A Proscriptive Relationship

by Jordan Lynde

  “The Hall of Fame, right?”

  “Yeah,” I whispered, finally making it to the top of the stairs. “That’s where I first saw Shawn.”

  It took about thirty seconds to reach the door to the room with all the photos of fighters from the gang, the Hall of Fame. Jeremy pressed his ear to the door, and I copied him. It was silent in the room. Suddenly there was a cough, and I instantly recognized it as Casey’s. I reached for the door and yanked it open, ignoring Jeremy’s protests. Stumbling in the dark room, I ran my hands over the wall until I found the light switch. I flipped it on.

  When the room filled with light, Casey was the first thing I noticed. She was sitting on the other side of the room, her knees pulled up to her chest. She squinted for a moment but when she saw me her eyes widened with hope. Jeremy strode into the room, quickly surveying it. Casey pushed herself to her feet, but as soon as she took one step towards me she winced and stumbled forward. Jeremy caught her before I could even move.

  “What’s wrong?” I heard him ask her.

  “My ankle,” she responded, taking her weight off her right ankle. “I think I sprained it.”

  “Where’s Mr. Heywood?” I asked, only slightly relieved.

  Casey’s eyes drifted downwards, towards the front left of the room. The door was blocking my vision so I quickly stepped around it, dropping my eyes to the floor. My heart skipped a beat and a gasp left my mouth when I focused in on Mr. Heywood’s limp body. I staggered a few feet forwards and slumped to my knees, hovering over him. His eyes were shut, and it almost looked like he was sleeping peacefully. Except for the blood that covered half of his face.

  “Mr. Heywood?” I squeaked, bringing my head closer to him. “Hey. Wake up.”

  “What happened?” I heard Jeremy ask Casey.

  I put my ear to his mouth, and felt relief wash over me when I felt his breath against it. At least he was still breathing.

  Casey cleared her throat. “Someone—I don’t know who—attacked Mr. Heywood while he was untying me. He hit him over the head with a shovel,” Casey continued, her voice cracking on the word shovel. “I heard a crack . . .”

  For a second it felt like I couldn’t breathe. My chest constricted painfully as I gazed at Mr. Heywood’s peaceful face. That was how Shawn had managed to strike him down? Using a cheap attack like that? Anger boiled up inside of me. Shawn was definitely going to pay.

  I gently brushed Mr. Heywood’s hair away from his forehead, my breath catching when I caught sight of a long, deep, bloody gash running along from his eyebrow to his ear. Tears filled my eyes again and my heart clenched painfully. This was my fault.

  “Mr. Heywood,” I whispered, brushing my fingers along his jaw. “Please wake up. Can you hear me?”

  There wasn’t even the slightest response.

  “Do you know where Shawn is right now?” Jeremy questioned Casey. “When was the last time you saw him?”

  “Who’s Shawn?”

  “The man who hit Mr. Heywood with a shovel,” I responded for Jeremy, turning to look at Casey.

  Casey chewed her lip. “Oh . . . I haven’t seen him for maybe the past ten minutes? He dumped Mr. Heywood and me in here after taking us from the fair. He told me not to leave, and if I did we would both be, um, harmed.”

  Jeremy furrowed his eyebrows. “And he hasn’t been back since? Was he with anyone else?”

  “There were two other men,” Casey told him.

  Only two? That thought made me feel a bit more relieved. That meant if something went on it’d be three on two. I smiled wryly. Well, more like three on one. I didn’t know how much help I could be to Jeremy. Jeremy set Casey against the wall before coming towards me. He crouched down beside me, taking in Mr. Heywood’s condition. He inhaled sharply, brushing his hand lightly against the gash.

  “That needs medical attention,” he commented. He turned to me. “Holly, take this.”

  He handed me a pocketknife and I quickly took it from him, my eyes wide. “Jeremy . . .”

  “It’s for your protection,” Jeremy told me. “We should try to get out right now while Shawn’s not around. The longer we stick around, the higher the chance of him coming back to find us. Right now Chris is a major liability. We have to go.”

  “You’re not supposed to move someone with a head injury,” I commented in a quiet voice, already knowing we had no other choice.

  Jeremy smiled at me. “It’s better than leaving him here to die, right?”

  My mouth suddenly went dry, and I could only nod.

  “You help Casey, I’ll carry Chris.”

  Without needing to be told twice I pushed myself off the ground and hurried towards Casey. She gave me the “you have a lot of explaining to do” look as I took her arm and wrapped it around my shoulder. After a moment of adjusting ourselves so we were both comfortable, I turned around and found Jeremy carrying Mr. Heywood princess-style.

  “What?” he snapped when he caught me staring.

  I blushed slightly, rearranging my expression into a blank one. “Um, nothing . . . Prince Charming.”

  Casey chuckled as Jeremy’s face heated up. He ignored my jibe and gestured with his head for me to follow him out of the room. The main room was still jet-black, and we all treaded with caution.

  “Jeremy?”

  “Yeah?”

  “Can you handle the stairs?” I asked him, feeling nervous all of a sudden.

  There was a moment of silence before Jeremy responded. “Yeah, I can hold onto the railing.” A nerve-wracking few minutes passed before I heard Jeremy sigh in relief, signaling he had made it to the bottom of the staircase without any problems. Casey and I followed easily.

  Like a shot, I realized that the front door wasn’t open anymore. Jeremy must have noticed too, because I heard him curse quietly.

  It didn’t surprise me when I tried the door and it was locked. Before either of us could speak, light filled the main room. I squinted for a minute while my eyes adjusted, and when they did I locked gazes with Shawn, who was standing on the balcony.

  “Holly! You made it.”

  “Yeah,” I forced out between my clenched teeth.

  Casey tugged gently on the back of my shirt. “Holly, help me to the door.” I helped Casey lean against the locked door. She put her back to it, staring up at Shawn. I glanced over my shoulder to see Jeremy still holding Mr. Heywood, a scowl on his face.

  “Poor Chris is in bad shape, huh?”

  “That’s because you’re a coward who uses cheap shots to knock people down,” I shot back at him angrily.

  “Holly,” Jeremy said in a quiet, warning tone.

  Shawn laughed, leaning over the railing of the balcony. “Cowardice? Holly, love, I was just using the moment to my advantage.”

  There was a pair of footsteps to my right and I looked over and saw a tall, burly man coming towards me. Another pair of footfalls to my left indicated there was someone also coming from that direction. The burly man to my right stopped a good hundred yards away. I watched him warily for a second before glancing at the other man, who had also paused. This man was just as tall as the man to my right, but not as muscled.

  My mind was racing. We needed more time! I needed to think of a way that would allow Jeremy, the only one strong enough, to carry Mr. Heywood to his car and to help get Casey there as well. If we could just take out the two men on the ground level, I was positive I could deal with Shawn. I had escaped him once before, hadn’t I?

  A small amount of hopelessness began to rise in me, but I forcefully pushed it away. I had to think positively.

  “Listen,” Shawn finally spoke up. “I know your friend Lance said he was going to call the police in an hour. It’s been about forty-five minutes since then, so that means we have fifteen minutes to finish this before the cops show.”

  “How did you know?” I gasped in surprise.

  Shawn grinned at me. “I have spies, duh. Shall we get down to business then?”

  The sudden
pounding of feet made my heart leap into my chest. I turned right and saw the burly man running straight at me. Throwing my head to the other side I noticed the other man was advancing as well. Jeremy placed Mr. Heywood on the ground as quickly and gently as possible, and intercepted the man from my left. My hand clenched the pocketknife I was still holding.

  “Now, I don’t want to hurt you,” the burly man told me as he stopped a few feet away from me. “I just need to bring you up to Shawn.”

  “No,” I stated stubbornly.

  “Then I do it by force.”

  A startled gasp escaped my lips as the man instantly threw a punch towards my face. I ducked just in time, staggering backwards. Without hesitating the man threw another punch, which I managed to avoid again. I struggled with the pocketknife in my hand, trying to get it open. No matter how much I tried though, it wouldn’t unlatch. Figures Jeremy would give me a pocketknife I couldn’t open.

  “You’re pretty good at evading, aren’t you?” the burly man commented, looking amused and impressed.

  I dodged another of his blows. “I’ve had practice.”

  “Unfortunately for you, I don’t think you’re paying enough attention.”

  Before I knew what happened, I was flat on my back. I stared in horror at the burly man hovering over me, a smirk on his face. When I looked to my left I realized I had tipped over Mr. Heywood’s leg. The burly man put a foot on my chest, and put pressure on it. I gasped in surprise, trying to pull his foot off.

  “Should I knock her out, Shawn?”

  “Whatever works,” Shawn called down. “Just don’t kill her.”

  “Sure,” the burly man said with a grin. “Night-night, Holly.”

  The man began to press harder into my chest and I looked to my side to see Casey staring at me in terror. With my left hand I fumbled with the pocketknife again, wincing from the pressure on my chest. It felt like I was suffocating. My left hand clenched uncontrollably as the burly man suddenly pressed into me even harder. A slight pain ran through my finger and my finger rubbed against something cool and sharp. The pocketknife had unlatched!

  I brought up my hand and slashed at the foot on me. The burly man cried out in surprise and pain, pulling away. I quickly sent my leg straight up, right into his crotch. For a horrifying second I thought he was going to fall on top of me, but a hand flashed before my eyes, making contact with his face. From the force of the punch, the burly man stumbled backwards, landing on the ground, unconscious.

  Jeremy grinned down at me. “And Chris thought he was the only one who could do a one-hit K.O.”

  “Ten bucks says I can too,” a calm voice commented, sounding amused.

  I looked beyond Jeremy, and straight at Shawn. When I realized what he was holding, I screamed in panic. I scrambled to my feet, never taking my eyes off Shawn’s gun, or where he was pointing it. Straight at Jeremy.

  “Wait!” I screamed, taking a few steps towards him.

  Shawn spared me one glance. “I’m an impatient person.”

  I didn’t even have time to blink before Shawn squeezed the trigger. A loud cracking noise filled the room and my mouth fell open in horror as I twirled around to see Jeremy, his face frozen in shock. Then, just as I reached out to grab him, he fell over backwards.

  “One-shot K.O.,” Shawn stated simply.

  LESSON thirty-seven

  It felt like time had stopped. The scene of his body tumbling to the ground played over and over again in my head. Seeing someone shot was a lot different than hearing about it later. Shawn hummed to himself, stroking his pistol with his thumb. Casey let out a horrified croak, her eyes glued to Jeremy’s motionless body.

  Numbness spread through me. It felt like someone had poured a bucket of ice water over me, and through my veins. Shawn shot Jeremy.

  “Jeremy?” I called, staring at his motionless body. “Jeremy, get up!”

  No response.

  My chest tightened. “Jeremy, please! Please!” I pleaded pathetically. “Get up! Don’t die!”

  “Holly,” Casey started in a quiet voice, sounding like she was crying. “He could still be alive if the bullet didn’t go through his heart or head . . .”

  Casey had a point. He was shot in the stomach. Lance had survived two bullets. Jeremy had to be able to survive one! But he was still unconscious and hurt. There was still the chance he could die.

  I looked from Shawn, to Jeremy, and back to Shawn again, helplessness welling up in me. Everyone was being harmed, and it was my fault. Jeremy didn’t even do anything! Neither did Casey! Anger filled me and I clenched my fist, taking a menacing step towards Shawn. “You—”

  “You bastard.”

  My eyes shot open, and I twirled around to see Mr. Heywood pushing himself off the ground.

  “Mr. Heywood!” I cried in relief.

  He didn’t even look at me. His eyes were focused on Shawn, anger blazing in them. Shawn smirked back, cocking his head to the side.

  “You’re alive?”

  “And you’re about to be dead,” Mr. Heywood growled, starting towards Shawn. He took about three steps, then let out a groan, and started to fall. I quickly stepped forward to catch him, grasping onto his shoulders. His weight almost knocked me over, and I struggled to keep him upright. Shawn chuckled from where he was, shaking his head.

  “Chris, you can’t even stand. What makes you think you’re going to kill me?”

  Mr. Heywood shoved me away from him. “I can stand just fine.”

  “Mr. Heywood—” I protested, staggering back a few steps. He ignored me, swaying on his feet for a few seconds.

  “That was a pretty cheap shot earlier,” he commented, sarcasm dripping in his voice. “Are you really that pathetic? It’s a wonder how you became gang leader.”

  Shawn leered at him. “Regretting leaving?”

  “As if,” he spat angrily.

  Shawn shrugged his shoulders. “You and Jeremy were the greatest assets. You still could be. Jeremy . . .” Shawn glanced at Jeremy’s body on the ground. “Well, he could have been.”

  “I’m not coming back,” Mr. Heywood declared stubbornly. “Especially not under the likes of you.”

  “Likes of me?” Shawn responded with a bark of laughter. “Where do you get off acting so high and mighty?”

  Mr. Heywood didn’t respond, making Shawn scowl in irritation. “You really piss me off.”

  “Good.”

  “Mr. Heywood!” I warned quietly, staring at him with wide eyes. Was he trying to provoke Shawn?

  Shawn’s eyes slid over to me, and I saw Mr. Heywood’s shoulders tense. I glared at Shawn as viciously as I could. He laughed at my expression.

  “Oh, someone is angry,” he taunted.

  “I’m—”

  “Holly don’t talk to him,” Mr. Heywood ordered flatly.

  I looked towards Mr. Heywood in surprise. He still had his back to me. Why didn’t he want me talking to Shawn?

  Shawn turned his attention back to Mr. Heywood, “Don’t tell her what to do,” Shawn demanded.

  Mr. Heywood laughed once. “What? Are you her father?”

  “Nope,” Shawn chuckled, “but maybe her boyfriend soon.” Mr. Heywood’s fist clenched. “Isn’t it curious?” Shawn continued. “How much she looks like my old Holly?”

  “She isn’t your old Holly.”

  “Nor is she yours.”

  “She’s got nothing to do with this,” Mr. Heywood snapped.

  Shawn raised an eyebrow. “Oh? Is she a sore spot? Because you couldn’t protect her, like you promised?”

  “I—”

  “Come to think of it, she gave you two chances, right?” Shawn stated, tapping his chin with his finger. “And you failed both times?”

  Mr. Heywood’s shoulders sagged. “That’s . . .”

  “And now it’s going to happen again, huh? You’re going to let the person you care for the most suffer the same fate? There’s nothing you can do about it either.”

  Mr. H
eywood stayed silent. For a moment, the only noise I could hear were Casey’s quiet crying, Mr. Heywood’s heavy breathing, and my own blood pumping in my ears. I was shaking uncontrollably. Not from fear, but from anger. Shawn was rubbing salt in Mr. Heywood’s wounds. He didn’t need to be dredging up the past.

  Shawn snickered. “You’re not that good at keeping your promises, huh? Did you promise this Holly over here the same thing? That you would protect her, just like old Holly?”

  “Mr. Heywood,” I whispered so only he could hear me, clenching my fists. “Don’t let him talk to you like that!”

  Shawn seemed to be irritated with his lack of response. “Keeping silent? Is the guilt too much for you? Knowing that, once again, you’re going to lose Holly to me. Maybe this is what you deserve. For being a liar. For promising that you’ll protect someone and failing. What kind of man are you, Chris? Do you think you’re better than me?” Shawn guffawed. “Oh, isn’t that a thought? Poor Chris. It seems like you’re—”

  A loud slap resounded through the room as my hand made contact with Shawn’s face. He looked at me in surprise as I returned his look with a furious glare. “Chris is more of a man than you could ever wish to be,” I told him through clenched teeth. “The past doesn’t matter. What’s done is done. Mistakes are forgiven. What matters is today. And today, you’re nothing compared to him. He is—”

  Shawn backhanded me without warning. I cried out in surprise, stumbling back a few steps. Mr. Heywood yelled Shawn’s name from behind me angrily and Casey screamed loudly. Before I could react, Shawn shoved me, looking furious.

  “Chris is a better man than me? Chris, who couldn’t protect the other Holly? Chris, who can’t protect anyone? Chris, the selfish bastard who got you tangled up in this mess?”

  “I got myself tangled up!” I shouted at me, shoving him away from me. “Don’t touch me!”

  Shawn quickly grabbed my hair, pulling me closer to him. “Tell me, Holly. Are you blind?”