Plagued

by Barnett, Nicola

  “What has he done, Emily?”

  “You care about her, I can see that much. I do too. But I can’t tell you. Some things are better left unsaid.”

  “Why? What’s he done that’s so bad?” Mark pushed.

  “I can’t, I’m sorry. Not yet, not on her first day back. We’ll talk later, I promise. Just let her enjoy tonight, please.”

  Mark sighed, defeated.

  Across the fire, Jack and Sarah were now sat on two fishing chairs and Sarah caught him up on what had happened. The only thing she kept to herself was the time she spent with Mark in the early hours of that morning. She pushed the thought away.

  Jack shot icy glances across the fire towards Mark every now and again as they talked, and Mark returned them.

  As he watched Sarah enjoying Jack’s company, a knot tied in Mark's stomach. Her face was alight behind the fire, the happiest he’d seen her since they’d met. She glanced his way every now and then and smiled at him—her face was strained, he couldn’t tell if it was confusion or regret. I’ve lost her. Watching them together made Mark angry and, he admitted to himself, jealous. He doesn’t deserve her.

  A thought hit Mark; there was no reason for him to stay—he’d fulfilled his promise of keeping Sarah safe. She didn’t need him anymore. The love-making they’d shared that morning was meaningless now that Jack was alive. The thought hurt Mark deeply but he couldn’t shake it.

  Emily was back in a cheerier mood and started talking to him in her chirpy voice. She seemed to like him. She was a very sweet girl—beautiful, if Mark was honest with himself. Her brown eyes were bright and he hadn’t seen her without a cheery smile on her face for longer than a minute. It was refreshing to him and he couldn’t help but feel happier around her.

  He shared some of his crackers with her and they ate a small portion each of canned beans. It was only half a can and they tasted sour and stale but he had been too hungry to care. He wolfed it down and soon, weariness flowed through his body and he realised just how tired he was.

  He put down his empty can and asked Emily where he could rest for a while. She pointed him to a quiet corner of the room and he rose to his feet and thanked her. Just as he did so, Emily grabbed his arm and pulled him towards her.

  “Don’t get in his way, Mark,” she whispered.

  “What?”

  “I mean it. I’ve seen how you look at Sarah, it doesn’t take a genius to figure out you have feelings for her. But right now, it would be best if you left them alone.”

  “I wasn’t going to get in their way. Honestly, you don’t have to worry about me.”

  “Listen, I’m telling you this because you seem like a great guy. There’s something about Jack that you don’t know. He’s not—” Emily paused as though something was on the tip of her tongue, and then sighed. “Like I said, he’s not a good guy. I didn’t tell Sarah that he was alive because frankly, I was hoping he wouldn’t come back. I don’t think he’ll let her go without a fight.”

  “I wasn’t going to fight.” Mark said goodnight to everyone and walked away from the group, settling himself on a sleeping mat in the corner of the room.

  ~

  Sarah saw Mark get to his feet and tried to excuse herself to go talk to him, but Jack grabbed her by the arm.

  “Can I speak to you for a moment, alone?” Jack asked, smiling so widely that she saw the filling in his right molar.

  Something about Jack’s smiles filled her with a little apprehension. She looked towards Mark desperately, wanting to talk about the day’s events but Jack seemed to need her urgently. Unable to say no, she gave in to him and nodded. She said goodnight to her parents, gave them a hug, and followed Jack to his makeshift bed.

  The smell in this corner of the hall was worse than in the centre and the smell of sweat and a lingering smell of damp stuck in her nose. They obviously hadn’t washed for a long time. She sniffed her own clothes self-consciously as she walked.

  Jack lay down on his green, double sleeping bag and climbed inside. He tapped the space next to him for Sarah to sit down. She did as she was told and hesitantly sat next to him, becoming inexplicably shy under his watchful eye—a feeling that felt familiar to her. She shivered, noticing the temperature had indeed dropped as the light diminished outside.

  “Get in here with me, baby. It’s getting cold in here,” he said gently.

  Baby? Sarah flushed and climbed into the sleeping bag next to him, their arms touched and she felt her cheeks redden. Jack looked into her eyes for what seemed like minutes, completely silent with an expression that was hard to place.

  Suddenly, he reached for her face, and Sarah snapped back to reality. He guided her face gently towards his and she resisted for a second, feeling uncomfortable with his touch. That confused her. Why should she react that way? She’d dated him for a long time—she had loved him for a long time. Remembering then the loss she had felt without him, she yielded to him.

  They kissed and Jack pulled her body closer to his. His lips were cool and dry but familiar. The warmth from his body radiated towards her and she closed her eyes. This was her Jack and she had finally found him again.

  Their kisses became frantic as their need for each other grew. Their tongues gently massaged each other’s, tasting each other for the first time in half of a year. Old feelings flooded through Sarah, as she relived the sensations of his kiss and his touch. “I’ve missed you so much,” she whispered, in between kisses.

  “I’ve missed you too, baby. I’m so sorry I didn’t come looking for you.”

  Sarah shook her head. “It doesn’t matter now.”

  He unzipped his jacket and dropped it besides them, then with Sarah’s help, quietly slipped his shirt over his head. His body was tanned and his chest dark with swirling hair trailing down to his toned stomach. She ran her fingers across his shoulders and felt the hard muscles flexing as he unhooked her bra.

  Sarah unbuttoned the front of Jack’s jeans and pushed them down towards his knees inside the sleeping bag. It was her turn then, Jack ripped her jeans down in one fluid motion, flinging them off to the side. He cupped her breasts then, feeling their warm fullness and began gently kissing them. She gasped in pleasure and bit at his neck as he slipped her underwear down below her thighs and pulled them loose. She wrapped her legs around him, making Jack smile in surprise at her directness. Without hesitation, he pulled himself inside her. She gasped as he entered her and they made love in the dark, silently finding each other all over again.

  As their love-making climaxed, she lay on his chest, listening to his heartbeat as she fell into a deep sleep—warm and safe in Jack Archer’s arms.

  Chapter 12

  Sarah was standing outside their house in Solitude and in her hands were two rather heavy shopping bags. She had been into town for their weekly food shop and had caught the bus back from Winding. The sun was shining and it was unusually warm for an English summer; even in her light lemon summer dress, her skin was still moist with perspiration. Her arms and chest were lightly tanned from the summer sun and she could smell the faint, coconut scent of her own sun cream.

  A sudden pang of fear hit her as she noticed the front door to their rented house was ajar. She pushed the door open slowly and she winced at the creak it made. She hesitantly crept into the house, listening for the sound of intruders. The strong scent of vanilla—Sarah’s favourite scent—met her in the hallway, strong in the warm air.

  She crept down the hallway, listening to her own heart beating frantically in her chest. The doors to the other rooms were open as she had left them, nothing was out of place. Sarah relaxed; maybe Jack had left the door open because of the heat.

  She entered the doorway to the living room and saw the back of Jack’s head as he sat on the sofa, facing the TV. It was turned off. The room was flooded with summer sunlight, giving the beige room a warm and inviting feel. An ashtray lay on the glass coffee table in front of him, shimmering in the sunlight and a cigarette burned away inside
it, untouched.

  “I’m back. I’ve brought something nice for us for tea tonight,” Sarah said cheerily and dropped the bags next to the doorway.

  Jack didn’t move.

  “Jack?” she asked, and then laughed with a tremor in her voice. “Are you okay, babe?”

  Apart from the gentle motion of his breathing, he sat rigidly on the sofa, not even flinching at the sound of her voice.

  Sarah moved gingerly around the couch to face him; it seemed much bigger than normal—she just couldn’t seem to get around it. Anxiety came flooding back through her mind again and she found herself wondering if she had done something wrong.

  Jack twitched a little as she came around to the front, his breathing quickened but his gaze never left the TV.

  “Jack, what’s wrong?” she asked. Her legs were turning to jelly as she tried to walk around the couch.

  The room felt bigger than before, the sky turned darker with every step. The smell of vanilla faded and turned into a sickening, sour odour that filled her nose. Outside, rained started to pelt against the window, making her jump—it had been sunny but a moment ago, with no clouds at all in the sky. Sarah began to feel something was really wrong, the skin prickled on her arms and something in her mind screamed at her not to look at him.

  She pushed the thought out of her head as she finally made it to the front of the couch. Jack’s head turned maddeningly slowly towards hers and as she saw his face, she began to scream.

  His face was contorted in an extreme rage; his brow furrowed deeply and his mouth stretched unnaturally into a cruel grin, his teeth were bared like an animal and his wild eyes were locked onto hers. She stepped away from him, bumping into the coffee table and knocking a mug of cold tea on to the carpet.

  “Welcome home, baby,” he growled and leaped towards her.

  ~

  Sarah awoke with a start, with Jack’s frowning face above hers.

  “Are you okay? You were screaming in your sleep,” he whispered.

  “Yeah I’m okay,” she gasped, catching her breath, “it was just a bad dream.” She offered him a wan smile.

  Sarah sat up, shivering from the layer of sweat covering her body. People were staring at her with annoyed faces, some shaking their heads as Sarah smiled at them apologetically. It was dark outside and since it was nearing the end of summer in England, the darkness meant it was nine o’clock or later.

  Jamie, her old school friend, looked at her from his chair beside the window. He shrugged at her and mouthed, ‘are you okay?’ Sarah nodded at him with a shy smile, which he returned before turning his attention back to the window.

  Jack rubbed her shoulders and smiled back. “It’s okay now, you’re safe.”

  Before she had the chance to reply, Jamie yelled, “Everyone up!”

  Then Emily came running across the room towards Sarah and Jack, narrowly avoiding the people who were still asleep. Aware of still being undressed, the two of them scrambled to put their shirts on and slipped their bottoms on under the covers.

  “What’s wrong?” Jack yelled, with slight irritation in his voice.

  “Duke’s driving around outside, Jamie saw him through the window. There are three others in the car as well!” she said, her eyes wide.

  Everyone in the room scrambled to their feet, pulling on their clothes frantically. Cries and murmurs echoed throughout the hall as people ran to pick up anything they could use as a weapon.

  “Fuck,” Jack growled, climbing out of the sleeping bag and pulling on his boots. Sarah followed.

  “What are we going to do?” Emily asked, eyeing Sarah’s lack of a bra.

  “They’ve probably noticed the Land Rover outside,” Jack said and ran towards the windows.

  Jenny caught sight of Sarah and ran to her, holding her hand as they walked to the windows, besides Jack. The elderly in the group moved slowly towards the back end of the room, gathering together and muttering in uncertainty.

  “What’s going on? Are they back?” Jenny whispered softly.

  “Yes. But don’t panic, they’re just driving around the streets,” Jack said quietly, looking through the gap in the curtains.

  Her mother whimpered and Sarah hugged her tight.

  Frank came over and took his wife away from the windows. “Come on. Let’s get a cup of that horrible green tea you like,” he purred.

  Sarah looked around the room frantically, realising she couldn’t find Mark. She couldn’t see him in the corner where he slept. Panic rose in her chest.

  A door banged shut behind her and she spun around nervously. Mark was stood in the doorway looking confused. He gave her a ‘what’s wrong?’ look.

  She ran to him. “Duke’s outside, driving around in a car. I couldn’t find you.”

  “You don’t have to worry about me. I just went to the toilet,” Mark smirked, seeing the worry lines on her forehead.

  “Don’t go running off like that again.” Sarah smiled weakly and punched him playfully on the arm.

  Mark caught sight of Jack in the window behind her. He was watching them intently as he held the curtain open. Mark’s smile faded. “Listen Sarah,” he said softly, looking back at her. “I’ve got something I need to tell you.”

  “What is it?” she asked, looking worried.

  “Well, now that you’re back home and Jack’s okay, I was thinking about going back ho—”

  “They’ve pulled up outside! Hide the food!” Jamie yelled, interrupting Mark.

  Jack—still at the window—swore and checked his belt for his knife. It was still there. He moved away from the window as the other men in the group ran frantically to follow Jamie’s orders, hiding anything they could find under the blankets and sheets.

  “Don’t let them take me!” Someone shouted in desperation.

  “Calm down! Everyone, sit back down!” Jack growled. “Jamie, Alan and every man here, pick up whatever you can use as a weapon and stand by me! Hurry the fuck up!”

  Sarah recognized some more of them that she hadn’t seen the previous day; one was the rubbish collector, the other was the post office lady’s son. They seemed to be the youngest men in the room—besides the few children in the group, who were currently being cradled by their panicked parents.

  The men gathered their weapons: sticks, planks, golf clubs, sports bats, kitchen knives, and anything else they could find—then stood by Jack in front of the door. Annie picked up her shotgun and handed it to Mark, her face stern and not in the slightest bit scared.

  “You!” Jack shouted at Mark. “Take Sarah over to the corner and make sure she stays there, Emily too. No young women on sight.”

  Mark nodded and did as he said, herding Sarah and Emily towards the frightened group of people that cowered in the bottom corner of the hall.

  Sarah looked back at Jack anxiously. ‘Don’t worry’, he mouthed to her and tried to force a relaxed smile as Duke and his men ascended the staircase.

  Chapter 13

  Nicholas Dowsett—or Duke, as he was nicknamed—had been in prison before the outbreak and it was for the long-haul. As most people who knew him would tell you; it was for murder—that wasn’t a secret. What they didn’t know was that the man he murdered wasn’t his only victim; there had been more, starting with his own father at the tender age of thirteen. Coincidentally, it was when he reached his thirteenth murder that he finally got caught.

  He hadn’t always been the monster that people had come to fear. Through his childhood he was—by any standards—a normal, healthy boy with a perfectly happy family life. He dreamed of one day becoming a famous trials biker and he practiced daily on his BMX, eagerly awaiting his seventeenth birthday when his mother promised him a real dirt bike, on the promise that he continued to do well in school. He built ramps with his friends so they could take it in turn to jump over each other with some daring stunts, only occasionally coming home with forehead bruises.

  Then, upon reaching this thirteenth year, things took a drastic turn for th
e worst in the Dowsett household. It all started when his father, George, got fired from work. It had been a surprise announcement; his father loved his job and—being the only breadwinner in the house— it was very important. The strangest part was that his parents never told him the reason for his father’s dismissal, it had become a big secret and whenever he mentioned it, the subject would be quickly changed. The only thing Nick knew was that the atmosphere in the house had disintegrated since that day; his mother had taken up drinking wine in the middle of the afternoon (something she never did previously) and they had started having frequent arguments in the evenings. Big ones.