Them

By TS Arthur

It only takes a moment…

 

 

Marnie Brown has been exploring the great outdoors with the local youth group for the last week. Lonely without the company of Jake, her best (and only) friend, she's eager to make up after their latest argument. 

 

Her uneventful trip takes a sinister turn when sirens wake her, causing panic throughout the camp. As they return home, the sights Marnie sees leave her with more questions than answers— including who the adults mean when they talk about 'them'.

 

But there's one thing she wants to know more than anything else - where's Jake?

 

• Language: English
• Publisher: TS Arthur
• Release date: Oct 31, 2023
• ISBN: 9798223631545

Book preview

Chapter One

Marnie Brown sighed as she sat, arms embracing her knees. The burning sun faded in the distant sky, its heat waning as it made its slow descent behind the hill. She lingered, delaying as long as possible before she returned to her tent hidden in the tree line.

Her best friend, Jake, had bailed at the last minute. He’d made it clear that sharing a tent now he knew how she felt about him would be ‘beyond awkward,’ and he’d left her to endure the wild outdoors alone.

Except she wasn't really alone. Not physically, at least. The trip had been organised by the local youth club, so there were about ten others nearby; not that it felt that way to Marnie. She was alone. Again. Friends, other than Jake, weren’t something Marnie was well-acquainted with.

Designed to help inner-city teenagers get out in the wild and back into nature, her mother had refused to let Marnie miss out. At first, Marnie had been excited. It was a chance to do something different, far away from the grime and grey tower blocks of her hometown.

As one of the oldest in the group at fifteen—nearly sixteen as she kept telling everyone—she’d hoped there would be chances to capitalise on being alone with Jake. But as the day had come closer, her relationship with her supposed best friend became... complex. He said he needed time to process her confession, and Marnie couldn’t get past the rejection.

So, she sat alone on a hillside, watching the sunset and dreaming of a simpler world. A chill began to set in, but still she sat there as the last slivers of sunlight vanished, and the final battle between day and night hung in the air. Even when darkness had taken control, she didn't move.

Marnie, sweetie, we're having hot chocolate by the fire if you want a mug? said Sheila.

A kind woman who helped run the youth club, Sheila was a much-needed parent figure to most of the children she cared for. Her guidance was a positive influence in a world filled with rejection and pain. Marnie was one of the luckier ones, but she soaked up Sheila’s support all the same.

Okay. I’ll be there in a minute. Marnie rose, taking one last glance at the collection of trees and the river below before returning to the group.

Oh, look. Moping Marnie is back, came a spiteful voice from behind her.

Marnie didn’t need to look to recognise who it belonged to. It was the voice of a girl who relished tormenting her at every opportunity. Rachel had set her sights on Jake back in primary school, trying to mark him out as her ‘property.’ Not one to be told what to do, Jake had pushed the new friendship aside in favour of his long-standing connection with Marnie.

Ever since then, Rachel had been a pain in Marnie’s backside, and it only got worse the older they got. Whether it was because of how attractive Jake had become or because Marnie outshone Rachel in academic pursuits too, she couldn’t be certain. All Marnie knew was that Rachel hated her with a passion erring on obsessive.

Maybe that was why Jake had turned her down. Maybe he preferred the popular blonde with the toxic personality to the mousy nerd who clung to him like a social lifeline.

Now, now, Rachel. We'll have no name-calling, thank you very much, scolded Sheila as she handed Marnie her steaming mug.

Her smile of sympathy did little to alleviate Marnie’s loneliness, but she tried to return the gesture to show her thanks. Glancing around, she took a seat at the edge of the campfire. She had no desire to be part of the evening's discussion. They were due to return home tomorrow, and whilst she'd miss the sounds of wildlife and being able to see the stars at night, Marnie wouldn't miss being in close quarters with Rachel and her crew.

Finishing her drink in silence, Marnie used a finger to sweep up the powdered sludge which lingered at the bottom of the plastic cup. She washed her dinner things in the makeshift sink before retreating to her tent. Curled up in her threadbare, borrowed sleeping bag, her thoughts returned to the sunsets she had enjoyed. Imagining the golden glow and its warmth on