Love Lies Dying (54 page)

Fifty-five

John shouted to Sherrie.

But there was no time.

No time to do anything.

He found himself trying to wave down the Jeep, trying to stop it somehow.

But he couldn’t.

Its motor revved.

It wasn’t going to stop.

As it charged towards them, he stood between the Jeep and the Ford for as long as he could, hoping he could make Zoe change her mind.

But the Jeep kept coming.

John dived out of the way with seconds to spare.

The Jeep flew across the road and smashed into the side of Sherrie’s car.

Metal on metal.

Sparks flew as lightning caught the whole scene in one split-second collage.

The ear-piecing scream of twisted metal and steel colliding filled the air.

As John tumbled on the road surface, he could hear the Jeep’s motor roar, the tyres screech on the road, the breaking and twisting of steel under pressure, and the sickening crash that ended it all.

There was silence for a few seconds before another clap of thunder vibrated the night.

He looked up from the road and glanced at the destruction.

The Jeep had Sherrie’s car pinned at the side. It had collected the end of the car and pushed it across the road and into the pines of the forest. The Jeep had come to rest impaled in the passenger side of the car.

Oh my God! Sherrie!

The rest of Sherrie’s car had been crushed against the wall of pines in the forest. It was sandwiched between the Jeep and the forest.

John stood slowly. His knees were bleeding and his jeans were torn in a couple of places. He was limping as he walked, but he didn’t care. He felt his left arm, making sure the stitches were still holding. He could feel no gaping hole, so he assumed they were.

But none of his wounds mattered anymore.

He had to save Sherrie.

As lightning struck, it illuminated the crash and John didn’t like what he saw.

The twisted bodies of the two cars, wrecked beyond belief, made him wonder about the state of the people who were in them.

Is that blood pooling on the ground?

Or something else?

Smoke was pouring from the Jeep’s crushed hood and he could hear something dripping somewhere.

Gotta move. And quick.

He ran across the road.

Peering into the Jeep as he approached, he looked for any sign of Zoe. The back door of the Jeep had popped open and was hanging wide. The soft canvas top was split along the side, flapping in the wind. The frame of the windshield had broken off and been flung forward, now hanging off the twisted metal of the hood.

And the driver’s door was open.

But there was no sign of Zoe.

John turned and looked around him.

Maybe she was thrown clear or jumped before impact.

But he couldn’t see her anywhere.

He opened his mouth to call her name.

Then stopped himself.

Suddenly, he was on edge again. Something wasn’t right. He was sure of it, but he didn’t know what exactly it was.

He wished he could find Zoe, he needed to know where she was. Not knowing made him panic.

He walked further forward, to the front of the Jeep where it pinned Sherrie’s Ford to the trees.

Bending down to look in the side window, he called to Sherrie. First in a low voice, and then louder when she didn’t reply.

A cold wind cut through him then. It seared his bloody knees and made him start to shiver.

The inside of the car was a crushed mess. There was very little left that resembled the insides of a car. He looked into the front seats, but Sherrie wasn’t there either.

Broken tree limbs stuck through the windshield and low-growing branches pierced the roof of the car.

“Sherrie!” he called.

Lightning flashed around him.

It was that split-second of illumination that showed him the driver’s door was open, swinging out between the trunks of two pines.

She got out!

He hoped he was right.

Thunder reverberated around him.

Maybe she got out!

She must have!

He straightened up and turned around to check the Jeep once more. As he did so, a double-fork of lightning stretched across the sky. He could see no one was in the Jeep. He could also see the puddles of liquid on the ground.

Fuel?

I hope not.

And then he realised he was standing in it. The fuel was running from underneath the Jeep and was pooling in several places, including around his feet, soaking his shoes.

“Shit,” was all he could manage.

Quickly backing away, he dashed into the forest, moving quickly around some of the pines to the other side of the car.

“Sherrie!” he called once more.

It was darker with the pines around him. While the trees gave him extra cover, they also made it harder for him to see.

His eyes slowly began to adjust.

Thunder rolled through the night, louder than before, shaking everything around him.

When the silence returned, he came to a halt to catch his breath and to listen to the night.

The breeze was almost a steady wind now, and it rustled the trees as it blew, making it harder to hear other sounds. The creaks and groans from the cars sounded unnatural and eerie, like some mechanical beast on the prowl, and didn’t help him calm down.

Control yourself. Sherrie needs you now. Keep a level head. Don’t lose it all now!

He tried not to think about the fuel leaking from the cars, or the fact that he had been standing in it.

This side of the road had a slight decline, and he knew if enough fuel pooled around the cars, it would eventually run down in this direction. Straight towards him.

And Sherrie.

“Sherrie!” he called again.

And this time he heard a muffled reply somewhere up ahead of him.

Was that her?
he asked himself.
It had to be! I’m sure it was!

But what if it’s Zoe?

I have to find out. It must be her!

But what if it isn’t?

John trekked on in the dark with his hands out in front of him, feeling for the pines all around him.

The forest was densely populated with the pines; their trunks standing tall and bare, with most of the foliage starting on branches more than ten or fifteen feet above his head. The ground was covered with a blanket of dead pine needles, softening his steps as he walked.

At least Zoe won’t hear me approach.

He smiled at that idea.

And you won’t hear her either!

His smile disappeared.

After what seemed like an eternity, John made it to the open driver’s door. He took one more look into the crumpled wreck, just in case Sherrie was in there. But the car was empty.

Lightning struck, illuminating the interior of the car. There was no doubt she wasn’t in there, but there was blood on the steering wheel and the door handle.

No!

John turned around to look back into the forest.

She couldn’t have gone far. She’s injured.

But what if she was carried? What if Zoe’s got her!

“Sherrie!” John shouted this time. He had to risk it. He
had
to find her.

He heard the quiet moan again, just before another wave of thunder erupted in the sky.

To the left. I heard it. I did! She’s off to the left!

Walking as quickly as he dared, he set off to the left, walking a few feet and then stopping, hoping his eyes would catch something that looked out of place.

He didn’t have to walk very far.

Within thirty feet of the car, he found her.

Sherrie was sitting at the base of one of the pines, her back pressed against its trunk and her head in her hands.

A flash of lightning showed the blood running down the side of her head.

John dashed to her, “Sherrie!”

She looked up with a dazed expression on her face.

“John?”

“Yes, it’s me,” he replied as he knelt down next to her.

“I thought you were…” she trailed off, shaking her head.

“Don’t think about that now,” he said as he hugged her. “Are you okay?”

She nodded. “I think so. I’m really not sure. I don’t even know what happened, or how I got here. I don’t remember much.”

“That’s okay, as long as you’re alright.”

“And you?” she looked into his eyes then, a worried expression on her face.

“I’ll live,” he tried to smile.

It didn’t work.

Sherrie looked around and into the night.

“Have you seen her?” she asked.

John shook his head. “No, I haven’t.”

“We’ve got to get out of here,” Sherrie said as she began to stand. “She’s crazy.”

“I know,” he helped her up. “But are you okay? Can you walk?”

Sherrie took a couple of small steps. “Yeah, I think so.”

Then she let out a yelp of pain and doubled over holding her side.

John reached for her and helped her steady.

“You sure?”

She took in some deep breaths and then straightened back up. “Yeah, I think so.” Pain flashed across her face. “We’ll just have to take it slow.”

“Okay,” he helped her walk a few more steps.

“How’s the car?” she asked.

“It’s a write-off.”

Sherrie nodded, “I figured as much.”

“We’ll have to make it on foot.”

“Okay,” she replied.

“You think you can make it?”

“Back to Hepburn Lakes?” she turned and smiled at him. “If I’m with you, yeah.”

Lightning flashed.

“We’re not going back to Hepburn Lakes,” he said in a deep voice.

“Huh?” she pulled away from him.

Thunder rumbled like a deadly beast.

“We’re heading to Redlingford.”

Fifty-six

“What?” Sherrie replied in a shocked voice.

“That’s where Fox has Helen,” John explained.

“I know, you told me that,” she replied. “But you said she was dead.”

“I think she is. But I have to know for sure.” John looked deep into her eyes. “Zoe said she’s dead and Fox killed her. But I have to know. I have to see for myself before I can really believe it.”

“You think Zoe lied to you?”

John hung his head and looked to the ground as lightning lit up the area. Images of the past two days flashed through his mind.

She came back covered in blood.

She was wearing Helen’s half-heart pendant.

Would she lie?

First they screw you, then they
screw
you!

Was Zoe telling him the truth or was it all lies?

“I don’t know,” he said finally, turning to face Sherrie once more. “But I need to find out. And if Fox is still there, I have to make him pay.”

Thunder rolled long and loud through the night.

Sherrie stepped closer, put an arm around his back and hugged him hard.

“I understand how you feel,” she replied. “I think it’s a bad idea, but I don’t think I have any choice other than to go along with you. I’m
not
walking back to Hepburn Lakes by myself.”

“I don’t want to get you involved in this, honey,” he replied.

“Too late,” she smiled at him and pointed to the blood on her face. “I already am.”

He nodded and sighed deeply.

“We better get moving,” he said as he reached out and wiped the blood from her temple. “Can you walk?”

Sherrie nodded. “How far is it?”

“Zoe said it was about ten miles from here.”

“Ten?” Sherrie sounded exhausted already.

“It’s going to take us some time to get there,” he replied. “Do you think you can make it?”

She nodded. “I’ll have to.”

“You can stay here. We’ll find a good hiding spot if you like.”

Sherrie shook her head vigorously. “No way. Uh-uh. I’m sticking with you this time. Safety in numbers. I’ll be okay.”

The wind blew strongly through the pines and lightning flashed.

At first, he thought it was the sound of the wind. But the noise got stronger and louder after the wind died.

“Jooohhhnnnyyy!”

John turned to Sherrie to ask if she heard it. But she was already looking at him, panic on her face.

She heard it too!

“Jooooohhhhhnnnnnyyyyy!”

The cry started low and built up as it stretched for seconds.

John turned in a circle, trying to pinpoint where the voice was coming from.

Zoe!

Another roll of thunder drowned out Zoe’s voice.

“She’s here,” Sherrie whispered, squeezing John’s hand while her eyes darted around them.

He nodded. “But where? It sounds like she’s all around us.”

The wind blew through the pines again; branches bent and needles rustled, combining with the eerie call.

“Jooohhhnnnyyy!”

“Let’s get out of here,” Sherrie pulled his arm. “This is starting to freak me out.”

John backed away towards Sherrie, his eyes wide and searching through the darkness.

Lightning split the night sky.

For a second, John could see clearly around him. His eyes danced, trying to spot Zoe somewhere.

But he couldn’t see her.

“Jooohhhnnnyyy!”

She sounded closer now as her voice floated on the wind. Closer, but still issuing from all around them. Almost as if the wind itself was calling his name.

Where the fuck is she?

Sherrie pulled him further into the forest.

“I hope this is the right way,” she said over her shoulder.

“Don’t worry,” John replied, his head still darting back and forth in the darkness. “Let’s just put some distance between us and her. We’ll work out where we are later.”

He squeezed her hand and they set off blindly through the pines, moving deeper into the forest and hoping they were leaving Zoe far behind.

Thunder growled around them.

“Jooohhhnnnyyy! Don’t goooooo!”

Zoe’s voice sounded just as loud.

Just as close.

Can she see us?

Does she know what we’re doing?

The hairs on the back of John’s neck stood on end as fear skittered up his spine.

They soon came to a halt and looked at each other.

Both John and Sherrie were thinking the same thoughts.

“Did that sound closer?” Sherrie asked.

“I don’t know.”

“I don’t want to run straight into her.”

“I know.”

“I just don’t know where it’s coming from!”

“We have to take our chances,” John replied.

“Jooohhhnnnyyy! Doooon’t leeeeeeave meeeeee!”

John shook his head. If he were out in the forest alone, he would probably think he was going crazy; the stress of the last few days, the dehydration and hunger, the pain. But Sherrie heard the voice too. Sherrie proved it was real.

We have to get out!

“Can you run?” he asked her.

“Yes, I can try,” Sherrie nodded.

“Okay,” John replied. “Well, just keep running. No matter what.”

She nodded.

The wind blew stronger through the trees.

“Jooohhhnnnyyy! Come baaaaaaack!”

Zoe’s voice crept through the night and cut through John’s soul.

Go back for her.

What?

Go back for her!

You can’t!

She can help me get to Fox.

You know where he is.

She can bargain with him.

It didn’t work last time.

She can help me!

Yeah, like she already has!

John thought about his wounds. The scratches on his chest bit at him in the cold night air. His arm was still dull with pain, but he could feel the stitches were still holding. He could still feel the lump on his head and the tight wrappings around his cock, and the dull pulling of the cock ring.

She did all that to you.

Yeah, you’re right.

She almost killed you.

Yeah, she did.

I owe her
nothing!
Not after all that has happened.

John turned to Sherrie and kissed her hard on the lips. He could smell her now. The sweet scent of her perfume enveloped him. He knew the scent; he’d given her the bottle the day after Christmas last year. Her long curly locks brushed against the side of his face and forehead as the wind blew around them.

Her hot full lips kissed him back with passion.

They embraced as lightning flashed in the sky.

“I love you,” she whispered as they pulled apart.

“And I love you.”

“Nothing’s changed,” she said.

John’s head tilted to the side. “And nothing’s changed with me either,” he replied.

She smiled at him then. It was the first time she had done that in a long while.

Thunder deafened them.

“Come on,” he said, grabbing Sherrie’s hand. “Let’s get out of here.”

And as they dashed through the pines and into the heart of the forest, Zoe’s voice followed them.

“Jooohhhnnnyyy! Coooome baaaack! Youuuu dooooon’t understaaaand!”

They ducked around trunks of trees, stepping carefully where they could.

As they ran, John was sure Zoe’s voice was fading into the distance.

But that could’ve been because of the wind. Or his heavy breathing.

Either way, he didn’t care.

Gotta get out of here.

He kept that thought rolling over and over in his mind.

Gotta get out of here. Gotta get out of here. Gottagetoutofhere!

“Jooohhhnnnyyy! Pleeeeeasssse!”

They ran into the night.

And Zoe’s voice began to waver; lost in the wind and in the thunder.

And when the sky opened up, Zoe’s pleading was swallowed in the rain that followed.

It fell hard and heavy.

John welcomed the rain.

Maybe it could wash away all the events of the last few days and give them the cover they needed to get out of here.

Maybe it could help him get to Fox and teach the bastard a lesson he wouldn’t forget.

Maybe…