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NEW AUTHORS SHOWCASE
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01-0507 12M p2 |
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Rage by Simon Pert |
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Synopsis Mike Foster is spending the weekend visiting his good friend, Charlie James, in the idyllic hamlet of Perryton. But all is not as it seems, Charlie is having a rough time with her cheating husband, a man who likes his drink and using his fists in equal measures. Mike is worried that there is much more that she is not telling him and with her husband away for the weekend he has plenty of time to find out what is truly going on. Judy Turner is on a camping trip with her husband and daughter. A trip that is meant to bring them closer together as a family, a time for Judy and her husband to rescue a damaged relationship another’s betrayal has ruined. A chance for them to put all the pain behind them and move on. In the woods of Perryton lies a deep lake with as many secrets as it has depth. It is here that a parasite has been awoken and is now searching for food. One bite is all it takes. One bite from the parasite and your body becomes filled with a raging desire for harm and destruction.
Chapter Six
‘What was that?’ Judy Turner asked, suddenly sitting up inside of the tent, the covers falling from her body to reveal skin that was slick with sweat, her petit breasts quivering as coolness met her flesh; sweat glistened as goose bumps began to rise. ‘What was what?’ John replied, annoyance creeping into his voice. He lay face down on top of the sleeping bag, head resting over out-stretched arms. ‘I thought I heard a noise?’ ‘Perhaps it was Lilly?’ ‘I’m sure it was like a rustling from the trees.’ ‘Maybe the wind is getting up?’ ‘John I really think you should take a look?’ ‘Jesus woman, if it’ll set your mind at ease and shut you up I’ll gladly do it.’ with that John Turner eased himself up from the bedding, he pulled a pair of shorts from the side and quickly slid his damp body inside. ‘You know you watch far too many of those late night horrors babe.’ he reached the edge of the tent, pulled down the zip and the fly net and stepped outside. ‘See I told you there was nothing to worry about.’ he called, quickly scanning the area surrounding both tents. ‘Can you check on Lilly?’ came Judy’s voice, the shake obvious in her tone. ‘Sure!’ Making his way to his daughter’s tent he mumbled some obscenities before bending down to unzip the entrance to Lilly’s tent. From behind him he heard a sound. Turning he had enough time to catch his breath before the monkey wrench, his monkey wrench, came crashing down over the front of his head. Falling quickly, John Turner crashed into the small tent and with a thump he hit the floor, blood seeping from the wound as another attack came. This time the hammer pounded into his skull whilst the monkey wrench led another assault on the top of his skull. Bone split, blood seeped. From inside the larger of the tents came the voice of Judy Turner to break the silence. ‘John?’ a few second passed. ‘John, is everything okay?’ a few moments later Judy peered from the tent, and caught sight of her fallen husband. Her eyes also saw the blood and the group that awaited her. Turning she caught sight of another two boys standing to her right, they were clutching her daughter. The older of the boys looked toward the daughter, leant in with his mouth and caressed the daughter’s lips. Frowning he faced the mother, eyes wide with excitement and longing, maybe a lusting. ‘Mother and daughter huh? Boys, we are gonna have some fun tonight?’ He said laughing a deep guttural laugh that sounded anything but human. ‘Grab her will ya, bring her over here.’ Heaton and Whaley moved toward the mother, leant down and pulled her from the tent, their eyes lighting up when they saw the state of her undress. ‘Please, let go of my daughter.’ the woman said, pleading with the group as tears began to sting her eyes. ‘Why do this to us?’ her questions went unanswered as the group pulled both mother and daughter near to where the small fire was lit. Judy Turner was just about to scream, she opened her mouth wide knowing that desperation had crept into her, that maybe screaming for help was the final, perhaps the only option. She was about to let out the cry when one of the boys holding her smashed a heavy object around the back of her head. For a few moments they all danced in and out of focus, voices were distorted and almost sounded as though they were far away. Finally, her head spinning and her body falling limp, darkness stole her consciousness.
Chapter Seven
‘Well what do you think, do you like your home for the weekend?’ Charlie said as Mike stared dumbfounded at the guest room. Apparently he was in the second of the five bedrooms, a bedroom that had its own en-suite bathroom with shower and bath. The room was beautifully decorated with a pine finish, a double bed sat toward the end of the room against a huge window that looked out over the garden and the vast expanse of woods that surrounded the house. ‘It’s fantastic, I really don’t know what to say.’ ‘Well I’m glad you like it, to be honest it’s not very often that we have guests, save for some of Rae’s business associates.’ Mike continued to look around the room, walking over to the bed and staring out at the view, albeit now dark, but still he could see the silhouette of the trees that stood guard, a gentle sway to their demeanor. ‘So you wanna tell me what is going on then?’ Mike said, his back to Charlie but seeing her reflection in the window. ‘It’s nothing honestly, every couple goes through the same problems at some stage.’ ‘Yeah but we both know what he is like.’ Mike knew of their martial problems in the past, of Charlie’s husbands liking for Whisky and he also knew that he liked to use his fists, man or woman he didn’t seem to mind as long as they were smaller than him of course. Mike knew, from various phones calls and emails that Charlie had made or written to him, of Rae’s late nights out when he was supposedly working. Yet he would come home with alcohol on his breath, stale smoke over his clothes and the scent of some unknown perfume lingering around him. Sometimes Mike wished he could take Charlie aside and shake her till the realization of what he was really like surfaced. Maybe she already knew but trying to leave him was not an option she could entertain. If she did he would make it hard for her, too many contacts and not all good ones, would take care of that. ‘So I take it the room is to your liking sir?’ her voice said, wrenching him from his thoughts. Excellent change of subject, he thought, again not wanting to push Charlie to far too soon. They had the whole weekend, at some stage he would get to the bottom of it. ‘Need you ask? The room is perfect, everything here is so...I don’t know, unbelievable. I didn’t think places like this existed, well apart from the pages of a Jilly Cooper or a Jackie Collins book.’ Charlie walked toward the centre of the room and ran a hand over the bed covers then sat down as if her thoughts were a million miles away. At the bottom of the bed sat a pair of neatly folded white towels, leaning forward she ran her hands over them as if making sure that they were tidy enough. Mike moved away from the window, taking in more of the room and this time seeing the small television cabinet with the glass fronted doors concealing a small portable television set. A few moments went passed before Mike stepped in front of Charlie, crouching down in front of her. ‘Charlie?’ he began but, as he spoke her name, she shifted from the bed and headed toward the bedroom door, turning slightly to face Mike before leaving the room entirely. ‘How about an Indian this evening? I know a great place just outside of town.’ ‘Sounds fine to me.’ he replied. ‘I’m just going to grab a shower and change, how about we then slip out for a couple of beers and go on for the meal?’ Mike nodded in agreement and watched as Charlie walked back across the room, now standing in front of him she brushed her lips to his cheek. ‘It really is good to have you here Mike.’ then she turned and left the room, leaving Mike to watch as she left the room closing the door behind her. Something in her touch, her feel, had sent an unsettling sensation through Mike. She kept saying that she was happy to have him here, and he was equally glad to be here. Yet still he felt as though she really did need him here. A sudden weariness came over him, almost zapping his strength and wanting nothing more than to just curl up in those fresh sheets and close his eyes. Crossing to the bed, he removed his shoes and let his body sink down into the softness of the linen. ‘Just five minutes, that’s all.’ he said, his eyes already closed as the last word was spoken. Within moments he was already asleep. From somewhere in the house a phone rang and disturbed him from his sleep. Full of disorientation and vagueness that only being hauled back from the depths of sleep can bring. Checking his watch, he noticed that he had been asleep for just over half an hour. ‘So much for my five minutes.’ he said to himself, a smile spreading over his face as he leant up on straining arms his eyes looking out over the room. The shrilling sound stopped almost as suddenly as it had begun, plunging the house once again into an eerie silence. He remained lying on the bed, his eyes full of sleep and his mind a mass of mingled thoughts and dreams. The one person, who seemed to dominate those dreams, was Charlie James. Blinking his eyes open and shut a few times, trying desperately to remove the sleep from his eyes, he sat up and swung his legs over the edge of the bed in an attempt to get up. It was as he dangled his feet over the edge of the bed that he heard the sound of smashing glass and a piercing scream. |
