I wonder if he knew it was me. I guess, who else could it be?
We pressed on, moving left as quickly as possible. I was trying to lead us back round and away from the pursuing men, then down through the woods and away to my car. We had a head start, and they had no idea where we were, so still carried the advantage.
The night was darkening now, clouds rolling in from the mountains in the distance. They blocked out the moon, obscuring her light and plunging us regularly into darkness. They began to flow in quicker and thicker, the pockets of light between clouds now growing more rare.
The lack of light began to slow us as we stumbled over fallen branches and low lying bushes. Amy fell behind me, tripped up by a root, and grunted as she hit the floor, the air pushed out of her. I turned and quickly dragged her to her feet, pulling her back along behind me as she breathed heavily for air.
In the darkness I'd lost my bearings, not knowing exactly where I was, or how far we'd gone. Ahead, however, the thick blanket of trees seemed to thin. As I got closer, I could see the woods ending, the ground flattening out into an open plain.
We continued forward and burst out from the trees and I immediately knew where we were. We'd arrived at the lookout point, a place where people would gather and look down on the city from above. There was a wide track just ahead of us, where cars and bikes could ride up and down into the hills and beyond.
The edge of the cliff was not far ahead, dropping down hundreds of feet to the foot of the mountain. Beyond the boundary of the treeline we were suddenly exposed, our silhouettes more clear against the night sky.
“OK Amy, we're going to run down the track,” I whispered. “We're going to run as fast as we can and straight down to my car at the bottom. Can you do that?”
I looked in her eyes. They were smothered in fear now, a grimace still etched across her face from the fall. But she nodded and spoke quietly: “Let's go.”
With that we turned and began running, straight across the plain and down the track along the line of the trees.
But then, from nowhere, a figure appeared, rushing out of the woods in front of us. He was only 20 feet away, crashing through the undergrowth and looking frantically around. I couldn't see his face in the light, only the shape of his body, moving quickly towards us up the track.
I felt a gust of wind and the clouds suddenly parted, uncovering the light of the moon. It spilled down onto us as we were lit, standing helpless as this man came towards us.
Then I saw his face, his eyes wide with fury, his teeth bared like an animal. His hand pulled up from his side and with it came a pistol, pointing straight at us.
I thought of running but there was no chance of escape, not in the open, not under this sudden light.
Conor O'Brien kept coming as we both backed off, our hands rushing to the heavens as his gun bore down on us.
“Give me back my daughter,” he growled, his face coming truly into the light.
“I'm not going back,” I heard Amy cry beside me.
His eyes turned on her, but the gun stayed on me.
“You'll do as you're told,” he said coldly, his eyes manic.
“And you,” he said, staring again at me, “you never give up, do you? I told you never to see her again, and you disobeyed me.”
His eyes scanned the landscape, quickly hovering over the edge of the cliff that was only a few dozen feet away. A smile ran over his face.
“Now isn't this ironic,” his voice slithered, “that I should find you here. I told you, Mr Logan, what I'd do to you if you saw my daughter again.”
His gun raised right to my head. “Walk to the edge,” he said.
I glanced at Amy, who stood at my side, her hand gripped tight to mine. I stood slightly ahead of her, protecting her, pulling her behind me.
“Don't do it,” she said, her voice growing desperate. “Dad, don't do this.”
O'Brien kept staring at me. “Walk to the edge,” he said again, his voice casual, “or I'll kill you both.”
I felt Amy shudder slightly at my back as his words ran through me.
“Please daddy, no. Don't, it's not his fault.”
O'Brien's expression didn't change. He just stared on at us, the gun unmoving.
I had no choice. It was either me, or both of us. I had no doubt now of what he was capable of. Whether he'd kill his own daughter or not, I was going to die all the same.
I started moving forward, towards the edge of the cliff. I felt Amy grab at me, trying to hold me back, but I pulled myself away.
“No, Jude, no....”
I moved slowly forward as O'Brien's eyes danced after me, lighting up. I saw them flashing under the moonlight, a deep pleasure in them.
“You've caused me no end of trouble Mr Logan. It's time you were put down.”
I glanced above to see the clouds rushing by fast in the growing wind. They flickered again, intermittently blocking the moon and casting shadows down on all of us. I stood now, near the precipice, gazing out over the city of Branton that I loved, seeing lights moving in the distance, early morning starters already rising for the day.
I held my back to O'Brien, not wanting to look at him, but could hear him creeping forward. I was waiting for the gunshot to hit me, to burst through my head and send me flying forward over the edge and into the thicket of woodland below.
I could hear Amy crying behind me, sobbing and begging her father to stop. “I love him,” I could hear her cry, “I love him daddy.”
The words brought a smile to my face as I awaited my doom. They were nice words to die by.
….
Amy
My father was bearing down on Jude now, forcing him over to the cliff. I didn't know what he was going to do – force him to jump or shoot him. I could feel my heart pumping madly as he neared the edge, my eyes beginning to water.
“Please dad, don't do this...you can't do this.” I repeated.
He turned to me briefly, his eyes showing no concern or remorse. He'd given up hiding that part of himself from me.
“I love him, I love him daddy.” The words shocked even myself, but my father didn't change, didn't stop. He kept his gun on Jude, who looked out over the cliff now, gazing at the city below.
My father turned back to Jude, his arm outstretched and unshaking. He'd done this before, it was nothing to him to kill a man.
A dark cloud came rushing over us, blotting the moon's light. It was heavy, leaving the entire plain shrouded in darkness. I had to act.
In the blackness I rushed forward towards my father, towards his outstretched arm, knocking his hand just as the gun went off. I felt my heart exploding inside me as I looked up at Jude. He turned, his eyes bright in the low light, and came rushing in towards us. I let out a breath. He was OK. He hadn't been hit.
My father shrugged me off and steadied his gun on Jude again as I tumbled to the floor, but Jude was on him fast, dancing through the shadows and launching his strong frame forward upon my dad.
He tackled him to the ground, knocking the gun to the floor, as they grappled, rolling around in the dirt. I saw them throwing punches, their fingers tangled over each others' throats, gasping for air and grunting as they fought.
They rolled closer to the cliff as I watched on, half paralysed in fear. I looked down and saw the gun, lying on the ground, and stepped forward, reaching to the earth and feeling the metal in my hands. It was heavy, the handle warm from my father's touch.
I lifted it up slowly towards the two dark figures struggling by the cliff edge. My hand shook in the slight wind; from cold, from fear.
My father began to overcome Jude, his strength too great, as he wrapped his arms around him on the ground, trying to strangle him. Jude managed to struggle from his grip, but my father's fists came down quickly again, hard into Jude's face.
“Stop it dad, stop it,” I shouted, the gun now pointing at him.
He looked up as Jude's head slumped to the dirt, blood dripping from his mouth.
He walked heavily towards me as my hands shook further, edging away from the cliff.
“Are you going to shoot me Amy?” he asked. “Are you going to shoot your own father.”
My finger was on the trigger, pressing down. I wanted to do it. For everything he'd done, he deserved to die. But I couldn't, I couldn't kill, I couldn't take a life.
“STOP!” I shouted at him, my words shaking like my hands, “DON'T COME CLOSER.”
“Or what,” he spat, his pace slowing. “Or you'll kill me? You won't kill me, you don't have what it takes.”
He moved slightly forward again and I raised the gun high, pulling the trigger and shutting my eyes as the gun burst to life in my hands. The bullet shot over his head, causing him to duck and cower slightly.
“Just give me the gun, darling, and we can go home....where it's safe.”
The words sent shivers through me. “Home! I hate that home...and I hate you. You've ruined my life. My mother died because of you...I had to run away because of you...and now, now you're keeping me prisoner. I hate you. I want you to die.”
His face exploded in anger at my words, his teeth clenching as he came forward at me. I stepped back, keeping the gun on him, and pulled the trigger hard. There was a flash of light as the gun went off, the sound echoing once again around the hills.
I opened my eyes to see my dad still coming, his face still full of rage but with a heavy grimace. He roared loudly as he came forward, blood rushing from his shoulder. I closed my eyes again and cowered, but he never got to me.
I heard a heavy grunt and looked up to see Jude on his feet, his arms grabbing around my father's chest and dragging him backwards. He squeezed at his wound, causing my father to howl in pain as his feet kicked at the dirt.
Then, Jude threw him, with all his strength, towards the edge of the cliff, sending him tumbling over. My father reached forward and up with his hands, grabbing for something, anything, to hold onto, but there was nothing.
I watched on in horror through tear stained eyes as his hands disappeared from sight, sliding over the edge. Then, all I could hear was the sound of his screaming as he plunged down to his death.
….
Jude
I lay on the ground, the world blurring and fading around me. I could sense O'Brien standing and moving off towards Amy, and could hear them speaking, but couldn't make out the words. My mind was tumbling, my brain rocking around in my head.
I lay for a moment, my vision slowly clearing, my senses coming back to me. I heard a loud gunshot, and it rocked me from my stupor.
I arched my head and saw O'Brien rocked back by the force of the bullet. He reached for a moment at his shoulder before moving forward again, towards Amy, who was cowering only feet away.
I jumped to my feet and rushed forward, the world still slightly blurry. I felt wobbly as I came at O'Brien from behind, grabbing him and stopping him from getting to Amy. I gripped at him hard and pulled him back, feeling for his wound and digging my finger in to weaken him.
I felt a shudder rush through his body as he roared, the pain weakening his struggle to get free from my arms. I could feel the empty edge of the cliff behind me and glanced back to see I was only feet from it.
In a single move I threw him, with all my force, towards the cliff edge. He stumbled and fell, his weight carrying him over the precipice. I could see his eyes growing wide with terror as he reached for something to stop his fall, something to pull him back up. All he grabbed, however, was dirt, as his body slid ungraciously over the side.
I saw the final look on his face as his eyes caught mine, deep fear on them at his imminent death. But I felt no remorse, I felt no pity for him. Everything he'd done, he'd brought upon himself. He was about to die, and he deserved it.
The sound of his scream ended abruptly as he hit the ground below, and I turned to see Amy sitting in the mud, staring out ahead of her at the cliff edge. I could see the tears wetting her eyes in the moonlight, her hands shaking as she held them to her mouth.
I moved quickly forward and hugged her, feeling her body convulsing in my arms.
“It's over now baby, it's OK,” I said, trying to comfort her. “But we have to go....now.”
I looked up to see lights once more coming through the trees in the distance. The men must have heard the gunshots and were coming our way, quickly bearing down on us.
I lifted her to her feet and put my palms to her cheeks, looking her directly in the eye. “Down the track, into my car, and away, OK.”
She nodded tamely and I started running, quickly moving off down the track, running quickly with her hand in mine. She ran behind me as we picked up speed, moving off away from the lights.
I could see them in the distance as I glanced around, still moving through the woods in the direction of the sound, still searching for the source. By the time they got there, we'd be long gone.
We ran and ran, not talking, not looking at each other, just running. The light of the moon was beginning to give way as the first rays of the rising dawn began to creep over the horizon. The adrenaline pumped through me, keeping me warm against the night air, keeping us both pouring down the track as fast as we could manage.
By the time we emerged to the bottom and came onto the first major street, I searched for signs of life. It was still too early for most, no cars moving down the road, no people seen walking their dogs or out for early morning jogs.
I saw my car in the distance, our haven, and we moved towards it. We jumped inside and I gunned the engine, moving off quickly and away from the scene. I looked to my side, where Amy sat, still staring, still in shock, and reached out to grab her hand. She looked at me, at my touch, and her eyes softened.
But there was no space for smiles, no space for words. She just looked at me, and her eyes told me everything I needed to know. She loved me, she'd said it before. She loved me.
Chapter 19
Jude
I took Amy back to my apartment and lay her in my bed. She was still shivering, from fear and the cold and everything that had happened, everything she'd been through.
I hugged her for a long time, warming her and calming her. She held on tight, unwilling to let go, for what seemed like hours. But she was safe now, safe from his clutches, able to live her life as she wanted without him interfering, without his shadow looming over her.
But there was one thing remaining, one thing I needed to do for her.
It wasn't until the cover of darkness came that I returned to the hills surrounding O'Brien's mansion. This time I wasn't alone. I had Zig with me.
The woods at the foot of the cliff near the viewpoint were thick, too thick for walkers and hikers. We drove to the nearest side road and off into the woods, going as far as we could before the trees blocked our path. From there we moved on foot, moving quickly towards the root of the mountain where the cliff began.
Within half an hour we were there, touching the rock amid the thick trees and bushes. I looked up, through a gap, to see the point where O'Brien had fallen only hours previously.
“Search left,” I told Zig, before moving off to the right.
I clambered through the undergrowth, searching the ground and the trees above with my flashlight. It didn't take long for me to see a leg, awkwardly positioned, sticking up against a tree. I crept forward and then I saw him, his body badly mangled, among the roots of a heavy fir tree. His body was broken, and badly cut from the fall through the branches above.
I looked away at the sight and took out my whistle to signal Zig.
After a moment he came clattering through the woods, his heavy frame ducking over and under branches. I watched as even his face morphed at the sight of the body.
After a few deep breaths we both set to work, putting the body into a bodybag and moving back through the woods to the car. Zig held the bag, slung over his shoulder, his bulky
body finding the going easy, even with such a weight on his back.
We set the body into the trunk and drove out of town, deep into the mountains beyond. By the time we'd found a suitable spot, dug the grave, and buried him, the night was once again getting on.
But I needed to do it. At the foot of the cliff, the body might be found, linking Amy to the death. Here, out in the wilderness, there would be no chance of that. I needed to put her, us, in the clear, so that we could both move on with our lives once and for all.
No more Conor O'Brien. The world would be a better place without him.
….
Amy
I still couldn't sleep at night, especially now.
I didn't know where Jude had gone, but I'd been here, in his apartment, alone, all night. It was the first time I'd been here. Despite everything, I'd never even been to Jude's apartment.
My mind rushed with thoughts of the previous night, the previous day. My father was dead, and I'd shot him. I felt numb at the thought, the sight of him coming at me forever ingrained into my mind.
Did I feel guilty? Was I sad, upset, that he was dead? I didn't know right now. I couldn't feel anything.
I knew, in time, my feelings would reveal themselves. After everything he'd done, after keeping me locked in that house, in that room, for months, I was happy to be free, happy to be away from him. Now, he could never touch me again, never control me, never meddle in my life. He was gone forever.
The door clicked open and I saw Jude walk in. He was dirty and looked exhausted as he crept towards me on the bed. My eyes scanned over his body, and I knew immediately where he'd been.
“I buried your father,” he said quietly to me. I nodded. I already knew.
“It's over Amy,” he spoke again. “Now you're free....now, we're free.”
His eyes were tired and full of emotion. I leaned up in his bed and wrapped my arms around him again. He was cold, his body dirty, but I didn't care.
The Logan Brothers - Books 1-4: (EXPOSURE, CRASH, TWIN PASSIONS, and ADDICTED TO YOU) Page 69