Dead Days: The Complete Season Two Collection (33 page)

“And why should we trust you, exactly?”

The voice came out of nowhere. It cut through the silence like a creature’s teeth through flesh. It was a short man called Robert. He was right at the back of the mob. He looked around when he said the words. By the looks of things, he was a bit surprised they’d escaped his mouth himself.

“What do‌—‌”

But Robert continued: “You. Riley. Anna. Pedro. What‌—‌what happened today. What happened with the creatures all stacking up around the gates. What happened with‌—‌with Allison’s dog. And all this about‌—‌about Dave being some plant for Mike. Not doubtin’ you, but what if…‌‌what if that’s shit? What if you’re the plants? How do we know we can trust you? Aside from the bruises on your face, what proof do you have?”

It was in that instant that Riley saw every single face in the mob turn, like somebody had hit a switch, or they’d all witnessed a game-changing plot twist in a film that made them doubt everything they thought they knew about a character.

He knew at that moment that nothing he could say would ever get that wide-eyed, suspicious doubt out of their eyes.

And Rodrigo was still doing nothing to intervene. He just waited for Riley to finish. Waited for him to do what he had to do.

All of a sudden, Riley felt incredibly out of place. The sweating started to come over him. His throat began to tighten. His fists were clammy. He wanted to go back to his caravan and bury himself under his quilt covers. He wanted to go back to before today‌—‌any time before today at Heathwaite’s‌—‌and he wanted to live under that illusion of normality again. The normality that had taken him so long to learn to trust.

He couldn’t let that fall apart, not again.

But now more voices sparked up.

“We can’t let Mike bully us out of here,” a young woman with a dog on a leash called. “This place is ours. He‌—‌he had his chance, right?”

“Right!” a number of people added.

Riley was out of things to say. He needed a breather. He needed time to figure out what was next. He needed time to think.

He walked down the steps. The mob barely parted for him. They pushed up against him, actually, not angry but just curious. He could still see the doubt in the faces of most of them. The doubt that admission of friendship with Claudia and Chloë created. He could see it, and he knew it wasn’t going away any time soon.

He felt a hand on his shoulder as he approached Anna and Pedro, who looked staggered, shadows of their former confident, delighted selves as Riley delivered his battle speech.

He turned around. The man with his hand on Riley’s shoulder was Rodrigo. He nodded at Riley, stared him right in the eyes.

“I don’t doubt you,” he said. “I just want you to know that. I trust you. But I can’t say the same for everyone. You know that now.”

The crowd grew more agitated. Pressed up towards the caravan again, like excited teenagers queueing for a concert. Well, an angry concert.

“Please, Rodrigo. They’re good‌—‌”

“We’ll go easy,” Rodrigo said. “Just for you, cause I see these people mean a lot to you. But you know as well as I do that these people here need someone to punish for what almost happened today. We’ll go easy on them. And then they go their own way.”

He half-smiled at Riley, patted him once more on the shoulder, then walked away from the mob and towards his caravan.

“This is bad, bruv,” Pedro said.

Riley watched as the guards held back the crowd of angry faces.

We’ll go easy on them. And then they go their own way.

It was bad. Very bad.

Chapter Three

“So what the hell are we going to do?” Anna asked.

Riley, Anna and Pedro sat in a derelict caravan, well away from the mob, and well away from their own caravans. Just a paranoid measure Riley had taken. The way the mob had looked at him upon the suggestion that he was in some way a traitor or a plant…‌‌he couldn’t let that suggestion manifest.

And if it did, he didn’t want to be there for when it exploded in his face.

“Seems pretty simple to me,” Pedro said. He sat beside the window, peering out of the pink curtains, uncharacteristically twitchy.

“Care to enlighten me?” Anna asked.

Pedro looked at her, then shrugged. “Well, it ain’t our fault what happened with Mike and this lot. And Claudia…‌‌Chloë. Well, we ‘aven’t seen ‘um in a while. Who’s to say they…‌”

“Are you suggesting we allow Rodrigo to kill them?” Anna said, her voice flaring up.

“Not kill them,” Pedro said. “But…‌‌I dunno. Makes no sense for us to get involved. Got summat good here. Summat…‌‌summat worth laying low for.”

“You can lay low as much as you like,” Anna said. She stood up and made for the door. “I’m going to have a word with Rodrigo.”

“And what good’s that gonna do, eh?” Pedro asked.

“More good than sitting around here and pretending everything’s okay.” She grabbed the handle and lowered it.

“Wait,” Riley said. “Just…‌‌just wait.”

Anna bit her lip. Hesitated. Then, she turned back to the room. “Better be good.”

Riley rubbed his temples. Tried to think of a solution, but none of them had a happy ending. There was no way they were coming out of this the same people as they were before Claudia and Chloë were escorted through those gates.

“There’s…‌‌The only way I can see is…‌‌well. We talk to Mike‌—‌”

“Which is a fucking reckless idea, bruv.”

“I agree,” Riley said, raising his voice to counter Pedro. “If we went and spoke to Mike, we could make him understand the situation. Or we could end up hostages ourselves. And the way Rodrigo’s talking now, I’m not sure he’d be all too keen on a safe exchange.”

“So, okay. Chatting to the castrator and his group is off the list,” Anna said. “Massive relief. What else?”

Riley could see the answers all laid out in front of him. He could see them, but he had no clue what kind of future they might cause. “We can…‌‌we can leave. Leave Heathwaite’s. Take Claudia and Chloë with us and go.”

Pedro shook his head. “Go where? I mean I like this place and I know you do too. Don’t wanna just give it up and freeze in them woods over Christmas.”

“As much as it pains me to admit it, I kind of think Pedro’s right. We can’t leave this place, not now. You saw the first specks of snow last night. It’s only going to get more wintry out there. Food’ll be low. Walking out of those gates at this time of year will be nigh on to suicide.”

“Maybe we don’t have to spend winter on the road,” Riley said.

Pedro looked at Anna, then Anna back at him in turn.

“Care to elaborate? Just we don’t have many other‌—‌”

“There’s a bunker,” Riley said. He twitched open the curtains and pointed over at the Arnside Knott hill, towering in the distance. “Old military place. When we went out with Dave to switch on the loudspeaker, Rodrigo told me about it. Said it’s in a pretty remote area, so there’s a good chance it’s unoccupied.”

“The bunker near Grange,” Pedro said, nodding.

“You know it?”

“Not to look at or hunt out, like. But it’s an old military place. Turned it into some kind of surveillance summat-or-other. But yeah. If it’s not already taken, should be good. Them bunkers have stacks of cereal and crap like that hidden away under the floors and in the walls.”

Riley nodded. He’d never been more simultaneously certain and uncertain about an idea in his life. “Then…‌‌then that’s what we do. Unless anybody has a better idea.”

Anna opened her mouth to protest. “How…‌‌What if it’s already occupied? What if we end up stuck in the hills over winter? What then?”

Riley shrugged. He shrugged because he really didn’t know. But they had a choice. A choice between staying here and getting caught in the crossfire of an impending war‌—‌staying here and allowing their friends to take the punishment for something beyond their control‌—‌or running away.

And Riley knew himself that he was nothing more than a runner. Always had been, probably always would be.

It just depended what he was running for.

“Still not sure, bruv,” Pedro said. “Them guards around the caravan. How we gonna slip past them and get Claudia and Chloë free if that’s what we’re saying?”

Riley’s head was throbbing so much. It felt like he’d had a leather belt tied around it, and it was just getting stronger and stronger as time went on. “We…‌‌we can only do so much.” He looked at Anna. Gulped.

“Why are you looking at me?” Anna asked. She twiddled with her necklace, a nervous twitch she seemed to have.

“Yeah,” Pedro asked, also looking at Anna. “Why are we looking at Anna?”

“I’ve been in there already,” Riley said. “Rodrigo won’t want me lurking around there again. But, I dunno. Maybe if they don’t know we’ve talked‌—‌maybe if they don’t see us together‌—‌you can go in and pretend you just want a word. And then…‌‌then we can get something to them. Something sharp. A way to get them free. And then…‌‌and then the rest is up to them.”

Anna stared back at Riley. He was growing accustomed to her face going pale lately.

“I’m sorry. I don’t want you to think I’m wimping out,” Riley said. “Just I don’t think it’ll work if I go back inside. But‌—‌but maybe if you try, Anna. Maybe if you try to get inside, it might work. We might be able to get them free.”

“And what then?” Pedro asked. “What happens when Rodrigo’s goons find they’re gone? What happens to us?”

“Hopefully we’ll be long gone by then,” Riley said, regret in his voice.

Anna sighed. As she did, the entire mood of the room dropped, like a stone sinking to the bottom of a pond after floating on top for days. “I can’t actually believe this is happening. So close to Christmas. Always did have bad luck at Christmas, my family.”

“Apology accepted,” Pedro said, scratching the beard that was forming on his chin. “But y’know. Nowt good lasts, ey? We’ll find somewhere else.”

Riley nodded. He wasn’t sure how much he believed Pedro. He wasn’t sure how much Pedro even believed himself.

“So how do we do it?” Anna asked. “How? When?”

Riley was still formulating the plan of action in his head. But shit‌—‌wasn’t he always? “We…‌‌You go down to Chloë and Claudia’s caravan and you get inside there somehow. They won’t give you long, but when you do get in there, take this.” Riley held out a blue paperclip. Plonked it in Anna’s hand.

Anna stared at it in amusement. “You’re not seriously suggesting I use a paperclip to un-cuff them, are you? Like, is that even possible outside the movies?”

“Yes,” Riley said. “I saw the cuffs. They’re flimsy and cheap. Straighten it out and shove it inside. When you’re in there, you’re going to want to bend it about seventy, eighty degrees. Then the same again, the other way so it ends up like a squiggled angle. Then go in again and wiggle it in so it’s pointing towards the locking arm. Keep it at a right angle to the keyhole. Twist it‌—‌and be gentle here. But mostly, be patient. Twist in both directions and it’ll work.”

Anna looked back at Riley, wide-mouthed. Pedro also had a look of taken aback bewilderment on his unshaven face.

“What?” Riley asked.

“Nothing,” Anna said, taking the paperclip. “You just seem to know a hell of a lot about getting out of handcuffs, that’s all.”

Riley felt his cheeks going warm. “I might’ve once been in a situation where I needed to free myself from some cuffs, yes.”

“You’ve been in
prison
?” Anna asked.

Riley’s eyes twitched towards Pedro. Pedro had a cheesy yellow-toothed grin on his face. “He didn’t say that, did you, bruv? Didn’t say nowt about being arrested.”

It took Anna a few seconds to get what Pedro was implying‌—‌what the truth was.

“Ugh,” she said. “Bear with me a moment while I get that image out of my head.”

“My only question’s why you wanted to escape,” Pedro said, nudging Riley on the arm.

Riley laughed. In spite of everything‌—‌in spite of the whole bullshit situation‌—‌he laughed. Because it was absurd. It was absurd and it was crazy and it was probably going to get him and everybody else killed.

But if he didn’t do anything to help Claudia or Chloë, he wouldn’t be able to forgive himself. Not ever.

And he already had too many things he couldn’t forgive himself for.

“Well, I’d best get to it,” Anna said, slipping the paperclip into her pocket.

“Do you need me to explain‌—‌”

“No, Riley,” Anna said, raising her hand in his face. “One more description of your kinky endeavours and I might just spew all over you.”

Riley’s cheeks went warm again, but he allowed himself a smile. “When you’ve done it, tell Claudia and Chloë to wait until they’re absolutely sure nobody’s outside the caravan. Me and Pedro will find a way to distract the guards and the mob around the place.”

“How?”

“We’ll find a way. We have to.”

Anna nodded reluctantly. Seemed she’d resigned herself to the fact that this was as long a shot as they got, too.

“Me and Pedro will pack our bags. Pack any essentials we need. And we’ll leave via the side gate. It’s safer that way. Less guarded. Less watched. We’ll wait for you and meet you just over the gate. Sound good?”

Anna didn’t nod and she didn’t shake her head. “Let’s just get the paperclip great escape done with first.”

“Good. I’ll take that as a yes.”

Anna sighed as she stepped up and opened the door. She smiled at Riley, and then at Pedro, but then at Riley again. “It’s a shame. Shame it has to…‌‌had to end up like this.” She looked like she was going to say something else, but she didn’t.

Riley nodded. All he could do. Any more talking or thinking about the dilemma they were in‌—‌the runaway they were about to catalyse‌—‌and he might just change his mind in fear.

“I’ll see you on the other side then,” Anna said.

“You will,” Riley said. “You will.”

Anna lowered the handle of the door and walked out into the fresh, cold December breeze.

She stood there a few seconds. Closed her eyes. Took a deep breath.

Then, she shut the door and she walked away from the derelict caravan.

“Spose we best get packing our bags, bruv,” Pedro said.