Rose threw an arm out and struck Peter across the side of his face. The blow was so strong that it lifted him off his feet and sent him sprawling onto the sofa. Ashley turned, intending to help him get back up, but he was unconscious. Or worse.
Rose took another step, moving further into the room. She turned to Ashley and hissed like a snake, exposing her brown, rotting teeth. “Give it back to me,” she whispered, her voice like a distant echo.
Ashley was so scared that she reached out the hand that was holding the locket and attempted to give it back. When Rose’s eyes fell upon it, her thick red lips twisted into an unnatural facsimile of a smile. Maybe if she had the locket back, she would leave them alone.
Rita leapt out of her chair and stood up. She was a tiny thing, barely taller than a child. Her back was twisted and bony lumps covered her shoulders. All the same, she stepped in front of Rose and faced the abominable woman down. “I knew we’d meet again, sister-in-law. Your punishment has been long, yet utterly deserved. Let these lambies go. Let them put you to rest so that your suffering may finally be at an end. It is better than you deserve.”
Rose snarled, her broken teeth grinding together and a grey worm-like tongue poking through the gaps. “I have waited. Waited for this.” She lifted a long-fingered hand in front of her face and snapped it closed into a fist.
Rita clutched her chest and moaned. “No… No, you must be stopped. Your evil… must be…”
Ashley yelped as the old woman collapsed to the ground at her feet. She wheezed and clawed at her chest while thick blue veins popped up all over her bulging neck.
Despite her suffering, Rita locked eyes with Ashley and spoke. “Go… before it’s… too late.”
Ashley looked at the locket in her hand and didn’t know what to do. Should she stay and help the old lady? Or run?
Jude grabbed her wrist and the two of them took off, racing through the open door and exiting the house as quickly as they could. By the time they made it through the gate at the end of the driveway, they were both sobbing. Inside the house, they heard Peter screaming.
Chapter Eighteen
It was dark, but not quite night. The sun had disappeared, replaced by the moon. The odd cloud still drifted overhead, barely visible against the dark blue sky, but there was not yet a single star. Half-an-hour, and night would settle in comfortably. It meant they would have to visit the farmhouse in the dark, which was not a pleasant thought.
Ashley had never run so far without a break in her life, and by the time she and Jude stopped, they were sweating profusely and struggling to breathe. They had made it just over halfway home and were walking alongside the main road. They had just passed the embankment full of daffodils, but this time they didn’t stopp to pick any.
I think we just left two dead bodies behind us. Rose gave Rita a heart attack. How is that even possible?
And what about Peter? Is he okay?
Why is this happening?
Jude doubled over and heaved. For a moment, it looked like he was going to puke, but nothing came out except a mouthful of stringy saliva. Once he was done, he turned to Ashley with a grim expression on his face. “I… I don’t know if I can go back to the farmhouse. I-I just want to go home, no matter the consequences. The police can pin everything on me and lock me up for life; I don’t care.”
“Yes, you do. If we have any chance of getting through this, we need to do what Rita told us. We need to destroy the locket and put Rose to rest. Otherwise, this will never end and more people are going to get hurt. We have to do this, Jude. Your whole life, you’ve wanted to go on an adventure, to be brave, so here’s your chance. Rose is an evil, twisted bitch who murdered her own children, so let’s do what Rita should’ve done in the first place and finish her. One down, two down, right? What type of person do you want to be?”
Jude took several laboured breaths, still winded. Several cars passed by and hit them with their headlights. After a couple of minutes, he straightened up and gave himself a shake. “Once again, the warrior princess shows no fear. Her trusted mage is honoured to be by her side.”
Ashley shoved him playfully and smiled. “You’re such a nerd. I love you, Jude. Thanks for being my friend all these years.”
“No one else would have you,” he said, chuckling, “but that’s their loss.”
“Damn straight!” She threw out her arms and kicked out a leg. “I’ll remember you when I’m a famous backing dancer.”
“Nice moves.”
She did the robot, being silly and making him laugh. “You reckon I have what it takes?”
“Fuck yeah!”
Ashley was surprised by Jude’s bad language. Usually he left the foul mouth stuff to her. She pulled him in for a cuddle and the two of them embraced for a full minute before getting going again in a rush. Rose could be anywhere, and if she caught up to them before they got to the farmhouse, there was no telling what she might do.
Maybe she’ll stop our hearts in our chests like Rita’s. Or maybe we’ll put that bitch to rest once and for all.
This warrior princess is coming for you, Rose.
They reached the woods less than an hour later, and by then it was fully dark. Stepping into the trees with nothing except moonlight was terrifying, and every snapping twig and rustling insect set Ashley’s teeth on edge. The hairs on the back of her neck came alive like caterpillars. Now and then she deliberately bumped against Jude just to feel him there. They were both silent, and
