My Demon (27 page)

“To the park.” Clive searched the streets with a dark intensity. They passed someone, and Alex spotted the blue smoke emanating from their eyes. Another had a sickly thin smoke that disappeared instantly like warm breath on a frosty morning. A couple leaked a thick cloying substance that seemed to crawl from their eye sockets, so heavy it fell to the ground like liquid. She shivered involuntarily and looked ahead. Most of the Podis-infected were somewhere in the middle with blue mist billowing out like a smoke stack, up into the air where the different shades mixed and mingled above the buildings.

Alex watched all this with a sense of adventure, a sense of taking in all she could before the visions were erased from her mind forever. The only part she couldn’t quite explain was the way the infected people all seemed to follow her path with interest, and at any one time, a dozen eyes appeared to be focused on her. Alex figured that with hallucinations, paranoia was most likely joined hand in hand and ignored the hazy blue attention. Today, more people seemed to be infected, as if in confirmation that the Podis were breeding. A chill ran through her, as she considered if they were real or not. If she took pills to take away her sight, would that meant they really didn’t exist? Or leave her like a sitting duck, ready to be taken at their leisure?

No. She was being silly. Enjoy the oddness. Tomorrow the world would be back to normal.

“To the park then,” she said. “And what are we going to do when we get there?” The day was taking on a festival feel, almost a sense of going into the House of Mirrors with Clive on her arm to cling to when a face appeared too close.

“This is serious Alex, be on your guard.”

“That’s why I have the torch, yeah, I get it,” she replied, shrugging her left shoulder, making her rainbow bag dance up and down with the movement. The heavy torch gently knocked at her in the small of her back. She had never noticed before how heavy that particular torch was.

“This is it, babydoll. You ready?”

Clive had lost his sparkly white grin. In fact when she really looked at him, she realized he’d gone pale—completely washed out. A small wave of doubt made her step falter.

“Sure…” She caught a whiff of fear from Clive. The demon, scared? Her happy thoughts fled, and a creepy sensation spread a rash of goose bumps over her skin. By the time they entered the park on one of the smaller paths, she had a tight hold on Clive’s arm. They headed for the most thickly wooded area. Then he pulled her off the path.

Alex wasn’t sure what to expect as they wandered aimlessly in and around the densely planted trees. A branch snapped nearby as Clive led her across the fern carpeted undergrowth. Alex jumped at the sound, and clung onto Clive with both arms, a nervous titter escaping her lips.

“Made me jump,” she said quietly. To her left a squirrel darted up a tree.

“Stay nervous, might keep you alive.”

“Keep me alive? What are you going on about…?” Alex began saying. But her words were cut off as a large man bounded out from behind a wide trunk and crashed directly towards her.

“Silly girl, asking for this,” he spoke, more a guttural spew than a statement. A balaclava covered his face, and he’d dressed all in black. Only his eyes remained uncovered, and they spurted a thick blue essence that blew fast towards Alex, touching her with cold fingers moments before the man barreled into her.

“What the fuck!” she hollered.

They hit the ground together, his weight knocking the breath out of her. For a moment she lay motionless, stunned by the fall. Then she beat at him with her arms, struggling to get out from under him.

“Clive!” she yelled. She turned her head to the side, thrashing from side to side as she searched for the demon. She tried to knee him, but the man pressed down harder on her, grunting in pleasure.

“Clive!” she shrieked. He’d gone. She grabbed at the man’s face but got the balaclava instead. She tore it off, and seeing the expression of glee on his face, she wished she hadn’t. “Get off me…” she shouted at him. “GET OFF ME!” Alex screamed. He grabbed one of her arms by the wrist, and then caught the other. He held them together in one of his massive hands and pinned them above her head.

Unable to do more than flap her hands, she twisted her head away from the man, straining away from his hot breath that reeked of vomit.

“Stupid girl, didn’t you realize this was bound to happen,” he grunted, his Podis smoke wrapping around her head, it stank of ozone, like when an electrical storm is overhead. It trickled into her nostrils and inside her mouth, coating her tongue with a sticky dry film.

“Help,” she cried, too low at first. “HELP ME, SOMEONE HELP ME!” she screamed. She tried to kick him again, but he pinned her legs down with his own.

“Shut up stupid girl.” With his free hand he punched her across the face. She stared up at him, momentarily stunned. He took the back of his hand to her a second time. The blow hit her hard, and for a moment her thoughts jumbled in her mind as a dull thud vibrated around her head. Alex tasted blood on her lips leaking into her mouth and down the side of her face, but the pain still hadn’t arrived, only the coppery taste from a cut.

“Shut up, or worse will come.”

She thought he might have tried to smile, but his attempt seemed more of a sneer, and this frightened her more than anything. What was he going to do? Images flashed before her of what he might do. Alex bucked, and managed to catch his side with her knee. Before she could kick out a second time, the man gave a punch to her stomach. Her breath shot out, and she lay still, trying to make her lungs work. While she lay on the ground winded, he started fiddling with his trousers.

Why? The thought screamed in her mind. Why would he be undoing his trousers? Her eyes widened. She threw her head to one side staring through the foliage in an attempt to make out how far into the bushes she was. Weakly, she called out, “Help!” She coughed and tried to inhale. Her stomach hurt so much where he’d hit her.

The man stopped what he was doing and leaned up close, so they were almost nose to nose. “Another noise and I’ll snap your neck.”

Alex stared unblinking.

“Nod so I know you understand.”

The stink of his breath made her tummy roll. Not now, she begged, please, don’t be sick now. She nodded, and he returned to his zip.

Was this the test Clive had told her about, was this the proof? The torch she’d packed was in her backpack and underneath her. As her attacker concentrated on his belt, Alex wiggled just enough to partly free her bag.

“Please don’t do this, I won’t tell anyone, I’ll go away and not tell a soul,” she begged, making sure the volume of her voice remained low.

He ignored her.

Alex turned away from the man and searched between the trees. If just one person wandered this way, they’d save her. A slight movement made her heart pound faster. Someone was there! Her heartbeat quickened. A squirrel twitched halfway down a tree trunk. It stared at her for a moment, flicked its tail and disappeared into the undergrowth. Disappointment filled her.

“Do you think we can let you live after this? Stupid girl,” he said. The man reached down and grabbed at her waistband. He was going to do it. Panic coursed through her, and she did everything she could to not buck and kick. She needed to think of a way to live through this. He yanked at her trousers and ripped them down to her knees. She clamped her legs together, and for a second, she realized he’d wrecked her trousers. She closed her eyes. What a stupid thought. I’m about to be raped. Please, please, someone find me, she prayed. If I have a guardian angel, someone watching above, please make him stop. A tear escaped her eye.

Alex lay silently. Something would happen, she had to believe something had to distract this monster. Stop him before things went too far. She opened her eyes and decided to memorize his face. She’d wait for her time. No point struggling and getting worse than a slap or punch. Alex’s jeans had come down too easily, too quickly. He grabbed a hold of her underwear and ripped them bodily from her. Alex yelped as the tearing fabric burned her skin. He reached down again and separated her legs. He was too strong. She tried to squeeze her thighs together, but he yanked them apart and got his own legs between hers.

This was nothing like the slow sensitive love of Jeremy or even the passionate clutching embraces of Clive. This was a caveman need. She was an object to be used and discarded. He shoved his hand inside her, tearing her skin as he forced his fist into her vagina. She gasped in a scream.

“Don’t make a noise,” he said with a grunt.

Pain flooded her as he pumped his hand in her. Was this it? Would he kill her anyway? What was his plan? Rising above the hurt she forced her eyes open and studied his features, the scar on his forehead, the lanky brown hair thinning but not gone. The cheeks were chubby, the man overweight in general, but by no means unfit. Sweat dribbled over his skin as he worked on her. Soon, drops would fall onto her. His movements felt slicker now. She briefly wondered how badly he’d torn her. The pain was immense, and she was certain blood was pouring from her. Alex held her breath against the jagged bolts of pain and searched the woods again for a rescuer. Was this Clive’s plan? Surely he wouldn’t let her die at this monster’s hands? He’d said so many times how he needed her alive. This was not part of the plan. Her future did not include being found in a heap under a tree by some passerby’s dog.

“Please, leave me alone.” She wept, pleading silently for forgiveness. “I’m sorry I hurt you, Jeremy,” she whispered. Alex receded within her mind, away from the man grunting above her and the caustic blue smoke that choked her lungs. In her mind she swapped places with Jeremy, and her body crunched under the wheels of a minibus, and Jeremy stayed at her side.

“Babe, don’t let him do this,” Jeremy whispered in her ear.

The man stuck his hand even deeper into her, and unable to cope, she shrieked in pain. Her attacker let go of her arms and punched with his left, his right still inside her.

“Shut the fuck up,” he said. But before he'd even finished shouting at her, his attention was back to between her legs.

“You can finish him, here, now…” Jeremy stroked her hair the way she had stroked his as he lay on the dirt, heart still and cooling.

The fist jabbed harder, ripping her more as she tilted her pelvis as far away as she could.

“The torch, don’t forget the torch,” Jeremy whispered in her ear, and she opened her eyes.

The monster had pulled his trousers down so a limp scrappy thing that resembled a dead slug fell from between his legs. With his right hand thrusting hard inside her, she moaned and rocked her head from side to side. Please, someone, anyone… She searched the woods again in the hope of finding a person nearby. He left her hands free, but the fight had gone out of her. He reached down and began fiddling with his little penis, trying to make it hard. It flapped in his grasp, unresponsive.

“The torch.” Alex heard Jeremy’s last words clearly.

She took her chance, reaching over and unzipping the bag far enough to squeeze her fingers inside and pull out the torch. The monster sweated above her, pulling hard on his penis. It was beginning to engorge now, and Alex wasn’t sure if she could lie placid when he tried to insert that inside her body. The torch finally secure in her sweaty grasp, Alex wasted no time. She swung her arm over so the back of her hand rested on the scrub. Then in one smooth and unfaltering movement, she aimed the torch at her attacker’s head with all her might.

A shrieking sound erupted from the monster as the torch hit. He whipped his hand out of her and held the palm to the back of his head. Blood spurted out from between his fingers. Alex squirmed, trying to get out from under him as the man collapsed to the side. She risked giving him a shove. He was so heavy. With her hands and feet wedged between them, she heaved him off. He flopped onto the ground, and rolled over onto his back.

“Get off me, get… off…!” Alex screamed and tried to crawl away. He still had one of her legs trapped under his. With an almighty shove, she got free. To her horror, she realized the hand that had been inside her was coated with blood—her blood—right up to the wrist.

“Clive,” Alex called out and looked around. Behind every tree, she seemed to find the shadow of a lurking Podis-infected person. What if they’d surrounded her? Was this their way of getting back at her for the murders she committed? She climbed to her feet and spun around in circles, unsure of which way to run. Thin clouds of blue mist blew in on the breeze, wisps curling off in her direction, as if searching for her.

The pain in her gut intensified, and silver sparkles filled her vision. “No…” Alex groaned. Don’t faint, not now. She collapsed next to her attacker, and took a few deep breaths. Her vision began to clear, and Alex crawled away fast, the torch still clutched in one fist. She stopped to put her other hand to her belly. She hurt so bad.