by L. J. Sealey
Lacy looked confused. “You deal with Jake? Shouldn’t we call the police?”
“Not yet. I’ll have a word with him first.” The cops were the last thing he needed. “But you can’t stay on your own.”
“I’m fine. Look, I don’t know what’s gotten into him but I’m sure everything will be fine.”
Michael stood up from the table. “Evo. Can I talk to you for a minute?” He caught Lacy’s frown out of the corner of his eye before Evo pushed himself from the counter and followed him out of the room.
“Sure.”
Outside on the porch, Michael explained to Evo what had happened with Nina and the strange looking demon that had left her body that was now possessing Jake. Evo nodded his head, understanding the predicament that Michael was now facing.
“I need you to go to my apartment. Use my laptop to find out anything you can about this thing, but be as quick as you can because I’m gonna need you to watch the hospital. If Jake’s been there once, it’s only a matter of time until he returns.”
Evo nodded. “What about you?”
“I’m going to stay here. She’s not safe right now.”
After Michael had given him directions, Evo started down the path towards his SUV. “I’ll call you as soon as I have any info,” he shouted over his shoulder.
No sooner had he gone than Lacy opened the front door. “Hey. What’s going on? Where’s your friend going?”
Michael checked the street, walked back into the house and shut the door. Lacy watched as he clicked her dead bolts into place.
“Evo’s headed back to my place. He’ll be staying with me until he’s found somewhere more suitable. Listen, I think I should stay here tonight. I can crash on the sofa again, it’s no problem. You shouldn’t be alone, at least. . . not until we know what’s going on with that guy, Jake.”
She didn’t know what to say for a moment. She stood in her narrow hallway contemplating telling him to leave as politely as she could. Lacy hadn’t had a man in her house since Simon, who was the only man she’d allowed to stay over until last night, so it felt strange. She winced as she thought of that disaster of a relationship, if she could have called it that. Thankfully, she’d escaped that one unharmed. Well, except for her pride.
She hesitated; never one to need babysitting, especially from someone she hardly knew. But as she looked into his kind blue eyes she saw nothing but genuine concern and the truth was, she trusted him. Even though they’d only known each other a short time, she felt comfortable with him; a little too comfortable if she was honest. She thought about what he’d said. She was still shaken after what had happened, Jake had really scared her. Would it really be that bad having some company? “Ok,” she finally said, “but just for tonight.”
He nodded.
They ordered take-out: Italian. After the day Lacy’d had she wasn’t in the mood to cook. She’d enjoyed her Chicken Caesar Salad, washed down with some left-over wine, while Michael had eaten his lobster linguine. Afterwards, he’d even helped clean up then made coffee insisting that Lacy had a cup, but she’d refused in favor of another large glass of wine from an unopened bottle of Pinot she’d found in the fridge. She knew it was probably best to go for the coffee but she’d had a crappy day and had convinced herself that she deserved a little drink.
After food, they’d sat in front of the TV and watched TERMINATOR 2, which she’d already seen but Michael had insisted. She’d nearly nodded off a few times only to remind herself that she wasn’t at home alone and wine induced slumber wasn’t at all pretty. She was glad she’d agreed for Michael to stay. He’d proven to be good company and just what she’d needed to take her mind of everything that’d happened.
After the movie had finished, they’d talked. Michael had cleverly avoided a lot of Lacy’s questions about family and where he’d lived before and she’d begun to wonder if maybe he was running from something. Either that or he was just very private. She didn’t feel it necessary to keep pressing him so again, the conversation had mostly been about her. It couldn’t have been interesting to him at all, especially as she’d left out a lot of the personal stuff about her mother and her sister so her life must have sounded really bland.
She managed to change the subject of how boring her life was by asking about Evo. It was interesting hearing Michael talk about his friend. He clearly had a lot of affection for the guy as it was the most she’d seen him smile all night. Michael had told her how they’d met: Evo had been attacked in an alley and Michael had been passing by when he’d heard the guy yelling. He told her how he’d managed to scare off the attacker and how it had sparked a real friendship between the two of them.
She watched him intently as he spoke, noticing things she hadn’t before like how straight his nose was, the little creases that appeared at the sides of his eyes when he smiled, and how his deep blond hair looked a little sun-kissed towards the front. She suddenly felt an urge to run her fingers along his strong jaw to see how soft his stubble was.
She inhaled deeply and mentally slapped herself for letting her mind wander like it had, thankful that he was completely unaware that she was totally checking him out while he spoke.
Michael continued to explain how Evo had become a hit with the ladies during their time together and there were numerous stories about when the two of them would go out for drinks to let off steam. Michael would end up leaving Evo at the club after the guy’s many trips to the private bathroom facilities−Jesus. What types of clubs were those−with a different woman on his arm every time which, apparently, didn’t interest Michael. His friend sounded like a first class whore to her but Michael seemed very fond of him and who was she to judge, just because she may as well have taken a vow of celibacy?
“And what about you? Hasn’t there been a special someone in your life?” Lacy asked, wondering why she felt a little nervous of his answer.
She saw that her question was unexpected. “No. No one special.” He answered quickly but she wondered if that were completely true.
She narrowed her eyes and cocked her head to the side. “Oh, come on. You’re a fairly handsome guy. You must have had women in your life.”
He smiled at that. “Only fairly?”
She laughed and suddenly felt a little shy. He was more than fairly, but she decided to keep that to herself right now.
“There was someone I was with a while back; a colleague at my previous job−Jessica, her name was. It was just casual, nothing serious, although, I think she wanted it to be. We dated for a short time but I didn’t see it going anywhere. He shrugged. “That’s it really.”
Lacy could see he wasn’t comfortable talking about it and suspected there was more to it than what he’d told her but she knew it was time to drop the subject.
She was yawning just about every two minutes now. She tried to focus on the clock on the mantle, only then realising she’d overdone it with the wine, again. Shit! Surely she was on her way to convincing Michael she had a drink problem. She squinted and managed to make out the small black hands on the clock face. It looked like it was just after midnight.
“I think I’m going to go to bed.” Thank God she’d managed to speak. She swung her legs off the sofa and stood up all too quickly. After a little wobble she moved forward and went straight down to the floor after stepping on the wine bottle−which was now empty−and losing her balance, landing in a heap on the carpet. Oh, God. Kill me now!
“Woah! Lacy, are you ok?” She felt Michael’s hand on her arm as she tried to right herself. Jeez, could her day get any worse? “Here, come on. Let me help you.” She could hear the amusement in his voice as he hooked his arms under her shoulders.
“I’m such a. . . I’m so sorry,” she said as Michael helped her to her feet. She knew when she’d opened the second bottle that she was making a mistake but couldn’t seem to stop; another sign that she was feeling way too comfortable in Michael’s company.
“Where’s your room?”
“
It’s just down the end of the hall on the right.” She started to giggle and stumbled again but Michael held on to her. Her head was cloudy and as she walked towards her bedroom she tried her best to walk straight but it was no use. She was well and truly drunk.
They got to her room and Michael was about to open the door when she stopped him. She wasn’t ready to let a man in there yet, even if he was just helping her stand up straight. “I’m fine now. Honestly, I can manage from here.”
Michael faced her. “Are you sure? ‘Coz you’re still wobbling all over the place you know.” He was clearly amused by her poor effort to remain upright. As she looked up at him his face came into focus all of a sudden. His pale blue eyes were so clear to her that even through her drunken haze she felt drawn to them. Her eyes shifted to his full lips and she frowned as she was suddenly filled with an urge to have her own mouth on them.
What was she thinking?
Whether it was the wine or just the fact that she was feeling so emotional right now she wasn’t sure. But she knew that in the morning she was going to regret what she was about to do.
She placed her hand on the side of his face. “Has anyone ever told you how good looking you are?”
“Okaaay. I think we should get you to−”
She cut him off as she leaned up and quickly pressed her lips to his. She closed her eyes, feeling the softness of him, and then suddenly they were gone.
“Whoa!” Michael’s voice had her snapping her eyes back open as he held her away from him by her shoulders. He didn’t look angry, in fact, it was hard to tell what his expression was saying, but regret hit Lacy as quickly as the urge to kiss him had.
“I’m so sorry. I didn’t mean. . . ” Oh, God. There it was: the sharp sting of humiliation. There was no going back now. She’d made a complete fool of herself and probably ruined any friendship she’d started to have with him. Her head began to pound and she reached up and placed her hand over her eyes with a groan. How could she ever look at him again? She felt his thumbs stroking her shoulders.
“Hey. It’s ok,” he said, and she thought she heard him sigh. She forced herself to look at him with an innocent forgive-me smile. He looked serious for a moment but then he smiled back at her. “You need to sleep.”
She felt him place his hand on the small of her back then he guided her into her room. She didn’t stop him this time. If her room was untidy, then so what. Nothing could make her feel more ashamed than what just happened. Yes, she was still wobbly, but she tried with great determination to get over to her bed without embarrassing herself any further.
She managed it, thank God. By which point her eyes felt heavy. She climbed on her bed, lay back on her pillows and closed her eyes. She felt her shoes being removed and realised through her foggy, drunken state that Michael was talking to her. “. . . bad head in the morning.”
“Hmm. . . ” was all she could manage while she snuggled into the comforter that had been placed over her. Then she remembered who was in the room with her. “Michael.”
There was nothing but silence. Was he still there? Her head was too heavy to look for him so she said it anyway just in case. “Thank you for staying with me.”
The bedroom door closing quietly was the last thing she remembered before passing out.
* * *
Lacy came awake to voices down the hall. . .
“. . . just wondering how your night went that’s all.” Evo. She recognised his deep voice straight away.
“Well, don’t bother. I slept on the sofa which, as you knew damn well, was always my intention. So you can get anything else out of your head. And keep it down. She’s still sleeping. . . ” Michael’s voice trailed off into the living room.
She groaned and turned onto her side, eyeing the digital alarm clock on the sideboard next to her bed that read 07:12. It wasn’t the time she wanted to be awake on a Saturday morning, especially after throwing back nearly two bottles of wine. She managed to sit up and she swung her legs off the side of the bed.
Woah! Too fast. . .
An almighty pain shot through her left temple as she sat up. The effects of last night were definitely in full swing: Her mouth was bone dry, her teeth fuzzy and her limbs were refusing to cooperate. Oh, nooo!. . . and then there was the realisation of what had happened when Michael had helped her to her bedroom last night. Dear God, she’d actually kissed him.
“Shit!” she cursed out loud. How could she? The guy was clearly concerned for her safety, and kind enough to look out for her, and she goes and pulls something like that. Well at least she’d probably solved the problem of him staying another night. She felt sure he wouldn’t offer again through fear of a repeat performance. The last thing he’d want is to be jumped on again by a sad, lonely woman with no self respect and, apparently, now a drink problem.
She heard the muted sounds of laughter coming from the kitchen. The thought of facing Michael made her stomach lurch, or was it her monster hangover? Whatever, she wasn’t going anywhere until she’d gotten out of last night’s clothes and showered.
Dressed in a pair of navy sweat pants and a baggy, white Pearl Jam ‘98’ tour T-Shirt, Lacy towel dried her hair in front of the vanity mirror. At least she looked more alive now. She knew she couldn’t put off seeing Michael any longer. Hiding away, as much as that thought appealed to her, was not an option. She stepped into her slippers, heaved a sigh and forced herself to leave the safety of her bedroom.
Michael and Evo’s conversation cut off the moment she walked into the kitchen which didn’t make her feel awkward at all. She looked over at the dining table where Michael was looking straight at her. He smiled and she instantly felt the blood rush to her cheeks. She mentally cursed herself for being so pathetic. Get a grip, woman. She berated herself as she smiled back at him acting like there was nothing wrong even though she wanted to bolt straight back out of the door. What was making the situation worse was the fact that while she’d showered, she’d surprised herself by thinking about their kiss last night and how much she’d enjoyed it, however brief. It wasn’t helping at all.
“How’re you feeling?” Michael asked, snapping her out of her inner turmoil.
“You mean aside from the fact that I feel like I’ve slept with a sponge in my mouth? Pretty awful, if I’m honest.” She heard Evo snigger and threw him a look that told him it wasn’t appreciated.
Michael frowned at him too. “There’s fresh coffee in the pot, and I found some bacon in the fridge so there’s some left in the pan. Hope you don’t mind.”
“No. Of course not. . . Thanks.” She poured herself some coffee and passed on the bacon, not willing to risk eating anything just yet, then joined the men at the table and sat quietly.
She noticed that Evo was wearing the same clothes as he’d had on last night and wondered if perhaps he’d had one of his busy nights like the ones Michael had told her about. He’d obviously been out all night.
She hadn’t realised she’d been staring until he looked up at her and his mouth curled up at one side.
Oh no. Had Michael told him about last night?
Michael broke the awkward silence, thank God. “What are your plans for today Lacy?”
She thought for a moment. Usually, Saturdays were what she classed as lazy days. She normally had a pile of assignments to mark over the weekend, and this one was certainly no different, but she always left them till Sunday in favor of trash TV and PJs. Not today. Present company had put a stop to that happening. She thought about the marking, but couldn’t face it.
“I’m not sure.” She said, at a loss. She hadn’t really thought about doing anything except visiting Nina later on. She was glad, in a way, that she had company as the thought of spending time alone with just her thoughts, the ones that had been so unexpectedly dragged back to the surface again, made her palms sweaty. “How about you two?”
She watched Evo’s brow lift as he turned to look at his friend. Michael heaved a sigh. “I still don’t think it’s a
good idea for you to be alone until we figure this thing out.”
“I’ll be fine,” she quickly protested. She wasn’t fully on board with the babysitting. “He was probably just high or something.”
“We can’t know for sure so whatever you decide to do today, you’ll have me and Evo for company.” His smile looked almost apologetic.
She was about to object when her phone rang. She shot up from the table, forgetting what happened when she’d done that earlier in the bedroom, and winced at the pain in her head as she grabbed the handset from its cradle. “Hello.” she said, before a female voice spoke on the other end of the line.
“Hello. Miss Holloway?”
“Yes, speaking.” She opened a drawer in front of her and retrieved some Advil.
“Hi. My name is Claire Roper, I’m calling from Union Memorial Hospital about Nina Murphy.” In an instant, Lacy’s stomach sank. She’d asked for them to call her if there was any news but at this very moment she didn’t know if she wanted to hear it. She braced herself for bad news.
“Hello. Are you still there?” the woman asked after Lacy had momentarily gone silent.
“Uh. . . Yes. I’m here.”
“We thought you’d like to know that the doctors will be bringing Nina out of her coma this afternoon. She’s had a good night and the swelling has reduced significantly, although she’s still not out of the woods yet. We’ll have to monitor her closely and see how she responds. The next twenty four hours are going to be critical and we won’t know the full extent of the damage to her brain, if any, until she comes around from the sedation.”
Lacy’s vision went blurry as her eyes filled up with tears. She knew there was a long way to go and not to expect too much given the extent of Nina’s injuries but still. . . there was new hope.
