. Axel placed his laptop in his bag; more carefully than his fellow classmates. He couldn’t afford to replace it so easily. He made his way out of the now empty room only to be called back by Professor Golvin. The older man handed him a file with Axel’s name written on the front.
“Why did you write this?” he asked eyeing the boy suspiciously, never before had a student ever written an assignment without being asked to.
“I wanted to see what your thoughts were, am I dreaming too much about the topic? It’s not as if we’re ever going to know what truly happened” he replied with a frown, his heart sank at the thought of never knowing the answers he so truly craved.
“Its human nature to wonder, to dream and make up stories because we want to believe that magic exists somewhere in this world” the way Golvin spoke sent a shiver down Axel’s spine. He admired this man and at moments like this when he heard how passionately he spoke about the past, it reminded him why he wanted to become a historian.
After a few minutes he looked down at his watch and realized what time it was. He could talk about history for hours and hours, the time flew by. He told his professor goodbye and sprinted out of the room. He ran down the street as fast as he could, his legs burned by the time he had gotten half way there and he gasped for breath with each laboured stride.
He burst in through the back door of The Eagles Wings. Jacob, the snooty waiter looked him up and down with narrowed eyes and smirked. Axel ignored him and rushed into the locker room to change. He doused himself with cologne and attempted to flatten his shaggy brown hair.
“Did class run late?” a familiar voice asked as the door opened, Bill limped through and sat down on one of the benches.
“Yeah, I’m sorry” Axel frowned as he tied his apron around his waist.
“Don’t be sorry, nothing wrong with getting an education” Bill grinned, showing off his wonky, yellowed teeth from smoking forty a day for the last thirty-five years. Axel looked at the old man; he hadn’t known him long. He started working at the restaurant two years ago when he first started university, the old man gave him the job and has looked out for him ever since.
“Come on, get to work then” he chuckled and struggled to stand, Axel held his arm and escorted him out of the room and into his big comfy chair in his office. By the time Axel had shut the door, Bill was already snoring like a fog horn. He grinned to himself and grabbed his notebook from his pocket to go and take one of the table’s orders.
Jacob and Sarah, one of the waitresses; stood around complaining about having to work. Their parents were filthy rich and they’ve had a very comfortable life style. Since coming to university Sarah ran up her father’s credit card by five thousand pounds just on clothes and furnishings for her off campus apartment which her father paid for each month. After that her parents decided to continue to pay for the apartment but she had to pay all the bills and fund her own shopping habits. She threw a tantrum and began working at the restaurant, seeing how much Axel actually enjoyed the work, the two of them wanted to make him as uncomfortable there as possible. They worked there because they had to, Axel worked there because he liked the place, he liked the old man, he liked earning his own living and not having to rely on anyone. His mum would help him if he asked her to. The day he left for university she tried to hide money in his belongings, he found it but didn’t say anything. When he left the house, he left the envelope on the kitchen counter. She chewed his ear off about it and said she wanted to take care of him. She cried when he left, as most mother’s do when they realise their children are growing up and leaving the nest. He called his mum every day. She worries about him fiercely, more so because of Michael. He found comfort in the fact that she wasn’t alone, she has the two family dogs and her friends pop round frequently, even when she might not want them to.
Axel made his way around the restaurant, collecting plates and taking them into the kitchen. As he entered the kitchen his foot catches on something and he tripped. The plates crashed to the ground and break into a million pieces. His cheek burns as a piece of plate cut his skin when he landed on the pile of broken crockery. Sarah sniggered to herself in the corner; Axel turned to glare at her and she burst into laughter. The chefs helped Axel to his feet and Andy grabbed a first aid kit to patch his cheek up.
“Why did you do that?” Axel asked Sarah as Andy dabbed at his cheek with a damp cloth. She continued to laugh.
“I didn’t do anything! Don’t blame me for your clumsiness, Pace” she giggled, she went to walk out of the kitchen when Bill walked in. She stopped laughing immediately and stood completely still.
“What’s going on?” Bill asked, grumpy from being woken from his nap.
“Axel tripped” she spat out quickly before anyone else could get a word in.
“Axel?” Bill asked, keeping his eyes fixed on Sarah.
“My foot caught on something”
“Yeah, her foot. She tripped him, we all saw it” Andy snapped, Sarah’s eyes widened and she put her hands on her hips.
“I did not! He tripped” she shrieked
“Okay, I’ll go check the CCTV shall I?” he said quietly and went to turn around
“It was me” she muttered and lowered her head, her eyes welled up and tears spilled over down her cheeks.
“I don’t want such petty behaviour in my restaurant, you’ve now cost me money for plates, you’ve hurt one of my members of staff, disrupted the entire restaurant and you’ve woken me up. I don’t want it, Finish the night, I’m docking your pay for the plates and after tonight don’t come back. I’ll write you a termination letter for gross misconduct” Bill explained in a bored voice. Sarah’s eyes were wide and wet. She scrunched her face up and shouted ‘fine’ before throwing her apron on the floor and storming out of the building. Jacob stood in the back, pale faced and guilty.
The rest of the night went quietly. Every single person he served gave him a tip, making up an extra one hundred pounds at the end of the night. He had already decided what he was going to do with the money. By the time he got back to his tiny little studio apartment, he was drained. It was one in the morning. The only good thing was that the following morning was Friday, he had no classes. He was going home to see his mum. He stripped off his clothes and fell on his mattress lying on the ground. He lay for a moment before falling into a col
ourful dream.
When morning came, he still felt exhausted. He had a missed call and voicemail from his mum. His cheek stung as he rubbed his face. He jumped in the shower and let the steaming water wash over him. He could have stood there for hours. He called his mum back and let her know he was coming home that day, she cried down the phone. It had been a few weeks since he’d last seen her, he’d picked up some extra shifts at the restaurant. Now it was coming into winter, the price of heating cost him a lot more. The train station wasn’t far from where he lived. He missed the train. The next train wasn’t for another hour. He played a few games on his phone while he waited for the train. A red blur passed in front of him, but when he looked up, he couldn’t spot a single smudge of red anywhere. He finally got into his hometown, his mum was waiting in the pick-up area in her little Suzuki Jimmy, the dogs Ollie and Lady stood in the back with their heads poking out of the window. Mum shrieked when she saw him and she wrapped her arms around him tightly, he thought about pretending to choke, but this would upset her. They got in the car and he stroked the two dogs now trying to clamber over the front seats.
“How are you doing? You look thin, are you eating? You look pale, are you warm enough in your place? Do you need me to send you some money? How about a warm electric blanket?” the questions flew thick and fast and he chuckled.
“Why are you laughing?” she asked as she pulled off from the train station very carefully.
“I’ve missed you” is all he grinned, she smiled as she keeps her eyes on the road.
“So what’s the story?” she asked and took one hand off the wheel to stroke his cheek where the cut was beginning to scab over.
“I tripped at work, broke a few plates” he shrugged and looked out of the window.
“Please be careful, I’d hate to think what could have happened if it was a knife or_”
“I know, mum. I’ll be careful, I promise” he cut her off, she was beginning to get frantic and he didn’t want to upset her, not while she was driving.
“Good, you know how I worry. But anyway! Tell me, have you met a special someone yet?” she asked with a sly grin, his mum had always wanted a large family, she was an only child and so was her husband, but life is cruel.
“Not yet, I will. Maybe not while I’m at university though, all the women are so, materialistic and seems like they’re only there to escape the reality of working for as long as possible” he shrugs, he hasn’t had time to even think about dating or women. Whatever time he has free he’s studying, if he’s not studying he’s working and on the rare occasion he has a weekend fee, he spends the time with his mum. He keeps to himself most of the time, apart from his best friend Connor. Connor shares the same values as Axel, he works and studies but he would rather go clubbing at the weekend than go home.
The house is a welcome sight. It’s located on an estate with a gate on the front and a wall wrapped around the whole thing. His parents could only just afford this place when they moved in. Helen, Axel’s mum; wanted a safe place for Axel to play when he was growing up. It was where he met Connor, when they first moved here there would always be children playing in the streets. But since technology got better, children no longer wanted to play outside, jump in puddles or roll in the mud.
Axel took his things upstairs into his old room, which hadn’t been touched. He dropped his bag on the floor and lay down on the bed. He didn’t mean to fall asleep, but as soon as his head hit the pillow, he couldn’t resist. Ollie, the white and black Border collie woke him by licking his face and jumping on his back. He laughed properly for the first time in weeks and heaved himself off the bed. It was beginning to get dark outside. He got himself changed and headed downstairs. His mum was getting some meat out of the freezer.
“What are you doing?” he asked her, making her jump in the process.
“Dinner” she laughed
“Nope, put that away” he answered as he took the meat off her and flung it back in the freezer.
“Why?” she replied but she already knew what he was going to say.
“I’m taking you out for dinner” he smiled and she hugged him but she was worried about his money. She didn’t want him spending money on her when she knew how much he needed it. But he insisted and told her he’s not losing anything because he got it all from tips. She gazed at him proudly as he drove to the restaurant. She had raised him well.
They laughed over dinner, talked about anything and everything. Axel felt himself relax more than he had done since the last time he saw her. He wanted to come home more often, but he couldn’t afford the constant train journeys and he mostly had to study. He wondered how she was doing, really doing. She always told him she was fine; he knew she was lying. One night she had misdialled him, he was asleep so he didn’t answer; in the morning he awoke to a voicemail message of her crying. She was telling someone how much she missed them, he was never sure who it was she was referring to. He asked her if she was okay and she would say ‘yes, of course’ as always. He looked at her now, he had never noticed how much she had aged before. Wrinkles set in at the outer corners of her eyes and on her forehead. She was thinner than before, her face all angles and bones. Her hair has the odd strand of silver and her rings slide around her skinny fingers. He felt like he was finally seeing her for the first time, guilt riddled through him. Why had he not noticed this sooner? He scolded himself for not taking more notice of her before. He asked her if she wanted him to come home and look after her, maybe he could get enrolled in a university a bit closer to home, get another job and be there for her. She denied his offers until she was blue in the face. As much as she would love for him to come home, she wasn’t going to spoil his future. As they were talking, he caught a glimpse of red in his peripheral vision. He turned to see what it was, it was gone. His brow furrowed, that’s twice now.
The rest of the weekend seemed to fly by. They watched movies together and ate junk food, the dogs lay across them. Axel slept through most of the films, Helen was happy just to have him there. Sunday evening was hard for Helen, she hated seeing her son get on a train. She always worried the train would fly off the rails. They hugged goodbye, she cried into his shoulder. He kissed her on the forehead and walked away. He knew she hated seeing him go so he always tried to cut the process short.
He listened to music all the way home, scrolled through Facebook at pointless status updates, who was getting engaged or who was pregnant for the hundredth time. He rolled his eyes and let his head fall back against the seat. The train was one stop away from his stop. The doors opened and half the carriage rushed for the door. In the sea of people, he saw red. He went to stand but got knocked down by a large woman pushing her way down the aisle waiting to get off. He strained over the seats to see what it was but whoever it was had disappeared. Why was he constantly seeing red, he knew it was a person and probably all different people? He couldn’t wrap his head around why as soon as he turned around, why the person was gone. He sat there confused for a while until his train reached the end of its journey.
He had been talking to Connor during the train ride. They planned to hang out later on, for now he was with the newest edition to his life. His girlfriend, Joanna. She was nice, he met her once before, he went to shake her hand, she went to give him a hug; it got awkward and they had a good laugh about it. After speaking to her for a while he noticed she was looking at every other guy in the room except Connor. Even when he went to kiss her she stiffened up as if he repulsed her. He didn’t understand why someone would be with someone they didn’t even like? Later on Connor had bragged about how rich her family was and he clicked the two together. A rich girl wanting to rebel against her parents.
Chapter 2
Axel got back to his small apartment, it was freezing in there. He turned the heating on and as the boiler roared to life, his whole body went tense. He felt much warmer than he had done a few moments ago. His lids felt sore and heavy all of a sudden. He dropped to his knees, not being able to hol
d his body weight much longer. He rested his head on the carpet. He closed his eyes and dreamt of red. He woke to his phone buzzing. He was late for work, again. He launched himself out the door and down the road. He reached the back door but nobody even noticed he had arrived, let alone that he was late. Bill smiled and him and said he hoped he had a good weekend. Even Jacob gave no snide remarks or smirks. Axel was confused and he didn’t know why it wasn’t noticed that he was late. He shrugged and thought maybe they had gotten used to him being late and just decided not to bring it up. He changed quickly, he was hot and sweaty and he wanted a shower. For the first time since he started working there, he wanted to just go home. He felt exhausted, too hot and he still couldn’t shake this uneasy feeling and the image of red.
He went about his duties without even thinking about what he was doing. Over the last few minutes he couldn’t even remember what he did. He messed up orders, spilt someone’s drink over them, undercharged a customer; none of this was noticed by anyone. Even the customer who he spilt the drink over didn’t say anything, she just carried on talking to the man opposite her as if nothing had happened. The doorbell chimed as he ran into the back room to sit down. He was breathing rapidly, his heart pounding in his chest and he felt like he was going to throw up.
“Axel, someone is sat on in your bay” Jacob called. Axel shook his head and took a drink of water. It did nothing to cool his burning throat. He made his way stiffly into the restaurant and in one of the booths on the far right side, sat a woman with bright red hair. He stopped dead in his tracks and stared for a moment. Her hair was just passed her shoulders, scarlet with streaks of sunset orange and daffodil yellow throughout, it looked like fire. He took out his notebook and walked to the table, he wiped his forehead with the back of his hand and was about to speak when he stopped. She had eyes as black as onyx, framed with long fluttery lashes. Her face was square shaped with pointy angles and a small nose. Her mouth curled up in a smile and she was holding out her napkin.