Dead Days (Book 2): Tess (5 page)

“Mum-”

“Hang on a second Pat-”

“Mum, the
man!
”

There is a resounding crack against the passenger window.

How the fuck, I shot him three times!

But whatever was left of Ken is long gone.  He’s changed, his mouth opens and closes convulsively as if he’s trying to bite the glass, his fists are beating against it, spattering his own blood across the window.  His cloudy eyes are locked on Patrick who is frozen in complete, all encompassing terror.

Rhona slams her foot onto the accelerator and Ken stumbles as the car pulls away.  I see him stagger after us in the rear-view mirror and I shudder.

But he was dead, I know he was.  Even if he survived there’s no way he could of-

“It’s ok Pat, it’s ok, don’t cry, the bad man’s gone it’s ok-” Rhona is saying, as Patrick is huddled into the car door, his face buried in his hands, whimpering softly.

“Can you drive?”  Rhona asks me?  Her eye is now nearly swollen shut.

“Yes I think so.  You’ll have to direct me though.”

Rhona get’s into the back with Patrick, cradling him in her arms as I shift into the driver’s seat.  I haven’t driven for a while (I sold my car a while ago) and I nearly stall the bloody thing, but then my body seems to remember what to do, and we pull away steadily.

      I can hear Rhona whispering soothingly to Patrick and I feel a pang of Jealousy.  They have each other, I’m the outsider here.  I think about Mike, wondering if he’s at home or whether he went out to look for me. 

     I hope to God he’s alright.  I don’t want the last words I said to him to be the last words I’ll
ever
say to him.  I reach into my bag and glance at my phone.  I keep one eye on the road as I open my sent messages.

The text to Mike reads ‘SENT’!

I feel a little flutter of hope.  Maybe he got it?  Maybe he’ll be at Alexandra Palace waiting for us?  Maybe I’ll be able to call my parents from there, with like a satellite phone or something?  The Army must have facility for that kind of thing surely?

I look in the mirror at the two in the back of the car and Rhona gives me the ‘OK’ symbol with her fingers.  I give her a thumbs up and keep driving.

I start to think we might just be alright.

NEXT

PART 3; CASS