The Revelation Room (The Ben Whittle Investigation Series Book 1) (21 page)

Alice walked into the Sisters’ Room
and stood just inside the door. It was almost eight o’clock in the morning. She
smiled and clapped her hands together as if bringing a class to attention.

Dixie unzipped her sleeping bag. ‘What do you want?’

Maddie watched the smile leave Alice’s lips. ‘I would advise
you to keep a check on your manners.’

Dixie laughed. ‘Would you now? And who put a rod up your
backside?’

‘I know being crude is the weapon of choice for women like
you, but as of today I’m in charge, so you just be careful how you speak to me,
Sister Dixie. Very careful.’

Dixie sat up and rubbed her eyes. ‘In charge? You? Why?’

Alice puffed out her flat chest. ‘The Father is currently
indisposed.’

‘Indisposed? What’s that supposed to mean? Why can’t you
talk in plain English?’

‘Sorry, I forgot about your council estate background.
Brother Tweezer attacked the Father. There. Is that plain enough for you?’

Dixie yawned. ‘Tweezer attacked Ebb?’

‘He’s called the Father. Show some respect.’

Emily lifted her head up from the bucket between her knees
and looked at Alice with bloodshot eyes. She wiped sick from the corner of her
mouth. ‘Why did he attack the Father?’

Alice took a deep breath. ‘Because Satan was inside him.’

‘Who? Ebb or Tweezer?’ Dixie asked.

Alice ignored her. ‘Brother Tweezer has been dealt with and
the Father is recuperating. Anyway, I’m not here to discuss the ins and outs of
it with you. I’ve already told you that Brother Tweezer attacked the Father.
Why he attacked the Father, or what happened after that is no one’s business
but the Father’s.’

Maddie feigned concern. ‘Is the Father hurt badly?’ 

‘Nothing that a few days rest and some TLC can’t cure.’

‘I shall pray for him,’ Maddie said. ‘If there’s anything at
all I can do to help…’

‘Thank you, Madeline. I shall bear that in mind. In the
meantime, I’m afraid the farm has got to remain in lockdown. All I ask is that
you girls remain patient whilst things get back to normal.’

Emily wiped her mouth with the back of her hand. ‘For how
long?’

‘For as long as it takes. We’re a man light with Brother
Tweezer’s departure. Marcus is manning the tower and the Father is confined to
bed. I know it’s not ideal, but—’

‘So what are you saying? You don’t trust us?’ Dixie said.

‘I’m not saying anything of the sort. I trust Sister Emily
and Madeline.’

‘But not me?’

Alice seemed to weigh this up for a moment or two. And then:
‘No, I don’t trust you, Dixie.’

Dixie snorted. ‘Fuck you.’

‘That’s one for the Father when he’s fit and well.’

Maddie tried to diffuse the situation. ‘Wouldn’t it be
better if we all pitched in and helped?’

‘Yes, it would. But the Father has instructed me to keep the
farm in lockdown, so that’s what I’m going to do.’

Dixie snorted. ‘I suppose you’d jump off the tower if
he
told you to?’

‘Save your sarcasm, Dixie. I don’t care what you say. God is
watching you, and you can rest assured I’m going to report your behaviour to
the Father.’

Emily peered into the slop bucket. ‘How long’s this going to
last? I keep throwing up.’

Alice ran a hand through her hair. ‘A day or two, tops. No
longer than that.’

‘A day or two?’ Dixie said. ‘And what are we supposed to do
if we need the toilet? Crap on the floor?’

‘You’ll have to use the bucket.’

Dixie laughed. ‘How are we meant to use the bucket with
Emily hogging it day and night?’

‘I’m not hogging it “day and night”. Just in the mornings,’
Emily corrected.

Dixie looked at Emily as though she wanted to ram the bucket
over her head. ‘And where are we supposed to empty it? Out of the window? Oh,
no, oops, forgot, the window’s locked.’

Alice held up a hand. ‘For God’s sake, all I’m asking is for
you to bear with it for a couple of days. I’ll come in twice a day and empty
it.’

‘You’re too kind,’ Dixie said.

Alice ignored her. ‘We’ll be back to normal before you know
it.’

‘I can’t stay locked up in here,’ Emily said.

‘You’ll be fine,’ Alice assured her.

‘No I won’t. You don’t understand. I
need
access to a
toilet.’

‘I’ve just told you: I’ll come in and change the damned
bucket.’

Dixie grinned. ‘Language, Sister Alice, language.’

Emily gripped the rim of the bucket as though it were a
lifebuoy. ‘But I’m throwing up all morning. And my bladder’s weak. I need
access to a toilet.’

‘You’ve probably got a tummy bug. It’ll pass. I’ll bring you
some bottled water with breakfast. Make sure you drink plenty; it’ll help to
flush out your system.’

‘I’m pregnant,’ Emily blurted.

Alice opened her mouth to respond and then closed it again
without speaking.

Dixie shook her head. ‘Not the famous phantom pregnancy
again.’

‘It’s not a phantom pregnancy. It’s real.’

‘Shall I tell you how she got pregnant?’ 

‘Shut up, Dixie. You don’t know anything about me.’

‘She fantasised that Brad Pitt came in through the bedroom
window and made love to her in his latest movie.’

Alice crossed herself. ‘Pregnant? How?’

Dixie laughed. ‘Don’t you know about the birds and bees?’

‘I’m not a whore like you.’

‘Fuck you.’

Alice turned her attention back to Emily. ‘Who got you
pregnant?’

‘I don’t want to say.’

Dixie held up her right hand and counted out the
possibilities on her fingers. ‘Let’s see. If it wasn’t Brad Pitt, that leaves
four possibilities. Was it the resident rapist, Tweezer? Did he rape you,
Emily?’

Emily peered into the bucket as though the answer might lay
among the bile and the urine. ‘Leave me alone.’

Dixie forged ahead. ‘Then there’s the Father, but he only
runs rent boys up his flagpole. So that just leaves Bubba and Marcus. I’m still
putting my money on Brad Pitt.’

Emily lifted her head up from the bucket. ‘It’s Marcus.’

Alice’s jaw went slack. ‘Brother Marcus?’

‘We’re in love.’

‘In love?’ Dixie said. ‘That magic mushroom wouldn’t know
what love was if it bit him on the arse.’

‘Shut up,’ Emily shouted.

Maddie watched the three women facing each other like
wronged victims on a reality TV show. All it needed now was Jeremy Kyle to come
waltzing out from behind the wardrobe and offer counselling.

Although Maddie saw Dixie as a possible ally, her mouth
seemed to spring into action before her brain thought things through properly.
As for Emily, the poor girl was obviously confused and afraid.

‘Copulation is against the rules?’ Alice said.

‘We’re in love.’

‘You’re far too young to know the first thing about love,
you silly girl.’

Emily bent back over the bucket. ‘Leave me alone.’

‘She’s lying,’ Dixie said.

‘I’m not lying.’

Alice shook her head. ‘The Father will go spare when he
finds out.’

Dixie rounded on her. ‘Then don’t tell him.’

‘Don’t tell him? What happens when she starts showing?’

Dixie shrugged. ‘We could get rid of it.’

‘I’m not getting rid of it. Marcus said the Father will
understand.’

Alice’s eyes flashed in the morning sunlight. ‘And you
believe him, do you?’

Emily raised her head from the bucket. ‘Yes.’

Dixie rolled her eyes. ‘Marcus just told you what you wanted
to hear to get inside your knickers. Trust me. All men are pigs.’

Alice glared at Emily. ‘Even if Marcus carries a torch for
you, you’ll end up getting burned by it. Oh, God, child, what in heaven’s name
were you thinking?’

‘I love him.’

‘How far gone are you?’ Dixie asked.

Emily didn’t answer.

Dixie walked over to Emily. ‘Look, there’s no way on earth
the Father will give this his blessing. If you want my advice, you’ll get rid
of it. There are pills you can use. I’ve used them myself, dozens of times.’

‘What you’ve done in your sordid past bears no relation to this
mess,’ Alice said. ‘You know full well that the use of medication is
prohibited. I don’t even want to think about the use of medication to get rid
of a child.’

‘And the alternative is?’

‘The answer lies with God. God and the Father. I’m in no
position to offer solutions. I’m just a humble servant.’

Dixie shook her head. ‘You can’t tell him.’

Alice stepped out onto the landing. ‘I have no choice.’

‘Yes, you do,’ Dixie shouted, as Alice slammed the door and
locked it behind her.

Maddie looked at Dixie. ‘Now what are we going to do?’

‘I haven’t got a clue. Stupid bitch. She doesn’t have to
tell him. She
wants
to tell him.’

‘What will he do?’

Dixie chewed her nails and glared at Emily. ‘What did you
tell her for?’

Emily didn’t look up from the bucket. ‘I had to tell her. I
can’t stay locked up in here like this forever.’

‘You’ve really gone and done it now.’

‘Marcus said the Father will understand.’

Dixie laughed. ‘Marcus is so full of shit.’

Maddie was inclined to agree, but it wasn’t going to help
matters throwing insults at one another. ‘We have to get out of here.’

‘The only way out of here is in a coffin,’ Dixie said. ‘I’ve
seen first-hand what that bastard’s capable of.’

‘I don’t care what anyone else says. I’m going to have this
baby.’

‘Yeah, right,’ Dixie said. ‘And we’re all going to come to
the Christening and stick a silver spoon in its gob.’

Sister Alice crossed the landing to
the Brothers’ Room. She unlocked the door and stepped partway into the room.
She smiled. Loose flesh hung beneath her eyes like tiny black hammocks. ‘We’ve
had a slight problem.’

Ben’s heart capsized. ‘Is Maddie all right?’

‘Madeline? Yes, she’s fine. I’m afraid it’s the Father. He’s
had an accident.’

Ben hoped the accident turned out to be fatal. ‘What
happened?’

‘Brother Tweezer attacked him. The Father wants everyone to
stay in lockdown for the time being.’

Ben tried not to get his hopes up. ‘Why did Tweezer attack
him?’

‘I’m not here for twenty questions. I’m sure you’ll find out
in due course.’

‘How long are we supposed to stay locked up for? I can
barely bend over, let alone crap in that stupid bucket.’

‘Please refrain from being crude, Benjamin. The Father
doesn’t tolerate profanity.’

Ben groaned. Reasoning with Ebb and his cronies was like
trying to reason with mud. He wondered if it would be possible to force his way
out of the room before Alice reacted. ‘I’m in absolute agony.’

Alice made a face like his mother used to make when she was
about to tell him to be a big boy after falling off his bike. ‘Your pain and
suffering are as nothing compared to the Father’s pain and suffering.’

Ben’s wounds disagreed. ‘I need painkillers.’

‘We don’t allow medication.’

Ben snorted. An action Ebb might have envied with his
missing nostrils. ‘And does that rule apply to Ebb?’

Alice stepped back as if the words had physically assaulted
her. ‘Don’t you ever call him that. Show some respect.’

Ben ignored her. ‘Why don’t you answer the question instead
of hiding behind all this b-bullshit?’

‘I’ll pretend I never heard that.’

Ben’s temples pulsated. ‘So what am I supposed to do?
Suffer? Lick my wounds like a dog?’

‘Don’t be so dramatic.’

‘What if I was bleeding to death? Would you just stand there
and watch me die?’

‘It’s not up to me who lives and who dies. It’s up to God
and God alone. Your life is in His hands. What makes you think you have the
right to challenge God’s will?’

Ben laughed. ‘I don’t. I’m just wondering why God can’t show
any compassion. I’m in agony thanks to your so-called leader.’

Alice looked Ben up and down. ‘You don’t look as if you’re
in much pain to me.’

‘No? How do you think it feels to have pins stuck in the
soles of your feet? Or acid poured on your hands?’

Alice crossed herself. ‘That was holy water.’

‘Holy water, my arse.’

‘The fact that it burned you only reinforces the existence
of Satan within you.’

‘And you really believe that?’

‘I
know
that.’

Ben looked for traces of the woman who’d existed before Ebb
had filled her head with dangerous nonsense. ‘I wonder what your husband would
make of all this rubbish.’

‘Don’t you dare speak about my husband.’

Ben ignored her. ‘What was your husband’s name?’

‘Stop it.’

‘Do you think he’d be proud of you?’

‘Yes.’

‘Proud of you for denying medical attention to someone in
desperate need?’

‘He would understand.’

‘What about Ebb? Would your husband approve of him?’

Alice held her hands to her chest. ‘Show some respect.’

‘I mean, come on; who’s the evil one here?’

Alice stepped back towards the door. ‘Forgive him, Lord. He
knows not what he says.’

‘Religion is nothing more than a made-up load of bullshit
used to control people.’

‘You’ll go straight to Hell for that.’

‘Has Ebb ever told you about Cyril?’

Alice looked behind her at the door and then back at Ben.
‘You don’t fool me with your filthy lies.’

Ben ploughed on. ‘Do you want to know what Ebb did to
Cyril?’

Alice didn’t. Her hands fumbled for the door.

‘He killed him. And then he cut out Bubba’s tongue to stop him
speaking about it. How’s that for compassion?’

‘You’re lying.’

Ben laughed. A dry, humourless laugh that was a close
relation to a sob. ‘Why else do you think Bubba can’t talk?’

‘Bubba can’t talk because he’s mute.’

Ben shook his head. ‘Bubba can’t talk because Ebb mutilated
him.’

‘Liar,’ Alice shouted.

Ben turned to Bubba. ‘Isn’t that right?’

Bubba nodded.

Alice pulled the door wide open. ‘He doesn’t talk because
God has declared him a dumb mute. It has nothing to do with the Father.’

‘Can you hear yourself?’

‘The Lord can hear
you
,’ Alice retorted.

 ‘What has the so-called Father done to qualify for
such a grand title? Murdered innocent people? Cut out people’s tongues? Poured
acid on people?’

‘You can concoct all the fairy stories you like. My ears are
deaf to your lies.’

Bubba moved towards Alice.

‘Hear no evil, see no evil, speak no evil. Is that it,
Alice? Turn a blind eye?’ Ben said.

Alice stepped out on to the landing. ‘Get away from me.’

‘Stop her,’ Ben shouted.

Bubba tried to grab hold of the edge of the door. Alice
slammed it, crushing two of his fingers in the jamb. He yanked his hand free
and held it to his chest as if trying to revive it with his heart.

Alice closed the door. ‘You’ll pay for this. By God, you
will.’

Ben tried to respond. Tried to summon a smart-arse answer.
But Stutter-buck was dumb-struck. Bubba-struck, you might say, if you were as
cruel and vindictive as Sister Alice. ‘Bitch.’

‘You two will both go to Hell for this.’

‘See you there,’ Ben shouted back.

Alice didn’t respond. Ben heard her walk across the landing
and up the second flight of stairs to Ebb’s quarters. He turned to Bubba. ‘I’m
sorry. I’m really sorry.’

Bubba looked at Ben the way an injured animal caught in a
trap might look at a hunter. If Bubba could speak, he might tell old
Stutter-buck he’d been perfectly happy working on the farm and minding his own
business before Ben and Maddie had turned up and landed them in a dung heap the
size of Kilimanjaro.

‘Are your fingers broken?’

Bubba looked at Ben as if to say
what the hell do you
think
?

‘Maybe we could smash our way through the window frame. The
wood looks pretty rotten.’

Bubba walked over to the window. He pointed towards the
tower and then drew the index finger of his good hand across his throat.

‘They can’t be watching all the time. If we wait for it to
get dark we might stand a chance.’

Bubba panted and growled.

‘The dog?’

Bubba nodded. He then walked over to his bunk and sat down
on the edge. He bent so far forwards that his head was almost touching the
floor. Conversation over.
Don’t you think you’ve done enough damage already,
without suggesting we get shot and savaged by a dog?

‘We have to do something.’

Bubba stared at the floor and nursed his injured hand.

Ben walked over to the window and peered out through a net
curtain of grime. Above the tower, dark clouds gathered in the sky like a
funeral procession mourning the loss of liberty.  

Come on, Stutter-buck, jump. Make like a parachute and
j-j-j-jump.

Alice was right. They were dead. And no stupid plan could do
anything to alter that.