Sea Sick: A Horror Novel

by Iain Rob Wright

  Ivor glared at his wife. “Shut up, woman!”

  Jack decided it was imperative to keep Vicky talking – she was the weak link. If the conversation fell too heavily on Jack then it would become obvious that he didn’t really know anything and that his claims were merely bluffs. “Tell me about it, Vicky,” he said reassuringly. “Help me understand.”

  Vicky started sobbing weakly, but was controlled enough to answer him. “God, you even know my name? The jig really is up, isn’t it?”

  “I don’t know,” said Jack. “I’m the only police officer onboard. Tell me what happened and I’ll make a decision about what I’m going to do.”

  “What do you mean?” Ivor asked. “If you’re with the police then the only thing you’re planning to do is arrest my wife. Well, you’ll have to get through me first, my friend.”

  Jack ignored Ivor’s posturing and kept his focus squarely on his wife. “Just tell me the story, Vicky. I’m listening.”

  “Okay,” she said, sighing in a way that suggested she was preparing for an emotional release. “I’m a nurse at the Alexandria Hospital in Redditch. You know it?”

  Jack nodded. He knew of it vaguely. Redditch was a moderate-sized town outside of his usual policing area, but he knew the hospital there had a bad reputation and was regularly at threat of closure.

  “Well,” Vicky continued. “Most of my shifts are on the ICU ward, where I look after people in critical condition. I’ve been on that ward for a couple years now and I’m one of the most senior nurses on the floor.”

  “Okay,” said Jack. “Go on.”

  “A few weeks ago they brought in a guy called Nigel Moot.”

  “Nigel Moot?” Jack knew exactly who she was talking about. Nigel Moot was a prolific serial killer; the UK’s first high-profile murderer since Harold Shipman. The man had raped and killed over two-dozen woman in the UK, and many more throughout Europe via his job as a long-distance lorry driver. The last Jack had heard – a week or so before he’d boarded the Spirit of Kirkpatrick – Nigel Moot had died in hospital from a severe knife wound to the stomach. His assailant was unidentified, but it was assumed that it was an unknown, surviving victim of an attack.

  Vicky told him what he already knew. “Nigel Moot was a suspected serial killer, but the police had never been able to pin anything firm enough to arrest him. That was until he came in with a stab wound. The police found a photograph of a recent victim in his pocket, and when they searched his truck they found a secret compartment full of grisly trophies – women’s fingers and other horrible mementoes.”

  “None of that information was released to the public,” said Jack. “How did you find all that out?”

  “From the police officer that was posted outside Nigel’s room,” Vicky explained. “He knew he wasn’t supposed to tell me anything, but I promised to keep it to myself. Anyway, once I learned what that man had done, I felt sick to my stomach. I was disgusted that my time was being used to keep a monster like that alive. All of the woman he had killed, all the lives he had destroyed, and here he was lying comfortably in a hospital bed being pumped full of life saving drugs.”

  “You killed him.” Jack stated, knowing he was right by the look on her face.

  Vicky nodded and tears began to stream down her clammy cheeks.

  “The beast deserved it,” said Ivor. “In all my days in the army, I never once had the chance to put a stop to someone as evil as Nigel Moot.”

  “I gave him an overdose of morphine,” Vicky admitted. “I wasn’t thinking at the time. It was like I was on autopilot, or something, and I couldn’t think about anything else except ending his wretched life. It was stupid, I know. The morphine is tightly regulated and I was the only person on shift. It was obvious what I’d done. But I don’t regret it. That monster was going to pull through, to live out the rest of his days in some plush prison for celebrity inmates. Just look at that Charles Manson guy in America – he’s as happy as Larry. I couldn’t allow that.”

  Jack nodded. He looked at Ivor and could see past the man’s blustery exterior at the emotions beyond. He adored his wife and would truly do anything to protect her and his daughter. This was a good family; a loving and supportive unit. Jack wished their futures held better fortune.

  Jack sighed. “I understand what you did, Vicky, and why you did it. To be honest I would probably have done the same thing. Perhaps most people would, if only they were brave enough.”

  Ivor grunted. “But regretfully you’re still going to have to arrest her, right? You coppers are all the same.”

  “No,” said Jack, deciding he would tell them another kind lie. “When the boat docks, I’ll allow you to leave. I’ll say that you evaded me. Although, can I give you some advice?”

  Ivor and Vicky both nodded.

  “Give yourselves in. The public will understand why you did what you did and the papers will make you a hero. I’d be surprised if you spent more than a couple years in prison, and when you get out the magazine deals alone will set you up for life. It’ll be better than spending your life on the run. You’ll have nothing to worry about, I promise. People will understand.”

  “Perhaps he’s right,” Vicky said.

  “No,” said Ivor. “We’ve been over this again and again. We’ll be fine in Germany.”

  “Well, it’s up to you,” Jack told them. “I won’t stand in your way.”

  “Why are you helping us?” asked Vicky.

  “Because I’m guilty of the same thing. I’ve killed people that deserved it, too.”

  Ivor’s eyes went wide. “Really? I didn’t know that the British police force were in the habit of using lethal force.”

  “They’re not,” said Jack. “I wasn’t on duty. My partner had just been killed by a gang, and I decided to do something about it. I tracked down their main hangout, turned up in the middle of the night while they were all stoned. I killed six of them by the time I was done. The first one was difficult, but it got easier. I even started to enjoy it by the end. I wished I could have taken out more of them, to be honest.”

  “God, man,” Ivor uttered. “I can’t believe you’re telling us all this.”

  “It’s the truth,” said Jack. “And I’ll tell you something else: I’ve never been the same since. So believe me, Vicky, when I tell you I understand what you did and what you are going through. I feel sorry for you, though, because it doesn’t get any easier. At least you have your family around you. You’ll manage to pull through somehow.”Jack wished that were true. He would truly have liked to see Ivor and his family sail off into the sunset together.

  “Thank you,” said Vicky. “That means a lot to hear from a stranger – a policeman, no less.”

  “Yes,” said Ivor. “You’re a kind man…in the grand scheme of things, at least. And the things you did? I think most people would understand them too.”

  “Thanks,” said Jack, getting up from the table. “You all take care now. I wish you luck.”

  Jack wore a smile on his face and headed out of the room, ready to go and commit another murder.

  ***

  Jack took the elevator down to the Orlap Deck, resuming his previous mission to locate Donovan. Funnily enough, out of all the places he’d encountered the cowboy the last two weeks, the Cargo Bay wasn’t one of them. In fact it was about the only place that Jack hadn’t had a confrontation with the American. Yet when he arrived there now, Donovan was standing in plain sight in the centre of the walkway. He was holding his hands up.

  “Given up even hiding now?” Jack asked.

  “Just calm down a second, pardner.” Donovan backed away slowly but didn’t make a run for it. “You been coming at me like a wild bull with his tail on fire for two weeks now and you haven’t once stopped to tell me why.”

  Jack approached. “You know why.”

  “I truly don’t, pardner. Truth is you got me terrified. One night we’re drinking together, nice as pie, the next you start coming at me like a mad man tryin
g to kill me. Heck, let’s be honest about it, you have been murdering me – strange as that may sound.”

  Jack shook his head. “I wish that were true, but we both know that killing someone on this goddamn ship is impossible. We all come back again.”

  “You believe that, Jack? Do you really think that what you’re doing is not killing?” He lifted up his shirt to show a deep purple bruise where Jack had previously stuck a knife in.“You think that when you stab me, shoot me, or drown me, that I’m not dying? You’re a murderer, Jack, plain and simple. Before you went psycho on me, you told me a little story about how you let rage overcome you once before. How did it turn out for you that time, pardner?”

  Jack thought about how killing those drug dealers had changed him, how it had sickened his soul. But what he had been doing to Donovan was not the same. The man was a rapist – the lowest form of human being.

  “You’re wandering further down a dark and shadowy path, Jack. You give in to that rage again, after what it did to you the last time, and there’s no coming back from it. We could be stuck on this ship for all eternity; do you really want to lose yourself to violence? Is that how you want to spend your existence?”

  Jack snarled and continued approach. He was almost stalking the other man now. Donovan backed away. Jack felt his heart pounding in his chest. “What do you suggest I do with you then? You’re sick!”

  Donovan shook his head and let out a long, pitiful breath. “I’m not the one who’s sick here, Jack. You obviously have something inside of your head that’s making you do these crazy things, and I for one would like to know what it is.”

  “Enough,” said Jack. “You know exactly what you did.”

  Jack went for Donovan, but this time the other man was ready for him. This time Jack was met with resistance as Donovan whipped his pistol from its holster and smashed the grip against the bridge of his nose. Jack went blind for a moment, his vision exploding in bright colours and flashes of white. The pain filled his entire skull and the blood flowed down the back of his throat and choked him.

  Donovan attacked again, this time smashing his fist squarely into the centre of Jack’s chest. The wind was crushed from his lungs and he fell to the floor, blind and breathless.

  “Now,” said Donovan. “I hope I just made it clear that I can take you on any day of the week if I wanted to. You’re a capable man, Jack, no doubt – but I’m better, understand?”

  Jack said nothing. That was, until Donovan prodded him with his toecap. “Okay, okay, I understand.”

  “Good. The reason I haven’t fought back until now is firstly, because I was pretty darned surprised when you came at me, but secondly, because I like you. I considered you a buddy stuck in the same shit puddle as me. The kinder part of me is certain that there’s a perfectly reasonable explanation for your nutty behaviour, but the more cynical side of me is getting pretty worn out with having to fight you. So can we please have a discussion about what we have going on here between us?”

  “You know wha-”

  Donovan booted Jack in stomach. “No, Jack! I do not know shit about shit, so enough with that, okay? You sound like a self-righteous prick every time you shout that at me. I don’t know why you’re so angry, or what I’ve done to you, but so help me God you have about six seconds to tell me.”

  Jack gasped and managed to catch his breath. “T-Tally.”

  Jack couldn’t see much through the cloudiness of his vision, but Donovan looked confused. “What are you talking about?” he asked. “What about Tally?”

  “You…you fucking raped her, you sick fuck.”

  Donovan hopped forward and swung his leg like he was taking a penalty kick. The blow caught Jack under the chin and sent him halfway to oblivion. He barely remained conscious.

  “How dare you accuse me of such things,” Donovan shouted. His accent had become thicker than ever. “I ain’t done hurt a woman my entire life. You say those things ‘bout me again, Jack, and my violent temper is gunna get the better of me.”

  Jack rolled himself onto his side and spat a mouthful of blood onto the metal grating. “You…you saying…you deny it?”

  “Deny it? I’m goddamn telling you that the very notion is offensive to me. I don’t know what that broad has been filling your head with, but she left this place as happy as a lamb the night you got, you know, plugged. I’m still sorry about that, by the way, but I guess we’re pretty much even now with the way you done been behaving.”

  Jack managed to stumble up onto his hands and knees. He flinched when Donovan reached out to him, but then realised he was being offered a hand up and that another blow wasn’t forthcoming. Jack took the offer of assistance and got to his feet unsteadily.

  Donovan nodded to him. “You gonna behave now, Jack?”

  Jack didn’t see any option but to agree; he was beat. “I’ll listen to what you have to say, but you best be telling the truth or so help me…”

  Donovan pulled out a couple of chairs from his storage space behind some crates and helped Jack down into one. “There’s only one liar aboard this ship, Jack, and it ain’t you or me.”

  “You really did a number on me,” Jack admitted, wincing in his chair.

  Donovan chuckled. “Well, you can’t say you never had it coming. I wouldn’t worry, though. I figure you’ll be perfectly fine this time tomorrow – ‘cept a little bruising here and there.”

  Jack huffed and found that it hurt his ribs immensely. “So, tell me why Tally would say that you attacked her if you didn’t?”

  Donovan shrugged. “Beats me? But think about it, you’re a police officer.”

  “What do you mean?”

  “I mean that for every woman who has been genuinely attacked, there’s another two making false allegations. Usually just to destroy a man’s life out of some sort of spite.”

  Jack thought about it. It was true that in his years on the police force he had seen woman cry rape before when it wasn’t true. What was so maddening about those claims was how much harder it made things for genuinely abused woman to seek justice. Nonetheless, it was true that some women were capable of such lies, but was Tally? Jack didn’t see any sense in it.

  “Why would Tally want to accuse you? What would she have to gain?”

  “Your guess is as good as mine, pardner. Maybe it would be best if we went and asked her.”

  “I don’t know about that,” said Jack. “She went into hiding after…after what you allegedly did. I don’t want to scare her away again.”

  “Look, Jack. I don’t know what the hell her deal is, but she’s up to something. I don’t know what she has to gain by making us enemies, but it obviously factors into some agenda she has. Maybe she’s behind this whole time-crap magic that’s been going on. Maybe I was getting close to something she didn’t want me to know about.”

  Jack laughed. “What, by getting drunk and gambling? You haven’t discovered anything.”

  Donovan nodded. “Perhaps you’re right there but, either way, the only person that knows for sure is her.”

  Jack thought about it and decided he agreed, with certain conditions.

  “Okay, I’ll go find her and talk to her. But you stay here.”

  Donovan sighed. “She convinced you of lies last time, so what makes you so sure you won’t buy the same line of bullshit again?”

  “Because I’m a good police officer,” Jack said. “And if I have reason to suspect someone is lying then I’ll know whether they are. I had no reason to doubt her before, but this time I’ll search a little deeper.”

  “Okay,” said Donovan. “I trust you.”

  “If I find out that she’s telling the truth…”

  Donovan raised his gun at Jack. “Then you and me will have a problem, which is why I’m hoping you’re as good as you say you are at detecting bullshit.”

  Jack turned around and said nothing.

  ***

  Jack hadn’t seen Tally since the day she’d told him she’d been raped –
the night they had lain together like lovers. Jack was mad at himself for not checking in with her sooner – letting his vendetta against Donovan consume him. When a woman shares something like that with you and falls asleep in your arms, the least you can do is catch up with her the next day.

  I can’t believe that she could tell a lie like that. No way. I may not know her as well as I would like to, but I know she’s a good person. She tried to protect the children on the Sports Deck and she has a daughter of her own, too. Donovan, on the other hand, is a womanising jackass. But still…I don’t see him doing the things he’s been accused of. He just doesn’t give off that vibe.

  Jack couldn’t believe that he was in a situation that now involved a rape accusation in addition to a deadly manmade virus and a supernatural time spell. Coming aboard the Kirkpatrick to relax was the single most stressful thing to ever occur in Jack’s life. Irony didn’t even begin to describe it.

  There were likely two places that Tally would be. Either the Sports Deck, if she were still trying to help the children, or her cabin. It was still pretty early in the day, so Jack was guessing the latter. He had a quick think about where she’d led him on the night he’d visited her room. He remembered it was towards the rear of A Deck – the aft. He headed for the elevator and pressed the CALL button, then waited while it descended.

  A couple of minutes later, Jack was on A Deck and heading towards Tally’s cabin. A maid passed him along the way, smiling and nodding, but other than that the entire deck was deserted. He thought about which cabin was Tally’s and knocked on the door he thought was correct. After ten seconds of waiting, he knocked again.

  Then somebody knocked on the back of Jack’s head and the lights went out.

  Day 235

  At 1400 Jack did not wake up. At 1425 he managed to stir, his head whirling with a faraway throbbing. Whatever had struck him in the back of the head had been enough to knock him out cold for the rest of the day (or perhaps even killed him) until midnight had come and started things over. His head still hurt, and for the first time ever he had overslept.

  Putting his feet onto the carpeted floor of his cabin, Jack eased himself up until he was standing. The room tilted and, for a moment, he thought it was his vision, but then he realised that it was the ship that was rocking. He was usually out in the corridor by then.