Secrets, Murder and Lies

by R. J. Adams

  I shake my head, “I don’t know what you’re talking about.”

  “Oh of course not, a sweet innocent little virgin like you knows nothing,” she rambles, “well, your father, the one that ‘abandoned’ you she emphasises, “didn’t quite just up and leave like your lying bitch of a mother told you, oh no, you see, your mother made him leave when he fell in love with me.”

  I almost vomit in my mouth, am I hearing this right? Is she trying to tell me that she and my father had some sort of love affair? “You’re lying,” I mumble.

  “Oh am I really?” her sarcasm increases, “let me tell you a little story, once upon a time, a man much older fell in love with a school girl. He bought her presents and lavished attention on her, but one day, the evil queen found out about his love for her and gave him a choice, prison or leave, so the beautiful man left the love of his life, never to be seen from again. Like mother like daughter.”

  “My god,” I scream out, “you actually expect me to believe this bullshit? What did I ever take from you?”

  “It’s true, and you stole Jack,” she shouts, “you have no idea what we shared, he never fucked me but his love was enough. And then there is sweet Jack, he loved me first and then you came along and stole him from me, he was mine and you took him.”

  My god, this bitch is delusional! My father loved me too but I’m not screaming about a love affair. And Jack? When the fuck did he love her?

  “Then having to live with the bitch after I killed my slut of a mother and Joe, well....that pissed me right off. Pretending to care about me whilst I was ‘insane,’ so I came up with a plan, no-one is going to believe a crazy person are they,” she smirks, “no-one is going to think the quiet girl who is so devastated by her parents death would ever hurt a fly.”

  “Oh my god,” I whisper the words barely coming out of my mouth, “you killed my mother? Because of some crazy fantasy, she did everything for you.”

  “Like what, rub her happy life in my face,” she snaps at me holding a knife to my throat.”

  “Happy? You think our or her life was happy? My father left and then we had to fucking look after you.”

  “Yes well,” she pulls back, “that was all part of the plan. You see, my slut of a mother ruined my fucking life when Joe chose her. After he fucked me of course,”

  “You mean you raped him,” I blurt out.

  “No, what we did was love, pure fucking love that you know nothing about, anyway, they had to go but I couldn’t kill Joe, no instead I wanted him to suffer like he made me suffer, now he is going to die, isn’t my plan great,” she chirps as if this is the most wonderful and cleverest thing anyone could do.

  I cannot believe Joe was right, and my visions of helping him, someone actually wanted me to help him. Mark comes back into the room with a bag, he pulls out a gun and a knife covered in blood, oh my fuck, is that the knife they used to kill my mother?

  “Did you kill my mother too,” I snap at him, “what fucking role do you play in all this.”

  “I love you,” his voice sounds so devoted, he actually believes his own words, “I did all this for you, for us, so we could be together,” he says stroking my face.

  “But how,” I sob.

  “Oh she wants to know how, well little princess, it isn’t hard to change your identity, steal a house and then impose as someone. It’s so easy, just hanging around in the right uniform and no-one asks questions. You didn’t even notice the lie.”

  Okay, so I didn’t know at first but I know now and she doesn’t even know I went to the police station. Sure it will flag up I was panicking and asking about an officer who doesn’t exist? Surely an officer would think it strange and certainly raise concern, ‘please’ I pray in my head ‘please let them come.’

  “How, I sw things Sophia, you levitating when I come to see you, explain that,” I shout at her pulling on the ties to try and break them.

  She laughs, “oh, it’s amazing what you can do with some rope and another person helping you, you were so scared though.”

  So Mark helped her do that? Wait a minute, she didn’t escape, he posed as a policeman and they believed him, that’s how she fucking got out!

  I have no phone and I am tied up. Both of them start arguing, Sophia wants to kill me but Mark still thinks I am going to be with him.

  If I am going to stay alive, I guess I have to play along right? “Wait,” I call out to them both as they leave the room, “he is right Sophia, I do want to be with him.”

  I see the joy on his face as he pushes passed her to get to me, he leans over me almost crying, “do you mean that?”

  “Of course,” I gulp putting on a brave face, “I mean, I was a fool all these years, but these last few days, even though I didn’t know it was you, have been so special to me. You have been amazing and wonderful and I began to fall for you and just got scared, I have been hurt before I didn’t want you to hurt me too.”

  He kisses me so hard and to keep it up I kiss him back. Bile rises in my mouth as his wet lips swarm all over mine but I cannot let him think I don’t want this, I need to stay alive.

  He is crazy and besotted with me; he isn’t going to see I don’t love him because all he wants is to be with me. He sees me as the love of his life, even if Sophia tells him I don’t him he won’t believe it, he wants to believe that I want him.

  He unties me, “hug me Rayne, I need your love around me,” he holds his arms out and I fall into them, trying to be as loving as possible without being sick.

  I look at Sophia who rolls her eyes at me and then pushes me off him, “as if bitch, you are going to die you know why?”

  I look at her and shake my head, why does she want me dead so badly? What did I ever do to her? All this stuff she is claiming I did is all in her imagination.

  “You see your ‘father’ who loved me, has left everything to your mother and in the event of her death then you. Don’t you see, you inherit two point five million plus the house, by the way it’s the one you used to live in that you moved out of?”

  I look at her confused, “how do you even know that? We moved out of that house when my father left.”

  “Yes, but daddy dearest owned it and never sold it, leaving it to his ‘broken hearted’ wife and abandoned daughter. The money comes from a trust fund your mother was to keep hold of and surprise you on your 21st birthday, it comes from the sale of your daddy’s company, oh and by the way, he died....terribly.”

  Is she now admitting she killed my father too? Joe was right, she might not been as ill as she first claimed but she seriously is mentally disturbed in some way.

  “How the hell do you think you will even see a penny of that money,” I ask her abruptly.

  “Because when you die, as your darling mother signed a legal document to be my guardian, all her things then go to me, including the money.”

  She has this all figured out, she destroyed my family and for what? Because she has some made up fantasy and then it didn’t go her way.

  I’ve heard enough of this bullshit, I jump up and push passed her, as she falls over I quickly pull the door shut and lock it, running through some dirty hallway until I find another door.

  I run up the stairs as fast as I can trying to block every door behind me, I need to find someone.

  Chapter 17

  I run to the front door but it’s locked. I see a car in the drive way, which must be Sophia’s, was she here the whole time or did she come after? I hadn’t noticed it when I arrived.

  I run around the house trying to look for a way out but Sophia manages to catch up with me, as I head for the kitchen I pull down units just to try and slow her down.

  In the kitchen the dark figure appears next to the knife stand. I pull out a knife and as Sophia runs towards me I stab her I have no idea where but I don’t stay around to find out.

  Mark appears and I have nowhere left to run. Like an idiot I run into the bedroom and lock myself in. But it doesn’t work for long; the door i
s made out of wood which with some force he breaks open.

  “You are mine,” his voice rumbles, he runs at me and grabs me, throwing me onto the bed. I scream but no-one helps me. He tries to rip my jeans off and hurts himself on the zip which causes him to lash out and slap me.

  He hits me so hard that my head is once again fuzzy. I feel something and before I know it, he is inside me. I don’t want this, please can someone help me.

  Just as I wished for, something throws him off me; I look up and see a figure. Is it the black figure? It seems to be a man, he scoops me up and goes to run outside but then there is a bang.

  Falling to the floor I realise the bang, was a gun. Trying to focus I look and see a man lying on the floor, it’s Jack. He looks up at me clearly in pain.

  “Oh my god how did you even get in here?” I grab him holding him tight but Mark comes out of the room, “she’s my fucking girl,” he shoots again but misses.

  Jack and I scramble to our feet with him leaning on me and we try to make a run through the door, shots firing behind us as we try and flee.

  Jack falls as blood pours from his leg, “Run Rayne,” he begs, “don’t worry about me, get the fuck out of here and call for help, run now,” he orders.

  I look at him, this man has come to save me and he thinks I’m going to leave him here? “I’m not going to leave you, I love you.” His head rests on mine and for a moment, the world falls silent. In this tiny second, it is just us.

  Mark catches up to us and kicks Jack in the head knocking him unconscious. I scream out to wake him but he doesn’t move.

  I scream as loud as I can but even I know there are no neighbours that will hear me, this house is in the middle of nowhere hidden among the bushes at the end of a dead end street.

  Mark carries me back into the house, leaving Jack outside to die from his wound. I kick and scream but no help comes.

  He takes me to the bedroom and once again ties me up, this time to the chair. He paces back and forth, “no, no I cannot do that, she loves me,” he says to himself, tapping the gun on his forehead.

  The room freezes over and I can suddenly see my own breath. I look at Mark who appears to be walking in slow motion, I feel an icy cold touch on my arm and as I look, there it is the black figure.

  “Help me,” I beg whoever it is floating beside me, hiding in the darkness.

  ‘Be strong, I am here, you can do this’ it whispers ‘his weakness is his love and obsession for you, use it.’

  Use it? I have to pretend once again that I am in love with him? The man practically fucking raped me and I have to pretend I love him? Mental he is yes but is he stupid? Will he fall for that a second time?

  I put my head down and I sob trying to get his attention, muttering under my breath “I loved you and you hurt me, how could you do this to me.”

  “What,” he looks over and comes to his knees in-front of me, “what did you say?”

  “I said I loved you and you hurt me, how could you do this to me Mark, I was so scared and I ran away from her and you were supposed to protect me but instead you attacked me.”

  His face saddens, “I thought, oh my god Rayne, I love you, of course I love you, but I fear you do not love me, show me you love me please,” he begs rubbing his face against mine.

  Oh my god, he wants me to show him that I love him? Does he want me to give myself to him? Have sex? Oh my god, Jack is outside bleeding to death and I’m tied to a chair, my mind is racing and Mark is just staring at me. I feel sick!

  “If you want me to show you, you need to untie me,” I tell him, fluttering my eyes as best I can.

  Without hesitation he unties the ropes that are digging into my wrist and pulls me up against him. Am I actually going to have sex with him just to save my own life?

  I feel sick at the thought, feel like a prostitute, how can I do this and make it seem real? I cannot even bring myself to kiss him like I want him let alone open my legs to him.

  His lips press against mine and I try not to pull away. I kiss him back, looking around the room for something, anything to help me out of this situation.

  I once again see the dark figure, it’s face, I see it’s face and the face is red with anger. I try to pull away from Mark but his kisses become more intense and deeper.

  He pushes me against the wall, his desire and lust building in his loins, I feel his erection against me but he doesn’t sense I do not want him.

  Tears stream down my face as Mark pushes more and more against me. The black shadow moves closer, it’s glaring red eyes piercing mine.

  Before I can scream, Mark is flung across the room and knocked unconscious. The figure looks at me, standing there floating not making a sound. I see this as my chance to run.

  Running back outside I look for Jack, he is still lying in the ground, and blood pours from his leg. “Jack, Jack wake up please,” I shake him.

  I feel like I am shaking the life out of him and finally he coughs, looking dazed he grips me, “Rayne?” He mumbles croaky.

  I breathe a sigh of relief, “Jack you need to get up,” I pull on him but then I hear my name being shouted.

  “Rayne you fucking bitch, I’m going to kill you,” Sophia shouts.

  I scramble in Jack’s pockets looking for his phone. I find it and dial 911 as quickly as I can. The operator answers within seconds; I look around and cannot see Sophia anywhere. “911 what’s your emergency?”

  “Yes, hello, please, please help me,” I whisper terrified, “they’re trying to kill us,”

  “Sorry Ma’am, did you say someone is trying to kill you?”

  “Yes,” I snap, “there are two of them one of us has been shot and I have been raped, please help,”

  “Ma’am can you get somewhere safe to hide?”

  I look around but it’s an open land even if I hid behind a tree they will find me, “no I’m outside right now but they’re coming, I’m at....”

  “There you are,” I hear as something grabs my hair and drags me through the mud.

  I kick and scream as Jack call’s out to me, he too is then dragged by something. I get thrown in the house and my head bangs against the wall. I feel a sharp shooting pain in my leg, I look down and there sticking out of leg is a knife.

  “Now try and run away again bitch,” Sophia angrily breathes at me. She ties me to a chair whilst cupping the wound on her side. I didn’t get her as well as I’d hoped; clearly it’s just a scratch and nothing more.

  She lights all the candles and pulls out a book, she begins to chant in a language I have never heard. Does she really believe in the devil? I thought it was an act, she admitted the levitation wasn’t real, what the fuck is she doing?

  Jack is thrown next to me on the floor, bound and gagged. He looks up at me, his beaten and battered face covered in blood, I want to lean down and kiss but I too am gagged.

  Mark walks over to me, a strange look of madness and lust on his face and with one quick swing he slaps me, hard!

  His ring cuts the side of my temple and blood begins to drip down my face. He picks me up and slams me into the wall, his eyes look deep into mine, then he kisses me but I turn away. He then gags me and throws me back onto the floor.

  Sophia stands with her back towards me and raises her hands, “it’s amazing what you can get when you open your mind and sell your soul. I don’t need my soul, but I do need to get what I want.”

  Hang on a minute, didn’t she say she planned all of this, like a sane person, well not exactly sane but she made out this was her own doing. A plan between her and Mark?

  She turns to face me, “keeping up appearances,” she smiles evilly, “bringing the evil into our world to get rid of you.”

  Suddenly, the black figure appears, Sophia turns and sees it. She starts to step back, seemingly afraid of what she is seeing, is it here for me, or for her?

  Chapter 18

  It edges towards her, I have no idea what she sees but I see white eyes once again. Bright shiny whit
e eyes, like light bulbs in the darkness.

  Is this really happening right now? Anyone with a sane mind would wonder if what they are seeing is real. I’m not even sure if it’s real, I thought I saw things that were not true, but as the figure edges towards Sophia, ‘some things are smoke and mirrors’ that woman’s words echo in my head.

  I look down at Jack, he is looking at Sophia and clearly he sees something, his face is frozen in fear. I feel the gag around my mouth and the ropes around my hands become lose, I don’t know what’s happening but I don’t care.

  With my hands free I bend down and grab Jack. I wrap the ties from my wrist around his leg to try and stop the bleeding and one around my leg.

  Wind picks up in the tiny run down room. I realise the black figure I have been seeing over and over is here for her and not for me.

  The woman was right, sometimes ghosts are here to help us, but who is this person or ghost so willing to help me?

  “What the fuck are you?” Sophia screams out above the sounds of the wind, but it says nothing. It moves over and stands in-front of me.

  The room begins to shake. Mark tries to run out of the door but its jammed shut. Fear fills his face and he breaks down, like a total sissy.

  Not one part of me feels sorry for him, I clutch onto Jack as he does me, he doesn’t say a word as he watches the strange happenings unfold before his eyes.

  Sophia gets thrown across the room with such force she ends up in another room. A big hole appears in the in the wall and as I look up, I can see some sort of images or pictures all over the wall.

  I get up and walk in there as the commotion carries on behind me. Pictures of me are everywhere, pictures of me at school, out with Jack, at the park and everything I have done. Year’s worth of images spread over the walls with love hearts and pentagrams drawn all over them.

  Pictures of Sophia and Mark in my mother’s bedroom just after the death happily taking selfies as if proud of what they done, I feel sick.