by Mark Tilbury
With the taste of Thai chicken on his tongue, and visions of burnt bunnies hopping about in his head, Ebb limped down the stairs to put the last two bunnies in the pot.
***
Ben stared out of the filthy window at the motionless body lying on the ground at the foot of the tower. He couldn’t tell for certain who it was, but he thought it might be Alice. The hair looked grey, but it was impossible to tell for sure with the sunlight casting shadows across the courtyard. It was also raining quite heavily. Sunshine and rain. The magic ingredients for making a rainbow cake, as his mother used to say when he was still young enough to think it was funny.
He’d watched Marcus search the body and then walk off towards the farmhouse. That had been followed sometime later by two shots ringing out on the landing. Maddie was dead. He knew it. There was a huge black hole in his heart telling him so. Pastor Tom would never know what had happened to his daughter. Not even a mound of earth in Rwanda to mark the spot. And it was all Ben’s fault. If Stutter-buck had possessed one ounce of courage, one shred of decency, he would never have let Maddie get anywhere near The Sons and Daughters of Salvation.
That’s only with hindsight.
Ben shook his head. ‘I’m a useless, worthless c-coward.’
Bubba put a hand on Ben’s shoulder, making him jump. Ben turned to him. ‘Maddie’s dead.’
Bubba shook his head. No.
Tears pricked the backs of Ben’s eyes. He thumped his chest. ‘She is. I c-can f-feel it inside.’
Bubba formed his thumb and forefinger into an ‘O’.
‘She’s not okay. She’s dead. We’re all d-d-dead.’
Bubba put both his hands on Ben’s shoulders. He looked at Ben with those clear blue eyes that so reminded him of Pastor Tom. Don’t give up, Bubba’s eyes said. Don’t ever give up.
***
Ebb stood on the first floor landing and looked at the corpses of Brother Marcus and Sister Dixie. ‘Planning to leave, were you?’
Dixie and Marcus kept shtum. Traitors the pair of them. After all he’d done for them, and this was how they repaid him. By God, you certainly found out who your friends were in a crisis.
How you gonna get them down the rabbit hole, Pix?
Ebb spun around, expecting to see his mother on the stairs. Nothing, just strands of cobwebs decorating the dirty walls with black and silver streaks. His heart felt like a kid on a bouncy castle. He swallowed hard. His throat still felt crushed from where Tweezer had attacked him. He wouldn’t be at all surprised to learn that Tweezer had inflicted permanent damage to his windpipe. Well, he could burn in Hell for all eternity. Ebb was done with him. Done and dusted, as his mother might have said.
As for Marcus and Dixie, Bubba could carry their corpses down to the Revelation Room once Benjamin was safely locked away. Easy as homemade pie. Ebb reached down and plucked the bunch of keys from a puddle of blood.
Dixie leered at him with her best are you looking for a good time? grin.
Ebb studied her for a while. It was a shame how things had turned out with Sister Dixie. She’d shown so much promise to start with. Perhaps one day when the dust and debris settled, he’d find it in his heart to look upon Sister Dixie fondly again. He was particularly proud of the way they’d disposed of the pimp who’d controlled her miserable life with drugs, threats and sexual depravity.
He wiped the keys on the leg of his tracksuit and opened up the Brothers’ Room. Bubba and Benjamin were standing by the window in some sort of embrace. For one incredulous moment he thought the two of them had embarked on a love affair. He pointed the shotgun at them.
‘Lockdown is over. We have work to do.’
Benjamin looked at him with bankrupt eyes. ‘What work?’
‘The Lord’s work.’
Ben laughed. ‘The Lord’s w-work? Is that what you c-call it?’
Ebb didn’t care for the whiny tone of Benjamin’s voice. Or for that stammer rearing its ugly head. It spoke volumes for possession. As did Benjamin’s warning to Sister Alice about Cyril’s death and the removal of Bubba’s tongue. ‘Don’t question me. Put your hands on your head and walk out of the room.’
Ben did as instructed. Bubba followed him.
Ebb backed away a few steps. ‘Not you, Bubba. You stay put. We’ve got work to do. I’ll be back in ten minutes.’
Ebb waited for Ben to get onto the landing before throwing the bunch of keys on the floor. ‘Lock the Brothers’ Room and then get down the stairs.’
‘Where are we g-going?’
Ebb smiled. ‘The Revelation Room, Pixie-pea. Now move.’
Chapter thirty-seven
Ben walked down the basement steps and through the Cannabis Room with his mind in meltdown. He didn’t care what happened to him anymore as long as it was quick. Maybe a bullet to the back of the head. That way he wouldn’t see it coming.
The cannabis plants tickled his arms. Ebb told him to stop as they neared a door at the far end of the room. There was a large silver key protruding from the lock.
‘Before you go into the Revelation Room, I want you to remember it’s a sacred place. It must be treated with the utmost respect at all times.’
Ben almost laughed out loud. The image of the two corpses on the landing burned like lanterns in his mind. Unlike the body at the bottom of the tower, he’d had no trouble in identifying Marcus and Dixie. In some weird way, he was becoming almost immune to death and suffering.
‘I can’t watch you all the time, Benjamin, but the Lord Jesus Christ is always watching you. Please remember that. And the Lord Jesus Christ tells me everything.’
‘Really? I’d n-never have g-guessed.’
‘Unlock the door and go inside. We haven’t got time to wait for you to finish a sentence.’
Ben considered telling him to piss off and take a rocket to the moon.
‘I’m sure Madeline will be pleased to see you.’
Ben’s breath froze in his throat. ‘M-Maddie?’
‘Yes, M-Maddie. Now get inside and shut the door behind you.’
Ben twisted the key in the lock and opened the door. He stepped inside. Whatever preconceptions he might have had about the Revelation Room vanished as he saw Maddie and Emily bent over a man lying in the corner of the room. The man looked dead.
‘Close the door, Pixie-pea,’ Ebb shouted.
Ben shut the door. He didn’t hear Ebb lock it. Tears spilled down his cheeks. ‘M-Maddie?’
Maddie hobbled towards him, her bare feet scraping against the concrete floor. The sunshine had completely vanished from her eyes. Her overalls were unzipped almost to the waist.
‘I’m so s-sorry.’
Maddie’s blonde hair looked almost brown in the dim light. It hung in loose strands over her shoulders. She stood in front of Ben, arms hanging by her sides. ‘At least we’ve found your dad.’
‘My d-dad?’
Maddie pointed at the man with Emily. ‘He’s over there, Ben.’
Ben looked from his father to the three skeletons pinned to the wall. ‘Who the h-hell are th-they?’
‘I don’t know. I don’t want to know.’
Ben tried to take everything in. Tried to register what he was seeing. Tweezer and Ebb’s dog lying dead in the middle of the room. The skeletons pinned to the far wall. The pink wig and sunglasses perched on the skull of one skeleton. Emily kneeling down beside his father. And poor bedraggled Maddie with the sunshine missing from her eyes. There was a terrible stench. Like mould and excrement mixed with a splash of piss. Or, perhaps, a splash of death.
‘Your dad’s alive,’ Maddie said, ‘but I don’t think he will last much longer if we don’t get him out of here.’
‘My d-dad’s alive?’
Maddie reached out and took Ben’s hand. ‘Come on. He’s talking a bit.’
They limped over to Ben’s father, hand in hand, Maddie’s right foot dragging against the concrete floor. Ben wanted to pick her up and carry her, hold her in his arms and tell her that e
verything was going to be all right, but he barely had enough strength to support himself.
Geoff Whittle had one eye open. The other was bruised and swollen shut. His beard was almost stained black with filth.
‘Dad?’
Geoff opened his mouth to speak. Ben noticed one of his front teeth was missing. ‘You… took… your… time…’
Ben looked away. ‘I’m so s-sorry.’
Geoff coughed and wheezed. ‘Not… your… fault.’
‘It’s best not to try and speak too much,’ Emily said.
Ben felt a sudden urge to shake Emily. ‘Does she know w-why we’re here?’
Maddie nodded. ‘She knows, Ben.’
Emily held her hands up. ‘And I’m sorry. Okay? But how was I to know this would happen?’
Maddie looked away. ‘You didn’t.’
Emily’s lower lip trembled. ‘I loved Marcus. And now he’s dead. And we’re all going to die. How sorry do you want me to be?’
Ben looked at his father. It had gone past the time for blame. Emily was right; they were all going to die. ‘Can’t we s-sit him up a bit?’
‘Both his legs are broken,’ Maddie said, ‘and his right arm’s busted. And he’s been shot in the shoulder. They shot him when he was up a tree trying to get photos of Emily.’
Ben hunkered down. He reached out and stroked his father’s forehead. He didn’t know what to say. Emotions squabbled in his head. ‘I’m s-sorry.’
‘You… did… okay.’
Ben shook his head. He’d done shit, as usual. Stutter-buck couldn’t save anyone’s life for sticky toffee. ‘I sh-should have called the p-police.’
Geoff tried to draw breath. ‘If… cops… showed… up… we… were… all… dead…’
Emily laughed. ‘Like we’re not now.’
‘I know one thing,’ Maddie said, ‘we’re not giving up.’
‘What do you propose we do?’ Emily said. ‘Rugby tackle the Father when he comes through the door?’
‘I don’t know what we’re going to do. But we can’t just give up. We’ve got to try and fight.’
‘I’m pregnant, in case you’ve forgotten.’
Maddie ignored her. ‘How are you, Ben?’
‘Okay,’ Ben lied.
Maddie looked at Ben and chewed her lip. ‘What did he do to you?’
Ben looked away before he started blubbing like a baby. ‘N-nothing.’
Maddie brushed hair out of her eyes. ‘Maybe we can talk about it later, huh?’
Ben didn’t even believe there would be a later. ‘Maybe.’
‘We could ask Ebb for some water. Try and negotiate with him,’ Maddie suggested.
‘Why would he give us water when he’s going to kill us?’ Emily said.
Maddie turned away. ‘We don’t know he’s going to kill us.’
Emily looked at Tweezer’s corpse. ‘Really? So Tweezer’s just resting, is he? And what about Marcus and Dixie? They’re just having a nice long soak in a bloodbath, are they?’
Maddie groaned. ‘I know. I know. But we have to try and stay positive.’
Emily rolled her eyes. End of conversation.
Ben’s brain pounded against his skull. He looked at his father. Geoff Whittle was barely breathing. Blood leaked from his nose. At least his eyes were shut. Ben didn’t want to look into those eyes again. Stutter-buck the failure couldn’t even muster words of comfort for a dying man.
Chapter thirty-eight
Thunder rolled across the blackened sky as Ebb stared at the lifeless body of poor Sister Alice. Rain lashed down upon her corpse as if God himself was mourning her tragic loss. Lightening flashed across the sky.
Ebb felt an overwhelming urge to take an axe from the woodshed and chop Brother Marcus into a thousand pieces. It was obvious what had happened now. You didn’t need a degree in whodunit to figure this one out. Poor Sister Alice, his fallen angel, had gone to the tower as instructed, and Brother Marcus had thrown her from the top. And then Brother Marcus had attempted to flee the scene with his three witches, Dixie, Emily and Madeline.
But he didn’t have time to wallow in grief like a hippopotamus. Not while the Devil was on the loose. There would be plenty of time for reflection when he got to Thailand.
He pointed the shotgun at Bubba, his faithful Polish workhorse. ‘Hoist her on your shoulders and take her down to the basement.’
Bubba had already carted the bodies of Marcus and Dixie down to the Cannabis Room. To be fair, Bubba hadn’t been in any position to refuse, but credit where credit was due, Bubba had performed well.
Bubba bent down and hoisted Sister Alice up onto his shoulders. Lines creased his face as if exertion was trying to draw a picture of his efforts. Ebb marvelled at the man’s strength. He was built like a beanpole and as strong as an ox. Loyal, too. Not like the rest of them had turned out to be when the chips were down. Bubba would be rewarded for his efforts; he could die first before the fire was set.
By the time they reached the Cannabis Room, Bubba was panting like Maxine on a hot day. Marcus and Dixie both lay where Bubba had left them in a tangled heap outside the Revelation Room.
Ebb spat on Marcus’s back with all the contempt he could muster. ‘Unlock the door and carry Sister Alice into the Revelation Room. Once inside, put Sister Alice on the floor with Tweezer and Maxine. Okay?’
Bubba grunted.
Ebb wished he hadn’t cut out Bubba’s tongue. It was like trying to communicate with an ape. ‘Then you come back outside and put Sister Dixie and Brother Marcus inside with them. Okay?’
Bubba nodded and unlocked the door.
With Sister Alice hoisted over his shoulder, Ebb thought Bubba looked like a fireman who’d got his bearings all wrong and was placing a victim at the scene of a fire instead of rescuing her.
Bubba walked into the Revelation Room. Ebb followed him inside. He looked over at the bunnies conspiring with the Infiltrator in the corner of the room. ‘You three stay right where you are. Anyone so much as twitches, and I’ll blow Bubba’s head off.’
Bubba heaved Alice onto the floor. Her right arm landed on Maxine’s muzzle. Ebb tried to make allowances for Bubba’s clumsiness. He must be dog-tired.
Not as dog-tired as poor Maxine is, Pixie-pea.
Ebb ignored his mother and pointed the shotgun at Bubba. ‘Right, go and get the other two. Any funny business, and I’ll shoot the three wise monkeys over there in the corner.’
Bubba dragged the bodies of Marcus and Dixie into the Revelation Room one at a time. He then stood with his hands on his hips, panting and gasping for air.
Ebb took aim and fired. The shot hit Bubba in the chest. The force of the impact knocked him backwards. He looked at Ebb with a what did you do that for? look in his eyes. Ebb didn’t like the look of that look. It suggested Satan might be lodging in that beanpole Pole after all.
Bubba clutched his wounded chest and staggered backwards. He fell against the skeleton of Ebb’s mother. Bizarrely, Veronica Ebb seemed to pat Bubba on the head with her long, skeletal fingers. There, there! Don’t fret. Mummy’s here.
Bubba slid down the wall, dismantling the skeleton as he went. He sat motionless against the wall with his chin resting on his chest. His eyes were closed. No pennies required. With all the bones scattered about him, he put Ebb in mind of the world’s greediest cannibal. Dark red blood bloomed on his bright yellow overalls. His right hand seemed to be searching the ruins of his chest for a heartbeat. His other hand rested in his lap beside Veronica Ebb’s leather-bound book.
Ebb made a mental note to make sure he took all the Books of Revelation with him before the bunnies burned. And his mother’s wig and sunglasses. Her bones would have to stay put; he didn’t fancy trying to get through customs with her rattling around inside a suitcase. He was travelling light to Thailand. He’d have plenty of time to worry about creature comforts when he got there.
‘Is the Infiltrator still alive?’ Ebb asked the three wise monkeys.
They didn’t answer. For all Ebb knew, they could be using telepathy to communicate. ‘Sister Emily?’
Sister Emily blanked him. No matter. Ebb was old enough and wise enough to know that you could lead a chicken to corn, but you couldn’t make it peck. ‘You have betrayed me, Sister Emily.’
Sister Emily looked away.
‘I took you in. I gave you food and shelter. I introduced you to the Lord Jesus Christ Himself. And how did you repay me?’
Sister Emily rubbed her belly, comforting the bastard child.
Ebb pointed the gun at Emily’s stomach. ‘By committing the vile act of copulation.’
‘We loved each other,’ Emily shouted, stroking her belly as if it was a crystal ball about to reveal the future.
Ebb smiled. ‘Love?’
‘Love,’ Emily repeated. ‘Something you wouldn’t know anything about.’
‘Don’t you dare mock me. I love Jesus Christ with all my heart.’
‘You love no one but yourself.’
‘Save your breath. I’m not listening to any more of your guff. Just remember that God is watching you and keeping a count of all your lies.’
‘Watching me? What about you? A coward who’s about to kill a mother and her unborn child?’
‘A whore and her bastard child,’ Ebb corrected. ‘Anyway, God doesn’t recognise the illegitimate offspring of a union between a whore and a hyena.’
‘Mary Magdalen was a whore,’ Maddie said.
Ebb addressed the pile of bodies on the floor. ‘See how Satan leaps from tongue to tongue like an epidemic in a Third World country.’
Ben moved a few steps towards Ebb. ‘L-l-let them g-go.’
Ebb turned the gun on Ben. ‘What’s the matter, Nostradamus, you got a frog hopping about in your throat?’
