Savage: An Apocalyptic Horror Novel (11 page)

Poppy pulled away.

Birch twisted her arm and made her cry out.  He
grabbed her chin with his other hand and snarled right in her face.  “Now
you be quiet, you little cunt, or I’ll throw you over the railing and watch you
drown.  I’ll say you was messing around and fell in.  Adults never
trust children so they’ll believe me.  Behave, little girl, or else.

Poppy whimpered.  “Please,” she begged.

Birch ignored her and shoved her hand up against his
crotch.  She cringed as she felt something hard and warm beneath his
trousers.  “There you go,” he said, shuddering.  “Now you’re
learning.”

“Step the hell away from her.”

Birch released Poppy’s hand and spun around. 
Poppy fell to the deck and
and
started wailing. 
She looked up through her tears and saw a man emerging from the shadows. 
It was Alistair. 
Am I going to be in trouble?  Alistair is always
telling me to behave and I’ve been really bad. 
Really
really
bad.
  I’ve let Anna down.  I promised
to stay with her.

Birch straightened and smiled merrily.  “Hello,
there.  Not just me who has trouble sleeping then, I see?  How are
you doing tonight, friend?”

Alistair’s eyes narrowed into slits.  “I’m doing
just fine.  I told you to step away from the girl.”

“Of course.  I was just having a chat with her.”

“Like hell you were.  Poppy, sweetheart,
come
over to me.”  Poppy leapt up off the floor and
raced over to Alistair.  She felt safer as he shoved her behind him, but
even so, she couldn’t help but tremble and sob. 
I don’t understand
what’s happening.

Birch put his hands out in front of him and clasped
them together like he was saying a prayer.  “I think there’s some sort of
misunderstanding here, friend.”

“He made me touch his thing,” said Poppy between sobs.

Alistair patted Poppy on her head but kept his eyes on
Birch.  “Seems like things are pretty clear to me.”

“This is ridiculous.”  Birch went to walk back
down the deck, but Alistair blocked him.  The two men stood and stared at
each other.  Both of their big bellies wobbled.

“Get out of my way.”  Birch snarled.

Alistair shook his head with disgust.  It was the
same face he pulled whenever they had crab for dinner.  Alistair hated
crab.  He made a snorting sound, too, like the rhinos at the zoo. 
“Who the hell are you people?” he demanded.  “Pirates and
Paedophiles?  I guess the world’s a playground,
huh?
”  He
turned his head and spat on the deck.  “I have more respect for the dead.”

 Poppy grimaced.  Alistair didn’t usually
spit; her mummy told her it was a dirty habit.

Birch’s eyes narrowed and he licked his lips. 
“Watch yourself, friend.  You don’t want this fight, believe me.”  He
went to move past Alistair again, but Alistair blocked him same as before. 
Birch snarled and went to say something, but didn’t get a chance. 

Alistair punched him right in the face.  Poppy
was shocked and frightened, but also a little glad. 
He should hit him
again. 
Birch stumbled backwards, but didn’t go down.  He spat blood
and swore loudly.  Then he rushed at Alistair with his fists in the
air.  Alistair ran to meet him head-on, like a charging bull, and the two
men collided.  Birch rolled back on his heels, off-balance, and Alistair
hit him in the face again. 

This time Birch went down and his nose began to
bleed.  “You’re a dead man,” he snarled from on his back.

Alistair laughed.  “You’re the fat knacker sat on
his arse, not me.”

Birch leapt up and came at Alistair again.  This
time Alistair kicked the man in the shin.  Birch flinched and bent over to
grab his
poorly
leg, which allowed Alistair to drive
his knee up into his face and send him flying backwards.  Poppy winced at
the
cracking
sound.

Birch hit the deck again.  Blood covered his face
and looked like an oil slick under the moonlight.  Poppy scurried away and
cowered behind the pier’s rusty pretzel stand.  She wanted the violence to
be over, but couldn’t help but watch.  Alistair was winning, but the
fighting was still making her tummy sick. 
I don’t like it.

Birch clambered unsteadily to his feet again. 
His snarling, blood-soaked face made him look like a monster.  Poppy
watched him pull something shiny from his belt, and when she saw that it was a
knife she almost threw-up in fear.

“You don’t want to take it to that level,” Alistair
growled, but he suddenly seemed less sure of himself.  Poppy’s heart beat
fast. 
Boom
boom
boom
. 
If Alistair got hurt, would the bad man get her again? 
I don’t want to
touch his thing.

Birch came forward with the knife.  The metal
caught the moonlight as he waved it back and forth.  Alistair stood his
ground.  Then Birch pounced, much quicker than a man his size should have
been able to.  He thrust out with the knife and managed to slash Alistair,
who was barely able to sidestep in time to avoid the knife entering his
ribs.  Blood poured from a newly opened gash on his left forearm.

Poppy placed a hand over her mouth.

Birch swiped the knife again, but this time he missed
completely.  Alistair grabbed at the man and tried to wrestle the weapon
away.  Poppy stood frozen while the two men shoved and twisted against one
another, each of them battling to gain control over the knife. 

Just as it seemed like Alistair was getting the upper
hand, Birch head-butted him right on top of the nose.  Blood exploded from
his face and sent him staggering backwards.

Birch leapt forward, knife plunging through the air.

Poppy screamed out as loud as she could. 

The noise distracted Birch for a split second and
Alistair was able to react in time to block the knife attack and lock in a bear
hug.  The wrestling match continued. 

Poppy could watch no more.  She had to get
help.  She had to get Anna or…someone.  Before she knew it, she was
racing back down the pier, screaming and shouting for someone to come. 
She would have called for Garfield, but he was not there. 
I
told
him not to leave.

Poppy thanked God when she went hurtling into
Anna.  “What is it?” she asked her.  “What the bloody hell are you
doing out here in the middle of the night?  Garfield is going to be so
upset that you disobeyed me.”

“It’s Alistair,” Poppy spluttered.  “He needs
your help.”

“Alistair, why, what?”

Poppy grabbed Anna by the arm and pulled her. 
“Just come, quick.”  She raced back towards the end of the pier, taking
Anna with her.  Anna demanded explanations, but there was no time. 
Alistair was in danger.

They reached the end of the pier and the two men were
still fighting.  Alistair now bled from a wound on his chest as well as
the one on his forearm.  Birch still held the knife and was swinging it
through the air wildly.

“What the hell?” said
Anna.

Alistair spotted her and shouted out.  “Anna, you
need to get the others.  He was trying to hurt Poppy.  We need to
make the new men leave.”

Anna looked down at Poppy and frowned in confusion.

Poppy looked at her and tried not to cry as she
spoke.  “He tried to make me touch his thing.”

Anna seemed to glow bright red in an instant and a
scary look came over her face.  She trembled for a moment, clenching and
unclenching her fists.  Then she ran straight at Birch.  The man
turned to face her, but he was too late to stop her from kicking him right in
the balls.  Poppy didn’t have balls but she winced all the same. 
Ouch!

Birch said a bad word as the breath exploded out of
him all at once.  He swung his knife at Anna’s face, but Alistair tackled
him just as the blade was about to part her cheek.  The two men tumbled to
the ground and resumed their fighting, rolling around like duelling cats,
biting and scratching and punching.  Blood spattered everywhere. 

Alistair was on top.

And then Birch.

Then Alistair again.

Then Birch got the upper hand.  He had the knife
and was on top of Alistair again.

Anna kicked Birch in the back just as he was about to
plunge the knife into Alistair’s chest.  She kicked him so hard that he
bucked forward and dropped the weapon completely.  The blade skittered
across the deck and came to a stop over by the railing.  Alistair punched
Birch in the face three times and the man finally stopped
struggling.   He slumped forward and fell asleep.

The fighting was over. 

Anna dragged Birch away from Alistair who remained on
his back, panting.  Poppy stayed by the pretzel cart, trying to catch her
breath but finding that her lungs had turned to sand. 

There was nothing but silence for a long time. 
Only the sound of people breathing.

Eventually Alistair let out a moan from on his
back.  Blood stained the front of his shirt, but belonged to Birch as much
as it did him.  Poppy went and knelt beside him, before giving him a great
big hug.  “Are you okay?”

“I’m fine, lass.  Another fine mess you’ve got me
into,
huh
.”  Poppy laughed.  She had always hated the way
Alistair moaned at her and told her off, but she was glad of it now.  If
he were gone she would miss him.  He went to get up off the deck but
collapsed back down again and moaned again.  “I’m too fat for this
nonsense,” he muttered.

Poppy giggled.  “You
are
a
bit
fat.” 

Alistair rolled his eyes.  “Bloody
charming!  I save you and that’s the thanks I get,
huh
.”

Poppy kissed him on the cheek.  “Thank you.”

Alistair gave her a serious look.  “Are you okay,
sweetheart?” 

Poppy nodded but felt like she needed to cry. 
She tried to be brave and didn’t.

“I’m sorry I didn’t find you sooner, girl,” said
Alistair.  “If not for the fact I’m so paranoid, I may not have found you
at all.  I knew those men were trouble after the way they behaved in the
diner.  I was up and about, making sure they weren’t up to
no
good.  Worst I expected was theft, but not…
this
.”

“I didn’t do anything,” Birch said between laboured
breaths.  He’d woken up again, but was still flat on the deck.  “You
people just screwed up big time.  You’ll pay for this.”

Anna booted the man in the face and sent him back to
sleep.  Poppy winced.  “He was hurting me,” she told Alistair, “but
you stopped him before he did anything really bad.  Why did he want me to
do those things?”

Alistair sighed.  “One day you’ll understand, but
it’s not something a young girl should worry about.  Stay a child for as
long as you can, because it don’t get any easier with age.”

“I thought you said I had to grow up and start being
useful.”

“And when did you ever listen to me?”

“I’m listening to you now.”

“Well, I was wrong.  You grow up when you’re good
and ready.”  He kissed her on the forehead. 

“Everything’s okay now,” Anna told her.  “Nobody
is going to hurt you.”

Footsteps on the deck made them all look up.  It
was Roman and the older man called Fox.  Roman had his sword drawn and was
glaring at them all.  “You just made a big mistake,” he said.

D
amien couldn’t believe what he was
seeing.  Birch was bloody and beaten, lying half-conscious like Sonny
Liston with the woman standing over him like Ali.  Birch had come ashore
in peace, an envoy for the fleet, and these idiots had beaten him half to
death.  The woman, Anna, who Damien had met with earlier, was standing
over Birch with a defiant look on her face, while her fat companion was
bleeding on the ground nearby with the little girl in plaits kneeling beside
him. 
What the hell did I just miss? 

Birch was no friend of Damien’s, he barely knew the
man, but his treatment was inexcusable.  This tiny group of survivors at
the pier seemed intent on defiance at every turn.  They were protecting
the cripple he was after, and now they had done this.  Were the fools
planning to turn their attacks on Damien next?  Would he be forced to cut
them down and return to the
Kirkland
soaked in their blood?  He
hoped not, but he was willing to do what was necessary.  “You just made a
big mistake,” he said, staring down at Birch.

Surprisingly, it was not the fat man or the woman who
came forward with an explanation, but the young girl, Poppy.  “He started
it,” she said, pointing her finger at Birch.  “He took me out here all
alone and was trying to get me to touch his thing.  Alistair was just
stopping him.”

Damien’s mouth fell open.  “
Wha
…?

“It’s okay, Poppy,” said Alistair, dragging himself up
off the floor and patting her on the arm.  “There’s nothing to be afraid
of anymore.”

Damien narrowed his eyes. Had Birch really been
attempting something unthinkable?  The man was lying on his back covered
in his own blood, but when Damien spotted the man’s own knife lying on over by
the railing, he began to have concerns.  “Birch, can you get up?  I
need to know what happened.”

Birch moaned and rolled onto his side.  “Give me
a second.”  Everybody stood by in silence while he struggled up to his
knees and then eventually onto his feet.  The man’s nose was bloody and
bent.  His lower lip was swollen.

“What the hell happened here, Birch?” Damien demanded.

Birch spat a mouthful of blood, and when he spoke his
words were wet and spluttery.  “They
attathed
me
for no
reathen
.”

Alistair disagreed immediately.  His plump face
was a picture of hostility.  “You tried to assault a child!”

“
Lieths
.”

“Quiet,” said Damien.  He stood there
impassively, trying to make sense of the situation. 
Who do I
believe? 
My own man, surely?
  But what if
he’s guilty?
  In the end Damien decided to get the truth from the
horse’s mouth.  He turned to the young girl, Poppy, and asked her what had
happened. 
If she lies, I’ll know.  She’s just a kid.

The girl looked pale and frightened, but when she
answered her words were clear and confident.  “He wanted me to touch his
thing.  He grabbed my arm and told me he would throw me off the deck if I
tried to struggle.”

Alistair snorted angrily.

Birch denied the accusations.

Damien rubbed at his forehead with the back of his
forearm.  “Please tell me they have the wrong end of the stick here,
Birch.”

“Yeah,” Fox chimed in.  “Because if it’s true,
you’re the one who should take a trip over the railing, Birch.  Only a
monster would hurt a child.”

Damien gave Fox a chastising look.  The last
thing he needed was one of his men condemning the other.  “Is it true,
Birch?  What the girl says?”

Birch cleared his throat, puckered his lips, and endeavoured
to speak clearly.  “No, of course not.  I was out here, taking in the
night, when the girl came running around the corner like a bat out of
hell.  We was chatting for a while, but then the next thing I know, this
fat shit is taking a swing at me.”

Alistair snarled.  “You’ve got a few rolls there
yourself, mate.  Least I can get myself a woman, instead of going after
kids,
huh.”

“Quiet,” said Damien.

“Who are
you
to quiet
us
?” said Anna.

“All I know is that you’ve assaulted one of the men
sent here in friendship.  Not to mention that you’re harbouring a
terrorist of the fleet.  I’m in a fine goddamn position to make
demands.  In fact, I think it would be bloody
cushty
if you people stopped playing silly beggars and gave me what I came for.
 You’re starting to get right on my tits.”

Alistair spat.   “We ain’t giving
you nothing.” 

Damien sliced his sword downwards in an arc and slit a
furrow into the fat man’s blubbery gut.  His shirt tore away and blood
appeared.  “Give me what I ask for,” said Damien, “or I’ll take it in
strips of bacon.”  Poppy cried out as Alistair fell backwards onto his
elephantine backside.  “It’s okay,” Damien assured her.  “He’s not
hurt.  I was just giving him a warning.”  It was true enough that the
blow had been intended only to split a few layers of skin.  There was more
to gain from a threat than a murder.

The little blonde girl looked up at him with fire
burning in her eyes.  “You’re a bad man.”

“They’re
all
bad,” said Alistair from the
floor, clutching his belly with his bloodstained fingers.  “Nothing but
bullies.”

Damien frowned.  While he didn’t consider himself
a
good
man exactly, he didn’t consider himself a
bully
either
. 
I’m not trying to hurt these people; don’t they see that?  Why are they
acting like I’m the enemy?  The fat guy looks like he wants to kill me,
and the woman looks like she’ll want to piss on my remains.

Damien bristled.  He was unsure how to
proceed.  He didn’t know whether their accusations against Birch were true
or not, but he knew that
they
at least believed them to be.  Damien
was an unwanted guest who had brought trouble to their doorstep.  They
weren’t about to compromise with a man they saw as defending a rapist. 
Even an alleged rapist.

Damien lowered his sword.  “Look, I don’t know
what happened here.  All I can say is that my sole intention is to locate
the man I came here for.  I don’t want to cause you people any more
trouble than I have to, but I’m not leaving here until I have him.”

Anna folded her arms across her chest.  “He’s not
here.  You already know that.”

“I know that’s what you say.”

“They’re a pack of liars,” spat Birch.  “They
have him hidden somewhere.”

“You’re the liar,” said Poppy in a voice as forceful
as any adult. 

“I’m not leaving,” said Damien.  “I can’t.”

Anna laughed at him spitefully.  “Well, then
we’re shit out of luck, because you say you’re not leaving, but I promise you
that you are.  Either you go nicely or we’ll send you back to your
precious mothership in bait buckets.”

Damien sighed.  “You’re not being smart. 
I’ll fight you all if I have to.”

“And I’ll back you up,” said Fox.

“Try and stop me,” snarled Birch.

Alistair laughed.  “You think you can cut us all
down?  I dare you to try.”

Damien raised his sword and let out a long sigh. 
“Don’t make me do this.  Just hand over the man I came for.” 
I
really don’t want to have to do this.

“We don’t have him,” said Anna.

“I don’t believe you.” 
Don’t make me do
this.  You’re pushing me.

Anna shrugged.  “Then you’d be best off leaving.”

Damien glared at the woman.  Her stony gaze
showed no signs of wavering.  Her brown eyes were like orbs of
conviction.  “I can’t leave,” he said coolly.  “Not without the man I
came for.”

“For the last time, he’s not here.”

She’s not going to budge.  She has balls as big
as I do. 
Damien gripped his sword tightly, preparing to use
it. 
But violence isn’t going to solve anything.  That’s not why
I’m here. 
From the corner of his eye, Damien saw Birch move.  He
was edging along the deck towards the railing. 
Damn it, Birch. 
Don’t do it.

“He’s going for his knife,” shouted Poppy.  “Stop
him.”

Alistair charged at Birch, but Birch was quicker. He
couldn’t get a decent grip on the handle in time, but was able to smash the
grip into the fat man’s nose, dropping him to the deck.

“Stop,” shouted Damien.  “Birch, stand
down.  This is not helping.”

Birch turned on Damien and snarled.  “Fuck you,
Roman.  This prick broke my nose.”

“Stand down!”

Birch ignored him and marched over to Alistair. 
The man was clutching his face and bleeding heavily from a broken nose. 
“Now we’re even, you fat fuck,” snarled Birch.  “But maybe I need to teach
you a lesson on top.”

Damien shoved Birch aside just as he was about to
deliver a kicking to the downed man.  “Will you cool it, you bloody
muppet!”

“Calm down, Birch,” said Fox.  “You’re acting
like a bleedin’ psychopath?”

“He
is
a psychopath,” said Alistair, spitting
blood onto the deck as he propped himself up on his elbow.  “He’s a kiddie
fiddler, too.”

Birch exploded with rage.  “You’re a dead man.”

Damien tried to restrain Birch, but the larger man
threw a punch and struck him on the jaw.  Damien’s vision exploded with
stars and he stumbled sideways. 

Birch charged at Alistair and booted him in the ribs.
 Alistair cried out in agony.  Anna dove at Birch and clung to his
back, clawing at his face. Birch thrust his head backwards and caught her under
the chin.  She dropped to the floor like a sack of spuds. 

Birch resumed his attack on Alistair, standing over
the man and snarling like a wolverine.  He raised his knife in the air,
blade pointed downwards.  “Say goodnight, you fat piece of shit.”

Alistair grinned wide.  Blood stained his teeth
red.  “Kiddie fiddler.”

Birch roared and plunged his knife downwards.

Damien had shaken the stars from his vision but had
not recovered quickly enough to stop Birch.  As it turned out, it was
Poppy who managed to stop him from killing Alistair.

A split-second before Birch drove his knife into
Alistair’s gut, the young girl barrelled into him from the side.  He
stumbled onto one knee, cursing, but was quickly upright again.  He glared
at Poppy and snarled.  “You little bitch!”  

He slashed his knife at her face.

She screamed.

Damien leapt.  Drove his spear into Birch’s ribs.
Yanked it free.  Stabbed again.

Birch wheezed and dropped down onto his knees.
 Then he started bleeding…badly.  He glared at Damien and went to
speak, but only blood spilled from his mouth.  He fell face down on the
deck and stopped breathing, looking like a washed-up seal.

Poppy staggered backwards, a small sliver of blood on
her cheek where the tip of Birch’s knife had kissed her. 
I saved her
just in time.

Fox was shaking his head and pacing.  “This is a
complete mess.  Jesus.  What the hell, Roman?  You killed Birch”

Damien swallowed back a mouthful of bile.  “I had
no choice.”

“No, you didn’t,” Anna said quickly.  “Birch
tried to hurt a child and you stopped him.  You had no choice.”

You people gave me no choice. 
Damien stared down at Birch’s body and let out a snarl.  “I came
here to collect a criminal.  If you people hadn’t messed me around then
this would never have happened.  I wish you’d just fucking lied about
having him here in the first place.”

“He’s not here,” Anna said.  “He was, I admit it,
but he disappeared.  I don’t know where he is.  I’m telling you the
truth.”

“I’m here,” said a voice, which caused them all to
turn their heads as one. 

Damien’s eyes narrowed. 
There you are indeed.

The cripple was striding down the pier on his double
crutches like some strange insect.  A slender black man walked beside him
with a look of noble concern upon his face.  The remaining members of the
pier approached, too, several paces behind.  Suddenly Damien and Fox were
outnumbered ten to two. 
I really shouldn’t have killed Birch.

“Here I am,” said the man who Damien had shot just a
few days ago.  “I hope you’re not disappointed to see me alive.  I
owe my life to the kind people of this pier.  They patched me up and kept
me safe until I had some of my strength back.  I must have a guardian
angel for them to have found me in the state you left me in.”

“I must own the blame for having hid him,” said the
black man in a soft African accent.  “We have been beneath the pier,” he
added.  “On the sands.”

The cripple hobbled forward on his crutches. 
“You wanted me, Roman, so here I am.  But why don’t you tell these people
what this is really about before you take me away.”