Chapter Six

Ten Lives

Jeffrey tapped along to the music as he waited at the traffic lights. It had barely been ten minutes since they had left and the five students in the back were starting to get comfortable. Zach was conversing with Jade, both of them laughing at naughty jokes with a friendly gleam in their eyes. It was good to see Zach still able to have a good time. Jeffrey had heard the rumours around campus of the trouble he was having regarding Bobby Yates. Paige had managed to strike up a conversation with the timid Lacey and the usually shy girl seemed to enjoy talking about her time at that charity shop she worked at. Naomi sat quietly in the back of the minibus and Jeffrey didn't fail to see her slowly tapping her knee nervously. He imagined she was trying to ignore past memories.

The light flicked on green and Jeffrey pushed gently down on the accelerator pedal. The minibus gave a lurch and started forward, continuing down King's Drive. To the left, one of the various green hills around Eastbourne rose up while to the right stood a series of middle income houses.

He narrowed his eyes as he heard a faint roar come through the open window. It grew louder and louder until he saw the source of the noise swing around the corner ahead of him, forcing him to slow down.

The blue Volkswagen passed by Jeffrey's minibus in a blur, clearly going above the speed limit. The conversation in the minibus grew quiet as they watched two more cars speed past, both of them jockeying for position. After a moment another car sped past, followed by one more. Making sure no other cars were going to speed around the corner, Jeffrey sped up a little bit.

"I thought the police dealt with the street racers," Zach said to no-one in particular as he glanced out the back window to see the group of cars disappear behind them.

"They had," Jeffrey replied gruffly. In truth, he hated seeing that the street racers were back. He had encountered a race once before and had gotten a vicious scrape on the side of his bus that had cost the company a small fortune to repair. Usually they would have been driving in the evening so Jeffrey figured they had decided to go for the morning to change things up a bit – which was an absolutely stupid decision. Many people would be heading out to work at this time.

"Stupid people," Naomi's voice was surprising as she spat the words out. She would usually remain calm-faced around college but her face was twisted in anger as she glared at the window. No… Not just anger. Jeffrey could see there was something else – sadness, perhaps? He never did know exactly what happened to Naomi all those years ago to cause that injury that she refused to talk about to anyone.

"Maybe they'll do us a favour and crash," Zach said with a grin that instantly froze on his face as Paige gave him a sharp glare and Jade punched him on the shoulder. "Ow!"

"Zach!" Paige said, motioning towards Naomi with her eyes. "Perhaps think before you speak?" Jeffrey glanced to Naomi in the rear-view mirror but it seemed the girl didn't even hear Zach's ill-timed quip. She was just staring out the window with that strange expression.

"Sorry…" Zach rubbed his hair sheepishly. "Um…" He looked desperately around in an attempt to change the subject. "So, Jade, when are the Miracle Skyhawks going to perform next?"

"End of the week," Jade immediately answered, as eager to change the subject as Zach. "We're going to be practising hard this week. I might miss a couple of lessons here and there but…" She just trailed off and shrugged.

"You ought to plan around college – not through it," Paige said with a slight disapproving tone in her voice.

"Singing is my life, Paige. College is my hobby, not my purpose," Jade said matter-of-factly. "I'd be interested in the music class but Sussex Downs is all pianos this and violins that and choirs over here. There isn't any room for rock."

"Have you thought about any other skills, Jade?" Jeffrey asked from his position at the front of the minibus. He was always eager to join a conversation; it made him seem more like a person and not just a robot who drove people from point A to point B.

"No," Jade shook her head. "I have no room for any other skills."

"What about extra curriculum?" Paige asked and she looked to Lacey. "Lacey goes out and helps the people of Eastbourne. Can't you do something like that?"

Jade had to laugh. "Me? Working charity? Look… I'm a rebel and I always will be. I can't sit down with my please and thank you's and help people out like that. Besides, I'm certainly not Lacey," Jade grinned. "You can practically see the halo over her head."

Directly behind Jeffrey, he couldn't see the girl's response but could be almost certain that she had gone red. Watching the road, he came up to another set of traffic lights that led onto one of the many old bridges that crossed the railway track that cut Eastbourne in two. The bridges were all nearly a hundred years old and the aged tracks were still regularly used today – not for civilian use, though, but for carrying freight throughout the entire South-West of England.

As he came to a stop at the red light, Jeffrey found his gaze focusing on a red Suzuki Celerio – though he couldn't be sure of why he found the car so intriguing. Perhaps it was the fact there were two young ladies in the front, perhaps it was the fact one of them had bright red hair that drew his eye, or perhaps it was the fact he saw a familiar blue Volkswagen speeding up behind them as they started to turn.

Sensing an accident waiting to happen, Jeffrey let his horn blare out. The sudden noise not only made the students behind him jump in surprise but made the red Suzuki break hard. The female driver looked towards the minibus while the red-haired passenger thrust her finger behind them – motioning at the blue Volkswagen that evidently hadn't expected them to brake so hard. For a moment, Jeffrey felt a pit in his stomach – in his hope of preventing a crash, had he just made one? – but that feeling quickly turned to relief as the blue Volkswagen let out a squeal of rubber against tarmac as it swung past the red Suzuki's left side – hitting the curb and bouncing on the pavement.

Then that relief turned into one of coldness that gripped at Jeffrey's chest as the blue Volkswagen smashed bumper-first into the double-pronged sign that jutted out from the ground – a petrol-station sign that indicated the services given. The sign bent but didn't give completely and the Volkswagen used it almost like an unintended ramp. With two wheels on the sign the Volkswagen took to the air towards Jeffrey's minibus.

For an oddly serene moment, it looked as if the Volkswagen could fly. Then gravity took a hold and it plummeted diagonally towards the minibus. Jeffrey could see the terrified expression of the small man within with unexpected clarity…

…and then the front corner of the bumper tore through the glass and metal of the minibus like a hot knife through butter. It was a glancing blow – not enough to stop the Volkswagen's momentum but certainly more than enough for the bumper to smash Jeffrey's face with enough force to shatter the entire front of his skull, knock nearly all of his teeth out, and force an eyeball half out of its socket; and for the final nail in the coffin, the force snapped the top three vertebrae of his spine, forcing his head sideways with a deafening SNAP.

Daniel Gecko had been sat shivering under the bridge when he had heard the crash – the shattering of glass, the tearing of metal – and then heard and felt another crash that actually seemed to shake the old railway bridge. A shower of brick-dust fell on top of him as he looked up at the old bricks of the bridge.

There were rings of black around Daniel's eyes, a trophy of yet another sleepless night. He could still hear those pleading screams of the man he had killed. No… not the man… he had a name, he was a human being. "Lou," Daniel muttered to himself as he carefully pulled himself out from under the jacket he had been using as a cover. "Lou, Lou, Lou." He pulled his arms tight around himself and looked around the dark and dreary bridge.

He was scared – not scared of the police finding out he had murdered someone. It was unlikely they could trace it back to him and even if they did then in a way Daniel would be happy. They'd take care of him, feed him, clothe him, keep him warm. No, he was scared because of how easy it had all been. It wasn't the first time Daniel had killed… no, not by a long shot. However, it had been the first time while he was suffering from withdrawal and the worst part of it all was once Lou's frenzied cries had died down… Daniel had stopped feeling the urges, at least for a while.

It was as if Lou's homemade drugs weren't what Daniel was hooked on – but rather killing – taking a man's life.

"LOU!" Daniel cried out through gritted teeth, shaking his head. He repeated the name almost ritualistically as he slowly walked back and forth from under the bridge. He could faintly hear some shouting from above; maybe screaming, maybe sobbing, but he was more focused on trying to clear his head, on trying to concentrate.

Down here by the heavy oak tracks of the railway, Daniel found it the closest place he could call home, if there were truly such a word. Certainly it was a place he could be sure he wouldn't be bothered. The other homeless wouldn't dare sleep under the railway bridge. It wasn't that it was noisy but rather that it was dangerous. The big freight trains would nearly scrape the sides of the bridge and it wouldn't be the first time a human body had been snuffed out like a fly and found days later by an unfortunate soul walking their dog.

Daniel didn't care for danger. He had dug through the packed mud to create a little bit of an incline where he could sit inside and that was all he needed. It protected him from the rain and frankly that was enough. When he needed to eat, he could go to the shelters. If he needed a fix, he could find the appropriate person. With a start, Daniel suddenly realised that he was going to have to find a new dealer, one that was alive and well and not dead. "Lou," Daniel shook his head and made his way out from under the bridge where a fresh hail of dust fell on top of him.

He looked up.

He saw the bottom of some kind of blue car, still humming with energy. It was nearly half-hanging off the bridge and had crashed through the low wall that was meant to protect traffic from going off the side.

Daniel deduced that it must have been that crash he heard. Silly people in their metal cars. It was so much safer and so much nicer to walk. Who needed those steel beasts of death? Death… "Lou!" Daniel snapped his teeth with a satisfying noise. He couldn't think about that. Perhaps he ought to head up onto the bridge and see what happened? No, no, people would look at him, laugh at him, people would-

He didn't even see the car fall. All he felt was a massive amount of pain and then nothing at all.

Jay groaned in pain as he sat upside down in his overturned Volkswagen. He could feel the blood rushing to his head and the tight grip of his seat-belt. He wasn't too sure of what had just happened. He had been winning, he knew that much. He was ahead of the pack and was doing well. Then he was about to swerve around that red car but then they stopped... He hit that sign, went through the air, crashing into that minibus. Jay could remember hitting the road and skidding in a full circle before crashing front first into the low bridge wall.

He had thought he had come to a stop but he must have fallen. Doing a quick mental check Jay figured that he was doing okay, considering. He could feel a cut on his forehead, could see the blood droplets dripping against the shattered glass underneath him. His left wrist ached a bit but didn't seem to be broken.

With a little trouble he managed to brace one hand against the top of the car, trying to push through the shattered glass as best as he could. With his other hand he popped his seat-belt out and managed to awkwardly roll onto his belly, the glass crunching underneath him. The engine had completely cut off and it was strangely silent as Jay crawled out through the broken front window. As he got out into the open he slowly stood up and held a hand to his bleeding head.

"Ha…" He looked at his blue Volkswagen and felt a pang of pain in his heart. The car was his baby, his lover and now it was like this, but maybe it was still recoverable? Jay slowly circled his Volkswagen, assessing the damage. The blue exterior was certainly crumpled and scraped but it seemed mostly intact. He had been thinking of maybe getting a new colour so perhaps this was a kind of blessing in disguise?

When he got to the other side of the Volkswagen it took Jay a moment to realise what he was looking at. A bright splash of red against the mud, an amputated hand sticking out from under the roof, looking almost comedic. Jay found his lips turned up in a smile. He wasn't sure why he found that sight funny – perhaps it was the shock of the crash?

The finger twitched.

The smile was instantly wiped off as Jay jolted backwards, all humour lost on him. A hand – a hand! That meant he hit someone, that meant he killed someone, that meant he would be arrested! He couldn't, he couldn't go to prison, he couldn't do that to his sister, he'd be a target, he'd be beaten. His mind wrapping in on itself Jay's heel hit the heavy oak beam of the train track. He fell backwards and felt an intense pain in his ankle followed by a sharp pain on the back of his head as he hit the track.

Lying back-first on the track, Jay found tears coming to his eyes. He wasn't sure why – was it the pain or was it the fact that he was going to go to prison? He wouldn't be able to run that would just make the punishment worse. No… No, he'd have to argue that it was an accident – it was an accident, after all.

Jay could feel his heart-beat in his chest, growing louder and louder. It almost felt like it was shaking the tracks underneath him…

Jay's eyes widened in realisation.

He turned to look down the track and saw the great steel brick of a freight train chugging its way toward him. Jay felt a warmth down his trouser leg as the tears came unbidden down his cheeks, mixing with a trail of snot running down from his nose. He didn't want it like this! This wasn't… This wasn't what it was supposed to be like! I'm not ready! No, no, not like this, I'm not—

The train hit, splitting Jay's belly like a rotten grape, splashing bright red all over the track.

Inside the minibus, Lacey was in a state of shock. She had watched the Volkswagen tear its way through the front and kill Jeffrey. It was strange to her, thinking that someone she had known was dead right in front of her. She could feel a strange pulsing in her legs but otherwise could hear a small commotion going on behind her and smell the acrid black smoke that had started coming out from the engine – it must have been caught by the Volkswagen.

"Naomi! Naomi, breathe slowly for me!"

At the familiar voice, Lacey turned in her seat to look at the back of the bus, where Paige was crouching in front of Naomi. The usually stoic girl was wide-eyed and completely pale. Her breaths were coming out quick and sharp – almost choking her.

"I-I-I…" Naomi's lips quivered as she stared at Paige. Then her eyes moved down to the front of the minibus, looking past Lacey at the wreck in front of her – at the dead body of the bus driver. She took in a breath and her breathing got quicker. Paige quickly moved so she was face-to-face with Naomi, preventing her from looking at the damage.

"Shit, shit, shit!" Jade's voice cut clear through the minibus. She was shaking and pale, looking at the front of the bus. It was clear she had never experienced something like this before. "What-What do we do?"

From beside Jade, Zach stood up to point at the front of the minibus. "The engine's on fire!" He said, his voice shaking slightly. Despite the fact he must have been horrified at what had just happened, Zach was trying his best to keep a calm expression on his face.

Lacey turned to look at the front of the bus to see that Zach was correct. The black smoke had grown thicker and she could see faint flickers of orange and yellow from inside the smog. Seeing this, Lacey immediately came to her senses and went to pull herself from her seat in an effort to move. Instead a heavy pain shot through her legs and Lacey let out an involuntarily scream, drawing the attention of her fellow students. She looked down to her legs and found tears coming to her eyes. "I can't…" Lacey said, her voice high with pain and fear. "I can't move my legs"

Paige looked to Lacey and immediately stood up straight. "We need to get off!" Paige looked to Jade firmly. "Jade, help Lacey – but be careful! We don't know what kind of danger there is," She whipped her head of brown hair to look at Zach. "Zach, I need you to help me with Naomi." Lacey squirmed around in her seat to look at Paige as she spoke, seeking some kind of comfort. But Paige had turned to look at Naomi again. "C'mon girl, you gotta move for us? Can you do that?"

Naomi's fingers were tight on her legs – her knuckles completely white. She only squeezed harder at Paige's words, forcing the girl to frown.

"Stop that – you'll only hurt yourself." Paige went to grab Naomi's hand to force it away from squeezing but Naomi suddenly reacted, pushing Paige away.

"Get off!" Naomi stood up, breathing hard, her chest rising and falling. She looked around with wild eyes and pushed her way past Jade to make it to the front of the minibus, frantically grabbing the handle of the door. For a brief moment Lacey forgot the pain in her legs as she watched Naomi completely lose all composure. "Come on! Come on! FUCKING MOVE!" Hearing Naomi's voice like that scared Lacey even more. If this was doing this to someone like Naomi…

When the door suddenly opened, Naomi hadn't been expecting it and she nearly went head over heels had a firm pair of hands not steadied her. "Move away," a woman with a head of bright red-hair commanded with a voice that brooked no argument as she helped Naomi down out of the bus. Naomi needed no encouragement as she limped away from the minibus. As soon as Naomi was gone, the strange woman got into the bus proper. She looked to Jade, who seemed to still be shocked at Naomi's outburst.

"Go on," The woman said firmly. "I'll help her. Go with the other girl."

"O-Okay," Jade nodded and hopped out of the minibus, leaving the strange woman to gesture at Zach to do the same. As Zach left the minibus, the red-haired woman crouched next to Lacey and put a comforting hand on her shoulder. "I'm going to help you, okay?"

Lacey just nodded shakily. She watched Paige step over and look down at the woman with a firm expression. "How can I help?"

The woman seemed to look at Paige for a moment as if surprised a student had offered to help but nevertheless nodded. "I'm going to need you to push the driver's seat forward while I hold onto her," the red-haired woman said before looking to the quivering Lacey. "What's your name?"

"L-Lacey," Lacey squeaked. The pain in her legs was only increasing.

"I'm Ruby, okay? Now, Lacey, this is going to hurt – but we don't have a choice. That fire is going to cause problems soon and we cannot be here when it happens." The woman named Ruby wrapped one arm around Lacey's chest while using the other to keep her shoulders steady. Ruby looked at Paige. "Ready? On the count of three, okay?"

"O-Okay," Lacey said, closing her eyes. She hated pain – even the smallest pinprick – and didn't want to think on how much this was going to hurt.

"One…" Ruby said and Lacey let her body loosen up, ready to tense on the count of three – only Paige pushed forward on the seat before the count of three and Lacey let out a primal scream as the driver's seat pushed away from her legs. The tears splashed against her lap as Ruby clutched onto her to stop her from thrashing around.

"It's okay, it's okay, Lacey." Ruby tried to soothe Lacey and Lacey was biting her bottom lip hard enough to draw blood, sobbing. This was too much – too much! Why did this have to happen, why today, why now?!

"Oh my…" Paige's voice was extremely worried. "We've got a problem."

A new voice came to Lacey's ears but she didn't see who it belonged to. "Ruby, the engine…"

"I know," Ruby responded to the feminine voice. "Go on, go to the other kids. They'll need support."

"I-"

"Tanzi, go!" Ruby insisted before suddenly cursing. "Shit…"

"W-What is it?" Lacey asked timidly. She was too scared to open her eyes and look at the damage of her legs. The acrid smoke stung at her nose and invaded her eyes even while they were shut.

"It's nothing," Ruby assured, though Lacey wasn't convinced. She opened her eyes.

Part of the frame from underneath the driver's seat had come loose and had impaled Lacey's leg just above her ankle, effectively pinning her to the seat. Lacey immediately felt her heart jump in her chest and started to panic.

"We just need to…" The red-haired Ruby started to speak but Paige suddenly spoke, surprisingly calm.

"We can't. We need to get out."

"We're not leaving anyone behind." Ruby voice was firm but Lacey was too busy staring down at her leg to look up at her would-be saviour. "Try pulling it."

"It's not going to budge-"

"PULL IT!" Ruby roared with ferociousness that made Paige stand back. She was overcome by a fit of coughing as the smoke got into her lungs. "Please…"

Two warm hands came to both of Lacey's cheeks and Lacey glanced up to find herself looking into the eyes of Paige. Those eyes were filled with something… was it regret? "I'm sorry, Lacey…" Paige apologised and Lacey instantly knew what was happening.

"P-Paige… D-Don't leave me…" Lacey cried but Paige quickly let go of her cheeks and practically shoved Ruby, dragging her out of the minibus. Lacey painfully twisted in her seat, ignoring the feeling in her leg. "PAIGE! DON'T LEAVE ME!" She had never shouted like that in her life. "PAIGE!" With her back to the front of the minibus, Lacey didn't even see the flames as the engine erupted with a bone-rattling BOOM!

Panting with exertion and fear, Zach stood next to Naomi and Jade, watching the two strange woman helping Paige with Lacey. He had watched the woman with black hair come over and then watched as Paige dove out of the minibus with Ruby in tow.

When the minibus erupted in on itself as the engine exploded, Zach watched the fireball burst up into the air in a mixture of white, orange, and yellow. His gaze enraptured by the combination of colours he failed to notice the hood of the minibus soaring through the air. It was only when he felt a surprisingly sharp pain in his stomach that he looked down.

When he fell back and saw that his legs and waist were still standing, Zach almost found himself laughing as he felt the blackness overtake him. He had a moment to see his intestines spilling out of the ragged hole of his split stomach before his eyes rolled into the back of his head.

Seeing Zach cut in half was almost like a nightmare – unreal. Naomi felt the blood splash against her face and her already shaky frame took a step backwards. Her mind was still reeling from the car crash and the memories that shot through her.

Barely a second after the explosion and Zach's death, the bridge gave an almighty shake that knocked Naomi off balance. She fell to her rear in shock and saw that Jade, Paige, and the two strangers had also tumbled to the floor. A great spider-web of cracks had originated over the tarmac from the explosion and the old bridge didn't take long before it capsized in on itself. Naomi saw the others sliding first before she felt herself falling.

She frantically turned to her belly and tried to grip the edge of tarmac that wasn't moving but her nails only caught the sharp edges and tore right off, causing Naomi to cry out in pain as she slid down into the rift the bridge had made as it deposited the humans standing upon it onto the rails below. Naomi felt herself twist in the air and caught sight of the bottom of that blue Volkswagen before her head bounced against the side of the steel underside with a crack.

Jade felt groggy as she opened her eyes. She must have lost consciousness for only a moment. The explosion had shattered the old bridge and had knocked them all flying. She saw a strange shape in front of her as she opened her eyes and Jade experimentally reached out, a slow throbbing in her stomach increasing in tempo.

When she realised that it was a jagged piece of pipe that must have been inside the bridge that had impaled her through the stomach, Jade felt sick though her stomach refused to send the vomit like it should. Jade desperately gripped the pipe and made the mistake of trying to move. This only sent waves of fresh pain through her body and she screamed out loud. She watched the blood spread out over her Miracle Skyhawk's t-shirt and Jade found herself thinking of her band, thinking of her dreams and that pain of never achieving her dreams hurt more than anything else.

With one final gasp, Jade tried to draw in a breath but found her lungs refusing to draw in that precious air. Like a fish out of water Jade gulped and gulped but nothing happened. She shook and writhed and then grew still, the pipe jutting out of her like an austere flag of death.

With her back crying out in protest, Ruby pushed herself to her feet. She had landed hard on her back and could feel the old pain sparking up. She looked around desperately for the students and saw Naomi splayed out beside the upturned Volkswagen, now covered in concrete and tarmac rubble. Jade was motionless, her scared expression frozen on her face with the pipe jutting out of her stomach. Ruby felt sick as she walked forward, catching sight of Tanzi on her knees, breathing heavily but looking otherwise unharmed. Ruby looked desperately around for the other girl – the one Lacey had called Paige.

A strange croaking noise directed Ruby to her. Paige was pinned under a large slab of heavy tarmac that pushed down on her chest and forced the breath out of her. Ruby saw Paige's eyes widen as they made eye contact and she opened her mouth as if she wanted to say something.

"Hang on!" Ruby cried out, bounding over and gripping the tarmac with her fingers. "I'll get you-" Ruby grunted as she pulled hard, her injured spine screaming at her to stop. "…Out!" The tarmac moved only slightly but otherwise did nothing other than cut Ruby's fingertips. Paige's eyes turned bloodshot as she tried fruitlessly to push from underneath. "No, no, no!" Ruby cried out, her muscles failing her. "COME ON!"

Another pair of hands gripped the tarmac and Ruby saw with relief that Tanzi had managed to make herself walk over. The strength of the three women proved enough as they lifted the tarmac off and threw it to the side. Paige immediately sucked in the precious air, clutching her chest in pain. Finally she got to her feet and clapped Ruby on the shoulder. "Th-Thank you…" As she swayed, Ruby and Tanzi quickly grabbed an arm each.

During the commotion of saving Paige, the three survivors hadn't realised that the tracks were shaking and it was only when they heard the blaring of the freight train's horns did they realise too late and waited for the end.

All but Ruby.

With all the remaining strength she could muster, Ruby shoved both Paige and Tanzi, sending them stumbling away from the tracks. Ruby locked eyes with Tanzi and smiled widely. Tanzi looked horrified but Ruby was just happy they were safe. Then Ruby closed her eyes and allowed herself to see her first and only love – watching Sabrina Holland until the very end.

Seeing the train tear through the woman as if she were nothing horrified Paige. But she had been smiling… how can you do that, how can you smile in the face of death? With help from the woman Ruby had called Tanzi, the two of them stood up in time to see the train crash into the wreckage of the bridge. There was a great clunking sound as the force derailed the wheels of the front carriage of the heavy train.

The carriages behind the front whipped around and Paige gripped Tanzi's hand tightly as the freight carriage smashed into the both of them, crushing them against the wall of the railway trench.

When Tanzi came to, she found her shoulders being squeezed tightly by Ruby. She wasn't sure what was happening but Tanzi found her heart was beating rapidly and found tears were dripping down her cheeks. Ruby was saying something – no, shouting something – but Tanzi couldn't make out the words.

She was trying to wrap her head around what she had just experienced… no, it wasn't just her… the others, she had been them, she had seen what happened… the deaths… Tanzi suddenly shook and hugged herself tightly, disregarding the fact they were stopped at a red light. Nine times she had died… nine times she had felt that darkness, felt that coldness, felt-

"TANZI!" With a start Tanzi suddenly heard Ruby's voice, cutting through her thoughts. "Please," Ruby breathed heavily. For Ruby, she had seen a version of this expression before and she would never forget that look in her eyes. "Tanzi, please tell me… tell me you didn't see anything. Please…"

"I-I…" Tanzi felt her stomach knot itself tightly. "I died… Ruby, I just… I just died…"