The Last Weekend

by Julie Morrigan

  ‘What do we do now?’ asked BlackWidow.

  ‘You do nothing. You aren’t in great shape.’ He turned to JacktheRiffer. ‘How about you, man? Are you up to a search?’

  JacktheRiffer touched his head gingerly. ‘Yeah, count me in. Let’s go see.’

  ‘Close the trapdoor behind us and put something heavy on top of it,’ Indigo instructed Mayfly. ‘Don’t open it again unless you can be sure it’s us.’

  ‘Be careful!’

  ‘Count on it.’ Indigo shot her a grim look, then started climbing down through the trapdoor.

  Underneath the trapdoor was a short passage that led to a staircase, leading down. They descended and found themselves in a lobby. To the right, another staircase headed up.

  ‘That must be the one you can get to from my old room,’ said JacktheRiffer. ‘The one that goes all the way up to the attic.’

  Indigo nodded. ‘The killer could have taken Monkeyboy directly up into his sick workshop from here.’ The door to the basement was opposite the longer staircase. When they’d tried it, the day before, it had been locked. Indigo tried the handle again and this time, the door opened. ‘We should check down here, first, just in case,’ he said.

  They quickly checked the rooms, knives held in front of them. ‘Nothing,’ said JacktheRiffer. ‘Do we go upstairs, now? Do we follow him to the room up there?’

  ‘On this occasion, yes, I think we do. Not that I want to go there, but we might be in time to get Monkeyboy out in one piece.’

  ‘Good enough,’ said JacktheRiffer. ‘Let’s go.’ He went back through the door and started climbing the staircase that led past his room and up to the attic.

  How could we have been so stupid? Indigo wondered. It was only that morning that JunkieScum and SpeedKing had been taken. How could they have grown so complacent, so quickly? He realised it had a lot to do with their being exhausted, stressed and afraid, but even so, it was life and death, not some silly game.

  They climbed for what seemed like an age before they reached the top of the staircase. They shared a look, then Indigo opened the door and they stepped into the large room that held the grisly tableau. He pulled the string that turned on the light.

  ‘Do you see anything?’ Indigo whispered.

  JacktheRiffer peered round the room. ‘Uh uh,’ he said. ‘Oh, wait a minute. What’s that?’ He pointed to the far corner.

  Indigo looked and saw a bundle of what looked like bedding. Getting to it would mean walking past the tableau they had first seen that morning.

  JacktheRiffer took a step towards it. Indigo gripped JacktheRiffer’s arm. ‘Why don’t you stay here?’ he suggested. ‘If he grabs me, you can make it back downstairs.’

  ‘I’ll be okay,’ said JacktheRiffer. ‘The first time I saw her was awful. This time I just won’t look.’

  They made their way across the room slowly, checking all around them for any sign of the killer. Indigo couldn’t help but look at the tableau. ‘Oh, dear Christ,’ he muttered.

  ‘What?’

  ‘SpeedKing. Don’t look.’

  So, of course, JacktheRiffer did. ‘Jesus, fuck,’ he said. SpeedKing was underneath the Harley, his head raw and bloodied, his scalp draped over a motorcycle helmet by his feet. JacktheRiffer tore his eyes away and headed once more for the bundle of bedding. He saw a guitar on a workbench, nearby, and knew it would be for his own death pose. He wondered briefly what the killer would do to him.

  Indigo was a step of him and reached the bundle first. He reached toward it tentatively, then acted more decisively. He opened up the bundle to see Monkeyboy. He was bleeding from a wound in his chest. He was still breathing, but the sound it made was somehow wet. He blinked at Indigo and JacktheRiffer.

  ‘Get out, now. I’ve had it. For fuck’s sake, leave!’ Monkeyboy’s voice was little more than a whisper.

  ‘Not without you,’ said JacktheRiffer. ‘We came to get you. He’s not having you.’

  ‘I can’t stand, never mind walk. I’m as good as dead.’ Monkeyboy looked at JacktheRiffer. ‘I’m sorry I doubted you.’

  JacktheRiffer patted his shoulder.

  ‘You’re alive now and that’ll do for us,’ said Indigo. ‘Here,’ he said to JacktheRiffer. ‘Let’s make a hammock and carry him like that.’

  ‘He’s using me as bait,’ Monkeyboy murmured, his eyes closing. ‘He wants to kill us all before morning. Get his money’s worth. Don’t fall for it … run!’

  JacktheRiffer and Indigo picked up the bedspread Monkeyboy lay on and carried him across the room. Carefully, keeping the blanket level, they progressed down the stairs one at a time. Nothing followed them. No one came. They crept on, then took the short passage that led to JacktheRiffer’s old room. They could go down the main staircase from there, then into the front sitting room, where the women were.

  ‘Last stretch, then you’re safe with the rest of us,’ Indigo said. ‘Monkeyboy? Can you hear me, mate?’

  JacktheRiffer groaned. ‘Might as well put him down, Indigo. He’s gone.’

  Indigo looked. Sure enough, at some point on their journey, Monkeyboy had drawn his last breath. Indigo choked back tears. ‘At least that cunt hasn’t got him,’ he said to JacktheRiffer. ‘We need to make sure that’s how it stays.’ Carefully, they lowered the bedspread to the floor and wrapped Monkeyboy up in it.

  ‘Where can we put him? It’ll freak the others out if we take him back, dead.’

  ‘What about taking him into the cold room with the slatted shelves? I get the impression it’s where we were all meant to end up, anyway.’

  ‘Fair enough,’ said JacktheRiffer. ‘Let’s go.’ They picked Monkeyboy up once more and headed back along the passageway, then down the stairs and into the basement. Once there, they went over to the cold room and opened the door.

  ‘Hold on,’ JacktheRiffer said. ‘Put him down here.’ They put Monkeyboy down on the floor. JacktheRiffer went inside the cold room, took a couple of body bags from the pile and wedged the door open with them. ‘Just in case, yeah?’

  Indigo nodded and they picked Monkeyboy up again and moved him inside. ‘Just here should do,’ Indigo said. They put Monkeyboy down one last time and stood and stared at him for a moment. ‘Sleep well, son. Sweet dreams,’ he said.

  ‘Amen to that.’ They turned and saw a shadow straighten up and flit away from the doorway. JacktheRiffer took off after it.

  ‘No! Come back!’ shouted Indigo. ‘Let him go.’

  JacktheRiffer came back to where Indigo stood.

  ‘Mate,’ Indigo said, ‘if you hadn’t chocked that door open, we’d be in there now, slowly freezing to death. Let’s be grateful for our lives and get the fuck out of here and back to the women.’

  JacktheRiffer looked at his watch. ‘Eight hours, that’s all. Just eight hours. Fuck him! We get back to the women and we don’t leave that room again until daylight. We piss in the corner if we have to, but we stick together from here on in.’

  The men ran up the stairs into the kitchen, then across the hall, where they rapped on the sitting room door. Mayfly pulled the table aside and the door was opened for them. Indigo put his arms around Mayfly. ‘We were too late,’ he said. ‘Too late to save him.’

  ‘Did you see any sign of SpeedKing?’ she asked.

  Indigo hesitated. ‘Yes,’ he said eventually. ‘We saw him. But we couldn’t help him, either. We were too late for the both of them, love.’

  The door and the trapdoor were both blockaded. The small group settled down, wrapped in blankets and quilts to ward off the cold, to wait out the remaining hours. Mayfly sorted out some music; JacktheRiffer didn’t feel much like playing, so Muddy Waters took over his role for a while. No one had very much to say. They sat and simply allowed time to pass.

  Chapter 40

  Indigo was awoken from a fitful sleep by the sound of the engine of a vehicle that was coming up the drive. ‘Wake up, folks, sounds like the cavalry,’ he said. He shook Mayfly. ‘Wake up, love, time
to go.’

  He and JacktheRiffer looked out of the window, and saw a Transit van park up out front. They pulled the table away from the door that led into the hall, then pulled the desk away from the front door.

  When they got outside, they saw a man with cropped blonde hair standing by the Transit, enjoying a smoke.

  ‘Are we glad to see you!’ Indigo said him. ‘You’ve no idea what a nightmare this weekend turned into.’

  ‘How many of you are there?’ The man looked at the front door, as the others started to file out. ‘Is this it, the four of you?’

  ‘Yes.’

  ‘Okay, fella. Tell you what, you hop in the back of the van and help me sort it out. There’s more of you than I’d been expecting.’

  Indigo nodded. ‘Okay.’ He walked to the rear of the Transit van and opened the back doors, then stopped. On the floor of the van, tied up and unconscious, was the woman who had met him at the Grosvenor Hotel on the day he had met Reaperman for his interview. The woman didn’t look immaculate now. Her hair and clothes were dishevelled, one shoe had fallen off and her stockings were ripped. Realisation dawned and Indigo turned to run from the van. As he did, he was grabbed by a man with a crooked nose, and a cloth soaked in chloroform was placed over his mouth and nose. The last thing he saw before he lost consciousness was Mayfly’s face, eyes big and scared, as she realised the nightmare wasn’t over.

  Chapter 41

  Indigo came to slowly, aware that he was on the floor of the van and that it was moving. His hands were tied behind his back. He blinked, conscious that there were bodies either side of him. They were all laid out like sardines along the length of the Transit van. He couldn’t suppress a shudder. Bodies … he hoped they were live ones.

  ‘You’re awake; thank goodness,’ said a voice to his left.

  Indigo wriggled around and saw that he was next to the woman from the Grosvenor Hotel. JacktheRiffer was on his other side, and Mayfly was closest to the rear doors. BlackWidow was nowhere to be seen.

  ‘I’m Valerie,’ the woman said.

  ‘Do you think they’re all right?’ he asked, looking at the unconscious forms they shared the van with.

  ‘They should be okay. They were all given chloroform, like you. And like me, too.’

  ‘What’s going on, Valerie? Nothing went as planned. Who are those people?’

  ‘I don’t know. I don’t know what’s going on.’ She squirmed until she had her back to him. ‘Turn over,’ she said, ‘let me see if I can get the knots loose.’

  He did as she said and felt her fingers picking at the knots in the bindings around his wrists. ‘Oh, damn, it’s no good!’ she hissed, wanting to shout out in frustration but knowing she couldn’t afford to alert the people in the front of the van to what they were doing. There was a panel separating front and back, but it would be unlikely to deaden much sound.

  ‘Here, let me try,’ said Indigo. He wriggled round and his fingers, stronger and more supple, worked on the knots binding the woman. He managed to work a finger into a loop of the thin rope and he worried at it until it pulled loose. The woman immediately felt a slackness in the ties that bound her.

  ‘That’s better,’ she said, ‘I’ve got a bit more room to manoeuvre.’ Indigo felt her moving beside him and realised she was trying to get her body through the loop of her arms. It took her a while and a lot of wriggling and cursing, but she eventually had her hands in front of her. Although still bound, she had more freedom and she could see what she was doing. Within minutes, Indigo’s hands were untied and he lost no time in untying hers, in turn.

  As they rubbed at their wrists, he looked around. His companions from the house were still out cold.

  ‘The Last Weekend is the brainchild of my brother, Philip – you know him as Reaperman – and a man called Jed Pike. Philip was sent to prison after he helped his wife to commit suicide; that’s where they met.’

  ‘I have bad news about Philip …’

  Valerie looked pained. ‘I suspected as much.’ She blinked tears away.

  ‘Have you any idea where they’re taking us?’

  Valerie shook her head. ‘None whatsoever. But I can’t imagine it’s to a place of safety.’

  Chapter 42

  During the course of the journey, Mayfly and JacktheRiffer thankfully revived, and Indigo and Valerie untied them.

  ‘Where’s BlackWidow?’ he said, as Mayfly blinked and rubbed her wrists.

  ‘I was helping her walk out to the van, when one of the men dragged her back into the house. He said she’d be no good if she couldn’t run.’ She swallowed. ‘I heard her scream, then he chloroformed me.’

  ‘Ah, shit,’ said Indigo. There was no point in hoping for the best; she’d be dead by now. He filled them in on what he knew and they sketched out a plan for when the van stopped.

  The van slowed and made a turn, then drew to a halt. ‘Quick,’ said Indigo, as the front doors opened and then slammed shut again, ‘get back in position. We don’t want to lose the element of surprise.’

  The four of them lay back down and put their hands behind their backs, pretending to be still bound, and waited for the back doors to be opened. They didn’t have to wait long; the doors were flung wide and they blinked as their eyes adjusted to the change in the light.

  ‘All awake, are we? Can you walk?’ The blonde man didn’t wait for a reply, just grabbed Mayfly, who was nearest, and dragged her forward. She sat on the back edge of the van, blinking at the two men.

  ‘Come on then, chop chop. We haven’t got all day.’

  Mayfly launched herself at the blonde man and knocked him to the ground, then JacktheRiffer leapt out from the back of the van and swung a punch at the man with the crooked nose. He caught him by surprise and landed a hard blow to the chin, as Indigo flew out the van and knocked him to the ground. It was almost too easy; within minutes they had the men face down in the dirt, hands tied behind their backs.

  Valerie got out of the van and looked around. The vehicle was parked up near a barn, and there was a stone-built house a short distance away.

  ‘Where are we?’ she asked the blonde man. ‘Why did you bring us here?’

  ‘It won’t do you any good, you know,’ Helmand said. ‘You might think you’ve beaten us, but you’re wrong.’

  ‘Not from where I’m standing,’ said JacktheRiffer. ‘You’re the ones who look beaten, right now.’

  There was the sound of a door slamming and the man laughed. ‘What about now?’ he said.

  Indigo looked over to the house and saw two men walking towards them. Each carried an AK47 and both were pointed directly at the small group of survivors.

  ‘Jesus Christ!’ said Mayfly.

  ‘Get back in the van, quick!’ said Indigo. ‘You, too, Valerie.’ He hauled Sunderland to his feet, then pointed to Helmand. ‘Mate! Get him on his feet!’ he said to JacktheRiffer. Seconds later, Indigo and JacktheRiffer, each holding a man in front of him as a human shield, faced Glasgow and Basra. The women had scrambled back into the van.

  ‘Now, don’t do anything stupid,’ Indigo said. ‘We’re going to leave and you’re going to let us.’ He glanced over his shoulder. ‘Close the doors,’ he called to Mayfly, and he heard them slam shut. ‘You go to the passenger side,’ he said to JacktheRiffer. ‘Keep him between you and them.’

  JacktheRiffer started to walk around the van to the front passenger door, careful to keep Helmand between him and the guns aimed in their direction. Indigo edged to the driver’s door, which faced the men with the guns. Sunderland provided cover for him. He stopped with his back to the door and fumbled behind him for the handle. He prayed the keys were still in the ignition and chanced a quick glance when the door was open; they were there.

  The two gunmen hadn’t said a word. They kept their weapons trained on the people in front of them.

  ‘Right,’ repeated Indigo, ‘we’re going to leave in the van and you’re going to let us. In return, we’ll let these two go.’
/>   Sunderland laughed. ‘Listen to yourself!’ he said. ‘Do you really think you have any bargaining power?’

  Indigo ignored him. ‘Jack,’ he shouted, ‘get in the van and start the engine.’

  Indigo heard Helmand grunt and then swear as JacktheRiffer pushed him away and he fell to the ground, then the passenger door slammed. A moment later the engine roared to life as JacktheRiffer reached over and turned the key in the ignition. Indigo prepared to propel Sunderland away from him, then he planned to jump into the van and drive like a bat out of hell to safety. Just as he made his move, Glasgow lowered his weapon and fired three shots in quick succession. Two missed their mark, but the third took out the driver’s side rear tyre. Seconds later, the front tyre went the same way.

  ‘Now, stop fucking about, turn the engine off and get everybody back out of the van, before somebody gets hurt,’ he said, gun back on Indigo.

  Indigo hesitated. Would the van still be able to get them away? He didn’t care if the wheels were damaged beyond repair in the attempt, just so long as it rolled along a road.

  ‘Don’t do anything stupid,’ said Glasgow. ‘I’ll kill you if I have to. I’ll lose money if I do it myself, but that’s a loss I’m prepared to take.’

  Basra went to the back of the van and pulled the doors open. ‘Get out,’ he said. His gun was pointed right at Mayfly and Valerie.

  The women got out of the van.

  ‘Hands on your heads.’

  Indigo heard the engine die as JacktheRiffer turned the key in the ignition. ‘It’s over, mate,’ he said. ‘This round goes to them.’

  Indigo knew he was right. He let go of Sunderland and backed away, hands up.

  Glasgow shouted to JacktheRiffer, ‘You! Get out of the van!’

  JacktheRiffer did as he was told. ‘Now, you two jokers untie Sunderland and Helmand.’ He indicated the two men they’d overpowered and tied up earlier.

  They untied them, and then the four of them were lined up alongside the van, hands on their heads.

  ‘Right,’ said Glasgow, ‘head for the barn. Move!’