Voices in the Night (The Dark Mind Trilogy Book 3)

by Matthew Goldstein

  Cole stretched the belt taut, testing its strength. “Should be good enough. I doubt she'll be able to break it just by tugging on it. Good night.”

  “That's a weird way to say good night. Let me know if you have any problems.”

  “Will do.” Cole returned to the library, dangling the belt.

  “What's that for?” Asher said.

  As soon as Amy eyed it, though, she knew exactly what it was for. “Really?”

  “Yes, really,” Cole said, trying to sound authoritative. “Sit in that chair.”

  Amy obeyed without a word and watched him with a mixture of contempt and amusement as he knelt by her right leg and tried to figure out the best way to secure it. He wrapped the cloth belt around the chair leg and then around Amy's ankle, and with his limited knowledge of knots, triple-knotted the end, tugging it tight and then testing it. Once he was satisfied that it was secure, he stood up and looked to Asher. “Now she should have a harder time running away,” he said.

  “Not a bad idea,” Asher said.

  Cole crawled into bed and shut his eyes, hoping it would block out the world around him. He prayed that a good night sleep would renew his hope and provide him a fresh plan in the morning. It's not hopeless, he repeated to himself over and over. There is a way and we'll find it tomorrow.

  “Looks like it's just you and me for a while,” he heard Asher say. “I suggest you get comfortable and go to sleep. It's going to be a long night.”

  Cole opened his eyes to see Amy curl up on the armchair, and then he shut them again tightly and turned on his side away from her. His exhaustion eventually overwhelmed him and he drifted off into a fitful dream full of dark looming shapes and a general feeling of dread.

  He was woken by someone shaking his shoulder. “Hey, Cole, wake up,” Asher whispered.

  “Huh? What?” He sat up, his eyes adjusting to the darkness of the room.

  “I'm sorry to wake you, man, but I'm afraid I'm about to fall asleep. Think you can take the next watch? It's about a third through the night, so you can get Beth in a couple hours.”

  “Yeah, sure,” Cole whispered back. He scanned the room, finding Amy still curled in the same armchair, breathing steadily and heavily. “Hey, what happens if she wakes up and attacks me?”

  “Trust me, if you start screaming, I'll wake up.”

  “That's reassuring,” Cole said, sarcastically.

  Asher smirked and lay down on top of the bed. “Oh, man does that feel great. Good night.”

  “Night.” Cole stretched and opened his eyes wide, shaking off the sleep and the disturbing dreams. He moved across the room on tiptoe, fearful of arousing Amy, and sat down in a chair across from her, resting his chin on his knees. He watched her sleep, so peaceful, so normal, no way to tell that anything was wrong. He wished he could wake her and she would be her old self again, happy and excited to see him. He knew that was a stupid thought, but at least while she slept he could imagine it.

  His limbs began to cramp so he stood up and crept across the room to the window. The sun had not yet begun to rise, but he knew it was not far off. It was silent and dark, the only sounds the far-off chirp of insects and the only light the streetlights along the road. It was so peaceful it was hard to believe that anything could be so horribly wrong. He wished this moment could last forever.

  There came a stirring from behind him, and he turned to see Amy standing across the room, staring at him. A pang of fear coursed through his body, and he took a step closer to Asher, prepared to kick him awake.

  “There's no need to wake him,” she said, quietly. “I just wanna talk.”

  “About what, you crazy voices? I think you've said everything you could say. We're going to get you out of my friend, and she's going to be herself again.”

  “I think that's what you're misunderstanding. It's still me. I'm Amy.”

  “And I'm supposed to believe that? The Amy I know would never act like this. She loves me.”

  Amy returned a sad smile. “Loved. It's true, I did love you. But you put me through hell time and again just by being around you, and now I despise you.” She sat down, the pompousness deflating from her, leaving behind a sad and broken girl. “Believe what you want, but they didn't take me over. They just helped me realize my potential. Now that I have these voices, I see what a blessing they can be. You never knew how to use them properly. I've only had them a short while and I'm already surpassing you in every way.”

  “Shut up,” Cole said, clenching his fists. “You've turned my Amy into a monster, and you will pay. You hear me?”

  “You know what the most pathetic thing is?” Amy continued, ignoring him, contempt etched into her face. “You're going around pretending to be some kind of hero. Why? To find redemption? You can't undo all the evil and death you caused by saving a couple kids. It won't bring back Dr. Stern. What do you think she would say about this? Oh, good, you rescued a kid so now you canceled out murdering me?”

  “That was to save you,” Cole said, his voice rising. Asher rolled over in his sleep, murmuring. “You would be dead if I hadn't done that.”

  “That's what you thought, at least. And that was only because you didn't understand the voices. You didn't know how to utilize them, how to control them. They played you like a puppet.”

  Cole seethed, his blood pumping in his head, but kept himself under control. Don't listen to a word she says. It's not Amy talking. It's lies, and nothing else. He glanced down at Asher, wanting backup so he could put an end to this travesty.

  “Go ahead, wake him. But you won't have your bodyguard around you forever. Keep that in mind every time you turn a corner or close your eyes.” She smiled a vicious smile, a look of death on her face. “By the way, when I escape, don't bother looking for me. I can't be found.”

  “You will not escape.”

  “No? Was this supposed to stop me?” She held up the end of the belt that used to be around her ankle and dropped it to the floor.

  Hit by instant panic, Cole kicked Asher in his ribs. “Wake up. Asher, wake up now.”

  “Uh, whoa, what's happening?” Asher said in alarm, his eyes shooting open.

  Amy got to her feet and took a step toward Cole. He opened his mouth to shout at her to stay where she was when a blinding pain ripped through his head.

  “Stay back, I'm warning you!” he heard Asher's voice.

  Through the pain he was dimly aware of Amy approaching, holding something large, which, in one sweeping motion, she swung downward, connecting with Asher's head, smacking it into the floor. The pain continued as her steps padded away, and then it vanished.

  18

  “She's making a run for it! You have to stop her!” Cole yelled to Asher, then looked down to see Asher groaning, a hand to his head. “Are you all right?” Cole knelt down beside him.

  “God, that hurt. Ahh, yeah, I'll survive.” Dazed, he propped himself on his elbows. “That was so weird. I tried to use my mental attack to stop her but it didn't work. She just kept coming as if I was doing nothing at all. We have to get her back. Here, help me up.”

  Cole took Asher's arm and pulled him to his feet. Recovering now, Asher blinked hard, stumbled out the door, and shoved on his sneakers, Cole close on his heels. Amy had already fled the house, leaving the front door open. They sprinted outside to the sidewalk, scanning in all directions for Amy fleeing, but she was nowhere in sight.

  “She must have turned a corner already,” Cole said frantically.

  “Shit, I'll go get my keys. Be right back.” Asher ran back inside while Cole paced in front of the house, feeling each agonizing second ticking away. Asher returned shortly, his keys jangling, and the two of them jumped in his car.

  “Which way do you think?” Asher said, putting the car in gear.

  “Try that way,” Cole said, pointing. “It's the closest intersection. She probably went that way to get out of sight the quickest.”

  The car peeled away from the curb, tires squealing loudly i
n the quiet night.

  “I don't think we'll be able to locate her mentally,” Cole said.

  “Yeah, I doubt it. Not with a mental barrier that strong. When we find her, I'll have to use more force to stop her. I can't imagine how she pushed through last time.”

  “Be careful,” Cole said. “She may not be acting like it, but she's still my friend.”

  “I will, I swear.”

  They looped around the block, keeping their eyes peeled in every direction for any sign of her, and then started around a different block in case she had gone in that direction. Yet, every street they passed was dead, not a soul to be seen in the first rays of dawn.

  “We can't lose her!” Cole shouted, losing his temper in the desperation of the moment.

  “What do you want me to do about it?” Asher shouted back. “I'm searching the best I can.”

  Cole growled in frustration. “I know, I'm sorry. But she's on foot. She can't get far. It shouldn't be too hard to find her. Oh no, unless she's hiding. Crap, maybe we should wake up Beth and get her to search too. We could cover more ground. Give me your cellphone. I'll try to call and wake her up.”

  Beth answered groggily on the fifth ring. “H-hello?”

  “Beth! Amy escaped. Asher and I are out looking for her. Can you go out to look for her too?”

  “Oh, great. Guess that little piece of cloth didn't do the trick. Sure, sure, I'll need a minute to get dressed. What do you want me to do if I find her?”

  “Call Asher's cell. We'll drive right over.”

  Beth assented, and hung up. They drove around for hours, circling, then recircling the neighborhood, and even getting out of the car at various times to check behind hedges or other hiding places. Cole checked in with Beth a few times during the morning, but she had no more luck than them. When the morning had worn on for some time, Cole began giving up hope of finding her this way, and instead speculated of where she might be going.

  “She can't stay out on her own for that long. I doubt she even has any money,” Cole said. “She may have gone all the way back to her house. That seems most likely and it should take less than a couple hours to walk so she could be there by now.”

  “So you wanna head over there?” Asher said.

  Cole nodded. “It's worth a shot.” He called Beth to let her know their plans, and to tell her she could take a break and eat breakfast.

  They arrived at the Williams' house before noon. Mrs. Williams answered the door with a bright smile. “Cole! So nice to see you again.”

  “Hi, Mrs. Williams. Has Amy come back here?”

  “No, I don't know what you mean. She was with you. Has something happened?”

  Struck by disappointment, Cole hesitated, wondering the best way to proceed. “Well, see, the thing is, she disappeared this morning. I have no idea what happened to her and we've been out searching all morning. We were wondering if she made her way back here.”

  “No, she never came home. Why did she run off?”

  Cole thought it was odd that the smile did not falter on her face. “I'm not sure.”

  “Well, she's a resourceful girl. I'm sure she'll be all right.” Cole was shocked speechless, and Mrs. Williams continued. “If I see her, I'll let you know. Enjoy your day!” And she shut the door.

  Stunned, Cole turned to Asher to see his reaction. To his surprise, Asher looked unconcerned and said, “She must be here, and said something to them so that they would cover for her. Maybe she said you two got in a fight.”

  “Yeah, probably,” Cole said, turning to go, when a disturbing new idea occurred to him. “Maybe they're under the voices' control too. It's spreading.” A lump formed in his throat. His fears were coming true. Mom, did you get a chance to check out Mrs. Williams?

  I'm afraid you may be right. There was definitely something going on with both her and her husband.

  I knew it. And you can't detect Amy?

  No, but that doesn't mean she isn't here. I can't ever detect her.

  Yep, that's the problem. “I'm going to peek in through Amy's bedroom window to see if she's here.” Cole led Asher around the house to Amy's window, but the blinds were shut. “Great, now what? Do we break in to see if she's inside?”

  “I'm not sure.”

  “Wait a second. I think I have an idea.” Hey, do you think we can extract the voices from the Williams? Are they as embedded as in Amy?

  I don't know. It's worth a shot.

  “What is it?” Asher said, watching him.

  “We're going to free the Williams. See if you can figure out how to do it so you can help me.”

  “That's going to work?”

  “We'll see.” He hurried back to the front door and rang the bell. This time, no one answered. He rang a second and third time with no more luck. “Wonderful, now they're avoiding us.” Can you free them from out here?

  I don't think so. Not alone.

  “Are you positive that they're possessed or whatever?” Asher said.

  Cole nodded.

  “Then they'll thank me for this.” He pulled out his wallet, produced two small pins, and pressed them into the doorknob.

  “What? You can pick locks?” Cole whispered.

  “Yep, been doing it since I was little. Useful little trick.” The handle turned and the door opened. “Voila.” He took a tentative step inside, Cole following.

  At the sound of them entering, Mr. and Mrs. Williams both stepped into the entrance hall. “You are breaking and entering,” Mr. Williams said angrily. “Leave immediately or we will call the police.”

  Cole ignored them and stepped closer, focusing on the memory of extracting the voices from Amy.

  Mrs. Williams took a step back, fear growing on her face. “Stay back!”

  They both turned to run. Cole latched onto Mrs. Williams' mind, and, reliving his previous extraction memory, encompassed the voices and dragged them out. However, unlike last time when he had brought them back into his own mind, as soon as they were outside of Mrs. Williams they vanished. Close enough, Cole thought, refocusing his attention on Mr. Williams. But Mr. Williams, halfway through a doorway, was oddly frozen in place. Cole looked beside him to Asher, whose face was screwed up in concentration.

  “I think... Yes, got it!” Asher said, excitedly. “Figured it out. Not bad, huh?”

  Mr. Williams, unfrozen now, rotated slowly back to them. Mrs. Williams stood unmoving, utter confusion etched across her face. “What is going on? Why did you break in? Why wouldn't I get the door for you? Where's Amy? Why did I turn you away?” Her mouth kept moving, but no sounds came out. Mr. Williams put a hand to his head and sat down against the wall.

  Cole inched toward them, his hands out in a passive gesture. “I know this is going to be really confusing for you right now, but what you need to focus on is that Amy is missing. Have either of you spoken to her or seen her today?”

  Mrs. Williams, eyes wide, shook her head. Mr. Williams met Cole's gaze and mumbled, “No.”

  “Okay, thank you,” Cole said. “I suggest you call the police about a missing person. We need to get going now.” He motioned to Asher to leave, and the two of them left the Williams behind, staring blankly.

  “Do you think they'll call the cops?” Asher said when they were out of earshot. “What will they think happened?”

  “I doubt they'll do or think anything. They'll most likely be taken over again as soon as they're alone. Until we extract the voices from Amy, they won't be safe.”

  “Damn, you weren't kidding,” Asher said. “This is serious. What's our next move?”

  “We should stake out the house and see if Amy does come home. My aunt, if she's willing to, can keep searching the streets.”

  Asher nodded. “Okay.”

  Cole used Asher's cell to call Beth to update her on the recent events, and to his surprise, she readily agreed to keep searching – after lunch. Asher parked the car a block away behind another car with a direct view of the Williams' house.

 
Asher leaned his seat back, getting comfortable for a long wait. “Hey, while we're waiting, you should give Michelle a call and see if she's all right.”

  “That's a really good idea,” Cole said, somewhat ashamed that he had not thought of it. He took back Asher's cell and dialed Michelle's house.

  “Hello?”

  “Hi, Michelle. It's Cole. I wanted to see how you were doing.”

  Her voice became irritated. “Yeah. I'm fine. Don't worry about me. I hope you're having fun with your crazy psycho friend.”

  “Not really,” Cole said, glancing sideways at Asher. “Did you see the article, though? Those kids got home safe.”

  “Yeah, I saw that. I am glad for that at least.”

  “I'm really sorry again about Friday. I hope there's something I can do to make it up to you.”

  “Look, I'm busy right now. I'll talk to you later, okay?”

  “Oh, yeah, sure. Talk to you later.” The line clicked dead, and Cole handed back the phone with a sigh.

  “Didn't go so well?” Asher said.

  “She still seems pretty upset, which is understandable. But she'll get over it.” He wished he knew that were true, and that he knew how to make it up to her. But seeing a murder was not something she was going to get over easily. He tried to focus his mind on the current task as the Amy situation was more urgent, but with nothing to do, his mind kept drifting back.

  As the day wore on, they asked Beth to cover for them while they went home to use the bathroom and get some food. When they returned, Cole told Beth that searching at this point was probably meaningless so she could go home.

  She nodded grimly. “Let me know if there's anything more to do.”

  “Thanks,” Cole said, appreciating her respect for the graveness of the situation.

  Asher and Cole resumed their post near the Williams' house. “Well,” Cole said as he settled back in his seat. “The fact that they have never left the house and the cops never showed up pretty much proves that they're being controlled again. Fantastic.”