Mercury Boys

by Chandra Prasad

  Saskia could tell Lila was trying to hold it together. But her friend’s face looked like it was about to cave in on itself. Paige noticed, too.

  “Don’t take it so hard, Lila,” Paige said. “I know you and I didn’t always get along, but hey, at least this summer was entertaining, right?”

  “I feel sorry for you,” Lila spat. “You’re beyond help.”

  “Depraved,” added Saskia.

  “Aw, don’t be bitter, Sask. All we did was make you pay your dues,” Paige said.

  “And toy with you a little bit,” added Sara Beth.

  “Like a cat toys with a mouse.”

  “Until it’s dead.”

  “Or so mangled it wishes it were dead.”

  At that, the sisters dissolved into giggles. Saskia realized she would never know what made them tick. And she didn’t want to know.

  “I have to admit,” Paige said, “Sara Beth and I didn’t think it would go this far. That was a bonus. Just like Lila and Adrienne were bonuses. I wasn’t sure what to do with them at first, but then everything just fell into place like it was meant to be. It was all pretty perfect.”

  “Except for the ending,” said Sara Beth.

  “Yeah. That didn’t work out so well.”

  Saskia blanched. She knew now that Paige and Sara Beth were capable of unbridled cruelty, and that she and Lila would be in grave danger as long as they remained anywhere near the sisters. Paige smiled at her with mock sympathy. “So . . . you’re wondering about the ending, right? Well, you and I just talked about stealing meds from the hospital? That was going to be the grand finale. The coup de grâce. The clincher. I’d talk you into it, and you’d get caught. I’d make sure of that. I’d make sure to implicate your dad, too. He’d get fired. Your whole family would fall apart.”

  “But wait,” said Sara Beth, tapping her finger on her chin in a caricature of profound reflection. “Didn’t that already happen?”

  As an uncontainable rage coursed through her, Saskia lunged forward. She wanted to claw at the sisters’ faces, to rake out their eyes, but Lila held her back.

  “You’re pathetic—both of you,” Lila snarled, struggling to keep a firm grip on Saskia.

  “Say what you want and think what you want,” Paige retorted calmly, “but this whole thing from day one was a war as much as a game. And we won.” She turned toward her sister. “Damn, that’s a good line. Wished I’d used it for one of the Mercury Boys.”

  “Oh well. Missed opportunity,” said Sara Beth. “Those boys don’t need any more lines. It’s the end of the road for them.”

  “I’ll miss them, though,” Paige said wistfully. “Believe it or not, I’ll miss you, too, Saskia. We vibed in our own weird way, don’t you think? We could have been real friends under different circumstances.”

  She was still gazing frankly at Saskia when she reached for one of the candles on the ground. For a few moments, she just stared at it, like the day she came up with the initiation. Saskia thought she’d blow it out—one last bit of drama.

  Instead Paige held the flame to a nearby branch. After a couple of seconds, it caught fire. Bold and bright, the flame grew quickly, dancing from branch to branch, dry leaf to dry leaf. It spread swiftly, climbing stealthily in a dozen directions, toward the trunk, even over the girls’ heads. Smoke and heat filled the air faster than Saskia could react.

  The sisters began to make their way out. One of them—was it Sara Beth or Paige?—kicked Lila in the ribs. Hard. Saskia’s panic ratcheted up as her friend, now winded, choked and coughed. Saskia knew she had to think fast. Lila wasn’t moving. She scrabbled toward her and realized that the fire was creeping close to a section of branches directly behind her friend. If Saskia didn’t reach Lila soon, the whole section would kindle and incinerate them both. But as smoke swirled, Saskia’s eyes watered so much she couldn’t see.

  Her broken fingernails scratching earth, her knees bleeding, she crawled faster in Lila’s direction, remembering suddenly how Lila had saved her in the pool. Her brave friend. She heard Lila coughing, a battle to breathe that might not be won, and scuttled toward the sound, finally finding a wrist, something to grab on to.

  Saskia tugged with all her might. The fire was encroaching, but she persevered, pulling and dragging her friend through a rough veil of branches. And then, suddenly, they were out. Safe—if safe were possible on the Sampras property.

  Catching her breath and blinking away tears and soot, Saskia clambered to her feet and forced Lila to stand, too. Together they fled as the fire engulfed the tree and its secrets, turning everything to ash.

  CHAPTER TWENTY

  They didn’t stop moving until they’d made it to Lila’s car. From there, they could still see the fire. Smoke billowed, rising higher than the roof of the house in huge, distressing plumes. Saskia heard yelling—the parents’ voices. Mrs. Sampras, clearly distraught, shouted to her husband to call 911. Mr. Sampras yelled back, “Keep your distance, goddamnit! It’s coming close to the house!”

  “Where are the girls?!” Mrs. Sampras screamed.

  Saskia and Lila didn’t wait to find out. Lila hadn’t recovered, but she nevertheless started the car with shaking hands.

  They drove like hellions, the wail of fire engines rushing past as they sped in the opposite direction. Lila pressed hard on the gas until the car shook, while Saskia tried to calm down. Her head reeled. She was bruised and scratched. She felt like she’d swallowed a burning torch, but if Lila could concentrate enough to drive, she could manage, too. Still, she couldn’t calm her mind. All she could think about was the mind-boggling extent of the sisters’ trickery.

  “We have to tell Adrienne,” she said.

  “That’s where I’m going,” Lila rasped.

  Neither knew what else to say. The fire had shocked them into silence. In her head, Saskia went over everything the sisters had revealed. There were so many levels to their deceit. She tried to find her way back to the beginning. What was the very first lie Paige had told her?

  She looked at Lila, whose brow was furrowed, whose own arms and hands were scratched from the branches. She wondered if Lila was wondering the same thing.

  When they arrived at Adrienne’s apartment, not a single light was on inside. Nevertheless, Lila parked, and the two girls got out. They went so far as to knock on the front door, though it was clear no one was home.

  “They’ve been gone since early this morning,” someone said. Startled, the girls wheeled around. An older woman, not quite a senior, but not middle-aged, either, appraised them from the foot of the driveway. Her face was concerned. “Are you a friend of the girl? Adrienne?” she asked.

  Saskia nodded.

  “I saw an ambulance here at dawn.”

  Saskia and Lila glanced at each other anxiously.

  “Do you know why?” Lila asked.

  “No, but they took the girl out on a stretcher. She didn’t seem to be moving.”

  “Oh my god,” Saskia heard herself say.

  “Did they take her to Yale New Haven Hospital?” Lila asked.

  “I don’t know. I wish I did, dear. I’m prayin’ for the girl. Seems like a nice kid.”

  Back in the car, Lila turned on the ignition. She touched her grandmother’s dragonfly. Watching her, Saskia got a terrible feeling.

  “Do you think Adrienne . . . did something?” she asked.

  Lila didn’t reply. She just gunned the engine.

  They drove straight to the emergency room, where they were told Adrienne was in the Pediatric Intensive Care Unit. Yale New Haven Hospital was large and confusing, laid out mazelike across several city blocks. Lila cursed the one-way streets as they got back into the car and struggled to find the right building. Finally Saskia spotted it.

  Inside, they hurried to the reception desk in the lobby and inquired about their friend. The woman asked
if they were family.

  Saskia shook her head. “Friends.”

  “Good friends,” Lila added.

  The woman studied the girls with a frown. Saskia realized they must look like hell between the scratches, dirt, and soot. “How old are you?”

  “Sixteen,” Saskia replied, regretting the answer when Lila nudged her with an elbow.

  “I’m sorry, but anyone under eighteen has to be accompanied by an adult.”

  “We really need to see her.”

  The woman seemed to soften a bit. “Your friend’s mother is with her. If she comes out, maybe she’ll agree to escort one of you.”

  “One of us?” Lila asked, coughing.

  “Only two visitors allowed at a time.”

  “Ma’am, please, can you tell us why she’s here? What happened to her?”

  “I’m sorry, but I can’t release that information.”

  Saskia and Lila looked at each other helplessly, and then back at the woman. “Can we wait here, at least?” asked Saskia.

  “As long as you like, but visiting hours end at nine.”

  Resigned, the girls settled in beige vinyl chairs. Saskia stared at the walls, at bad still lifes illuminated by the glow of sconces, at magazines fanned out on the tabletop in front of her. She reached for one blindly and flipped through the pages. She didn’t read a single word.

  Suddenly it occurred to her that her father was here. Not precisely here—but somewhere in the hospital. Knowing that he was nearby should have comforted her a little. Instead, it made her more nervous. What if they happened to run into each other? What would she say? How would she explain when she herself didn’t know what had happened?

  After a while, Lila got up and fetched two cups of water from a cooler in the corner. Saskia thanked her and gulped hers down. She hadn’t realized how parched she was.

  There was nothing left to do but wait, and wait some more. They sat for upward of two hours before Adrienne’s mom swept past suddenly. She moved so fast, they almost missed her. Saskia had met Mrs. Arch once before, but she swore she looked older now. There was more white in her strawberry-blond hair, which hung limply around her tired face.

  “Mrs. Arch,” Lila called, standing up. Saskia got up, too.

  Adrienne’s mother stopped in her tracks and turned around. For a moment she looked distracted, even lost. Then she seemed to realize who they were, and her demeanor changed—for the worse.

  Lila and Saskia approached cautiously.

  “I’m so sorry,” Saskia began. “We heard Adrienne’s here. What happened? Can we help?”

  “Are you Paige?” Mrs. Arch asked bluntly.

  “No, I’m Saskia—and that’s Lila.”

  “Oh yes, we’ve met. Now I remember.”

  From the tone of her voice, it was clear the memory wasn’t a pleasant one. Saskia’s hands went clammy. She wasn’t sure she could take another showdown.

  “We were hoping to see Adrienne,” Lila said. “We’ve been so worried about her.”

  Mrs. Arch didn’t look convinced. “Have you?”

  “Yes. Of course.”

  “Tell me, were you also worried about her the night she came home catatonic, with soaking-wet hair? What were you girls doing to her?”

  Wracked with guilt, Saskia looked down at her feet.

  “How about the time when she threw up a stomach full of pills?”

  “Mrs. Arch, please,” Lila pleaded. “We know we haven’t always done the right thing. But you have to believe us—we care about Adrienne.”

  “Very much,” Saskia added.

  “We just want to be here for her.”

  “I think you’ve done quite enough,” Mrs. Arch sniped.

  Saskia wilted under her glare.

  “And don’t expect sympathy,” she continued. “You’re not innocent. I don’t know what happened, but I think you do.”

  “No, we don’t know,” Lila protested.

  “Spare me! She shares everything with you girls! I hear the name Paige five hundred times a day. You do know. Adrienne couldn’t have done this on her own. She’s an innocent girl. A good girl. This morning I found her with blood coming out of her mouth! Her organs were shutting down. And she was in excruciating pain—did you know that?”

  “No,” Lila whispered.

  “Now she’s in a medical coma,” Mrs. Arch said, almost to herself. “Oh Lord, how could this happen?”

  She put her face in her hands and started to cry. Saskia wanted to comfort her somehow, but didn’t dare try. It was a good thing, because when Mrs. Arch lifted her head, she was even more livid.

  “My daughter wouldn’t take so much as an Advil until she met you girls!”

  Hastily, she opened her purse and fumbled through it. Saskia half thought she’d pull out a gun and aim it at them. Instead, she unearthed the daguerreotype of Emery. “What is this?” she demanded.

  Saskia looked at Lila uncertainly.

  “What is it?” Mrs. Arch repeated, more loudly this time.

  “Emery,” Saskia said.

  “He’s Adrienne’s boyfriend,” Lila added quietly.

  “What? This photograph has to be a hundred years old.”

  More than that, actually.

  “It’s—hard to explain,” said Lila.

  “And what do you mean, ‘boyfriend’? Her boyfriend is Benjamin.”

  Again, Saskia glanced at Lila. She had no idea how to explain, or where to start. Maybe it was better to say nothing. Information on the Mercury Boys Club wouldn’t help Mrs. Arch feel better. It might even make her feel worse. Because no matter how you distilled the story, it ended the same way: Adrienne had behaved recklessly. Maybe she’d tried to kill herself on purpose to be with Emery. Or maybe it had been a terrible accident.

  Either way, she was in a coma because of her involvement in the club. Saskia felt a guilt so acute she wanted to curl up in a fetal position.

  “Adrienne was happy—normal—before she joined that group of yours. But when I found her, she was wearing a ratty old dress. She looked like a witch! Is that what you’re teaching her to be? What are you, Wiccans? Satanists? Members of some other weird cult?” Mrs. Arch’s voice was increasingly frantic. The woman at reception eyed them with concern. She stood up, phone in her hand. Saskia wondered if she’d call security.

  “I don’t know why you picked my daughter to bully,” Mrs. Arch continued. “But I can promise you, when she gets better, you will never see her again!”

  Grabbing Lila’s sleeve, Saskia started to back away. Mrs. Arch glowered at them as they retreated.

  On their way out of the hospital, both girls lost it, crying, leaning on each other. Today felt like the longest day of Saskia’s life, and it wasn’t even over yet.

  “What’s gonna happen?” she whispered when they were back in the Buick.

  Lila shook her head. “Whatever’s going on with Adrienne—it sounds bad. Real bad.”

  She started the engine, but idled on the street. Neither of them knew where to go. “At least it wasn’t Paige who put her in the hospital.”

  Saskia shook her head. “But in a way, it was.”

  In a way, they’d all put her there. They all shared some responsibility in Adrienne’s undoing. But Saskia didn’t say this aloud. She figured Lila already knew.

  CHAPTER TWENTY-ONE

  After that, Saskia didn’t have any more contact with Mrs. Arch. She didn’t dare. It was Benjamin who gave her updates. Saskia couldn’t have anticipated that they would call each other daily, their conversations polite and stilted at first, then more personal. She admitted that she’d quarreled with Adrienne. She admitted feeling guilty and ashamed. When she told him she wished she could do everything over again, only differently, he said she was being too hard on herself. He’d known Adrienne a long time, and she’d always
been high-strung, impulsive, and prone to depression.

  Saskia couldn’t have guessed that she and Benjamin would bond in their common concern and even become friends. Who could have guessed that any of this would happen?

  He visited Adrienne every day, sometimes twice a day. He probably knew as much about Adrienne’s state as Mrs. Arch. It was Benjamin who told Saskia when Adrienne finally opened her eyes and when she squeezed his hand. Days after that, Saskia learned that Adrienne had spoken, only a few words, but the doctors were encouraged. They’d assumed she wouldn’t pull through; they’d even warned Mrs. Arch to expect the worst. But day by day, Adrienne proved them wrong. She was fighting, and she was getting better.

  When Adrienne was finally well enough to leave the hospital and begin treatment that would help with her neurological damage, her mom opted to take her to an out-of-state facility. To take Adrienne “somewhere safer,” Benjamin told Saskia.

  Days passed into weeks. But time didn’t absolve Saskia of her guilt. She and Lila drove by Adrienne’s apartment and saw a “for rent” sign. Once again, all the lights were off inside. There was an eerie stillness about the place, a sense of suspended animation.

  If Adrienne never fully recovered, if she lost her coordination, or faculties, or memory, Saskia knew that she, Lila, Paige, and Sara Beth were to blame. It was a burden that they’d have to carry forever, a burden they deserved. Saskia felt a heaviness in her heart that hadn’t been there before. But she knew that it wasn’t nearly as bad as the price Adrienne had paid.

  School was right around the corner. It was impossible for Saskia to believe classes were about to start. She was in no way ready. The summer had turned her world upside down and inside out. And yet life went on.

  When her bus came on the first day of school, Saskia wondered if she’d ever make peace with all that had happened—Adrienne nearly dying, the sisters’ lies, the end of certain friendships and her relationship with Cornelius. She didn’t know how long it would take to feel normal again, and to some extent, it didn’t matter. If nothing else, Adrienne’s close call had made her more patient—and thankful. When she woke up in the morning, she was grateful just to be there, to have more time.