by J Gaines
“And what do you think the purpose is?”
“To stand with you, in whatever way I can, and whatever way that means. I don’t know how important you were to me, but I feel my body knows it somehow. I don’t know what’s in my future, but something inside is telling me to help you now.”
Amias was about to respond when Thomas appeared in front of him. “We’ve reached the end of the woods. Sophia has left to scout ahead. She wants us to wait here.”
“Okay, then we wait for her here.” He instructed the others to form a defensive perimeter around their position, and then awaited Sophia’s return with Thomas, Max and Jasmine. It wasn’t long before she reappeared, slipping silently through the trees and slowing to a walk as she approached.
“There’re a few farmhouses about a mile over there.” She pointed in the direction she’d arrived. “One of them has an old transit van, and it will fit all of us. I just can’t be sure that it works. It looks like it hasn’t seen the road in a good few years. I’ll take you to it.”
“No, I’ll go. And Max is coming with me.”
They both looked at him in surprise, and Sophia was the first to speak, beating Max by a split second. “But I know where it is. I have to go.”
Max chuckled. “Don’t take it personally. He still doesn’t trust me. Do you, Amias?”
Amias ignored him. “I need you here, Sophia. If Andre is close, you’ll know, and you’ll be able to get everyone out of here. I don’t want you to fight. Run if he finds you.” He turned to the others. “Jasmine and Thomas will be here, and that’s more than enough strength if you need it.” His eyes lingered on Jasmine, and he saw her nod in agreement.
As Sophia briefed him on the location of the van, he watched Max shoulder his weapon. “You won’t need that.” Max looked at him, and Amias could see he was giving careful thought to his reply. His usual self-assured smile was missing as he placed his rifle carefully on the ground.
“Shouldn’t we all go? We won’t be able to get the van across the fields to pick everyone up.”
“No, it’s too dangerous. We’ll get the van as close to here as possible, and then Sophia will lead the others to meet us. Understood?” He turned to the others, who were all watching him. He suddenly felt the weight of expectation again, but this time it felt different, and his anger was replaced with concern. “We won’t be long.”
Within seconds, he and Max had left the concealment of the woods and were running quickly across a field in the direction of the farmhouses. They ran in silence, glancing up at the clear night and the stars dotting the darkness and seeming to stretch further than Amias had ever seen before. As the cool air filled his lungs, he turned to see the shadow of the woods getting further away.
“They’ll be fine… as long as we find this van.”
Amias turned back to Max. “We’ll find it.”
“I’m worried we won’t make it there. I feel almost bare, now we’re out of the woods. This could be a trap – maybe Kaden’s already here waiting for us, and Andre is closer than we think behind us?” This time Max turned to look back nervously, almost tripping as they reached a large row of hawthorn bushes that signalled the end of the field.
Amias stopped and studied him carefully. “I’ve never seen you this edgy before.”
Max shook his head. “I have a bad feeling about this. Something’s not right. I don’t think we should have left the others.”
“I feel it too,” replied Amias. “But they have our weapons, and Sophia and Jasmine are more than a match for any one of our kind.” He looked for a gap in the hedge as Max looked on. “Here, you first.” Max pushed himself forcefully through the small opening and he followed quickly. They emerged onto a dark country road.
“It’s this way.” Amias broke into a run again and heard the heavy footsteps of Max behind him. With each step, the feeling of unease which Max was feeling was growing in him, too, and as they progressed down the dark lane he began to wonder if he’d taken a wrong turn. He was about to stop and retrace his steps when they heard a dog barking.
“It’s coming from down there.” Max pointed down a gravel track.
“We’re going the right way,” Amias said, with a sigh of relief. “She said to ignore the track, and another mile down this road we’ll find the farmhouse we’re looking for, and the van.” They broke into a run again, quicker this time now that they knew they were heading in the right direction. When they reached the entrance to the farm, they stayed low and followed Sophia’s instructions, scouring the bushes which ran alongside it until they saw the roof of a van parked half in and half out of the thorny bush.
Max shook his head. “It’s a rust-bucket!”
“It doesn’t matter what it looks like, as long as it goes.”
“There’s no chance that thing still works,” replied Max angrily. “This is a waste of time. We’re going to need to look for something else.”
“There isn’t time,” hissed Amias impatiently. “Come on.” He clambered through the bush, climbing up slightly before thrusting his body through the seemingly impenetrable brambles and branches. He heard Max grunting and cursing behind him as he finally made the breakthrough he needed, squeezing through a narrow hole and allowing himself to drop silently to the ground.
They were a considerable distance from the farmhouse, but every sound they made seemed to resonate through the night, and he remembered the dog barking at the farm they’d passed. Suddenly Max fell in a heap beside him and swore loudly. Amias placed a finger to his lips and waited for a minute before they turned their attention to the van. They stealthily moved to the passenger door, and Amias placed a tentative hand on the handle and pulled. He heard an excited hiss from Max as the door opened, and he pulled it slowly open. They clambered into the dirty cab, and Amias slid across the old leather seat so he was behind the wheel. Max carefully pulled the door closed and then looked around at their surroundings.
“This is disgusting. There’s some rotting food down there.”
Amias looked at him. “That’s good, maybe it means it was used recently?”
“Or maybe it means this is where the farmhands eat their lunch?” Max scoffed.
Amias shook his head and checked the ignition. “No key?”
“You didn’t seriously expect there to be one, did you?” replied Max. “You’ll have to hotwire it.”
“Hotwire it? I don’t know how to do that. Why do you think I know how to do that?” He looked at Max as his jaw dropped. “You thought I’d know because I’ve got a criminal record?”
Max looked at him, closing his eyes and putting his hands to his head. “Well, I don’t know how to do it!”
“You don’t know?” Amias turned to him in surprise. “Then why did you come?”
Max opened his eyes, and Amias could see the anger and surprise in them. “Because you told me to come with you. Why did you think I’d know how to hotwire a van?” Amias turned away, avoiding the question, and suddenly realising the desperation of their predicament. A few seconds passed in silence before Max raised his head.
“Try behind the sun-visor. Sometimes in the movies people keep keys underneath them.”
Amias quickly reached up and pulled it back. Two moths flew into his face but no keys, and Max waved his hands about as the moths changed their attention to him. “Nothing. Try the other one?”
Max ignored him as he tried to wind down the window of the van. “It’s stuck.”
“What are you doing? Leave the moths!”
“No. I hate them. And I’m not killing them either.”
Amias watched impatiently as Max struggled with the window, before opening the door and ushering the moths into the night. He closed the door loudly and Amias glared at him.
“Have you finished?” He pointed at the passenger sun-visor and Max reached up and pulled it back
.
“Nothing here either. We’re going to need to find another vehicle.”
Amias growled in frustration, resting his forehead against the steering wheel. “There’s no time for that.” He stopped suddenly and thrust his hand down towards the pedals. Then he sat up triumphantly. “It’s a magnetic key box.”
Max eyed him suspiciously. “Who puts a spare key in a box in a vehicle they leave unlocked?”
“The same people who might leave one behind the sun-visor.” Amias slid the lid from the box, and to his relief a key appeared. Turning it in his hands, he dropped the box and slowly thrust it into the ignition. He turned to Max with a smile. “It fits.”
“Then what are you waiting for? Let’s go!”
Amias turned the key, and they heard the engine struggle to start before coming to a stop. Max placed his hands over his eyes. “This is a piece of junk.”
“Come on.” Amias turned the key again, but the engine made the same spluttering noise. “It’s no use. Come on, let’s go.”
“Wait,” replied Max with a sigh. “Stay here and steer. When we get some speed up, turn the key and pray.”
“This thing is heavy. Are you sure you don’t need help to push it?”
Max was half out of the cab but he stopped and turned back. “Just be ready to turn the key and make sure the handbrake is off.” He dropped out of the van, closing the door quietly behind him. Amias couldn’t help looking at the farmhouse. It was still dark, but he was sure they were making too much noise. He heard a thud on the back of the van, and then the van launched forward. The force of Max’s push took him by surprise, but he waited until their velocity increased, blindly steering in the direction of where he thought the driveway must be. Their speed was almost where it needed to be when the lights of the farmhouse came on and he heard dogs barking. He immediately turned the key, gripping the steering wheel tightly as the engine made the same noise it had before, until finally the starter system kicked in, and the engine rumbled loudly. He continued for a few metres before stopping and allowing the engine to tick over. Suddenly the barking of the dogs became louder and he turned to see the door of the farmhouse open. Two large black animals raced down the path towards the van. He screamed Max’s name just as he threw himself in through the passenger door.
“Drive, drive, drive.” Max looked past Amias and out of the window as he snatched the car into gear and Max pulled the door closed. They were almost at the gate when Amias saw a flash of teeth at his window as one of the dogs leapt at the van. He swerved and smashed through the gate, before swinging the van around and accelerating down the lane.
“Did you see the size of those things?” Max opened the door and stuck his head out, before pulling himself back inside. “I wouldn’t be surprised if they’re still following us!”
Amias laughed. “I don’t think I’ve ever seen you so scared!”
“They were like bears,” replied Max, casting nervous glances out of Amias’s window.
“It’s a miracle this thing started, but we’ll need to get some petrol soon; it’s running low. Once we’ve got everyone, we’ll need to get some.” When they reached the field, Amias stopped the van at the nearest point to where Sophia and the others were hidden, leaving the engine running. He flashed the lights and he and Max strained their eyes to see a sign of them.
A minute passed and there was no movement from the edge of the woods. Max turned to Amias. “Maybe they had to move?”
As Amias peered into the darkness a feeling of dread filled him. He opened the door, leaving the engine running as he jumped out of the van. Other than the van’s engine, there were no sounds, and still no movement. Ignoring Max’s plea to get back in the van, he walked into the field and stopped. Something was wrong. He turned back to see Max waving at him, and then spun around as a series of noises broke through the silence of the night. Three people suddenly burst from the woods and sped towards the road. He watched as they got closer and had covered a quarter of the distance, when a gunshot rang out and one of them dropped to the ground. The other two turned in surprise, stopping momentarily to look at their fallen companion before turning and continuing to run towards the hawthorn bushes. It was then that he recognised them: Sam and Gabriel, two of their group. Another gunshot echoed across the field, but the runners were still up and had cut the distance between the woods and the road in half. He scanned the woods for any sign of where the shots were coming from, but it was too dark. He couldn’t watch any longer; he dropped his sword and sprinted into the field as Max cried out for him to stop.
For the first time, Sam and Gabriel saw him, and they changed their direction abruptly, running frantically to him. Their heavy breaths sent clouds of condensation into the starry night as he ploughed through the sticky mud towards them. He heard another three shots in quick succession and Sam crashed into the wet mud and didn’t move again. Gabriel was also hit, but didn’t fall, instead stumbling and desperately trying to regain his footing, using his hands to try and keep his momentum going. Amias reached him, and in one movement grabbed him around the waist and swung around so that they were running back towards Max and the waiting van. He saw blood flowing profusely from a wound on Gabriel’s shoulder and, gritting his teeth, put everything he had into each step. Gabriel muttered his name and thanked god. It was the last thing he said, as a sudden force propelled him forward, causing Amias to lose his grip and let go. For a moment, he was unsure what had happened, and then as he looked down at the lifeless Gabriel, for the first time he realised the danger he was in. He turned towards the woods; the one overriding thought was to face his killer. He heard Max shout his name again, but he took a step towards the trees and the sound he’d been waiting for came. It was the last thing he heard as he felt the cold, sticky mud cling to his face and he closed his eyes.
Chapter 26
A heart was beating, but it wasn’t his. At first, he heard a faint but regular thump, and then it began to get louder with every beat. He saw the heart in his mind, pulsating slowly but getting faster, and he sensed it was strong. An overwhelming desire to reach out and touch it seized him, but he resisted, hypnotised by the efficiency of such a fragile thing. Who or what did the heart belong to? It filled with a glow that grew with the volume of each beat. Rays of light began to break from it, and he squinted at the growing radiance emanating from inside, thrusting a red light through the fleshy walls that illuminated the darkness. A strength he’d never felt before filled every part of his being, and he gasped, unable to contain what he was feeling. He reached out and took the heart in his hands.
*
“He’s opened his eyes. He’s alive.”
“Give him space, move back. Jasmine, stay still. We need to be careful of how much blood he receives. Max, please try and refrain from driving over every bump and pothole in the road.”
“How is he?”
“He’ll die if people don’t let me concentrate. Henry, keep that light still, and on his wound. Jasmine, you need to stay still, or the tube will come loose, and we’ll lose blood. Every drop is vital. Amias, you need to stay still, do you understand?”
He nodded and tried to speak, but nothing came out.
“Don’t try and talk, close your eyes and try not to die.”
“I can’t believe he’s still alive.”
“The bullet passed straight through him. I need to stitch the entry and exit wounds quickly. And then he’ll need his enhanced healing abilities to do the rest. Look, the tissue is already trying to heal! I’m not sure if he’s lucky or unlucky that it’s on the other side to where he was shot before. This was caused by a much more powerful weapon, though.”
“Do you think Thomas made it?”
There was a pause. “No, he’s dead. We were together until we reached Andre’s vantage point. There were too many of them… he took Andre on alone, but he cut him down. He’s the reason Amias is still a
live. We’ve lost Nancy, Sam, Gabriel and Thomas; I’m not going to lose him.”
“He’s closing his eyes, is he okay?”
“Yes… I think so, he’s just losing consciousness.”
*
The heart was gone, and so was the darkness. He was now surrounded by people, and he watched silently as hundreds of men, women and children milled around him. They seemed to be hurrying in all directions, and he was the only person standing still. He didn’t recognise any of them, and it wasn’t long before he realised they couldn’t see him. The urge to reach out and touch them made him slowly raise his hand.
*
“Max! Please slow down, it’s difficult enough to stitch up his wounds whilst trying to keep this tube fed into his arm and keeping Jasmine sitting still! I don’t need you driving at two hundred miles per hour. Where are we going anyway?”
“He’s awake again.”
“Max, I asked you a question.”
“I’m following the plan Amias laid out. We’re going to Kaden’s compound.”
“Are you crazy? We can’t go on like this, Amias is barely alive.”
“I know, but I made a decision the same as Amias did, and I’m not turning back now. We’re going to get as close to Kaden’s base as we can, and then if you decide you’re not going to help, that’s up to you.”
“There are seven of us, Max, including Amias. I was in when we had a small chance, but now we have none. I’m not in a rush to see any of us killed, especially when there’s no hope.”
“There’s always hope.” He laughed suddenly. “Seven of us. It reminds me of a film…”
“Amias, Amias, stay with us.”
*
Darkness suddenly fell, and for a moment, he wasn’t sure where he was. Then an odour of grass and wet wood filled his nostrils and he marvelled at the strength of the scents. As his eyes became accustomed to the dark, he found he was back in the woods, but something was different. He could see in a way he never had before. He sensed the woodland animals before he saw them, and as he walked across the sodden woodland floor his balance was more assured; he found a surer footing with each step. There was something else in the woods with him, but he didn’t feel afraid. Instead of waiting for whatever it was to reveal itself, he ignored it, enjoying his newly discovered senses and concentrating on the beauty of the night.
