Hunted

Eighteen: In Search of Sleep

"No, it's okay. Just give me a few minutes". Charlotte nodded, standing awkwardly as Harris returned to the small adjacent bathroom. She bit her lip, wishing she could get this over with, before her nerve faltered. Matt would kill her if he knew what she was up to. In fact she hoped he never found out.

"So you've ventured into my lair - homey isn't it?" The croaking, mirthful voice surprised Charlotte, and she half jumped, peering through the gloom to detect its source. Cautiously she moved forward, locating Freddie in the bed, his mischievous dark eyes glinting in the half-light of the room. It had been a long time since she had seen that devilish glint in Matt's eyes. She sighed at the thought.

Freddie was covered to his waist with a heavy duvet, but his chest was bare, revealing his ribs and, rather unsettlingly, a network of black veins travelling under his skin like a huge spider web, radiating out from a black mass that could only be his heart. Charlotte let her sight linger on the marks too long, unable to tear her eyes away from them. They were both grotesque and strangely beautiful.

"Don't worry, they don't always look like this," he replied hoarsely. "It's just Harris' magic at work". Charlotte nodded slowly, tearing her eyes from the marks and focusing on his worn face.

"I didn't mean to disturb you," she said with a gentle smile.

"You didn't. I'm pretty useless at this stage," he frowned. "The process makes me weak and I'll be asleep soon enough, but after that I'll feel fine again, for a while at least".

"Do you have much more to go?" she asked, glancing back at the network of black marks across his bare chest, unable to ignore them.

"Harris reckons about two or three more... sessions, I guess," he grinned brightly. His dimples were the same as Matt's. She scarcely remembered the last time she had seen Matt smile.

"That's great," Charlotte smiled.

"Sit down," Freddie said, nodding in the direction of a nearby chair. "Just eh... yeah throw the clothes on the floor". Charlotte grinned, placing his discarded clothes in a neat pile beside his locker, which was covered in old soccer stickers, and pulled the chair towards the bed.

"How's Matt's mood today?" Freddie asked, looking at her with a smirk on his lips. Freddie was well able to deal with his brother's irritated state. In fact, he was very good at knowing just what to say to sour Matt's mood even further. He delighted in tormenting his brother, which was usually a very funny conversation to listen to.

"Not great, he's not really there today. He's so tired he doesn't even notice you speaking to him," she replied, shaking his head.

"Yeah, he's always tired lately," Freddie agreed. "Though you were too".

"I still am," she laughed. "But I'm getting there, slowly".

"I can't really wrap my head around it... Matt's like a different person since he came back. What you must have gone through... but he won't talk about it," Freddie exhaled uneasily, a slightly pained expression passing over his features.

"He's a different person here than he was on the island too... He's... unhappy?" she frowned, wondering if that was the right word.

"He's worried. He gets like this when he's worried," Freddie replied. "He was sort of like this before he left. He was afraid he wouldn't make it back... you know with Harris and all... but this is different".

"What's worrying him though?" Charlotte asked. "Are they looking for us? Do they suspect him?"

"I don't really know. He contacts our father a bit, you know, to keep up the pretence but... I don't know, maybe it's all falling apart," he shrugged, wincing slightly. "I think Daphne could be giving him a bit of a hard time too. She is a little stuck in her ways - I think you scare her a bit".