Beth went to scavenge through the basement to fetch some rope while Cole stood over Asher, the bat at the ready. Asher rolled onto his side and groaned. He turned his head to look up at Cole, a mixture of pain and hatred on his face.
“Don't even think about it,” Cole said, lifting the bat higher.
“That really hurt,” he whispered. He raised his hand to his head, and winced. “Ow, that's a huge lump.”
“You deserved it. Now tell me what's really going on. Where's Michelle? Is Amy going after her?”
Asher's eyes narrowed. A bolt of pain shot through Cole, but not at the level of the previous attack. Fighting through the pain, gritting his teeth, he swung the bat down, connecting with Asher's stomach. Asher doubled up, coughing, and the attack subsided.
“Did you seriously just attack me again?” Cole said. “You really are an asshole.”
“I know.” He coughed again.
“Are you going to tell me what's going on or am I going to have to hit you again?”
Asher winced. “You don't have to hit me again. Yes, Amy is going after Michelle, but if it went according to plan, then you're too late. And someone with that kind of power isn't likely to mess up.”
“Too late?!” A pang of fear shot through Cole. “What do you mean? What is she doing?”
“I'm sorry, man, but she was going to rat on me. I can't go to jail. It would ruin the rest of my life. She brought this on herself.”
An uncontrollable rage welled up inside of Cole. He lifted the bat behind him, ready to smash Asher's skull until the life drained out of him. Asher closed his eyes and shied away, bracing himself for the impact, and lifting his arms to protect himself. Cole was about to swing when Beth's hand landed on his shoulder, breaking his instinctual attack.
“What did I say about not murdering people?” Beth said. “Here, I have the rope, and this one is a lot stronger than what you used for Amy. Help me tie him to this pole.”
Cole's shoulders drooped. “Let's hurry up. Michelle has to be all right. She has to be.”
They dragged Asher over to the support beam in the basement. Neither of them knew how to tie someone up, so to be certain he wouldn't escape they triple-knotted the rope and tested the bonds thoroughly. When they were satisfied, they turned to go, but were interrupted by a cellphone ringer. It was coming from Asher's pocket.
“Expecting someone?” Cole said.
Asher didn't answer. Cole pulled the phone out of his pocket and checked the caller. It was Amy. His heart began to beat faster as he answered the call.
“Amy? Is Michelle all right? Whatever Asher said to make you do this, we can work it out. You don't have to do this.”
“So, I guess this means he couldn't do it,” came the reply. “Tell me, was it because he wimped out or did you kill him?”
“Asher is alive. Tell me where you are and we'll come talk about it, okay?”
The line went dead.
“Dammit!” Cole shouted, flinging the phone across the room where it thudded into the side of a box and clattered to the floor. “Come on, we have to go. Now!” He flew up the stairs out of the basement, Beth struggling to keep pace.
“Where are we going?” Beth said.
“We'll start at Michelle's house. That's the most likely place they'll be. Drive as fast as you can.”
Together, they bolted out of the house and into the car. Beth drove as she had never driven before, flying around corners and doing thirty miles per hour over the speed limit. Cole was thankful that she appreciated the urgency of the situation and prayed that a cop would not pull them over. He focused on positive thoughts but that did not stop his mind from wandering to the horrific possibilities of what awaited him.
Michelle, if you can hear this, we’re coming, he thought-said as he pictured her aura. We’ll find you and protect you.
As they neared Michelle's house, Cole's heart sank, and dread crept up his spine. Flashing lights greeted them from her block, blue and red atop a police car. A tow truck was there as well, pulling the wreckage of a car off the curb. Cole's heart sank further as he recognized the car as Michelle's mother's.
“No, no, no, no,” he whispered.
Beth pulled next to a police officer and rolled down her window. “What happened here?” she asked the officer. “We're friends of the family.”
“Car accident. Mother and daughter in the car. Mother was taken to the hospital but the daughter mysteriously vanished. The father is looking for her, brother went with the mother.”
“Thank you,” Beth said and drove off.
Mom, can you find Michelle? Cole asked.
Yes, I will search. What Meredith did not mention was that she could only find someone who was still alive. It was best to stay optimistic, though she had little hope. This day had gone completely out of control. She wished she had been able to warn Cole ahead of time, but it had caught her as much by surprise as anyone.
While Beth drove, Meredith panned out, searching for any sign of Michelle. Before they had traveled far, though, it was Cole who shouted suddenly, “I found her! Stop the car!”
You found her? Meredith thought-said. How? Where?
She has a very distinct aura. I'm not sure why but I found that out at school. That must mean she's alive!
Yes, she likely is.
Beth stopped the car and Cole jumped out, sprinting toward the aura that filled his mind as he concentrated on it. Like a beacon, it led him down a driveway into someone's backyard. Once behind the house, he knew she was close, but could not exactly pinpoint her.
“Michelle? Michelle, are you here?”
There came a rustling from behind a bush, and Michelle emerged, shaken but unharmed. “Oh, Cole, thank God.” Choking back tears, she hugged Cole tightly. “You have no idea how happy I am to see you. I heard your message and it gave me hope. Do you know if my mom is okay?”
“I don't know. She was taken to the hospital and your dad is looking for you. What happened?”
“It was so crazy, I don't even know. She made my mom crash with that mental attack that Asher did. I've been back here so long, hiding from Amy. She was after me and I thought she must have seen me come back here, but I was trapped so I hid. I heard her coming up the driveway, saying something, and then I didn’t hear her anymore. How does she have those abilities too? Why was she after me? I thought I was going to die. I was so scared. Oh, God.” Tears ran down her cheeks and she wiped them away. Before Cole could find a place to begin answering her questions, she continued, “I need to find my dad and get to the hospital. You can explain everything on the way. Do you think she's still after me? I don't know why she left.”
Cole took a hold of Michelle's shoulders and looked into her eyes. “You need to know that Amy was not responsible for this. It's Asher. It was all Asher. You'll be safe for now. I think I know what happened. I'll explain later but you were right about him. You go make sure your mom is okay while I go deal with him.”
“Okay.” Michelle nodded and sniffed. “I told you I didn't like that guy.”
“Seems like everyone has. I am really sorry about this. I feel like it's my fault. I hope your mom is all right. Call my aunt's cellphone when you get to the hospital.”
They returned from the backyard to the street where they found Beth out of her car, halfway across the street to come find them. “She's okay,” Cole said, and Beth's face showed a clear sign of relief.
“Yes, I'm okay,” Michelle said. “Thank you for coming to find me.” She turned to Cole. “Are you sure I won't be attacked again?”
“No. You won't. I can explain later, but right now I need to go.”
“All right, I'll call you.” She hurried away to the police officer so she could find her father and leave with him to the hospital.
“How do you know she won't be attacked again?” Beth said as they drove away. “Amy is still out there.”
“It will be easier to explain once we get back to Asher.”
Cole, I hav
e an idea what to do about Amy, but you're not going to like it, Meredith thought-said.
That's an ominous thing to say. What is it? When Meredith told him, he said, You're right, I don't like it. It's risky as hell. He hesitated. But if you think it will work, we have to try it. I don't know what else to do.
Be careful what you say and it should be fine.
I can't believe how stupid I was to ever consider not getting rid of the voices. These abilities are not worth it. They need to go. Now.
I'll get the other voices ready. Everyone in here is onboard. We'll be waiting for the right moment.
Good, let's hope this works, and out loud he added, “We'd better have tied him up well enough.”
“We checked every knot thoroughly. There's no way he got out,” Beth said.
Despite the reassuring words, Cole remained apprehensive for the ride home. When they arrived, Cole dashed into the house, and paused at the top of the basement stairs. He took a deep breath, hoping Asher was still there, and further hoping that Asher would not kill him before he got out what he needed to say.
“I'm coming down,” Cole called into the dimness. “Do not attack. If you do, you will starve to death down there. There's something I have to say. And believe me, you're going to want to hear me out.”
There was no reply. Heart pounding, Cole placed one foot tentatively on the first step. It creaked loudly in the silence.
Beth appeared beside him with the bat. “I've got your back.”
They crept down the rest of the steps, blinking to let their eyes adjust to the gloom. As they neared the bottom, they took a quick survey of their surroundings. Asher was as they had left him, tied to the support beam, more conscious but also more irritated.
“Took you long enough,” he said. “These things really hurt you know, and I'm starting to lose all feeling in my arms. Can you loosen them?”
“Not until we know we can trust that you won't attack me again,” Cole said.
“I swear, I won't. It was stupid of me and I've learned my lesson.”
“Yeah, that's not gonna cut it. Listen, I know the deal you made with Amy. You wanted Michelle gone so she couldn't go to the police. In exchange, you offered to take care of me since I was making trouble for the voices and was the only real threat to their continued control over Amy. Am I close so far?” He took Asher's silence as a confirmation of his suspicions. “Good, then am I also right in assuming that you helped her escape? You planned the whole thing out together telepathically while I was sleeping.”
“She didn't have to hit me so hard,” Asher grumbled. “I told her to make it seem realistic but I didn't know she'd take it that far. That hurt like hell.”
“Wasn't hard enough, if you ask me,” Beth said, but Asher ignored her comment.
“I knew she couldn't have untied her ankle that easily without either of us noticing,” Cole said, proud of putting the clues together. “So, this leaves you in an awkward position. You didn't hold up your end of the bargain, and Amy did not appreciate that.”
“Michelle is still alive, isn't she? I knew that's why Amy called. She was waiting to make sure I followed through.”
“Yes, Michelle is alive, no thanks to you. And that's why you're the one in danger now.”
“What do you mean? So I didn't get what I wanted. She can continue to hold Michelle over me as a bargaining chip, or she can take you out herself easily enough. But either way, this was just the first step. We're a team now.”
Cole shook his head, nearly smiling at Asher's naiveté. “No, not anymore. It's so much worse than that. This was a test for you. The voices wanted me out of the way since I was a threat, but you were helping them so they gave you a chance. But now that you showed you can't be trusted, you're a threat to them too. A bigger one, actually, since you have more control over your abilities than me. She's going to come after both of us now. And I would bet it's going to be really soon.”
“That's absurd.” Asher laughed, though Cole could see the gears turning in his head. “You're just trying to make me help you again. Even if what you said is true, all I have to do is kill you and Amy and I are back to buddy buddy.”
Cole knew he was likely right, but he couldn't let that show. His upper hand was confidence. “Call her and find out.” He stepped to where he had flung Asher's phone earlier and picked it up. “Still works.” He saw Asher hesitate, deciding what would be his best move, while Beth's eyes flicked back and forth between the two of them.
“Dial her and hold the phone to my ear,” Asher said.
It was Cole's turn to hesitate. He had calculated that this was his best course of action, but it was not without risk. He was uncertain what Amy would say over the phone, and it could very well spell doom for him. He wondered if Asher could attack Beth and him at the same time. If that was possible, they stood little chance now that Asher had recovered.
“Aunt Beth, guard him closely and do not hesitate to swing if he pulls anything.” Cole dialed Amy's number and held the phone to Asher's ear, though he leaned in close to hear what was being said on both ends.
“I wondered if you'd call back,” Amy answered.
“Will you still take care of Michelle if I take care of Cole?” Asher said in his toughest voice, ignoring the glare from Cole and the threatening gesture from Beth.
Cole was ready to interrupt the conversation when Amy responded. “It may be too late for that now. I don't know who Michelle has told at this point. All I know is that she left with her family and a police officer to go to the hospital because her dear mother suffered an accident.”
“You can't let her tell anyone.” Asher began to turn red.
“How about I come to you and we discuss things? I'm already on my way. Be there in a minute!” She sounded cheery but with a hint of malice.
Amy hung up and the three of them were silent, their gazes all moving toward the door to the first floor.
“I told you she wasn't going to let this go,” Cole said. “Your only chance is to help me rid her of the voices, and I think I have a way.”
Asher turned his gaze toward Cole, barely containing his rage and frustration. “I don't want to hear your stupid plan. She's coming here to talk and I'm going to kill you in front of her to convince her to hold up her end of the bargain.”
“It's too late for that. You really think Michelle hasn't told anyone by now? Sorry, but your secret is out of the bag. And trust me, Amy isn't coming here to talk.”
“Even if you're right, she can't hurt me. I can repel her and she can't repel me. If she tries anything, she'll be the one in danger.”
That thought had occurred to Cole, and he hoped that Amy had some trick up her sleeve to deal with Asher. From her confident tone during their recent conversation, he knew she probably did. “Guess we'll find out soon enough. But until then, you're going to listen to my plan.” He conveyed the simple plan that he prayed would work, since he had no backup. To Cole's relief, Asher listened, though grudgingly.
“That's a dumb plan,” Asher said. “Here's what your plan should be. Run. Run as fast as you can before Amy gets here and you might stand a chance. I'll give you this one -”
He was cut off by the distant sound of a doorbell. Instinctively, all three of them froze, their gaze returning to the upstairs door. There was a long pause and then came the sound of the front door slamming.
“You left it unlocked?” Cole said to Beth.
“I had a boy tied up in my basement. I wasn't thinking about whether or not the door was locked,” Beth said, halfway between sarcasm and desperation.
“Shh.” Cole strained to hear the noises coming from the floor above them. “Do you hear more than one set of footsteps?” Beth nodded, and an added pang of fear shot through Cole's already worried mind. “Do you think it's...?”
His sentence trailed off as the basement door opened and the first set of footsteps began to descend. Cole, Beth and Asher all held their breath as they watched a pair of legs taking each
step calmly, which was followed by another and then another and then another.
22
Four people? Cole thought. What the hell?
You have to assume they are all under the control of the voices, Meredith replied. Since these people are all emotionally close to Amy, it's likely the voices haven't been able to embed themselves in anyone but her. Which means if we extract the voices from her, the rest should return to normal too. This may be our best chance to eradicate all of them at once.
Yeah, or die.
Positive thoughts, Cole. We can do this together.
Cole wished he shared his mother's optimism, or rather, her faked optimism. He doubted she could be very confident in the circumstances.
The first head appeared low enough for him to see. It was Amy. Behind her were two taller people who he assumed were the Williams. Cole gasped when he saw the person bringing up the rear. It was none other than Martin, looking more laid back than Cole had ever seen him.
The four of them reached the basement level. A long moment passed. Cole's head was in too much of a whirlwind to wrap itself around any complete thoughts or to remember what the plan was supposed to be. It all seemed so pathetic and hopeless now.
Asher was the first to break the silence. “Are you controlling all of these people?”
Amy nodded. “Impressed?”
“Damn...” Asher paled, and a flicker of doubt passed across his face. “Listen, I'll kill Cole right now. That's what you wanted isn't it?”
“No, I made a stupid mistake teaming up with you,” Amy said. “You were powerful so I thought you could be an asset, but take a look.” She gestured toward the Williams and Martin who were standing there patiently as if uninterested by the events unfolding in front of them. “This is just the start. I can control as many weak-minded people as I want. So what would I need a wild card like you for? Unless you can give me a good answer, I'm afraid you won't be leaving this basement.”
Asher fought to keep his growing fear hidden. “You can't hurt me. You know that. If you try anything, I will hurt you.”
Voices in the Night (The Dark Mind Trilogy Book 3) Page 21