Read Spectacular Tales II: Another Science Fiction and Fantasy Collection Page 2

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  As she made her way down to the beach her thoughts turned to her saviour. There was something cold about him as though he did not care for human life – there was neither empathy nor sympathy. Yet for reasons that she could not fathom she felt that she could trust him.

  She had never trusted Warren – the man who had tried to rape her. They had run as a gang and with the crisis going on they had looted and committed arson. Croydon had burned but unlike that August when Reeves store went up in flames during the riots there had been no one to fight the fires. It was only when things were falling apart that she was drawn back into the gang. The death of her boyfriend had turned her into a recluse but the prospect of death by plague had sent her back out on to the streets.

  No one knew much about the plague – it just happened. A sniffle, a cough and within hours you were dead. Both she and Warren had watched their friends choke to death – no point getting them to the overfull hospitals where the staff were amongst the dead and the dying. Laughingly now, many waited for the dead to rise like it was a zombie apocalypse.

  Yeah, she smiled, some zombie apocalypse – waste of a good chainsaw that.

  Stripped down naked she waded into the sea to jump waves with a childish glee before diving in headfirst. She swam for a while, gliding across the water that scoured her body clean before turning to float on her back.

  Her thoughts drifted back to Warren – he had never been her type but, then, nor had his father. The teachers had known, the police had known and the authorities had too. Warren’s father had a history of abusing young girls – but no one could touch him because he was a grass. Nor had her parents been much help – her abuser was family so you don’t grass them up.

  Until today, Warren, had never made any move towards her. He knew what his father had done but he had never been able to stand up to him. Warren, alone, was a scared little boy and that was why they ran from Croydon. They had no idea where they were going or why – and they had finished up here.

  That was when Warren had lost it. He was scared of dying and never having had sex – she could not believe it. He was twenty six and still a virgin but he was her cousin and she couldn’t – no wouldn’t – give in to him.

  Now they were all gone.

  She laughed.

  They were all punished in the end.

  Now there was a new man around and he aroused her curiosity. If he turned out to be one of the good guys then he would have to earn her trust. That he had saved her was one thing but people don’t do that without some ulterior motive. Two things that she was sure of, though, was that he was not looking for a daughter figure any more than she was looking for the father equivalent.

  She waded from the sea and squatted on a rock where she had parked her back. After fiddling around inside, she produced a pair of scissors with which she attacked her jeans by cutting off the legs.