Madness Lies Page 28

  He was back. Jumping up and down. ‘What was the film? What was the film?’

  ‘The Goblet of Fire. Remember when the Hungarian Horntail chased Harry?’

  ‘Yeah, I remember. And Harry won. He always wins. Is Mam here yet?’

  He looked back. ‘Doesn’t look like it. No other cars in the car park.’

  ‘Okay.’ And he was off again.

  Liam peered through the wire on the bridge and shook his head. ‘It’s very narrow. I don’t think a Hungarian Horntail would get in there. Are you sure this is where it was?’

  ‘Definitely. They can do anything in films. And it’s broader at the next bridge. It’s amazing, isn’t it?’

  Liam nodded. ‘It’s cool. I’m going to find some stones to throw down there.’ He ran up the steps towards the forest, still laughing, still talking.

  The boy’s chatter faded, and Todd heard only the water rushing through the gorge, the sound constant and calming. He liked it here. Chris had brought him first. He’d looked out a map showing the route of the river, from Loch Glass to the Cromarty Firth. He’d talked of how the gorge was formed. Something about rapids and sediment and ice sheets. Not that Todd had been interested, but it felt good with Chris, that easy way he’d thought they would always have.

  He should never have encouraged Chris to move up north. But he’d been worried about him. His friend had been shrinking, losing strength, fading away. The accident, the pain, the family, the indebtedness: they were stealing Chris from him. So he’d saved his friend. Again. Twice.

  Fucking twice. His hands gripped the wooden rail until his knuckles turned white and his thoughts turned red. He should have run with the rest of them ten years ago. He should have followed that cowardly bastard, Gordon Sutherland. Maybe Sutherland had been right to refuse to help him break through to the next carriage. How he’d pleaded with him, but Sutherland was having none of it. That way madness lies.

  Those words had never left Todd. They taunted him endlessly. Was Sutherland right? Had breaking into the carriage and saving Chris made him mentally unstable? He shook his head, but it wouldn’t clear. There’s a time bomb inside your head, just like me; looks like it’s about to explode.

  No, it wasn’t saving Chris that did it. That had been a good thing. The best. It was all down to that Nancy Connor. What a mistake he’d made, searching for her. Thinking he was going to find someone special, someone like him. The disgust on her face when she heard who he was. Jesus. How could you look at your own son like that? She’d laughed when he asked about his father. Take your pick, she’d said; you might not like what you get.

  He’d had the best mother and father ever. That should have been enough. But they should have told him, as soon as he was old enough to understand. His real mum and dad, the only ones that mattered, they should have told him. They could have avoided all this.

  And he hadn’t even tried to find Sutherland. He’d just needed to get out of London and make a new start. Jimmy Spaz had suggested Inverness. The capital of the Highlands, gateway to a host of towns and villages and islands full of desperate people. It had been fine at first. Until Chris came, and started going out with that skank.

  And then Councillor Gordon Sutherland had smiled at Todd from the front page of the Inverness Courier. Patron of a charity to help the disadvantaged? Him? The coward that wouldn’t consider helping anyone else? The plan had been to bring him down slowly. Expose him as a fraud and a cheat and a coward. But the time bomb inside his head had other ideas.

  None of it really mattered. It was right that Nancy Connor should pay. And Sutherland. Now they were all going to pay.

  ‘Liam, where are you?’

  He came like the eager little puppy he was. ‘I came back twice before and threw stones down there, but you were like a zombie. Are you all right?’

  He nodded. He was fine. ‘C’mon. I want to show you something.’

  Beyond the second bridge, the trunk of the fallen tree that bridged the gorge was parcelled in soft green moss, adorned with saplings and ferns. It was a gift from the gods. On the other side of the gorge, where the tree had once stood tall, there was a great tangled gnarl of exposed roots, covered in ferns. It looked to be holding steady enough. ‘See that?’

  Liam nodded.

  ‘That’s a special bridge. Only special people can cross it.’

  ‘Did Harry?’

  ‘Of course he did. Will you?’

  Liam’s smile slipped a little. ‘It’s just a tree trunk.’

  ‘A very special one. Remember I said you could meet your dad? He’s going to meet you on there, right in the middle of the bridge.’

  ‘But my dad’s dead. How can I meet him?’

  ‘Harry saw his parents, and they were dead. You can sit down to cross it. You don’t have to walk it. Here, take my hand.’

  ***

  Chapter 60

  Stephen pulled up beside the black car. Sharon glanced inside and saw Liam’s Spiderman figure on the passenger seat. She wanted to throw up again. She looked at Stephen. His brow was creased with worry. ‘How far from here?’

  ‘Minutes.’

  ‘What are you going to say if he asks how you got here?’

  Sharon shrugged. ‘A mate?’

  Stephen nodded, then he hugged her. ‘A real mate. Are you sure I can’t come with you? I could stay in the background. He’d never know I was there.’

  ‘I can’t risk it. I appreciate it, though. Take care, Mac.’

  As she ran along the path, Sharon could hear the soft cooing of pigeons echoing through the trees. It made her shiver. They sounded as if they were trying to warn her. She reached the first bridge and there was no sign of them. Her feet thumped on the wooden slats as she ran across it. She didn’t look down. At the end of the bridge, she turned to her right. The path split, and she followed the lower path towards the second bridge.

  The smell of Curtis came to her on the breeze, and she remembered the flat in London and the house at Evanton. This man would leave an imprint of evil wherever he went. His laughter rang through the trees, rising above the sound of cascading water. She saw him leaning against a crooked tree, looking straight ahead. Looking at Liam. Her boy was half way along a tree trunk that stretched across the gorge. He was sitting with his back against two twisted branches that rose from the trunk, giving a hideous two-fingered salute to the sky. How had Liam managed to get past those branches without falling?

  Sharon forced herself forwards, her mouth dry and her heart racing. The gorge was wider at this bridge. She was half way across before she could see Liam’s face, and his look of utter terror. Then Todd looked at her.

  He was nothing like the picture of Christopher’s curly-headed friend from 2007. Nor was he much like the e-fit picture Galbraith had shown her. It was just an outline of a large bald man. It hadn’t shown the cruelty etched in the lines around his mouth, or the hint of madness in his eyes.

  ‘Sharon.’ The sound of his voice made her shake. ‘You made it.’

  Liam turned his head towards the bridge, and the movement unsteadied him. Sharon gasped and shook her head.

  ‘Mam.’ Liam’s voice was weak. ‘Mam, how cool is this? It’s a special bridge. I even managed to get over the branches.’

  Sharon forced her lips to smile. ‘Look at you. My brave boy.’

  ‘Did Linda bring you?’

  She nodded. ‘In her new blue car – wait until you see it.’

  Todd sounded bored. ‘Where is this Linda?’

  ‘Gone to see her mate in Evanton. I said I was going up to the house to get some things for Christopher. Said I’d phone her to come for me.’

  ‘Get some things for Christopher.’ Like a child, he mimicked her. He pushed himself away from the tree and she saw how big he was. ‘It’s Chris. Not Christopher. It’s always been Chris, until you came along.’

  Liam tried to look round again. His body wobbled, and he grabbed a slender branch in front of him, knocking off a piece of dead bark
. It spiralled down into the gorge.

  ‘Liam, don’t look down, son, and don’t look round. Stay still. Okay, honey?’

  He nodded, his legs tightening on the tree trunk. ‘I don’t really like this, Mam. I don’t care if it’s a special bridge. I don’t even care if I don’t meet my dad. I think I’d just like to get off now.’

  Todd’s laughter shook the trees and silenced the birds. The sound poured through Sharon, sucking her breath from her. He was bouncing on the balls of his feet, as if a current of excitement was running through him. ‘You ever seen what happens to a melon thrown from a height?’

  Sharon couldn’t answer. She was standing on the edge of a loss so unbearable, she would rather throw herself into the gorge, than have to watch anything happen to Liam.

  ‘Splat.’ Todd smiled. ‘Not much left. So, Sharon MacRae, why are we here?’

  She shook her head.

  ‘Come on; surely you can guess?’

  ‘Did you…did you hope Christopher would come with me?’

  ‘Christopher? Don’t be so fucking stupid. I’ve made sure that’s not going to happen. He’s going nowhere for a very long time. Did you find the pictures?’

  Sharon nodded.

  ‘What did it do to you thinking of Chris with that tart? Did you ask him to kill her?’

  ‘I don’t believe he did it.’

  He laughed again. ‘Aw. Bless. Such faith in him. Of course he didn’t. He’s too soft, too good for that. Or he was, until you came along. You are such a fucking tart. What did he see in you?’

  ‘You’d have to ask him, ‘cos it’s beyond me.’

  ‘It’s beyond me.’ That mimicking voice again. ‘This is beyond you too.’ He sprang forward and planted a massive foot on the end of the tree trunk. He bounced a little and the trunk moved.

  ‘No. Please, no.’

  ‘You’ve taken everything from me. You? Peter MacRae’s missus? His skanky tart? The one he boasted about raping, about turning into a junkie? The things he made you do. I know them all. Have you no shame? Don’t even bother answering that. We both know. But you’ll never have Chris. Neither of us will, and you are so going to pay.’

  ***

  Chapter 61

  At the Tore roundabout, they got a call on the radio from DCI MacBain to say the local police had found a black Lexus in the car park off Glenglass Road, the closest entrance to Brent’s house and the gorge. There was a child’s toy on the passenger seat. ‘Caused a bit of confusion here,’ the DCI said. ‘When the local cops called the registration number in, turned out to be Brent’s number. But we’ve got his car. This bugger has been using cloned plates.’

  ‘Sunday morning, the struggle with Katya,’ Joe said. ‘It wasn’t Brent.’

  The DCI sighed. ‘You’re probably right.’

  A patrol car was blocking the narrow track towards the gorge. Joe showed his card to the two officers, and asked if they’d heard or seen anything. The female shook her head. ‘Nothing. Waiting for the armed response unit.’

  Joe nodded. ‘Do you know the area?’

  ‘Yeah. The gorge runs along this edge of the forest. There are several ways in and out. Dingwall and Fortrose cops have sealed off the other main entrances.’

  ‘How close can we get without being seen?’

  ‘Depends where they are.’ She unfolded a map. ‘We’re here. The Black Rock bridges are there. Not very far, and the path’s good. If he’s on one of the bridges, he’s not going to see anyone until they’re almost there, but if he comes to the edge of the forest, he can see as far as the car park. It’s possible to go in one of the other entrances. You can take vehicles in, to a point, but it would take time.’

  Roberts was pacing around the Lexus. ‘What if Liam’s in the boot?’

  ‘What if he’s not?’ Joe said. ‘The alarm on that thing will alert Curtis.’

  Roberts shook his head. ‘So we just wait here, while he kills Liam?’

  ‘We don’t know he’s going to kill Liam.’

  ‘He said he was taking him to see his father. What else could he mean?’

  Joe nodded. What was it all about? Was it to get at Sharon? And where was she? She’d been due to pick up Liam when she was finished at the station, but no one had seen her since. Did Curtis have her too? Joe would have loved to open the boot of the car. He expected to find a walking stick just like Brent’s, and DNA from Katya Birze.

  Roberts sighed. ‘Can we not just take a look along at the bridges? We don’t even know if he’s armed.’

  Joe raised his eyebrows.

  ‘Okay, Sarge; that was stupid. But I can’t just stand here and do nothing.’

  Neither could Joe.

  The crack of every twig beneath their feet was too loud, but surely the sound of rushing water would provide some cover and let them get close. When they neared a fork in the path, they stopped and listened. Nothing but the water, and a chorus of birdsong. They took the path on the left, and it led them to the first bridge. Though the female cop had said you couldn’t see one bridge from the other, they crouched as they crossed. When Joe looked down through the wire on the side of the bridge, he felt his stomach and his head falling. It looked as if the land had been sliced in two by a giant sword, the edges of the wound gaping, then narrowing and meeting in a dark channel far below.

  At the next fork, they went left, upwards through the trees, away from the edge of the gorge. The trees were sparse and there was little cover. Joe looked down and saw Sharon standing on the bridge. A little further up, and he saw Curtis, his back to them. What were they looking at?

  And then he saw it, a desperate tableau of innocence and fear. Liam was sitting on a fallen tree trunk, his back towards them, his little shoulders shaking. They were too far away to hear anything above the sound of the water. Roberts pointed to a broad tree on his left, a little lower down. Joe nodded. That was the only way. Move from tree to tree, as quietly as possible.

  He could see Curtis’s left hand by his side. It was shaking. The other was in his pocket. He saw Liam try to turn his head. Joe’s stomach lurched as the boy’s body wobbled.

  *

  Sharon’s heart missed a few beats. ‘Remember what I said, son.’ She tried to keep her voice firm. ‘Don’t turn. Just keep looking ahead. It’s all going to be fine.’

  ‘But I don’t like it, Mam.’

  ‘I know, son; I’m going to get you off there.’

  Todd laughed. ‘And how are you going to do that?’

  ‘Let me help him off. He’s done nothing. I’ll call Linda and she’ll pick him up at the road end, and he’ll be fine.’

  ‘Will he? Without a mum and a dad?’

  Sharon nodded.

  ‘Suppose you’re right. What good is a whore for a mother? I should know. So, how’s this going to work?’

  ‘I’ll do anything.’

  He had such an evil laugh. ‘That skank Danielle Smith said the same. I’ll do anything, Todd. And she would have done anything, and I would have made sure she never breathed a word to anyone, and we’d all be fine, if it wasn’t for your stupid son. Who the fuck does he think he is, trying to get one over on me? Choosing to help her escape, after all I’ve done for him.’

  His whole body seemed to be shaking with rage. And then he was still, his face composed. He smiled. ‘Thanks for the sock, by the way.’

  ‘How?’

  ‘Poor wee Chris had such a sore leg that day. Lucky I was at his house when you rang. Being the good mate I’ve always been, I drove him down to yours. He comes out with the sock, tells me Ryan’s been in a bit of trouble.’ He shrugged. ‘What could I do but offer to take care of it? I’m not sure that was what Chris had in mind, but hey, you’ve got to take your chances where you can. So, how are we going to take care of this?’

  ‘I’ll…I’ll go on there and help him off.’

  He laughed and shook his head. ‘You are a skinny bitch, but do you really think that can take your weight as well as his?’

&n
bsp; She shrugged. ‘Can’t see I’ve got much choice.’

  Liam started to wriggle himself backwards. ‘No, Mam. Don’t! It’ll break.’

  Todd’s shout stopped him. ‘Don’t you fucking move, Liam.’ He pulled something from his pocket and turned to Sharon. It was a gun, and it was pointed at Liam’s back. ‘You’ll walk it.’

  The excitement on Todd’s face was chilling. He nodded towards the trunk. Sharon slipped off her shoes, her bare feet stirring fallen leaves as she walked towards him. At the end of the trunk, there was a branch sticking up and she steadied herself by holding onto it. She put one foot on the trunk. The moss was soft and a little wet. She didn’t look down; she couldn’t. To get to Liam, she was going to have to let go of the branch, and there was nothing else to hold onto before she reached the gnarled branches in the middle of the trunk.

  She took a deep breath and looked round. Todd was still grinning. Could she break the branch and hit him with it? It was too firm, and Todd would shoot them both before she managed to break it.

  There was a movement beyond Todd. Was it just the leaves of the trees, or was someone there? Had Mac followed her?

  ‘What’s keeping you?’ Todd gestured to the trunk. He waved the gun at her. ‘Fucking hurry up.’

  ‘No, Mam. Don’t. Don’t. Don’t. You’ll fall!’

  Sharon turned. ‘I’m not going to fall, honey. I’m not. But you have to promise me, Liam; promise me whatever happens, whatever you hear, you won’t turn round. You have to stay very still. Okay? For me?’

  Liam nodded.

  Sharon looked into Todd’s eyes. They were dark grey. Cold and hard, like the gun. ‘Why are you doing this?’

  His eyes widened in surprise. He shrugged. ‘Because I can.’

  ***