1. Macaulay

Macaulay

15 Antonia Gardens

Silent Falls

            Saturday night. The best night of the week according to Sofia Macaulay. Without fail, she and her two best friends Keira and Charlotte would be on the half past eight train going to town, heading to whatever club was the choice for that week, then on the half past three train home. She could always rely on them for a great night out. Not this week.

            “What do you mean you’re not going out?” It was lunchtime. They had gathered at Keira’s to choose outfits, only to find she wouldn’t be joining them.

“Mum’s working late. I need to watch Liam.” She gestured to the garden outside where her young brother was playing.

            “But it’s Saturday!” Sofia moaned. “It’s our night, and your turn to choose the club!”

            “Well my mum’s work’s been short of hours this month. She has to take this shift.”

            “You never miss our Saturdays!” said Charlotte.

            “It’s only one. I’ll be out again next week. And the two of you can still go.”

It hadn’t crossed their minds, they’d never been out in a two instead of a three. It would be strange.

            “But it was your turn to choose,” said Sofia.

            “Fine. Go to Play.”

            Both nodded.

            “There. That’s that.”

            “You two be careful,” Sofia’s mum warned. “Stick together.”

            “You know we will,” Sofia sighed, putting her coat on. “Like we do every week.”

            “Every other week there’s three. I’m just saying watch out for each other.”

            Of course they would. It was different without Keira, especially in Keira’s favourite club. But none the less, it was Saturday night, and Sofia would not be found at home babysitting on a Saturday night. The night went on, and Charlotte got chatting to a boy on the dance floor. Sensing they wanted to be alone, she spotted a girl she often met in town at the bar and wandered over for a chat. The girl couldn’t see her, and when a crowd stood in front of Sofia they blocked her view. Once they moved, she was gone.

            Sofia scanned the area surrounding the bar, but she was nowhere to be seen. She turned back to the spot to where Charlotte had been just minutes before, and she had also disappeared.

            “Hey gorgeous. Where are you from?”

            She looked round to see a tall dark haired boy grinning at her. He wasn’t the best looking boy there but it would save her standing alone for the rest of the evening.

            “Silent Falls.” She smiled back at him.

            “Cool. I’m Darren.”

            He ended up being quite funny, and it seemed like only minutes had passed when the music stopped and the lights went on telling them it was the end of the night.

“It was nice meeting you,” he said, as she began to look around for Charlotte. “Where you off to now?”

            “I need to find my friend, then get the train home.” She couldn’t see Charlotte anywhere. The floor had emptied, and everyone now stood in a queue waiting for their jackets. But Charlotte wasn’t in the queue.

            “You want me to help you?”

            “No it’s okay. She must be…in the toilets!” Of course she was in the toilets. It was so obvious. Probably reapplying her make up.

            Sofia rushed to the toilets, expecting to see Charlotte standing at the mirror. She wasn’t.

            “Charlotte!” she called, knowing it was pretty pointless. The cubicles were empty.

            She walked back out. The queue had thinned down to the last few people and Charlotte wasn’t one of them.

            “Come on,” said the bouncer. “Time to go.”

            “I can’t find my friend,” she said, feeling a little helpless.

            “She’s probably away outside looking for you.”

            He might have been right. While waiting on her coat, she found her mobile in her bag. There were no missed calls or texts. She dialled Charlotte’s number.

It rang. And it rang. But she didn’t answer.

            She was ushered out to the street where there were plenty of people standing talking, but no Charlotte.

            “Stick together.” Her mum’s words echoed in her head. Well Charlotte hadn’t done that. She must have gone ahead home without her. As she began walking to the train station, she began to feel angry at her. She wouldn’t like it if Sofia did that to her. She’d never hear the end of it, and it was hardly safe to go wandering round town alone late at night. Anything could happen to her.

            Suddenly it seemed very dark, and very quiet. She could hear no voices in the distance, no traffic, nothing. She began to walk quicker. The sooner she was safely on the train home the better. And the train station was just around the corner. She turned the corner quickly. She would never be so happy to see those stairs leading down to the platform. But they weren’t there.

            There was nothing there, just a dead end. This was the way she always walked. Every week. It was the way she got to town just hours ago. She burst into tears. She didn’t know where to go. This was the way. It was always the way.

            She wandered back down the empty street to the main road, which was also empty. She looked at the sign with the street name, trying to remember if she’d perhaps taken a wrong turn, but was so worked up she couldn’t remember anything.    She tried to find her way back to the club. Maybe some of the staff would still be there, they would know the way. She could even phone a taxi to pick her up once she knew where she was. It would cost a bit but it would get her home.

            None of the streets seemed familiar though. And there was not one person around. This was when people got murdered and no one found out. There wouldn’t be anyone to help her, and nowhere to run.

            There were footsteps coming up behind her. She began to walk faster, but so did they, and they were faster than her. She began to run, struggling in her heels, but they were still faster, and they were getting closer and closer until a firm hand grabbed her shoulder. She screamed, hoping someone would come and help.

            “Hey, it’s okay. Calm down.”

            It was Darren. She felt relieved, then began to cry again. She felt so much safer when she wasn’t alone.

            “What’s happened? Didn’t you find your friend?”

            “No,” she sobbed. “Then I couldn’t find the train station, and I don’t know how to get home!”

            “It’s okay, it’s fine. I’m here.” He hugged her. It felt like she’d known him for years. But she was so pleased there was someone to help her. “The train station’s just down here.” He led her down the street past the one she’d just come out of. “You probably got worked up and took a wrong turn and got mixed up.”

            She had. Round the next corner there were the familiar sights she seen every week, closed shops, bus stops that now stood empty.

            “Is it the train to Silent Falls you get?” he asked, as they walked in the direction of the station.

            “Yeah.”

            “Do you know Silent Falls is supposed to be cursed?”

            She laughed. “Yeah, I’ve heard that. But I’ve lived there for eighteen years and nothing bad has happened to me.”

            “Not yet,” he said grinning mischievously. “But it has happened to other people. It’s always in the papers.”

            “Yes, but bad things happen everywhere.”

            “It’s supposed to be that when people leave, they bring the curse with them, and it affects the people they meet. So you could have cursed me.” He laughed, but half heartedly.

            “Don’t think so. I’m here every week, and I’ve not cursed anyone.”

            “Not that you’d care if you did.” They were approaching the train station now. She could see the stairs, and was pleased. She had began to feel uncomfortable with Darren.

            “I would, but if something bad happened, it would be fate. Not a curse.”

            “I don’t believe that,” he said. They were standing at the top of the stairs. “I think you’re cruel coming here every week, cursing people.”

            “I’m not cursing anyone!” she snapped.

            “No, not anymore.” He pushed Sofia so that she fell hard to the bottom of the stairs. She fell to the stone ground with a hard thud.

            “You’ve no right to curse us! You and your friends.” Darren shouted down the stairs, his voice echoing around her.

            He was mad. He was really mad.

            Sofia struggled to her feet and began to walk towards the platform, Darren’s voice still bouncing off the walls. Then she saw Charlotte, slumped across the bench, her head in her knees.

            “Charlotte!” she rushed towards her, feeling a wave of relief rush over her. She wasn’t alone. “Charlotte! What the hell happened? Where did you go?”

            She stopped right in front of the bench. Charlotte wasn’t moving. “Charlotte?” She tapped her gently on the shoulder. She still didn’t move. “Charlotte!” She shook her hard and her head lolled back revealing a wide slit in her throat from which blood was pouring. Sofia screamed, and the sound echoed back at her. She turned away from Charlotte. And there stood Darren.

            “You!” she cried. “You did this?”

            “No,” he grinned. “Not me. I’ve been busy trying to keep track of you all night. Ryan did that. Did a pretty good job too. Michael was looking for your other friend but she wasn’t here tonight. Shame, but maybe now she’ll stop bringing the curse out to us.”

            “You’re mad!” she screamed at him.

            “No,” he laughed casually. “If I was mad, I’d let you live to continue to curse us. I’m not mad.”

            She turned to run away from him, and was stopped by two other boys. One was the boy Charlotte had been talking to. Her blood was on his hands.

            “Please,” she begged them. “Don’t do this to me. I won’t come back, I promise.”

            “Sorry,” said Darren. “Those are the rules. If you don’t die tonight, many more than you will.”

            Suddenly the sound of the train filled the station. The train was coming. If she could get a few seconds she would be saved. She tried to run past Darren but he grabbed her wrist quickly, swinging her over to Michael. He put his hand in his pocket and pulled out a small knife, also covered in blood.

            The train was entering the station.

            “Please!” she screamed at oncoming the driver. “Help me, please!”

            He took no notice of her.

            She tried to stretch away from Michael, but he held her tight.

            “Let go,” said Darren.

            He did, and pushed her in front of the train.

            The driver noticed her now, but had no time to stop. She was dead as soon as the train hit her. As the train stopped, he opened the window, and spoke to the boys.

            “What happened?”

            Darren answered quickly. “Silent Falls.”

            The driver said nothing more, just drove on.