Deceived

by Lynda O'Rourke

  “Are you listening to me?” snapped Eras, his voice shaky. “My life was lost the moment you started chasing Etta. I was buried alive! I wore my nails down to bloody stumps trying to claw my way out of that coffin. That’s how my corpse still looks today. Hands all bent up and twisted… fingers still in the position as if I were still trying to scratch my way out… mouth stretched wide where I died screaming… screaming for you… my brother.”

  Brother... You’re brothers? I spoke to Quint. I never knew. After all this time… you living inside me… you never let on once… never showed any brotherly love to each other. Just hate. But now it kinda makes sense.

  “Shut up!” snapped Quint, trying to push me back down. “This has nothing to do with you.”

  Eras’ shadow started to dim a little as he reached up and placed his hand on my shoulder. With his voice lowered and eyes glazed over, he continued to talk to Quint and said, “And even now after all this time, you’re still chasing Etta… still putting her first. Why do you think I escaped Cruor Pharma with the volunteers? Why did I try to escape before with Sylvia, Alex, and Robert?”

  Quint didn’t reply.

  “Because there was nothing at Cruor Pharma for me… nothing. Only more death… more innocent lives taken. I wanted something for myself. I wanted my freedom away from our uncle. I wanted to escape the demon I have become, and just for once…” whispered Eras, “I wanted the girl… Kassidy. But you even took her from me… you and Ben Fletcher.” Eras turned away, but continued to speak. “I’m so fucked off! Fucked off with you… with the way our lives turned out. After losing our parents and Uncle Trabek taking us in and making us worship the devil... summoning everything dark you could ever think of. He allowed the demons we’ve become to enter our bodies. I was never Eras… I was never Jude. I used to be Adam and you… you started life as Mathew, my brother…not Quint and not Ben. We’ve lost ourselves and now there’s nothing left.”

  Eras turned back and looked at me. Although it wasn’t me he was talking to. It was the demon inside of me. Because there was no more Mathew… just Quint and what was left of me, Ben.

  CHAPTER SEVEN

  Ben

  We stood in silence within the fog. My head was swarming with everything that I had heard from the brothers. Their uncle, Trabek, who I knew more as Doctor Middleton, had been the start of all of this. Or had he? If Quint and Eras had originally been Adam and Mathew, then Trabek must have started off life as a different person—untouched by demons and dark dealings in death. And I? I was just another victim in what appeared to be a long chain of demons passing between bodies. But how was this chain of events ever to be stopped… to be broken? The bodies in the coffins were that of Adam and Mathew, and the only other thing left of them was memories. Eras and Quint had consumed them, and when their bodies had been shut away inside the coffins and then released long after, my body had been taken by Quint, and Eras had taken Jude’s. But they still believed themselves to be brothers. Maybe a little of the brothers’ souls continued to live on within each body they moved into. The coffins obviously held the key to their destruction. Why else would they have been protected for so long within Cruor Pharma? Doctor Middleton—Trabek—had made sure that no one would ever enter that room where they were kept locked up… until… Kassidy’s father hid in there and released Etta from her prison. And now the coffins were being moved. Taken away to be protected from prying eyes and from other demons. The bodies had to be destroyed, or this long chain of death and misery would continue. But for that to happen, I knew that I would have to die, too, and so would Jude.

  “I don’t think so,” piped up Quint, having heard my thoughts. He spoke out so that Eras could hear him. “I am not having my body destroyed… do you hear me?”

  “Kassidy and the others are heading to Broken Cove… they won’t destroy your body or mine. It’s the others they are going for… Doshia, Trabek, Vectis, and Nellore. If they destroy them, then we rid the place of the Cleaners, too,” said Eras.

  I could feel Quint shift uncomfortably inside me. He wasn’t happy. He didn’t like this plan, and I could feel the anger rise up within me as Quint’s temper rose. His thoughts were consumed with Kassidy and Etta, and amongst his anger, there was panic and grief, too.

  “You fools!” shouted Quint. “You’ve let the volunteers go free so they can kill us all. What about Etta… how would they even know which coffin is for which demon? I have to go. I need to catch up with them and stop them from destroying us.”

  Quint turned on his heels, but in a blink of an eye, Eras rose up, long, black tendrils shooting from his shadow, wrapping themselves around my legs, bringing Quint down on his knees. Then, before I could cry out, my body was lifted up and held in the air.

  “Don’t do this, Eras!” shouted Quint. “Put me down. I won’t warn you again.”

  Eras, his facial features hidden by shadow, continued to hold me up. Unable to speak aloud, I pleaded with Quint. I could see his intentions, hear his thoughts, and feel the sheer anger and his power building. Quint was the stronger out of the two, and I knew that if I couldn’t get through to him, then Jude would be gone forever. Please, Quint. We need Jude—Eras. We have to hold back the Cleaners when they come. If we don’t, then Kassidy and the others will be taken—lost for good. If you destroy Jude, then Eras will be too weak to fight against the Cleaners.

  My words fell on deaf ears. There was no movement from my body. My limbs stayed perfectly still as Eras was flung up into the fog and fell hard onto the ground. I landed on my feet, unscathed, just as Eras got back on his feet. Another blow fell on Eras as I seemed to just stand and watch. Quint didn’t need limbs to fight. The power was in his mind, and all he seemed to need was eyes to point that strength in the right direction.

  “Stop it, Quint!” I yelled. I tried to turn, but I had no hold over my own body. All I could do was stand and watch helplessly as Eras was flung about like he was made of thin air. “He’s your brother,” I shouted, hoping that would make a difference. Quint flinched at the comment, long enough to drop his hold on Eras. Before I could even breathe, Eras had come back fighting. I could feel the air rush by me as my body ploughed through the fog. As I hit the ground, I felt Quint try to stand, but Eras had smothered us with his shadow and now we were trapped on the cold ground. With Quint’s stare away from Eras, I could feel him struggle to move. And then a fleeting glimpse into Quint’s mind flashed past my eyes. I suddenly felt sick.

  “You can’t be serious, Quint!” I said, fearing for my life. “Don’t do it. Please!” I closed my eyes. I had braced myself for death many a time. I had wanted death to come and take me. But now that it was so close, I didn’t want it. Not yet. If I had to die to rid everywhere of demons then I was ready to accept that fate, but I wasn’t ready to die without Quint. That hadn’t been my plan. I wasn’t going to die for nothing. Quint had to die, too. But his thoughts weren’t mine.

  “We’ve been on a long journey together, Ben,” said Quint. “And your body has served me greatly. But I can’t let my coffin and Etta’s coffin be destroyed. I’m so close to her now. I have felt her, heard her, and I will be reunited with Etta. I have to leave your body, as Eras won’t let me go. I can vanish into thin air until I find a suitable replacement. You cannot survive without me. I have kept you alive, but now it’s over. Now… I leave you.”

  CHAPTER EIGHT

  Kassidy

  As we ran through the fog, I could see up ahead a break in the dark mist. The fog had been so disorientating and gloomy, that it had felt like night-time. But I could see the daylight spilling in through the gap. There was no sunshine to greet us. Just an overcast sky threatening more rain. I looked over my shoulder. The fog continued to roll after us, but with the sight of daylight, it seemed to bring a faster pace to our steps, and the Cleaners couldn’t keep up. We were all desperate to get out of the fog, and the moment we broke out, I could see the relief on my friends’ faces. But that look didn’t last for long. I came t
o an abrupt halt as my eyes fell on three police cars. The blue lights flashed on and off.

  I reached out and grabbed onto Max, pulling him to a stop. Looking behind me, the fog still moved. Now we were trapped between the Cleaners and Inspector Cropper’s officers.

  Raven seemed to hesitate, not really knowing which way to go—which was the best option and the safest. Shaking her head, she said, “We’re done for… we’re trapped… either way is gonna get us killed.”

  We stood still like scared animals, and the officers remained in the cars, watching, waiting for us to make the first move. It was like a standoff. Maybe they knew they didn’t really have to try to catch us. Perhaps they believed Inspector Cropper to be hot on our tails, so why not sit back and let that beast of a man do the job for them?

  “I’m not going back into that fog… not now… not ever,” said Max, his eyes wide as he glanced back into the Cleaner’s lair. “I’d rather take my chance with the police.”

  Nodding my head in agreement, I looked at Robert and said, “I’m with Max on this. We go for the police, not the Cleaners. The two don’t even compare.”

  “Let’s do it,” mumbled Robert, standing beside us, his eyes fixed on the police cars.

  Huddled together, we began to edge forward, aware that we didn’t have a lot of time before the fog smothered us again. The ground was muddy and the surrounding hills loomed over us. I shivered as they reminded me of Strangers Hill. Out of the fog, I could hear crows squawking from the trees and the rustle of branches in the breeze.

  Raven held back, her shoulders hunched forward. She seemed stuck to the spot.

  “Come on,” I urged, pulling on her arm. “They’re just men, not monsters nor demons.” I looked forward at the nearest car and shivered. I could see two faces peering through the windscreen. “Just men,” I repeated, trying to calm the fear that had slowly started to spread through me.

  “I don’t like this,” whispered Max. “It doesn’t feel right.”

  “Why haven’t they moved?” asked Raven, barely moving her lips.

  “Maybe they’re more afraid of us,” replied Robert, keeping his eyes firmly fixed on the nearest police car and taking another step nearer. “Remember the stories and rumours about the escaped volunteers from Cruor Pharma? All the staff were fed those lies about us, too. Anyone who has anything to do with Cruor Pharma, or anyone who lives in Holly Tree, believe us to be the killers of all those other volunteers. No one, except the demons, really knows what goes on behind closed doors at Cruor Pharma.”

  “It doesn’t help that we look like monsters, either,” I mumbled, glancing at my hands with their black, twisted nails and veins. Still, I wasn’t sure if I believed in Robert’s theory.

  We continued to tread carefully like we were avoiding hidden traps placed amongst the grass. The two cars at the front had been parked next to each other, with a gap wide enough for us to pass through. The third car had stopped behind them, and was horizontally parked with the driver’s door open and the boot ajar. As we reached the tip of the bonnet, Raven gasped out. “No… no… something’s wrong… I’m not going any further.” She bent forward and covered her face with her greasy hair.

  My heart thumped in my chest and I clung onto Max as he held onto me. I stared at the windscreen. The two officers peered back, mouths hung open with a look of sheer terror etched across their faces. I jumped as a large crow swooped down and landed on top of the vehicle. It pierced the silence with its squawking and watched our every move.

  “They’re dead!” said Robert, peering at the other two vehicles. “All dead.”

  Raven, with her hands over her eyes, called out, “How? Who killed them? Are you sure? The killer might still be close by! They might be watching us… waiting to kill us, too!”

  “Calm down,” I said, feeling more and more on edge. The officers might be dead and could do us no harm, but… I peered up at the hills. Was there someone watching from the trees?

  Tucking a strand of blonde hair behind his ear, Max whispered, “Do you think Doctor Langstone did this?” He looked away up at the hillside and rubbed his arms with his hands. “He could still be here.”

  Staring at the dead officer’s face, I said, “Maybe. Langstone could have done it, but… why not use one of their bodies? I mean…he no longer has one, and could have quite easily taken one of theirs.”

  “Maybe he doesn’t like the police!” piped in Raven, her face still covered by her hair.

  “Don’t be stupid,” I said, “As if a demon is going to be choosy about what body they have and turn one down just because of their profession.”

  Raven shrugged her shoulders and said, “Well if it wasn’t Langstone, who killed them… who?”

  “Doesn’t matter, does it?” said Robert, opening the passenger door and pulling out the dead officer.

  “It does if they’re after us,” snapped Raven. “I’d like to know who to look out for.”

  “Everyone’s after us, Raven.” I sighed. “We just need to keep ourselves to ourselves until this is all over.” I stared back at the fog and wondered if Ben and Jude were safe.

  “Get in,” ordered Robert, pulling the driver from the car. “We’ll take this vehicle. I’m not sure how far it will get us, but anything’s better than nothing.”

  “I’m not getting in there,” snapped Raven, her arms folded tightly around her. “There’s death in that car. How do we know the vehicle isn’t possessed?”

  Ignoring Raven’s silly comment, I stared down at the officer Robert had pulled from the driver’s seat. His lifeless body lay on its back and blood gushed from his mouth, nose, and ears. It was like he had suffered some kind of internal injury. I bent down and slowly reached out and touched the officer’s face. I gasped. He still felt warm and the blood that gushed from him was fresh, as if the injury to his insides had only just happened. I stood up and stared off into the distance. Whoever had done this must have only just been here. But how did we not see the offender? Maybe Max was right. It could have been Langstone. That would explain why we didn’t see anyone.

  “Come on,” said Max, tugging on my arm. “Let’s get out of here.” He turned away, shut the boot, and climbed into the front passenger seat.

  I looked at Raven as she continued to stay put, her eyes wide with fright as she stared into the police car. “Listen, Raven,” I began, “We can’t stay here.” I looked over my shoulder at the moving fog as it rolled toward us like sea mist. “The car is our best bet. Even if it only gets us a few miles away from the fog. It’s better than staying here with…” I trailed off and looked down at the dead officer by my feet. “It’s not just the fog we need to get away from.” I reached out and placed my hand on her arm. “You don’t want to stay here with whoever killed these men, do you?”

  Raven stared at me from under her hair and mumbled, “I guess… but…” She broke off and stared into the back of the car. “I can feel their spirits… they’re in the car… I don’t like it.”

  I followed her gaze. The backseat was empty, of course, and whatever Raven thought she could sense, I couldn’t. My eyes caught the stare of Robert. He was sitting in the driver’s seat watching us from over his shoulder.

  “We have to go,” said Robert, his voice firm. “The longer we stay… the more likely we’re all gonna die.” He turned his attention to the key and turned it. The engine rumbled into life.

  I nodded my head and gave Raven a gentle nudge toward the car. “Come on,” I pushed. She staggered forward like a reluctant farm animal being herded into a pen, heels digging into the mud.

  “Alright… alright.” She glared at me, crouching low as she climbed into the back of the car.

  Feeling somewhat relieved, I clambered in behind Raven and slammed the door shut. A pair of handcuffs and a baton lay on the floor by my feet. I picked up the handcuffs and cut my finger on them. Part of the steel had been chiselled away to form a sharp edge—sharp enough to do some serious damage. I dropped them back onto
the floor, not surprised really by the chiselled steel. After all, the cuffs had belonged to one of Cropper’s men and I knew what they were all about. The cuffs were probably used on whomever they arrested to get a quick confession. Leaning forward, I peered out through the windscreen. The fog had almost reached the car. Robert put his foot down hard onto the accelerator. The wheels skidded in the mud and the car slipped sideways. As the vehicle turned away from the fog, my thoughts returned to Ben and Jude. My heart went out to the both of them and I silently wished for their safe escape from out of the fog.

  CHAPTER NINE

  Kassidy

  We left the valley and Doctor Langstone’s property behind us. I stared out of the back window and watched as the fog disappeared from view as the car pulled out onto the main road. I slumped back into the seat, head hung low, and felt the silent trickle of tears slip from my eyes down onto my cheeks. It didn’t feel right to be leaving Ben and Jude behind. I pushed my hand tight against my chest, as if to stop it from bursting open, and realised that I’d left a part of my heart behind with Ben. It hurt and took all of my strength to stop the lump in my throat from escaping. What would be the point in opening up my heart to Raven, Max, and Robert? They wouldn’t understand. They would think the worst of me—siding with the demons.

  I turned to my right and stared out of the window, wiping the tears away with the back of my hand. I had done the right thing, hadn’t I? I had left Ben and Jude for my friends’ sake—and mine, too, but no matter how many times I tried to convince myself, the image of holding Ben in the fog and saying goodbye kept rearing up and clouding my emotions. I could still hear Ben in my head as if I were still there—hear him promise that he would catch us up. But would he?