You can’t help her by staying here, and she’s too much of a risk to take, said Etta. You can help her, if she really needs it, by leaving and destroying the coffins. Stay and you die—I die. Raven will die, too.
“You do something!” I raised my voice at Etta. “Why can’t you help…?”
But Etta remained quiet. She seemed to slink away deep inside me. I began to back away and edge toward the lane while Raven had her back to me. She appeared to be talking to herself, but of course, I knew different. I feared what those voices were telling Raven to do. I glanced over my shoulder. I had almost reached the lane when suddenly Raven spun around on her heels and screamed. The dark, silent lane seemed to suddenly come alive. I stood frozen to the spot as the driver’s door flew open, followed by the passenger door. And taking me by surprise, the voices, my voices, began to scream.
CHAPTER SEVENTEEN
Kassidy
Overwhelmed, my head bursting with evil cries, Raven screaming and now Max and Robert were awake, I ran back toward the car. My heart beat so viciously, that my head pounded and hurt. I tried to ignore the voices with their poison. I knew I had to leave. I had to go it alone. I knew what I needed to do.
“What’s going on?” yelled Robert. “What’s happened?”
“She’s leaving,” screeched Raven, both hands clasped tightly to the sides of her head.
“What?!” cried Max, looking at me with wide eyes and then back at his brother.
“We stay together,” Robert almost seemed to order. “We’re no good separated.” He came toward me.
Feeling angry and even more suspicious of Robert after what he had just said, I threw open the back door of the car and reached in. My fingers found what they were searching for, and before anyone could do or say anything, I pulled out the police baton and swung it so hard that by the awful crunch that seemed to fill the air, I believed maybe I had killed Robert. He flew back and dropped to the ground. Max came forward, a look of shock across his face.
“Robert!” he called, falling to the ground beside his brother. “What have you done? Why, Kassidy… why?” He clambered back to his feet and rushed toward me, his eyes filled with rage.
Raising my arms, both hands firmly around the baton, the voices pushing me on, and knowing that my life depended on what happened here, I shouted, “I’m sorry, Max… I’m sorry.” I swung the baton like I was hitting a baseball. It made contact with his skull. I shuddered as I watched Max fall. I stumbled back, sickened by what I had done, but also relieved. In my head, the voices urged me on. Their cries and screams sounded of satisfaction, but yet they were not finished.
One more to go, they seemed to chant.
Shaking, I turned to find Raven standing behind me. Rain dripped down her face as the weather turned for the worst.
“Just try it,” she sneered, staring at the baton I held in my hands.
I shook my head. “I don’t want to… really… I don’t.” I shivered as the rain came down.
Yes you do, screamed the voices.
“No, I don’t!” I yelled. I stared at the baton in my hands. I wanted to use it on myself—beat out the voices that seemed to turn me insane. I looked at Raven and said, “I’m doing this for us. For all of us. If you just let me leave… I can save you… I can save Max, Jude, and Ben. I can save myself.” I breathed heavily and wiped the rain from my eyes and stared down at Max. “I didn’t want to do this. I wanted to leave quietly. I don’t want to hurt you. I didn’t want to hurt Max… but…” I trailed off and lowered the baton. The voices had subsided and my head felt clear.
Staring at me through the sheets of rain, Raven stepped forward, hair plastered to the sides of her face. “I’m coming with you. You can’t stop me.”
Before I could even blink, Raven shot forward, grabbed my wrist, and snapped on the handcuffs that had been in the back of the police car. My left wrist was now cuffed. Not to my right hand, but to Raven’s. I stared wide-eyed at what she’d done.
“Now you can’t go to Broken Cove without me.” She held up her right arm, pulling mine as she did and jangled the handcuffs as if to prove a point.
“You idiot!” I spat. “Where is the key?”
Raven shrugged her shoulders and said, “I don’t know. Probably on one of those dead officers’ bodies, I guess.”
“Do you realise what you’ve done? How do we fight off demons cuffed together? How am I gonna be able to destroy the coffins with you attached to me?” I shouted. “Oh, my God! This is all fucked up!”
Before Raven could reply, a low moan came from Max. Yanking as hard as I could on the cuffs, I bent down to where Max lay on the ground, dragging Raven with me. “Thank God,” I mumbled more to myself. “At least I haven’t killed him.” I pushed his hair from out of his face with my free hand and cringed at the bloody wound on his forehead.
“You did that!” glared Raven.
“I know, thanks. I don’t need you to point that fact out,” I snapped, trying to stand up, but with Raven hanging off my wrist it was proving difficult. I looked over at Robert, who lay face-down in the leaves and dirt. “Come on,” I ordered Raven. “I want to see if Robert is still breathing.” Not waiting for her reply, I yanked her along with me and stopped by Robert’s feet. Peering through the dark, I could just make out a slight movement coming from Robert. He appeared to still be breathing. Although I had my doubts about him, I was relieved for Max’s sake that I hadn’t killed his brother. “They’ll come round with sore heads, that’s all. They’ll be fine.”
Raven scoffed. “Yeah, right! Sore heads! Don’t you mean brain damage?”
“Shut up, Raven,” I shouted. “I don’t need your bullshit! Right now, I have to get away from here before they wake up. That means you too, now you’ve attached yourself to me.”
“Let’s take the car,” suggested Raven, her eyes lighting up. “That should give us a good enough head start.”
Staring down at our bound wrists, I said, “That would have been a good option before you cuffed us together!”
“It can be done,” said Raven, “Come on. At least try it.” She began to walk toward the car, dragging me with her. “I’ll climb in first through the driver’s seat and you follow.”
I almost laughed. “Yeah, I’ll follow! It’s not like I have much of a choice, Raven.”
As we clambered in through the driver’s door, single file, I wondered what Etta thought about my predicament. She had fallen quiet. Was she annoyed about Raven? But what else could I do? I had no choice now but to go to Broken Cove with her. All I could do was hope that Raven could be trusted. That she could control the voices in her head and not act on what they told her to do. And most importantly, I hoped that she wasn’t Doshia.
CHAPTER EIGHTEEN
Ben
We had been travelling for a while now. Quint had done his usual and fallen silent allowing me to be me. Jude had put his foot down and probably broken all speed restrictions since getting behind the wheel. He had not chosen the back roads and lanes. Instead, he had driven along the main routes, taking the motorways and not really giving a shit about the speed cameras that had flashed him several times already. But I guessed, travelling in a police car, it didn’t really matter. No one was going to pull us over. Not unless Jude really fucked up.
Reaching over the gears, fumbling with a switch, Jude turned on the radio. He pressed several buttons until he’d found some music he liked. Glancing at me, he turned up the volume, grinned and said, “I fucking love Billy Idol. Eyes Without A Face, his best song in my opinion. You like Billy Idol, Ben?”
I stared ahead of me, a growing sadness stabbing at my insides. My existence had been nothing but shadows and lies. What once had been a life, my life, no longer seemed clear. Did I like Billy Idol? Had I ever listened to his music? I must have enjoyed music at some point, but no matter how hard I tried to search my memories, I just seemed to come up blank. My mind was a veil of darkness. I saw what Quint wanted me to see and that was al
l. This amnesia that Quint had placed over me had left me deaf and blind. I shrugged my shoulders, looked at Jude, and said, “I don’t know, Jude… I can’t remember a fucking thing most times… let alone Billy bloody Idol!” I glared at him and wondered what the hell went through his head. The majority of the time all Jude seemed to be interested in was having a good time and eating. I mean, his life had been taken like mine, and yet here he was talking about music like we were the best of friends on a road trip.
I continued to glare at him and said, “It must be so nice to have your head buried in the sand all the time. Remembering all your lovely memories, eating, drinking, acting like the soul of the party!” I shook my head and cursed him under my breath. “How do you do it? That’s what I’d like to know. How do you swan about like life is so great when here I am, unable to remember my past, blood on my hands and feeling like a corpse on a fucking lead?”
Jude shifted uncomfortably in his seat, leaned forward, and turned the radio off. His eyes lowered and glazed over. He turned his face away from me, stared out of the window and sniffed. The car fell silent and I closed my eyes and now cursed myself for behaving like a dick.
Breathing deeply, like he was mustering up some courage, he stared straight ahead through the windscreen and said, “I’m sorry… I’m sorry you don’t remember anything. I guess I just assumed you were like me—trying to stay true to yourself—scared to let go of your past in case you get lost among the demon.” He paused for a moment, changed gears, and pulled the car into the fast lane. It had started to rain and Jude switched on the windscreen wipers. “How do I do it, you ask? I guess I’m lucky in a way that Eras would rather be me than a demon. I guess my mind hasn’t been swallowed up too much by someone else’s soul. But then again, sometimes I wouldn’t mind having my memories wiped.”
I turned in my seat to face Jude, surprised by what he had said. “Why? Why do you say that? I hate it. I hate not being able to remember myself. I have no control on what I remember from my past or what I’ve done recently. I get little snippets sometimes, when Quint chooses to let me in, or sometimes because he doesn’t seem as strong. But that’s it. Sometimes I seem to wake up like I’ve been in a coma… with blood on my hands. I don’t have a fucking clue what I’ve done. But I know it can’t be good.”
Taking his eyes from off the road, Jude glanced at me and said, “I remember every occasion when I’ve had blood on my hands. I remember the beginning, the middle, and the end. That’s why I wouldn’t mind having my memory wiped. I mean…” He broke off and shook his head slowly as if his memories was cutting him up inside. “I’ve done some terrible shit, Ben. I’ve killed so many… it haunts me… the bodies… their limbs… the blood… all those victims… they prowl around in my head… they lurk in the corners of my mind. I can’t forget them. They’re like a stain that won’t wash away.” Jude slammed his foot down on the accelerator. He pulled the car into the middle lane, narrowly missing another vehicle. “I hate it! That’s why I walk around with my head in the sand… that’s why I act like I don’t give a shit. It’s easier that way. But it’s just pretence, Ben. I do give a shit. And I think somewhere deep inside of me, Eras does, too.”
I stared out through the rain-splattered window. Maybe Jude was right. Maybe I was better off not remembering the things I’d done—or at least some of them. After all, there were some things I remembered, and of those, I couldn’t think of one I cared to be reminded about. But as I sat there lost within my own thoughts, I had to remind myself that neither Jude nor I was to blame. We didn’t go around killing off everyone. It wasn’t us committing these terrible acts. It was Quint and Eras. Still, the blood was on our hands. I closed my eyes.
Breaking the silence that had fallen over us again, Jude said, “You know… there’s a lot more blood coming our way, don’t you? When we get to Broken Cove, it ain’t gonna be nice.”
“I know,” I mumbled, a sense of dread festering away in my stomach. I was still unsure as to what Quint had planned, but I knew it involved Kassidy.
“If we want to survive, then we have to save the bodies of Quint and Eras—or we die. And if we want to save Kassidy, Raven, Max, and his brother, we have to destroy the other bodies. That’s a lot of work to do especially when it’s us against the likes of Trabek, Vectis, Doshia, and Nellore.”
“Don’t forget the Cleaners,” I reminded him. “They’ll be there. Trabek will summon them. In fact, he probably already has.”
“They’ll be waiting for us, won’t they?” said Jude, pulling the car suddenly across two lanes of the motorway. “I only hope we get there on time.”
I nodded my head and said, “Yes. The others will be there. They’ll know we’re coming. Trabek would never move the coffins and not attend himself. He knows the only way of surviving is to protect the bodies. And if he can get his hands on the volunteers, then he has everything he needs.”
“And I know what he’ll do first,” spoke Quint, suddenly piping up.
Jude turned his head and looked at me, surprised that Quint had suddenly spoken up after being so quiet for some time now. Gripping the steering wheel in one hand, he lowered the gears and asked, “What? What will he do first?”
Shifting in the seat, Quint answered with a low, angry tone to his voice. “Before giving the volunteers to the Cleaners to use, if you and I don’t comply with what he wants, he’ll try to make Kassidy and the others destroy my coffin. Yours will go, too, Eras, and he’ll make sure that Etta is put away again.”
“What about the others? Vectis, Doshia, and Nellore?” asked Jude, skidding off the motorway and turning the car into a service station.
“He won’t touch Doshia. Their past is too strong. They were family before we became demons. They have a link—a bond from long ago. Just like us—you as Adam and me as Mathew. No, Trabek will keep Doshia’s coffin safe—his past soul won’t let him kill Doshia—not his son.”
Coming forward, I watched Eras appear and overshadow Jude. Bringing the car to a stop, he said, “But what of Doshia? Will he keep faithful to who was his father once? Would he really spare Trabek—share the same loyalty that Trabek has for him?”
I could feel myself grin as Quint seemed to be amused by what Eras had just said. “No,” he replied. “Doshia has no loyalty to anyone. There isn’t one hair on his head that has any compassion, any love, or any allegiance for anyone or anything. He was an evil, cold-bloodied arsehole before he became Doshia. There is nothing good in him. There is no old soul with any light that would come forward and stop him from killing his own father—nothing!”
Turning the key so the engine fell quiet, Eras said, “Well then… I guess that’s who we go for first. Doshia is the strongest, and because he has no love, that makes him more dangerous than any of the others.”
I watched as Eras slipped back into Jude and could feel Quint retreat again. Frowning, I said, “Why have we stopped? What are we doing in a service station?”
Opening the driver’s door, the rain spraying inside, Jude said, “We’re out of petrol. We can either fill up and fuck off without paying, or…” he looked around at the other drivers who had stopped to fill up their vehicles. “Or… we can just take one of theirs?”
As I gazed about the service station, checking out the other drivers and considering which one would be the easiest car to take, my thoughts were broken as I heard my name and Jude’s called out.
I spun around, my heart jolting as I watched Max and Robert climb out from a van that had just pulled up. They staggered toward us, Max seemed to be holding his brother steady. Peering over their shoulder, the van pulled away and I suddenly felt sick. Where was Kassidy? Why weren’t they still together?
CHAPTER NINETEEN
Kassidy
With my right hand holding the steering wheel, my left, resting on the gear stick still attached to Raven, I glanced at the time on the dashboard. We had been driving for a while now—somehow, handcuffed together. It was the early hours of the mornin
g, and it wouldn’t be long before the sun began to rise. The rain continued to fall and the car was silent, except for the screech of the windscreen wipers and the loud drops that peppered the roof. Every so often, a clunk sounded out from the back of the car and I began to wonder if we had a slow puncture. But I didn’t want to stop and check. I wanted to get to Broken Cove as soon as possible. And besides, as I glanced at Raven, I could see she had been asleep for a while, and that’s how I preferred it. Getting out now would wake her up. I could only hope that for the rest of the journey the car would hold out.
Breaking into my thoughts, Etta suddenly spoke up. You don’t have much farther to go. Stay on this road. It will take you straight into the harbour of Broken Cove.
I shivered. Etta had been quiet ever since I had attacked Max and Robert. I had secretly hoped that I had just imagined her up in my deluded state, and that perhaps the evil voices had tricked me. But no. She was still here. Still inside of me. Which meant this was all real—all true. I was dead, but only walking and breathing because of her. I shook my head and whispered, so as to not disturb Raven. “You killed me and took my life. You took the life of a baby. How could you?”
I did it because I had to. I might have taken your life, but I’ve also given you life, too. I’ve spent all these years living in the furthest reaches of your body. I stepped back and allowed you to live how you’ve wanted. I didn’t have to. I could take you over in a flash, Kassidy, but I didn’t. I didn’t want to let you just exist. Your body has kept me safe and hidden for nineteen years. If it wasn’t for you, I would have been found, and for the use of your body, I am forever grateful.
I scoffed. “Well I’m glad you’re grateful, but that doesn’t really make it all right! I mean… look at my situation now. I’m close to becoming extinct because of you—because of your coffin and body. What good are you to me if you get destroyed, and what good will come out of you being grateful? You die—I die, but never mind, Etta was grateful!” I shook my head. “And another thing, why did you let me go to Cruor Pharma if you were so determined to hide. I would have thought that would have been the last place you would have wanted to go. You let me answer that advertisement and walk straight into the arms of demons. Why?”
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