The Rattler (Rattler Trilogy Book 1) (26 page)

Extract from Unleashed

Lucy

Lucy
is an Oxford history student who studies at Balliol College by day and works as
an emergency operator three nights a week. She loves the job, but studying
always comes first, and that applies with her social life too; she knows she
can’t afford to mess-up her graduate studies. She is well liked throughout the
campus, but, as Vana says,
‘She’s also a swat, but she’s useful.’
Nevertheless, the girl is hiding a secret
.
A secret she hasn’t shared
with anyone, not even her best mate, Jake. However, that is all about to change
following Teddy Carr’s emergency call, and her life, as she knew it, would be
transformed forever.

Detective
Fairway soon links Teddy’s accident to the
Savoy
Murderer
.
A manhunt starts,
but even Fairway couldn’t be prepared for the bloodshed that was about to be
unleashed
.
And, when Lucy’s secret is exposed and taken advantage of by
Hagatha, she is soon dragged into the dark world of the
Mather Curse
–
along
with Zoe and Vana
–
with disastrous consequences for them all.

Will
the girls survive a night of torment at the hands of Hagatha? The scene is set
–
for Halloween.

1

Saturday
29
^th
October 2011, London, England.
It’s 11.19 pm. The Aston
Martin turned sharply to the right, then the left. The headlights caught a
glimpse of a fox running furtively across the road and into a hedge. Teddy Carr
struggled for breath as Hagatha’s hands gripped tightly around his neck. With
his left hand on the steering wheel, and the other trying to release his
assailant’s cold iron grip, he struggled to control the car. Twenty seconds
into the torture he finally gasped, “Who are you? Who hired you?” Hagatha said
nothing. Instead, she took hold of his right hand and crushed it. He felt the
bones in his fingers snap. He bit the inside of his mouth; blood flowed down
his chin. His eyes began to water. “You, bitch! You fucking bitch!” He coughed
as her
cold,
black eyes stared at him through the
rear-view mirror. Teddy soon started to lose consciousness. His limp right hand
stretched weakly for the wheel, his finger-tips trying desperately to gain a
hold on the warm, black leather. They got a grip. The car spun violently,
clipped a telegraph pole, and rolled over and over again until it stopped in a
water-filled ditch. The shock of the impact quickly brought him back to
reality. “Shit, that wasn’t fun,” he mumbled.

Teddy
knew he had broken his right collar bone as the white serrated edge, mimicking
a shark fin, poked through the soft flesh. The Aston was a write-off. His eyes
scanned what remained of the car. Hagatha was gone. He pushed back the inflated
airbags.
“Bitch!
You whore!” He winced as he reached
for his seat-belt release button. “Fucking bitch!” he yelled, as he released
the belt. Pain had taken over his body. Blood was now flowing freely down his
right arm; he had a cut above his left eye, and red marks around his neck. He
took a deep breath, but that only amplified the pain. He again bit down on the
inside of his cheek, and reached out for his iPhone from the centre console.
The screen was smashed. He slid
the unlock
key and
dialled 999. He waited.

2

999
Call Centre, Kidlington, Oxford. The Operations Room was large and open-plan,
containing banks of desks and computers. Some fifty staff were either working
on computers, or counselling desperate Londoners who were seeking assistance.
Lucy, a stunning red-head, wearing jeans and a hoodie, wandered casually out of
a small kitchen with a full coffee mug in her hand. These days Civil Servants
weren’t tied to normal office attire
due to non-contact with members of
the public. This meant
that things were far more relaxed than they used
to be. In fact, the only day Lucy had dressed smartly to work was the day of
her interview, and to hear her prospective boss tell her that she could wear
casual clothes made her smile. She hated formalities and rules and
restrictions, whether it was wearing a school uniform or being suited and
booted. Therefore, for Lucy, that meant one thing;
‘It’s my dream job!
Jeans to work?
Yes, please! Where do I sign?’

On
the way back to her desk, she paused briefly to flick a wispy fringe away from
her face, but this was merely a distraction, as she used the hand to hide her
blushes. She had, once again, caught the attention of her red-blooded male
colleagues, who watched her like a hawk, as she walked across the room. As
Vana’s boyfriend, Matthew, once said, ‘
She’d be hot if she lost the glasses’
– and he wasn’t wrong!
She sat down at her desk, placed the mug down and
plugged in her headset. Lucy worked three nights a week – Saturday, Sunday and
Wednesday. She didn’t come from a rich family, nor did she receive a huge
student grant – that only just about covered her tuition fees – therefore her
living costs had to be covered by working. “Just another half-an-hour to go!”
she said, looking at her watch. The time was 11.30 pm.
Suddenly
her screen flashed; she answered the call. “Hello? What’s your emergency?” she
asked as she opened a call log screen. Teddy inhaled, and instantly a prickly
sensation travelled up his windpipe. “My name’s Teddy Carr,” he stuttered. He
swallowed hard. “I’ve had an accident ... I’ve rolled my car on Tree Lane,
London. I need an ambulance and police, urgently.”

“OK,
sir; how many are injured? Can you smell petrol fumes?” she asked, calmly.

“No,
I’ve cut the engine. And it’s just me, Billy-no-mates esquire.” Lucy laughed.
“At least you sound alright. I’ve just dispatched the paramedics and police to
your location. They should be with you soon.”

Once
again Teddy’s eyes scanned the wrecked car and the roadside. “I can’t see my
attacker, though,” he said warily, staring into the darkness, hoping
not
to catch a glimpse of the assailant. However he was alone – the road was
deathly quiet.

“Did
someone attack you?” asked a concerned Lucy.

“Yes,
someone broke into my car and hid on the back seat. She then tried to fucking
kill me!”
Wow,
thought Lucy,
someone
certainly pissed you off.

“Sir,
I understand it’s been a shock, but I need you to remain calm. Where is she
now?” said Lucy, her fingers beginning to type frantically.

“I
don’t know! I passed out, and when came round I was alone. Tell them to hurry;
I can’t feel my legs,” he said, as a feeling of dizziness overcame him.

“Do
you think you could describe her to me?”

“She
looked like a bad-ass witch!”

“I’m
sorry, sir, I didn’t quite catch that.”

“She
was a hag,” he rasped weakly.
“An old woman with black and
white hair, and deep-set black eyes!”
He paused for breath; a chill
raced down his spine, and a question spun around his head.
How did she get
into my car? The security on this thing makes it almost impossible!
He
glanced at the windows; yes, they were all smashed now – but he tried to recall
if they were intact prior to the accident. He couldn’t remember. As well as the
excruciating pain in his shoulder and legs, his head was banging and throbbing,
as if it was the base line for a dance track. “Hello? Mr Carr, are you still
there?” Lucy stopped typing. She feared the worst. “Mr Carr? Teddy?”

Teddy
finally spoke. “Yes, that’s all I can remember.” He glanced at the passenger
side door; it was open. “She’s gone, and my car’s fucked by the way.” Lucy
ignored the swearing as she continued to type into her computer. “Teddy, this
is important,” she said, calmly, “can you see if there’s a blood trail leading
away from the car?”

“Listen,
she tried to kill me! I hope so. I hope she dies out there.” Desperation now
crept into his voice; the fact that he was still trapped in his wrecked Aston
only heightened his anxiety. Once more he scanned the woodland for any sign of
her.
Nothing.
“I know you’re here somewhere! You
bitch! I’m gonna slap you silly when I get out of here! You hear me! Slap you
silly!”

“Mr
Carr, I need you to calm down. The paramedics should be with you soon. Please
try not to move. I’ll stay on the line ‘til they arrive.”

“That’s
easy for you to say
... ”
He flinched and took a deep breath.
“Jesus! That arse-bubbling hurt!”

“Teddy,
what’s happening?” No reply. Teddy felt a strong pain in his side. It was
Hagatha!
What the heck is going on?
thought
Lucy.
Has his attacker come back to finish him off?
Lucy suddenly had an
image of Hagatha in her mind; icy chills raced down her spine.

With
her hands wrapped tightly around his waistline, Hagatha’s sharp fingernails dug
deeply into his flesh, seeking out his kidneys. He felt her cold breath on his
neck. Teddy instinctively glanced in the rear-view mirror. Hagatha’s black eyes
stared intensely down into his soul. “Miss me, Teddy Bear?” she asked, with a
roguish smirk rapidly spreading across her face. “You’re going to slap me
silly, hey? Let’s see you try then.” She grinned. He jerked his head backwards
as hard as he could muster, hoping to hit her. He missed. Teddy screwed-up his
eyes; the pain was unbearable. “Help me! Somebody
help
me!” he screamed.

Lucy
had heard every word that had rasped out of Hagatha’s mouth. She shivered.
“Teddy? What’s happening? Who’s that with you?” As soon as she spoke,
screeching rang into her ears, causing her to jump up and stagger backwards.
She threw the headset down onto the desk, and hit the speaker button. Her
colleagues turned round and looked at her with puzzled faces. “Teddy, answer
me! Is that her?” she shouted, anxiously. “Is she back?” Teddy didn’t respond;
his left hand dropped the iPhone. All went black.

Hagatha
laughed.

1

“Mr
Carr? Teddy? Can you hear me?” demanded Jackie, a twenty-something blonde,
slim, with bright green eyes. Teddy shook his fuzzy head; he had the
mother-of-all headaches. He was looking directly down a spiral black hole. At
the bottom a white light flashed constantly, left to right. He tried to move
his right hand. Nothing – not a sausage! “Shit, that hurts,” he mumbled.
“Bollocks! My legs are even worse!” he moaned.

“Good.
He’s coming round,” said June, a brunette, probably in her thirties; she still
hadn’t lost her good looks. Teddy slowly opened his eyes and saw that he was
still on Tree Lane. He was lying on a stretcher that was being pushed towards
an ambulance. A foggy mist covered the entire area. “I’m not in hospital yet?
Jesus, I thought I’d wake up, maybe feeling better, at least fixed – and ready
to fuck!” The two paramedics just looked at each other. This wasn’t the Teddy
Carr they recognised – a former footballer and TV host – very polite on TV, but
lying here with a foul mouth.
He must be a lookalike!
thought
Jackie. “You’re certainly not the guy I watch every Saturday night,” remarked
June.

“That’s
me being nice. I have to be. I’m paid to sit there, give a running commentary,
have a chit-chat, and then F-off home.” Teddy was now wide awake.

“Can
we please keep the swearing down to a minimum? Because if you don’t, you see
that big fella speaking to the firemen
... ?”
June
pointed to Earl, a bald, fat man. Teddy frowned, “Where’s this going?”

“Well,
he’s a huge Fulham fan; do you really want me to tell him you moved to his
beloved club just for the money? He’ll make your journey to hospital a bumpy
one! He’ll find every exposed pothole in the road just to make you feel a tad
more pain,” she grinned.

“How
could you possibly know I went to Fulham for the cash?”

“Come
on! Do I really have to spell it out for you? It is obvious! The expensive
cars, the women, the nightclubs – they all benefited from your move! Don’t you
remember tipping a woman £50 at McDonald’s just because she cleared away your
table?”

“I
was drunk, and besides, she’s now my wife! So what? If someone wanted to pay
you £150k a week, after tax, you’re telling me you would turn it down?”

“Well
... no, I wouldn’t, not when you put it like that.”

“Enough
said,” he replied as his eyes returned to his beloved Aston, the roof of which
was now resting beside it on the floor as Teddy had had to be cut from the
wreckage. He watched as the firemen shared a joke with Earl, the Fulham fan.
“That’s right you bastards!” he yelled. “You laugh at me, and my car – but you
didn’t have to cut the bloody roof off!” Earl and the firemen turned and stared
at him.
We’ve just saved your rich, so-called ‘celebrity’ life – give us
some respect here,
thought Earl as he watched the girls push Teddy into the
back of the ambulance.

The
road was now sealed off. There were police officers everywhere, some gathered
around two squad cars, and others, obviously a forensic team dressed in white
boiler suits, collecting evidence. A small set of muddy footprints at the
entrance to the woods was their main focal point. Detective Fairway examined
the indentations in the sloppy mud. He froze. “Perhaps they belong to the
suspect?” commented a grey-haired man, who was a forensics examiner. “Possibly,
but I’ve seen this print before,” Fairway replied, as he looked closer at the
impression. He took out a black Parker pen from his pocket and placed it next
to the footprints for scale. Then he took out his mobile and snapped a
photograph for his records.

“Where, sir?
Show me and I’ll plastercast
them once I’ve finished this mould.”

“No,
not here,” said Fairway firmly. “I mean I’ve seen prints similar to these at
another crime scene.
Ms Wilson’s murder case; the Savoy
Hotel.”

“
The
Savoy Murderer?
”

“Yes.
I want the perfect cast of this. Please don’t, for Christ’s sake, balls it up.”
With that, Fairway walked off to address his troops, leaving the man to prepare
the mould for the Plaster of Paris. “Balls it up? When was the last time I did
that? Oh yeah, never!” he muttered under his breath.

2

A
little while later and the manhunt had started, complete with a helicopter
hovering above, its rotor blades making the deafening
whup-whup
sound
and its spotlight aimed down into the woods. “OK. She can’t have gotten too
far. I want K9s to start a search inland from here.” Fairway pointed to the
location of the footprints, which had now had a mould taken of them. “I want
roadblocks set up within a two-mile radius. Apparently, according to Mr Carr,
she’s an old woman. Nevertheless, whether she’s an old model or a young one –
she can’t have gotten too far.” Just then a voice could be heard coming from a
radio on the bonnet of the squad car. “We’re tracking a heat signature; 50
yards due north,” said the chopper’s co-pilot.

“Understood;
keep tracking.” Fairway returned his attention to his officers. “Right, we’re
getting somewhere. Have a patrol car intercept at this location,” he said,
pointing at a map being displayed on a tablet computer. “We’ll force her into
this bottle-neck.”

Hagatha
observed the policemen from deep within the woodland. She watched as Teddy’s
ambulance sped down the road. Suddenly, several flashlights in the distance
gained her attention. “She’s sent the wolves onto me,” she said huskily,
referring to Lucy. “You don’t line up against me in a duel and expect to live.”
Hagatha slowly moved backwards and hid behind a tree. She didn’t fret, not even
for a second, as the lights came closer and closer.

The
policemen were accompanied by three dogs, all barking loudly as they hunted
down the old hag. Visibility was poor and all the four policemen, who were
heading directly for her, could see was low-lying fog swirling silently over
the ground. The sky was black and the leaves on the trees gently swayed and
whispered in the cold breeze which shot across the men’s necks. They shuddered.
Paddy, the leading officer, held a dog leash in one hand and a heat sensor in
the other. The other three men covered him; they each held a gun that had a
flashlight attachment on the barrel. Paddy waved his hand for them to slow
down, and pointed to a heat source directly behind a tree. The purple image
showed an outline of a figure crouching down, trying to stay out of the
officer’s line of sight. Paddy stopped his men and then signalled a circling
motion with the heat sensor. He then quickly unleashed the dog, which bounded
noisily towards Hagatha’s location, whilst the other policemen encircled the
area. Hagatha was technically
trapped. The men began to close ranks; the
helicopter’s spotlight now hovered directly above. Suddenly, the policemen
heard the dog squeal and yelp; it was in agony. Without hesitation, the three
police officers opened fire as they ran towards the dog’s location.
“Ceasefire,” commanded Paddy as he hastily ran towards the howls of the injured
K9. The dog lay panting on the ground; his right leg had been broken, but he
was still alive. “Don’t worry, pal; we’ll get you fixed-up,” said Paddy. He
glanced anxiously around. “Where’s she gone?” he asked, scanning with his heat
sensor. “She should be directly here.” The purple mist had disappeared. He once
again scanned the area with the sensor, moving it around in a circular motion.
No sign of her until suddenly a purple cloud dashed behind a tree.
Unexpectedly, the three policemen fell to their knees, their hands frantically
clutching at their throats. Paddy watched on in horror as blood poured down the
men’s chests.

“Officers
down! I repeat, officers down!” he yelled into his radio. The cloud moved
again. He frantically moved the sensor around in circles looking for her.
“Where did you go?” he whispered. He was alone. His heart was pounding; he had
just witnessed three of his men being taken down; all of them dead; all within
a blink of an eye. He knew he would be next.

The
crackling sound of branches snapping made him spin around. His training kicked
in. He quickly unholstered and raised his Glock 19.
Stay focused. She’s here
somewhere.
He stopped. A heat signature briefly lit up the screen, and then
it vanished amongst the thick vegetation. He couldn’t see it anymore. “I know
you’re hiding! Put your hands up and slowly come out. You’re surrounded. You
can’t escape!” Just then Hagatha leapt on top of him, pinning him to the muddy
ground. Her hands locked around his neck. He managed to fire off three rounds.
The bullets went straight through her chest and lodged in a horse chestnut tree
behind her. He was stunned. “What the Hell are you?” he gasped as he struggled
to fight her off. He could feel his windpipe tighten with every passing second.

“Death,”
replied Hagatha.

She
snapped his neck as if it were a twig.