Fangtooth (10 page)

Chapter 21

Jack never would have believed his head
could hurt so much. A roaring sound bombarded his ears, and he gingerly opened
his eyes to find himself bound hand and foot to a stake in rocks at the edge of
the sea. A thick wall of fog billowed around him, clammy and cold.

He tried pulling his hands free, but the
binding was too tight. A ringing sound caught his attention, and it took him a
moment to realise it was the phone in his pocket.

He couldn’t understand what he was doing
there. His fingers felt numb, the rope or whatever was used to tie his hands,
too tight. He tried prizing his wrists apart to relieve the pain, but whoever
had tied him had done a thorough job.

The phone stopped ringing.

He couldn’t see much through the fog,
but there were small rock pools around his feet, and waves crashed into the
rocks, spraying him with rabid foam. Cold and wet, he shivered and fought to
hold back the tears.

Tenerife had nothing on this.

“Hello, is anyone there?” he shouted.
The only reply came from the roar of the sea as waves crashed ashore. “Please,
tell me what’s going on. Why am I here?”

When no one answered, Jack struggled
against his bindings, but all he succeeded in doing was inflicting pain on his
wrists worse than any Chinese rope burn.

A shrill cry made him jump and he twisted
his head to see a seagull on the rocks. The bird eyed him for a moment, then
took flight and disappeared into the fog.

Jack couldn’t understand what he was
doing here. It was crazy. Saltwater stung his head, probably from a cut where
his assailant had struck him. He ached to rub it, to make the pain go away.

Movement caught his eye and he looked
down to see a large red crab scuttling across the rocks near his feet. It
stopped and clicked its pincers a couple of times. Jack wanted to kick it away,
but couldn’t with his feet bound. If it wanted to nip him, there was no way he
could stop it. He watched as it scuttled closer.

“Get away, shoo,” he said, a slight
tremor in his voice. “Go on, get away.” He felt ridiculous trying to scare a
crab away, but by the look of its large pincers, it could deal a wicked nip,
which was the last thing he needed on top of his current predicament.

Desperate to escape, he lunged forward
as far as he could, hoping the post might be rotten and would snap, but it held
firm.

At his feet, the crab scuttled into a
rock pool and disappeared below the surface of the water, where it sat,
seemingly staring up at him with its stalk eyes. Molluscs’ clung to the rocks
in the shallow pool, along with trails of seaweed that drifted like a mermaid’s
hair.

Jack looked back out to sea and screamed
as loud as he could, his cry cut off when a fresh wave of sea spray hit him in
the face, making him cough and choke as it entered his mouth.

The saltwater stung his eyes and he
blinked rapidly to try to clear his vision. When he looked back down at the
rock pool, he noticed the level of the water was slightly higher than before.
The tide was coming in.

He screamed again until his throat was
raw, but no one answered. Breathless and exhausted, he slumped against the
post. He wondered how high the water would come, then remembered rubbing his
face against the molluscs, a marker for the high tide, which meant the water
would rise above his head.

Panicked, he struggled against his
bindings, but it was hopeless. There was no way he could break free.

Why had his dad moved them out here? Why
couldn’t they have stayed in the city where he was happy? If only his mum
hadn’t died …

He chastised himself that last thought.
It wasn’t her fault. Tears ran down his cheeks, blurring his vision. Unable to
wipe them away, he blinked rapidly and shook his head to clear his sight.

The crab still sat in the rock pool, but
there was something next to it, wedged into a crevice. Jack squinted to see
more clearly but the incoming tide churned the water, further obscuring his
view. He waited for the water to retreat, allowing the rock pool surface to
calm.

And that’s when he recognised what it
was. Bones.

There were bones
in the pool. Jack was no expert, but these weren’t any old bones–by the looks
of them, they were goddamn human.

Chapter 22

“Duncan,” Bruce said as he entered the
shop, “you haven’t seen my son, Jack, have you?”

Duncan looked up from where he sat
behind the counter and shook his head. “I’m sorry about that scene in the bar.”

“I’m not worried about that. I need to
find Jack.”

“He hasn’t been in here. Sorry.”

Bruce scratched his head and ground his
teeth. “Someone’s gone and ransacked my house.”

“Good god. Have you called the police?”
Bruce shook his head.

“I told him he should,” Erin said from
the doorway where she stood holding Shazam on the lead.

“I don’t know what the world’s coming
to,” Duncan said. “It wasn’t that long ago when people could leave their doors
unlocked.”

Bruce pursed his lips. Where the hell
was his son? Raw panic coursed through his veins. “I’ve got to find him.”

Duncan frowned. “What’s the big
problem?”

“I think something might have happened
to Jack. It’s too much of a coincidence after yesterday’s trouble in the bar.”

“Happened to him in what way?”

“I don’t know. I just feel … he isn’t
answering his phone.”

“What kid ever does answer his phone to
his parents?” Erin said.

“I know, I know, but … it’s just, I feel
it. Something’s happened to him.”

“Then what are we waiting for? Let’s
call the police,” Duncan said.

“They’ll only tell me to wait
twenty-four hours or whatever it is before reporting anything.”

“But at least you’ll have let them know;
and with the break in, they might take it more seriously,” Erin said.

Bruce nodded and made the call. As he
suspected, they said he’d have to wait twenty-four hours before they could do
anything for Jack, but when he reported the break in, they said they would send
someone around to investigate. He disconnected the call.

“Right then, let’s go find your son,”
Duncan said, striding around from the counter.

“You’re going to help?” Bruce said.

“Of course. I know the area better than
you do. Perhaps he’s just wandered off. I’m sure we’ll find him.”

“I hope you’re right.”

Duncan smiled to offer encouragement.
“By the looks of the weather, I’ll be needing my coat.” He grabbed a seemingly
damp jacket from the wall at the side of the counter, and then ushered them out
of the shop. He turned the sign to ‘closed’, locked the door
,
and then turned to face them. “We should start down
at the harbour. That’s where most kids like to hang out.”

Bruce looked across the road. Normally
the harbour would be visible, but the fog was too thick to see anything. He
could hear the faint clink of metal and the soft creak of wood from that
direction.

“Shutting up early, Duncan?” said a
stout girl with buck teeth who was standing in the doorway of the cafe. “Can’t
say I blame you. Not much business in this weather. I’d shut up too, but you
know mother, she wants me working here all hours no matter what.”

“Hi Samantha. No, we’re looking for
someone. Bruce here, well his son’s gone missing.”

Samantha visibly blanched. “New boy,
moved into the old Johnson place?”

Duncan nodded.

“I knew it,” she gushed. “I told him,
said to him only the other day that place was bad news.”

“Have you seen him today?” Bruce asked.

The girl nodded. “He was in earlier.
Warned him I did. Least I could do.”

“Do you know where he went?” Bruce
asked.

Samantha shook her head.

“Well if you see
him, get him to call his dad. Come on, let’s go,” Duncan said, striding away.

Bruce and Erin
followed. When they reached the other side of the road, Bruce shouted Jack’s
name, but as he’d feared, there was no reply.

“Let’s ask at the bar,” Duncan
suggested, already striding away before Bruce could reply.

As Bruce was about to follow, Erin
grabbed his hand. “Don’t worry. We’ll find him,” she said, squeezing gently.

He found her touch comforting. Any other
time, he would want to maintain the contact for as long as possible, but with
today’s events uppermost in his thoughts, he broke the contact, forced a feeble
smile and said, “I hope so.”

Erin nodded and they started across the
road after Duncan, who was already becoming indistinct in the fog.

Bruce and Erin caught up to Duncan
outside the bar, where he was talking to a cute teenage girl with short blonde
hair who stood with her arms folded across her chest to keep warm.

“So you haven’t seen him?” Duncan said.

The girl shook her head. She looked at
Bruce and Erin, then down at Shazam.

“Didn’t I see you talking to Jack the
other day, by the harbour?” Bruce asked.

The girl nodded. “Yeah, I was with my
friends.” She stroked Shazam’s head.

“And have you seen him since?”

The girl shook her head again. “Sorry.
No.”

Bruce let out a loud breath. He couldn’t
put his finger on it, but something in the way the girl looked at him suggested
she was lying. “Well, if you do see him, please tell him to contact me. It’s
urgent.”

“Why, what’s the matter?” she asked.

“I’m just worried something has happened
to him. He’s gone missing.” Shazam whined as though in sympathy.

The girls left eye twitched slightly.
“If I see him, I’ll be sure to let him know you’re looking for him. Anyway, I
have to go.”

Bruce watched her walk quickly away, and
any thought he had of following her was lost when she disappeared into the fog.

Jen looked over her shoulder and
breathed a sigh of relief when she saw only shadows and fog at her rear. She
had never been very good at lying. She hadn’t done anything wrong, but she
couldn’t get the thought out of her head that perhaps Rocky had been involved,
so the less she said, the better.

She knew she didn’t love Rocky, but she
still didn’t want to see him get into trouble, especially if he wasn’t
involved. It did seem a little bit too much of a coincidence that Jack had
disappeared after arguing with her boyfriend. She knew Rocky was hot-headed,
but she couldn’t believe he’d had anything to do with it. But what if he had?
What if Jack was lying in a ditch somewhere? She would never forgive herself.

Unnerved by her thoughts, she headed
towards Rocky’s house to have it out with him.

The house where Rocky lived was on the
outskirts of the village. Rocky’s father used to be a trawler man, but his
career had been cut short, even before the present problems with quotas and
lack of fish, when he lost an arm during an accident at sea. Not long after
that, he walked out on the family. Whether it was out of some misguided sense
of loyalty or just dumb choice, Rocky wanted to become a trawler man too. Didn’t
even seem bothered that rowing boats made him feel seasick.

Even though she could probably find her
way around the village blindfolded, the fog was testing her to the limit. She
almost walked into a lamppost, then stumbled into a dustbin, grazing her leg.

Cursing under her breath, she rubbed her
injury to alleviate the pain, and then continued on her way.

When she reached Rocky’s house, she
climbed the three steps, walked along the short path and rang the bell. The
downstairs lights were on, creating indistinct blobs of luminescence in the
haze.

She stamped her feet and blew into her
cupped hands while she waited. The fog was freezing, and she knew the dampness
must have made her hair look like rats’ tails. She didn’t like people seeing
her at anything less than her best, but now she had no choice.

She rang the bell again, and knocked
loudly. Moments later, she heard a voice shout, “I’m comin’,” and then Rocky
opened the door. He stared at Jen for a moment as though he didn’t know who she
was, then he nodded his head in greeting.

“Jen, what are you doin’ here?”

“Tell me you haven’t hurt him. Promise
me, Rocky.”

Rocky held his hands up. “Hey, what are
you on about?”

“Jack. That new guy in the village, he’s
gone missing. Tell me you aren’t involved.”

Rocky looked down at the ground. He
shrugged. “He’s a twat. It’s nothing to do with me.”

“Look at me,” she said.

Rocky looked up, shoulders hunched, and
shoved his hands in his jeans’ pockets.

“Tell me the truth,” Jen said.

“I’m telling you the truth. Anyway, it
should be me questioning you.”

Jen frowned.

“The other night. I saw the two of you.
He was outside your house. It was obvious he fancied you, and by the sounds of
it, you were leading him on.”

“Was not.”

“That’s what it sounded like to me. I
should have had it out with the cunt then.”

“Had what out? We were only talking.
It’s not a crime, you know.”

Rocky grunted in response. “Whatever.”

“Look, he came to see me. So what?
Trouble is, now he’s gone missing.”

“Great. Serves the prick right.”

Jen bit her lip and scowled. “Just tell
me you’re not involved.”

“I’ve already told you. But so what if I
was? You’re my girlfriend, not his. You’re not supposed to worry about other
guys.”

“That is so lame. I can be concerned
about whoever I like. Now tell me, where is he?”

“I’ve told you, I don’t know.”

“But you do know something.”

“Yeah, and so do you.”

“What are you on about now?”

“You know, the drugs he stole from
Zander. He told you about it, right?”

The revelation hit Jen like a brick.
Zander. But Zander didn’t know Jack had stolen his drugs, not unless …

“My god, you didn’t tell him, did you?”
she said.

Rocky shrugged. “So what if I did.”

“Zander’s a lunatic. He’d kill him.”

“Save someone else the job then.”

“Rocky, how could you?”

“It was only what he deserved.”

“You prick.”

“You can’t talk to me like that.”

“I just did. And as far as I’m
concerned, we’re through.”

“Fine. I prefer a
girl who’ll put out anyway, not a frigid bitch like you.”

Jen fought to control her temper. She
had more important matters to deal with now. How could she tell Jack’s dad what
she knew without getting Jack into more trouble? Talk about being stuck in a
difficult situation.

Without another word to Rocky, she spun
and started walking away.

“If Zander hasn’t finished the creep, you
can bet I’ll do the job properly,” Rocky said before he slammed the door shut.

Jen shivered, and made her way quickly
towards the harbour. She only hoped she wasn’t too late.