The Fifth Girl by Paul J. Teague

Author:Paul J. Teague [Teague, Paul J.]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Published: 2024-01-29T00:00:00+00:00

TWENTY-FOUR

1969: SOPHIA BRENNAN’S STORY

Sophia thought her body was about to give up on her; she couldn’t control the shaking and nausea. She pushed on, stumbling through the dark streets, looking behind her all the time, expecting Cillian and Billy to be coming after her. Their voices filled her head, taunting her, demanding that she go back to that place, insisting that she saw one more drunken man before they finished for the night.

She stopped by a tree to throw up. She needed her fix; it felt like she would die without it.

Across the city, she could hear sirens. Were they heading for the fire that she’d started? Would they rescue those bastards and save their lives? If they were going to hell, and surely they were, at least she’d been the one to start the flames that would torment them for eternity.

‘Are you all right?’ came a female voice.

It was an elderly couple walking a couple of Jack Russells.

‘Can we do anything to help?’

‘I’m okay, thank you, I’m fine.’

The woman put her hand on Sophia’s arm. It was the first gentle and soft human touch she’d felt after the violence of the house.

‘That’s an interesting tattoo on your arm—’

Sophia shrugged her off. She had to get away; she couldn’t afford to let these people get a close look at her; she was a murderer, after all. She staggered on, ignoring the pleas to accept their help.

‘She doesn’t look okay,’ she heard the woman say. Would they call the police?

‘My house is just around the corner,’ Sophia managed to call over. ‘I’ve had a bit too much to drink. I’ll be home soon, thank you.’

She sensed the couple were still watching her stumbling along the road, but she didn’t look back. Instead, Sophia attempted to make it look like she had some sense of purpose. When she reached the corner, she bolted as fast as she could.

It had only just dawned on her: she was a fugitive now, a murderer. Did it count as murder if you killed men as vile as Cillian and Billy? She thought it would, and they’d jail her and throw away the key. She’d only just escaped from one prison.

Sophia hadn’t a clue where she was going. Her life had been spent around the fishing community in Hessle Road, and she had no friends to call on and nobody to help her. For a moment, she wondered if she should head for the Salvation Army hostel, but she thought better of it. They might be looking for her. Besides, she had to find drugs. She’d die without them.

It was a chilly night and she’d come unprepared. Her arms were dotted with goosebumps. She had to find somewhere to rest; she needed money.

Sophia stopped and looked around. She’d paused outside a church. And even in that desperate moment, she wondered if she’d been guided there. She looked across the graveyard to see if there was any light, but the church seemed empty. She’d lost track of what time it was.

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