Backwards Into Hell

Part Two: The LFG

Jake's Diary

Wednesday 27th October

I followed the rest of them to the kitchen, attempting to appear solemn as my heart leapt with joy because, in an instant, Darren had become the main suspect. It was easy to explain the killings as a bloody way to keep his business a secret or, if it came to it, as a drug-induced rage.

The six of us squeezed inside, standing shoulder to shoulder and gathered around David as he stood in front of the cursed cupboard. With a subtle glance at me, he let it fall open, and Lottie shuffled forward to stare down the hole.

'Down here,' David began, 'is a lab—and it's fairly obvious what it's for.'

At this point, Darren decided it was a good idea to bolt. He dashed to the backdoor, burst through it, and catapulted through the rainy grounds like a gazelle before David, Anais, and I lion-ed after him.

Anais was smart. He knew we knew he was involved. As such, his best chance of survival was ratting out Darren.

David pulled in front of all of us in seconds, and despite being fit and muscular, even Darren couldn't beat him. David had sprinted faster than Usain Bolt out of that door. Meanwhile, Anais and I struggled behind, close to keeling over and slipping in the wet mud.

As David caught up, he hooked Darren's neck and twisted him to the floor. Darren dropped like a stone and my chest pounded. Whether it was military training or something else, David knew what he was doing. To keep Darren from wriggling away, David sat on top of him, puffing out his cheeks and breathing hard.

We finally reached them. David smiled widely at us and said,

'RAF fun-run, winner, three times in a row.'

Neither of us struggled to believe it. David was going to be a tricky one to get rid of.

David dragged Darren from the ground and, putting him in a policeman's hold, began to walk him back to The Lodge. As he did, Anais' thoughts drifted.

I turned to see him staring toward the trees and at the graves. Once you stood in the garden, it was apparent. They were empty.

'Is that...' Anais began to say but trailed off as I stood beside him.

Fortunately, David decided there were more pressing matters.

'Come on,' he said, giving us a last glance and pulling Darren with him. 'We can deal with that later.'

I placed a hand on Anais' shoulder—if only to be sure he wouldn't run off—and we followed David back inside.

David dug up the graves.

It would make sense—and would account for David's lack of surprise—but Anais' theory didn't sit right. No.

Far more likely? It was The Old Man.

Abe and Lottie were still in the kitchen when we returned and stared at us through the whites of their eyes.

'We should tie him up,' David suggested and I was happy to follow.

'With what?'

'Hang on,' Lottie interrupted. 'Not all of us have seen this "drug den" yet. Let us make our own minds up.'

My eyes met David's as annoyance and fatigue chased each other through his face. I smiled weakly.

'Follow me,' I said and gestured to the cupboard like Phineas Barnum on an off day.

There was no chance I wanted to go back down there. Nevertheless, my feet found the rungs of the ladder and the chemical smell crept up my nose, burning it as Lottie followed me down, surprisingly nimble on her old feet. I guessed they'd been quite fit in their youth—hard at work in the bakery—before widening out later.