“I hear you,” Matthew butts in. “But if we find her, and we don’t have a single clue on how to get rid of her, then were chasing our fuckin’ tail again, aren’t we? I mean, what’s the sense in that?”
“Okay, I get ya. Look, I’m just being honest. I’m trying to think outside the box, and I don’t want you gettin’ your hopes up with this guy and then he turns out to be some fraud and you’re stuck in Israel.”
“Terry, at the minute, this guy is the only hope we’ve got. I can’t just ignore it. This information came to me for a reason, and I have got to see this through.”
“Matthew, I hear ya. I really do. But it leads me onto the next issue. I’m at a loss as to how we’re gonna find the children this time.”
Rolling his eyes at Terry’s problem-finding and solution-avoiding, Matthew says, “Well, maybe your ex-partner on the force is finally well enough to see us now. I mean, Maria was the one who helped us track ’em down at Moycullen through Alice. Can’t you just speak to the staff on the ward again and ask if we can visit her quickly? Maybe just say it’s a social Christmas call or something? Terry, communicating with Alice again may be our only hope.”
“Maybe,” Terry replies. “However, I’ve heard through the grapevine that Maria’s somewhat—”
“Terry, look,” Matthew snaps. “I don’t need you to hold my hand throughout this whole journey, but what I do need is for you to keep the faith and not bail out on me now. We are close. I can tell.”
Terry stays silent.
“What’s the harm in calling the ward and just checking in on her? Me and Phil will do the rest. We don’t have a problem with going to Israel, do we Phil?”
“No mate, not at all.”
“See. You stay here and enjoy Christmas with your family and me and Phil will go and do the hunting. All you have to do is call the ward and be on standby for a phone call from us, that is it. Sound fair?”
Before Terry can reply, his phone begins lighting up and vibrating on the table.
“Hello, DCS Terry speaking.”
Matthew hears a very distinctive female voice through the speaker.
“Sorry, can you just repeat that,” Terry says as he places the phone on speaker mode and puts it on the table.
A young sounding woman with a sweet Irish accent introduces herself. “DCS Terry, my name is Sister— I mean Alannah, just Alannah. I was a sister at the Moycullen Nunnery and I have been given your number by Father McDoyle. He told me to reach out to you because you were the person in charge at the scene where all my sisters were murdered.”
“That’s correct, Alannah,” Terry replies. “How is it I can help you?”
“Well… I… I don’t actually know. I’m so confused. You see, I wasn’t even aware that any of my sisters had died or that the children had been kidnaped. I… I just…” Alannah sobs.
“Please take a moment, there’s no rush. I’m here to help. First things first, I am sorry for your huge loss. This must have come as a huge shock, and I can only begin to imagine how you must feel right now.”
“My heart is completely broken in two,” Alannah replies in between sobs. “I don’t know where to begin, but I need answers.”
“We’re after the same thing,” Terry replies. “Alannah, if you don’t mind, I’d like to ask you a few questions. Is that okay? If not, we can do this another time.”
Panicking that she might end the call, Matthew waves his arms in the air and mouths, “What you saying that for?”
Terry puts his finger to his lips.
“Sure. I’ll answer some questions,” Alannah whispers.
Feeling a huge sense of relief, Matthew closes his eyes.
Terry leans towards the phone as he continues, “Alannah, thank you. So, let’s start with how you found out about what had happened at Moycullen. Did you say Father McDoyle informed you?”
Matthew’s heart is racing as he waits for her to answer. He’s sat on the edge of his seat with his ear as close to the speaker as he can possibly get. The seconds feel like minutes.
Looking at Matthew and raising his hand, Terry mouths, “Stay calm.”
All eyes and ears inside the room are on the phone. Alannah blows her nose and clears her throat.
“Sorry, this has just been mortifying, and I still haven’t got my head around it.”
“It’s okay, just take your time, Alannah,” Terry says in his nurturing tone.
Alannah explains how she tried to call the nunnery and then came across the article online. “It… it said that they were dead.” She goes silent, then her sobs resume.
Feeling her pain, Matthew closes his eyes, shakes his head and rests it on his hands.
“Alannah, I’m so sorry,” Terry says.
Alannah blows her nose again. “That’s the thing. As shocked as I was, a part of me didn’t want to believe it. I honestly thought it was just another cruel rumour. You see, there were always so many of them floating around about us and so a part of me didn’t think it would be true. I never thought that would be the fate of my sisters, nor the children. I decided to make contact with Father McDoyle and…” A brief pause. “Well, you know the rest. Father McDoyle told me all that he could about what had happened, he gave me your number and said I should reach out to you. So here I am – reaching out.”
“Thank you for being brave and contacting me. I know this must be a hard time for you, but any information you have may be pertinent to helping us locate the children and apprehending the cruel individual who did these despicable things to your sisters and the children.”
“Yes, sir, believe me, I want to help in any way that I can. They were my family.”
“Of course. And thank you.”
“I just feel so lost.”
Coughing, Matthew gestures for Terry to introduce him and Phil.
Terry says, “Alannah, I just want to let you know that I’m currently in a meeting room at Scotland Yard Police Headquarters and I’m sitting with Matthew Honey and Phil Parkin—”
“Oh my,” Alannah interrupts. “Matthew, Phil – I am so sorry for everything you have been through. If I knew Eve, Lewis and the rest of the children had been kidnapped and were being held against their will, I would have contacted the authorities immediately.”
Matthew is stunned by what he’s just heard. “Wait, you were at the nunnery when my daughter was there?”
“Yes.”
“So, you were with my daughter? My Evelyn Jade?”
“Yes.”
Instantly becoming teary-eyed, Matthew grabs the phone and pulls it towards him.
“Alannah, please, how is she? Please, tell me how she is?”
His heart is beating a million miles an hour, and the slight pause feels like an eternity.
“Matthew, I promise you, she’s okay. Sister Eve is a real tough girl. You raised her very well. You should be proud.”
Matthew puts his head on the table as he begins crying with relief.
“I hope it’s a slight comfort to you. She appears to have adapted to life away from her family home extremely well. And I have seen first-hand how she has settled into married life and motherhood. She’s doing a truly beautiful job. Commendable for a girl her age. And baby Honey is a darling, for sure.”
“What did you just say?” Matthew sits back in disbelief.
“I’m sorry, which part?”
“Did you say my daughter is married and has a child?”
“Yes, she married Lewis on the grounds of the Chapel at the Nunnery, and she—”
“Eve and my son Lewis are married?” Phil chimes in.
“Yes, that is true. I should have attended as a witness to their promise to one another, but I didn’t make the ceremony or the blessing of Honey. I was set to be her godmother. It was decided by the pair that they would get married after Eve had given bi
rth to their daughter, Honey.”
“Wait a minute… what the… so I’m a grandfather?” Matthew says in complete shock.
“And I’m a grandfather?” Phil says, uncertainty fast spreading upon his face.
Sat back in his chair, scratching his head, Terry says, “What on earth is happening here…?”
“I am so sorry,” says Alannah. “You didn’t need to find out this way. I’m sorry, I shouldn’t have called.”
“Alannah, wait!” Matthew shouts out. “No, please, I am so happy you have called. You are the last person to have seen our children. You have been with them and they’re alive. Please, I’m just in shock. I haven’t seen my daughter in so long. I had no clue she would be okay, let alone a mother and a wife. Honestly, it’s just a surprise. Please, please don’t hang up. I’m relieved that she’s not being kept in a dungeon and drugged up against her own will.”
“Oh no, I assure you she seemed more than okay to be there, that’s why I never suspected a thing. None of us did.”
Phil jumps in. “Alannah, what about my other children? Please, what about the boys, Freddie, Terrance and Rupert, and my baby girl, Hope? Are they okay?”
“They’re all okay, Phil. They’re all okay. You both have very beautiful children and they didn’t appear to be in harm’s way at all. Like I said, we all didn’t have a clue that they were being held by…” Alannah pauses. “… by evil.”
“Good lord. Thank you,” Phil whispers as he begins sobbing into his hands.
Patting his friend on the back to give him some reassurance and moral support, Matthew breathes deeply and decides it’s time to be strong. “Alannah, when did you leave?”
“I left back in July. Judging from what’s been reported online, it would seem that I left moments, if not minutes before the tragedy happened.”
“Why did you leave them? I know you said you didn’t know they were being held by evil, but please tell me you didn’t know what was going to happen to them and you decided to save yourself?”
“Oh, no, no, no, no, please, not for a millisecond did I have any idea. You have to believe me.”
“Wait – did she send you?”
“Matthew,” Terry warns.
“What?” Matthew turns to him. “We all know how sadistic that bitch really is. What if she sent one of her spies to make sure we don’t catch up with her?”
“You’re being paranoid and acting crazy, lad,” Terry replies.
“Matthew, please, you have to believe me. I didn’t have any inclination that anything untoward was going to happen. Please, whatever evil this is, it’s very clever and highly manipulative. I just want to help get the children back and justice for my sisters. You have to believe me. Please.”
Aware that he too was manipulated by the same evil individual, Matthew calms slightly. After all, he was blinded and has walked in her shoes. And right now, she’s the only person who can tell him about his daughter as she is today.
“So, I have to ask – what was it?” Matthew asks. “Why did you survive and manage to break free just moments before my daughter was taken again?”
“Matthew, I’m so sorry for your loss, I really am, but I had no clue. I… I just fell in love with a man and decided to run away with him. It was against our beliefs and our promise to the convent and more importantly to our Lord to give your heart to another in a passionate way. I had committed the ultimate sin. I gave my heart to a man, and I took the sacred bond away between myself and our Lord. I could no longer live within the walls of the convent after such a betrayal. I thought it was best for everyone if I left discreetly. I didn’t want to bring any hurt to my sisters, the children or the man I’d fallen in love with.”
“Matthew, she seems genuine,” Phil says.
“Alannah, where are you now?” Terry asks.
“I’m at my new home in New York. I live here with the man I ran away with. He’s now my husband.”
“Okay, so—” Terry begins.
“I think it’s important that you come with us,” Matthew butts in. We are heading to Israel to meet with someone who claims to know how to defeat the entity. I think it’s best you come too, seeing as you were the last person to be in the physical presence of the entity and all of the children.”
“When are you leaving?”
“Tomorrow,” Matthew replies.
“Leave it with me.”
Tying up his notes, Terry says, “Keep us posted. And, Alannah – thank you.”
“Yeah, thank you, Alannah,” Phil says.
“Yeah, thanks,” Matthew says with a slight smile as he nods his head.
“You’re welcome. We will find them, I’m sure of it.”
“I will text you Matthew’s number so you can stay in touch,” Terry says.
“That would be great. Thank you.”
“You’re welcome. Goodbye, Alannah, speak soon.”
“Speak soon.”
Terry then hangs up the phone.
Looking at Phil and Terry, Matthew says, “What in the actual fuck was that?”
“Mate, we have a granddaughter,” Phil says with a huge beaming smile plastered across his face.
Jumping from their seats, Matthew and Phil hug and begin patting each other on the back in celebration. His head leaning on his friend’s shoulder, unable to hold it in anymore, Matthew breaks down. The tears keep falling as the relief he feels is real. A survivor from the nunnery who has been in the presence of his daughter has confirmed that she is doing okay.
“I just can’t believe it.” Matthew weeps.
“I know, mate. Don’t worry, we will bring them all home. We’re getting closer.”
Composing himself, Matthew sits in his seat. Wiping his face, he throws his head back and looks to the ceiling. His hands begin to tremble.
“Happy Christmas, lads. What a great gift. A granddaughter that you both share.”
Matthew smiles. “I just can’t believe it. I have another little princess. A granddaughter. I swear, I never in my life thought I’d be on the hunt for my daughter and my granddaughter.” Looking up high once more he says, “Lauren, my queen, I promise, I’m going to bring our girls home.”
“Right,” Terry says, clapping his hands and rubbing them together. “We’d best get these flights booked for you both, hadn’t we?”
Matthew breathes deeply, then says, “Lads, let’s do this!”
Chapter Seven
“Why Are You Following Me?”
The curtains are drawn in the bedroom that Eve and Lewis share with their daughter, the room lit only by candlelight. It’s seven thirty in the evening, and the winter darkness has settled upon the Moycullen Orphanage. Honey lies peacefully inside her black wooden crib in the far corner of the room, opposite her parent’s eccentric, gothic black four-poster bed. Wearing her navy-blue onesie and covered by her ivory silk comforter, Honey is dreaming. She is completely still on her back with her arms by her side. Her black curly locks rest on the ivory silk pillow. A tiny red bow that was clipped on one side of her hair has come loose. Even in the sinister surroundings and the dark energy circulating the premises, Honey looks nothing other than angelic.
Standing at the top of her daughter’s crib, Eve is gently humming. Wearing a purple silk button-up blouse dress with a loose bow around the collar and black tights, Eve brushes the hair off her face and tucks it behind her ears. Gazing into the crib, she admires how sweet and innocent her daughter looks. Her rosy cheeks are blossoming while she sleeps, lighting up her face. Honey’s long black eyelashes flutter in time with her eyelids as she dreams.
Feeling a warming sensation throughout her whole body, Eve smiles. She has never felt love like this before. And yet, this overbearing obsession she has when it comes to her daughter is causing deep internal conflict. She cannot bear to leave her side. She ponders how she could have created
such a flawless and innocent little being when she is made up of such evil. Her mind once again sets off trying to justify how this could be so… The only possible explanation Eve can think of is that Honey must have solely inherited her daddy’s genes. Mankind is clearly stronger than the forces of evil when it comes to creating life.
Determined to ensure that her daughter remains untainted, Eve refuses on an almost daily basis to submit her over to the dark side. Strong, fearless, and willing to take on anyone who attempts to capture her daughter’s brand-new soul, Eve’s relentless ability to protect her is the main reason why Jezebel has stayed away.
And even though Eve doesn’t wholeheartedly believe in any other powers within the universe outside of that of her own, there’s a minuscule part of Eve that hopes the blessing her daughter was given by the sisters at Moycullen has helped in ensuring Honey’s soul remains untouchable.
She argues with herself daily. When times get tough, she eases her thoughts by recalling what Sister Jennifer would say to her: “Our Father loves everyone who has been blessed in his house” and “He is a man of forgiveness”. This calms Eve’s anxiety a little, particularly when she must leave Honey alone in the orphanage during the night whilst she conducts her duties.
Eve has no one to turn to without raising alarm bells, but she’s resolute that she will do whatever she can if it means that her daughter can keep those rosy cheeks she’s grown to love so much for as long as she can. And, until the time arises where she no longer has a choice, she has vowed to keep her daughter’s precious little spirit protected and pure.
Eve whispers, “Baby girl, I know we don’t follow any of the traditions practised on this planet, including Christmas, but my darling, you are the best early Christmas gift I could have ever wished for.”
Kneeling on the floor and looking through the bars of the crib, Eve continues, “Honey Parkinson, you are the best thing that has ever happened to me.”
Peering up at the oil-painted picture on the wall of her, Lewis and Honey, Eve smiles. “You, and of course your handsome daddy.”
The Broken IV: Vengeance Page 7
