#3 Where Monsters Lay

Chap. 8_greasy rungs and bagged items?

"Ok, time to do this."

Sarah was back. And she was happy to be back. So many things had been buzzing around her head whilst in the hospital. But she didn't really want to say any of them in front of Blake. He was a friend. A good friend. But for some reason she didn't quite feel right about him since he'd come back. How'd he found her so easily? Why had he, so obviously, known everything they needed to go so quickly?

She scolded herself for being so questioning every time she thought those questions. But every time, only one returned. Because she knew something that just didn't make sense. Blake isn't a builder. Nor could he be. He's got back issues and has to work sitting down. How can he be helping construct the new underground service?

"Guys, are we sure that Blake said that he was part of the building company? Was he like a manager or something?"

"Nah, he was a builder. He told us about all the work."

It was Rob. His normal self. Or, at least, that's what he was trying to be. He'd never experienced 'too much'. Not even under the stress of the Jerry case. That was a challenge. Building up. Seeing people's lives completely drain in front of his eyes. And most of all, he being responsible.

Composure was necessary for the job. So he used it. Even at home with his wife, he had to keep quiet. And he needed to let go somewhere.

It wasn't anger. Like a raw, pent-up rage that can claw at you from the inside. More of a tickle. An irritating niggle that eventually can get too much. And overflow.

"Weird." Sarah said no more. She dared not. All this over-thinking was bad for her. And she didn't want it to affect the others. No. Not Rob. Or Frank.

She and Frank had known very early on that any underlying negative from any of them, or more than one, wouldn't do anything apart from tear them apart. It had. For months, with her and Frank.

She couldn't tell. She shouldn't, at least.

As her boot slipped off the greasy rung of the ladder, she held on with her might, tensing her forearms in terror. It was all reflex, though.

She regained a foothold, and slowly lowered herself down, deeper into the pit, mind elsewhere.

For all her mind was saying echoed around her lonely headspace.

It's a trap.

*****

"Why would someone want to steal a body anyway?" Frank's voice bounced away along the tunnel.

"We'll find out at the end of this damn tunnel." Rob's frustrated voice returned. "Are you sure you know where you're going?"

"Listen, you trust me on directions underground, and I'll trust you on what we do when we get there, yeah?"

A grunt was the only reply. He slowed down a little, to put on his jumper.

"It's goddamn freezing down here," he murmured to himself, though Sarah heard him in passing and smiled. She jogged up to reach Frank.

"Hey," she said quietly, reaching him.

"Alright," was the muted response.

They hadn't properly spoken since their agreement to act normal around Rob, and they certainly hadn't made any plans for what to do around each other without Rob with them.

And Sarah certainly wasn't going to tell Frank that she'd told Rob about it. Nor about what happened afterwards.

"This is going to sound weird," Frank said, breaking the silence, "but although we're not on the best of terms, I kinda like it when we pretend to be. I like remembering how you call me 'darling' and things. And how you'd come to me with your problems. And how we'd make funny faces at each other for no reason. I like that. And us pretending reminded me of that."