Free Evergreen (a suspenseful murder mystery) by David Jester Page B

the glass, billowing the curtain and bouncing off a table before stopping at his feet. He stared at it, casually kicked it away.
     
    “You come out or we’ll come in!” Mickey Ahern shouted, as if he’d been listening to their conversation. “You have two minutes before we burn this shit hole to the ground!”
     
    Everyone directed their shocked expressions at Aidan. He ignored them, peeled back the curtain and peeked outside. They had already trashed a few of the nearby homes from the inside out. He watched as tables, chairs and appliances were thrown out of windows and doors; he watched as they splashed cans of petrol onto the trashed homes.
     
    “They’re destroying our homes! We have to stop them.”
     
    Aidan ignored the shouts. Their homes were already gone; Evergreen was gone.
     
    ***
     
    Patrick pried his eyes open, felt a stabbing pain shoot through his head. His attacker, the figure in black, was hovering over him, looming over his sleeping face like in his dream. They took a quick and cautious step back when he opened his eyes, as if scared of him.
     
    He quickly looked around for a weapon but couldn’t find one. He pushed himself off the ground, scuttled over to the nearest wall and pressed himself up against it. He wanted to stand, to run or fight, but his head was still spinning.
     
    His attacker approached him with slow and cautious steps, his hands held out in front of him as if preparing to strangle him. He pushed himself further against the wall, feeling the cold concrete pressing unforgivingly against his spine. He turned his head just as they approached. Then they grabbed him.
     
    ***
     
    Elliot Thompson shoved Aidan out of the way. Aidan watched, disinterested, as the desperate man stuck his face to the glass and witnessed his home, and the homes of others, being destroyed.
     
    Mickey Ahern saw him and shouted again. “Send my son out and your homes will be safe!”
     
    Elliot turned to Aidan who gave him an apathetic shrug.
     
    “This is your fault,” Elliot told him.
     
    Aidan shook his head.
     
    Elliot turned back to the window and aimed a shout through the hole in the glass. “Please, don’t do this!”
     
    “Give me my son and we’ll all leave,” Mickey shouted back. “You have my word.”
     
    Elliot hesitated, turned to look at Eddie’s dangling corpse and then back at the window. “He’s dead,” he shouted. “We’re sorry, it was an accident--”
     
    Aidan dragged him away before he could say anything else. He threw him across the room with one swipe of his arm. He closed the curtain tightly and prayed that the Aherns hadn't heard his outburst.
     
    His prayers went unanswered; he saw the flames, the blinding light, through the thin curtain as Evergreen was set on fire.
     
    ***
     
    Patrick squirmed in the killer’s grasp, sensing that his end was nigh. He kicked out, swiped the attacker’s legs from underneath him. He released his grip, yelped, and then crashed to the floor, narrowly avoiding a collision with Patrick who quickly scrambled to his feet.
     
    He heard the commotion outside and above him; he felt the ceiling shake as a stampede of worried feet scuttled around. He headed for the stairs, took them two at a time and then stopped midway, slowly turning around.
     
    He needed to see who the killer was; he needed to know who had destroyed the community. Evergreen wasn't just a part of his life, it was his life, and their actions had taken that away from him. He descended hastily, watching the figure slowly climb to its feet.
     
    When the killer saw that Patrick was upon him he quickened his movements and tried to wriggle away, but Patrick grabbed him roughly. He felt slender and fragile in Patrick’s hands, nothing like what he’d been expecting. He grabbed at the balaclava and ripped it off.
     
    “Holy shit,” he said softly, taking a step back.
     
    The figure in black, the cold blooded murderer, smiled meekly at him. “Hello