Arwa Stone's Blog

                                                                           Chapter 9

DI York closed the door behind her. The florist confirmed her suspicion. She decided to walk while DS Scott drove in the light rain. Her dark blonde hair grew limper and wetter. Thoughts raced through her mind. When she got to the hospital's entrance, she rang her hair out. Scott was already there with two cups of steaming hot coffee. What a saviour. 

When they entered the familiar room, the bed they sought out was empty. A nurse was folding a blanket on top of the bed. 

"Nurse...," she sipped her coffee. 

"Verity," she smiled.

"Right, Nurse Verity, where is this patient?"

"She left."

The detectives looked at each other.

"Come on Scott, your car, right now."

The car sped towards Jane's flat in the centre of Brighton. Three loud bangs brought out her neighbours. DS Scott kicked at the door. It opened wide. A cold draft fluttered a few black petals from the floor to the open living room window.

                                                                         Chapter 8
Unsolved Mysteries flashed up on the screen. Lizzie pressed next with a greasy finger. Popcorn spilt all over the floor as she reached over towards a bottle of red wine.
Keith, her black labrador jumped up on the table and knocked the bottle over. Luckily, most of it landed on her clothes. He sniffed at the small drops of wine staining the carpet.
"Keith! Look at what you've done!"
She stripped her clothes off and threw them into the washing machine. In the bedroom, she pulled on a pair of black leggings and a purple t-shirt with the word witch on it. 
In the kitchen, she grabbed a bottle of chocolate milk before settling down on the sofa.
Two episodes in, a knock on the door made her jump. Looking into the spy hole, she saw a detective's badge shoved up against the door. She opened the door a crack. DI York looked concerned. 
"Elizabeth Green?"
"Lizzie."
"Lizzie, can we come in?"
She eyed then up carefully before opening the door wide. DS Scott sneezed as he approached Keith. 
"Sorry, I'm allergic," he sniffed. 
"What's this about?"
Lizzie scooted across the sofa. DI York sat next to her.
"I'm sure you understand what happened to your friends."
Keith whined and rolled over to his side.
"How could I not?"
She wiped away a tear. DS Scott added in.
"We were concerned for your safety," he sneezed again.
"I'm glad you thought of me."
She turned to Keith when he started throwing up. 
"Keith? Are you alright?" 
Lying down next to him, she stroked him.DI York noticed the bottle of wine.

"Lizzie, is this a recent bottle of wine?"
"No, it was from Amy's birthday party."
York sniffed at the bottle. A faint smell of almonds pulled her away from it.
"Did you drink any of it?"
She looked around for a bag. In the cupboard next to oven, she pulled open two freezer bags. 
"No, Keith jumped on the table and knocked it all over me."
Lizzie started cleaning up the vomit. DS York placed the bottle in one bag and the vomit tissues in the other. 
"Where are your clothes?"
York looked around the room and noticed Keith weezing. 
"What's wrong with him?"
She bent down and sniffed his breath.
"They're in the washing machine. He licked a drop of wine on the carpet. What are you doing?"
Lizzie sat up and crossed her legs. 
"I think you need to take him to the vet right now!"
Keith vomited again and his eyes rolled up into his head.
"Keith!"

                Chapter 7
Tom vomited for the third time that day. The sickness spread so fast. There was barely any time left to bury the kids before the next one died. 
Jeffrey dug the graves while the rest of the adults buried the dead. Jade and Art locked the rest of the healthy kids in their rooms.
Opal, Jane, the boy and his dog stopped dead in their tracks. Annie ran to them. 
"It spread so fast! Don't come in!"
Opal grabbed her arm when she tried to go back inside.
"Wait, Annie. Stay with us. Where's Jeffery?"
She turned towards his figure digging and digging and digging. Opal closed her eyes. She took a deep breath. 
"It's time for the property to fulfill it's self."

                                                               Chapter 7
Amelia's husband and their two children were silent at what DI York has told them.
"Poison? But who would do that?"
DI York swallowed back the dregs of her coffee cup. 
"Yes, Mr Moore. The coroner confirmed it."
He sobbed into his hands, comforted by his kids.
DS Scott barged in. He pulled DI York up to her feet.
"We've got another one."

In the chaos of the hospital, Jane was unconscious in a bed in A&E. Nurses and doctors rushed around her. One of the nurses shouted, "she's breathing!"
The chaos died down and she was wheeled into a room with three other patients. 

   In the thick of a fire, it's hard to see a way out. The smoke obscures our vision. The heat pushing the walls in. The flames lick at our skin, singing eyebrows and choking the life out of us. On this blue planet, life carries on no matter what happens. We keep spinning in the vast realm of space. Infinite. Seamless. It seems as humans, we're so used to going back to the way things were after a tragedy. Maybe that's a way life keeps us going in the comfort of what is so familiar. 
   COVID-19 has changed our lives forever. Lockdown has made me look at my life with a microscope. It made the most important things in my life, the things that I love to do, the things that wake me up at 2:00 AM to write down ideas for the book I'm writing stand out like a big bright lit up sign that says, 'TURN LEFT HERE!' and  'FOCUS ON WHAT YOU LOVE DOING.' The urge to write feels like a seduction. A strong urge to write poetry, short stories and books. 
   Living through a pandemic feels so unbelievable. It's horrific and almost apocalyptic. As lockdown eases, it feels hopeful. Shops and restaurants are opening back up. The summer haze makes it seem like it's over. When I see people traveling abroad, it makes me think of how the virus might be travelling from place to place, how people are still getting sick and they are still dying. It's like little fires starting at random and before you know it, a giant flame sweeps through like a bad nightmare. Talking about nightmares, yes, they were back. 
   The tragedy of people losing their jobs, shops closing, violence and looting during lockdown and now as things ease up feels like a sinking ship with her passenger aboard. The anti-racism rallies that started in America and swept through most of the cities in the world is a spark of hope after the unjust violence from the police. 
   As I'm coming out of furlough, going back to work next week feels good. I'm grateful that I still have my job. At the same time, my heart hurts at the amount of people who have lost their jobs. Things can never be the same, however it may seem. Going forward, I do hope the world changes for the better as the pandemic dies off. 
Take care, be safe and wash your hands,
Wonder Woman XXX

                                                                           Chapter 6
   "Why are you here?"      The old lady's husband held the shotgun at Jane's head. 
   "We need food, medical supplies, look your wife said that we can have three chicken. So can we take them and go?"
   He finally lowered the gun.
   "Oh, go on. Don't let me see your faces around here again."
   Opal pulled Jane up and they ran out with three chicken in the back of the truck.
   "I'll grab the steering wheel, you do the rest."
   Opal felt guilty about the gunshot wound. Her vision never failed her. 
   They stopped at the pharmacy. It seemed empty. Opal tried the door handle. It was open. There was a faint smell of disinfectant mixed with dust and lipstick. The old fashioned kind.
   She grabbed a green basket and emptied as many shelves as she could. In a second basket, she filled it with skincare.
   A German Shepherd growled at her when she made her way to the door. A boy no older than ten years old stopped in his tracks when he saw Opal.
   "It's you!"
   She blinked at him. Dropping the baskets, she closed her eyes. The dog stopped growling and went to his owner.
   "You may come with us."
   She picked up the baskets and walked out with the boy and his dog.
   

                                                                     Chapter 6
   DI York parked her Audi across the street from Jane's flat. The windows were curtainless. She dug out her binoculars. The TV was on. Jane was watching Pretty Little Liars. 
   York zoomed in on the coffee table. A bowl of popcorn was over flowing. Next to her, Rose was whispering into her ear. They laughed and munched on more popcorn. 
   In a house on a hill, Amelia was taking vodka shots with her husband. The kids were fast asleep. They laughed quietly before kissing each other. She pushed him back and gripped the edge of the kitchen table.
   A persistent knock on the door drew her husband's attention away from her. She collapsed on the floor and vomited. The door banged open. DS Scott barged in. 
   "Who are you?"
   Her husband bent down to help her. She was shaking violently before clutching her chest and passing out.
   "I'm a detective, here's my badge. Call 999!"
   He performed CPR, but he couldn't save her. There was no pulse. Her husband threw up in the sink just as the ambulance arrived. 

                                                                      Chapter 5
   In the distance, Opal seemed to shimmer in the heat. Her brown eyes became molten when she  recalled a time when life seemed simple. A time when she was a part of a family. She didn't cry anymore. It was time to be a leader.
   Climbing into the front seat, Jane slammed the door shut and turned the engine on. She was one of two grown ups who could drive. At the age of twenty, she and her two younger sisters were the only survivors in their family.
   "Ready Opal?"
   "Ready Jane."
   Opal closed her eyes. 
   "Where to?"
   "Just keep driving. I'll let you know when we get there." 
   The engine whirred in an ancient blue truck. Images flashed through her mind. A petrol station. Deserted homes. An abandoned farm.
   "Stop at the farm around the corner from the pharmacy.
   "OK."
   Supplies were running low. They need tinned food, medicine and more petrol. Jane pulled a pair of black Ray Bans from the glove box. She put them on and hummed the song One Kiss by Dua Lipa. Opal opened her eyes. Anxiety plagued her when they pulled up by the barn. There was no sign of life except for half a dozen chicken pecking on the ground at the back of the house.
   "Something's not right."
   Opal felt like they were being watched. They jumped out looking for the cause of her anxiety. In the house, everything was covered with a thick layer of dust. Jane got to the kitchen and started searching through the cupboards. 
   The creak of the back door made her stop. A gruff voice demanded that she turn around. A tall thin woman with skin the colour of leather pointed a shotgun at her. 
   Who the hell are you? "
   "I'm. .."
   Opal stormed into the kitchen.
   "Lady, drop the gun."
   She pointed it at her. Jane stood between them.
   "She's only a girl. We're only here for supplies."
   The woman aimed the gun at her forehead. 
   "Get out of here!"
   Her arms shook and the gun went off injuring Jane in the thigh.
   "Ah!"
   She fell to the ground with both hands on her left thigh. Opal went up to the woman.
   "We have kids to feed. What can you give us?"
   The woman collapsed in a chair. She held her head between her hands.
   "The chicken, you can have three."
   "Thank you. What about medicine?"
   The woman shook her head. The front door swung shut. An old man in blue overalls dropped a bag he was carrying.
   "Irma, what did you do?"
   He picked up the shotgun and aimed it at Jane. Opal lifted her up.
   "We were just leaving."
   They walked two steps towards the door.
   "No you don't."


   

                                                                          Chapter 5
   Claire's heart pendant lay in an evidence bag on DI York's desk. Amelia and her two kids Leah eight and John 6, were sharing a chair. 
   "What do you mean it's a homicide? 
   "I mean, she didn't die of natural causes. Now please answer my question. Where did you get that bottle of rosé from? 
   She blew her nose and fixed her pony tail in her reflection on the desk lamp.
   "I got it from Waitrose."
   "Right."
   She stood up. 
   "Is that all?"
   DI York stood up too.
   "One more question. Where were you on the night that Claire died?"
   "I was on a date night with my husband. You want to know what else we did that night?"
   The detective folded her arms before speaking.
   "If you can remember what else happened on the night of the party, that would be helpful."
   Amelia pulled her bag over her shoulder. 
   "Sure, I'll remember to call you if I do. Come on kids, dad's got ice cream."
   She flicked her pony tail at DI York on her way out.

Here are three books that I finished reading. I really enjoyed them and loved Frankenstein, Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde.