Mark Morris - Dead Island

Purna looked at her sharply. ‘What do you mean, no?’

‘I mean that whoever is responsible for us being here didn’t simply know that this was going to happen. That’s too much of a coincidence.’

‘Fuck, you’re right,’ said Purna.

‘You mean they did it deliberately?’ muttered Sam. ‘They created it?’

Both girls nodded in unison.

‘But why?’ Sam asked.

Xian Mei shrugged. ‘To use as a weapon? Biological warfare?’

‘Motherfuckers,’ snarled Sam. ‘So why throw us into the mix?’

‘As guinea pigs?’ suggested Purna. ‘To see how immune we really are? They’ve already got our blood, remember, so we’re expendable.’

‘The question is,’ said Xian Mei, ‘is our mysterious caller working for the people who put us here or working against them?’

‘So what we talking about here?’ asked Sam. ‘Rival governments?’

Purna spread her hands. ‘Who knows? Our guy could be appalled by the fact that we’ve been thrown into the lion’s den and is genuinely working in our best interests by trying to get us out, or he could be working for an enemy government who want to develop a vaccine from our blood in case the virus is used against them.’

‘Or maybe he has a different agenda entirely,’ suggested Xian Mei.

‘Whatever the reason, we’re being manipulated,’ said Purna. ‘Moved around like pieces on a chess board.’

‘So what do we do?’ Sam asked. ‘Go along with it?’

Purna looked at Xian Mei, who shrugged. ‘For the time being,’ Purna said. ‘I don’t see that we’ve got much choice.’

They fell silent for a moment, each of them wrapped in their own thoughts. Sinamoi, who had been following the exchange with apparently little comprehension, now said, ‘More coffee?’

All three nodded and he crossed the room to heat more water on the stove.

Making it sound less like a challenge this time, Purna looked at Xian Mei and said, ‘You still haven’t told us the full story. You’re not a hotel receptionist at all, are you?’

Xian Mei sighed. ‘Is it really that obvious?’

‘Blindingly,’ said Purna.

‘OK,’ said Xian Mei. ‘I’ll tell you my story if you tell me yours.’

Purna hesitated a moment, and then said, ‘Agreed.’

While Sinamoi made coffee, Xian Mei told Sam and Purna the truth about her father, and the Special Forces squad, and her ‘special assignment’. When she had finished she looked at Purna. ‘Your turn.’

Purna sighed and sat back, as though wondering how and where to start. Finally she said, ‘When I was sixteen, I joined the Sydney Police Department. Nothing to do with my dad. I just … I guess when I was growing up I didn’t see a whole lot of justice and I wanted to redress the balance. But being young, and female, and half Aborigine, and — I guess — a bit of a looker, I had to put up with a whole lot of shit. Not just sexism and racism — though there was plenty of both, believe me — but people thinking I was dumb or that I couldn’t handle myself, that I was a soft touch.’

She paused, as if reflecting briefly on her past, then she said, ‘So anyway, all that crap … it just made me stronger. I was determined to prove myself, to be just as tough as the guys around me, if not more so. I’d been in the police force … five years, I guess, when I was assigned to this child molestation case. It was a bad one —’ she barked out a harsh laugh — ‘I mean, when are they not, hey? But this one was really bad. Nine victims we knew of, ranging from seven to thirteen. High level of brutality … I won’t go into details. Anyway, we found the perp. The evidence was irrefutable. He was a twenty-two-year-old rich kid called Jeffrey Lucas. Heir to Lucas Industries, a big pharmaceuticals company. On the surface he was a normal kid — privileged background, good school record, no previous, plenty of friends, girlfriend … the works. But underneath —’ she shook her head — ‘a moral vacuum. I mean, seriously. He was worse than any sociopath I’ve ever come across. He knew he was doing wrong, he understood the concept of human pain and terror, but he just didn’t care. He hadn’t killed any of the girls he’d harmed, but he’d brutalized them so badly that … well, let’s just say that if any of them manage to live normal lives after what he did, it will be a major fucking achievement.’

She was breathing hard and made a concerted effort to compose herself before continuing. After ten seconds of silence, punctuated only by the constant buzz and crackle from the radio, she said, ‘And the thing is, if he’d been allowed to continue he would have killed someone eventually. There’s no fucking doubt in my mind about that.’ She waved a hand almost casually. ‘Anyway, we arrested him, built up a rock-solid case against him, brought him to trial … and the bastard got off. Basically he was legally untouchable because of his wealth and connections. Top-drawer lawyer, money changing hands, a few words in the right ear … whatever. Fact is, he got off and he laughed at us. He fucking laughed. He thought it was all just one big game. So I hounded him, followed him everywhere. I got told to lay off. And when I didn’t I was threatened; someone broke into my house and smashed it up. And then one night …’

Her voice tailed off. She licked her lips.

‘One night?’ prompted Sam.

‘I killed him. Shot him right through the eye.’ She looked at Sam almost fiercely. ‘Best fucking thing I’ve ever done.’

‘You caught him in the act?’ asked Sam.

‘No. I followed him. And when he was alone I killed him. Simple as that.’

‘You executed him,’ said Xian Mei.

Purna rounded on her. ‘You criticizing me for that?’

Xian Mei held up her hands. ‘Not at all. I would have done the same thing.’

Purna stared at her intently, as if trying to work out from her expression or the tone of her voice whether she really meant it.

‘So what happened then?’ Sam asked.

‘I lost my job. Everyone knew I’d killed the guy, but I made sure I left no evidence at the scene, so they couldn’t pin it on me. I was drummed out of the force quietly, pushed out the back door. Psychologically unfit for service.’

‘What about the guy’s family?’ asked Sam. ‘Didn’t they come after you?’

‘You know, I think in a way they were relieved. Jeffrey was an embarrassment to them, and a sexual scandal was the last thing they wanted. A family tragedy, though … that brings people together, doesn’t it? Engenders a lot of public sympathy. To them, it was better that Jeffrey was in the ground than in jail.’

‘So when did all this happen?’ Xian Mei asked.

‘Three years ago.’

‘And what have you been doing since?’

Purna pulled a face, as if confronted with a bad smell. ‘I’ve been working as a bodyguard for so-called VIPs in various war zones and politically unstable countries throughout the world.’

‘You make that sound bad,’ said Sam. ‘Like you a hooker or something.’

‘Maybe because that’s how I feel,’ Purna said. ‘I get a lot of work because, to be honest, fat, ugly, wealthy men like showing up with a pretty girl on their arm. It gives them a feeling of status, of power. And most people tend to assume that as well as protecting my clients I’m also fucking them, that it’s a double-whammy deal.’ She shook her head in self-disgust. ‘I make a lot of money, but I don’t mind admitting that what I do makes me feel dirty. I joined the police because I wanted to help those who couldn’t help themselves. But instead I’ve ended up as a servant of the rich and the spoiled … and sometimes that feels to me like Jeffrey Lucas has won, after all.’