Deceived

by Lynda O'Rourke

  CHAPTER THIRTY-FOUR

  Kassidy

  The further I ran, the deeper I went. Down and down until I wondered whether there would ever be an end to this rocky passageway inside the cliffs of Gallows Island.

  As I continued to run, I felt sure that it had been Etta’s doing, attacking Nellore and setting her alight. I had felt a strange power deep within me, and although my veins were full of VA20, I didn’t believe it had been that giving me such strength. And as I replayed what had just happened, Nellore had seen something. Something in my eyes. It must have been Etta. Just like I had suspected Raven of seeing Etta in my stare, I now believed Nellore had seen her, too. Why else react in such a way?

  “Etta!” I panted, my legs tired. I could feel myself slow. “Please talk to me. You promised I wouldn’t have to do this alone. I’m gonna need your help. I don’t even know if I’m heading the right way… please!”

  Silence. All I could hear was my own heart beating, my heavy breathing, and somewhere in the distance, the foghorn still sounded out. And then suddenly, the passageway opened up into a small, carved out room, and as my eyes adjusted to the dark, I noticed an opening. I stopped and gasped in air, keeping my eyes peeled on the dark entrance. What was in there? Would I find the coffins?

  Aware of a noise someway off in the distance from the way I had come, I knew I had to move forward. So taking in a deep breath, I edged on until I just stood in the opening.

  Help me, Kassidy! cried Etta, deep within me. Her voice sounded far off and seemed to echo around my head.

  “I’m trying,” I called, surprised to finally hear her. I checked back over my shoulder. Was that other voices I could hear? I held my breath and continued to listen. Was it Nellore? Another demon? Could it be my friends? But were they my friends? I was scared. I still didn’t really know for sure who Doshia was, even though Raven seemed a dead cert. I hoped that I was wrong—I hoped that it was none of them and this whole terrifying journey had just made me paranoid of everyone. But until I knew for sure, I had to carry on alone.

  I stepped through the dark opening and found myself in a huge, cavernous room. I stared wide-eyed at the circular chamber. There were five small openings cut into the top of the stone, vaulted ceiling, allowing some natural light to cast down upon the contents of the chamber, and one lit torch at the back of the room flickered an orange glow. I suddenly felt sick. There, in front of me, as my eyes began to get used to the dim light, were seven coffins all laid out in a circular pattern on stone plinths. In the centre was another plinth with what looked like large, ornamental knives and goblets all placed out as if ready to be used.

  I stood for a moment, temporarily stunned—afraid—but also overcome at the corpses which were placed in their coffins, sitting up. I stared wide-eyed at each one, suddenly filled with all kinds of emotions. I lifted my hand and wiped a tear from my face. The room had an overpowering feel of evil, and yet I could feel sadness and despair, too. But was that really a surprise? Three of the corpses were, after all, Etta, Adam, and Mathew, and they had all died in a horrendous way.

  I took a cautious step closer, fearful that if I got too near, the bodies would jump up and grab me. Some were missing their eyes, but it appeared and felt to me that I was being watched by them. I stood on tiptoe and peered over into the nearest coffin. I shuddered at the scratch marks on the inside of the lid. It was covered in deep lines from top to bottom—the occupier having been desperate to get out. But these coffins had been made to keep the demons in, and if Doctor Middleton hadn’t opened them all those years ago, the demons would never have got out.

  As if waking from a dream, I suddenly realised that I had work to do.

  “Etta,” I called, “Which one belongs to Doshia?” Surely that made sense to destroy him first. And, what, with the warning I had received from the male’s voice about Etta being swapped around with Doshia, I had to get this right. There could be no errors. If I destroyed Etta, then I would be killing myself, too.

  My voice echoed around the chamber, and I glanced back at the opening and then at the corpses. I could feel myself shrink and cringe at how loud my voice was. And although four of the dead were evil demons, I still felt as though I should be quiet—like the dead required respect.

  There was no reply from Etta. Instead, I felt a movement deep within me. A shifting—pushing. I grasped my stomach with both hands and bent forward. What was this?

  Looking down at myself, I cried out. I could see my body bulging and rippling as if something inside me wanted to get out. Another movement, like fists punching me from within, had me stumbling forward until I fell to my knees.

  Help me! Etta screamed again in my head. Her voice was full of terror.

  Still on my knees and holding my stomach, I cried, “I can’t help you unless you help me!”

  I gagged as the painful movements inside my body intensified. As if being pulled, I fell forward, smacking my hands down on the stone ground. Then another violent shove pushed me to the right. I lay on the floor on my side.

  Dragging my knees up to my chest, I lay in the foetal position and gasped for breath. “Etta… tell me… I need to know… before it’s too late… which coffin is… Doshia in?!”

  I stared at the coffins from where I lay on the ground. I had to get up, but the room almost seemed to spin. Reaching out a hand, I tried to grab onto the stone plinth in the middle of the circle. If I could just get up… But my efforts were crippled. It seemed every time I tried to move, I was thrown this way and that, and the punching and clawing inside my body became evermore violent. I clutched at my throat. It felt as though something was trying to climb up from the inside. I gagged again, and then threw up. Black vomit spewed from my throat and splattered across the stone floor. What was happening to me? What was this? I stared at my hands screwed up into fists—at the black veins that pulsed under my skin. VA20. Was this it? Was this where I finally succumbed to the black fluid that had been injected into me? Had it spread so much now that even Etta was unable to exist in me and keep me alive?

  Through blurred vision, I looked at the coffins—at the corpses. I had to find Doshia. I had to protect Etta. Knowing that time was fast running out, I took a deep breath and cried out, “Etta… which coffin… which coffin is Doshia in… where is he?”

  It felt like a last-ditch attempt. If Etta couldn’t answer me, then I knew, if I could find the strength, I would have to go with my gut-instincts and destroy the coffins I believed held, Trabek, Nellore, Vectis, and Doshia.

  Closing my eyes to the silence of Etta, my heart sank. I clambered to my knees and…

  He’s already here! screamed Etta.

  I gagged again, but held the vomit back. Gasping, I said, “I know… I know he’s… here… but… which coffin… come on, Etta… which corpse!?”

  No… I don’t mean his corpse… I mean… Doshia is here… in this room… not just his corpse!

  It took me a moment to realise what Etta meant, and for those few split seconds, I swayed on my knees, stared at the coffins, and then, with another painful thud deep inside me, it dawned on me what she meant.

  Feeling more afraid than ever before, I closed my eyes and knew it was time to face Doshia.

  CHAPTER THIRTY-FIVE

  Ben

  With the foghorn still playing its warning, and the wind rushing by, we headed down the sloping path and came to a sudden stop. My eyes widened, and at first, I wondered if perhaps I was seeing things.

  There, on the ground in front of a weather-beaten door, lay what looked like a heap of clothes. As I stepped nearer, I realised it was a body with a pool of blood around it. The body was sitting up, but the head was hanging to the right, blood gushing from its neck. It had almost been ripped clean off. The face was hidden by the black, bloodied hair plastered to its skin.

  Kicking out my right leg so it made contact with the body, I watched as it slumped to the right and collapsed on its side.

  “Who is it?” asked Max, cowering
behind me. “Is it… is it Raven? I can’t tell… there’s so much blood.”

  “Shit,” Robert cursed. “Kassidy’s killed Raven. I knew it. I was right. Kassidy is Doshia.”

  “No,” spoke Jude. “You’re wrong. That isn’t Raven. That’s Charlie. He works for Cruor Pharma. Remember, Max? It was him trying to pull Kassidy off the fence when she was trying to escape.”

  “Are you sure?” pushed Max, unable to look at the body.

  “I know all the staff at Cruor Pharma,” said Jude, running his fingers through his black hair as the wind gusted past him. “But what I’d like to know is—who killed him?”

  Before anyone could make a suggestion as to who the killer might be, a movement in the corner of my eye caught my attention.

  “It was me! I killed him. I did it! But I don’t know how? I… I just did!” said Raven, appearing from around the lighthouse, arms outstretched and hands covered in blood.

  “Oh, shit,” mumbled Max, taking a step back as his eyes fell on Raven.

  I immediately felt my suspicions rise as Quint seemed to scrutinize Raven as she stood hunched over, dark eyes peering out from under her hair and blood all down her front. She looked like a wind-swept sea monster dragged out from the depths of the ocean.

  “Where’s Kassidy?” demanded Quint. “What have you done with her?”

  Raven shook her head and said, “I don’t know where she is… she climbed up the lighthouse and then… she disappeared.” Raven pointed up at the building, her eyes staring at the very top of the lighthouse.

  I felt my heart jolt as Quint reached out and snatched hold of Raven by her wrist. She stumbled forward and squirmed under his hold.

  Stop it, Quint, I tried to reason with him. Give her a chance to explain. I felt frustrated, unable to speak out loud. Quint had shut me down and all I could do was to speak to him from within and hope he would listen to me. I was worried for Kassidy. She could be anywhere. She may have already been taken by the other demons.

  “Climbed the lighthouse?!” scoffed Robert, staring up at the tall building. “Yeah, right! She’s lying. She’s covering for herself and for Kassidy. The two are in it together!”

  “No…” screeched Raven, eyes wide. “Kassidy is Doshia. I saw it in her eyes.”

  “Saw what in her eyes?” pushed Quint, tightening his hold on her. I could feel his anger boiling up inside of me.

  Stepping forward, and in his usual calm manner, Jude said, “Give the girl some space. Let go and let her speak.” He reached out and pulled my arm away from Raven.

  I could feel Quint’s temper rise. I could feel his urge to let rip and kill Raven there and then on the spot like a bloodthirsty animal. No, Quint, I pushed.

  Raven stood, arms wrapped tight about her. The wind buffeted her and she tottered about like a staggering drunk. “It was in her eyes,” mumbled Raven, staring at Jude. “It was like there was someone else inside her. Her eyes changed colour. Kassidy was watching me… only it wasn’t her… it was someone else’s eyes looking out from her own. She’s possessed! I swear she has the devil himself living inside her!” Raven shuddered and looked at each of us. “She attacked Max and Robert. And she set me up. She alerted Charlie that I was here and then climbed away up the lighthouse, like some evil creature, and left me to defend myself!”

  “Well?” snapped Robert, “are we really going to believe this?” He turned and glared at Raven and then he looked back at me. “That’s some wild story, but if it’s to be believed then shouldn’t we be rushing into that lighthouse to kill Kassidy and then get to the coffins, or, like myself, are you finding it hard to believe this shit? If so, I say…”

  “I don’t give a shit about what you think!” roared Quint, “or what you say!”

  “Stop! Stop,” shouted Jude, stepping in between myself and Robert. “Raven is not Doshia, for fuck’s sake. She’s fucking mad, I know that much! But she isn’t no demon. And neither is Kassidy!” Jude looked at each of us and shook his head. “We’re here to destroy four coffins. Trabek, Nellore, Vectis, and Doshia. We end them—we destroy the Cleaners. And… whoever Doshia is hiding in will be wiped out in the process. So let’s keep to the plan instead of killing off people who may be innocent!”

  “Fine,” snapped Robert. “I don’t have anything to worry about. I’m not hiding Doshia, so it won’t be me who dies.”

  I looked around at the group and wondered which one would drop when Doshia was killed once and for all. My eyes lingered on Raven. She stood watching silently, and as I looked away, I couldn’t help but notice a tiny smile across her face. But when I looked again, the smile was gone and replaced with her usual grimace. Had I imagined it? And then I stared down at the body of Charlie. How had someone like Raven managed to defeat him and in such a hideous way without there being some kind of supernatural help? There was something off with Raven’s account, but still, I was unsure of the accusations made by Robert that Doshia was hiding in Raven. And as I felt myself move toward the lighthouse door, I began to think about Kassidy.

  We have to get to Kassidy before Robert, Max, and Raven, I spoke to Quint. If anyone’s life is at risk, it’s hers.

  Quint didn’t reply. Instead, his thoughts swirled around in my head. Images of Etta. Quint with Etta and Etta by herself. Etta—Etta—Etta. It was all that consumed his mind. He seemed so obsessed that I began to wonder about his motives. Would Kassidy really be safe in his company?

  CHAPTER THIRTY-SIX

  Kassidy

  Etta screamed again, deep within me. She moved about franticly as if she wanted to escape the body that had kept her hidden for so long. But why now? Why try to leave me after I had given her life and she had done the same for me?

  I gripped my stomach and heaved again. The thrashing inside me subsided a little, allowing me to stagger to my feet. The room seemed to sway. Dark shadows appeared from the gloomy corners of the chamber and slithered from one wall to the next. A cold sweat broke out over my skin and I stumbled forward, grasping hold of a coffin to steady myself.

  With blurry eyes, I looked about the chamber. Etta’s last words rang in my ears.

  Doshia is here… in this room… not just his corpse!

  Half expecting to see one of my friends standing behind me—revealing themselves to be Doshia, I frowned. There was no one there. I turned on my heels, eyes searching every corner. I couldn’t see anyone.

  “I can’t see him,” I retched, choking on the thick, black vomit that rushed up my throat with each movement that Etta made. I tightened my grip on the coffin, afraid I would pass out at any moment. Confused, I took another glance about the room, turning slowly until I’d gone full circle.

  “I don’t know where he is!” I cried out, vomit hanging from my chin. And then, as I began to feel more alarmed, I remembered something that filled me with horror. Demons could move across walls and ceilings.

  I wanted to cry. My mind felt tortured and frayed. I slowly looked up, petrified of what I would see. The vaulted ceiling was like a dark abyss with only narrow columns of light filtering through. I held my breath and searched each corner of the ceiling. If Doshia was crawling around above me somewhere, I felt I might just die of fright. I didn’t want to see him. I didn’t want to find him. If only Etta would just tell me which coffin belonged to Doshia then it would be over, at least, the worst of the demons would be taken care of. If I could defeat him, then the others surely would be easier.

  Feeling like I had a fever, I began another search of the chamber for Doshia. If he was in here like Etta believed, then why wouldn’t he show himself? I gagged again and covered my hand with my mouth. My body felt as though it was erupting.

  “Stop moving, Etta!” I pleaded, feeling faint. I knocked against the coffin that I was using for support. The corpse rattled, and a smell of decay and rot hit my nostrils. And then suddenly, as I fell back to my knees, overcome with the violent movements inside me, I heard someone enter the chamber. I looked up at the entrance, believing I
was about to see Doshia. But it wasn’t him. It was Nellore.

  Panicked, I tried to get up, but Etta suddenly screamed again, freezing me to the spot. Her words hit me like a high speed train.

  You have Doshia! He’s… here. He’s… inside you! Doshia has found me!

  Her words cried out in a broken, garbled scream. It was like her efforts to warn me were being held back—forced deep inside of me. And then her cries fell silent again and the movements stopped.

  I stared at Nellore as she stepped closer. Yet, all I could think about was what Etta had just said. Surely she was wrong. I couldn’t have Doshia inside me. How? When? I would have known—wouldn’t I? No. It was Raven… she was Doshia… or… one of the others… Robert. It couldn’t be me.

  Breaking into my thoughts, Nellore stopped a few feet from where I knelt on the cold floor. Her dyed hair looked frazzled and some of her scalp was revealed. It was bright red and oozy where the flames had licked away at her. Half of her face appeared to have melted right down to the bone.

  I watched her closely as she stared back. Her eyes were cautious and she seemed to be looking right into my very soul.

  “I was right!” whispered Nellore, edging a little nearer. “You’ve come back.”

  What did she mean? She knew I was here. I hadn’t long since sent her into flames. Why did Nellore look so shocked to see me? Why the glimpse of fear across her melted face?

  “Trabek will be pleased,” continued Nellore. “He has wanted you to return. Where have you been for so long?”

  I stared back, confused. Was this just some fucked-up mind game that demons liked to play? Was it some kind of psychological torture they liked to spring on you—to leave you off-guard—unaware? I remained silent, yet my eyes kept wandering over to the stone plinth which held the ornamental knives. And then I smiled—laughed.

  The chamber filled with the echo of my laughter and became louder as the look across Nellore’s face changed from fear to terror. She stepped back. But I got up. I felt strong—powerful—like I’d never felt before. I felt evil. Wicked. Dangerous. And as I stepped nearer to the weak, pathetic demon who now cowered in front of me, I felt vile and malicious. I was rising. Doshia was rising.