Blood Water Read online

  The pain reminded him a little of what he had suffered just after collapsing at the end of the race. Then, it was due to dehydration, but now it had to be something else. Perhaps he still hadn’t fully recovered from the ordeal. He leaned over, his hands on his knees and took several deep breaths. Images flashed before his eyes – the course, the other runners, the iron railing flying towards the grass, the black car, Mum and James rushing towards him, concerned, and the oxygen mask going over his mouth time and again until he began to feel better. Dizziness came and went, as did the pain, and it was several minutes before he could think clearly again.

  He stood up straight, looked at the park around him and was suddenly overcome with a sense of dread about what he’d seen by the edge of the stream – had any of it actually happened? Against his better judgement he walked briskly back and looked down the slope towards the water. He couldn’t tell from where he stood if there were any marks in the mud – there were no signs of vomit. But he wasn’t prepared to go back down, so the doubt would have to remain for now. But could he really have imagined it all? It had all seemed so vivid. The sight, the sound, the smell. Weren’t a lot of dreams convincing though?

  He gave up worrying about it and made his way back down the path. A figure carrying a large black umbrella was approaching, head down so that Sean couldn’t see his face properly. As he drew closer, however, he recognized his form teacher. Mr Phoenix might be wondering why Sean was outside in the rain and not at home resting, but it was too late to turn round or hide now.

  ‘Sean?’ Mr Phoenix asked.

  ‘Hi, sir.’

  ‘Shouldn’t you be at home? I thought you were recuperating after what happened on Sunday.’

  Sean didn’t have time to think up a decent story, and he’d always found that honesty was the best policy with parents and teachers, regardless of the consequences. They always managed to find out the truth in the end.

  ‘I was going mad in my room so I decided to get some fresh air before Mum got back. Wish I hadn’t now.’

  ‘I see,’ Phoenix said. ‘Well, you should probably head back before she catches you. Fresh air is one thing, but dehydration can really upset your system. You should rest.’ He started to walk on, then stopped and added: ‘What do you mean you wish you hadn’t? Did something happen?’

  ‘Well, I think I might have had a pretty vivid hallucination just now.’

  ‘Really?’

  ‘Yeah. I thought I saw a man crawl out of the river and fall back in again.’

  ‘Are you sure it was an hallucination?’

  ‘I think so. He looked like he had some disease or something. He vomited this black thing, then fell back into the river. It was mad, you know… It seemed real but… Couldn’t have been.’

  ‘Where was this?’

  ‘Past the pagoda, down the bank by the stream.’

  ‘Well,’ the teacher said, looking down the path behind Sean, ‘maybe I’ll have a look just to be sure, but you’d best be getting home. I won’t say anything about seeing you as long as you give me your word you’ll stay indoors until you’re back at school.’

  ‘I will, I promise.’

  ‘Good. Right, you take care then.’

  ‘OK.’ Sean set off, but a second later the teacher stopped him again.

  ‘Sean!’

  ‘Yes?’

  ‘I forgot to warn you – the bridge is flooded now so you’ll have to find another way across. Is there anyone who can give you a lift? Could be quite a journey.’

  ‘The bridge is flooded already?’

  ‘Yes. The river’s still rising. I came down to take a look. I’ve already phoned the school to recommend sending everyone home early.’

  ‘Oh, right… I’m sure I’ll find a way to get back.’

  ‘All right, but if you have any difficulty go up to the school, OK?’

  ‘Yes, sir.’

  ‘Right.’ And with that the teacher walked on.

  Sean adjusted his hood to protect his face from the rain, then hurried on along the waterlogged path.

  When he reached the bridge, he was amazed to see that the water had swamped the road. It was swelling by the second, and was beginning to make its way up to the high street. He quickly headed for the video rental shop, where a crowd had formed. Cars had stopped on both sides of the river, the drivers staring, bemused, at the water, some unable to go either forwards or backwards. Just then, a police car arrived; two officers got out and started ushering everyone further up the high street. More people were stopping to marvel at the approaching tide. Some leaned out of windows; some interrupted their shopping to come and see what all the commotion was about. Somewhere a child cried out in excited glee.

  The river was now a monster, a terrifying one, and it looked like there was no stopping it.

  CHAPTER 6

  Although he was worried about the flood, Sean’s primary concern was getting home – it would be difficult as the only direct route from Orchard Wells’ high street to the suburbs was now under water. There were back roads from the other end of town that would get him there, but it would take all day if he had to walk. He needed a lift. Then he remembered that his brother had said he’d be finishing college early today and might go for a swim afterwards. If so, his car would be at the pool.

  Sean turned and headed up the high street, taking a left at the library, then over a small bridge that was dangerously close to the rising stream, and into the swimming pool car park. He scanned the vehicles. There were people chatting on their phones, no doubt informing loved ones of the situation. Others were getting into their cars and driving away while they still could. He checked each parking space, his eyes sweeping the vehicles, until he found it – a red Ford Fiesta with one hubcap missing. His brother was still there. He made for the entrance to the building and went inside.

  Mr Phoenix scanned the path and the bank leading down to the water’s edge for signs of disturbance; soon enough he came upon muddy footprints and trampled grass that he guessed had been left by Sean. He looked down through the trees to the brown, swirling water below, reluctant to go near it, but interested enough in Sean’s story to see if there was any truth in it. The boy believed he’d been hallucinating after what had happened to him on Sunday, but maybe someone really had come to harm.

  Mr Phoenix made his way slowly down the slope, using the trees for support when he slipped, but he soon reached the water and saw signs of a recent disturbance in the mud. It was hard to tell if anyone besides Sean had been there. He looked around for any sign of vomit, but could see nothing except… In the grass to one side he glimpsed something dark and slimy. He moved closer and looked down, trying to guess what it was. It looked like oil, only thicker, more viscous, and gave off an awful pungent smell. He squatted down to take a closer look but had to turn away as the smell of vomit assailed him.

  Suddenly he saw movement in the grass on the other side of the rough path: something was making its way towards him. He waited to see what it was – a rabbit, he guessed – but the grass stopped moving and nothing appeared. He walked over to the spot, crouching down to get a better look. In the thick tangle of grass and twigs lay something shiny and wet, long and dark – an eel perhaps. Whatever it was, he didn’t really want to touch it, and he was about to leave it be when it shot out from its hiding place and attached itself to his face.

  He cried out, more in revulsion than fear, and fell backwards onto the muddy ground, scrabbling madly to remove the thing from his face. It had contracted its body now so that it was shorter and fatter, like a slug, and though he pulled at it with both hands, it wouldn’t come away. He yelled in panic as he felt it slide its way down from his nose and cheeks to his mouth, the smell making him gag. He didn’t want it near his mouth, didn’t want to taste it. He turned and crawled over to the edge of the stream, splashing water into his face in the desperate hope that it might remove the creature, but it was still sliding down and was now above his top lip.

  ‘Urg
h!’ he cried. He got back to his feet, tried once again to wrench off his unknown attacker, then slipped and fell backwards into the water. The intense cold, the ferocious current and the incredible roaring force of the water claimed him.

  * * *

  Sean knew the boy working behind the reception desk at the swimming pool.

  ‘Hey, Ed, is my brother still in the pool?’

  ‘Nah, he got out about five minutes ago.’

  ‘Ah, great, I’ll wait for him.’

  ‘Hey, Sean, is it true that the river’s flooded the bridge?’

  ‘Yeah… News travels fast.’

  ‘Dad phoned. He said I should probably let everyone in the pool know.’

  ‘Yeah. They’ll have to go the back way up the hill. That’s why I came to find James. I can’t get home without him.’

  ‘Oh, yeah. Why aren’t you at school then?’

  ‘Oh, long story…’

  ‘Is it to do with the race?’

  ‘Yeah. Still feeling a bit— Ah, here he is.’

  James was coming towards the reception area. When he noticed Sean, he looked confused. ‘What are you doing here? You should be at home.’

  ‘I haven’t got time to explain. The river’s flooded, it’s over the bridge and into the town.’

  ‘Bloody hell.’

  ‘Yeah, so we have to go home the back way.’

  ‘All right, let’s go. I’ve got to pick up some things from work. It won’t take long though.’

  As they went out into the car park, James took his car keys from his jacket pocket and looked up into the sky, which was still disgorging the seemingly endless rain. ‘So why were you in town?’

  ‘I had to get out for some fresh air. Thought I’d manage an hour or two before Mum came home.’

  ‘But it was raining.’

  ‘I didn’t care.’

  ‘So is the flooding really that serious?’

  ‘Yeah.’

  ‘Why didn’t you go back over the bridge before it got so bad?’ James unlocked the car and they got in.

  ‘I was in the park and I… saw something really weird,’ Sean said, buckling up his seat belt.

  ‘Weird?’ James started the car and checked his mirrors before driving towards the exit.

  ‘Yeah. I saw this guy crawl out of the water – I don’t know how, the current must have been really strong – but anyway, he crawled out, looking really bad, and puked this black stuff out and then just fell back into the water.’

  ‘Are you serious?’ James pulled out of the car park and headed up the hill past the small woodland path where Sean sometimes walked with his friends.

  ‘Yeah, but I think I must have hallucinated it… I mean, it doesn’t make any sense, it’s mad. And I’ve been seeing some really strange stuff since the… you know.’

  ‘Yeah, but what if you did see it? We should probably tell the police.’

  ‘No, it’s OK, I met Mr Phoenix from school when I was walking back to the bridge. I told him what happened. He said he was going to check it out.’

  ‘Weird thing to hallucinate.’

  ‘It wouldn’t be a proper hallucination if it made sense though, would it?’

  ‘I dunno. Shit, is this storm ever going to end?’ The windscreen wipers were on full now, but the rain was so heavy that they were struggling to shift enough water to allow James to see the road ahead. ‘If the bridge is already flooded and the river’s coming up into the town, what’s going to happen if the weather doesn’t ease off soon?’

  ‘I don’t know,’ Sean replied. ‘But even if the rain did stop now, the shops and houses would still be flooded.’

  They both shook their heads in bemusement.

  ‘Maybe it’s global warming,’ James said. ‘Or maybe it’s just a freak storm.’ He kept moving his head from side to side in order to see through the splashing of the wipers. ‘This guy you saw… did he say anything?’

  ‘Er, yeah… I think he said "The centre", or something. I don’t know what he meant though.’

  ‘The study centre maybe?’

  It was only then that Sean made the connection between what the man had said and the Lake Byrne Study Centre, where his brother worked part time. It must have been the muddled state his brain had been in since the run.

  ‘I could check everything’s all right there when I go in to get my stuff,’ James said. ‘You never know, they might be missing someone. It might be the guy you saw.’

  ‘I really doubt it.’

  ‘Why?’

  ‘This guy looked like he should have died days ago. He was like a zombie or something. His skin was all yellow and his eyes were red. He had sores all over his skin… and no one should puke black stuff like that.’

  ‘Jeez, I hope it really was an hallucination.’

  ‘Yeah. This thing came out of his mouth too. It was like a massive slug or a snake or something. Really gross. Made me turn and run.’

  ‘I’ll bet. Well, maybe we’ll find out whether what you saw was real when we get to the centre.’

  Sean didn’t like the idea. He didn’t want to find it was real. He wanted to believe he’d imagined the whole terrible thing.

  CHAPTER 7

  A universe of water. The sound was what shocked him most. Above the roar of the current and his own thrashing limbs, there were other sounds – sounds he couldn’t place – sounds that didn’t seem to make any sense. He didn’t know how much oxygen he had in his lungs but it was surely not enough to keep him alive for more than another minute or so. If he’d had more of a warning, he might have been able to take a bigger breath. He refused to believe it didn’t matter any more, that it was irrelevant now. If only he could reach the bank and haul himself out of the raging force that had engulfed him… But that wasn’t his only concern. The thing that was fastened to his face was now moving down over his top lip. He had no idea what it was, or what it wanted, but he wished it would go away.

  His lungs were heaving, the pounding in his head was increasing, but he became aware of the bank to his left. As luck would have it, the current seemed to be pushing him towards it; as it came close, he reached out and grabbed a tree root, anchoring himself to it, then pulling himself upwards with every ounce of strength. Up and up, and all at once the dull roar was gone, air and sound exploded around him and he sucked in a huge lungful of air, then another and another; then the water rose up and he got a mouthful of it.

  Suddenly the black slug-thing shot into his mouth, making him choke, then clutch his throat; he lost his grip on the root and was pulled back under the water. As he twisted and turned beneath the surface, trying simultaneously to swim to the side and reach into his mouth to find the slug, a strange feeling came over him: a fuzziness, a wave of confusion and something utterly foreign. There was an awful, alien sensation of something moving about in his head, as if someone had reached in a hand and was rummaging around. He was paralysed now, unable to struggle, unable to do anything but drift down towards the river bed, his eyes open, staring, disbelieving, muddy water gushing into his lungs. His head felt like it was expanding, ready to burst at any second from the pressure. Incredibly, however, he didn’t feel like he was dying. Quite the opposite in fact.

  The rain let up a little, and James no longer felt he was going to crash at any moment. He slowed down, realizing the lane that led to the research centre would be coming up soon, and kept his eyes on the road ahead. Sean saw it before he did – a huge stretch of water that had collected across the road at the bottom of the hill; it looked deep enough to swallow them whole. James slowed the car further and stopped just short of it.

  ‘Great. Now what do we do?’

  ‘We’ve got to go through,’ Sean said.

  ‘We could get stuck though… Engine could get flooded.’

  ‘We can’t go back. This is the only way to get home.’

  And then, to limit their choices even further, a van drove up behind them, blocking their retreat.

  ‘Oh well,’ Jam
es said, glancing in the rear-view mirror. ‘Here we go.’ He eased the accelerator down very gently and the car started to move forward. At first everything seemed fine: the water wasn’t particularly deep, but then the car seemed to dip down. Sean caught movement to his left, and saw a small grey creature, possibly a squirrel, dart up into a tree beside the road. His head throbbed, and as he looked ahead again he was horrified to see that the water was now rising over the top of the car. He cried out to James, who looked at him as though he’d gone mad.

  ‘What’s wrong?’

  ‘What do you mean "What’s wrong"? We’re under water! Look!’

  James didn’t seem to understand why Sean was panicking. ‘It’s not that deep.’

  ‘Not that deep? Are you mad?’ Sean could see floating detritus in the water – leaves, bits of twig, even a crisp packet. Bizarrely, a large fish passed by, gazing through the windscreen at them before swimming on. And then, in an instant, the scene dissolved away and they were no longer submerged but driving through the flood as before.

  Sean shook his head. ‘Sorry,’ he said. ‘I imagined it… I’m sorry.’

  ‘Jesus, bro, the sooner we get you back home the better.’

  James drove on slowly, still worried that the engine might become swamped and give up. Sean looked behind to see that the van was still there, the driver no doubt waiting to see if they made it through before committing himself. Suddenly the water dropped away, and the car was emerging from it. James accelerated carefully. Minutes later a sign for the Lake Byrne Field Study Centre appeared. They soon reached the small car park, and James swung into his usual space. There were quite a few vehicles parked nearby, though they could see no signs of life and no lights shone inside the building even though it was very gloomy.

  ‘So what exactly do they do here?’ Sean asked. ‘You never really said.’

  ‘Oh, you know, we do courses on wildlife and lake stuff,’ James replied.

  ‘Who are the courses for?’

  ‘Anyone. We do special weekends for members of the public, but we also do research on the fish in the lake too. That’s what I’ve been helping out with— Hey,’ James said, rushing on ahead of Sean. ‘The door’s open. That’s not right.’