by S. M. Bowles
Michael led me back down the hallway toward the front door. There was a wide staircase in the foyer leading to the second floor. We passed what must have been the family room to our left. It was quite spacious and well-appointed with classic yet comfortable looking furniture.
As we reached the upstairs landing I noticed that it was actually a bit of a balcony overlooking the foyer. It was decorated with family photos and there was a round, leather coffee table with two lounging chairs facing one another. Michael took me to the right and down the hallway to a bright and spacious room at the end. The walls were painted in a soft sage and the drapes were sheer and white allowing the natural light from outside to bathe the room in a cozy glow.
On one wall was a row of doors that led to closets, the wall we were facing had two bay windows, side by side with matching seats built into them. The third wall was where the head of the bed had been placed with matching night stands on each side. The bed looked to be a queen size and was made up with linens in varying shades of the sage that colored the walls. I took it all in as Michael stood patiently beside me.
“Do you like it?”
“Very much,” I nodded enthusiastically.
“Good, I’ll have Margaret bring whatever she finds here for you to change into. The bathroom is right outside the door, here on the left.” I came to the doorway and he flipped the lights on.
It was painted similarly to the bedroom but instead of the greenish tint of sage the bathroom hinted at blue. There was a glass shower, a garden tub and a vanity with a vase of dried flowers centered in the middle. There were two pedestal sinks one on each side of the vanity with oval mirrors centered above them. I noticed a separate little enclosure where the toilet must have been and cubby shelves built into the wall with rolls of towels in various sizes and gentle shades of blue.
“Feel free to use anything you like; I’m sure you will find everything you might need and some.” He smiled as he turned to leave, “Elayna,” he stopped in the doorway, “please take your time.” It was not a request and not a command but I understood that I should linger as long as I could and that he needed some time to talk with Margaret alone.
As the door closed behind him I listened to his footfalls fade down the hallway. I looked around and wondered where to begin. The cubbies that held the towels also had an array of natural sponges as well as soaps and lotions and shampoos. I uncapped a bottle of shampoo and took in its scent. It was a little too flowery for my tastes so I put it back and sampled a few more. I ended up selecting a shampoo and a conditioner both in simple white bottles with black letters. They smelled subtly tropical and refreshing. There was a body wash with a similar scent that I brought to the shower with me as well, along with a large, round sponge.
I undressed and folded my clothes as neatly as I could manage and placed them on the floor near the doorway. It took a few minutes to figure out how to work the shower. There were jets on all sides of the enclosure and knobs it seemed for each as well as controls to adjust the flow of water to make it seem anywhere from a downpour to a misty rain. There was one large disc of a shower head hanging over the center and after finding the control for this I turned all the other jets off and adjusted the flow to a moderate stream.
I scrubbed myself from head to toe thoroughly enjoying the sensation of being clean again. The water felt so nice splashing against my skin that I became adventurous and started experimenting with the other jets. I had never had a massage before and could only imagine that with all the water coursing over my back, shoulders and neck that it must be somewhat similar. I sat down thinking to enjoy it for a few minutes. I closed my eyes and rested my head on my knees and before long I was picturing Michael and Margaret and felt as though I was overhearing the conversation they were having in the kitchen.
“Michael,” Margaret began her voice imploring as she studied him. She waited several moments for an explanation. He tried to hold her gaze but he couldn’t bear the way she was looking at him and turned away. “I was under the impression that Elayna was a young woman,” she continued. “Michael, please…”
“I know. I’m sorry I didn’t tell you everything. I didn’t think you would understand. Please don’t imagine the worst; it is not, it has never been, like that.” Michael paused, “I do love her though, I can’t help myself,” he took a deep breath, “not as I am now,” he hung his head regretfully.
“But you have done something to her, haven’t you?” Margaret took a step to where he was sitting and placed her hand over his in a gesture of comfort, “Oh, I know, I know she is not like you, I know she is still…still a girl. But she is very much changed, isn’t she and you are responsible.”
“I had no choice,” his jaw clenched. “You know who she is and what she means to me.”
“But why?” Margaret persisted.
“I couldn’t let her… Victor…" Michael took a deep breath, "Victor tried to kill her," the words rushed out.
“Victor?” Margaret was taken aback at the mention of the name.
“I haven’t had the courage to tell her yet but he…he killed her mother and father. They were close friends of mine and of course Elayna, I told you about her, how she has been,” he sighed, “helping me.”
“Oh, Michael, no, no. Victor…why, why would he do that?” she shook her head confusedly.
“Why else but to hurt me? He has never forgiven me, for telling you and Dad, or for not telling you and Dad, what he had done. I’m not sure which but he blames me for losing you both, he always has.”
“But why her family and why now? Why after all these years? I thought he was done punishing you after…after he changed you.”
“I don’t know Mother,” he shook his head. “Maybe because for the first time since any of this happened I have been happy; resolved anyway to make the most of this…life.”
Michael turned back to Margaret, “He must have been watching me for some time. He knew where I lived, knew my routines and when he came to me Victor said that he knew how I had changed and he praised my…my self-control. He led me to believe that he was ready to change, too, and that he came to me because he wanted my help. It was all a lie though! He wasn’t alone and before I realized what his intentions really were he and another, the two of them; they were just too much for me.”
“I tried to keep Elayna out of my thoughts! I knew I needed to protect her, I couldn’t let Victor know that she was the reason I could live the way I do. I couldn't let him know how important she was to me. I kept hoping that he would be satisfied with whatever he planned to do to me and let her be. He knew I was friends with her family though and it was clear that he intended to take me there. After he… after they …they took so much from me and I was so weak. I couldn’t stop thinking about her and fearing for her. Somehow she must have sensed that there was something wrong and when we got to their house, Elayna called out to me. Victor, oh, God,” Michael hid his face in his hands. “Suddenly Victor seemed to know everything in that instant and he understood how much she meant to me.” Margaret took a seat beside Michael as he continued his explanation.
Somehow I was seeing the events that Michael relayed to Margaret; remembering them and the images were filling my mind. I pictured myself that night slipping from my bed and running to my balcony. I heard myself calling out to Michael and felt like I was reliving the moment as it happened. I remembered opening the balcony doors and finding him there; his look of unimaginable helplessness apologizing to me. As I stepped toward him, though, Victor stepped from behind him. When I screamed Victor struck me so hard I flew backward a number of feet and lost all sense of myself and my surroundings.
When I came to my parents were kneeling beside me and I was lying on our living room floor. We each had our hands and feet bound and Victor was looming over me. Michael was being held by someone directly in front of us.
I watched Victor glance over his shoulder towards him, “What pretty little pets you have,” he said then he circled me and my family
one by one. “This one especially,” he yanked me to my knees with a handful of my hair. “There’s something about this one in particular. She seems to have quite a hold on you Michael.” Victor turned away from Michael and looked at me, “How did you know he was in trouble? I heard you call out to him; can you hear his thoughts?"
I nodded.
“Now that’s interesting. Can you hear mine?”
I shook my head.
Victor quietly reflected on it for a moment then asked, "Have you two ever,” he paused and grinned wickedly, “exchanged?”
Michael was visibly angered by this question. I thought I knew what Victor meant and so I shook my head again.
“My, my, but you are quite a little enigma, now aren't you?" he tilted his head this way and that as he looked me over. "Anyway,” Victor shrugged and turned from me to my mother, “did you know that your friend Michael here, he has been slipping into your daughter’s room for the past, oh, what, half a dozen years or so?”
My mother looked horrified as the tears she fought back began to stream down her cheeks. I was old enough to know what Victor was implying and was appalled by what he was suggesting. I looked to my mother, “No, it’s not true, don’t listen to him! Michael,” I immediately regretted using his first name, “Michael tell them that it’s not true! You are my friend. I have been helping you…Helping you to be strong.”
There was something I desperately wanted to say but I couldn’t find the words to express it. It was terribly important that my parents did not think badly of Michael. They had the same horror-struck expression, though, as they looked from Victor to his friend to Michael. Michael hung his head in bitter acknowledgement of Victor’s words and did not deny his proclamation. “You’re a monster!” I angrily spat at him.
Victor laughed, “You’re absolutely right! And so is my brother,” my parents eyes followed Victor as he moved from us and stood beside Michael, “and so is Gavin here,” he motioned to the man holding Michael. “We’re all monsters aren’t we? She’s got quite a bit of spunk hasn’t she brother? Is that why you love her so? Tell me, is this,” Victor turned his attention back to me and roughly took my chin and turned my face so he could look directly into my eyes, “the one that convinced you that you could live the way you do? Is she the one who ties you to your,” I felt Victor sifting through my thoughts, “sanctity?” He chuckled, “Do you even though what that means?” He turned back to Michael, “I wonder what it would do to you if I took this lovely little lady from you.”
“Please, no!” My mother inched towards me. “She’s just a little girl, don’t hurt her! We’ll give you anything you want,” my mother looked to my father for confirmation.
“Yes, anything,” my father’s voice trembled.
Victor laughed at their dismay but unconcernedly turned back to Michael. “Maybe I will keep her for myself once I’ve dealt with her mum and dad…oh, and of course, with you, dear brother.”
“Why,” Michael asked, “why not just me, let the family go?”
“Oh, but you see that is what this is all about, Michael, family. You are my family and yet here we are now, worlds apart just as we have always been. You couldn't be satisfied with being their favorite, could you? It wasn't enough that they loved you for being so much more; for being everything that I was not. You turned against me, Michael, you turned Mother and Father against me. You took my family,” he glanced over his shoulder, “and now I am going to take yours.” He stepped back and unleashed a horrific blow striking Michael as hard as he could across his jaw.
Victor seemed satisfied for the moment and continued his speech, “Do you know how many times I have wished you had never been born? Mother and Father, they kept telling me how wonderful it would be to have a little brother. That I would always have someone to play with, someone who would look up to me, someone who would be just like me. Only you weren't like me, were you Michael? You were never like me!”
“Everything came so easy for you didn’t it? Everything I struggled with just came naturally for you. Do you have any idea how humiliating it was to have you for a little brother? How painful it was? I hated you so much! I hated you for coming between Mother, Father and I and for making them realize just how unremarkable I was. They never loved me the way they loved you! I needed them more than you did but they looked right through me.”
“You’re wrong, Victor. They loved you just as much you just wouldn’t let them show it.”
“Bull shit!” Victor seized Michael by the throat, “When did you ever hear anything but praise from them? Ever once did you hear the words I wish you would be more like your brother?”
Michael reluctantly shook his head.
“Well I heard them! Every damn day of my life! Why can’t you be more like Michael?” Victor mimicked Margaret’s voice perfectly. “If it weren’t for you I never would have…”
Victor took a deep breath and his tone hinted at regret, “Why didn’t you tell them? You knew what it was doing to me, how bitter and angry I had become. You saw me that day. I knew you were there and I let you see knowing, hoping, you would go straight to Mother and tell what I had done and that she would understand. I imagined her telling me that she loved me and that she would help me and that I wouldn’t have to be that way anymore.”
“I was too young, Victor, I honestly didn’t know what to do. I wanted to protect you. I didn’t want you to get in trouble. You made me promise,” Michael’s voice shook with remorse.
“You knew what to do! You always knew what to do! You just didn’t want Mother to help me.”
“That’s not true,” Michael whispered.
“You were just too selfish to let her,” Victor persisted. He rocked back and forth on his heels, “It could have been different then, it might not have been too late then.”
“It’s not too late now,” Michael implored.
“Oh, but it is, more so than ever! This is what you forced me to become! The sorrows I had then are the pleasures I enjoy now,” his eyes brightened with a sadistic glow, “thanks to Gavin here. He found me, he took me in, took pity on me and showed me that I had nothing to regret. He gave me this great gift and now, well, the only regret I have now is that I shared it with you.”
Victor grew more and more anxious as he turned his thoughts over. He began pacing back and forth in the slight row between where Michael was being held and where my family and I were kneeling. “I thought changing you would be my revenge. What better retribution could I have wished for than to turn Saint Michael, here, into a sinner?” Then abruptly he stopped in front of me and looked me in the eye. He had his back to Michael as he asked, “how many people have you killed Michael?”
My heart sunk, I knew that was not the way Michael lived, not since we met, “Michael is not a killer,” my eyes flooded with tears and I thought of Brenda.
“Oh? Michael, why don’t you tell your little friend here how many lives have slipped past your lips. Better yet,” he said reflectively, “tell her how many times you’ve wished it were her life flowing through your veins!” Victor’s words seemed to hang ominously in the air.
I peered around Victor so I could see Michael’s face. He was devastated and I could feel the truth of what Victor had said in his mind; weakened as he was Michael was unable to conceal it from me. I never knew he struggled with me the same way he would with anyone else.
My mother was sobbing, my father looking from one of us to the next in shocking disbelief.
“I won’t be cheated! How dare you convince him to turn against his nature! The righteous Michael will not prevail because of you!” Victor turned in fury to face my mother, father and I. “Let’s see now, Eanie…Meanie… oh, hell, Mo!!” Victor put a knee into my father’s back and forced his head to a brutal angle.
Michael must have known what he was planning to do but before he could struggle free and stop him Victor opened my father’s throat. I could only watch in horror as my father fell to the ground. I saw the terror on my mo
ther’s face and the frenzied anger that was taking over Michael. I watched as he broke free from Gavin and savagely drew his life from him. Even through the delirious haze of losing my father I could see the transformation in Michael. His wounds were healing at an exponential rate and he had a murderous expression as he stepped towards Victor.
Michael managed to knock him aside and to get to my mother. He freed her as best he could in the short time before Victor recovered. He told her to hurry, to get me and run. Victor was on him and I knew Michael couldn’t stop him, that he was trying to buy us more time. Victor, he was just so strong! As my mother and I ran in one direction, Michael ran in the other hoping to draw Victor away from us.
Victor sensed what Michael was up to though and dropped the chase almost before it began. I glanced behind me and saw that Michael was trying to cut him off but he was too late. Victor quickly caught us. He seized my mother in one arm and me in the other. “Ah, now this is a bit of a pickle,” Victor chuckled. “You’d like to save them both, wouldn’t you? Oh, but Mum here doesn’t really concern you, does she? You don’t care about her except that she matters to this one,” he shook me by my arm. “So how do we go about this, hmm?” he teased. He took one long look at Michael, tossed his head back and laughed. It all happened so fast; Victor bent over my mother as Michael lunged for me but he couldn’t reach either of us in time. The pain that coursed through me reminded me of a glass falling to the floor. My body felt like it had shattered into a million tiny pieces as it struck a nearby tree with all the force of Victor’s wrath behind it.
Michael tackled Victor and I saw them tumbling in the snow as I fell to the ground. The realization of what Victor had done subdued Michael and he agonizingly dragged himself to where I was lying. Victor seemed to be savoring the moment, “It’s too late,” he assured him as Michael approached me. I was still alive though. I could feel my breath bubbling up and out of my mouth. Michael gathered me into his arms and ran into the woods, Victor seconds behind us calling, “There’s no halfway Michael! You can’t save her!”
