The Dark Corners Box Set

by Robert Scott-Norton

  “I haven’t, Kain. Believe me.”

  “You’ve been lying to me for months.”

  “Kain, put down the knife. You’re going to hurt me and you don’t want to do that.”

  “I might have to. I don’t think you will tell me the truth otherwise.”

  “I’ve not been sleeping around.”

  The knife slipped and a thin line of blood appeared on Joceline’s throat. She gasped in astonishment, and her hand lifted as if she needed to feel for herself what her husband had done to her, but as the blade pressed in again, she thought better of that and kept her arms by her sides.

  “You’ve been sleeping with Adam outside what we’d arranged.”

  The pause that followed the allegation was tiny, but enough to confirm to Seth that Kain hadn’t made a mistake. Her eyes flashed in Seth’s direction and locked with his own. He was taken aback and moved closer but he had no influence over these events, they were just a remembrance, playing over. Nothing he could do here would change events.

  “Adam forced himself on me.”

  The image reformed and Seth was now watching Kain talking on the phone. Joceline was in the background, leaning against a dresser, her hand clutching a cloth to her neck, and Seth could see the new dread in her eyes. The fear that her lies were about to unravel her marriage, her affair, and possibly bring down the cult she’d played a large part in supporting.

  “It’s me,” Kain was saying to the person on the other end of the line. “It’s time we made a move. Adam’s lost the plot. Ravenmeols isn’t secure and we need to shut it down.”

  A pause as the other person spoke, but Kain interrupted. “No, you listen. There’s no time to wait. You need to organise a raid on the hospital tonight. Adam is planning a breakaway faction from the Adherents. He’s using the hospital as a base to hole up in and if we don’t stop him now, he will continue eroding the group until we’re nothing. Do you understand how necessary this is?”

  Seth didn’t think they would. It was a lie that would set in motion the events that would oust the Adherents from Ravenmeols. Adam’s host body at the time, Graeme Lowman, would gain strength in the distraction and expel him back to the Almost Realm.

  The vision dissolved and Seth woke to the cold concrete floor of the basement pressing against his face. Ahead of him, the three doors waited. But now, all three were active.

  He scrambled to his feet, fear and elation fighting for control of his brain. It had only been a week since he’d been without his own hitcher, but now it looked like he might get him back.

  A noise behind him made him turn. Adam was staring at him, finally noticing that Seth had slipped away to the next room. He took in the three doors and realised something was up, his eyebrows had scrunched together and he kept glancing from the stairwell to the doors behind Seth.

  “Where are you going?”

  “Back to where it all started.” And Seth ran the last few steps to the door from his childhood. He clutched the handle and hauled it open.

  39

  Seth fell against the door. A shock went through his body and he stilled. Coming out of the vision had been draining, but connecting with an Almost Door so soon, without a chance to regain his strength was nigh on devastating. The world swam around his eyes and he felt the burning energy from the Almost Realm scorch his side. The door was hotter than he’d expected.

  But there was a connection. It was like slipping into an old dressing gown, comforting and warm and protective.

  Seth probably imagined the dark figure that peeled itself away from the wall to stand in front of him. He probably imagined as well that the figure was familiar despite this being impossible as it was barely more than a shadow.

  In his other senses, the boring ones that kept him grounded in reality, Seth could see Adam walking towards him. Did he mean to intervene? Seth’s heart drummed a little faster. He needed this to be over with quickly so he could save Judy.

  When the shadow reached out a hand to Seth’s, he took it and for an instant, the shadow felt solid against his flesh, before it collapsed like powder.

  Charlie was back.

  Seth stood straighter, pushed himself away from Charlie’s Almost Door, which was already beginning to fade, and turned to face Adam. The cultist stopped, aware that something had just happened to Seth, but not completely sure what.

  “Let her go,” Seth demanded, his voice ice cool. “Whatever your friend is doing to her in there, it’s got to stop.”

  “Why would I stop it? This is perfect. Kain will be back and together we’ll continue with our plans for the Unravelling.”

  “I know that you killed Joceline.”

  “Her time had come.”

  “And I also know you were having an affair.”

  A flicker of irritation. Seth had irked him.

  “What happened between Joceline and myself passed a long time ago.”

  “Water under the bridge?” Seth replied.

  Two shadowmen stepped out from the gloom and framed Adam. “You know that you can’t continue interfering in my plans. Despite being entertaining, it’s becoming inconvenient.”

  “Kain set you up.”

  Adam’s eyes narrowed and a curious smirk appeared. “What are you talking about?”

  But he knew already didn’t he. That look wasn’t a look of surprise, but one of recognition.

  “Whilst you were busy having your affair, you got sloppy. You didn’t realise that Kain was onto you. He knew about it all. On the night your previous host found the guts to take his own life and cast you out, the night the cult was expelled from the hospital, the night my sister was murdered, Kain called the police and told them everything they needed to know. Kain got the Adherents kicked out of Ravenmeols. He would never be your comrade after that. Are you sure you want him back in your life?”

  “You’re lying.”

  “Why would I lie?”

  “To save your friend. To get out of this mess you’ve found yourself in. It would be a better question to ask why you wouldn’t lie.”

  “You were having an affair with Joceline. How would I know that?”

  “Joceline could have told you.”

  “Why would she bother telling me? I saw how Kain treated her. He was ready to slit her throat. He would have done it only he had a better way to punish the pair of you. Bringing down the Adherents by cutting out its core would give him the opportunity to take over the remains and shape them as he saw fit. Who do you think told the police to raid Ravenmeols?”

  “Doctor Lowman was growing stronger in those last days. There were periods when he had total control. Lowman called the police. He wanted a distraction.”

  “He didn’t need the distraction; he would have gotten rid of you eventually. Listen to me, this was Kain’s doing.”

  Adam held Seth’s gaze for a moment, and for the first time there was something other than hatred in that expression. He rushed into the adjacent room and Seth followed, united for once in their aims, the animosity forgotten.

  Seth gasped when he saw what had happened to Judy. The painting had trapped her in a network of tendrils. She looked a shell of her former self.

  “Stop it, he’s killing her,” Seth demanded.

  “Not yet. I need to be sure.” Adam stopped in front of Judy. “Can you hear me Kain?”

  The tendrils slowed, but held tight to the canvas. Whatever was happening wasn’t finished, the process only paused.

  “Can you hear me, Kain?” Adam asked a second time.

  A definite nod from Judy. Then, slowly, like a puppeteer working out what strings to pull, Judy’s posture changed. Her eyes snapped open. Seth flinched at the sight of the paint flowing over her eyeballs.

  “There you are,” Adam said warmly, “It’s been too long.”

  “How long?” The voice was Judy’s but deeper, like it had been in the woods earlier. This was Kain driving Judy’s body.

  “It’s been thirty years since we last saw each other.”


  Kain tried to move, but the tendrils were still tying him to the canvas. Adam put out a hand to stop him moving. “Wait. It’s not finished. You’re still tethered.”

  A flash of irritation crossed Kain’s face. “It should be done, but the woman is resisting.”

  “Fight him, Judy!” Seth shouted.

  Kain regarded Seth. “Who are you?”

  “A good friend of Joceline’s.”

  The flash of annoyance was there again. He was on the right track.

  “Where is she? Joceline should be here.”

  “Joceline’s dead.” Seth said, pushing aside the guilt. If he had been any more clued up when he’d seen her, he could have done more to protect her. He glanced at Adam and saw his empty eyes staring back at Seth. There was a warning there, and Seth thought there was a challenge as well.

  I dare you to tell him.

  “How did she die?” Kain asked.

  “Do you want to tell him, Adam?”

  Kain returned his attention to Adam. “What happened?”

  “She’d been ill for many years but fought bravely. You’d have been proud.”

  “She was always a fighter,” Kain replied. If there was any sadness in his tone, Seth couldn’t hear it. He spoke with the practised dissonance of a politician, any emotion buried below the surface.

  “Kain, what happened that last night?” Adam asked.

  “What do you mean?”

  “The night the police raided Ravenmeols. My last night,” he added for extra emphasis.

  “Did you never find out?”

  “I think I might have,” Adam replied.

  “You’re acting strange, even for you. What’s wrong?”

  Adam chuckled. “Did you betray me? Did you turn us over to the police?”

  “Why would you think that? No. Of course not.”

  “Did you know I was sleeping with Joceline behind your back, outside of our shared sessions?”

  Kain straightened. He didn’t speak. Seth didn’t need him to answer. He’d seen the truth. He just needed the right reaction for Adam to see the truth as well.

  Adam paced the room. What thoughts were going through the man’s head?

  “She was exceptionally gifted in bed,” Adam continued. “A little repressed at first, but I soon livened her up. It’s not her fault, she did mention that you had problems in that department.”

  Kain lunged, the tendrils ripping free and splashing back against the canvas and the floor, becoming lifeless. Adam had done what he’d set out to do, finding the truth through Kain’s reaction.

  “You thought you could keep it a secret from me,” Kain roared. “How could you do that?” The rage in his voice echoed around the room.

  Adam tried to defend himself from his attacker, but Kain drove a punch hard into Adam’s stomach, forcing him to double-up as the air left his lungs. A knee struck under his chin, knocking Adam to the floor. Seth hovered around the edge of the basement, unsure how he could help. The painting was the clue. Kain had created it to store his soul until he needed to come back.

  From the floor, Adam swiped a leg and brought Kain tumbling down, giving Adam a chance to get back to his feet where he drove a foot into Kain’s chest.

  “Stop it!” Seth shouted, “That’s not his body.” Seth rushed at Adam and punched his cheek. Adam fell backwards, raising his arms behind him to stop himself crashing into the basement wall.

  Jesus, that hurt. Seth gripped his right hand in his left and rubbed vigorously. He’d never get used to punching. Cheekbones were so hard.

  He brought his attention to the painting. Adam and Kain were both back on their feet. Kain’s hands were around Adam’s throat. “You never knew how lucky you had it, but you always wanted more.”

  “I was an idiot to think you were the one to stand by my side,” Adam said, struggling for breath.

  The two men were twisting in the basement, each trying to overpower the other. Despite Judy’s smaller frame, Kain’s anger was making him as strong as Adam. It wasn’t clear that either of them could overpower the other.

  Seth approached the painting. The paint that had formed as tendrils was slowly oozing back onto the canvas. Whatever powers Kain had imbued into the painting, it still possessed them.

  But what could he do? He needed to get Kain’s soul back out from Judy.

  “Try this.” A familiar voice came from behind. Seth spun at the sound of his friend. Against all the odds, Malc was standing at the edge of the room, Joe a few paces behind. He looked different from when he’d last seen him, more confident. More like the Malc that had interrupted the ceremony at Ravenmeols.

  Malc swung an object across the room and Seth caught it, but even as it crossed the room, Seth saw it was a skull and almost dropped it in surprise.

  “It’s Kain’s,” Malc said as if that explained everything. “You’d better be quick,” he added. “We’re running to a tight deadline.”

  Seth shouted at the two men fighting. “Kain, recognise this?” He held aloft the skull, and gave the men a chance to look, counting on this once dead creature having an affinity to its own mortal remains.

  Kain reacted. He had little choice. The instinct to protect his own self, no matter that it represented a redundant part of him was too strong to resist. He lunged for Seth but Seth lifted the skull high before slamming it against the basement wall. Bone shattered, splintering into a thousand fragments.

  Charlie, now would be a good time.

  Kain roared and didn’t slow. And that’s when Seth felt Charlie stir. Before Kain could reach him, the hitcher pushed out from Seth’s body and grabbed hold of Kain, stopping him in his tracks.

  At first, it was impossible to see what was happening. The lights and shadows in the basement twisted too fast to keep up with. Seth tracked the shapes until he could make out two shadowmen, one was Charlie, the other could only have been Kain, ripped from Judy’s body.

  “Get her away from them!” Malc shouted.

  Seth saw Judy’s dazed expression; the paint had receded from her eyes. She was free. Malc ran and helped Seth drag her away from the fight.

  The two hitchers were struggling with each other. Their twisting forms were sometimes indistinct, and it was difficult to tell one from the other, but there were moments when one seemed to have the upper hand.

  “What’s happening?” Judy said. Seth helped settle her down onto the basement floor. He hugged her.

  “Don’t worry. You’re safe.”

  The shadows kept their fighting to the opposite side of the basement, right in front of the canvas. Seth saw the paint tendrils react as they crossed over them. Then saw the tendrils latch onto one of the forms.

  From beside him, Malc spoke, “I think Kain knows when he’s beaten. He only has one haven now.”

  With a surprising speed, the fallen paint reanimated, forming itself around the shadowmen. The fighting had ceased and Seth panicked at the thought of losing his hitcher a second time. Charlie however, had other ideas. Seth’s hitcher retreated from the activity in front of the painting and vanished. Seth felt the comforting presence of his hitcher around him and knew that he was safely back within him.

  “Kain’s hiding back in his painting,” Seth said.

  “And that’s the best place for him,” Malc replied.

  Seth spun around, realising that with all the action, they’d made a mistake. “Where’s Adam?”

  Malc shrugged. “He’ll turn up. Right now, we need to destroy that painting.”

  The shadowman that was Kain was no more, the paint tendrils had retreated into the canvas and the painting was complete again. The two figures stared out at them with their burning red eyes.

  “I wonder why he painted two shadowmen,” Seth thought aloud. “Do you think it’s significant?”

  They approached the painting together. Judy had scooped up Joe and was hanging back, ready to leave. “Can we just go? I’ve had enough of his art.”

  Malc hooked the pain
ting off the wall. “We don’t have long. The house is very likely going to explode in a very short space of time.”

  40

  Joe was waiting for them outside by the back door. His hands were over his mouth and nose and his eyes lit up the moment he saw his dad enter the kitchen.

  Seth gagged at the smell. The gas was thick and now he understood what Malc had meant about the house exploding. How had he orchestrated this? His eyes were drawn to the cooker. “What if we hadn’t gotten out in time?”

  “It was an accident. A fortunate one but still an accident.” Malc set the painting on a chair a few feet away from the cooker. “I think that ought to do it.”

  “You’re not seriously going to let the house explode,” Seth said.

  “I can’t shut off the gas.”

  “The mains…” Judy started.

  “Couldn’t find it. Don’t have time to look anymore.”

  He ferried them outside, grabbed Joe by the hand and led the way, running down the path away from the house.

  “Where are the others?” Seth asked. “There were other Adherents out here.”

  “We’ve taken care of them.” A woman stepped out from behind the larger of the outbuildings. Olivia looked calm and collected. Did she ever get stressed?

  “What the hell are you doing here?” And then to Malc, “And what are you doing out of hospital?”

  “Just a head injury. I’m good to go. They’d have preferred me to stay in for observation, but as soon as Georgia told me about Joe, I had to come.”

  “But how did you know to show up here?”

  “I brought him,” Olivia said. “I needed him and he’s the best man I’ve got.”

  Seth’s head was swimming, and it wasn’t just from the gas he’d inhaled on his way through the kitchen. He frowned, then remembering the night at the hospital when Malc had interrupted the ritual, and the mysterious employees he’d alluded to, finally made the connection. “Malc is part of your Vigilance Society?”

  Olivia nodded. “But you’re not surprised.”

  “I’m not sure I can be surprised by anything anymore. I need to sit down.” But before Seth could drop to the floor, Malc encouraged them all to move further away from the house. “We’re not out of range yet.”