The Dark Horde (12 page)

Brian frowned and rubbed his temple with his bandaged hand.

“What happened to your hand?” David asked.

Brian sighed and looked at David. “I was attacked by one of the same creatures I presume killed Barney and Frank. That’s the only reason why I’ve believed you.”

David’s jaw dropped.

MONDAY 3:25
PM

His eyes turned white with anger. Slowly, he rose from his seat and as he stood, he appeared to gain in size and stature. He was changing before his eyes. Hair sprouted on his face and forearms. His nose lengthened and became dog-like. His teeth became pointed. He advanced towards Howard...

The outside world had ceased to exist for Howard. He sat on a beanbag in the library at St Mary’s Primary School, devouring
The Warlock of Firetop Mountain
, a
Fighting Fantasy
gamebook in which he was the hero. He picked up his dice to do battle with the fearsome Werewolf, having already slain his fire-breathing pet dog.

Meanwhile, Arthur was perusing the non-fiction section, perving at books about the human body.

The Werewolf was no match for Howard’s skill. After a few quick sword strikes, the monster slumped to the ground. Howard searched his clothing but found nothing of use. Cursing the old man for not having any decent treasure, he took a bunch of keys hanging on the wall of the sparse room. He continued south down a corridor...

Looking back, Howard noticed the body had vanished.

Then the school bell rang, signalling the end of the library session and another day of school.

Howard rushed to the borrowing counter to get his book stamped, eager to get home and complete his perilous quest. The book stamped, he remembered what else lay in wait for him at home: his bossy older sister Samantha and that pirate poster that had given him another nightmare last night.

He turned to Arthur. “Can I come over to your house?”

Arthur’s mind was elsewhere. He looked back at Howard with teary eyes. “Um... Can we go to yours?”

Howard scratched his head and chewed his nails a moment, before shrugging. “I s’pose. I’ll ask mum when she comes to pick me up.”

“My mum’s coming to pick me up too. She says it’s not safe to walk home anymore, because there’s a bad man out there that...” Arthur’s voice trailed off as he choked on tears.

Howard patted his shoulder and led him towards the school exit where parents crowded in cars. “Don’t cry, Arthur, my dad’s gunna catch him!”

Arthur stammered through sobs. “He-he-he k-killed my c-c-c-cousin an ung-cle!”

Other children filed past the two nine year-old boys, exchanging curious looks with the two. Howard noticed the onlookers and waved them off.

“My dad will get him! He’s the best police man in Australya!”

Arthur snuffled as he wiped his nose and eyes on his sleeves.

I don’t want mum to see me like this.

Howard and Arthur reached the school gates and saw their mothers waiting under the shade of the same gum tree that faced the exit.

Arthur’s mother Amanda wore sunglasses despite the overcast day. Howard’s mother Julie looked tired.

Howard ran to hug his mother. Arthur dawdled to embrace his.

“Mum, can Arthur come to our house?” Howard said.

I’ve neither the strength nor the heart to say no. As weary as I am, I haven’t just lost two family members like Amanda has.

Julie looked at Amanda, who nodded. She turned back to Howard. “Okay, but only for a couple of hours until six-thirty. I’ll drop him home when I go to pick Samantha up from netball.”

Julie flopped onto the couch next to a box of tissues that overflowed with used remainders. Through glass doors in need of cleaning, she could see Howard and Arthur playing in the backyard.

Eighteen months ago she was in a nice house with a loving husband and two beautiful happy children. Julie and Brian were secure financially, had plenty of money set aside for the kids’ education and all the modern comforts they needed. After many years of arguments, they’d decided to have another child. It would be Julie’s third child and Brian’s fourth.

Craig Alexander Derwent was born on the 22
^nd
of November 1987. He was a stillbirth.

Her relationship with Brian deteriorated rapidly after that. He spent increasingly less time at home in the evenings and weekends. He said it was work commitments, but she learned the truth soon enough through his work mates who agreed she had a right to know. He was spending his free time with Sasha, an eighteen year-old plaything, who didn’t care that he had a wife and family. They separated soon after that and much to his surprise and dismay, Julie was helped by his sympathetic friends.

Now Barney and Frank Weston had been murdered in their home, destroying the peace and tranquillity of Howqua Hills. Attempts to contact Brian to find out what happened and to organise his time with the children had failed. Outside his working hours that stupid little slut never seemed to know where he was and Brian was never in the office to take a call. She’d even left messages, but still nothing.

Outside, Arthur and Howard were kicking the ‘footy’; an oval-shaped red leather Australian Rules football; and impersonating their favourite footy stars.

“ABLETT!” Howard cried in triumph as he marked a kick rebounding off the back fence.

Howard yelled, “AND HE PLAYS ON!” as he ran past Arthur with the ball.

Arthur tried to tackle him, but Howard was too fast. He bounced the ball as he rounded the corner of the house, taunting, “Ablett is too quick for Dunstall and he runs into an OPEN GOAL!”

With Arthur in hot pursuit, Howard booted the footy over the gate to the front yard. It landed on the footpath and bounced into a 4WD police car that had just pulled up at the kerb.

“Oops!” Howard said as he covered his mouth and turned to Arthur.

Howard watched through the gate as a tall man with a handlebar moustache emerged onto the footpath and stopped to pick up the football.

That’s Paul McDougall’s dad. He’s a cop like my dad, only not as good or important. I hate Paul, who’s in my class at school.

Howard motioned to Arthur to follow him back inside through the glass side door...

Julie heard the doorbell ring and opened the front door to Sergeant Douglas McDougall. He was dressed in uniform and holding Howard’s football, his welcoming smile matching hers.

Douglas raised the football. “Julie, you really should teach your son not to kick footballs at police cars.”

Julie blushed. “He’s not very kind to good Samaritans, is he?”

I probably look terrible at the moment. But I’m glad to see Douglas... But hang on, what’s this sudden visit for?

Douglas spoke softly, so as not to be heard by Howard and his friend lurking in the background. “I need to talk to you about Brian; I’m very concerned about him. Can you spare a few minutes?”

MONDAY 5:50
PM

“Please, please stop! I can’t take anymore!”

The horrid voice rasped again, nails on the blackboard of Danny’s soul,
“Oh, but I’ve only just started, cock-breath! Your worthless little brain cannot imagine the pain that I am going to inflict on you! Soon you’ll be back at school, away from your pathetic parents, away from safety. And then Danny, you useless fuck, the fun will begin!”

Danny awoke lying across the back seat of his parent’s old black Jaguar as it drove past gum trees in tangerine sunlight. He sat up to take the scene in, rubbing his eyes.

How did I come to be here?

His parents sat in the front in silence, father drove and mother looked out over tree-lined paddocks. Danny tried to reassemble fragments of memory into a chronology that he could comprehend. He recalled impressions of running into the path of a truck, then horrible nightmares, then an important man with glasses and a beard who spoke to him and his parents. Impressions, but the details were obscured by the shadow of subconsciousness.

Where are they taking me?

He looked out on brown farms and hillsides and saw a small blue “OGS” sign on the roadside up ahead, where a dirt road turn-off lay.

They’re taking me back to Timberhome, to H Unit!

The car rattled across a cattle grid at the entrance to the turn-off and began to make the tree-lined ascent to the school.

“I don’t want to go back.”

His mother Margaret craned her neck around to look at Danny. “Oh, you’re awake!” She absorbed what he had just said and her expression became worried. “That’s not what you told us before!”

“I don’t care what I said before. I don’t want to go back.”

Harold grumbled, but kept his eyes on the road.

Margaret glanced at Harold and then returned to Danny. “Darling, you’re fine now, you have to go back to school.”

Tears began to well in Danny’s eyes. “But I hate it!”

She reached over to rub his hand. “Why do you hate it, Danny? You said everything was fine!”

“Maybe I did... But it’s not! I’ll go to another school if I have to, but I’m not going back to that one.”

They were halfway up the long hill to the school by this time. Margaret turned to put a hand on Harold’s elbow. “Stop the car, Harold. We need to resolve this.”

“Bloody hell!” he protested as he slowed the car and pulled over.

Danny burst into tears, wet lines running down his cheeks like fingers through dust.

Margaret undid her seatbelt and twisted her body around to face Danny. “Why don’t you like it? Are the kids picking on you?”

A sobbing whimper, “Yes they are! All the time!”

Margaret looked back at Harold. “I knew it! I knew that something was wrong. Finally Danny’s admitted it.”

Harold slapped the steering wheel. “Oh, for goodness sake!” His face flushed red, he turned to Danny. “Danny, you’re fine! The doctor’s said it, we’ve said it and you yourself have said it. So why the carry on now? You’re probably just a bit nervous about going back. I’m sure you’ll forget all about it when you get there.”

Danny struggled to stop crying and looked pleadingly at his mother.

Her expression was resolute. “I’ll speak to your Unit Master right away and tell him how those kids are bullying you. He’ll make them stop.”

“Mum, don’t do that! They’ll only bully me more then! I–”

“Oh no they won’t!” Her brow furrowed with determination. “I’ll make sure of that! I won’t have my son being threatened by those monsters! I’ll tell your Unit Master and he’ll have to make sure they’re nice to you.”

“But–”

“And if they do try to bully you,” she said over the top of his objections, “you tell them to leave you alone!”

“As if that’s going to work!”

“Sticks and stones may break your bones, but names will never hurt you, Danny. They’re just trying to get a reaction from you.”

“Muuum...”

Harold spoke. “Danny, when I was your age, I remember this kid who used to tease me and think he was really clever. He kept going when I told him to stop, so I punched him and gave him a bloody nose. He never bothered me again after that.” He smiled.

Margaret’s jaw dropped. “Harold! Don’t encourage Danny to hit people! Violence doesn’t solve anything!”

Harold snorted. “Try telling Roosevelt that. If it wasn’t for him, we’d all be bloody Japanese!”

Danny slumped back in his seat and gazed out of the window whilst his parents argued.

What did I say to them before that made them so adamant to take me back to school now? And why can’t I remember? It’s all so hopeless.

“I think the only thing for it, is to speak to the Unit Master right away. The sooner we get there, the better,” Margaret said.

Harold nodded. “Exactly!” He started the car forward.

“Please, please stop! I can’t take anymore!” Danny cried.

“Danny, this bullying isn’t going to stop until we do something about it. Drive on, Harold.”

My fate is sealed. I’m going back to H Unit. H for hell.

The car passed through the school gates and wound past the main wood shed, a couple of utility sheds and the various empty sports grounds. In silence, the passengers drove to the carpark at the hub of the school. The car parked before the long brown weatherboard dining hall that resounded with the murmurs and clattering cutlery of two hundred and fifty school residents at dinner.