Day 7
"Molly, wake up!" Molly jerked awake and found Elwood looking back at her.
"What is it?" She asked, rubbing her head.
"Bette's dead."
"What?" Molly gasped, standing up quickly, her knee throbbed and she fell back down quickly, holding it tightly.
"You alright?"
"Yeah, got up too fast, are you sure?"
"Yeah, Dahra's freaking out."
"I'm coming, go next door and ask Astrid if she can come round and keep an eye on Grace."
When they reached the hospital Molly found Dahra in clear shock. Cookie was still screaming in agony.
Molly walked over to Bette and found that she was unmistakably dead. Orc had killed Bette.
"I…I tried to help her…" Dahra said, moving to stand next to Molly.
"It's not your fault, Dahra." Molly said, stepping back and sitting down. Within a few minutes Sam arrived with Edilio and Quinn.
"We have to bury her." Said Edilio, in a voice of forced calm.
"Go and get Drew, Dahra clean her up a bit…"
"You're going to bring her brother in?" Sam asked, looking amazed.
"He's only six, he needs to understand what's happened." Elwood went out of the room and returned a few minutes later with Drew, in his pyjamas and carrying a teddy bear.
"Drew, come in here for a minute." Molly said, holding out her hand, Drew took it and she led him into Dahra's office.
"Is Bette still sick?" He asked, rubbing his eyes.
"Drew, Bette was really hurt, she's gone to heaven." Although Molly had no religious beliefs, she knew that Bette and Drew did.
"To be with the angels?" Drew asked, his voice wavering.
"That's right, her body is on the bed here but her soul is already in heaven. We're going to bury her body, would you like to say goodbye first?"
"Will she hear me?"
"Definitely." Drew nodded and followed Molly back out of the room.
It was heart-breaking to watch Drew say goodbye to his sister, when he'd finished he put his bear next to her.
"She can have Bear-bear. I've got to be a big boy now, like when Unca Jared died."
"Good boy, Drew."
Sam spoke at Bette's funeral. It was one o'clock in the morning, Drew cried throughout and Molly held his hand. Her perfect memory could not let her forget the dead girl's face.
When the funeral broke up Molly walked with Drew, Astrid and Sam were having a seemingly heated debate by the grave.
"Where do I go now?" Drew asked, still holding onto Molly's hand.
"You can come and sleep at my house tonight, we'll sort everything out in the morning." Quinn was waiting by Grace's pushchair and Molly nodded to him and then started walking to the house.
After a few minutes Orc and Howard interrupted them. Molly moved Drew slightly behind her.
"It's the middle of the night, go to bed."
"I didn't mean to kill her." Orc slurred, looking at Drew.
"But you did, Orc."
"Charles."
"What?"
"My name is Charles."
"I know."
"I didn't mean…"
"Charles, Howard, go home. It's late." To Molly's surprise they both nodded and walked away.
Molly put Grace and Drew to bed and then sat in the living room, there wasn't much point going to bed. She never got more than an hours sleep anyway, she was in constant demand.
Unsurprisingly, within twenty minutes the door was knocked and Albert was standing there covered in scratches.
Day 8
When Molly went downstairs on the morning of what she called 'Day eight', Edilio cheered.
"What?" She asked, pulling a dressing gown around her.
"Happy alien day!" Molly snorted and moved to the kettle.
"Thank you, fellow alien."
"How much sleep did you get?"
"A whole hour! I'm so lucky!"
"You can't keep this up."
"You think I don't know that?"
"You need a…" The door knocked and Molly rolled her eyes and moved to open it.
"Sinder? What's up?" She asked, stepping aside the let the Goth girl in.
"I wondered how Drew was doing."
"He's coping."
"I could take him with me, if you want, we used to live on the same street."
"You don't mind?"
"That's great, Sinder, thanks!" Said Edilio, talking over Molly's question.
"Cool, oh and I've started writing a blog, well, it's not really a blog, it's a diary, so that when we get out of here it will help…" Sinder let the end of the sentence hang and Molly knew why. She was the responsible adult, all the deaths and mistakes would likely stop at her.
"Thanks Sinder, Drew's upstairs."
The radio crackled and Molly looked down at it.
"Mary to Molly, over."
"Go ahead." Molly said, picking it up.
"Just letting you know I'm taking the prees to the beach. Over."
"Okay, thanks Mary. Over."
"Why is she telling you?" Asked Sinder, looking intrigued.
"Probably so that when I get to the day care I won't freak out when it's empty."
"Search team three to base. Over."
"Go ahead Sam." Jack's voice crackled.
"We've got a…DB, a baby on 75 Sunset. Over."
"What's a DB?" Molly asked, sitting down.
"Dead body." Said Sinder, paling beneath her make-up.
"I'll send Edilio. Edilio, you get that? Over." Edilio nodded before he picked up the radio.
"I got it Caine. Over." Jack had clearly been unable to answer so Caine had intervened.
Edilio drained the rest of his coffee and then left without a word. Sinder went upstairs to collect Drew and Molly sat down, feeling sick. A dead baby, it must have been a new family, perhaps they hadn't registered yet.
Astrid arrived with Little Pete and Molly looked up at her.
"Sam found a dead baby, on Sunset." Astrid sighed and then sat down.
"We tried our best, we were never going to get all of the kids out."
"That's three dead kids in eight days."
They were interrupted by Sinder and Drew. Drew ran up to Molly and hugged her tightly.
"Thanks for looking after me, Auntie Molly."
"No problem, Drew, be good for Sinder, okay?"
"Yeah, I promise." Molly nodded to Sinder who gave a small smile and then left.
"Right, who have we got today?"
"T through W, we might be able to finish tomorrow."
"Okay, well Mary and John are at the beach, I've done Sam. Who else?"
The first person, Susan Tucker, arrived and within a few hours they had got through to W. Molly collapsed onto the sofa and looked over at Astrid.
"I want to drive up to Coates."
"Why?"
"There are kids there, disturbed kids from what I've seen of the delegate we've got down here."
"Good point, perhaps we could ask…" A knock at the door interrupted Astrid. Molly groaned and went to answer.
Sam Temple was standing on the other side looking very pale.
"Anna and Emma just poofed." He said, out-of-breath.
"What?" Molly gasped, letting him in.
"I was standing there. I was watching them. I was holding Anna's hand when it happened." Sam had moved through to the living room and Astrid was watching him, clearly concerned. "She was scared, Anna, I mean. She saw Emma disappear. They were born just six minutes apart. So first Emma. Then Anna, waiting for it. Knowing it was coming." Sam sat down on the sofa and Astrid sat next to him and held his hand.
He looked up at Molly and gulped.
"I have five days. Five. Days. Not even a week!"
"You don't know that for sure…" Molly began but Sam interrupted.
"Don't, OK? Just don't. Don't tell me some story about how it's going to be fine. It's not going to be fine.
"OK." Astrid said, holding Sam's hand tightly. "You're right. Somehow, age fifteen is this line, and when you reach it, you poof out."
"If that's true them I'm stuck in here forever!" Said Molly, sitting on the armchair. They discussed it for a few more minutes and then Grace started to cry so Molly went upstairs to collect her, when she came back down Astrid and Sam were snogging on the sofa.
"And this, Grace, this is the first couple of the FAYZ-plus-one, aren't they cute?" She said, causing Sam and Astrid to spring apart as if they had just been electrocuted.
"Sorry." Sam said.
"Forget it, I'm not your mom. I think you lot think I'm ancient, I'm only twenty two, I still feel sixteen sometimes."
"You're really helping the kids, Molly, you take the pressure off, and the help sheets are saving lives." Astrid said softly. Molly had so far made a help sheet for; cooking, washing clothes, hygiene, illness and injury, and emergencies (such as fires).
Suddenly a sound of something hitting the house broke through the touching scene.
"Petey's out there!" Astrid cried, they ran outside. Little Pete was sat on the porch, engrossed in his game.
There was a small gang throwing rocks at him.
"What do you think you're doing?" Sam yelled.
"He was ignoring me." Said Panda.
"Panda was just goofing, Sam." Said Quinn from next to Panda.
"There's nothing 'goofing' about throwing rocks at kids, Quinn. You should all be ashamed of yourself!" Molly said, leading Pete inside and then going to feed Grace.
When Sam and Astrid returned Sam was moaning about Quinn.
"…jealous of you." Astrid was saying.
"Well, of course I am terribly handsome." Molly snorted and Sam grinned at her before Astrid continued.
"He's one kind of person, you're another. When life is going along normally, you're sort of the same. But when life turns strange and scary, when there's a crisis, suddenly you're completely different people. It's not Quinn's fault, really, but he's not brave. He's not strong. You are."
"You still want me to be the big hero." Sam said, smiling slightly.
"I want you to be who you are." Astrid said quietly.
"You're forgetting something else that Quinn is jealous of." Said Molly, stroking Grace's tiny foot to stop her falling asleep whilst feeding.
"What?" Asked Sam.
"Edilio." Molly replied, looking over at Sam. "You and Quinn were best friends, since the FAYZ-plus-one Edilio has really stepped up, Quinn hasn't."
"You think?"
"I know, it's been obvious since you woke me up at the power plant."
"Perhaps, anyway, Astrid you need groceries right?"
"Yes, I'll get my bag."
"You need anything, Molly?"
"A long sleep, does that count?"
"No."
"Then I'm good, although if you find tea bags from England I'll love you forever."
Molly had been dozing on the sofa when a loud knocking on the door woke her up, when she opened it Astrid and Pete were standing there, Astrid looked terrified. She pushed past Molly and shut the door behind her.
"Caine's got Sam! Drake kept me and Petey in the school but Petey got us away. I've got to go!"
"Woo, Astrid calm down!"
Astrid explained what had happened and then dragged Little Pete out of the back door, she told Molly that she was going to Clifftop and told Molly to get out of the house quickly.
Molly packed at small bag, and some of Grace's things, and drove quickly to the fire station. Part of her wanted to find Sam and Caine but she had Grace to think of.
She found Edilio and explained the situation, within a minute Sam and Quinn arrived.
Molly pulled Sam aside and told him that Astrid was heading to Clifftop.
"I'll drive you."
"No, you're needed, stay here, please?"
"Sam…"
"Molly, please!" After a moment Molly nodded.
They moved back over to Edilio and Quinn.
"Molly's staying here, come on." Molly watched them leave and then found a drawer to double up as a crib for Grace.
Within ten minutes Drake arrived, looking menacing.
"Hello Molly, what are you doing here?"
"Well, as there's no one else here…" He slapped her hard before she saw it coming, she landed heavily on the stone floor.
"Where are they?" He asked, bending down and whispering to her.
"I don't know."
"Liar."
Panda arrived with another goon.
"Tie her up." Drake ordered.
"But…"
"Now!"
"Think about what you're doing, this…" Drake kicked her on the back and then forced a gag around her mouth.
She was tied to a chair and dragged into the kitchen.
"What do we do with her?" Panda asked.
"Watch her, I'm going on a Genius and Petard hunt, later."
Molly tried to move but she couldn't, the two kids sat watching her and Drake left, laughing.
After half an hour Grace started crying, Molly struggled against the binds and Panda sighed.
"I'll let you free to feed the brat, don't tell Drake." Molly nodded, Panda released her arms and the other boy, who Molly had not met before, carried over the drawer and Grace's bag.
"Drake's going to freak, dude."
"Shut up, Hank, she's just a baby!" They left Molly's gag on and she fed Grace and tried to change her nappy, Panda sighed and changed the nappy for her.
"I got a baby brother."
"SAM! SAM! THERE'S A FIRE!" Panda and Hank froze at the panicked voice.
"Get rid of them." Panda said.
The kid did not go easy but eventually he left and Molly was tied up again.
After another hour Diana arrived.
"There's a fire…oh, dear, what happened here?" She said, looking at Molly.
"Drake told us to do it."
"Well, I'm telling you to untie her." Diana said, firmly.
"I'm more scared of Drake than you, Diana!" The dark-haired girl gave a soft laugh.
"Well, you shouldn't be. Untie her, otherwise I'll let slip to Caine that your power is growing, Panda."
"You said you wouldn't tell…"
"I lied, untie her!" Panda was quick to untie Molly, the gag was the last thing to be removed.
"Now, both of you get lost." Diana said.
They ran and didn't look back.
"Thanks." Said Molly, massaging her wrists.
"You're welcome, you owe me now, got it?" Molly nodded but didn't reply.
"Your house is on fire, and Astrid's."
"They're detached, we'll let it burn out."
"Wise decision, if I was you I'd hide in the medical centre, Drake's left town but Caine is still around."
"Okay. Diana, where are the other Coates kids?"
"At Coates. They didn't agree with Caine's grand plan, he's…contained them. Listen to me, Auntie Molly, and listen good because I'm going to give you some advice."
"I'm listening."
"I don't know how you got here, I guess it's to do with that kid brother of Astrid's, but I know that you're useful here. If you want to stay alive, stay out of the way. Caine see's that you're useful, if you start causing trouble, you'll cease being useful. Catch my drift?"
"Yes. What about Drake?"
"He's disturbed, but at the moment he follows Caine, when he stops, you'll be in trouble, but then again when he stops, we'll all be in trouble."
"Thanks for the warning."
"You're welcome. This conversation never happened."
"It's erased from my freakishly perfect memory already."
"Don't forget you owe me." Diana said, then she walked away.
A/N So the action has started and now Molly owes Diana a favour, I wouldn't want to owe Diana anything!
Please review and let me know what you think!