Imagine There's No Heaven - 8. Chapter 8

‘Where do you think you’re going?” Peter cocked a weapon and pushed it against Jack’s head.

Jack lamented. He gasped as the cold metallic barrel touched his left temple and adrenalin surged through his body. His heart beat faster. His mouth went dry.

‘Both of you, place your hands above your head where I can see them. Don’t make any smart moves Ray.’ Peter said, quietly. ‘What the fuck are you doing helping this moron in the first place?’

Ray remained silent. If he spoke now, he would give away the biggest secret of the lot.

‘Well, maybe I can answer that for you. Maybe you’re a double agent too.’ Peter said.

The two drunk cell members and Paddy stumbled out of the house, shouting at both men to stop. Although the situation seemed under control, they pressed forward.

Peter shouted to them as they approached, stumbling on the run. ‘What the fuck is going on? I left you two idiots to watch over this scum of the earth and you can’t even do a simple thing like that.’

‘Sorry boss….we….we…’

‘You’re both fuckin’ drunk. Paddy, help me take them back. You two, search them.’

Jack’s head spun in circles. Everything around him was moving at three times the speed of light. Eventually he felt so lightheaded that he keeled over and hit the ground with a soft groan. Peter grumbled, cursing under his breathe.

‘Pick him up. Take him to the basement.’ Peter said, then tapped Ray on the shoulder. As he turned, Peter’s fist connected the right side of his face and he went down, but not out.

‘You were the one man I trusted. You!’ he said, reaching into his gun holster. He pointed the weapon at Ray’s head and squeezed the trigger. In that split second before he died, Ray stared at him with a bewildered look. Then he fell back.

***

The light bulb hung from the ceiling, its terse radiance hurt Colton’s eyes. Rising damp discoloured the walls and the paint peeled off like an old tree shedding its bark, leaving a thick, musky smell in the air. Spider webs intersected, overlapped and crisscrossed the room like fine rays of light skidding across a dark sky. He could touch the ghosts who had died in here and knew that only time separated his own life and death. Richard’s composure disturbed him. The closed eyes reminded him of a man in prayer. And he hoped that Richard was in prayer, because they’d need all the prayers in the world to survive. Blood seeped from young Bernard’s wrist as the ropes pulled tighter into his skin. They would use the child to get answers, and he was helpless to save him.

‘So. Are you going to tell me what’s going on?’ Richard asked.

Colton stared at him for a moment. ‘It’s complicated, but I’ll try.’

‘This had better be good.’ Richard said, staring into Colton’s eyes, his mouth puckered in anger.

‘I come from Laferty. A small town not far away. It’s an hour’s drive from…’

‘I’m not interested how far away the place is. What the hell did you do to make these guys so angry?’

‘Nothing. I swear on Jesus’ name. It was Jack. I was running away from them because they were after Jack’s notebook. The bike broke down and I had no idea I was followed…’

Richard shook his head slowly. He leered at Colton through watery eyes.

‘You don’t believe me…’ Colton’s head sagged.

‘What the fuck is in the notebook?’

‘Jack had been recruited into this cell as an active member of the IRA. Yesterday they detonated a bomb in Laferty, killing thirty or more school kids. Jack is the only survivor. But I swear he isn’t involved. Oh god! I’m so confused. He wrote everything in that note book. I haven’t had a chance to read much in it, and maybe, just maybe now that they have the book, they’ll let us go…’

Richard’s anger rose into a crescendo and he spat out the words. ‘If my son dies, you’d best hope that you die here at their hands.’

‘No one’s going to die here, Richard…’

That’s when they heard the single gunshot.

Richard opened his eyes and stared wide eyed at Colton.

Colton caught his breath and whispered, ‘Jack? Oh God.’

Richard, angry as he was at Colton for bringing Bernard into this mess, heard the fear in Colton’s voice. For a moment he wanted to comfort him, hug him and tell him everything would be okay, but that would be a lie.

Suddenly, one of the men burst through the door and dumped Jack on the floor a few feet away from them. Jack hyperventilated for a few moments and then fell into what seemed to be a deep sleep. His body weakened by the events of the past few hours. Colton wasn’t a doctor, but any person with at least one brain cell could tell that Jack needed medical treatment.

Peter appeared at the door. Hands in his pockets. Carriage straight. He lingered in the doorway before stepping into the room. He studied each person’s face. The silence in the room was palpable.

‘Well, what have we here? A party?’ he said, pointing at Bernard tied to the chair, straining against the ropes.

Richard lunged forward as if to attack him. ‘You bastard!’

Peter calmly stepped out of the way as Richard tumbled into the table behind him. The table rocked and an empty coke bottle fell to the floor and broke into a thousand pieces. He rolled over the glass and winced in pain as the glass pierced and tore at his skin. With a single quick movement he collected a larger piece of the bottle and clasped a shard of glass from the floor and held it tight in the palm of his hand. It seemed just the right size. Immediately he felt relief through the pain. Once alone, he’d start cutting through the ropes that bound him, and once free, he would exact his revenge.

‘You should’na done that. You see, I have no time for silly games. Now, I don’t really know who you are, and I don’t know who the boy is, but let me tell you, I don’t care. I have the notebook. I have Jack. The rest of you are all just…just props and a bloody waste of time.’ He turned and screamed at Paddy. ‘You should have killed them all the moment you had the notebook in your hand. Instead, you bring them here. For what? Why? To waste my fuckin’ time that’s all. Waste my fuckin’ time. You’re fuckin’ brainless!’

The man stared ahead of him, not moving, not blinking an eye. He knew then that Richard had given him the wrong advice, and, instead of being acclaimed a hero, and a quick thinker, he looked like a right real fool.

Peter pointed his revolver at the man and was prepared to squeeze the trigger when one of the guys shouted from the inside of the house. ‘Boss’ he burst into the basement. ‘You gotta come and see. Oh man this gets better by the second,’ he sniggered running through the house.

Peter glared at Richard and Colton and turned to Paddy, ‘Make sure they don’t do anything stupid.’ Then he turned to face Colton and said, “I’m not done with you two.’

***

Sue Greaney stood before Peter. The men who had brought her to him, stepped back and the one said, ‘She knows more than she’s telling. We can use her to draw Colton out.’

Peter’s grin turned into a wild laugh. ‘You fuckin’ idiots! You don’t know anythin’ do you? What….what is this? Family fuckin’ day? I’ve got Colton. I’ve got Jack and now I’ve got Sue Greaney. The cherry on the cake.’

‘I don’t know what you mean?’

‘I’ll show you what I mean, moron.’ Peter led them to the basement.

Sue’s eyes lit up when she saw Colton. Her gaze swept over Jack’s prostrate body and heard his moaning. Peter pushed her forward and she tumbled into Colton. As he stumbled backwards, he caught a glimpse of the shard of glass in Richard’s hands and the slight cutting movements he was making in the rope.

‘That’s what I fuckin’ mean. They’re all here. All of them and more.’

‘Who is the kid?’

‘Do I fuckin’ care? They’re all liabilities.’

‘I didn’t know. I thought you’d be happier if I brought her.’

‘Of-course you didn’t know. Because you’re a flaming idiot. Where’s Bradley?’

‘Dead. She shot him.’

Peter caught his breathe. ‘What?’

‘She shot him.’

Peter glared at her for several moments. He cocked his head to one side. ‘Are you sure?’

‘Yes. She shot him as we entered her flat.’

He turned to Sue. ‘Is this right? You killed my brother?’

She didn’t say a word. The whites of his eyes turned red. He stepped forward and lashed out with a cracking slap. Her head swished to one side. He stood back and slapped her again, a long sweeping slap that bruised her cheek.

‘Bring her upstairs. Paddy, you stay here and don’t hesitate to shoot. If anyone makes the slightest move. Shoot! Do you understand?’

‘Yes, sir.’

Five minutes later, they heard the first scream. Then the screams became a shrill wailing, like the cries of a broken woman. It penetrated the walls. It lapped against the windowsills. And it didn’t stop. It didn’t stop for twenty long minutes.

Colton felt the tears washing his cheeks and when they pushed her back into the room, and he saw the fear and terror and humiliation in her eyes, and the unzipped jeans, he knew for sure that he would come out of this, and he’d kill them all, if not together, then he’d seek them out one by one and destroy them.

For a moment, Richard stopped cutting into the ropes. His fingers had become numb as the glass sliced the ropes. He cut through skin and rope. He stopped cutting when he heard Sue scream out in agony. He stared at Colton and the agony on his face tore him apart. He wanted to reach out and take him into his arms, kiss his eyes and nose and mouth and tell him everything would be okay. But it lasted only a moment. His own anger needed attention. He was still bitter for allowing himself to be caught up in this nightmare.