by Casey, Ryan
Jane barely even registered the name.
But the next thing she knew, she saw a man being dragged out.
Slimmer than she remembered.
Gaunter.
This pale look to his face. To his wide, bloodshot eyes.
Like he was lost.
“See, missy here likes her blades bigger. Ain’t that right, huh?”
Jane didn’t understand.
Not until she saw one of Curtis’ guards putting a sword into Eddie’s trembling hands.
Curtis put a hand on Eddie’s back. “Now, Eddie. Everyone, Eddie. He’s a funny guy. Stand-up comedy. Only he says he never stands up! Funny, huh? Yessir. Anyway. Eddie.” He slapped his hands on his shoulders. Hard. “I’m gonna give you a task here, huh? A challenge. ’Cause you’re a funny guy. I like that. But I need to see how loyal you are. You need to show me. ’Cause these ladies here, they think they’ve changed the rules. But they don’t get to change the rules. I change the motherfucking rules.”
Before Jane knew it, she felt a kick to the back of her thighs.
The shard of glass slipped clear of her throat.
Zelda fought and kicked back, but it was no use.
Both of them were on their knees.
Armed guards behind them both.
Standing over them.
Curtis walked over to Jane and Zelda. Slowly.
He looked down into Jane’s eyes. “Now, don’t gemme wrong. I like this one. She’s nice. Pretty.”
And then he looked at Zelda. “But she ain’t indispensabubble. No one is. No, miss.”
He turned around to Eddie then.
“Kill one of ’em.”
Eddie’s eyes widened.
“Wh—what?”
“Kill one of ’em. Any of ’em. Right this second. Lift that old sword there in your hands and stab one of ’em. Or chop their head off. Whatever, funny guy. But you do that. Or you better believe I’m gonna sit that fat ass of yours so far on that sword it cuts through your guts and pops out your mouth. Now that’ll be sit down comedy. Or shit down comedy. Yessir!”
Laughter from the crowd. A few tuts and head shakes.
But all of them hooked.
All of them totally gripped.
“Kill one of ’em. And do it right this second. Or I might just get bored and kill you instead.”
He patted Eddie on the back.
Then he stepped back. Walked back to join the crowd.
Eddie stood there.
Sword in hand.
Terror in his eyes.
And then in one awful moment, Jane prayed wouldn’t actually happen, Eddie started to walk towards them both.
Chapter Forty-Two
The closer Noah got to the docks, the more he heard the clapping and shouting, and the more convinced he grew that he was walking directly into hell.
It was blisteringly hot. He felt roasting in this dark denim jacket, these tight black jeans. The rucksack on his shoulders dug right into his spine. He wanted to stop. Take a breather. Lay low for a while.
But at the same time, he knew he needed to get inside this place.
He needed to take one of these people out. Grab their weapon. Find Jane. Zelda, if he could. And Eddie, too, if he could.
And then he needed to get the hell out of this place, one way or another.
He saw the shipment containers right up ahead. There was nobody around that he could see. It sounded like everyone was cheering. Like they were gathered around some kind of event. Reminded Noah of sporting events, back in the day. Barbecues during the World Cup. A roar of a crowd, suddenly so animalistic, so carnivalesque, as they let their deepest, most repressed feelings out into the open where it was safe and allowed.
This sounded even more animalistic. It sounded like even more of an outpouring of repressed tension. Of anger. Of fury. And more than anything else, of boredom.
He crept further down the road, towards those shipment containers, and he felt more and more of an idiot about doing this the closer he got.
He thought of Barney as he approached. He kept on questioning whether he’d done the right thing leaving him back there, tied up. The rope seemed loose enough and weak enough that he could gnaw through it if he had to. But what if he was wrong? What if he got back there and found Barney, starved to death? Or what if someone else got there first? Someone with less noble intentions?
He shook his head. Shuddered at the thought of any harm coming to that dog.
But at the same time, he knew he couldn’t get caught up in those fears right now.
He needed to get on with the task at hand.
The bat-shit crazy task at hand.
He reached the first of the blue shipment containers. Everything around him was so quiet, so muted. The only sounds were from this event, whatever it was, right in the middle of this place. It was like everyone was gathered there. The “oohs!” The claps. The winces. They were watching something. And Noah dreaded to think what the hell it might be.
He crept around the side of that shipment container when he froze.
A man walked towards him.
Rifle in hand.
He backed up against it. Heart racing. Hands clammy. That man. He’d seen him. He was going to sneak around the side of the container and find him.
Unless…
Noah thought about that rifle.
He held his hammer in hand.
Maybe he could take him down.
Maybe he could steal his weapon.
And then maybe he could go in there and end whatever the hell was going on.
He braced himself for the man to step around the corner of the shipment container when he heard the footsteps stop.
The man started to whistle. The door of the container creaked open.
And right on cue, Noah heard a chorus of gasps. Of cries.
And he smelled stuff, too. Shit. Vomit. Piss.
“Hell, ladies,” the man said. “You’re making me miss the fight to check on you. Could’ve at least cleaned up after yourselves.”
He chuckled like it was funny. Then he walked inside that container.
And Noah didn’t want to see what was in there. He already feared what he might find.
The cries of anguish.
The whimpers.
The smell.
But he moved around the side and peeked in there.
It was dark. He could barely see a thing. The smell was even stronger. Even more putrid. So bad it made him want to throw up.
But what he saw was even worse.
Women.
Lots of women.
All chained up to the walls.
All naked.
And this man walking amongst them, looking at them like they were just objects. Like they were just cattle.
“Hello, pretty,” the man said. “How about I give you a good seeing to today, hmm? Makes up for missing the fight, anyway.”
A cry. A shout of protestation.
Laughter from the man.
Noah stepped around the side of the container again. He held his hammer in hand. Waited. So this is what they did to people here. This is what they did to Jane here.
He felt it deep inside. Guilt. Self-loathing.
But he was here now.
He had to help in any way he could.
He just had to.
He listened to the man’s footsteps move across the metal floor, dragging the woman along with him.
“Don’t worry, chicken,” he said, pushing her out of the container, then stepping out after her. He was thin. Gaunt. Short dark hair. This smile on his face that looked pure evil. “It’ll be over in no time. Try to enjoy it.”
He went to close the container door when Noah pulled back his hammer and cracked him against the skull.
Hard.
The man fell to the ground.
And Noah couldn’t stop himself.
He crouched over him.
Beat the fucking shit out of him for what he’d done until he was absol
utely certain he was dead—then didn’t stop there.
He looked up at this woman. Barely even a woman, fuck. Probably not even into her twenties. Certainly made him feel a lot better about just braining this fucker before him.
“Go on,” he said. “Get out of here. Run down the A6 and don’t turn back. Head towards Burnley. There’s a group there. They’ll help you. I promise.”
She stared at him with these big, brown eyes.
Opened her mouth. Terrified.
“Go on,” he said. “Get…”
And then he felt it.
Something hard against the back of his head. Like the barrel of a gun.
The sound of a chuckle, right behind him.
“Well, well,” a voice said. “What do we have here?”
Chapter Forty-Three
Kelly wasn’t sure how long they’d been walking when she was hit with a sudden bout of uncertainty about this entire journey.
It was late afternoon. Which meant they must’ve been walking a good few hours today. Add on the full day’s walking yesterday, broken up by sheltering in one of the neighbourhoods along the way, and Kelly could see why Sunil had been so keen not to drag her along before she felt strong enough.
And she did feel strong enough now. She felt lighter. She felt more confident. More positive.
And most importantly, she felt like she had a purpose.
She looked down at baby Edward. Eyes closed as she carried him in her arms. She never had herself down as being one of those sappy mothers. Probably due to the way she was brought up. Her mum always gave her independence. She always let her learn her own lessons; fight her own battles. And for that reason, Kelly had the twin result of being independent on the one hand, but craving love on the other hand.
She was going to give her love to Baby Edward. She was going to look after him. Protect him. Care for him no matter how hard it was, no matter how challenging life was going to be at times.
She just wished Eddie were here by her side, too.
She stopped. Mick, Cady, and Freddie walked up ahead. They kept themselves to themselves, which was quite nice. Occasionally dropped back for a chat. But Kelly preferred to just keep walking in all truth.
It wasn’t that she wasn’t ready to trust other people or wasn’t willing to open up to others. Quite the opposite.
It was just that she was tired.
And she was ready to find her home.
Whatever new home was out there.
“Need another breather already?” Sunil asked.
Kelly looked to her side. Sunil stood there. That calm, kind smile on his face, so ever-present. She knew she should trust him. He’d stood by her. And he’d stood by Baby Edward too, in the first phases of his life. She knew that was worth something. It was worth a hell of a lot.
But there was something blocking her from trusting him completely, too.
A sense that he could betray her. That he might not be who he said he was.
Even though all evidence pointed to the contrary.
“I guess I’m just thinking—”
“What if I’m a psycho killer leading you back to some kind of evil cult camp? I get it. Really.”
Kelly narrowed her eyes. “I mean, you’re not, are you?”
“No. Honest.”
“Because that would be a really shitty bombshell to drop on me right now. Especially after all this time.”
“I agree. It’d be fairly indecent behaviour.”
Kelly smiled at that. Shook her head.
“I get why you don’t trust me. Why you don’t trust anyone.”
“Believe me,” Kelly said, thinking back to her past—to the times she’d been used, the times she’d been abused, “you’ve actually no idea.”
“Not of the details, sure. But the reasons why anyone would not trust another in this world? Especially the mother of a newborn baby? I get that more than anything. I don’t have to know your past. Nobody does. All I have to know is… well.”
“What?”
“All I have to know is that you’re a good person. You’re someone I want to take back to our community. Because this isn’t just about you trusting me, remember? It’s about me trusting you.”
Kelly nodded. She turned around. Looked over her shoulder. Down the street.
“You’re still thinking about him. Aren’t you?”
She looked back at Sunil. “I just… Sorry.”
“You don’t have to apologise. You’re bound to wonder how he’s doing. If he has any sense about him… well. He’ll arrive at our doorstep in no time.”
He paused. Stood there, dark hair blowing in the breeze. Like he wanted to say something.
“Can I be totally honest with you about something?” Sunil asked.
“Sure. As long as it’s not a confession you’re part of a cannibal cult. That’d be really shitty.”
“Eddie,” he said. “There’s… there’s a darkness in him.”
Kelly snorted. “Eddie? He might fancy me to a dangerous degree. But he’s hardly got a ‘darkness’ in him, or whatever you want to call it.”
Sunil shook his head. He seemed in a different place. “A man can only take so many beatings in life. So much belittling. Before they snap.”
“And you think Eddie might snap?”
He looked around. Back at Kelly. “Can I tell you something else?”
“Sure.”
“I didn’t want to tell you. I didn’t want to tell any of you. But…”
“What is it?”
“I woke up one night. Just before the baby was born. Eddie didn’t realise.”
“What do you mean he didn’t realise?”
“He was standing just inside my room. Staring at me. And I remember… I remember the look in his eyes. These big wide eyes. Looking at me, reflecting in the moonlight. There was hate in those eyes.”
Kelly felt a shiver creep up her spine. She’d love to say she didn’t know what Sunil was on about. But she’d seen that look, too. The way he looked at her when he was disappointed about something. When she’d rejected him.
But he’d only looked at her that way since they’d fucked nine months ago.
Such a fleeting moment. A fleeting moment that wasn’t supposed to have any weight at all. A moment that had changed her life. That had born a new life.
And a moment that had awoken something inside Eddie, too?
She smiled. Shook her head. “Eddie’s… a complicated figure. But he’s a good guy. He wouldn’t harm anyone. He’s gone his own way for himself. I hope he finds his way back. He needs to share on childcare, after all!”
She tried to add a jovial tone to her words. But they were hammy. Forced. Uncomfortable.
And Sunil didn’t look so convinced himself. “Whatever. Anyway. I’ve got something to show you. Come on.”
Kelly frowned. Sunil walked on ahead, past Mick, Cady, Freddie, ahead of the group.
He looked back. Smiled. Waved. “Come on. See for yourselves!”
Kelly picked up her pace.
Careful not to wake little baby Edward, who felt so warming, so wholesome, there in her arms.
She caught up with the group. And together, she ran with them, down the road, towards where Sunil was.
When she reached the top of the hill, she saw it.
It looked just like any other ordinary, normal town. Grey-bricked buildings. Old shops boarded up. Cars in the street.
Except there was something different about this place.
There were people in the streets.
There were people walking in and out of houses.
There were metal-plated walls.
There was laughter.
There were children kicking footballs.
Dogs and cats racing between the cars.
There was life.
Sunil looked back at the group. “Welcome home, folks. You ready?”
Kelly stood there, baby Edward in her arms. She watched Mick, Cady, and Freddie walk on. Smiling. El
ated. Buying into all this.
And then she looked over her shoulder. Back in the direction they’d come from.
“Kelly?” Sunil said.
Kelly looked back round. She half-smiled at Sunil.
But she thought of Eddie.
Of what Sunil said about him.
There’s a darkness in him…
And then she pushed that thought aside and smiled.
“Ready,” she said.
She took a few deep breaths, baby in her arms, a whole new life ahead of her.
And then, as this community loomed on the horizon, she walked towards her new life.
Chapter Forty-Four
Noah tried to kick out, tried to fight, but it was too late to do a fucking thing, and he knew it.
The air was hot and sticky. Another warm afternoon. Stifling, in fact. Summer on the horizon. But not a nice heat. The kind of heat that clung to you. The kind of air that felt heavy. A lack of breeze making everything lack a certain… freshness.
And it didn’t help that he had cuffs around his wrists. So tight they dug right into his flesh. Reminded him of the compound, nine long months ago. The scars still etched on his wrists from those horrifying, long days. So many days. Day after day in isolation. Fresh after Jasmine’s death, too. Torture. Being forced to sit with the memory of what had happened to her—of what he’d been forced to do with her infected body—time and time and time again.
Permanent damage was done to his psyche in those days of isolation. Of that, he was certain.
He felt the gun push deeper into his back. He knew it was a gun, even though he hadn’t seen it. He hadn’t even seen the man who was pushing him. He didn’t know what’d happened to the woman Noah helped free. Only that he was pretty sure she hadn’t got away. He’d probably subjected her to a worse fate to the one she faced beforehand.
And that was on him.
He thought of Barney, and he tasted vomit creeping up his throat. He’d let him down. He’d tied him up, and he’d left him there, and he’d failed him. And for what? All because he felt he could do this alone. All because he felt he had to help his friends.