The Killing Moon

by A. S. French

  Grace cuffed Fowler’s friends as Astrid wondered if she’d made things better or worse.

  8 Losing My Religion

  Grace frogmarched Fowler and his mates out of the building while Astrid talked to Beth.

  ‘You can’t stay here; will you go home?’

  The kid stood on the street corner, her eyes darting everywhere, fingers pulling at her hair as if it was an alien infestation on her head. ‘No, that’s just as bad.’

  ‘You keep an eye on these three losers while I get the car,’ Grace said.

  Astrid watched her leave and wondered how she could help the kid standing next to her. Beth tried not to stare at the thugs in their handcuffs, but her unease as they stumbled past was obvious. Astrid moved back into the doorway of the building for some privacy but was still able to see her attackers cooling their heels on the kerb. She removed her phone and called the only local number she had apart from Grace’s. Christina Sanchez answered on the second ring.

  ‘Do you have good news for me?’

  She sounded as if she was underwater. Astrid told her everything she’d learnt so far about her daughter’s disappearance, including the danger she thought Alex’s friend was in.

  ‘I know what to do next, but I need a safe place for Beth until this is over. Can she stop with you?’

  There was silence, and then Christina spoke to somebody in Spanish. ‘She can’t stay here, but someone in the community will look after her. Bring her to me.’

  Astrid thanked her and ended the call. Grace was at the unmarked police car, bundling the three thugs into the back.

  ‘Are you coming to the station with me?’

  ‘Not right now.’ Astrid glanced at Beth. ‘I have to take her somewhere safe. Can you get a taxi for the two of us to your place?’ Grace arched her eyebrows. ‘And I need the keys to your house and your car.’

  Grace had the phone in her hand. ‘Is there anything else you’d like? The winning lottery ticket or the secret to my heart?’

  Astrid tried to stop her lips from curling up, but failed miserably. ‘Ask me about the second one next time I see you.’

  Grace pulled her to the side, Astrid enjoying the feel of the other woman’s fingers on her arm. ‘What are you going to do? You’ll need to give a statement about what happened here.’ She peered over Astrid’s shoulder at the scared teenage girl. ‘And she’ll be safe at the station.’

  ‘I’m not sure about that. We know someone there altered the original report about Alex’s disappearance.’ She nodded at her attackers. ‘Do you think they’ll be charged?’

  Grace shrugged. ‘It seems unlikely considering who Fowler’s uncle is. I didn’t see anything, so it will be their word against yours, but we can’t just let them get away with this.’

  ‘I agree. At least keep them for a while and find me the details about the other kids who’ve gone missing in the last six months. I’m sure there’s a connection between those three idiots and Alex Sanchez.’

  ‘And what will you be doing while I’m there?’

  ‘I’ll get Beth safe, and then I’m heading out to the compound to have another word with Glen.’

  ‘I doubt they’ll let you back in, and even if they do, how do you know he’ll be there?’

  The taxi arrived as Astrid spoke. ‘I won’t be asking to get in. There’ll be somewhere around that perimeter where I’ll be able to sneak through or over, and Glen will be there until at least eight o’clock because I saw his teaching timetable on the wall earlier.’ She took the girl to the taxi.

  ‘You better keep me updated at all times.’ Grace shouted as Astrid and the kid climbed into the car.

  They completed the journey in silence. Beth kept scratching her leg and squirming in her seatbelt until Astrid changed the radio station and found the Ramones singing about slugs and snails chasing them. The girl smiled for the first time since Astrid had found her.

  When they were inside Crowley’s home, Astrid explained to her where they were going.

  ‘Do you know why Senator Brady’s nephew is interested in you?’

  Beth shook her head. ‘I’ve never seen him or the others before today.’

  Astrid stood opposite her. ‘Those three were there for you, not me or Grace; do you understand that?’

  The shaking returned to her hands. ‘Yes, but I don’t know why. I haven’t done anything.’

  Astrid stared at the girl, unsure if she was keeping something from her or not. Working for the Agency had taught her many skills, including the ability to spot when most people were lying. Perhaps Beth’s fear was masking the tell-tale signs of deception many gave away without realising it.

  ‘Christina Sanchez will keep you safe until I call you, do you understand?’

  Beth blinked, and then nodded. Astrid transferred numbers between their phones before fetching water from the kitchen for the teenager; the kid downed it as if she’d just returned from the desert. Her head twitched as she clasped the glass to her face, glancing at the collection of porcelain figures on the shelves. She brushed water from her lips as she stared at Astrid.

  ‘Do you live here?’

  ‘I’m staying for a bit. I’ll be going back to England once I find Alex.’

  Even though the kid had denied knowing why those three were searching for her, Astrid sensed she was hiding something. She was about to ask another question when Beth strode out of the kitchen and into the living room. Astrid followed her, finding the teenager thumbing through Grace’s collection of books.

  She had a copy of The Golden Compass in her hands. ‘My dad thinks reading is a waste of time.’

  ‘Where’s your mother?’

  The girl reached into her pocket and retrieved a piece of gum. She unwrapped it and slipped it into her mouth, chewing as she spoke.

  ‘She ran off with the woman who worked in the library.’ Beth peered up and scrutinised the marks on the ceiling. ‘Perhaps that’s why my dad hates me reading.’

  Astrid felt sorry for her, but couldn’t let that stop her from pushing for more information about what happened.

  ‘In that building, you said some people in the town are hurting kids.’ The girl’s black-rimmed eyes narrowed. ‘Is Jed Fowler one of them?’

  Beth’s mouth was shut, but her expression told the answer. Astrid decided not to push her any further. It was time to get her into a safe place, so they left for the Sanchez motorhome.

  Alex’s mother was waiting for them when they got there. Astrid explained what had happened at the derelict building.

  She checked her phone as the scared teenager walked towards Christina. It was six o’clock; she had two hours to find a way into the complex and into position while Glen was inside that cabin. She got into the car and drove out of town.

  Astrid left the car far enough from the Senator’s youth project so no one would stumble upon it and get suspicious. She rubbed at the ache in her head as she strode through the woods and around the perimeter fence.

  She stopped next to a tree to get her bearings. The smell of grass and vegetation irritated her. Astrid wanted to be back in the comforting grey of the city, to breathe the smoke and pollution of that urban jungle. She set off again and dreamt of London’s concrete beauty.

  She’d only been walking twenty minutes when she came across a gap in the metal fence surrounding the compound. As she examined it, there was a movement behind her. She twisted around to see a grey-haired old man gazing at her. He put his fingers to his lips before slipping away into the woods.

  Astrid forgot about him and stepped through the gap, hoping there’d be no guard dogs. The mansion was up ahead, past some pig pens, a large barn, and the educational facility where she expected to find Glen. According to the timetable she’d seen earlier, there were five minutes to go before the end of the latest ‘Pray your Gay Away’ session. She kept a close eye on her surroundings as she approached the pigs roaming in the mud. They squeaked and whined as she got there, but not loud enough to alert anyone.
The grounds lacked security as she edged around the side of the barn, peering inside, expecting to see farming equipment but finding it empty.

  She crept through the shadows and towards the light of the portable cabin. She ducked her head and glanced through the window. Glen was there, at the front of the class, talking to a dozen young people. They gazed at him, a mixture of adoration and awe gripping their faces. He was full of manic glee, hands waving like a windmill when he reached the height of his speech. When he finished, they all stood and clapped. Astrid hadn’t heard what he said, but knew it couldn’t have been good.

  The youngsters started to file out as she pondered how to get him alone. He stayed behind to collect his papers and switch off his presentation. She was about to move to the door when one of the youngsters returned, a beautiful blonde-haired young man with the deepest, bluest eyes.

  She sighed inwardly at the annoyance of it, watching the teenager approach Glen. The lad knelt, and Glen caressed his cheekbones. Astrid removed her phone and set the video to record. She hadn’t known what to expect when she got inside the grounds, but it wasn’t this. The boy unzipped Glen’s trousers and acted as if he hadn’t eaten all day.

  It was over in a couple of minutes, and she stopped the recording. The lad wiped his mouth, leaving with a smile on his face. Glen’s grin was bigger as he put away his teaching materials. Astrid watched the boy go before entering the cabin. She coughed to get Glen’s attention. He turned to stare at her in surprise, shaking his head and baring his teeth.

  ‘Security won’t be so gentle when they throw you off the grounds this time.’

  She moved towards him, holding her phone out and playing the video she’d just made. Astrid increased the volume; the moans and groans coming from the screen were the only sounds there. When it finished, they stared at each other in silence, a pause so pregnant she thought a herd of midwives would come charging into the room at any second, ready for him to give birth to his fear and embarrassment.

  ‘It doesn’t matter.’ All the joy evaporated from his face. ‘Security will have that from you as soon as I call them.’ He took his phone out.

  ‘Can they get this from me before I upload the video to the internet?’

  He glared at her. ‘What do you want?’

  She moved towards the window, making sure no one was watching from outside as she had. ‘Tell me about Alex Sanchez and what happened to her here. And I’ll know if you’re lying, so don’t bother.’

  Glen’s shoulders slumped, and he wiped the sweat from his forehead. He flopped into a seat and pulled at the top of his shirt.

  ‘It wasn’t my idea; it was the Senator who wanted her here.’

  ‘Why?’

  Astrid moved close enough to record his voice without him knowing. A confession acquired under duress wouldn’t hold up in any court, but she wasn’t there to get evidence for a prosecution; she would be judge and jury in this search for Alex Sanchez.

  He trembled as he spoke. ‘She was proving to be too much trouble, with all her activist videos and social media posts, especially with the elections coming up next year. So the Senator needed something done about her.’

  ‘So what did you do?’

  He pulled at the top of his shirt again, a river of sweat swimming down his head.

  ‘I got Beth to tell Alex I had to talk to her, to sort out a truce, but I knew she’d want to come here and record some of what we do, to expose us. But we turned the tables on her. She wasn’t as clever as she thought she was.’

  Astrid calmed the rage building inside her. She hoped his use of the past tense when speaking about Alex was his poor grammar and nothing else.

  She pushed her head into his face. ‘Tell me what happened, or I’ll post the clip.’

  She pulled away to let him speak.

  ‘I’ll show you.’ He grabbed his phone and searched through his files. When he found what he wanted, he gave it to her. ‘Just watch that video.’

  She hesitated. She’d witnessed many terrible things, had instigated many terrible things in her life, but she wasn’t sure she needed to see this. It was a momentary pause; then she hit the play button.

  The screen was black, the sounds of people shouting through the darkness. A light flickered on to it, and Alex’s face appeared in view, her eyes large and lips a vivid purple, defiance and assertiveness shining out of her. Then the voices rose, and the taunts rang out.

  ‘Libtard, libtard, libtard,’ they screamed.

  The camera swung round to catch the people shouting, a dozen or so of them, with faces covered by masks of a disgraced president.

  ‘Pig her up, pig her up,’ they bawled.

  Someone handcuffed her wrists as she fought back, but there were too many. Large hands placed a thick metal necklace around her throat, with a long steel rod at the end. An unknown assailant pulled her across the room. Astrid guessed it was the empty barn she’d walked past earlier.

  Alex tried to talk, but the chain squeezed against her skin was too tight. Astrid watched her grasping it, her fingers scratching at the metal. Astrid’s hand strained against the plastic of the phone.

  The group of masked lunatics tore the clothes from Alex’s squirming body, her legs trembling as they pinned her to the ground and stripped her naked before pouring water all over her. Then they covered her in white feathers.

  Astrid forced herself to keep watching, fire burning through her veins as she glanced at Glen. She dug her nails into her palms.

  Alex was dragged outside, bare feet stumbling through the mud as the chain pulled at her. The screen went dark again until light erupted from the torches surrounding Alex. Glen and his comrades had tried to terrify her. Still, the defiance seeped from her through the phone and into the spot where Astrid was contemplating razing everything to the ground.

  The pigs screamed as the people chanted. ‘Pig her up, pig her up.’

  She watched as Alex was hauled to the enclosure and thrown in with the squealing animals. They trampled around and over her legs and arms.

  Astrid stopped the video.

  ‘You wanted to terrify her into submission, to drag her down to your level; did it work?’

  Glen shook his head. ‘No. We locked her inside the basement, and then did the same thing all over again the next day. We gave her no food, no drink, left her naked and covered in shit, wet and freezing, but still, she spat in our faces.’

  Astrid smiled at the thought of it. ‘She was here for two days?’

  ‘That’s all I know.’

  ‘Then what happened?’

  Glen sank into the chair. ‘Some of the Senator’s men came and took her away, to clean her up and give her new clothes. I don’t know anything else after that.’

  Astrid kept his phone and dropped it into her pocket. ‘Does anybody else have a copy of this?’

  ‘No, that’s the only one.’

  She headed for the exit, turning to look at him. ‘If it isn’t, your video will be all over the internet, do you understand?’

  His head shivered as he nodded. ‘Yes.’

  Astrid had her hand on the door and was about to leave. ‘These men you said took Alex away, was one of them Jed Fowler?’

  The fear in his eyes was the only answer she needed. She left and returned the way she come, moving alongside the barn where they’d held Alex, past the pigs, through the gap in the fence and back to the car. She texted Grace as she headed for the woods.

  Do you still have Fowler at the station?

  She’d rather have some time with him alone, but this would have to do. The reply shattered even that option.

  We had to let him and the others go. They said you attacked them when they tried to rescue the girl. There are no witnesses to who hit me.

  Astrid was through the fence when she finished reading the message. She replied as she ran back to the car.

  Do you have an address for Fowler?

  Grace texted the details. The phone rang twenty seconds later, the rington
e of Lust For Life making Astrid smile as she kept on running and answered it at the same time.

  ‘What happened, Astrid?’

  ‘Give me a minute, and I’ll tell you.’

  It took fewer than sixty seconds before she was inside the car and telling Grace everything she’d gotten from Glen.

  ‘Those fuckers!’ Astrid grinned as Grace continued to swear. She calmed down after releasing her anger. ‘I’m still at the station. Meet me at my place, and we can discuss what to do next.’

  Astrid saw the time on the dashboard. She had more than three hours left of her first day utilising Grace Crowley’s many skills, but this was something she had to do alone.

  ‘Okay, I’ll see you there later.’

  She ended the call and double-checked the information she had open on the webpage. She entered it into the GPS and headed in the opposite direction to Grace’s house. Now she had a date with one of those fuckers.

  9 House of Pain

  Astrid left the forest and drove north, the video of Alex on a loop in her head. Jed Fowler would pay for what had happened, and so would Senator Brady. First, she had to find the teenage girl, and Fowler was her best lead.

  The information on her phone told her where to go. The car ducked through the edge of town, past the old industrial heartland and through the other side. There was no decent music on the radio, so she ran through a random collection of tunes in her head, everything from Tomorrow Never Knows by the Beatles to You Can’t Tie a Good Girl Down by the Crystals.

  She ignored the texts from Grace asking where she was, concentrated on the road and put her foot down. The night was empty, apart from the occasional stray dog scampering in and out of the headlights.

  Astrid drove past the abandoned warehouses and turned down a narrow lane. The terrain bounced underneath her as she imagined David Bowie singing about scars that couldn’t be seen. She increased the volume in her head in an effort to drown out the cruelty thrown at Alex on that video. She hadn’t seen any of the people who’d hurled the abuse, but she recognised the hate and the anger. Regardless of what Glen had told her, the whole thing was more than a desperate attempt at humiliating a teenage girl. Alex’s attackers had enjoyed what they did, sucking in pleasure from the violence they dished out. And they repeated it on a second day.