TW: violence, alcoholism, sexist views

In the early hours of the next morning, Peter sheepishly walked out of a cab. He was wearing yesterdays clothes and his hair was a mess. There was a pale tinge to his complexion which was contrasted to the dark circles under his eyes. As he paid the driver; he squinted at the morning sun that began beaming through the street and he looked for any bystanders that would see him at such a low point.

Slowly walking through the cobbled street, he couldn't stop thinking about how much he regretted last night and the fact he'd have to face Carla sooner or later, even if he was avoiding Victoria Court like it was the plague. Everything about last night was a blur, but he specifically remembered Tina apologising to him. He wasn't sure if it was a wind up or if she genuinely meant it but either way, he assumed he'd lost Carla due to his behaviour so he was at the point of not caring about anything anymore.

As he went to knock onto Ken's front door, he caught sight of Lucas leaning on the wall outside of the Kabin. The gloating displayed on his face was enough to confirm to Peter that he had something to do with last nights relapse. There was no other option.

Noticing Peter's gaze, Lucas called out. "You're not looking too clever, Peter. I must say."

Peter ignored him at first, turning around and knocking onto Number One. But that's when Lucas walked over and began taunting him.

"Why did you drink, Peter? Why don't you have another actually? Because I told Carla everything last night. And her actions spoke a lot louder than words."

"Why did you do that for?" Peter shouted, squinting at the sunlight.

"She deserves to know the low life she is in a relationship with," Lucas sniggered. "And how much better I am."

Peter stared at him, a look of confusion. Until it suddenly clicked…

"You didn't…" Peter whispered. "You did, didn't you? You gave me alcohol."

"You're starting to sound like Carla," Lucas taunted, a smirk arising. "Shouting all these accusations, all these delusions…acting crazy-…"

"Shut your mouth," Peter forcefully grabbed his shirt, pinning him against a wall. "Don't say her name."

"But Peter, I said more than just her name last night-…"

"I don't care what you have to say." Peter yelled, cutting him off.

"Oo be careful, mate, you do have a hangover after all." Lucas laughed.

"We have dealt with men like you before, Lucas. You won't be the first, and I doubt you'll be the last. You're nothing special. And you won't affect us. So sling your hook whilst there's still a breath in your body."

"Well I'll make an agreement, should I?" Lucas said, snidely. "How about I have Carla all to myself and then I'll leave you alone. Because trust me, you can't get away from me easily. I'll always be there. I'll be watching your every move. I'm not scared of you. I get what I want."

Peter stared into his cold, soulless eyes. He had looked into the eyes of many evil people in his time but nothing could prepare him for Lucas'. There was just nothing but pure hatred in them.

Without any warning, Peter swiftly punched him in the jaw, letting go of him and breathing erratically.

"You're going to regret that." Lucas snapped, wiping his mouth that was pouring blood.

"I don't think you're aware of the power I have over Carla now, Peter. She hates you after last night. So if I were you, I'd give in. You've lost this time." Lucas added, wiping his mouth once more before walking away.

Now Peter was stood alone, his mind wandered to Carla. Was she okay? Was Lucas telling the truth or manipulating him once again. Either way, Peter's hands shook and sweat beads had already formed on his skin as his body desperately begged for another drink. Right now, that was more important.


She sat in the office, staring into space. The only thing keeping her awake was the constant ticking of the clock. Well, also the fact she was constantly worrying over Peter and what state he'd got himself in. She didn't sleep a wink and now she wasn't sure if she was able to face him. There was a fine line between hugging him, begging him not to go again or pounding his chest with so much hatred over the fact he'd ruined things for them again.

It just made no sense; and that's what made the situation so much worse. Things were absolutely perfect for them, for the first time ever. He had no reason to relapse. But Carla had to remind herself, sometimes you don't need a reason. She had struggled herself with alcohol over the years and that struggle was showing itself up today as she opened the drawer of the desk, pulling out a bottle of whiskey.

Her rings clinked against the glass as she unscrewed the bottle and smelt the sweet but bitter liquid. Just as she was about to drink away her problems, the door squeaked as someone entered and she heard footprints coming closer.

"What do you want? Why are you here?" Carla frowned, standing up. "What's happened to your lip?"

"Twenty questions, Carla." Lucas chuckled.

"What's happened?" She sighed.

"Your boyfriend, that's what happened."

"You've seen him? Is he okay?" Her eyes widened.

"He just flung himself at me, Carla! Completely unprovoked. He's lucky my jaw isn't broken. I could've got him put away for that." He grimaced.

"Peter isn't like that, he wouldn't just attack you. You must've said something." She shook her head.

"Ask anyone on this street if he's a violent person and get back to me on that." He scoffed, wincing.

"You're milking this, aren't ya? Come on Lucas, it's a punch in the jaw. You must've had a lot worse."

"No, I've come here for you actually. How are you? I know last night was hard."

"You're not here for me. Nothing you do is for someone else. I know you remember." She raised her eyebrows, crossing her arms around her.

"And I know you too." He stepped closer to her.

"Get out of my factory. And clean you're face too, you'll scare folk." She stared at him.

"You could help me-…"

"Seriously, Lucas. I still hate your guts. Go and clean yourself up." She interrupted.

"I need to tell you something though." He said.

"Not another," She rolled her eyes, ignoring the unsettling feeling in her stomach. "I don't want to hear it, Lucas. Do you realise how much worse you're making this whole thing for me? Peter has been drinking and I don't need you around me like a dog with a bone-…"

"Peter slept with Tina again." Lucas shouted over Carla, causing her to fall silent and stare at him in shock.

"Get. Out." Carla whispered, after a minute of pure silence. Lucas noted the tears brimming in her eyes and knew he had to carry on with the plan.

"I know you don't want to hear it but it's true," He exhaled. "Peter slept with Tina."

"You're lying!" Carla shouted, a tear rolling down her cheek as she furiously wiped it away. "What did I ever do to you, Lucas! Get out. I can't hear any of this."

She marched past him, standing in the main factory area and pointing to the door, "I said, get out!"

Slowly, he wandered over to her. He sighed; taking in her vulnerable state.

He leaned in, pulling her head closer to him so he could kiss her.

But he didn't get the chance. Because suddenly Carla shoved him away, slapping him across the face.

"How dare you!" She screamed.

"I thought that's what you wanted! I'm sorry for mis-reading the signals!" He lied.

"You disgust me." She whispered.

"I'm just hurt about Peter and Tina too. I had feelings for her, Carla. I knew she preferred him, but I thought I could make myself better. I guess we're just not good enough."

"I don't believe you still. That woman messed up our life, he wouldn't go back there." She shook her head, wiping her mouth as she still wasn't over the fact he forced himself on her.

"He was drunk. And anyone with eyes can tell that Tina is beautiful."

Carla looked down, biting her lip to try and control the tears.

"I have proof." He added.

"Proof? What proof?" She scoffed, her voice hoarse and eyes blood shot.

"I took a photo of them on the bench last night. When they got all cosy. You don't wanna know what happened next…" He grabbed his phone, showing her the screen.

Carla stared at it blankly, before swallowing a lump in her throat.

"It looks like they're just chatting." She muttered, less confident.

"Does it?" He raised his eyebrows. "Stop lying to yourself-…"

"Lucas, LEAVE ME ALONE!" She grabbed him and pushed him to the door. She was shouting, crying, full of so many emotions.

He shoved her away, locking the factory doors and grabbing Carla by the arm, leading her into the office.

"Get off me!" She cried.

"Shut up!" He pushed her into her chair, forcefully.

Carla looked around, it was the weekend and no one would come into the factory today. But she didn't trust this man one bit.

She was terrified of what he could do.


"Are you drinking again? Peter!" Tina grabbed the vodka bottle from out of his hands. "You can't do that!"

"What are you going to do!" he slurred, leaning against the wall as he sat in the Rovers smoking area.

"You can't keep self destructing like this. Have you spoken to Carla? What's she saying? I thought she'd be keeping an eye on you."

"I haven't seen her." He shrugged.

"She's going to be worried sick, Peter!"

"Oh, like you'd care! You've made her…worried sick…for months."

Tina looked down, "This isn't fair on her. You need to see her and explain."

"Lucas got in there first. And now she hates my guts." He whimpered, putting his head down to his chest.

"Lucas?" Tina's eyes widened. "You need to see her now."

"I'd prefer to drink myself to death if it's all the same to you."

"No, it's not. Get up and see her!" She snapped.

"Don't try and act like little miss g-golden girl over here. You haven't got a good bone in your body!" He spat, full of aggression. "The saying is…bad bone, isn't it?"

"Stop rambling. Go and find her, please."

"What the hell are you two doing out here!" Jenny snapped, her eyes wide. "Are you drunk?"

"It's all a mess, Jenny!" Peter cried.

"What the hell has happened now?"

"I need more vodka." He muttered.

"You're making me uncomfortable too, missy. Why are you here?" She glared at Tina.

"I'm trying to help him. He needs to speak to Carla." Tina replied.

"A gallon of water is what he needs." She quipped, shaking her head.

"Have you seen Carla?" Peter asked, standing up and wobbling as he did so.

"I did as it happens. She said she was going to get some work done at the factory, even if it's a sunday. She seemed quite upset." Jenny explained.

"Thanks…I need to see her." He mumbled.

"Do you think you should sober up first?" Jenny called out but Peter had already wandered off at this point.

"I don't think you being here will make Carla happy to see me." Peter said, as he went up the steps of the factory.

"I had to be sure you got there in one piece."

"Well I'm here now-…," Peter paused. "Oh, the door is locked."

"Do you have keys?" She prompted.

"I don't know why she'd lock the doors." He mumbled.

"Have you got keys, Peter?" Tina repeated, rolling her eyes at his drunken state.

He clumsily grabbed his keys from his pocket, taking a long time to try and put it through the keyhole. Eventually, Tina sighed and unlocked it for him.

As soon as the door opened, they heard a sound that made Peter's blood run cold…

"Help me!" Carla screamed and pleaded from indoors.

"Carla!" Peter yelled, sobering up instantly as he ran inside.

"Oh god." Tina panicked, reluctantly following him.

At the sight of Peter and Tina, Lucas grabbed a petrified Carla from her seat and held her to his chest, his arm firmly around her throat.

She let out a cry, her eyes locking onto Peter's.

"Let go of her! What do you think you're doing!" Peter shouted.

"I warned you, but you didn't give up. You made this happen." Lucas said.

"This isn't the way, Lucas…" Tina whispered.

"Oh shut it. You're nothing but a little slag. And you're not fooling anyone saying you've changed your mind."

"Peter…" Carla whispered.

"It's okay, baby." Peter stepped closer, but Lucas moved Carla so that his hold around her throat was tighter.

"I wouldn't do that if I were you." Lucas laughed, evilly.

"This isn't you, Lucas. You just want to be loved. And this isn't the way." Tina sniffed back tears.

"Now is not the time for a therapy session. But if we're going down that route, how about some honesty about our emotions and feelings? Because I must say, you acting like you're perfect is making me feel…really really angry! And who is going will deal with the consequences of that?" Lucas started yelling as he spoke, before signalling to Carla. "This one here."

Peter went to pounce on the man, but Tina grabbed him.

"Think about what you're doing, Peter." She whispered.

"How does it make you feel, Carla, Hmm? Watching these two lost causes together. Knowing what they did behind your back. I told you it wasn't a lie." Lucas said, laughing as Carla continued to stay silent.

"I love Carla." Peter stated, venom in his eyes.

"Funny way of showing it when you were on top of Tina last night."

"That's a load of rubbish and you know it," Peter confirmed, watching as Carla's eyes locked onto his. "I promise you, he's lying through his teeth. It's you that I love, Car."

A tear cascaded down her cheek, her lip quivering, "I love you."

"Be quiet." Lucas raised his voice.

"I've had enough of this!" Peter couldn't bare seeing Carla's terrified expression anymore, he rushed over to Carla and went to grab her and that's when he realised it was a bad idea.

Before Peter got the chance to reach her, Lucas grabbed the whiskey bottle that Carla had earlier and smashed it against the edge of the table. The glass bottle was now in half, creating dangerous shards that glistened, perfect to be used as a lethal weapon.

He pointed it at them all, causing Peter to retreat and stand back.

"This is why you need to follow my orders!" Lucas yelled.

"Please, Lucas. Let me go." Carla cried.

"You won't get hurt if you do as I say. I love you, Carla." He said.

"You have a funny way of showing it."

"See, I even love that sharp tongue."

"I'm begging you, Lucas. She's had so much heartbreak in her life. Just let her be happy. So many men have controlled her-…"

"I don't need to hear a sob story." He cut him off.

"If you really loved her, you'd let her go."

"She's mine," Lucas whispered, his lip twitching. "If I can't have her, no one will."

"That's not how it works-…"

"She is mine! My possession! She has been since Devon. I won't let any man have her. It's either me…or no one."

Carla let out a sob, trying to steady her shallow breaths.

Unbeknownst to them, Tina was stood behind Peter as she watched it all unfold, terror in her eyes. She needed to do something, anything. She had to prove that she didn't want this to happen.

Then her mind clicked. Her phone was in the pocket of her jeans. As the two men continued to talk, she discreetly pulled it out and dialled the police.

Unfortunately, this didn't work out.

"Oi!" Lucas yelled, his eyes landing on the younger brunette. In a moment of haste, he frantically tossed Carla to the side to try and grab Tina's phone. But the desk was in front of them and Carla's body flung into it, the side of her head whacking the edge as she fell onto the floor. Blood poured from her temple, her eyes closed and skin paling by the second.

Lucas ran over to Tina, the broken bottle firmly in his grip. Without thinking, he let out all his frustrations over the woman and implanted the sharp glass deeply into her chest. He then ran over to the factory doors to lock it back up, not even casting Tina a second glance as she fell into the filling cabinet, her breaths coming out irregular and shallow. She grabbed her chest, blood oozing profusely and coating her hands. She slipped down, wheezing.

"Oh my god." Peter cried, rushing to Carla and shaking her. "Carla, open your eyes. Can you hear me? Carla!"

He cried as he saw the small puddle of blood around her head and then he looked over at Tina, his whole body coming to a halt.

"Tina! Can you hear me?" He shuffled over to the other woman, thinking the worst when her complexion was as white as a ghost and the wheezing had stopped. "No…."

"Get off her." Lucas returned, standing in the office doorway.

"Look what you've done! I think Tina is dead." Peter shouted, breathlessly.

"Is Carla okay? Lucas noticed her unconscious frame near the desk.

Peter went back over to Carla, nudging her once more and sobbing when she wasn't responsive.

"They need to go to hospital. If you ever cared about them, then please. She can't die."

"I didn't mean for Carla to get hurt." Lucas murmured, staring straight ahead and not even blinking. He was so still, as if he was in a state of shock.

Peter had bigger issues on his mind to notice Lucas's persona, and he continued to try and wake Carla.

"Carla! Come on, you've survived worse than this." He leaned down and kissed her head before turning his head at Tina once again.

"Tina! Don't play games, Tina. Wake up." Peter exhaled, the state of her was highly concerning and he knew he had to check for a pulse but it didn't look good.

He grabbed Tina's wrist, pausing. After a few seconds, he cried and pulled her hand to his mouth.

"She's dead! You've killed her! Tina's dead!" He yelled.

"I didn't kill her. I didn't kill her. I didn't kill her." Lucas kept repeating, his eyes not have moved at all.

"Call an ambulance, Lucas!" Peter ordered. "Lucas!"

"Mm." Carla groaned, her eyes fluttering open as she squinted in pain.

"Car! Baby, I'm here. It's okay, we're going to get you help." Peter reassured her, putting her head on his lap and stroking it, being careful not to go near her wound that was still heavily bleeding.

She looked confused, her eyes closing and opening again and she tried to remember what had happened.

Once her eyes caught Lucas though, it all came flooding back and she found herself panting and looking up at Peter, awaiting an explanation.

"You hit your head on the desk but we're going to get you out. Try and stay calm."

"Peter…" she croaked, tears filling up.

"I'm here, and everything will be okay because I'm going to protect you."

"I didn't kill her." Lucas mumbled again.

"Wha-…" Carla's eyes drifted to Tina's lifeless form. A harsh sob escaped her lips as she moved her head.

The sudden movement caused excruciating pain through her head, so she grabbed it. But that was the least of her issues. She could tell Tina was dead. There was so much blood.

"Oh my god." She panted.

"It's okay-…"

"It's not okay! She's…dead."

As Carla pulled her hand away from her head, she saw the blood on her hand and panicked once more.

"Police!" Everyone's heads moved into the direction of the door when they heard forceful bashing against the glass. "It's the police! Let us in. We know what's happened."

Peter's eyes fell to Tina's phone that had been tossed in the struggle earlier. And despite Lucas' best efforts, her phone call was successful and the police had been listening to the whole thing.

"The police." Lucas looked defeated, it was only when he looked at Carla and realised that she was awake, that his normal persona came back and he rushed over to the woman, desperate to grab her.

Peter whacked his hand out of her way, he vowed to not let that man anywhere near Carla again. He was ready to sacrifice anything for her.

Lucas moved back, feeling weaker than he did before. It seemed like all his actions were catching up with his brain now and when he saw Tina's cold corpse, he broke down in a fit of tears.

Before they had a moment to comprehend what was happening, the police had managed to break down the door near the delivery area and armed police came storming in.

"Please, help my girlfriend! I think she's got a concussion." Peter begged, signalling to Carla who was feeling drowsy once more as the blood seeped onto Peter's trousers.

"Arms up!" They all followed their orders, the police grabbing Lucas and handcuffing him. The irish man continued to sob but his attempts to look guilty was fruitless and he was dragged out.

The ambulance crew came rushing over to the women, although they knew there was no saving Tina.

"Can you tell me your name, love?"

"C-Carla." She muttered, shakily as she leaned against Peter.

"I'm so proud of you, baby." Peter whispered to her, as the paramedics were busy going through their bag of equipment. "Don't scare me like that again."

"I love you." She said, weakly, squeezing his hand.

Now Lucas and Tina were out of their lives for good, maybe this time they'd be able to have a good future.

The end.


And that's Mind Games complete. I hope you enjoyed this story as much as I did writing it. It's been an idea of mine for years now and even if I've had some criticism, I am happy with it despite it being challenging at times. If you have any more ideas which you'd like to be written by me, you could dm me on twitter @/carlafanx or just leave a review. Thank you for the love.