The Puppet Master Read online

  Adam

  Adam took a deep breath and slowly turned to see the person he knew would be there, his uncle. As he turned, he moved Billie so that she was behind him. He would not let anyone hurt her. As he looked at his uncle, he realised with horror that he could barely recognise him. The evil glint in his eye and the confident stance he had was so unlike the man Adam had relied on for all these years. The joviality and the kindness were gone. He realised that that man had been one of his uncle’s many faces.

  “Hello, son. Fancy meeting you here,” smiled his uncle. A joke? Adam couldn’t believe it, it must be obvious from the way that Adam had reacted to seeing him that he knew. Why wasn’t he ashamed? What did he want? What game was he playing? Whatever it was, Adam would not let him win. Not this time.

  “I think you should leave,” said Adam. His voice sounded much stronger than he felt inside.

  “Leave? Why on earth would I do that? The party’s just getting started,” replied his uncle as he moved a step closer towards them.

  As he moved, a flash of light reflected off the metal knife his uncle had in his hand. Adam’s breath stopped at the sight of it. He had spent his whole life worshipping this man, and now his uncle was threatening him. It felt ridiculous. Like a nightmare that was so vivid that when he woke, he was disorientated for the whole day. But in this case, he was waking up from the manipulations of his uncle, realising what he really was.

  It was Billie’s small gasp of terror and the feel of her hands on his arm tightening their grip that brought him back to reality. He had to concentrate. This man in front of him was as good as a stranger. Adam had no idea how he was going to get them both out of there safely. Could he really hurt his uncle? He hoped his survival instinct would overcome his emotions. He couldn’t let Billie suffer any more than she already had. This time, he let the images of what his uncle had done to her suffuse his mind and they strengthened his resolve and hardened his heart towards his uncle. He would save her, no matter the cost.

  “Now, son. All I want is the girl. I don’t want to hurt you. But she is my property. I’ve let you play around with her for long enough, but now I want her back.”

  “No.”

  “Look, boy, listen to your uncle and get out of here now. I won’t tell you again.”

  Billie

  ‘His uncle?’ screamed her brain. It pierced the fear that had encased Billie since she had laid eyes on Eric. It couldn’t be. Adam was related to the man that had almost cost her her life. Adam had gotten through her carefully built defences, but all along he was playing her just like his uncle had. His uncle. She had never felt so betrayed. It was like when she saw the real side of Eric all those years ago, but worse. She had fallen in love with Adam. She thought that he was her happy ever after. She had loved Eric but in a father/grandfather sort of way. She hadn’t loved him as deeply as you can love the person you want to give your life to. That is a stronger and more powerful type of love. Even though she hadn’t known Adam that long, she loved him. Unequivocally. He made her a better person. He had blasted away the crippling fears she had with the force of his vibrant, energetic and loving personality. He patiently pulled her from her solitary existence and showed her there was so much that life had to offer if you just had a little faith.

  Well, look where faith had got her. He had lied to her. Played her even better than his uncle. With Eric she had been confused by what he was doing, even though deep down she knew it wasn’t right. But she never thought that about Adam. She had been initially wary because of Eric, but she could never have imagined that he was related to Eric and that he was toying with her. Now the bracelet made sense. Bloody hell, he was one of the best actors she’d ever met. She’d apologised to him. He bought her that bracelet knowing how she’d react. Oh, my God. She couldn’t believe it. She thought she knew him. All those times they had talked until late in the night. He had even told her about his uncle. He had opened up to her on her first date and told her how his mother had died, and he’d only had his uncle to help him throughout his life. He didn’t hold anything back when he’d described his ‘useless drunk’ of a father and that if it weren’t for his uncle, he’d be completely alone in this world. Since then, when they’d talked, somehow his uncle was always mentioned. Without any parents, it was clear that his uncle had played an important role in his life and that Adam loved him very much. From Adam’s description of his uncle, Billie had thought that he was a saint and couldn’t wait to meet him. He sounded lovely.

  How could he have done that? He made his uncle sound like such an amazing person. None of the anecdotes he had told her sounded fake or made up. The wistful look on his face and the attention to detail in each story that made her feel like she was there. How could that all be lies? If Adam was working with his uncle to fool her, then she was more of a mug than she thought.

  Looking back over their time together, there was nothing, no clues, nothing to make her think he was anything but a genuinely lovely man. How wrong had she been? She didn’t think she would ever get up off the floor. The revelation about Adam was slowly crushing her soul. She just wished that he would stop the charade now. She tuned back into their conversation that had become background noise while she had digested Adam’s betrayal. She heard Eric mention something about puppets.

  Adam

  “Look, boy, listen to your uncle and get out of here now. I won’t tell you again.” At his words, Adam heard Billie crumple to the floor behind him. Shit. This was not the way he wanted her to find out. She would not understand. She would think he knew what his uncle had done. That he had played a role in it. That he had been seducing her as a game with his uncle. She would think only bad of him. The truth was, he loved her, and he had no idea what his uncle was capable of. He couldn’t turn his back on his uncle to comfort her so he raised his voice so she would hear.

  “Billie, it’s not what it sounds like. Yes, he’s my uncle, but I had no idea what he had done to you. He told me that you made it all up. I believed him. But I know the truth now. You’ve got to believe me.” Even he could hear the desperation laced in his voice. He couldn’t risk looking at her to see if she believed him, not with the knife being so close to him.

  His uncle moved a step closer, a lazy smile spreading across his face. He knew exactly what he had done by revealing their relationship to Billie. He had to get her out. He looked around the shop and realised with horror that the shop was completely empty. His panic had stopped him from questioning the silence and why no one had come to help. His uncle must have guessed his thoughts because he spoke up.

  “No one is going to help you, son. It’s amazing what people will do for money, isn’t it? I’ve had the shop owner here on my payroll for ages. Pretty much as soon as the girl moved here.”

  “What do you mean? I don’t understand. What’s happening?” He hoped to keep his uncle talking while he figured out a plan.

  “I told you, she is mine.” His uncle looked over Adam’s shoulder at Billie and directed his words at her. “Did you really think that I would just let you go, Billie? No, no, I invested so much time and effort into making you mine. I wasn’t just going to give that up. I couldn’t believe my luck when you moved to Worcester of all places. It was like fate was shining on me.”

  Adam could hear that Billie was losing control of her fear. He didn’t know if she could even hear them anymore. Her gasping breaths were getting louder and more frequent. He hoped to God that she didn’t pass out here in the shop. He needed to distract his uncle from her. Think, Adam, think.

  “If you’ve been following her, then you knew I had started seeing her, why didn’t you say anything to me? Why would you let me see her if she is as you say, ‘your property’?”

  “Oh Adam, of course, I knew it was her you were seeing, but I know you. I knew that you were doing it to try and get retribution for me. I saw you guzzling down all those bullshit stories I fed you about losing my house and money. I saw how angry you were at what you thought
my life had become because of her. Why else would you have approached her in that cafe? You aren’t the first-move type, too scared of losing someone just like you lost your mother. Nothing happens to Billie that I don’t know about. It was fun watching you both. A little more entertaining than watching her mope around. Not that that’s boring.” His uncle stopped talking. His grin met his eyes and exuded pride and happiness.

  Adam felt a wave of revulsion sweep through him as he realised that his uncle was enjoying himself. He was practically bouncing on his toes, eyes bright with equal parts of glee and menace. This side of him made him look younger than he was.

  “Son, when you gave her that bracelet, I couldn’t stop laughing. Her face! You had no idea that you had bought – under my instruction – the exact same bracelet that I once bought her. It was hysterical watching the pain and fear overcome her. Mind, your face was a picture too. You were so angry and confused. It really was fantastic entertainment. I felt like the puppet master watching his puppets dance. Your entire relationship was orchestrated by me. I got her beaten up by those lads so that you could sweep in and be her knight in shining armour. I know you so well, Adam. I may as well have built you myself. But now, alas, it is time to give her back.”

  Adam couldn’t see exactly where Billie was. All he could hear was her hysterical breathing somewhere behind him. He kept all his focus on his uncle and was assessing whether he could grapple the knife from him before he could use it. His uncle was nearing his sixties, surely Adam could overpower him. He just had to be brave.

  Just as Adam was about to move, his uncle closed the remaining gap between them and tried to grab Billie from behind Adam. He had the knife pointed towards Adam. The other hand was grasping the air, trying to reach Billie. Adam turned so that he moved into his uncle. He grabbed the arm that held the knife with both hands. He tried to shake the knife from his uncle’s hand. But he was surprised at his uncle’s strength as he ripped his arm from Adam’s hold. He turned towards Billie not even registering Adam as a threat.

  “You’re coming with me,” said his uncle as he grabbed Billie.

  Adam would rather die than let that happen. He tackled his uncle forcing him to let go of Billie. They both crashed to the floor. Adam landed on top of his uncle and struggled to work out where the knife was. Too late he saw his uncle’s arm arc towards him. Pain erupted in his side, but he refused to acknowledge it. He had to keep Billie safe. He yanked at his uncle’s arm. He slammed the hand that held the knife down hard on the floor. His uncle lost his grip on it. It clattered to the floor. Adam, with a deftness he didn’t know he possessed, kicked the knife away and it slid across the floor with a menacing sound, coming to a stop under one of the aisles. Turning back to his uncle he punched him in the face. Once. Twice. He was about to hit him a third time, but blackness filled his eyes. Everything he had in him struggled to remain conscious. But his uncle took advantage of Adam’s weakened state and managed to scramble out from Adam’s grip. Once again, he went for Billie. It was like watching a magnet that was inextricably drawn to her.

  Billie

  Billie watched with growing horror as Eric stabbed Adam. She cried out to warn him but it was too late, the knife sliced into his side. Adam carried on as if he didn’t feel it and managed to wrestle the knife from Eric. Billie was terrified and confused. If Adam and Eric were working together, why the hell did Adam get stabbed? When Adam tackled his uncle, Billie had seen his mouth was set in determination, but also the fear in his eyes. She was so confused. She thought for a moment that it was a fake knife, but she saw a dark patch staining Adam’s dark blue coat. She saw blood on the knife as it clattered to the floor. She was just about to lunge for it when Eric lurched from under Adam and approached her. He was wild in his fury, it blazed from his eyes. He was going to kill her.

  Fear of dying froze her, she was just a pitiful girl crouched up against the shelves that held loaves of bread. For a crazy second she considered throwing the loaves at Eric. A crazed giggle left her mouth. She was about to die, and her only defence was bread. What the hell was wrong with her? Her breath died in her lungs as Eric came closer. Eric grabbed her hair. The pain woke her breath, and she let out a gasp as her hair was being ripped from her scalp. She rose up trying to alleviate the agony, just as a blurred shape crashed into them.

  Adam

  Getting back to his feet was taking all of his energy. The pain from his side was astronomical, and he didn’t know how much time he had before it rendered him useless. He turned and was horrified to see Eric dragging Billie up from the floor by her hair. Adam looked for the knife, but he couldn’t see it.

  “Leave her alone!” he yelled, trying to distract his uncle from Billie. He crashed into his uncle once more. It sent them both sprawling on the floor. Adam knew, this time, he would not be able to get up. He’d fallen onto his side, and he felt the wound pulsing blood out of his body. As he moved his hand to put pressure on it, he realised he’d fallen next to Billie. He could see her white, drawn face and her terrified, shaking body.

  “Run, Billie,” he whispered. The effort of talking drained him, and he was powerless to prevent his eyes from closing and his mind shutting down.

  Chapter Thirty-Eight

  Billie

  Adam lay in front of her. Whispering at her to run. His voice reconnected her senses, and she was up and running before she even registered that she’d moved. She burst through the doors and ran out into the street. It was deserted apart from Adam’s car. She wished she could drive. A few cars drove past, but they were too fast and self-absorbed to notice the terrified girl who was in danger.

  Billie ran towards her flat. She was thankful that she lived so close to the shops, and she made it to the building within minutes – fear giving her speed she never knew she had.

  The door was unlocked.

  She ran inside and grappling with her bag, she found her keys and locked it. Once she was satisfied it was secure, she slumped down against the door. She could barely breathe, and her body was shaking violently. What the hell just happened? How had her quiet normal life been blasted apart like something out of a movie scene? Her mind’s eye was filled with the evil, menacing look that Eric had given her. It couldn’t be true. Not even her nightmares were as horrifying as what had just happened. She couldn’t process it. Her mind just flashed with Eric’s face. Her body felt like it was failing. Terror had invaded and was shutting her down. She didn’t know what to think about Adam. She loved him; she couldn’t believe she just left him there. Was it fake blood? Was this all part of a master plan that she hadn’t discovered yet?

  An echoing knock on the door reawakened her. She stopped breathing. Don’t breathe. They won’t know you are here if they can’t hear you. She put her hand over her mouth. Her lungs were burning with a desperate need for air. Billie backed away from the door, she was moving towards the window, considering if she would be able to jump out safely. Just as she turned to look out of it, she heard a key in the lock. The noises of the whole world stopped and she could hear each pin lining up as the key slid into the door. The sound of the key turning echoed around the room.

  Billie was holding her breath, not by choice now but through fear. She watched with growing horror, unable to move as the door handle moved down and the door began to open. She briefly thought of hiding but there wasn’t anywhere. Eric walked into the room and she felt like he had grown taller. He filled the doorway with his intimidating presence. Eric walked leisurely over to Billie. His gaze was hungry. Like the predator that knows he has won and is now about to make the kill. Even though one of his eyes was swollen, his eyes were on fire with anticipation. There was no mask hiding his true self. This was who he really was. A hunter that fed on her fear and his power.

  “Have you missed me, Billie?” he asked, taunting her. Billie refused to look at him. He reached out a hand, and gently brushed a finger down her cheek. He pulled away with a tear on his finger, he put it into his mouth. “Yum, I love the ta
ste of fear in an evening.”

  Without warning he lashed out, the back of his hand smashing into her face, the force throwing her to the floor. She landed hard on her side; she had no chance to breathe before his foot connected with her stomach. Her shaking returned and fear ramped up the pace of her pounding heart. Was this it? Was he going to kill her now? In the past, he had said as much each time he threatened her into silence: ‘if you leave I’ll hunt you down and kill you’ was his favourite promise.

  He stood over her for a moment and then, as if satisfied she wasn’t going to move, she saw his feet move towards the kitchen. She heard the sound of kitchen drawers being opened and shut until he walked back towards her.

  A foot kicked her again until she was lying on her back. Through the tears in her eyes, she saw that he was now kneeled beside her. He grabbed her shirt and ripped open the buttons, her stomach and her black bra now on show.

  “I see you’ve been overeating since we last met. Getting quite chubby aren’t we?” He moved his hand over to her stomach and she paled at the sight of the small kitchen knife in his hand. “Hold still or you’ll make it worse.”