Written in the Rockstars (Completed)

Chapter 26- The Saviour

Annabel's P.O.V

"You have arrived at your destination, " The voice of my SatNav intoned.

I looked up at the run down building.  One half was a boarded up shop, with peeling paint and layers of dirt and grime. The other half was a flat, containing a single window that was covered by a mesh-like curtain.  To the left of the tarnished door was a small sign. Although the golden figures were almost worn off, I could make out 14A.

The moment of truth.

I pushed gingerly on the door and, to my surprise, it swung open with a taunting creak.  Facing me was a staircase.  It was clear where this staircase would lead me.  I ascended the stairs,  each one groaning under my weight.  At first, I attempted the tip-toeing technique,  before accepting that there was to be no creeping around.  For one thing,  this rickety staircase simply wouldn't allow it. For another, I figured that I may as well announce my arrival to Abbey, to show her that I wasn't afraid.

Which would be a lie.

I stopped in front of the door.  Not a door. The door.  Why was it the door? Well,  I guess this door, rotting and discoloured,  decided my fate.  If I continued and proceeded to open the door,  I was either going to die or save my mum. If I turned away,  I would survive, but my mum would most probably die.

That's deep.

I inhaled deeply, before pushing the door ajar.  I slipped through silently.

It was horrible.

Everything was coated in layers of dust and grime,  the walls yellowing and mouldy. The furniture was... in a word,  antique. I scanned the room. No sign of Abbey.  I walked forwards, before catching my foot on something and stumbling.  I cursed under my breath,  before glancing back to see what I had tripped over.

What I saw literally made me vomit in my mouth.  No joke.

It was a body. A dead body. The skin was transparent and a ghostly white,  the eyes glassy and unseeing.  Their lips were blue, with a grey tinge. In the middle of their forehead,  a trickle of blood had rolled down from what appeared to be a bullet wound. 

As I examined the body, I felt something niggling at the back of my mind. There was something familiar about the corpse. Then it came to me.

Rudi.

I gasped sharply, covering my mouth with my trembling hands.  Abbey had killed Rudi.  And she had his dead body shoved under a wooden table.

I turned and noticed two doors on the other side of the room.  One of them had a key sticking out of the lock.

Bingo.

I crossed the room and rattled the door handle. From inside, I could make out a muffled groan.  I turned the key and tried the handle again.  This time,  the door swung open.  And there, in front of my eyes  was my mum.  She was lying on a bed,  her wrist cuffed to the post.  Her face was pale, her cheeks hollowed and her frame frail and thin. Her eyelids fluttered open as I entered the room.  They widened when she saw me.

" Annabel?" She croaked hoarsely.

" That's me! " I whispered.

" How...? What...? When...?" She stuttered.

" No time to explain. I have no idea where Abbey is, but we need to get out of here. "

Mum frowned,  "She has to be here.  She hasn't left the house in a week. She just sits on the sofa,  staring at the walls."