THE RED MIST TRILOGY: The Box Set

by R T Green

  I dropped down beside her, propping myself on one elbow so my face was still above hers. ‘How are you feeling?’

  ‘Incredible...’ she breathed, reaching out a hand to caress my skin.

  Take a deep breath, Lisa. I slipped a finger into her wetness, closely followed by a second, allowing them to drift gently in and out, caress her. She looked at me, question in her eyes. I wasn’t going to answer her, not with words.

  I sank my fingers deep inside her, kissed her as she moaned quietly and explored my tongue with hers. I pulled out, she groaned, curled a hand around mine and eased me back into her. Her hand lifted to my face, sliced through my hair, beautifully. Then it drifted down my back, nails grazing my skin as her passion grew once more. I parted my legs, she slipped deliciously into me.

  Her other hand was gripping my hair, tugging at it, almost painfully, her fingers losing control. Crying out, arching her pelvis, all moving parts. My inner cheerleader was bouncing up and down like she was made of rubber, a blinding mess of shiny red white and blue, screaming encouragement as I rounded third base...

  ‘Ohh...’ Lisa cried out, her eyes suddenly wide as they locked into mine, and I knew she was as high as she could go.

  I caressed her with my fingers, she did the same for me. A perfect, harmonious rhythm, taking just seconds to tip us both over the edge. She screamed beneath me, and the ground seemed to convulse around us as we imploded into a climax that rocked both our worlds.

  And we were spent, suddenly limp like rag dolls washed up on the beach, unable to move a muscle, only just above the surface of consciousness.

  For an age we lay there, side by side. I felt Lisa’s hand move, her fingers gently folding in and out of mine. My demons were gone, washed away with the receding tide. I felt totally free.

  She sat up, reached for her clothes. I could see tears in her eyes. ‘Hey, you ok?’

  She smiled, a lovely warm smile, but tinted with a strange sadness. ‘Yes, thank you so much, Madeline. I should go now, it is late.’

  ‘Shall I walk with you?’

  ‘No, it is fine. My aunt’s house is not so far.’

  She was putting her clothes back on. I slipped the dress over my still limp body, pulled us close and kissed her, felt the tremble in her lips. ‘Tomorrow?’

  ‘Yes, tomorrow.’

  I watched her walk away into the trees, wondering why she looked so sad. But I knew she’d had a wonderful time. I knew I had too. I turned to head for my door, exhilarated.

  My inner goddess was exhilarated too, there beside me patting me gently on the back, whispering in my ear, ‘Good girl, Madeline. Now everything will be fine...’

  Chapter 84

  My throat was dry, so I grabbed some fruit juice from the fridge. Dad and Tami were just heading to bed, I wished them both goodnight. Tami looked at me in her knowing way, I gave her a big smile and an almost-imperceptible wink. She nodded, understood.

  The bedroom felt airless. I still needed a little more fresh air in my lungs, so I settled into the chair just outside my door, allowing my head come down along with my libido. The full moon shone a clear yellow light across the palm trees surrounding the shack, making it look almost like day.

  In one way I had used Lisa; used her to prove to myself the imaginary fresh coat of paint had properly dried. But along with that hard fact came other, more special feelings. I had wanted to please her, make us both feel closer to each other.

  I had exorcised my demons, and that was a wonderful feeling. But it was matched by the joy of other emotions, which lay closer to my heart. I caught myself with a slight smile on my face. I kind of liked it being there.

  Movement, in the trees? Out of the corner of my eye, a dark shape appeared for a second, and then slipped behind the trunk of a palm. Did I just imagine that? I couldn’t be sure. I watched for a minute, but it didn’t appear again.

  And I was tired, the bed beginning to seem like a good idea. I swigged the last of the juice, stood up to go.

  There it was again. A momentary flash of black.

  I took a few steps towards the trees, hesitantly, my heart thumping in my ears. Was it Lisa, watching me, wanting to come to me? No, whoever it was wore dark clothes.

  ‘Hey... who’s there?’

  I reached the tree line, close to where I thought the figure was hiding. Nothing moved. I stood motionless, listening, my eyes flashing the line of trunks, helped by the bright moonlight. Still nothing.

  Then something.

  Suddenly it was running, fast into the trees, a figure in black. Oh no you don’t. I ran after it, knowing if I didn’t find out what was going on I would never sleep. It was running fast, but I was catching up. Long black clothes... all covered up.

  The figure must have realised I’d almost caught up. It stopped, stood motionless, facing away from me. The Muslim woman, from the bar?

  I stood motionless too, ten feet away. Unsure, wary, I seemed to be rooted to the ground just as much as the trees surrounding us.

  But one of us had to move. ‘Who are you?’ I said quietly, taking a couple of hesitant steps towards her, my legs like jelly, a sudden image in my head of the dark shape I thought I’d seen behind the trees at Joe’s the previous night.

  As I reached her she turned to face me. She was completely covered by the black garments, the stupid sunglasses still hiding her eyes. She stood still, silent, unable or unwilling to speak.

  ‘I said... who are you?’ My voice was shaking, my breath sharp and ragged from the chase, and a strange, unnerving kind of fear. Still she said nothing, her head slightly lowered like she didn’t want to look at me.

  A hand I couldn’t keep from shaking reached out, pulled the sunglasses from her face.

  Her green eyes were full of tears. They were eyes I knew... very, very well.

  ‘No...’

  ‘Hello, Madeline.’

  Chapter 85

  I backed away, my brain imploding, every sense I possessed stabbing lightning bolts into my heart. My legs couldn’t cope, I dropped to my knees, struggled to my feet again, my eyes never leaving the figure in black who still hadn’t moved.

  ‘This... this isn’t possible... you’re a ghost... a cruel dream...’

  Still I was backing away, the trees spinning around me, the tearful green eyes all I could see through the jumble of fog. I was about to fall again, but the trunk of a tree saved me. ‘Say something...’ The words were shouted, slurred like I was drunk, desperation shutting down all sense of reason...

  She walked towards me, silent footsteps in the sand sounding like thunder. Then she was right in front of me, pulling the headgear away, showing me the tears streaming down her beautiful face.

  ‘I am neither a ghost nor a dream, Madeline.’

  Her voice... cold, angry, laced with sorrow and hurt. Stabbing into me like the sharpest of swords.

  ‘You’re dead. You died in my arms...’

  She grabbed my hands, thrust them roughly to her face. The dampness of her tears flowed around my fingers, pouring her pain right to my heart.

  ‘Do I feel dead to you?’

  She let go of my hands, turned away and let out a sarcastic laugh. ‘But perhaps you would rather I was dead.’

  No... had she been watching me... watching us, all the time? What have I done?

  ‘I thought you were dead...’ Feeble, whispered words. The wrong words. Pathetic excuses.

  She turned back to me, wiped away the tears with trembling fingers. ‘I almost died coming to you. I risked my life, desperate to tell you I was alive, longing to be by your side... hold you close, love you. It was all that mattered. And when I find you, I discover you have forgotten I ever existed...’ the words faltered into a strangled cry.

  The anguish in her voice, the heartbreak, knowing what she’d just said wasn’t true... suddenly my head stopped spinning. All my emotions were back with a vengeance. And anger surfaced first. I grabbed her, spun her round to face me.

  ‘You were
there, two nights ago. In the trees by Joe’s bar. Why didn’t you come to me then?’

  She pushed me away. ‘I... I wanted to. But when it came to it, I didn’t know how. I didn’t want to shock you.’

  ‘So you just spied on me instead?’

  She glared at me, matching my anger. ‘Isn’t it a good job I did? Now at least I know you’ve moved on.’

  I turned away, clutching my head, knowing my rage was masking shame and remorse. ‘Oh, you have no fucking idea, Zana.’

  ‘I think I do.’

  I walked up to her, our faces a foot apart. ‘Then think again. Since I got here I’ve been a total mess. That bar you sat in... that’s where I’ve been going most nights to drink away the grief, make a complete asshole of myself. You know what the road to self-destruction is? That was my road, until three nights ago when Lisa said hi. And yeah, I like her, a lot. But you know what she was, more than anything? She was my lifeline, to stop me going over the edge.’

  She stared into my eyes, her face emotionless. Then I saw tears begin to well up again. She lowered her head, whispered the words.

  ‘You said “was”?’

  I walked away a few steps, knowing I had to dissipate the anger. ‘Yeah, I did, didn’t I.’

  ‘I hadn’t quite expected our reunion to be like this.’

  ‘You didn’t? How the hell do you think I feel? I never believed there would be a reunion, remember? Zana, you died on Dawson’s Hill. I felt your body go cold.’

  ‘Coop took my body back to DIAL HQ. It was there I came back to life. Calandurans sometimes go into a near-death state when they are seriously injured, while their bodies repair...’

  I could feel the anger coming back. ‘So you knew you weren’t dead?’

  ‘No, Madeline. Please, even I thought I was dead. I had no idea a bullet in the chest could be survived.’

  ‘Shit. So you... escaped?’

  ‘Not quite. Coop let me go.’

  ‘What?’

  ‘He cares about you, Madeline. About us both. He put his job on the line for us. He told me you would most likely come here, so I...’

  Again the words faltered. And I knew it was because she was recalling the events she’d witnessed a couple of hours ago.

  What have I done?

  ‘I love you, Zana. Only you. Why did you run from me?’

  She put her hands across her eyes, like she was trying to shut away the images. ‘After what I saw, I... I decided I had done the wrong thing, coming to you. I was about to leave when I saw you were back outside, sitting by your window. I couldn’t help it... I just wanted to watch you for a while... a last memory before I left this place forever.’

  Oh my god. If I hadn’t gone back outside...

  I ran to her, held her tight as our tears flowed. Her fingers bore into my back, frantic, desperate hands she could hardly control. And as I felt her love flow into me, I knew mine was flooding into her too. Our lips met, a salty, tear-filled kiss that lit up every sense I possessed.

  The woman I loved was back from the dead.

  There could be no greater joy.

  It seemed like forever we held each other tight. I could feel her body shaking against me. It was probably mine shaking too. Desperation, love, remorse, regret... all those things were blasting into me, mixing with the dread of uncertainty. I eased her back a little, looked into her eyes.

  ‘Come back with me, Zana. Stay with me tonight, then we can talk properly in the morning?’

  She turned away. ‘I... not tonight. I must return to my shuttle.’

  ‘Don’t you believe what I said?’

  ‘Yes... I do. But there is much I have to come to terms with. And you too. Can we meet tomorrow, please?’

  She was picking up the headgear and sunglasses. I didn’t want her to leave. But maybe she was right... the events of this night needed time to sink in. ‘I wish you didn’t have to go. But yeah, I understand. Please, just believe I have told you the truth... every word.’

  She kissed me, a soft, loving kiss. ‘I know, Madeline. Please just allow me a little time.’

  ‘I think it’s the least I can do. But... why the Muslim dress? Why didn’t you just change into human form?’

  She took my hand. ‘It seems since the bullet in the chest, I no longer have the ability to morph. I am afraid you and I are stuck with my alien form now.’

  ‘You are much more beautiful like that.’

  She smiled warmly. ‘Until tomorrow, Madeline.’

  She was gone. I watched her disappear into the darkness, and then took slow, hesitant steps back to the shack. I wanted to turn and run after her, but resisted the urge. My head was reeling, my heart was singing. But mixed in with that was a niggling uncertainty of what tomorrow would bring to my doorstep.

  Chapter 86

  Back in my room, my freaked-out emotions began to battle each other again as I fell into bed, still wearing the dress, mentally and physically exhausted. The sheer emotional joy of discovering Zana was alive fought like hell with the purely physical elation of my earlier actions.

  The guilt kicked in. I thought you were dead, Zana. That fact didn’t seem to make much difference. An awful, stomach-churning beat-yourself-up kind of feeling blasted through me like an unstoppable tsunami wave wrecking everything in its path. That morning-after realisation of the night before, when you did something you seriously shouldn’t have, but were just too pathetically weak to resist, dominated my confusion.

  It wasn’t the morning after, or the night before. Just two hours ago I’d fucked a girl, watched over by the woman I truly loved.

  And now I disgusted myself.

  It wasn’t love, Zana... nowhere near. Please believe that. Love belongs to you, no one else. You brought that to my door, I allowed it inside. Now it lives in my soul, until the day I die.

  And along with that love came sensuous, sexual perfection. The kind that only true love can bring. Maybe in my grief I craved that once more, desperate for it to live on through someone who could never be you.

  She would not have brought me that perfection. But in the weakness of loss, perhaps she gave me something else. Something I did not really want, but for some reason found that I needed.

  I am so sorry, Lisa.

  Sleep came. Uneasy, fitful sleep flickering between semi-consciousness and total blackness. Fragments of dreams wandered in and out of a red mist, a strange mix of fantasy and reality blurring the line between the two.

  The door to my bedroom opened, and Zana was there, slipping into the bed beside me. I gazed into her eyes, and suddenly they were Lisa’s. Then blackness closed my dream down, and once more I fell into a deep sleep of nothing.

  Then grey again, and more fantasy. The outside door opening, a dark figure standing there.

  Lisa...

  Oh Lisa, I need to tell you I’m sorry...

  In the darkness, something glinted in her hand. She walked stealthily towards me...

  This wasn’t a dream...

  The army training kicked in, a reflex action. As whatever it was in her hand came towards me, I rolled off the bed, kicked her feet. She lost her balance but didn’t let go of it, stumbled away from me.

  I should have dropped onto her but I was still half asleep, too slow. As I dragged myself to my feet, she came at me again. I lashed out at her arm, managed to put a few feet between us.

  ‘Lisa, what the fuck are you doing?’

  She wasn’t answering, but then I had a bit more to contend with. Another figure appeared in the doorway, right behind me. I lashed out backwards, but whoever it was didn’t flinch, grabbed my arm, wrenched the other one behind me to join it, and shoved me into a sitting position on the floor.

  I felt something lock my wrists together, knew I was trapped. Lisa walked over to me, sat across my legs just as I was about to kick her where I’d been a lot more tender a few hours ago.

  ‘Why are you doing this?’ I whispered, all I was able to do before a gag was slapped across my mou
th. I watched, helpless, as the silver pen-like device in her hand touched my neck. An electrically-charged something seared into me. She stepped away, turned her back. Blackness was coming, forcing consciousness to slip away, and panic to overwhelm me...

  ‘Lisa, what have you...’

  I was wrenched to my feet. Just before I passed out, I managed to knock my bag off the dresser top, saw its contents spill across the floor. Blackness came a moment too soon, and I didn’t know if they’d noticed my actions or not.

  Chapter 87

  David deWinter had just started to plane some timber in his workshop when Tami ran in. He could see straightaway something was wrong.

  ‘David, come please. Madeline was late up, so I went to take her some tea...’

  He stood in his daughter’s room, his heart sinking. The outside door was wide open, the bed covers halfway across the floor. Her bag was on the floor too, its contents spilled out. He picked up her phone, scanned through the logs, but there was nothing there except calls between the two of them.

  There were tears in Tami’s eyes. ‘What has happened, David? I am frightened.’

  ‘I don’t know, hun. Let’s search outside, see if there is anything there to help us.’

  They searched the open area immediately around the shack. Apart from the empty juice glass on the tiny table outside her door, there was nothing to give them a clue.

  They began to search in the palm trees, increasingly desperate to find something to tell them what had happened. Further away from the shack, almost at the point where the sand met the track to the western shore, Tami saw something.

  She picked up the big silver pendant, turned it over in her hands. ‘I don’t think this is Madeline’s?’ she said, question in her voice.

  ‘Never seen it before, but I guess it might be.’ He rubbed a desolate hand across his mouth. ‘There’s nothing else here, Tami. We’d better call the police.’

  She threw expressive hands in the air. ‘I doubt they will be much help.’