Part 11 (1/2)
With a flurry of clucking and ruffled feathers, a brown hen suddenly ran past Liz.
*s.h.i.+t,' Charlie said, coming round the corner chasing the hen, a crate full of chickens in his arms. *Oh, hi, you're up. Give me a hand to catch that last one, she's a bit feisty. It's hard enough for me to catch them as it is without stabbing them, but she's a real runner.'
So for the next few minutes Liz and Charlie laughed together as they tried in vain to catch the speedy hen. Each time they thought she was cornered, off she would dash, wings flapping.
*Oh, just leave her,' Liz said, puffing as she rested her hands on her hips, *she obviously doesn't want to be caught.'
*OK,' Charlie replied, hoisting the crate up onto the cart roof to begin securing it for the journey *a dozen new hens, Sister Claire will be pleased'. With a pat to the crate, Charlie jumped back down to join Liz.
In the meantime, Imran went to feed the two piglets. Opening one of the side hatches, he backed away, waving a hand in front of his face.
*Wow, I think the alcohol sedative they were given has had an unpleasant side effect,' Imran said, pulling out the small crate containing the piglets and a lot of runny pig manure. *G.o.d, it stinks.'
Charlie realising the trip home would be bad enough without having to put up with the smell, went over to the bucket of water he had given Delilah.
*Right, now take them out the cage and replace the bedding' Charlie said emptying the water over the two squealing piglets.
Ratbag was particularly vocal in her displeasure at being drenched, while Stinky seemed to take it all in his stride.
*So what's the plan?' Imran asked, when he had finally replaced the cleaner piglet crate in the cart.
*Well I've checked all over the Police Station and there's no sign of Emma, so that just leaves the village,' Charlie replied.
Normally Liz would argue they should stay until they found her alive or one of the Dead, but after her dream she had a feeling they were already too late to save Emma and her baby.
*Look,' she said with a sigh, *I want to get back home as soon as we can, and as we have to go through the village anyway, how about we just take it slowly and hope that she sees us.'
*If she can,' Imran added under his breath.
They all knew they were just going through the motions, trying to satisfy their own conscience. None of them wanted to admit that Emma was probably already one of the Dead but they had to be realistic. It would take more time than they could spare to check each cottage in the village, room by room. Only to come up with either nothing or just another one of the walking Dead.
*So that's the plan then,' Charlie said. *We might as well get going.'
*Hang on...' Liz said jogging back into the Police station. Returning moments later with the crocheted blanket Emma had made in her hands. Charlie looked at the small folded blanket and raised an eyebrow in question.
*Seems a shame to leave it, and well, you never know,' she said gently stoking the soft wool between her fingers. Emma had made this blanket for the unborn baby she carried, each st.i.tch invested with the love she felt for this little person yet to come into the world. To leave it behind to simply rot would be an insult to that love. Perhaps she would give it to Helen when her baby came, it seemed right somehow. Placing the folded blanket in one of the already over stuffed storage boxes, Liz joined Imran in the cart.
Charlie pulled the Police Station door shut, sealing the tomb of the happy life Emma and Daniel had shared. Liz watched Emma and Daniel's home disappear behind them as Charlie moved Delilah down the side road and back onto the cliff-side lane. Before the house was out of sight, Liz noticed Charlie had put a sign in one of the upstairs windows. In large letters it simply said *Safe'. Perhaps one day someone else would make use of this building and make it their home. She hoped so.
Delilah slowly pulled them along the lane that followed the small cliff down to the harbour village. Looking down onto the pebble beach, Liz could see that Daniel's body had gone, swept away by the dawn tide as if he had never been there. Charlie pulled Delilah to a stop just as they began to reach the village proper. It was sad to see the abandoned cottages, their exteriors painted in various pastel shades, now faded and weatherworn. The little shops and tea rooms that must have attracted the happy holiday makers, now burnt out or with smashed windows, their interiors exposed to the sky. Pulled up onto the beach were a few dilapidated fis.h.i.+ng boats. Obviously brought to sh.o.r.e seven years ago for repairs that would now never be made, they sat like sad beached whales on the pebbles, decaying carca.s.ses never to be returned to their natural environment.
*Right Imran, can you pop the top hatch. If Emma is alive she'll see that we're from Lanherne,' Charlie said as Delilah began moving again, *and if she's not alive, well...' he let the sentence hang between them unfinished, they all knew how it would end.
Doing as he was asked, Imran placed one of his precious arrows onto his bow ready to end Emma's non-life. Charlie took them along the seafront road, hoping Emma would appear waving to them from her hiding place. Unlike many places they had been through, here cars sat neatly parked along the curb, instead of the smashed wrecks that they usually saw. It seemed as if the residence of Cawsands Bay had fled to the sea on ma.s.s, taking their boats filled with those they loved, they left behind their land existence frozen in time. Liz wandered what had happened to the families in the flotilla of boats. Had they found an island somewhere where they could start anew or been forced to return to sh.o.r.e when their water ran out. Of course she would never know but she liked the idea of a whole village just upping sticks and relocating out in the sea, far away and safe from the death that stalked the mainland.
*You know, it might be a good idea when we get back to the convent to find out if any of us know how to sail a boat,' Charlie said thinking about Daniels boat tied up and bobbing on the waves, by the jetty. *We could send a party out here to fish. We could smoke it, then bring it back. It'd be a good addition to our stores come winter.'
They had travelled more than half way through Cawsands Bay now and apart from the gulls overhead or the odd mangy looking cat darting across the road, the place was a ghost town. Liz would have liked to catch one of the cats, to help keep the rats away at Lanherne but knew they couldn't afford the time chasing after an animal that didn't want to be caught. Just then Imran banged on the top of the cart, signalling Charlie to stop.
*What is it?' Liz asked. *Have you seen Emma?'
*No, sorry Liz... Charlie look,' Imran replied pointing out to sea.
Following his raised arm, Liz and Charlie saw in the distance a sailing boat. It was so far out it was difficult to gauge the actual size of the boat but its four large sails caught the offsh.o.r.e winds to speed it along through the waves.
*Do you think it's adrift?' Liz asked, as Charlie reached for the pair of binoculars.
*Doubt it Liz,' he replied. *If it was I think the sails would be in tatters by now.'
Lifting the binoculars he tried to focus on the boat far out at sea.
*d.a.m.n! They're too far out to see if any living one's on deck,' he said, lowering the binoculars. Just then the boat changed direction and began to sail farther away from the coast.
*Well, I guess that settles it. Boats don't often change course on their own,' Imran said. *Wonder where they're from?'
The three of them watched in silence, as the boat sailed further off to the horizon, giving them hope that somewhere perhaps people were living without the constant fear of the Dead around them. Once the boat had finally gone from view, they continued their slow journey along Cawsands Bay, the clip clop of Delilah's hooves the only sound echoing off the empty buildings.
She could remember when she was little, her parents bringing her to a seaside town, much like this one. Holding tight to her mother's hand, she remembered the older children running and calling to each other along the sand, as they tried to fly their kite. Laughter and life filled the air, while all about her families enjoyed their day away from their normal busy routine. She could still see herself watching in awe while she stood with her parents waiting for a stick of pink sugary candyfloss, the man twirling the stick around the drum smiling at her. It was sad to see Cawsands Bay so abandoned by life and she wondered if children would ever laugh here again. Would they ever be free to run and play, to chase the waves along the sand or explore the hidden delights in the rock pools. Would they ever be free of the Dead? She hoped so, one day.
Delilah had soon pulled them all the way to the other side of the bay and there was still no sign of Emma.
*Right,' Charlie said, pulling Delilah to a stop. Looking at Liz they both knew chances were not looking good for finding Emma alive. *I think our last option is that we shout for Emma for a few minutes. There's been no sign of any more of the Dead, so we should be OK. Other than that, I can't think how else we'll attract her attention.'
Liz knew Charlie was right. As horrible as it made her feel, they couldn't waste any more time here, they had to get back to the convent. This would be Emma's last chance. Jumping down from the cart, Liz cupped her hands to her mouth and shouted Emma's name as loud as she could. With the words echoed round the small bay, Liz's eyes scanned the vista for any movement that could signal Emma was there.
*Come on, please come out, please come out,' Liz said to herself, as she called for Emma again and again. After five minutes of shouting Liz looked up at Charlie.
*Come on Liz, get back in,' he said with a resigned sigh. *we've done all we can here, I'm sorry.'
Even as she climbed back into the cart, she couldn't take her eyes from the small buildings that circled the bay. She scanned each one, one last time, hoping to catch some movement at a window. Even then, she still hoped Emma would appear, waving to them. But a haunting silence had descended upon the bay and Liz knew this place would never hear the delighted squeals of an infant taking its first steps or the comforting lullaby sung by a loving parent. Only the lonely ghosts of *what could've been' inhabited Cawsands Bay now. Closing the side hatch, Liz stood up to watch alongside Imran, while the quiet bay slowly disappeared behind them.
*Sorry Emma,' Liz whispered, as Imran put his arm around her and gently pulled her back into the cart.
For the next half an hour no-one spoke, Delilah's hooves clip-clopping on the cracked road surface and the piglets occasional squeals, the only sounds filling the cart. Each of them felt they had somehow failed Daniel, Emma and their unborn baby. Even though logically, they knew the terrible events that had taken place in the bay had been over hours before they had arrived, it didn't help them feel less guilty about it all.
*G.o.d, what a s.h.i.+t couple of days,' Liz said, at last breaking the sombre silence that had descended on them, *I'll be glad to get home. How long will it take Charlie?'
*Well barring any mishaps and disasters, we'll get home sometime this evening. Just in time for dinner hopefully,' he replied.
*Perhaps we can convince Sister Rebecca to give us chicken to celebrate our return?' Imran said, finis.h.i.+ng off the last of the tough, stale bread.
*I don't think we've got much to celebrate,' Liz said. *Two outposts wiped out, that's seven people killed Imran, if you count Emma's baby, all gone for no reason.'
*Liz, we're alive and apart from the lump on your head, we're ok too,' Charlie said. *The way the world is now, I think that's worth celebrating.'
Liz begrudgingly agreed with a *Humph' noise, though she clearly wasn't convinced. After all this time, she thought she would have got used to people dying and to some extent she had, but it was the pointless way someone had killed these innocent people that affected her so much.
*Oh and don't forget Stinky and Ratbag,' Charlie continued, *they'll be a whole new resource for the convent.'