‘Okay, let’s go,’ Arabella said.
Walking into the totally over the top property, Lana whistled at the tackiness of it. Gold covered everything—taps, coffee tables, oven, hob and ornaments. ‘Wow, it’s horrendous.’
‘Very seventies,’ Declan agreed.
The girls looked at him and shook their heads. ‘Whatever,’ whispered Lana.
‘They were here,’ Declan said. And not long gone, by the looks of things.
Warm half-eaten meals were strewn across the table, including a child’s plate and a half-empty glass of milk.
Lana walked forward and picked it up.
Immediately she found herself standing beside her little sister, who was slowly eating the spaghetti bolognese on her plate.
‘Oh, thank goodness you’re safe, Lucy Jo,’ Lana said, leaning forward and blowing her a kiss. ‘We’re really close, we’re going to find you really soon and bring you home, I promise.’
Kimberly and her boyfriend were sitting chatting happily and eating their dinner, occasionally answering Lucy Jo’s Eye Spy game, when Stan rushed into the room, looking panicked.
‘We need to leave. Now,’ he demanded. ‘They’re on to us. They’re coming.’
‘Where are we going?’ Kimberly asked.
‘That’s on a need to know basis,’ Stan said angrily. ‘Now come on. Now!’
Kimberly slowly stood up, taking her time to drink the remains of her coke before she went to get her things.
‘Will you tell your freakin’ girlfriend to get a move on, Archie? It’s like she’s freaking’ stalling.’
Archie raised his eyebrows. ‘What are you trying to say, Stan?’ he spat.
‘I don’t trust her, that’s all.’
‘Well I do, and that’s all that matters. You hear me?’
Stan ignored him and turned away, going to grab Lucy Jo.
‘Don’t touch her,’ Archie snarled, pushing him out of the way before very gently picking Lucy Jo up in his arms. ‘You okay, honey?’
The little girl nodded and rested her head on his shoulder.
Stan shook his head in anger and ran out the front door, followed by Archie.
‘You ready, babe?’ he asked Kimberly.
‘Yes. Oh, I forgot my bag. I’ll be right out.’
Lana watched as Archie nodded and exited, then she turned her attention to Kimberly who took a piece of paper out of her bag, followed by a pen. She scribbled something down and left it on the table. Then she looked around the room and ran. The action of slamming the door behind her made the piece of paper lift off the table and drift underneath it.
Lana walked back over to the table to take a look, but the paper was face down.
Taking a deep breath, she tried to force herself out of the vision. Seconds later, she was on the floor, scrabbling for the piece of paper.
‘What? What happened, sis? Was it a vision?’
Lana nodded and stood up.
Emma smiled. ‘I told you your powers are getting stronger. What happened?’
‘This. This is what happened,’ Lana said, placing the paper on the table for all to see.
I know you’re looking for us, but if we don’t do this, he WILL kill us. We’re taking good care of her. Wish I could tell you where to find us. Just please find us… soon.
CHAPTER TWENTY
‘Is she on our side?’ asked Lana. ‘I don’t understand.’
Everyone stood looking at the piece of paper, nobody quite understanding what it meant. Why did Kimberly want to be found? Was it because she was scared of Stan? Or Sthenelaus? Or Archie, even?
‘Oh, I found out the other brother’s name. It’s Archie.’
‘Archie?’ asked Declan.
‘Yep.’
‘Does he look like Sthenelaus?’
Lana shook her head. ‘Not one bit. He’s really quite handsome.’
Barber raised his eyebrows.
‘What? He is.’ Lana shrugged.
‘Can you describe him?’ asked Declan.
‘Sure, he has dark brown hair, quite longish—for a guy, anyway—really dark brown eyes, cute button nose and heart shaped lips, if you know what I mean.’
Declan nodded and turned away, dialling Eleanor on his phone. ‘Hey, Ellie. I’ve reason to believe we already know Sthen’s other son. Yeah. Archie, you remember… yeah, that’s right. Good, okay.’
Declan smiled.
‘What, Declan? What is it?’ asked Lana.
‘I think you’re right about Kimberly being on our side.’
‘What do you mean?’ asked Diarmuid.
‘Because Archie is on our side.’
‘Huh? If he was on our side, he wouldn’t have taken Lucy Jo in the first place!’ Patrick banged his fist on the dining table.
‘I think he got involved to help Lucy Jo. To keep her safe from his father and brother. Look, a few years ago, we helped a guy called Archie—he was really cool and he was in some serious trouble. We helped him get out of it and he’s been giving us a hand on and off ever since. He told me his father was some big time criminal who he avoided. We just never realised exactly who his dad was. But then, we never asked.’
‘So you think this Archie guy is doing this from the good of his own heart? He took my daughter from my home, Declan. How can I possibly trust somebody like that?’
‘I know, mate, but look at it the other way—if he hadn’t been involved, Lucy Jo would be… let’s just say, he’s caring for her right now when she needs someone to do that. If you can’t trust him, trust me. Can you do that?’
Patrick took his time but eventually nodded.
‘Let’s get out of here. Where do you think they went?’ asked Declan as Arabella’s mobile rang and they walked out of the villa, looking around in the darkness. ‘We think we’ve got them,’ Arabella breathed. ‘Come on, quick.’
The girls hopped back in the car with the others and Arabella stepped on the accelerator.
‘Where we heading?’ asked Declan, glancing at her as she deftly drove the car over speed bumps and negotiated roundabouts.
‘They were spotted heading into Portimão. They’ll probably try to hide out there, somewhere. But I have a pretty good idea which way they went.’ She smiled as they sped around another huge roundabout before heading off on a smaller road with old houses to their left and an expanse of dirt to their right.
Several cars followed behind them as they whizzed down the streets of the old city. Arabella cursed, coming to a standstill. ‘I’m not sure which way they would have gone.’
Picking her mobile back up again, she spoke a few words in Portuguese before the cars behind her drove off into different directions. She reversed down a one way street and pulled over next to an underground car park.
She nodded to Declan, who jumped out of the car and ran down the ramp. ‘Come on, guys, let’s go on foot.’
They found a security guard standing next to a badly parked hire car, shaking his head.
Declan tried to make himself be understood, but to no avail. The man just shook his head and waved his hands.
‘Don’t worry, Declan. I’ll deal with this,’ Arabella said as she turned to the man and began rabbiting off again. ‘He said they just drove into the car park, stopped, had a big fight and left the car here. Apparently one of them had a knife.’
‘Was it them?’
Arabella nodded.
‘So we’re really close, then?’ Lana asked, as she rifled in her bag, looking for her mobile phone.
‘What are you doing?’ asked Emma.
‘Phoning Dad.’
‘No need. He’s already on his way, along with everybody else.’
Lana nodded and leaned against the car. Coming over all dizzy, she immediately found herself in the same place but surrounded by different people.
Lucy Jo was crying, and Kimberly was trying to console her as Stan shouted angrily at them all to hurry, while Archie shouted at him for shouting at them.
Lana list
ened, wishing she could take Lucy Jo in her arms.
‘It’s alright, everything’s going to be fine. I promise you. Just ignore the horrid man, sweetheart,’ reassured Kimberly as she hugged the child, grabbing her bag from the back seat.
‘I’ve just about had enough of this,’ said Archie. ‘This is it, Stan. They’ve found us, maybe it’s time to give ourselves up.’
‘What the hell! Are you crazy?’
‘No, Stan. I’ve just had enough. We’ll never get away with it. They’ll follow us everywhere, to the ends of the Earth, if they have to.’
‘No,’ yelled Stan as he took something from his pocket. ‘They won’t. They’ll never find us in Canada. I won’t let them. And if you’re giving up, then I’m giving up on you.’
By the time Archie spotted it, it was too late. Stan jumped towards him, pushing something long and sharp into his torso. Archie fell to the ground, holding his stomach.
‘Y… you stabbed me? Your own b…rother?’
‘You’ve never been a brother to me. I couldn’t care if you lived or died,’ Stan said with a wicked grin.
A scream pierced the air and Stan turned to see Kimberly staring at him, her eyes wide in shock. She put Lucy Jo down slowly and pushed her behind her, shielding the child from him with her body.
Stan smiled and aimed the knife at her. Shaking her head, she said, ‘You’ll never get the girl, Stanley. They’re coming, right now, and they’re going to stop you.’
‘Perhaps,’ he replied, ‘but not before I take great pleasure in plunging this knife into your body,’ he growled.
She stepped backwards, taking the little girl’s hand. ‘If you feel me fall, little one. You run, you run as fast as you can, you hear me?’ Kimberly whispered.
Lana watched her little sister nod, her face paling at the sight of Archie on the ground.
Thinking he was dead, Lana jumped when he suddenly lurched forward, pulling himself along the floor with his strong arms, towards Stan. Although he wasn’t quick enough to reach him, he was able to distract him for a second. Just long enough to allow Kimberly to turn and run.
‘Nice try… brother,’ Stan shouted, kicking Archie in the face so that he fell back between two parked cars. ‘You’re not going to get away from me,’ he shouted, turning and scanning the area for movement.
Lana realised she was holding her breath as she tiptoed through the cars, trying to find Kimberly and Lucy Jo, but they’d disappeared. Feeling herself fading back out of the vision, she cried, ‘No, no, no, I’ve got to find them, I’ve got to find them.’
‘Lana, Lana? Are you okay? We found Archie,’ Emma whispered.
‘Come on, babe. Wake up,’ said Barber as he gently patted her cheek.
‘I need to find them,’ she yelled, opening her eyes wide. ‘Is he dead? Stan stabbed him and kicked him in the head.’
‘He’s alive, just about. What happened?’ Emma asked.
‘We need to find them, they’re on foot. Kimberly’s got Lucy Jo. She’s trying to save her from Stan. They must be close. We need to go and find them now.’
‘It’s okay, all the others are combing the streets. They’ll find them, babe,’ Barber said as he lifted her up off the ground until she was steady enough to stand.
But before she did anything else, Lana gave a detailed description of Kimberly and what the young woman was wearing. ‘You need to tell the others,’ she said to one of the Watchers, who was hanging around waiting for instruction. He nodded and ran off to the rest of the group.
‘Where’s Dad?’ asked Lana.
‘He’s with them.’
Lana nodded.
‘Are you okay, sis?’ Emma asked as she began to lead them out the same way they’d come in.
‘Yeah, I’m fine. Look we can’t go that way. We need to go this way.’
‘Huh?’ said Emma.
‘We should go the same direction Kimberly was heading,’ Lana said, pulling them both through a number of parked cars until they reached some stairs. ‘Up there,’ she motioned.
They climbed the stairs until they came out in an outdoor square, where they scanned the area. Some of their classmates hovered around, waiting to be told what to do.
‘Do you know which way they went, sis?’ Emma asked.
‘I’m not sure. I need another vision to help me. But nothing’s coming,’ Lana cried. ‘Wait, Kimberly knows we’re behind them. Maybe she left some kind of clue—breadcrumbs. Look around, everyone, and see if you can find something.’
Thoroughly scanning the area, they were soon joined by Diarmuid, Liam, Rupert and Elliott. All of them scoured the ground, the surrounding buildings and cars until Rupert yelled, ‘Over there.’
Following his gaze, Lana ran over to a large bin. Tears filled her eyes.
Rupert nodded. ‘There’s something blue and white in there. I can see through it, remember?’
Barber lifted the large lid, turning his face away from the stench of rotting food before he leaned in and pulled out a blue and white scarf.
Lana gasped. ‘That’s Kimberly’s. She was wearing it in my vision.’
‘But what does that mean? Where did she go?’ asked Emma as they looked around.
Holding onto the scarf, Lana started to go dizzy again. ‘It’s happening again,’ she yelled, before crumpling to the floor.
Opening her eyes, she watched Kimberly and Lucy Jo hiding between the bin and the wall. They both held their breath as Stan slowly walked around the square, his beady eyes searching for them. He stopped for a moment and went to look down the side of another building. Kimberly breathed out for a second and slowly took off her scarf, lifting the lid without making a sound, and dropped it inside. She turned to Lucy Jo and held a finger over her lips, whispering something Lana couldn’t hear.
Lucy Jo’s eyes were full of tears but she managed to stay silent. She just nodded and gripped Kimberly’s hand even tighter. Slowly they stood, carefully watching for Stan. And then they turned and ran down an alley. Lana could feel herself drifting again. ‘No! Which way? Which way?’ she whispered to herself. Before her eyes went black, she saw them turn right at the end.
The moment she opened her eyes, she grabbed hold of Barber.
‘Just keep me steady,’ she whispered. ‘This way,’ she yelled to everyone.
Instead of steadying her, Barber picked her up and she pointed him in the right direction.
At the end of the next street, he put her down.
‘Which way?’ Lana muttered to herself. ‘Which way? I don’t know which way!’ Crying, she turned to Barber and sobbed into his chest.
‘It’s okay. Just wait a second,’ Barber said, looking round as the others arrived.
‘What’s up?’ asked Liam.
‘Just give me a sec,’ Barber said, as he turned his face from one side to the other.
‘Can you… Can you… smell them or something?’ Emma asked, out of breath.
He nodded. ‘I got her scent from the scarf. It’s not very strong, but I think… I think she went this way,’ he said, lifting Lana in his arms and running left and then right. The others struggled to keep up; even Liam, who possessed the gift of speed.
Soon they found themselves standing at the riverfront, with a huge square between them and the water.
‘There!’ Barber shouted.
Lana looked across and saw a small bridge over the river. Running across it was Kimberly. Lucy Jo was holding on to her back and Stan was closing in on them. They could even see the glint of the knife from where they stood.
‘No!’ yelled Emma and Lana.
At the sound, Kimberly stopped for a second and looked towards them. Then she looked backwards; Stan was just a few metres away. He stopped when she stopped and smiled at her, but he failed to notice that she was moving towards the edge. Before anyone else knew what was happening, Emma ran as fast as she could towards the water, diving in and swimming towards the bridge.
‘What? What’s happening?’ cried Lana.
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Seconds later, Stan stood alone and confused as Kimberly and Lucy Jo jumped into the water below.
Emma watched as they crashed into the water ahead of her. She swam as fast as she could, reaching them in seconds. ‘It’s okay, I’ve got you. I’ve got you, Lucy Jo,’ cried Emma as she held her little sister close to her chest, allowing a warm glow to envelope them and protect her from the cold.
‘Emma? Is that you?’ the little girl asked. ‘What happened? Where have you been?’
Emma smiled and kissed her on the forehead before she realised Kimberly was nowhere to be seen. ‘Kimberly?’ she shouted. ‘Kimberly!’
But the young woman failed to emerge from the dark waters of the River Arade.
Suddenly there were several large splashes into the water and Emma watched as Patrick, Declan, Barber and Diarmuid all swam towards her.
‘Lucy Jo. Lucy Jo, oh my god, my girl. Is she okay, Emma? Is she? Is she safe? Is she hurt? Oh God, Oh God,’ Patrick murmured over and over.
‘It’s okay, Dad. She’s fine, she’s fine,’ Emma cried.
Emma could hear Lana sobbing from the waterside. ‘Take her, Dad. I need to find Kimberly.’
Swimming down into the murkiness, Emma could barely see a thing, not even with her glow. She scoured everywhere beneath her, but there was no sign of the woman who had rescued her little sister. A sob escaped her lips but as she was about to give up, she spotted something out of the corner of her eye.
Swimming closer, Emma reached out, her movements causing even more sand and dirt to drift upwards. The water cleared for a second and she spotted Kimberly, her foot somehow caught on what looked like an old anchor.
Emma unhooked Kimberly’s shoe and grabbed her, speeding upwards through the water until she could propel them both out onto dry land.
‘Diarmuid!’ she shouted, ‘Diarmuid!’
Diarmuid ran over and nodded at her as Kimberly was carefully laid on her back. Whilst Declan performed mouth to mouth, Diarmuid placed his healing hands on her chest, his light and warm touch hopefully bringing her back from the depths.
‘She was under a long time.’ Lana swallowed.
‘Daddy? Daddy, don’t let her die. She was my friend,’ cried Lucy Jo, who had managed to escape from Patrick’s grip and run towards them.