Terror in the Night

Chapter 19

Chapter 19

Colin thought she was at work still; she phoned him before she left so he wouldn’t worry like he had been doing when she didn’t return home at a normal time. Instead, she was trudging through the drizzle, which started once she stepped out of her car, towards her mum.

She had no flowers like she normally brought and her clothes were starting to stick to her body like a second skin, but she didn’t care. With everything rushing around in her head and her heart screaming different things at her, she didn’t know what she should do. She always found the answers with her Mum when she wouldn’t find them with anyone else.

Katy Sparrow; born 16th May 1972 and died on the 23rd April 2000; a beloved mother and wife. That was all that the polished stone said about Faye’s Mum but it wasn’t ever enough for Faye. It didn’t say how wonderful she was or like the time Faye was very little and was being stalked by three huge dogs; it didn’t explain how brave her Mum was that day. Or the many times Faye scraped her knee, it said nothing about how caring her Mum was or how she smiled lovingly while Faye cried into her shoulder.

Thousand words were missing from that polished stone, years were taken away never to be given back, but still Faye felt safe next to her as if she was still next to her looking over her.

“I’m sorry I didn’t bring flowers,” Faye said quietly and crouched in front of the grave; normally she would bring a dozen mixed red and white roses and for some reason felt odd not having them with her, “And sorry it’s so late but I had to talk to someone who would understand.”

She fell silent and looked over at the golden letters in the street light glow. “I found him Mum; your killer. His name is Ethan Rakes and I don’t think you were his only victim. I know you would tell me not to go after him, but this is what I have been training for Mum and now I’ve found that he kills people that talk too much about this group of women and he kidnaps people as well; you can’t expect me to just sit by silent and let him carry on.

“But that’s not why I’m here, I know what I am going to do so that’s not what I need help with. Abby was right, I’ve found your killer but I don’t know if I should stop after. The whole reason why I started was to catch your killer and make him pay what he did to you, but now I find that children are being kidnapped and I don’t even know what the money is for. If I stop, the kidnappings will continue, but if I continue, there is every chance I’ll get killed or arrested.”

She stopped herself before she started ranting on about what ifs.

“I bet you would agree with Dad, I need to settle down with a nice man who would look after me, who can have children with me and grow old with me.” She smiled at the thought and dragged her fingers through her wet hair. “I actually think I’ve found the perfect guy, you would like him, he’s called Colin and he’s a homicide detective. I know, he’s an officer and I’m a vigilante now but he’s really sweet and caring and little over protective. I don’t know if it’s because we work different hours of the day, but we seem to click. We have out moments, but so do most couples.

“Thea is getting married; I think. She’s worried that she’ll just be another rich man’s wife who will be decorated in jewels and fancy clothes and not taken seriously. If I was in her shoes, I wouldn’t complain as long as he treats me right. But I get where Thea is coming from, she’s always been head strong and wanted her own way. I think I’m going to have to put her head on straight when I next see her, make her see everything good that will come from marrying him.

“Abby is dating a vet called Sam and they are both helping me. Although, I didn’t really ask them to, they just stuck to me since the first kidnapping that I stopped. When I see both of them, I can almost see how much they care about each other, but lately Sam’s been pulling away from her because he thinks she wants him to propose. Over all I’m finding this all quiet funny.”

Something rustled behind Faye but when she looked over, there was no-one was standing in the shadows.

“When you were my age, you had an six year old to look after,” she said slowly as she turned back to her Mum, “But I can’t imagine myself as a Mum yet.

“I just need help Mum, what do I do after. When this is all over, do I stop the kidnappings or do I stop and start a family that Dad always wanted me to have?”

A strong gust of wind blew the cold rain harder against her back. “I better go before I get an awful cold from the damn weather; that would only give Colin another reason to care for me. I’ll come visit when I’ve made up my mind.”