Afflicted

by Susanne Valenti

  Books by Susanne Valenti

  Cage of Lies Saga:

  Chained

  Linked

  Broken

  Bound

  Free

  Cage of Lies novellas:

  Cut Glass

  Embers

  Tainted Earth Saga:

  Afflicted

  Find out the latest information on new releases and more at

  www.susannevalenti.com

  This ebook is copyright material and must not be copied, reproduced, transferred, distributed, leased, licensed or publicly performed or used in any way except as specifically permitted in writing by the author. Any unauthorised distribution or use of this text may be a direct infringement of the author's rights and those responsible may be liable in law accordingly.

  Published by Susanne Valenti 2017

  Copyright 2017 Susanne Valenti

  All rights reserved

  Susanne Valenti has asserted her right under the copyright, designs and patents act, 1998, to be identified as the author of this work.

  This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places and incidents either are the product of the author's imagination or are used fictitiously. Any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, events or locales is entirely coincidental.

  There was something so permanent about death. The end of so many possibilities. No more chances for so many things.

  As I sat on the curb staring at the lifeless body before me, I couldn't help but wonder if there was something I could have done to change what had happened to him. If there was any way that his death could have been avoided. That he might have had a chance at life, to love and be loved.

  Not that there was much left to live for if this was what was happening to the world. Least of all love. I had a hard time believing that a world like this had a place left in it for love anymore. I wasn't even sure if there was a place left for me.

  Chapter One

  Kaitlyn

  Six years was a long time to hold a grudge.

  I sat in my bedroom windowsill and watched as the black SUV pulled up outside the house next door. I bit my lip, half considered ducking out of sight then decided against it. Twice.

  The apology I'd rehearsed fifty different ways still seemed like it wasn't good enough. I'd ruined his life. Or saved it. Depending on how he looked at it. And six years was a long time for me to wonder which it was.

  The doors of the SUV remained closed and I could only see the top of a bottle green baseball cap from my vantage point.

  Over the years I'd begun to wonder if he would ever come home, hoping that I'd done him a favour by getting him sent away that day.

  I wished he'd called me. Or written. Anything just to let me know he was okay.

  I could still remember the day that his family had moved in next door. It was a sticky August afternoon and I'd been playing in the front yard with my brother Reese, jumping over the sprinklers in our swimsuits. We'd been arguing about something when my brother pushed me over, straight into the mud. Before I could even scream for Mom, a skinny twelve year old with dark hair and a black eye had appeared from nowhere, scooped up a handful of mud and flung it straight into my brother's laughing face.

  "You shouldn't hit girls," he'd said firmly, offering a hand to me and yanking me upright.

  Mud ran down the backs of my legs and the sun half blinded me as I’d stared at my saviour with the kind of unquestioning instant love only a five year old can feel.

  The sound of my bedroom door opening made me jump and I turned to see my best friend Lacey toss her bag into the middle of my bed. She was in her red and white cheerleading uniform and I groaned as I realised I should be wearing mine too. There was a football game tonight.

  "I was waving to you as I came down your drive," she said. "And you didn't even notice me."

  "Oh, sorry, I wasn't looking that way..." I glanced back out of the window towards the SUV. He still hadn't opened the door.

  "Is he back then?" Lacey asked dramatically, rushing across the room to peer over my shoulder.

  "I think that's his truck," I said, nodding at it. "He's still in it."

  "So he's just sitting outside his mom's house, peeking in the windows like a creep?" Lacey wrinkled her nose and I rolled my eyes at her, forcing myself to vacate the windowsill. I was going to be late for school if I didn't hurry and now I had to add in a wardrobe change too.

  "I guess he doesn't know what to say to her." I dropped into the chair in front of my dressing table and pulled a brush through my long dark hair once more. I glanced at my makeup indecisively and Lacey selected a deep red lipstick for me, saving me from choosing myself.

  I pouted as I applied it and Lacey leaned around me, using some of my eyeliner to top up her own makeup.

  I ducked out of her way and headed to my wardrobe, rummaging in the bottom for my cheer uniform and quickly shedding my clothes to put it on. There was something about wearing the uniform that made me feel a little less like myself. When I was so obviously labelled as part of the squad, my own personality didn't seem to matter so much anymore. Sometimes I didn't like it but other times the anonymity of being a cheerleader rather than just Kaitlyn was reassuring.

  "I'm finally starting to catch a tan," I said as I glanced in the mirror at my now golden skin. I'd spent the weekend firmly planted in the back yard in a bikini with determination to rid myself of my winter paleness. It was questionable whether it had really been warm enough for sunbathing but Demi made us wear fake tan if we looked too pale for her liking and I hated the stuff.

  "I'm glad I don't have that problem," Lacey laughed as I eyed her flawless dark skin enviously. "I heard Tara got burnt while she was away last week," she added in a low voice.

  I almost glanced over my shoulder to check that Demi wasn't behind me before replying. My fear of our cheer captain was getting out of hand. She could make my life miserable if I did something to piss her off so I always guarded my tongue when it came to her unless I was talking to Lacey. The rest of the team were great but they had no idea how to keep their mouths shut.

  "I hope she's not too red," I said. "Demi will go ape if her skin starts peeling before the next game."

  "If it's bad she'd be better off ditching school until it's better, say she's got mono or something," Lacey said seriously.

  I nodded my agreement but I knew Tara would be in today. No way her mom and dad would let her ditch right after having a week out to go on holiday.

  I grabbed my bag and headed for the door, casting one last glance at my window before heading onto the landing.

  "Heads up cheerios!" my brother Reese yelled as a football slammed into my open bedroom door about two inches above my head.

  I let out a scream of anger, grabbed the ball and launched it back at him, missing by a few feet as he leapt down the stairs to escape me. I could hear him laughing with his idiot friend Jason downstairs.

  "You're such a jackass!" I yelled after him, just before I heard the front door bang shut. I let out a growl of anger. "I can't wait to go to college and get away from him!"

  Lacey laughed and we made our way downstairs slowly, giving Reese and Jason plenty of time to leave so that we wouldn't have to walk in with them.

  "Have you seen Ryan over the weekend?" Lacey asked casually as I grabbed an apple and took a bite. I glanced in the fridge but there wasn't much more than half a carton of milk and an old yogurt that had been there way too long. I pushed the door shut with a sigh. Looked like I was buying lunch again then.

  "No..." I took another bite of my apple and held the door open for Lacey.

  "You don't exactly sound upset about that," she commented as we moved down the hall and outside, pausing while I locked up.

  "It's not that, I just...
" I wasn't even sure what the end of that sentence was and Lacey seemed to know it too. It wasn't as if Ryan had done anything wrong. He was tall and charming and nice, surely that should be more than enough?

  "You've been dating for a few months now, shouldn't you be wanting to spend more time with him, not less?" Lacey pushed as we started heading down the street.

  "I dunno." My eyes were drawn to the black SUV still parked outside the house next door. It was empty.

  "Is he doing something wrong?"

  Evidently Lacey wasn't going to drop the subject of my love life. I tore my eyes away from the SUV, gave the house behind it a sweeping glance to confirm that he wasn't anywhere in sight then gave the subject my full attention.

  "Ryan's not doing anything wrong," I said slowly, trying to find the words for what I was feeling, or wasn't feeling. "He's... nice."

  "Oh God."

  "What?" I looked at my best friend as she glared back at me dramatically.

  "Demi warned you - you're not allowed to break his heart!"

  "Break his heart?" I laughed. "I hardly think his feelings for me are-"

  "You're all he talks about! He saves a seat for you at lunch every day - even on the days when you skip out on all of us to "do your assignments in the library" and we all know you aren't coming." She made air quotes with her fingers as she said the bit about the library.

  "Why are you air quoting me? I do spend that time in the library doing my assignments!"

  "Yeah I know but Demi thinks that's lame so she makes out you're secretly doing something else which no one knows about but her." Lacey rolled her eyes and I pushed aside my irritation with Demi. Nothing that girl said or did surprised me anymore.

  "Anyway, just because he saves a seat for me-"

  "I'm telling you, that boy has got it bad. If you break up with him you'll break his heart and if you break the quarterback's heart at this point in the season-"

  "I know, I know, if the football team suffers, the cheerleading squad suffers," I sighed. How had I managed to get myself into this situation?

  "Yeah and if the squad suffers because of you, Demi will skin you alive."

  We turned off of the street and started to cut down a back alley which led to the school. We walked in silence while I stewed over my situation. The most irritating thing about it was that I hadn't even been planning on breaking things off with Ryan. I just hadn't been thinking about him much at all. And now that I was, I realised that my heart wasn't in it.

  Lacey grabbed my arm suddenly, jolting me out of my sultry thoughts and knocking the half eaten apple from my hand. I stumbled to a halt as I spotted the huge raccoon which had stepped into our path, blocking our progress down the alley.

  For a second I could have sworn it glared at us. My heart stuttered in my chest as some instinct warned me to run. I pushed the silly fear aside with a slight shake of my head and clapped my hands at the creature instead.

  "Shoo!" I said, stamping my foot as I took a step towards it.

  The raccoon bared its teeth at me, spitting out a hiss and arching its back. My breath caught in my throat as I stumbled back, bumping into Lacey. Her hand tightened around my arm as she started to pull me away.

  The raccoon snarled at us, advancing slowly with saliva running down its teeth. We backed up faster, afraid to turn our backs on it but desperate to escape the alley as quickly as we could.

  It was big. Bigger than any raccoon I'd ever seen before. As we managed to increase the distance between us and it to a few meters, the raccoon sat back on its haunches, lifting its front legs in the air and swatting them at us aggressively. If I had been stood beside it, I could have sworn it would come up to my waist or higher.

  My foot caught on the curb as we made it to the alley's entrance and I nearly fell. Lacey's grip tightened on my arm as she yanked me upright.

  We paused to glance back at the raccoon and it lurched towards us, spitting angrily.

  We both screamed and sprinted away down the street. The sound of scampering feet and snarling followed close behind us and we didn't dare look back as we raced away.

  Chapter Two

  Lincoln

  The back door seemed less intimidating than the front somehow and I crossed the backyard slowly as I approached it. My father had never been one for gardening, leaving that kind of work to me or Mom. I'd spent many hours mowing the lawn and trimming the hedges, often taking longer than necessary just so that I had an excuse to stay outside. Not that you could tell now; the grass brushed my shins tauntingly, letting me know that my time here meant nothing to it. Not that I was surprised by that; my time here hadn't meant anything to anyone in this house.

  I wondered again why I'd come. She'd made her choice and it sure as hell wasn’t me. And if she wanted that sonofabitch more than her own kid then why should I console her after he up and died?

  I ran a hand over the short hair at the back of my head, frowning up at the house from the relative safety of the backyard.

  He's not there anymore.

  With an irritated sigh, I headed to the house. Dew soaked my pants from the overgrown lawn and I felt my anger deepen. The stairs groaned under my weight as I ascended. Unsurprisingly he hadn't maintained them either and I could feel the rotting wood flex beneath my boots. I half expected them to give way at any moment and my muscles tensed in anticipation.

  I somehow reached the decking without falling through and used my momentum to carry me to the door.

  I hesitated, my hand grasping the familiar doorknob. Should I just walk in? Should I knock? This wasn't my house anymore and it had never been a home to me. Home was where you felt safe and nothing about this place had ever felt that way.

  The familiar chill crept up my spine; warning me to stay away. My training had taught me to stand firm in the face of fear. But nothing could really make me forget the old terror of this place. I gripped the handle tighter and twisted.

  The door swung open, banging against the wall inside. I resisted the urge to flinch at the sound; he wasn't there anymore. I didn't need to creep in and I didn't need to stay quiet.

  “Diane?” I called as I stepped over the threshold. I’d stopped calling her mom a long time ago.

  The house was gloomy. No lights were on and she'd left the blinds closed. I moved into the kitchen and pulled the cord to open them and let some light in.

  I wrinkled my nose as the smell of gone off food reached me. Dirty cups and plates were stacked all around the counters and the trashcan overflowed in the corner.

  It didn't look like she'd lifted a finger since he'd died. I wondered if it was a side effect of her sudden freedom or an indication of her grief. Whatever it was, it was disgusting. I turned my back on the repulsive kitchen, making a mental note to get takeout for dinner.

  “Diane?” I called louder as I made my way down the hall.

  I stopped to open the curtains in the front room, noting the musty smell and more unwashed crockery as I did. I began to wonder if she was even here, though the back door had been unlocked which suggested she was.

  I headed upstairs, my feet dodging the creaky floorboards out of long-formed habit. I had no reason to avoid them now, he wasn't going to hear me coming in. He wasn't going to come looking for me in my bedroom, brandishing the belt that he never used. The belt was good for threats but he always preferred his fists for action. I could only presume he had liked to feel my flesh cave beneath his.

  I glanced towards the semi-safety of my old room, wondering what had happened to my things. It wouldn't surprise me to find out he'd burned them.

  Their room was in the opposite direction, at the end of the hall. I stalked towards it, ignoring the voices in my head warning me to turn away. There were too many damn ghosts lingering in this place. I never should have come.

  “Diane?” I called again, pushing their bedroom door wide.

  A figure was curled in the centre of the bed, wrapped in blankets that covered her from head to toe. She flinched away fro
m my voice, pulling the covers tighter about her small body.

  “I'm here,” I said, unsure of how else to announce myself to the lump in the bed. “Like you asked.”

  Her phone call had contained little more than sobbing and pleas to see me. At first I'd thought she'd finally left him but it turned out he'd gone and died. I should have known she'd never leave, but for a few short minutes I'd believed in her. Believed that she'd finally chosen me. Pity I was so stupid, those wounds had healed over but I had to go and rip them open again. Poor little Lincoln, his momma never loved him.

  “Lincoln?” she gasped, fighting her way out of the sheets.

  She crawled across the bed to me, stumbling as the twisted blankets snaked around her legs.

  She was a small woman, smaller than I remembered.

  With a gasp of relief or pain or some emotion that I couldn't quite place, she flung her arms around my waist, pressing her face against my chest as she knelt on the bed.

  I held my arms out in surprise, not sure what to do with them. The obvious answer would be to return her embrace but I couldn't bring myself to do it. She wasn't what I wished she would be and she never would be. Her long, dark hair was matted into a knot at the back of her head, the roots shining with grease. It was clear that she'd given me her colouring even if she'd never given me anything else.

  The shirt she wore must have been his. It swamped her, the flannel material hiding her small frame beneath a layer of stained red checks.

  “I knew you'd come my gorgeous boy,” she cooed, maintaining her grip on my torso. “You wouldn't leave your momma alone.”

  “Shame the same couldn't be said for you,” I growled, prising her arms off of me.

  She sank down onto the bed and stared up at me with the deep brown eyes we shared. She looked like a little bird, waiting for the world to decide what to do with her. I forced myself to soften, allowing a drop of pity into my heart so that I could help her.