Becoming...

by Jacob Rayne

  Her hope was that he would be stupid enough to remove the gag. He didn’t take the hint, so she knelt in front of him and mimed giving him head.

  He smiled but shook his head.

  Moving too fast for her to react, he grabbed her legs and pushed them apart. His flabby bulk pinned her to the damp cellar floor.

  The smell and feel of him made her retch.

  Chapter 64

  A few days later, an ashen-faced Norma came to see Luke with the newspaper article declaring the Marshton Eight’s escape from punishment. Upon seeing it, he punched the wall and bellowed his rage.

  The two guards eyed him nervously. Since Luke had been admitted to the asylum he had put on a stone and a half of muscle. His lean frame belied his strength and power.

  He had always possessed a steely determination – they knew that from the first time he’d kicked off with them – but now his temper was volcanic. The last thing they needed was for him to go ballistic.

  ‘Fucking bullshit,’ he screamed, grabbing his hair and bending double, doing his best to process the information, then stood and slammed his fist into the wall again. Another chunk of plasterboard fell away.

  ‘Luke, are you ok?’ Norma said. She was worried about him, and she may have been one of the only people not to be terrified by his temper.

  He lapsed into an uneasy silence and put his arms around her, resting his head on her shoulder.

  ‘It’s ok to be pissed off,’ she said.

  He nodded. ‘I just can’t believe they got away with it. They crippled him and did this to me.’

  ‘I know. I know.’ She looked him in the eye. There seemed to be nothing she could say to comfort him, so she planted a kiss on his cheek.

  ‘Luke, there’s something else you should know,’ she said, her voice faltering and cracking.

  He looked up at her with his big blue eyes and she was startled how childlike he appeared.

  ‘What?’ he said, his heart already sinking.

  She sighed and looked down at the floor. ‘It’s Bryony. I haven’t seen her in three days. She and Clare were supposed to be spending the weekend at a friend’s house, so I assumed she would just turn up tonight. When I called her friend, it turned out she and Clare never got there.’

  ‘Fuck’s sake,’ Luke bellowed. His fist smashed another section of plaster loose. It crumbled to dust beneath his foot.

  ‘I’m shitting myself, Luke,’ Norma said.

  He shared her fear; Marshton was a breeding ground for psychopaths.

  Chapter 65

  ‘I just wish I could help you to look for her,’ Luke said. ‘But I’m no good to anyone stuck in here.’

  She leaned in close, whispered, ‘Then don’t be stuck in here.’ As she pulled back he saw a glint in her eye.

  He looked puzzled for a moment.

  ‘Why don’t you escape?’ she said.

  For a second he thought she was joking, but, after studying her face, he saw that she was entirely serious.

  ‘And how the fuck would I do that?’ he whispered.

  ‘I overheard the guards saying that they’re having a party tonight, so the reserves will be down to skeleton staff. That’d be your best chance.’

  Luke looked at her.

  ‘I’d wait for you in the woods across the road,’ she said. ‘I’ll give you a lift out of here, because they’re bound to come looking for you.’

  Luke thought about it for a second.

  ‘One more thing, Luke, I think you have a right to know this. The last time I saw her, Bryony told me she was in love with you.’

  Luke put his head in his hands. Any sliver of doubt he had held evaporated. He looked up at Norma and nodded.

  Norma snuck her hand under his top and pushed something into his waistband. He wasn’t sure what it was but it felt a little cold against his skin. She kissed him on the forehead and pulled away.

  ‘Act normal,’ she whispered in his ear.

  He sat on the end of the bed, taking care not to stab himself in the gut with the hidden object. She took his hand and smiled at him.

  ‘How’s life then?’ she asked.

  ‘It’s not bad, actually, I don’t mind it.’

  ‘It’s for your own good, I suppose.’

  ‘Yeah, it’s the best place for me.’ From the way he played with his hands, it was obvious that something was on his mind.

  ‘What is it?’

  ‘Just the thought of Bryony out there on her own. She could be anywhere.’

  Norma opened her mouth to say something but the door came open.

  Hirst stood in the doorway, his face grim. He stepped in, his eyes scanning the ceiling and walls for the camera he knew was concealed somewhere. After finding it, he flicked the off switch.

  He shifted from foot to foot, then cleared his throat and nodded a greeting to Luke and Norma.

  ‘Norma, is it ok to catch up with you later?’ Luke said, sensing that Hirst had something he wanted to say to him in private.

  ‘Yes, of course.’ Norma hugged Luke, whispered, ‘See you tonight,’ and left.

  ‘Sorry to interrupt you,’ Hirst said, loud enough for Norma to hear. ‘I won’t keep you long, if Norma wants to stay.’

  ‘It’s ok,’ Luke said. ‘Stay as long as you want.’

  Hirst stared at the floor, his face slack. ‘So, I’m sure you’ve already heard that those dickless wonders have got off with it.’

  ‘I know. Don’t worry, they’ll get what they deserve.’ Luke said.

  ‘I will help you kill them,’ Hirst said. He stared Luke in the eye, and Luke saw that he meant it. ‘Anything you want to do will be legal. I’ll make sure the heat stays off you.’

  Luke couldn’t help but smile at the idea. ‘No. I won’t be doing that. And even if I was going to, I couldn’t ask you to risk your career like that.’

  Hirst said nothing, just stared at Luke. ‘I understand. And you’re a good lad for being able to let what happened to you go. I just hope I can be as forgiving.’ He leant in close. Luke smelt stale cigarettes and alcohol on his breath. ‘I lie awake at night dreaming of shoving a twelve gauge into each of their mouths and blowing their worthless brains into the sky.’

  ‘I can imagine,’ Luke said. He wasn’t sure whether he could trust Hirst or not, so he decided to play it safe. ‘Being in here is starting to mellow me. I was angry, but now I am starting to let it go.’

  ‘Well, you’re a better man than me. Take care, Luke. I’ll come and see you again soon. Thanks for listening to my bullshit.’

  ‘You look after yourself, Sergeant.’

  Hirst smiled. The gesture was forlorn, hopeless. Luke felt for him. The sad smile made him even more furious about what had happened.

  ‘Nearly forgot,’ Hirst said, flicking on the camera again. ‘See you soon, Luke. You’re a good lad.’

  Luke settled back on his bed and waited for the party to start. Under his duvet, he pulled the object that Norma had given him from his trousers.

  It was a metal ballpoint pen. He tested it against his hand. It wasn’t the best weapon in the world, but it would be enough.

  After hiding it under his pillow, he laid back and stared at the ceiling.

  Chapter 66

  Luke opened his eyes to see that a few hours had lapsed. The party would be in full swing. He rubbed the pen, relishing the chance to use it.

  His wish was granted ten minutes later when Swick, one of the few guards that Luke didn’t like, strutted into the room, holding a syringe and a plastic tub full of tablets.

  Swick was a bully to most of the patients and had stolen from a number of them too. The prick was long overdue retribution.

  Luke smiled when he saw him.

  ‘Evening, cumstain,’ Swick smiled. ‘Got your crazy pills.’

  ‘Just stick ’em on the side, I’ll take ’em later,’ Luke said, knowing full well that Swick would feel the need to force-feed them to him.

  ‘Come on, Miller, I’ve got strict o
rders to make sure you’re taking these tablets. Wouldn’t want you trying to peel your face off again now, would we?’ The corners of his mouth twisted up in a malicious grin.

  Luke laughed. He was going to be wearing his grin on the other side of his face in a moment.

  ‘I don’t think you’re tough enough to make me,’ Luke smiled.

  ‘Oh, yeah?’ Swick pulled his cosh.

  ‘Yeah.’

  Swick took a step forward.

  Luke held the pen tight in his left hand, keeping it hidden beneath the bed clothes until Swick got close enough.

  ‘Last chance, Miller. Don’t make me kick your crazy ass.’

  Luke stared defiantly at him.

  Swick rushed in. Luke leapt to his feet and brought the pen down in a stabbing motion.

  The hard metal tip sunk into Swick’s eye, pushing blood out onto Luke’s hand. Luke kept driving the pen in until it disappeared into Swick’s eye socket.

  Swick stood for a moment then fell, a sea of gore rushing out of the wound. Luke watched the blood flow for a second, feeling alive for the first time in a long while. He pulled Swick’s key-card from his lapel and ran out into the corridor.

  Chapter 67

  Knowing he didn’t have long before the sirens started, he tried to think. Even on skeleton staff, there would be between five and seven guards lurking around.

  Being caught was not an option, or else he’d never be allowed out of here. Adrenaline coursed through him, making his whole body shake.

  The thrill of being out of his cell turned to terror when the sirens started to blare.

  The noise stabbed into his mind, threatening to blot out all semblance of rational thought. He forced panic back and tried to come up with a plan.

  He swiped the key-card on the magnetic strip by the door of the nearest cell. The door clicked open.

  Luke opened the next few doors using the magnetic key-card. Soon, a dozen patients were running down the corridors, screaming their joy at finally being free.

  Luke saw a white-clad figure at the far end of the corridor and ducked into the shadows.

  His breath came fast and hard as the figure approached. It was one of the guards he knew and liked. It was a shame to have to hurt him, but he couldn’t be allowed to fuck up Luke’s escape plan. Luckily the guard ran past.

  Luke made his way along to the stairs, opening every door he passed. The patients flooded out onto the corridors.

  At least he’d given himself a valuable distraction. He may even help some of his friends to escape.

  A pair of guards came upon the scene and stood, mouths open, looking at the large group of patients loose on the corridor.

  Luke watched them wade into the mass with their coshes flailing. He saw one of his friends fall beneath a heavy cosh strike then moved away from the scene.

  He ducked into a shadowy corner as two more guards ran into the melee. They were under no restrictions, laying into the mob with extreme prejudice.

  Luke was too busy watching them to notice one of the guards creeping up behind him.

  The first thing he knew was the cosh hitting him in the side of the head. The blow was unexpected but he took it well. His head moved to the side, pulling his neck a little, but he was otherwise unharmed.

  Turning fast, he grabbed the guard’s head and jammed it into the wall. The guard slid to his knees, clutching his pounding skull.

  Luke ran for the stairs and shoved the handle on the door that led to the fire escape.

  Cool air from the rear staircase caressed his face, a small taste of freedom that further strengthened his resolve to escape.

  A glance down the spiral staircase revealed distant shapes running up the stairs towards him.

  Moving into the shadows at the top of the stairs, he let the first guard run past. He was certain they’d seen him, but they passed without reacting to his presence.

  He cursed as the second guard stopped halfway up the stairs.

  He was going to have to risk being discovered if he wanted to escape.

  Chapter 68

  His body shaking like a leaf in a tornado, he stepped towards the top of the stairs. Fear tried its utmost to weld his feet to the floor.

  His eyes glued to the guard standing sentry two levels below him, he dropped to his butt and slid down the stairs, keeping out of sight behind the waist-high rail. Every step he took seemed to make his heart beat a little faster.

  He was still a good distance away from the guard, who was built like a brick shithouse. Looking down at the immense guard, his mouth suddenly felt like it was lined with cotton wool.

  He slid down each step, making sure not to make a noise. As he neared the guard, he started to feel sure he couldn’t pass without being discovered.

  Looking down, he found a loose rock on the floor. He shuffled on his knees towards the rail, then flung the rock at the wall to his left. When the guard went to investigate the noise, Luke ran.

  He found a nice shadowy corner in which to hide while he waited for the guard to come back. His back pressed against something cold as he moved back. He turned to see a fire extinguisher mounted on the wall behind him.

  Grinning, he lifted it free of its bracket and waited, allowing his heart rate to settle. When the sickly feeling disappeared, he stepped out of the shadows.

  The guard turned as Luke was close enough to touch him. His cosh flew through the air, just missing Luke’s head and bouncing off his shoulder.

  Luke grunted in anger and thrust the fire extinguisher at the guard’s face. The guard staggered away then fell on his back.

  Luke slammed another few blows in, grinning at the sickly crack and the ribbon of blood that snaked out of the guard’s ear. Though he desperately wanted to bray the guard’s head into mush, longed to bathe in the thick, warm blood, he knew he had to escape. There’d be plenty of time to indulge his bloodlust later.

  Luke left the twitching guard in the growing pool of blood and raced down the stairs.

  Chapter 69

  The commotion from upstairs came through on the monitors in the security room where a guard sat behind a desk watching the screens. A pizza the size of a bin lid rested on his lap.

  Luke dropped to his knees and crawled towards the desk. The guard laughed as he watched his colleagues hitting the crazies with their coshes. Some of the crazies were pulling pained expressions which made him snort laughter again.

  Luke shuffled forward, taking a quick breather when he reached the desk. His heart once again began to thrash. He took a deep breath and carried on.

  The security guard was too busy watching his screens to notice Luke gradually appearing from behind the wooden desk.

  When Luke had passed the desk he crawled until he was hidden by the wall and stood up. His breath stinging his throat and lungs, he shuffled along the wall until he was sure he had passed the guard station.

  Then he ran full pelt for the main entrance to the asylum.

  He scanned his key-card against the swipe reader by the entrance. The doors clicked open, allowing him to run out into the cold night.

  The air was cool and refreshing on his face as he ran towards the woods where he’d arranged to meet Norma. For a few frantic seconds, he didn’t think she was there, but then he saw her leaning against a tree.

  ‘Hey,’ he whispered.

  ‘Hey. You made good time.’

  ‘Yeah. Let’s get out of here.’

  ‘My car’s on the other side of the hill. Let’s go.’

  They ran over the hill, towards the dark shape of Norma’s car, which was hidden under a sprawling oak tree. Then they made their escape.

  Chapter 70

  Norma wanted to find Bryony and get out of Marshton, but Luke refused to leave until the Marshton Eight had suffered for destroying what remained of his sanity.

  They went to Bryony’s sister’s house, right on the edge of Marshton. She was on holiday so Norma said they could stay there for a few days.

  The hou
se was cramped, but it was going to be worth a few days of discomfort to get his hands on the gang who had attacked him. He just hoped he could find Bryony.

  He and Norma ate while she told him of all the places that had been searched previously then they put their heads together and tried to come up with a plan to find her.

  Luke said he’d cover Marshton, while Norma decided to check if Bryony had turned up at her dad’s house in Scotland.

  Luke was startled out of his thoughts by someone knocking at the door and hid behind the settee.

  He was dismayed to see Hirst stroll into the front room.

  ‘You can come out from behind the settee, Luke,’ he said.

  Luke stood up, feeling awkward.

  ‘Don’t worry I haven’t come to send you back.’

  Luke relaxed a little.

  ‘I just wanted to see how you were, in light of what has happened.’

  ‘Erm, I’ve been trying not to think about it.’

  ‘I don’t blame you. Are you worried about her?’

  Luke nodded his head slowly.

  ‘I thought as much. I’m going to keep a close eye on you here.’

  Luke shook his head. He didn’t want police surveillance when he was carrying out his vengeance. ‘I just want to have a normal life,’ he muttered. After a moment’s thought, he added, ‘Or as normal as possible.’

  Hirst seemed to understand. ‘Tell you what I’ll do. I’ll say you were killed in the riot at the asylum. It’ll take them at least a few days to figure out that this wasn’t the case. By then you can make your escape or whatever it is you want to do.’

  ‘Thank you,’ Luke smiled.

  ‘It’s ok. You’re a good kid. I don’t want you to be locked up in there like a fucking criminal. You look after yourself, Luke.’

  Luke nodded. Hirst left, looking around himself to make sure he hadn’t been seen going into the house. Then he called the press and told them that Luke had been killed in the asylum riot.

  Chapter 71