Black Stars - The Mors Mortis Trilogy Book 1

Chapter 32 - Hello, Goodbye

People who shut their eyes to reality simply invite their own destruction.

- James Baldwin

The bang that echoed around the clearing was deafening. Despite her wavering hand, Leah's shot had rung true, and Jared dropped instantly. At the last millisecond he'd looked back, her whispered apology allowing him time enough to meet her eyes once more. Time enough to realise. But even Jared couldn't dodge bullets.

She watched as he fell, thumping to the ground. His head was still turned in her direction, his expression frozen in surprise as blood started creeping through the dirt, branching toward her with accusing fingers.

Leah fell to her knees, her body quaking in the wake of what she'd just done. She wanted to scream, to bang her head against the dirt until her brain came tumbling out and her blood mixed with Jared's.

But she couldn't fall apart now. This couldn't amount to nothing.

Shakily, Leah pulled her bag over, shoved the gun back inside, and grabbed out a notepad and pen. Her hand was unstable and her writing frantic, but after two tries, Leah managed to scribble something legible.

Go to my house in Narra. Your mum lives there. She'll be able to tell you everything.

I'm sorry.

Though Leah doubted Jared would ever forgive her for this, the last line came out involuntarily. She stared at it, tempted to rip the pathetic apology from the page. She wasn't really sorry, at least, not enough. He would've hurt her. She'd just beaten him to it.

Leah dropped the note on top of Jared's bag and sat back, choking down a sob. She had to start moving. Jared might only be down for a day or so, and she needed to be long gone before he woke.

She'd only just managed to calm herself and begin contemplating the best route down to Byron Bay, when she heard a sound that made her freeze. There was a cacophony of leaves and sticks snapping off to her left, quickly increasing in volume.

Someone was running towards the clearing.

Panic overrode Leah's distress and she jumped up, scaled the eucalypt she'd been leaning against and disappeared amongst the branches. Once she was concealed, she peered out, eyeing Jared's body in the middle of the clearing.

Had he asked someone to tail them?

She waited with baited breath and a pounding heart as a shadowy figure came skidding into the clearing, emerging from beneath her.

Leah watched the intruder quietly, noting the short black hair, wide shoulders and pale skin. Whoever he was, there was no rashness in his movements. He held his gun out as he pivoted around, examining the clearing methodologically, before approaching Jared and nudging his side with the tip of a boot.

When Jared didn't respond, he visibly relaxed and slung his gun back into its holster, looking around the clearing with more curiosity now.

Leah watched him suspiciously, though her previous panic had dimmed. There was something familiar about this stranger that she couldn't place. It was like looking at an image from underwater, with ripples distorting the shapes.

She was so focused on him, she hadn't noticed the second set of running feet until a woman appeared below her. She came to an abrupt stop beneath Leah's tree, curling over and clutching her stomach.

"God, you're fast. Where's Leah?"

"I don't know."

The voice tore through Leah's system, submerging her in flood of memories from another life and it was all she could do to stay upright when the intruder turned and she saw his face.