On the beach, Lucy stood crushed with disappointment that mummy had missed her best throw.
Chapter Eleven
The children ran into the cabin excited after their stone throwing. Lucy was bubbling over, desperate to tell her mum what they had been doing. She skidded to a stop.
“Mummy, mummy I can bounce a stone five...” She dropped the stone she had been holding out and froze on the spot.
Chase was beside her, he stepped in front, his mouth open unable to speak. He was shaking, but he kept Lucy behind him and he backed away from Lauren. Steve walked in. His heart froze at the sight before him. The children stood shock still, their faces masks of fear. Their eyes were locked on Lauren. She was stood at the counter, her face, hands and hair smeared with blood. A large carving knife was in her right hand, which was also dripping blood onto the counter as she cut into the pastry.
“Lauren what the...?” Steve said, recovering he pulled the kids away and pointed them to the door. “Outside kids, now.”
As the kids stumbled towards the door, Lauren turned to face Steve. Confusion crossed her face, as if she did not know where he had come from. There was a wild look in her eyes and the knife flashed gleaming steel as she turned to face him. Steve walked towards her, his hands raised in supplication.
“Can’t I have five minutes peace to cook one bloody meal” Lauren snapped at him.
Lucy let out a high keening wail as she stopped in the doorway. Steve looked at Chase and the boy helped Lucy out of the cabin onto the deck.
“Honey, are you hurt?” Steve asked. His heart was in his throat, there was so much blood.
Lauren waved the knife in front of her as she stepped towards him. Steve finally took his eyes off the blood and noticed the knife. What was going on?
“Lauren the knife,” Steve said as he stepped towards her. She looked wild and changed her direction moving towards the doorway and the children outside. It was as if she didn’t see him. “Put the knife down honey,” Steve said urgency made his tone more forceful.
Lauren turned towards him. “What?” Her eyes seemed to change and her face crumpled with confusion. She turned and almost threw the knife onto the counter.
Steve jumped as it clattered on the side. “Honey, are you all right? Your face, the blood?” He was torn between running to the children who hovered in the doorway, and running to his wife.
Lauren looked down at her hands and laughed. “This, it’s just blood orange. Now you lot outside. I will bring drinks and dinner will be ready soon. Go on, off you go.” She shooed them away and turned back to the pie, blood orange and raspberry, one of her favorites.
Steve felt his heart return from his throat back into his chest. He took one last look at Lauren as she continued to work on the pie and then he herded the kids outside and sat them at the table. She had seemed wild as if she didn’t recognize them. What was going on?
Chase had an arm round Lucy, he squared his shoulders and said, “Dad you can’t put up with that.”
Steve felt incredibly tired, he wanted to sink into a hot bath and sleep for a week but he had to check on Lauren.
“Dad,” Chase prompted.
“Wait here, everything’s fine. Mum’s just a little tired.” He scanned their faces, Lucy looked scared, her bottom lip quivered and she clung on tight to Bunkie, but Chase was sat ramrod straight, determined to be brave. Steve smiled at them both. “I’ll just check on mum, you two wait here.” He stood up and walked back into the cabin.
***
As Steve walked into the cabin, Lauren had her back to him. She was covered in blood orange and her hair seemed straighter. He noticed the knife was near to her right hand, but she seemed to be happy was even humming something old fashioned. “What is going on?” he asked.
Lauren turned to him, a sweet expression on her face. She wiped her forehead and smeared the red orange across it, sending chills down his spine.
“I have to stay in the kitchen and then you keep bugging me,” Lauren said.
“What do you mean stay in the kitchen? You wanted to cook.”
She picked up the knife and held it in front of her face. “Can’t I have any peace?” she asked the wild look returning to her eyes.
Steve felt a stab in his chest, almost as if she had rammed the knife home, was it his heart? Or fear for Lauren? He did not know which. “Honey, we’ve been gone hours,” he said.
“No you haven’t.” She waved the knife at him, but he would not back down.
“It’s okay,” he said as soothingly as he could. “It’s all okay.”
She looked at him and then her eyes changed and her hair seemed to regain some of its spring, but Steve didn’t notice he only saw her put down the knife as a sparkle of tears formed in her eyes. “Have you?” she asked.
“Yes we have.” Steve pulled her into his arms, and felt her shake against him as he pulled her close. As he hugged her, he noticed black feathers poking out of the bin. Had she put the Raven in there? Surely not. “What’s this?” he asked.
“Nothing.” She pulled away from him looking stronger, more like her old self. A hand brushed subconsciously across her face. “You go look after the kids, I need to clean up and finish dinner, off you go now.”
Chapter Twelve
Steve sat at the table, twiddling his thumbs while the children played cards. They turned over each card mechanically the game had been going on forever and held little joy. Steve’s stomach growled with hunger and anger burned in his chest.
“How’s my Lucy Lockett?” Steve asked.
“I’m tired and hungry.”
“Me too,” Chase said.
Steve checked his watch it had been nearly an hour, what was she doing? “If mum’s not out in a minute, I’ll go help. But you know how she loves her time in the kitchen.” I’ll make them a sandwich if she’s not quick, damn her.
The kids mumbled but went back to their cards. They were just dealing another hand when the door opened, and Lauren walked out with a wonderful looking pie. Her face was clean; her hair up in a neat if old fashioned bun and she wore a smart blouse and skirt instead of her normal jeans. Steve breathed a sigh of relief; she looked okay, maybe it was just stress and she was fine.
She set the pie on the table. “Dad you start serving and I will get the vegetables.” She turned and walked back into the cabin.
Steve smiled at the kids and cut into the pie. It looked great but as the knife sliced through the golden pastry a smell of rot and decay seemed to emanate upwards.
“Wow dad, what’s that smell?” Chase asked.
Steve felt his stomach roil, and fought back a throat full of gorge as he served a piece of pie onto a plate. “I think it’s the pie.”
“I want cheesy, please dad,” Lucy said.
Steve jumped as Lauren placed a platter of corn cobs and some potatoes over his shoulder and onto the table. He stared at the pie, his hand poised over it with the knife.
“What’s the hold up?” Lauren asked.
Steve didn’t know what to do. Was the pie off? Was it some combination of herbs? Why hadn’t Lauren noticed? He hesitated but could see the anger building in her eyes. He served up small portions onto all the plates. It steamed on the white crockery, a golden pie with dark meat that looked wonderful but smelt like corruption. He quickly served two corn cobs and plenty of potatoes onto Lucy & Chase’s plates. “Who wants some cheese?” “Yes please, and me, me, me,” came from the kids.
“Eat up you pie?”Lauren served herself a quarter.
“Is it pheasant? It smells a bit... strong.”
Lauren looked as if she would fly at him and Steve braced for an onslaught. Instead, she picked up her plate with the foul smelling but steaming pie and went over to the rocking chair. “Eat up, it’s good for you,” she said and started to rock gently.
Steve let out a sigh and sat down. Lauren was happily tucking into her meal as she rocked gently. Steve could see the kids watching him, he smiled and bit into hi
s pie. “Bloody hell.” The meat tasted as rank as it smelt. It felt slimy and rotten, against his tongue, and seemed to coat the top of his mouth with corruption. His stomach contracted, and bile rose into his throat, he choked it back down and spat the pie onto his plate.
“That’s naughty,” Lucy said.
“Yes it is, sorry Pumpkin.”
Lauren sat in the chair rocking, eating the pie as if it was delicious, her expression one of rapture. Steve tried to swallow, to clear the taste, but the meat seemed stuck in his mouth, the smell and the taste brought bile up his throat and he almost through up onto his plate.
“Daddy,” Lucy said a shocked expression on her face.
He grabbed his wine glass and drunk deeply. Swilling the liquid around his mouth, he leaned over the edge of the deck and spat onto the grass. It took away some of the taste, but he could feel his stomach as it threatened to eject any contents. “Sorry Pumpkin.” He lowered his voice, why he didn’t know he should tell Lauren the pie was off, but something told him not to. “Don’t eat the pie, kids, it’s a bit strong.”
They shook their heads, looking a little strangely at their dad, who didn’t usually spit his food up onto his plate. Steve and the children pushed their pie round their plates and ate the vegetables. He kept watching Lauren, she happily chomped through the pie, was it just him? He wondered about letting one of the kids try a bit, but no they had smelt the corruption, it must just be off.
They had finished the vegetable. He gathered up the plates and took them to the kitchen before Lauren could see. He put them down on the side and got the ice-cream from the freezer. Chocolate Brownie should take away any residual taste. He decided to scrape away the remains of the pie and turned, to the bin. Lauren stood behind him, so close she was almost touching. Steve jumped and bumped his hip on the work surface. “Jesus.”
She picked up the children’s plates and walked across to the bin. Steve took in a deep breath and dished up ice-cream. He wondered whether to say anything about the pie, but decided against it. “Want any ice-cream?” he asked.
“You never finished your pie,” she said picking at the pie with a knife. Small white bugs could be seen nestled within the flesh.
“It was a bit strong. Why don’t we have some ice-cream and settle down with a bottle of wine?”
Lauren stepped on the pedal, and the bin lid flipped open. She tipped the remains of the pie on top of the raven’s bones, stripped of all the rotting meat, and feathers.
Steve stepped towards her. She dropped the bin lid before he could see. “How about that glass of wine?” he asked.
Lauren spun towards him. “You ungracious pig of a man. I work hard to put food on the table, and you throw it away and want dessert.” She pushed him away from her and swept the empty plates off the table. They CRASHED onto the floor. At the noise, she changed. She stood before him looking vulnerable, and almost in tears.
The kids charged into the kitchen. Lucy was crying. She looked at her mum and ran at Steve and kicked his ankle. “You shouldn’t make mum sad,” she said through her tears.
Steve rubbed his ankle. “Thanks bud, you’re right.”
Lauren put her arms around the children and led them from the cabin. Steve looked at the mess, the broken plates, and the empty pie dish, which still smelt rotten. He rubbed his hands through his hair, what was happening? He bent down and picked up the broken plates. Dumping them into the bin, He could see feathers beneath the pie, had she put the Raven in there? Now why would she do that? He grabbed the bag and tied it closed and walked out to the main bin. As he dumped the offending bag, he sighed. What was going on with Lauren? If it was just the stress, would it be better to keep the cabin?
Steve stood on the deck. Chase was reading his book, his head down his soft brown curls across his face. Lauren sat in the rocking chair. Lucy curled up on her knee. They looked wonderful. A scene to melt his heart but it scared him.
Lauren looked across at him; her golden hair cascaded against her cheek, her face was calm, she was his Lauren. She whispered, “Sorry.”
He nodded and sat down at the table. He pulled his mobile from his pocket and checked -- no signal. In front of him, Lauren and Lucy rocked, and Lauren started to sing. She sang the lullaby Mocking Bird in a sweet, melodious voice. Steve watched them relaxing and enjoying the night, but his muscles tensed, something was wrong.
He got up and walked away from the cabin, to one side was a small hill. He climbed up the slippery grass. The exercise caused his heart to pound, and he stopped to rest, peering back over the cabin he could see the lake beyond and all around forest and wilderness. When he reached the summit, he took out the mobile again. He still had no signal, with a sigh he headed back to the cabin.
***
Lauren rocked Lucy in the chair. Her hair was straighter and maybe a little shorter. She held the girl tight hugging her to her chest.
“Too tight,” Lucy said.
Lauren ignored her and continued to rock. Lucy struggled in her arms, but she was clamped to her mum and could not move. The chair rocked backwards and forwards, faster now. Lucy struggled more, finding it hard to draw breath she was desperate to escape.
Chase jumped up from the table. He darted across the deck and planted a punch on his mum’s arm. “You’re just being mean.”
The chair stopped, dead, and Lauren rose from it in one smooth movement. Lucy tumbled from her arms and thumped onto the deck. She cried as she hit, bruising her shoulder. Chase rushed to his sister. “Leave her alone.” His eyes flashed anger.
Lauren crossed towards him. Her face a blank mask. She grabbed Chase by the throat and tossed him against the cabin. He hit hard and slid down the wall to land on the wooden deck. Lauren walked towards him. Her face was menacingly empty.
“Mummy, please, don’t,” Lucy called.
Lauren bent over Chase. He shrank back against the wall. All he could see was her fist coming down towards his face. Behind it, her eyes were a cold icy blue and manic. The fist rushed towards his head.
“Mummy,” Lucy shrieked.
Steve ran onto the deck. “What’s going on?”
Lauren’s face cleared. She opened her fist and reached down to Chase, offering him a hand and helping him up. “Chase slipped, nothing’s going on,” she said as she turned and walked back to the chair.
Chapter Thirteen
Lauren hummed as she moved around the kitchen. Her hair and make-up were beautiful, and a scarf hung neatly around her neck.
Steve walked into the kitchen on edge. She had been up when he woke, and he was unsure how she would react. He dropped into a chair and ran a hand across his stubble. “Morning,” he said.
She walked over and kissed his cheek. “Morning sweetie. You slept well.”
Steve breathed a sigh of relief, maybe she was fine now. “Actually I was hours dropping off.”
“Well of course I’m wrong again.” She turned and stormed back to the counter.
“No, that’s not what I meant.”
“It never is, is it?”
“What,” Steve asked.
She was stood her back against the solid wooden counter top, her hands on her hips. A look of pure contempt on her face, she opened her mouth to answer, and the kids walked in. Lucy had Bunkie clutched in her hands. She looked tired. Her hair was still mussed up from sleep, and her eyes were hardly open. “Mummy don’t upset Daddy,” she said and stumbled over to the table.
Chase gave his dad an angry look before sitting down and putting his head straight into his book.
Steve felt like the world was falling out from under him, as if reality was spinning him round until his head buzzed, and his stomach threatened to disgorge any contents.
“Now, my two little pumpkins who wants pancakes?” Lauren asked. She looked normal again, relaxed and easygoing if a little old-fashioned.
Lucy bounced up and down on her seat. “Lucy Loo wants pancakes for two.” Lucy giggled at her own joke and jumped onto her dad’s
knee. He kissed her and held her tight while he tried to watch Lauren without her noticing.
“Have we any syrup?” Chase’s eyes never left his book.
“If your dad bothered to pack it,” Lauren cracked eggs into a bowl.
Steve stood up and put Lucy into her own chair. He checked the cupboard. “Treacle or raspberry?”
“Both,” Lucy said her cheeks pink with excitement.
“That’s gross, just treacle,” Chase said.
Lauren served the pancakes and sat down to eat her own. She seemed calm and normal, but her eyes kept flicking to the door with the deck beyond it. It was making Steve nervous. It was as if she was sharing secret glances with someone out there.
Chase tucked into his pancake. His book closed for now. “Are we going on the lake Dad?”
“I’m not sure. What does Mum want to do?”
Her eyes flared ice-cold. “I thought I was getting some time to cook. Go on the lake. Just keep out of my way.”
Steve felt a tension in his back, why was she being like this. “That’s settled then, as soon as breakfast’s over get your life jackets and off we go.”
The kids both pushed their half empty plates away and ran to their rooms.
“That’s enough,” Steve said. “You can whine at me all you want, but leave them out of it.”
Lauren stared back as if she had no idea what he was saying. Her eyes seemed to clear, and she noticed the kids half finished breakfasts. She looked confused. “What happened?”
“Never mind,” Steve said grabbing the kid’s plates he walked out of the cabin.
***
The children sat with their life jackets next to them. They had finished their breakfast and were waiting for their dad. They looked unhappy. Both had their eyes down; their heads bowed.
Steve walked out of the cabin with his arm around Lauren. They looked awkward as they stood before the kids.
“Mummy just wants a bit of peace. So you two spend a few minutes with her, while I get the fishing gear,” Steve said.
Daddy Won't Kill You (An Occult Horror) Page 4