by Conrad Jones
“Look at the state of your hands, Karl. I hope you haven’t been touching the food with them,” she scolded him.
“I had a little trouble starting the barbecue that’s all.” He opened his hands and made to rub them on her face. She giggled and pulled away from him. “What’s the matter? You used to like my dirty hands all over you,” he teased. He was joking but there was a barb in his humour.
“Get away from me you tramp!” she laughed. “I never liked your hands on me. I just pretended that I did to keep you quiet.”
He pulled her towards him and kissed her cheek. “Oh you were pretending were you?”
“Yes, well not all the time,” she said coyly.
He pulled her closer still and felt himself stirring sexually. His flimsy cargo shorts did little to hide his excitement as he tried to kiss her on the mouth.
“Karl.” She leaned away from the kiss and pushed him away. Things hadn’t been right between them for a long time.
“What’s wrong?” he gasped. It had been a long time since they had made love. His wife didn’t seem interested any more. He was hoping that the fresh mountain air would stir emotions in her that had been dormant since she had given birth to the twins. The reality was that it wouldn’t, in which case the fishing rod would come in handy.
“Nothing is wrong, Karl.” She stepped back out of the embrace completely. “Apart from the fact that our children are sleeping two yards away and your brother and his snooty wife are on the other side of that canvas wall.”
“She’s not snooty, Hayley, and I’m sorry, I was just fooling around,” he whispered. He stepped closer to her again. She tensed as he touched her. He could feel her involuntary physical revulsion to his embrace. Something had been lost between them along the way. He still loved her, that was for sure, and he certainly loved his twins but the fire that they once had was gone. At first he thought the arrival of their children had doused their passion, but it ran much deeper.
Sleepless nights and tiring days took their toll on his wife in the early months and so he gave her space and time to feel like being a woman again, not just a mother. Months flew by and when they finally made love, he knew that something had changed in her. She seemed to be mechanical. There was no intensity to the passion like there had been before. It had gone and so far, it showed no signs of returning. He tried hard to cope with the constant rejection but he was a red-blooded male with a high sex drive. Karl had turned his attention to other women and although he tried to be discreet, he couldn’t help but feel that Hayley knew every time that he cheated.
“Your sausages will be burning,” she said quietly. She couldn’t look him in the eyes. Hayley leaned forward and kissed his lips quickly. He felt like it was a kiss from his grandmother or an old aunt, for all the passion that it contained, “I’ll be out in a second,” she added.
“Fine, you do that,” Karl snorted like a sulky schoolboy. He opened up the tent flap and went back outside. Hayley could hear her sister-in-law’s voice through the canvas.
“Hey babe, what’s the matter, has the Ice Queen been at you again?” she whispered a little too loudly.
“Shush, Louise!” Karl’s concerned reply sent a shiver through Hayley. She had an inclination that something wasn’t right between her husband and his brother’s wife. There was no solid evidence. She just had a feeling about her. There were several incidents over the past few years where she had seen them exchanging glances, maintaining eye contact a little too long. Now she knew that she called her the “Ice Queen” behind her back, and that rankled her. The two women had never gelled, never got on or liked each other. Karl, on the other hand, got on with her like a house on fire and he defended her far too quickly for comfort. They constantly teased each other, to the point of embarrassment.
Hayley noticed that Karl’s brother Steve wasn’t altogether happy with the attention that his sibling paid to his spouse either. Steve was the quieter brother. He had dark eyes and boyish handsome features. He was sensitive and thoughtful, but also very dull. Karl was the opposite, selfish and brash, but good company. He had a wide jaw and rugged good looks. There was no doubt which brother had had the most success with females during their younger years.
Karl had a string of young babes through his university years and Hayley was flattered when he asked her to go steady with him. She was a stunning blonde with piercing blue eyes and Karl was the envy of his friends when they started dating. At first, she revelled in his attentions and physically she was as keen and eager to explore as he was. But having the twins was like flicking a switch for her and sex was no longer enjoyable. Hayley was very aware of her shortcomings in the bedroom but she didn’t think that they justified her husband seeking solace elsewhere, especially with his brother’s wife. Her face darkened and she felt her heart beating faster. Anger was rising in her throat. Jealousy is a powerful emotion and she could feel it coursing through her veins. Was it all in her mind? She couldn’t be sure they had done anything at all, but she couldn’t prevent herself from suspecting them either. She took one last glance at her beautiful twins as they lay sleeping, and then she breathed deeply before she unzipped the flysheet and climbed out of the tent.
“Have the twins gone off to sleep then, Hayley?” Louise asked. She always adopted a baby girl voice when she spoke about the children. It irritated Hayley immensely. Hayley ignored the question and zipped the tent closed. She took another deep breath before turning to face the others.
“Are the twins alright, Hayley?” Louise persisted. “Here, have a glass of wine.” Louise picked up a bottle of Australian Chardonnay from a cool box. She tipped the remaining contents into a plastic cup. There was barely enough left to fill it halfway.
“Oh my God, we’ve drunk all the white already,” she giggled as she passed the wine to Hayley. Hayley glared at her as she took the cup. She felt like sloshing the wine in her face. Louise giggled again and walked away on unsteady legs towards the barbecue. “I don’t think your wife is talking to me,” she whispered into Karl’s ear as she approached him. It was said loud enough for everyone to hear. Karl looked up from the smoking grill and he saw the anger in his wife’s eyes. He blushed and Hayley wondered if it was embarrassment or guilt that made his face flush red.
“The sausages are ready,” Karl announced. A forced smile creased his face as he tried to make the best of the situation. The atmosphere was tense to say the least. Karl carefully placed burnt sausages onto four paper plates, but he couldn’t maintain eye contact with Hayley.
“I’ll nip to the shop and get another bottle of wine if you like,” Steve offered. He ripped open a floury bun and handed it to his brother. Karl plonked a frazzled sausage onto the bread and handed it back. “I’ve only had one beer, so I’ll eat this and drive down the hill. Do we need anything else, babe?” He bit into his sandwich and burnt his tongue. He laughed and fanned his hand in front of his mouth to cool the food down.
“Get me some cigarettes; I’ve only got a few left.” Louise didn’t even look at her husband as she spoke. “You might as well buy some extra beers too. Karl will want another beer or two I’m sure.” She put her wine to her lips and smiled provocatively. Karl blushed again. The sound of a baby crying drifted over the camp.
“Why don’t you go with him, Louise?” Karl looked at her sternly. He’d had enough of her theatrics in front of his wife. The wine was starting to affect her better judgement, and she was becoming more embarrassing by the minute. He wanted her out of the way for a while so that Hayley could calm down.
“Yes, why don’t you go with your husband?” Hayley stared at her. The look in her eye warned her that she had crossed the line. There was a moment of complete silence as the two women glared at each other. It was a very uncomfortable moment for Karl, although Steve didn’t look too happy either.
Steve looked between the two women, bemused by the tension between them. He was a little slow on the uptake, but not completely stupid. The sound of a baby crying pierced t
he silence and he looked across the campsite towards the sound. There were no tents in that direction, and he wondered where the sound could be coming from.
“I don’t know why you two can’t get on,” he mumbled to himself.
“I don’t know why you and Steve don’t go to the shops and get some more wine together, Louise,” Hayley snarled.
“I think I’d prefer to stay here thank you very much,” Louise sneered. She shook her head defiantly and tossed her shiny long black hair. Her hair was jet black, and it had a deep sheen to it. The evening sun’s rays gave it a blue tinge. The sun was nearly gone now and the shadows were lengthening. “Steve doesn’t mind going on his own, do you darling?” She draped her arms around her husband’s neck and kissed him full on the lips. Steve looked more bemused than ever but he responded in kind and squeezed her shapely buttocks with one hand, while the other clung to his sausage sandwich. The noise of the baby crying increased a notch, and the cries were becoming more urgent. Karl looked towards a small copse of trees across the campsite. It seemed as if the distressed infant was somewhere in that direction.
“I don’t mind going on my own if I get some more of that kind of attention when I get back,” Steve cajoled his pretty wife. She was firm and fit, and attractive to men. She flirted at every opportunity and used her sexuality to wrap her husband, and other men, around her well-manicured finger. Louise opened her lips wide and allowed his tongue into her mouth. She kept her eyes open and stared at her husband’s brother all the time she kissed him. It was a deliberate act of provocation to wind her brother-in-law up and she loved every minute of it. Hayley watched her husband’s expression for signs of jealousy, but he was otherwise occupied. He was staring into the darkening shadows of a wooded area across the site, and the sound of an infant in distress became louder still.
“Can you hear that?” Karl asked. Hayley nodded and sipped her wine.
“I can’t make out where it’s coming from, noise travels so far on the breeze,” Hayley replied quietly. “Give me the car keys, I’ll drive down the hill to the village and get some supplies.”
Louise and Steve were still joined at the lips. Alcohol was fuelling their passion. Louise pulled out of the embrace and shook her hair again. “Steve will go, Hayley,” she said, tossing her dark mane sexily. “You don’t mind, do you babe?”
“I want to go thank you, give me the keys please, Karl,” Hayley replied curtly without looking at her sister-in-law. Louise pulled a face and stuck her tongue out childishly. Her husband nudged her gently to make her stop teasing.
“I’ll come with you,” Karl said. He pulled the keys to their BMW estate car from his pocket.
“I’ll be fine Karl, just give me the keys please.” Hayley needed five minutes away from them all to calm down. Her sister-in-law’s antics had annoyed her immensely.
“I really don’t mind going, Hayley,” Steve chirped. He squeezed Louise’s bottom and she giggled like a schoolgirl. She pouted at Karl and thought it had gone unnoticed, but Hayley caught it.
“I’m going to drive to the village, on my own, before I’m sick. Now can I have the fucking car keys please?” Hayley held out her hand and Karl handed her the key fob in silence. “Thank you,” she said curtly. Hayley turned and walked towards the estate car.
“I don’t think there was any need for that,” Karl hissed as he followed her a few steps behind. “That was just plain rude.”
“Oh well I wouldn’t want to upset Louise now would I, babe?” she replied sarcastically. “The Ice Queen is spoiling the night and having a go at everyone again, am I?” Her tone was acidic. Karl stopped in his tracks. Hayley turned to face him, and he could see the anger in her eyes. Her demeanour warned him that debate was futile until she’d calmed down.
“What’s the matter, babe? Did you think that I hadn’t heard her?” Hayley imitated Louise’s girly voice.
“I don’t know what your problem is. Why do you want to cause a scene?” Karl reached out to hold her hands. Hayley pulled away and turned towards the car again.
“Leave me alone, Karl, I do not need that bitch talking about me behind my back, especially not to my husband.” She pressed the alarm button on the fob and the lights flashed to indicate that the vehicle was unlocked. Hayley pulled the door open and climbed into the dark blue BMW. Karl grabbed hold of the door to stop her closing it.
“Look, Hayley, she’s a drama queen, just ignore her. We’re supposed to be on holiday.” Karl tried to calm his wife. “She’s had a lot of wine.”
“I don’t care, Karl, leave me alone.” She grabbed the handle and slammed the door. Karl stood back from the car as she started the engine. The muffled sound of Dire Straits, playing ‘Sultans of Swing’, came from the stereo. Hayley glanced at her husband briefly as she drove away. He looked at Louise and shrugged his shoulders, and in that instant Hayley knew that they were sleeping together. She didn’t know how, or why, but she knew. Karl watched the estate crossing the campsite. Halfway across the site the headlights flicked on. The sun was fading fast and the shadows were lengthening. The indicator light flashed as the car reached the entrance gate, and then he heard the engine gunning as Hayley pulled the vehicle onto the main road. His heart felt heavy with guilt, but there was something else eating at him too. Hayley seemed to sense that there was something between him and his sister-in-law and that frightened him. He had tried to be as careful as possible to hide it from his wife and his brother, but Louise’s antics were not helping one bit.
Karl heard the sound of the infant crying again, but this time it was much more urgent, almost a scream. He looked towards the woods and the spaces between the trees had become inky darkness. The trees were dark silhouettes against a darkening sky. The first stars were visible in the north above the lake. It was such a beautiful setting that the view calmed him for a moment, and then the child cried out again. This time it was accompanied by a female voice. He couldn’t make out the words but it sounded like the woman was calling for help. Karl looked at the handful of tents and caravans that were on the site, but they were all in darkness, their occupants out walking or fishing, or eating an evening meal in one of the country pubs that were dotted around the lake. The site was completely empty apart from him. Steve and Louise had disappeared into their tent. The coals on the barbecue smouldered and the smoke drifted vertically upward towards the darkening sky. The night was deadly still; not even a breeze moved across the waters of the lake.
The child cried out again and the female’s cries for help became much clearer. Karl walked towards the copse of trees as darkness descended, and the sound of Louise gasping forced him to glance towards his brother’s tent. Her lovemaking was always loud and frantic, and that was one of the reasons why he couldn’t leave her alone. Karl knew that their affair was wrong in so many ways that he couldn’t believe it some days. Screwing your brother’s wife while your partner cares for your twins is about as low as a man can get. He didn’t love Louise, and most days he didn’t even like her as a person, but he did love screwing her, so much that he couldn’t leave her alone. So far, his brother and Hayley had no idea what had been going on, but Louise’s behaviour was becoming increasingly more obnoxious. Steve seemed blissfully unaware but Hayley was becoming suspicious, and Karl knew that he could be forced to stop the affair before Louise did, or said something stupid, that would lead them to be discovered.
Karl’s thoughts were interrupted by a desperate scream. It sounded like an adult woman’s voice. The infant’s cries joined the female’s call and Karl broke into a jog as he approached the trees. He slowed down to allow his eyes to become accustomed to the darkness between the trees, but the urgency of the infant’s cries was reaching fever pitch. Karl picked a gap between two trees and ducked beneath the lower branches. A sharp pain stabbed in the soft flesh above the hip. Another stabbing pain emanated from below his left knee.
“Shit!” he said, as he realised that he had careered into a barbed wire fence. A trickle of bl
ood ran down his shin. The woman’s voice screamed for help again but she didn’t sound far away any more.
“Hello, can you hear me?” Karl cupped his hands together and shouted into the darkness. His question was answered by the infant crying. “Hello, can you hear me?” he shouted again. Reluctantly he climbed between the barbed wire strands, and was engulfed in the darkness of the woods. Karl stared into the darkness and tried to make sense of the shadows before him. Slowly but surely he picked his way through the branches and undergrowth towards the sound of the infant crying. A tree root protruded up from the soil and he stubbed his toes against it. He fell forward and scratched his face and hands on the low network of branches. Thick tendrils of brambles wrapped around his legs and the thorns pierced his flesh. His shorts offered him no protection whatsoever. He tried to stand but only succeeded in pulling the bramble tighter against his flesh.
“Hello, can you hear me?” He called as he pulled the thorny plants away from his legs and ankles. The thorns scratched his hands and he swore aloud. “Bloody hell! Can you hear me?” He called again. Blood ran down his shins and clotted in his socks. “Hello!” He shouted louder and the infant cried out again. He stumbled on for another twenty yards or so and the female called out for help again. She sounded very close this time.
“Hello, can you hear me?” Karl ducked beneath a thick branch and peered into the blackness. The infant’s cries were very close but the female had fallen silent. He wondered what they were doing in the copse in the first place. “Hello, I’m here to help, can you hear me?”
The infant cried again, but this time it seemed that it was behind him. Karl turned and listened intently. The cries were no more than a few yards away. “Hello, can you hear me?” The crying was coming from below him, down to the left. There was a tree trunk barely visible in the blackness and Karl kneeled down and edged closer to the base of the tree. “Hello, where are you?” He spoke gently, so as not to frighten the infant. The cries suddenly became louder and the female shouted for help too. Karl could not make any sense of it. They sounded as if they were right in front of him but he couldn’t see anything. He fumbled in the darkness and his hand touched something hard. His fingers felt blindly around the rectangular object and he nearly dropped it in fright when the infant’s cries screamed louder still from the box. It vibrated slightly as the cries reverberated through the trees. Karl realised what it was and he gazed open-mouthed at the wireless speaker. The female’s voice cried out again. The sound drifted through the trees and across the still waters of the lake, and it was all the more eerie now that he knew it was a hoax.