Blood on the Motorway, #1

by Paul Stephenson

  She felt for a pulse, but there was nothing.

  Mira appeared at the door, still dressed in the pyjamas she'd slept in. At the sight of Sam's body in Jen's arms, she let out a noise somewhere between a scream and a howl. Jen ignored her as she tried to shake Sam into staying with her, trying to meet his eyes as he faded away.

  It was too late. She looked up at Mira.

  'He's gone,' she said.

  'No,' Mira moaned.

  Jen stood and pulled the girl into a hug, hoisting her away from the body, feeling her top sticking to her where Sam's blood had seeped through it.

  What the fuck are you going to do now?

  'We have to move,' she said to Mira, but Mira didn't respond. She stared at the body laid on the floor, mouth open. She started to hold a hand out to touch Sam's face, but pulled it back.

  Jen caught the smell of smoke before the first tendrils made their way under the frame of the door Ewen had left through.

  He's trying to burn you out.

  She hauled Mira up, the young girl giving another moan of despair as she did so. Jen had no doubt she would choose to stay here and die with Sam given half the chance, but she was not about to lose them both. She didn't think she could take that. Half-carrying the girl under her arm, she barged back into the hallway.

  The fire had been set at the rear of the house, and as she threw open the front door, into the trap she knew had been set for her. The first arrow buried itself into the doorframe an inch from her face, but the second one made contact, grazing her side. The burst of pain told her it had hit home, but she didn't have time to think about it. The arrows brought Mira around, and her sobbing stopped.

  She pulled them back into the doorway. The house behind them filled with smoke. They needed to make a move, and make it fast. Jen chanced a poke of her head out and saw a septic tank, walled in with concrete barriers. It sat, nestled at the foot of a hill, on the far side of the house from which she presumed the arrows were coming from. Getting there would mean running into the open, but they were shit out of other options.

  'Go,' she hissed, and the two of them ran along the wall. Jen expected another hit at any second, but she hauled herself and Mira behind the low concrete wall.

  'You're hurt,' Mira said, panting.

  Jen looked down at her side, where her blood soaked her top now and mingled with Sam's. There was a deep gouge below her ribcage, but it didn't look too bad. She just needed to make it stop bleeding.

  Sam.

  She thought of his body, laid out on the kitchen floor, looking so much more a child in death than he had in life. Now his body was likely burning in the fire set by his murderer. The flames were nearing the point of consuming the whole structure. She couldn't stay here. She looked around again, trying to work out a possible escape route. There was no sign of Ewen.

  He's out there somewhere, scrambling for higher ground, trying to get the advantage.

  There were hills around them and a long flat valley behind them. She guessed he'd want them in the hills, so he could play out his hunter stalker fantasies.

  What I need is a car.

  Those dead bodies upstairs hadn't lived in the middle of nowhere without the means to get about. On the far side of the burning building she made out what looked like the front end of a car, barely visible through the heat haze of the fire.

  That'll do.

  'Mira,' she said, grabbing the girl by the shoulders and staring deep into her eyes. 'I'm going to run for that car, okay?'

  Mira stared back, dumbfounded, and Jen guessed she'd gone into shock.

  'Stay here,' Jen shouted.

  She took a deep breath, stood and started to run.

  Her side shot bursts of pain with every step, and she hadn't gone more than a few feet when she saw an arrow flash in front of her. It came from her left, so instinctively she ran closer to the wall and the flames licking out of every pore of the house, hoping the smoke and heat would obscure his view of her.

  The car was a large Land Rover, de rigueur for the country life and sturdy enough for her needs, but as she neared it she realised she'd made a huge mistake.

  She had no keys.

  The likelihood was that the keys were smouldering in the hallway of the burning house right now, perhaps in a little ceramic bowl that had shattered in the heat. She closed her eyes and put her hand on the handle and gave a tug.

  Her heart leapt as the door swung open, and she dived into the driver seat. An arrow glanced off the window, not even chipping the glass, and a burst of triumph soared through her.

  She looked down, and her heart soared further. The keys were in the ignition. She looked over to where the arrows seemed to have come from, and sure enough there was Ewen standing at the top of a small hill, smirking at her. Their eyes locked for a second; his smile widened and he turned away, back toward the front of the house, the way she had come.

  Mira.

  Quite forgetting she couldn't drive, she threw the car into gear and sped forward, then stalled the engine.

  For fuck's sake, Jen.

  She turned the ignition and eased the pedals, and this time she moved forward. She put her foot on the gas and spun it round, pointing past the flames and back toward the only thing in the world she now cared about.

  She saw movement to her right as she cleared the house. He was ahead of her. She peered through the windscreen and the smoke and saw Mira, sat, knees tucked up to her face.

  He's going to get there first.

  She honked the horn, and pulled every lever she thought might do something. The wipers went on, trying to clear water that wasn't there, but so too did the headlights, full beam.

  The horn and the lights did the trick, and Mira looked up, dazed. Jen screamed at her to move. To her left, Ewen ran at full pelt. His crossbow was slung over his shoulder now, and he had a large knife in his hand, a serrated army-style job that caught the sun and glinted through the heat haze. He bore down on Mira, a fierce grimace locked across his face.

  She stepped on the gas and saw Mira's eyes widen in horror, not at the approaching maniac, but the accelerating Land Rover. Jen waited until the last second, not knowing if it was going to work, knowing that if it didn't, there'd soon be two more bodies to be cremated in the house.

  She yanked the handbrake up, ignoring the mechanical howl that accompanied it, hit the brake and spun the wheel.

  Ewen realised at the last second what was happening, but too late. Jen watched the fall of his face with great satisfaction. He tried to jump away, but the side of the Land Rover smashed into him, sending him into the air and toward the burning house.

  Her head smashed into the steering wheel as the car came to a final stop. Her vision danced with stars. A sharp pain erupted in her neck, but she didn't have the luxury of doing anything more than make note of it.

  Add it to the list.

  She leaned over and opened the passenger seat and screamed: 'Get in!'

  Mira leapt into the seat.

  'You fucking got him!' she yelled.

  Jen smiled, even as the first trickle of blood from a gash on her forehead crawled across her skin. She didn't look back, she put the car into gear and went.

  * * * * *

  They rode on for a few miles in silence, both of them alone with their thoughts for the first time. Jen tried to focus on the road, but all she kept seeing was Sam's body lying there on the floor of the kitchen, the crossbow bolt sticking out of his chest. Next to her, Mira stared out of the window, tears streaming down her face.

  Jen didn't know what she was doing with the car. She must have done some damage back at the farmhouse, because soon it started making a wrenching clank. A moment later smoke appeared under the bonnet, and power started to drain away.

  'Shit it!' Jen shouted, pulling the Land Rover over to the side of the road. She hit the steering wheel a few times. She checked the rear-view mirror, half-expecting Ewen to be standing right behind them, but it was empty tarmac.

 
It was early afternoon, the sun high overhead, the storm of the previous night replaced by clear skies and burning heat.

  'We should probably get out,' Jen said.

  Mira nodded, but neither of them moved.

  'Jen?' Mira said quietly.

  'Yeah?'

  'Thanks,' she said and flashed Jen a smile.

  Jen's heart broke. Mira got out and Jen did the same. They looked at each other, Mira still dressed in pyjamas that were unrecognisable under soot and blood. Mira's hair looked like a fright wig, and Jen could only imagine what a mess her own face was now. Neither of them had a single possession left in the world. Mira burst out laughing, and Jen followed suit.

  'Good morning, by the way,' Jen said. 'I don't think I've actually said that yet.'

  'Good morning to you, too,' Mira said, and did a little curtsy.

  'What do you want to do today, Mira?'

  'Oh, I dunno. Let's have a girly day.'

  'Deal.' Jen said, and pulled Mira into an embrace. 'Just me and you now, kid.'

  Mira nodded, and when she pulled away she blinked back tears. Jen looked around. The area was completely deserted.

  'Come on,' she said. 'Let's go find us some houses and a change of clothes. Food too.'

  They walked for a good hour without seeing anything. Jen was starting to worry about their lack of food and water, when they saw a few houses by the side of the road up ahead. It took them a further half an hour to reach them, by which point Jen felt faint.

  It was a small hamlet that looked like it had stood unmolested since the storm. The first house was locked up good and tight, but the door to the second swung open.

  The now familiar stench hit them as they entered, but they were too tired and hungry to care. They walked past the two rotting corpses in pastel easy chairs and went into the kitchen, where they closed the door to attempt to block out the stench, somewhat unsuccessfully.

  The cupboards were well stocked, and amongst the rotting produce in the dead refrigerator were a few bottles of water. They guzzled them down and set about making a functional and quick meal in silence.

  Once they'd finished they made their way upstairs and into the bedrooms, where the wardrobe of the woman decomposing in the living room provided them both with clothes that more or less fit them. They emptied the man's gym bag and stuffed more jeans, tops, trainers and hiking boots into it. Jen cleaned the blood from her face and examined the wound at her side. She had been lucky; the crossbow bolt had opened a heavy gash underneath her ribs, but not done any more damage. Mira found a first aid box and they dressed the wound the best they could, before throwing the rest of the kit into the bag.

  'Classy stuff, this,' Mira said.

  'Yeah,' Jen replied, still not quite at peace with the grave-robbing element of her ongoing survival.

  Mira went to the window and stared out.

  'Do you think he's dead?' she asked.

  Jen didn't answer. A distant rumble from the road had appeared at the periphery of her senses, and her heart leapt into her mouth. She moved to the window and peered out, trying to keep herself hidden from view. A few minutes later two vehicles came into view; another Land Rover and a minibus. Both looked full.

  Don't stop.

  The thought came unbidden, and Jen wondered if her trust in people was now utterly broken. All she knew was she wanted the convoy to keep rolling by.

  The Land Rover in the front slowed down as it went through the hamlet, but as it cleared the last house, it sped back up. Jen let out a breath she hadn't even realised she'd been holding. She looked back at Mira, who hugged the wall, terrified.

  'They're gone,' she said quietly.

  'What if they come back?' she asked, peering down at the now empty street.

  'Well, we can't stay here, anyway. We need to get moving again. Let's raid the cupboards and get out.'

  * * * * *

  Ten minutes later they were out the door again, carefully this time. The sun wasn't so high in the sky any more, and Jen realised that wherever they headed, they needed to find somewhere to sleep tonight. She looked along the road. It was either follow the convoy, or back along the road to the farmhouse. No option really. She hoisted the bag onto her shoulder and headed in the same direction the Land Rover and minibus had gone. They'd look to deviate as soon as they could, just to be sure.

  The bag was heavy, and Jen marvelled at how good at scavenging they'd become. They'd been in the house for two hours, maximum and they'd managed to wash, change, eat a meal, and strip the place of anything that might be of use to them. They had blankets, clothes, water, food, toilet roll, the first aid kit, and a box of medicine.

  It's bloody heavy though.

  They stuck to the shadows as they moved through the hamlet, Jen unable to shake the feeling they were being watched. She knew it was probably nothing more than paranoia, but given recent events, she was willing to give paranoia free reign.

  They reached the end of the houses, beyond which lay empty road and rolling hills. The sun threatened to dip behind them, the evening approaching and the temperature starting to drop. They paused.

  'What do you want to do?' Jen asked.

  'Not stay here,' Mira replied.

  They walked for half an hour with no sign of anything but farmland, seeing no movement beyond the occasional livestock. Fog started to creep over the hills. They moved off the road, walking along an old fence line, where the tall grass gave them an element of shelter from both visibility from the road and the growing chill in the air. The soft ends brushed Jen's cheeks as she walked. It was slower going, but they both felt safer.

  They had walked the best part of a mile, by Jen's reckoning, when ahead of them there was a sound, like an engine struggling to turn over. They stopped and ducked into the grass. A few minutes later the convoy trundled past them again, back towards the hamlet. They waited until the tail lights were completely gone from view before moving. Mira stood first.

  'Thank fuck we left, eh?' she said.

  Jen stood up and hoisted the bag over her shoulder. She stared back the way the convoy had gone.

  'Let's go,' she said, and turned away. 'We'll walk a bit further, and if we can't find anywhere soon, we'll sleep by the roadside. The grass will give us cover.'

  There were no more houses. The road wound back and forth so many times Jen worried they must be heading back in the direction of the farm house. Soon they were walking in the light of a full moon, and eventually Mira asked to stop. They got out the blankets and some food, and were about to crack open a tin of spaghetti hoops when Jen felt the hairs on the back of her neck stand up.

  Freeze.

  She motioned to Mira to stay quiet and both of them moved silently to the ground, while Jen cleared half a view back to the road through the grass.

  Footfalls came from the grass behind them, barely perceptible. They passed no more than twenty metres away from Jen's hiding place, until they reached the road. They stopped. Jen could hear her heart jack-hammering in her chest, but didn't dare lift her head to see. The footfalls started again, heading back up to the hamlet. As the walker moved into view Jen heard a sharp intake of breath from her companion and felt her own skin crawl.

  Ewen.

  He was no more than twenty metres away from them, on the road, the crossbow slung over his shoulder, rifle held by his side, and what looked a lot like a meat cleaver tucked into his waistband. He struggled, limping, his face set in a grimace. Jen wished she could take more pleasure in that. Beside her, Mira was perfectly still, her eyes trained on the road.

  He stopped. For half a second, Jen expected the rifle to be raised and pointed at them. There was nothing she could do about it if he did. He cricked his neck, adjusted his weapons and hitched up his jeans, then he was on his way again.

  They watched him until he was out of sight, then waited some more to be sure.

  'He should be dead,' Mira said eventually, her voice little more than a whisper. 'He should be dead and burning up in th
at fire.' Her fists were clenched, shaking, by her side.

  'He's gone now,' Jen said. 'Let's get as far away from here as we can.'

  'What about those people?'

  'We can't help them.'

  'We have to.'

  Jen grasped the young girl's shoulders. 'No. I feel bad for them, and I hope together they can stop him, but we don't know them. Who's to say they even stopped? Maybe they carried on going. Maybe they're like him. Maybe he's with them.' Her own hands were shaking now. 'I am not going to lose you too, Mira. If we go back there, we die.'

  Mira nodded, and stood back up, dusting herself down. They headed up the road, Jen checking behind her every twenty steps or so to make sure they weren't being followed.

  Chapter Twenty-Three

  Break the Static

  Hours of nothingness had tempered Burnett's rage, but only slightly. After Tana had helped him out to the car he'd vented for a few moments. He now sat in the passenger seat looking at the busted remnants of a side mirror.

  They drove around the village until it got dark, and found an empty house to sleep in. They ate a wordless meal together and went back to their rooms. Burnett stared at the ceiling, anger coursing through him.

  He woke the next morning barely able to move. He stumbled downstairs, where Tana was already preparing food.

  'Jesus,' he said when he saw Burnett. 'You look terrible.'

  Tana examined Burnett's wounds. Burnett watched the Samoan's face and gathered it must be pretty bad, but said nothing. He noted the big man's gentle hands on his skin in some distant part of his mind, but there was sharp pain and it was all he could do to keep hold of his consciousness.

  'Sorry,' Tana said. 'It's pretty fucked up, Detective.'

  Burnett nodded.

  'I can rest up in the car,' he said. 'You're driving.'

  'We're not going anywhere today.'

  'We have to,' Burnett said. 'We have to find him.'

  'How about this, you go back to bed and get a few more hours' sleep, and I'll get you up at lunchtime. I'll try to find a map and draw up a plan of where we should look for him. Okay?'