The Dark Star - Lockdown Vol. 02

"Just take your time," Logan interjected taking a softer tone with the obviously traumatised young girl than Ari had. "Take your time and think back over everything Siena.... you were out and you came back here. Tell us the details of your evening... all of them."

"I've....I've done nothing wrong," Siena responded sucking in her bottom lip, holding off as best she could a further emotional breakdown.

"No one is suggesting that Siena...we just need to understand what happened... what's gone wrong and what's caused this awful situation." Taking hold of trembling hands, he sat opposite of her looking in to bloodshot but equally tired, scared eyes. "What did she take?"

"Coke...Coke....three maybe four lines that was all.... and...." Siena paused, and Logan immediately considered how many lines he'd witnessed her hoover the thick white lines up her nostrils, "...and she took two Molly's"

"Jesus," Ari hissed over his shoulder, an honest reaction although one to which Logan threw her a glance string enough to suggest she wasn't being helpful with such a response. Nevertheless, she continued. "That'd fell a fucking elephant."

"MDMA?" Logan qualified searching his own knowledge for the drug. Knowing full well that the effects of the drug were akin to Ecstasy and coupled with the amount of drink and cocaine consumed would have, could have been lethal. The cocaine consumption he alone had witnessed would be enough to potentially cause serious harm. In the presence of the other two parties in the room he played ignorant in the face of what he'd known Kimberley had consumed, or more specifically how he knew what she had consumed.

"She...she'd had two because I.... I didn't want mine." Siena shook her head with remorse, "I shouldn't... I should have just said...."

Squeezing her hand Logan offered reassurance, "You weren't to know Siena...you weren't to know."

"Where did you get the drugs?" Ari offered, this time interjecting on a softer tone that Logan almost felt like complimenting.

Siena looked from him to Ari drawing in air then exhaling a deep shuddering breath. "I bought them... I bought them yesterday through a friend"

"Which friend Siena?" Logan pushed.

"Why...why does this matter?" Her brow knitted around a frown.

"These are all questions the Police will ask," Logan sincerely answered her. "They'll need to know...they'll need to investigate... if there's a bad batch of drugs out there.... there's a risk and...."

"The... the Police." she stumbled over her words in her panic. "Why...why do you have to involve the Police?"

"Yeah, the dead body in my guest room," Ari stated bluntly, causing Logan to cringe. "You don't get away with that sort of thing."

"But.... but..." whatever sentence she reasoned with her words failed her.

"Ari..." Logan interjected calmly. "Why don't you fix Siena another brew.... your speciality plenty of Sugar."

He looked up at her with a slightly pleading glance as she turned on her bare heels, still dressed only in the little black slip but with a matching black silk dressing gown over the top of it. She made to protest only to be greeted by the start of a scowl. Logan needed her out of the vicinity as much as he needed Siena to open up without criticisms or judgemental unhelpful comments. The deep-rooted animosity between the two of them was palpable even under such traumatic circumstances. To say neither of them liked one another was putting it very mildly.

Fortunately, Ari took the hint of the suggestion and was headed out the room before he knew it, leaving him to turn his attention back to the emotional dark haired young girl.

"We just need to get the story straight...." he inwardly cringed a little at his choice of words, she didn't seem to react, so he brushed over the matter adding. "You need to be clear... you need to be concise. Kimberley needs that from you Siena...where did you buy the drugs?"

"A...a friend from Uni...Jacob," she stifled a further snivel. "He took me...he introduced me to some guy.... some guy on that shitty Hillcliffe Estate the other side of town... I...I don't know who he was...I've never met him before I swear."

"It's alright..." Logan reassured her. "It's alright"

In his heart he knew things were as far from alright as they possibly could be. They sat in silence as Logan reminisced himself of the events of the last twelve hours himself. Kimberley had obviously been intoxicated the moment she'd appeared in the doorway of the Cinema Room; her drinking and drug consumption had continued unabated during the time he'd spent in her company.

He'd not questioned such exuberant overindulgence whilst being caught up in the euphoria of the moment. Brandy and weed having dulled his senses and his awareness. Had those senses not been corrupted would the situation have been any different, would the outcomes have been what they are this bleak foreboding morning; quite simply would she, would Kimberley still be alive?

He had taken advantage of her apparent carefree, liberated nature. The consumption of MDMA and the psychotropic side effects likely as responsible as any conscious decision Kimberley had made. He wasn't to know at the time, but he surely should have questioned her actions and reactions. He felt more culpable now than in the horrific moment he'd stood over her lifeless body. In his mind he played back the highly charged sexual encounter that had taken place in that same bed.

A horrific realisation dawning on him as he pictured her lay there beneath him, eyes dilated, drawing deep breaths given her exhausted state.

"I think I need another brew..." Logan stated, "Are you alright if...?"

"Sure," Siena nodded, and he squeezed her hands gently while standing from the sofa.

Offering a weak smile of consolation he headed towards the kitchen area, spotting Ari barely ahead of him, a sure sign she'd been eavesdropping on their conversation.

"We've got the little bitch in a corner." Ari stated a devilish grin on her face as he finally caught up with her. She put the kettle on as Logan took a stool at the breakfast counter, having checked he'd pushed the door to in order to drown out their discussion as best as was possible.

"What?" He exclaimed, a little miffed at her seemingly obvious joy at the situation they faced. Was she genuinely seizing this opportunity to leverage the young Italian off the plot for which they so bitterly feuded over?

"If she supplied the drugs, she's to blame for that silly cow's death," Ari offered not looking back at him.

"Yeah, well there's a few problems with that." Logan stated on a tone of resignation.

"How so?"

"The biggest problem being that that 'silly cow' as you so affectionately put it.... she'll be taken for an autopsy no sooner has a Coroner taken her from here. That's not to mention the forensic investigation that'll take place here.... which may not be a problem for you and young Siena but leaves me with a few issues given that I'm a man registered as dead still."

"Fair point but we can't just leave her corpse to rot" Ari's nonchalant response as she spooned heaped spoonsful of sugar into all three cups. "We have to call the Police.... you can make yourself scarce... I'm sure we can find somewhere... someplace for you to hide out."

"Which won't avoid the forensic evidence," Logan countered.

"It's cut and dry," Ari offered. "They won't need to search further.... Siena's silence might be an issue admittedly."

"Siena will definitely be an issue...there's no way on God's green earth she's mentally tough enough... If she's thrown under the wheels for causing that girls death, then she's bound to talk."

Shaking his head Logan looked up at the platinum blonde arranging the mugs before the boiling kettle on the kitchen counter, he swallowed hard. "And even if we buy her silence there's the small matter that my DNA is all over that girl."

His ambiguity had lost her, Ari looked at him blankly, "What do you mean?"

"In her... on her... need I go on."

Her face flushed with anger, "You fucking animal."

Her reaction a little unnerving as she stepped towards him and then stopped herself "You broke your fucking celibacy I see....twice"

"Twice?" Logan offered innocently enough.

"I let Jo go yesterday... you know Jo the cleaner... the other girl you've been fucking.... bit plain and dowdy for you I'd have thought....and there was me wondering why the place wasn't getting cleaned Logan... and all along I've been paying her to fuck you it seems."

"How'd you...?" He didn't deny the accusation, he realised that was pointless.

"She wasn't happy to be let go...strangely enough," Ari's turn to shake her head. "She begged for a reprieve before she asked if it was because of you. I didn't need to dig much deeper... you're a Leopard that can't change its spots."

A shrug of the shoulders was about the sum total of what he could offer before he swiped back. "Didn't take you long either"

"What?" she snapped

It was pointless tearing one another apart he realised immediately as he slipped from the stool and stepped away looking out across the vast gardens as he was so often inclined to do. Full blooms of yellow daffodils coloured the vista.

He took a breath before responding. He'd spoken out now instantly aware he'd committed himself; "Your Gentleman caller last night"

"How dare you judge me by your standards," she snapped from behind him.

"I dare..." he needlessly bit back. Stifling a comment on her choices and standards, pettiness was pointless at any time.

"Yeah ok...yeah ok...." Ari blurted out "Yeah I came back here last night with someone.... I came back with him.... Mark, he works at the club."

He turned to watch her as her voice wavered "And he spent I'm guessing the best part of an uncomfortable hour consoling me for something he had no idea of... a horror I desperately want to cleanse my mind and my body of... strange how he wasn't up for fucking me after seeing me sobbing my fucking heart out."

Logan felt the overwhelming need to literally reach out for her, to apologise immediately as he could see the hurt and the tears in her eyes.

"I couldn't even bear him touching me..." she continued, "...the minute he...I couldn't even."

Slamming a coffee cup down it smashed in her hand on the unforgiving surface of the counter. Logan was with her in a heartbeat his arms wrapped around her upper body from behind as he pulled her into him. She tried to push him away to wrestle from his grip, but he wouldn't let her.

"I don't need this" she sobbed "I don't need any of this."

"I know..." Logan reassured, "...I know."

"What do we do Logan?" She looked back at him no longer with wet eyes but with an almost determined steely stare, her jaw set her teeth gritted with a determination to cover her show of weakness. "How do we get out of this fucking ugly situation?"

Holding her, his mind racing thinking of the body of Kimberley Adams, the emotional state of Siena Mancini and now concerns over Ari. Concerns he'd never truly put back on a shelf since the trauma of the week previous. He calmed his racing mind, running through visuals to appease his tormented soul. All the while his mind coming back to the same questions on repeat; What could they do? What would they do? What would he have done in the past?

The past he so desperately wanted to escape the past that try as he might kept sucking him back in dragging him back down.

Looking over her, looking out back across the garden, bright sunlight shone against a foreboding dark grey sky. Almost the perfect metaphoric vision for his own mental fragility.

He needed to be himself.

He needed to be Logan.

Gazing out across the garden beyond the bright gold yellow daffodils he found what he was looking for.

"Don't worry..." he stated, gently kissing the top of Ari's head, "...I've a plan."

**********

"I'm not sure I can do this Ari....I'm really not"

Ari wrapped the three-quarter length black cardigan around her body. Hair tied back off her face she looked down at the young girl sat on the edge of the sofa. "You heard what Logan said... if we don't do this, you're going to end up being charged... you'll be facing prison... manslaughter charges."

"She is...she was... she's my best friend..." Siena stated fresh tears threatening to fall from already puffy eyes, "...We can't do this to her."

"We have to..." Ari implored the young Italian, "...It's the only way to keep you safe."

The younger girls finger hovered over the send button. The pre-planned message already typed into the Samsung Smartphone that had belonged to Kimberley Adams. The message carefully constructed to replicate previous social media updates, even down to the slang used and over population of cartoon emoji images. Near word perfect to make it look to all intents and purposes that she'd constructed the message herself; the forethought had stunned Ari herself. The infinite level of detail that he'd been able to consider in such a short space of time. She'd always known there was a darkness to him, a darkness she admired, an ice-cold calmness that had always been there not just in his persona but somewhere there just behind his eyes. She'd fallen for that danger once before; he'd drawn her in and corrupted her. He was the reason she had turned her back on her family. Her involvement with him and the repercussions that ripped her family unit apart, scattering them literally around the world.

She trusted him; she'd always trusted him. One look. One word and she trusted him implicitly. He never let her down. He'd looked out for her. Once again, their lives were becoming entwined, and the danger of their combined circumstances had returned to her life.

She felt alive thanks to him.

This simple act of subterfuge was the least she could do to help him, help them.

"Press send..." Ari coldly stated her hands to her hips as Siena looked up at her from sunken red eyes. "...Press send then send your own message that backs that up."

**********

At exactly 16:13 Kimberley Adams Facebook status updated with the photo of a suitcase sat on a nondescript white duvet; the suitcase packed with an assortment of clothing shoes and beauty products

The status attached to the update read:

Sorry Y'all if this country's gonna go tits up with this fucken Covid virus then me and my bitch Siena are gonna watch it happen from a distance. So lucky that my besty Siena Mancini has the finances and a yard in Sardinia. #EscapeTheCountry #PrivateJet #SorryNotSorry Italy here we come bitches.>

At 16:17 Siena Mancini's Facebook status updated with the far simpler message.

Escaping to Italy with my Girl Kimbo. See ya soon xx

By the time Siena's message posted to the platform she was playing catch up as Kimberley's original message had already received 16 of the mundane 'likes' with accompanying blue thumb logo's as well as four comments tagged in her reply's, comments conveying differing levels of envy and jealousy.

No one would be envious of either Siena Mancini or Kimberley Adams had they any grasp on the truth.

**********

The barrel of the cement mixer churning and turning as he removed the hosepipe, and the heavy generator powering the cement mixer were the only sounds to fill his mind.

A mantra drilled into him a long time ago by his Father ran through his head melodically on repeat "three parts sand and one part cement, three parts sand and one part cement".

He didn't very often but he could, as required turn his hand to manual labour and DIY. The requirement was usually for other means. Confident the mix was of the right consistency he shut off the mixer and wheeled the heavy load towards the edge of the trench. The footings for the summer house. The grave of Kimberley Adams.

Watching as wet grey concrete filled the footings of the trench, covering her naked body, running over and seeping under now rigid skin. Covering her back and lower body. She lay face down, he found it difficult enough to be doing this let alone have to face the poor young blonde who was guilty of nothing staring back at him.

Someone's Friend, someone's love, someone's sibling, someone's child. Turning away as the trench filled to a level that covered her head, seeping down around her face.

His stomach wretched, he felt himself about to dry heave, disgusted by what he had done. The crime they'd all become complicit in. The innocent truth distorted and corrupted for his and Ari's needs.

With the mixer emptied he pulled a sheet or plastic tarpaulin over the trench and weighed down the plastic sheet with bricks in parallel lines over the almost inappropriate bright blue sheet.

Stepping away Logan looked up toward the house seeing movement in a downstairs room, no definition but even from this distance her platinum blonde hair was prominent.

Packing away what tools he'd used, he removed the navy-blue overalls he wore over his jeans and grey Tee, bundling the overalls and dropping them into the flames of the fire lit in a steel barrel alongside the path. The fire that had consumed the clothes she'd worn and the bedding on which she slept, on which she'd died. Taking a metal rod he stirred the embers of the fire, ensuring that the flames did not miss reducing to ash the fabrics they'd been lit to destroy.

Moving from the fire with dusk setting in around him Logan headed along the path that led back to the house that stood suitable shrouded in darkness with no visible lights or signs of life.

She was waiting for him, sat on a short flight of steps the vantage point from which she'd watched everything he'd done. She stubbed out a cigarette under the heel of her ankle boots as he approached.

Looking up at him from under the rim of a burgundy beanie hat, which obscured her hair. Her fitted short leather biker jacket wrapped tightly around her as she crossed her arms, denim cut off shorts and black thick tights completing her look.

He passed her without acknowledgement, not wishing to be drawn in by her.

"Another victim of Logan Hughes..." she stated from behind him. "Another young victim like so many of the others...like my sister...like me"

He inhaled deeply filling his lungs with the cold evening air, his shoulders rising but he refused to look back, not giving her that satisfaction.

Stating quietly as he exhaled.

"Leave it Chloe"

Chapter Six; Restrictions

The running machine bore the brunt of the anger, the fear and the hatred that coursed through his veins.

Wiping sweat from his brow despite the French doors to the gym being thrown open to the cool morning elements. Outside a feint hazy mist reluctantly burnt away in the weak early morning sunshine, sunshine that offered the promise of a bright day.

For him the haze of another night of fractured sleep haunted him, nightmare visions and echoes of perceived screams that had woken him in the early hours, never for sleep to return to reclaim his tired body. The torture of the regular insomnia that controlled long dark nights, anguish that had been ratcheted up exponentially over the last three nights. Understandable anxiety given the circumstances of the tragic demise of the young blonde, Kimberley, who's body lay encased in concrete barely meters away from where step after heavy step he pounded the treadmill desperately seeking exhaustion. Just as he had the previous morning, not that it had assisted or provided any salvation.

Ari had seemingly dealt with the situation, admittedly with far less metaphorical blood on her hands. She had willingly instigated his hastily thought-out plan alongside of him.

She had been his accomplice in convincing young Siena Mancini of her implicit guilt and her role in the death of her best friend. He had no genuine idea how close the two girls had been, he didn't know them, he didn't know Siena well enough despite her near constant presence since he'd almost fatefully let her into the house in which she owned a legitimate stake in a little over 5 weeks previously.