Darkness Dominates - Chapter 6

In four days, Henshall Academy had gone from being a girls’ boarding school to resembling a crypt. Twenty-one of the forty-six pupils had fallen victim to Spanish Flu. Only three of that number survived. Evelyn Brooke had stood with the headmistress – Cynthia Edgecombe-Willard – and the other teachers as eighteen bodies were carried out, wrapped in linen sheets. All did the sign of the cross as the procession of dead schoolgirls passed. It was led by the school chaplain – Parson Richard Lessing. He murmured prayers with the intention of preparing their souls on the journey to heaven.

When the mournful procession had left the grounds, Evelyn said “Blast this war – it stole our men, now it steals our children.”

“I will not tolerate utterances like that” snapped Cynthia. “Our countrymen – those who weren’t cowards, that is – fought the good fight against the Hun...you ought to prouder of them”

Offended by Ms Brooke’s remark, Mrs. Edgecome-Willard walked off with the air of an overly haughty Duchess. When she reckoned the headmistress was out of earshot, she continued with her criticism.

“It’s all very well her chastising me like that, but so many fathers, brothers and sons never came home from France. The grief and loss outweighs the bravery.”

“Evelyn, you really must take care what you say to her.”

“I am speaking the truth, Florence.”

“You can take comfort in the soldiers getting their rewards in heaven.”

Evelyn’s views were atheist. She couldn’t voice them. Her opinions were liable to be judged as blasphemous. It was this certainty that had been instrumental in the decision regarding her future here.

“I’ve decided to leave Henshall Academy, Florence”

“How much notice have you given?”

“I leave tomorrow”

“That is too soon”

“Not for me”

“This is your calling, Evelyn”

She didn’t care for that saying, but managed a smile nonetheless when it was uttered.

“I need to search for a new one.”

The gymnasium’s equipment had been stored away to make room for the beds. They were all empty now. The outbreak’s survivors had been allowed to return to their dorms. Leola walked through the middle of the gym. Calling herself Vanessa Brinley, she was used to walking by the foot of where each pupil lay. As Head Girl, patrolling the dormitories and corridors before ten at night was part of her regular routine. The atmosphere was distinctly ghostly. She left the gymnasium and ventured outside. Evelyn and Florence watched Leola walk towards them.

“The miracle amongst the fallen” said Miss Alwyn.

Florence was full of poetic descriptions of events she defined as spiritual. To hear her come out with them was unusual: most of the time they remained as thoughts in her own head. They never passed her lips, unless she felt they were important enough to say freely.

“It was just an example of blind luck, Florence” insisted Evelyn. “I am not someone who believes in destiny or fate. It is ourselves who create situations where we end up lucky or not. Things don’t happen in our lives if we wait for them to.”

“Luck or ill-fortune is there to find us, not vice-versa, Evelyn.”

Florence’s outlook came mostly from her father. He was a staunch believer that destinies were shaped externally – the polar opposite of Evelyn’s belief system. Anything attributed to religious divinity, she rapidly dismissed. They seldom publicly seemed at odds with one another, but their differing views occasionally saw Florence and Evelyn clash, without meaning to. Their personalities were exhibited more strongly when their opinions were expressed.

Evelyn hadn’t got a response lined up to greet that remark. She used the weather to bypass having to give a reply.

“The clouds are gathering – there could be rain”

“The skies are greyer over there towards the north-west of here” said Florence.

Turning her head that way, Evelyn observed their colour.

“Silvery, I’d say, Florence. “It still might...might...”

Evelyn’s vision became blurry.

“...might rain”

She thought it rude to break off whilst talking, so she persevered.

“...this afternoon or...”

Ms Brooke collapsed.

Six hours later, Evelyn was in one of the beds occupying the gym. As she lay there, writhing and perspiring, two more girls and another teacher, Miss Coulthard, were brought in. All four patients had gotten Flu. A nurse, who had treated the wounded soldiers from the First World War, was tending to Evelyn. Leola’s immunity to every disease known to man meant she was in no danger of contracting it from Ms Brooke. She was seated to the left of the bed she was in. Attending to her was Dr. Raymond Abbott. He listened to her breathing through his stethoscope. A moment later, he shook his head gravely. There was no point in him explaining the gesture. He’d verified that she was at death’s door.

“You should say a prayer for her, Miss Brinley” advised Dr. Abbott. “Heaven is her next destination.”

“She’s not religious, Dr. Abbott” she said.

“Then let us hope the Devil will be kinder, Miss Brinley”

This told Leola what his attitude to atheism was.

“The Devil will” thought Leola. “Can I say my goodbyes in private?”

“Were you fond of Ms Brooke, Miss Brinley?”

“I admired her”

Dr. Abbott left the gymnasium. The others stricken down had been given something to help them sleep. Their chances of surviving the next twelve hours were fifty-fifty. Evelyn’s prognosis was irreversibly dire. The gym was quiet again, but not in an eerie way.

“Now I really am going to leave tomorrow”

What Leola had merely thought about Satan, she now spoke of.

“The Devil will be kinder – I guarantee it”

“How many times must I tell you; it’s Ms Brooke to you” she replied breathlessly.

Her fangs appeared. Leola’s bite into the teacher’s neck was incredibly brief. It only took a split-second. A silvery white substance started to slide down one of her razor sharp molars. She bent over the dying woman as it dripped off them and dribbled down into the twin red marks. The minor mutilation vanished in under five seconds. Evelyn’s whole body juddered for a moment. It stiffened, then relaxed. Leola discarded her school hat, tie and coat. She cradled the unconscious teacher in her arms and they departed from the boarding school for the last time.

Holly Pearce was miffed. Neil had summoned her back to Sudfield to cover for Wanda. She could’ve refused, but her fondness for Neil made her say yes. A small part of her was now regretting that choice. She’d spent an hour trying to tidy Emerald and Fiona’s bedroom again, and the task was only three-fifths complete.

During this chore, Holly discovered Emerald had broken the no alcohol rule for the umpteenth time. It had been tucked under one of the two easy chairs in this bedroom. Holly had to tug it a few times before it came free. The final destination for the incriminating object was the bin set aside for bottles and cans. All the bins for different types of household waste were neatly lined up in a row. Directly above them was a sign saying ‘We Recycle’ in big green letters. They each had a symbol to represent which item of household waste went where. The bottle and can bin was orange. The unusual choice of colour for it made it stand out. There was no chance of it being mistaken for one of the others. Holly dropped it through the round hole. Her walk back to the main entrance took her underneath the circular window again.

Though she had work to do, Holly decided to watch it for a minute. The suspicion that what Diane had said about the repairs was a lie had grown. She took her I-Phone from her right trouser pocket. As she observed that window, Diane and one of the girls she’d spotted walked in front of it. Ms Farnham was talking to the young lady quite intensely. Holly held her phone up and took a quick photo with its camera mechanism. There was a risk of Sudfield’s manageress seeing her do this, but Diane was too busy talking to the blonde teenager to notice.

Miss Pearce briskly darted back into the building. Her volunteer clothing only consisted of a T-shirt, so it merely took her over a minute to change back into her normal clothes. She put the I-Phone in her designer handbag, threw on her jacket and started to leave.

Neil caught sight of her attempted departure. He rushed over and gently seized her left arm.

“Where do you think you’re going?”

“To see a county councillor”

“I need you here”

“To cover Wanda, as she’s not well – I got your message, Neil!”

“So why are you leaving me high and dry?”

Holly answered by showing him the photo on her phone she’d taken minutes ago. Neil’s expression switched to bewilderment as soon as he saw the image.

“There’s not supposed to be anyone up there – just Diane and the workmen.”

“I so think Diane’s pulling our chains” declared Holly.

“I’m not with you.”

“I don’t think any repairs were ever being done.”

She slipped the I-Phone back into her handbag.

“Then who’s up there?”

“I think its Sophie and Emma Walsh”

“They were relocated”

“Diane must’ve made it look like that”

“Hold on, is this because Ben was fired?”

“For no reason – all he did was hear voices and try to tell her Emerald and Sally had been scrapping and she gave him the boot – now I know why!”

In spite of him wanting to remind her of her responsibilities, he let go of her right arm. He was aware that she’d only turned up as a courtesy.

“Who are you going to see there?”

“Councillor Trennell – I have to show her this photo”

Being brought up to tread carefully, Neil was tempted to persuade Holly to adopt this ethic. He let her leave instead. Neil followed Holly back into the grounds, but only to verify her suspicions. They were, when he stared up at the round window. Diane was no longer visible through it, but Emma and Sophie were.

The wheels of Holly’s car churned up some gravel as she started to drive away from Sudfield. Some of it was sprayed diagonally upwards. It narrowly missed hitting Neil in his right eye. His vision still clear, he looked up again. The Walsh sisters were smiling strangely at him.

Finding this more than a little creepy, Neil ventured back into Sudfield Hall. He’d suddenly remembered he had some maintenance of his own in the kitchen to attend to.

The car park for Alvenshire County Council HQ was one of the largest Holly had ever seen. Finding a space added an extra quarter of an hour to her journey time. The building’s reception area was also six times larger than she imagined. It bore a striking resemblance to Canroth General’s reception. There were a few receptionists behind the eleven-foot wide desk. The design of it was slightly sterile and synthetic – the colour it was painted wasn’t. Its futuristic sleek style was a far cry from how this part of the building looked thirty years ago. A female receptionist who’d been squatting down to put away some files stood up and turned round. It was Lucy, minus her bouncer’s outfit.

“Can I help you?” she asked Holly.

“Yes, I’m looking for Councillor Trennell”

“What’s it regarding?”

“Sudfield Hall”

“Are you related to one of the residents?”

“No, I do voluntary work there”

“What’s your name?”

“Holly Pearce – Councillor Trennell will know who I am”

“Hold on a minute, I’ll just check if she’s free”

She selected Pippa’s extension.

“Hello, Councillor Trennell” Lucy said, when she heard a voice answer. “There’s a young lady who says she’s from Sudfield. What’s her name? Holly Pearce. Okay, I’ll send her in.”

Lucy walked round to Holly’s side of the reception desk.

“It’s this way” said Lucy, giving Miss Pearce the “after you” gesture.

They walked down a corridor that had milky green walls until the pair of them reached Councillor Trennell’s office. Lucy knocked three times.

“Come in” said Pippa.

When Holly closed the door behind her, Lucy took out her phone and called Evelyn’s number.

“Geena, its Tina – there may be a problem with the Sudfield situation. What? Okay, I’ll meet you at Matt’s Cafe in a few hours.”

There was a gap of four seconds before Pippa recognised her visitor.

“Don’t I know you?”

“I was there when you called round to talk to Diane Farnham.”

“I’ve a meeting in over half an hour, so I don’t have much time to chat: I’d like you to come to the point of why you’re here.”

“This” said Holly, showing her the picture of the Walsh sisters”

“I don’t recognise them – who are they?”

Leola’s hypnotism had blocked out her memory of seeing them. This made what she’d said sound genuine.

“Emma and Sophie Walsh”

These names were familiar. They hadn’t mentally been masked by Leola’s mesmeric influence.

“Yes I know these two – they’re the girls who spent the best past few years bullying Skye Linton. She couldn’t take it anymore, so she...”

She stopped talking when she acknowledged Holly’s blank expression.

“What’s wrong?”

“Who’s Skye Linton, Councillor Trennell?”

“What do you mean who’s Skye Linton?”

“I mean who’s Skye Linton?”

“She was one of Sudfield’s residents.”

“Well, it so must’ve been before my time”

“No, she resided there last year”

“You’re way mistaken – I’ve never heard of or seen this person you’re on about!”

“How long have you been at Sudfield?”

“A year”

“Then you must’ve either seen Skye or heard her talking to one of the other teenager staying there.”

“I didn’t, Councillor Trennell – I’m not making this up!”

It was Pippa’s turn to get out her phone. She showed Holly the photo she took of Leola the night she brought her home.

“There you go” said Pippa. “Skye Linton in the flesh”

“That’s one of the volunteers who brought the Walsh sisters to Sudfield”

“Excuse me?”

“Yeah, she was in a minibus, along with another young woman and a man”

“Are you making this up?”

“Totally not – they carried them in. I think they were snoozing. The minibus smelled weird! That girl in the photo and the bloke who came with her carried them inside.”

“What’s this really about?” asked Councillor Trennell, sensing this girl had some kind of alternative agenda.

“The Walsh sisters – they were supposed to have been relocated, but they hadn’t been. I took that photo I showed you today. I’m way sure that’s why Ben got fired.”

“So, this is personal”

“Like I said when I spoke to you last, Ben’s just a mate.”

“Listen Holly, I think you’ve wasted enough of my time. I’m not in the least bit interested in being mixed up in your grudge against Diane.”

“I’m telling you, Councillor Trennell – there’s something totally messed-up going on here!”

“I don’t doubt it – one volunteer with a grievance against the person they’re working for, making up stuff – that’s messed up to me, Holly! Now, if you don’t mind seeing yourself out, I’ve got a council meeting to go to!”

Holly couldn’t find anything else to get Pippa to listen. She was gravely quiet as she left her office. Tina was heading towards there as Holly passed her in that stretch of corridor. She strode in and informed Councillor Trennell the meeting was about to commence.

“I’ll be there in a tick” said Pippa.

She glanced at the photo she’d taken of Skye for a moment, then turned off the phone and got out from behind her desk.

“I’m on my way, now”