Mind Over Easy (20 page)

She stammered as she spoke. "I... I think I knew that. Somewhere in my messed-up brain."

Dhiraj took Jennifer's hand. "That's why I can't let you do this. We need to call the police right now."

Jennifer sighed. "No. That's why I have to do this."

She took out a pair of handcuffs from underneath the driver's side seat. Before Dhiraj could react, she'd slapped the cuffs on the steering wheel and his wrist.

"Jen!" Dhiraj struggled to yank his arm free of the cuffs.

Jennifer opened her door and stepped out. A light spring breeze played with her hair as she turned back to her captive.

"I wouldn't have done this if I didn't love you, too."

Dhiraj lurched after her with his free hand. Jennifer shut the door.

She walked away from the car to the sounds of Dhiraj pleading with her through the inch-open car window.

"Please come back!" Dhiraj pounded his fist against the door. "Jennifer, don't do it! It's something you'll never be able to take back." He screamed at the top of his lungs. "Can't we just talk this out?! Jen!"

By the time Jennifer reached the second floor of the apartment building, she could no longer hear Dhiraj's voice.

"He's going to understand." She took in a deep breath and let it out slowly. "They'll all understand eventually."

Jennifer continued to walk up the stairs, beset by peeling white paint on all sides. Each step felt like it took longer than the last. She couldn't tell if Dhiraj's words were getting to her, or if her anger was beginning to fade. As she got to the third floor, she spied a dead roach resting on its back. Jennifer kicked it to the side and stopped in front of the door she'd seen Daly enter. A wave of fear crept over her. It'd been easy enough to load her gun, track down Daly and get right up to the door, but she knew that this would be the hard part.

When she reached for the door handle, Jennifer could feel her hand shake. She knew that if she opened the door, nothing would ever be the same. Jennifer made herself think of the way Daly had tricked them all. His aw-shucks demeanor and work with her father had made them all think highly of him. She then thought of Erica, her body made stiff and rotten by the man who resided beyond that threshold. She thought of him stabbing her to death and covering her up with the earth. The fear turned to a simmering anger.

Jennifer opened the unlocked door.

The stench of mildew was the first thing to hit her as she walked into the room. She guessed there wasn't much time for cleaning when you were hiding from the law. She recognized several plastic bags and half-eaten containers of food from Daly's workplace. Jennifer wouldn't have been surprised if the roach outside had friends in that very unit. Toward her right were stacked up dirty dishes in the kitchen. When she turned to the left, she saw the light from a television and heard a creaky, old ceiling fan.

As she took a few steps toward the TV, the man she sought came into view. Daly was still wearing his uniform from work as he sat in a recliner that appeared to be straight out of a dumpster. The man's eyes were shut, his head turned to the side as he dozed. After weeks of visions of Daly populating her nightmares and bleeding into her life, she was finally seeing him for real. Every warning signal her body possessed started to go off at once. Instinct told her to run, but she refused to listen.

Jennifer thought about how easy it would be to punish him right here and now for his crimes. All she'd need to do was take out her gun and unload a few shots into some key areas. Unless Dhiraj had called the cops, he'd be the only one who knew she was there. It would be clean and it would be quick. But Jennifer knew she wasn't just there to put an end to Daly's life. He needed to know what he'd done and why he was going to pay for it.

Jennifer slammed the front door behind her and Daly sprang to life on the chair. His first look was bewilderment until the recognition sunk in.

"Sheriff's daughter." Daly wiped his mouth and relaxed as he faced her straight on. "I thought it'd be the superhero."

Daly had put on a few pounds since she'd last seen him in the caves several months ago. His five o'clock shadow had been replaced by the start of a beard.

Erica wouldn't have been caught dead with a guy like that
.  

Jennifer hoped Daly would cry or scream, but he only let out the same grin she'd admired dozens of times. She wanted to shoot the smug look right off his face. Jennifer took her weapon out of the holster and pointed it directly at him.

"I think you'll find that I'm full of surprises."

Chapter 33

Natalie could tell what happened to Erica almost immediately, even if she didn't understand it. She'd never examined her as intently as Ted had, but all the old personality quirks were there. Erica's voice was different, as if she was trying to get someone to go to bed with her through every syllable and phrase. Erica was also more physical than she'd been the last few months, seeing as she grabbed at Ted's crotch when he got close enough to her. On top of everything else, she was completely plastered.

Natalie watched as Ted fell over himself to avoid being groped in front of his ex-girlfriend. She appreciated the effort, but Natalie could tell that Ted had no idea what or who he was dealing with.

"I bet it would feel good to do it on the lawn." Erica got her hand close enough to take Ted's zipper half way down before he slapped away her advances.

Erica only giggled and tried harder. Natalie couldn't help but feel her anger build. She'd done enough picturing of Ted and Erica being intimate together, and she certainly didn't need to see such images live and in surround sound.

Natalie watched as the confidence of Ted's triumph against the GHA faded away.

Ted stammered as he fended off another one of Erica's approaches. "What are you– Erica, this isn't like– Natalie's right here."

Natalie crossed her arms and waited for the show to be over. The stench of liquor from Erica's breath reached her, even as she kept her distance. It reminded her of a girl she'd needed to tend to at a sleepover basketball camp. Their room smelled like vomit the entire week.

"Nadre the Giant can watch if she wants." Erica stutter-stepped and went down to one knee in the grass. "Ooh, we could do a video."

Natalie gave it another few seconds before Ted finally seemed to realize what had happened.

"Erica?" He looked over at Natalie before bending down next to their drunken friend. "What do you remember?"

Natalie caught a glimpse of Erica's eyes when she looked toward Ted. It didn't seem like anybody was home.

"I remember thinking that you're hot." Erica pulled at Ted's shirt.

When he tried to back away, one of the buttons ripped loose.

Natalie growled so loud, she nearly scared herself. "That's it! Enough of this freak show. Get her inside. Float her if you have to."

It took a few tries to get Erica through the front door, but once they did, they each sat beside Erica on the Finleys' downstairs couch. When Natalie felt the velvety-soft cushions beneath her fingers, she pictured the last time she'd touched it, sitting beside Ted as she and the Finleys watched a movie. The wooden wall panels, medium-height blue carpeting and the ancient TV set were still the same, but nearly all the circumstances around her being there had changed.

Natalie and Ted forced Erica to drink an entire glass of water before she had permission to speak again. Whenever Erica made a motion off of the couch, Natalie commanded Ted to use his powers to keep her there. When she finally settled down, the interrogation began.

"Where do you last remember being before you – fell off the wagon?" Natalie wished she had a lamp to shine right into Erica's eyes.

"I remember going on dates with Ted." She gave a brain-free smile in her boyfriend's direction. "I remember him touching my body and putting his lips against–"

"I'd rather not hear the details." Natalie snorted at Ted before she turned her attention back to the drunk girl on the couch. "Do you remember Nigel and the dark souls?"

Erica gave a puzzled look. "Is that a band? Are we in a band?"

Natalie gestured to Ted. He appeared stunned by Erica's response and needed a second before he shook out of it.

Ted's voice was tentative, as if he wasn't sure whom he was truly addressing. "You remember our dates, but what about Beth and the burning building?"

Erica gave the same confused look, but this one came with a smile. "Sorry, I don't remember a building. You're looking really sexy. Are we almost done?"

When Ted smiled back, Natalie considered taking a ceramic figurine from the end table and throwing it through the TV screen. She could feel the anger seeping out of her like fiery sweat.

Ted must have sensed Natalie's mood, and his smile faded. "It's like someone selectively changed parts of her brain."

Natalie stared at Erica. "Changed? Or erased?"

"Changed. The other memories have to still be in there." Ted tugged at his shirt. "They just have to."

"I could've blacked out the memories. It happens." Erica lurched forward. "I think I'm going to be sick."

Ted and Natalie guided Erica to the downstairs bathroom. As the door opened, she ran toward the toilet and started to puke. Natalie gave Ted a dirty look as she put her hands around Erica's hair to pull it back.

"So, this is your golden girl?" Natalie spoke loud enough to be heard over the noise of Erica's vomiting. "The one you were still in love with when you dated me?"

Ted frowned and leaned back against the wall. "I never had to hold her hair back."

Natalie gripped Erica's hair more tightly. "Lucky you." 

Erica took a few deep breaths before she continued to evacuate her stomach. The smell of alcohol and regurgitated food quickly spread through the tiny space.

Natalie watched as Ted made an effort to say something.

He gave her a series of looks that conveyed contrition, fear and pain. Natalie felt bad for giving him such a hard time. After all, his girlfriend, the person who was helping to keep him alive for the last few months, appeared to be gone. It was a strange situation, but that didn't make it any easier to cope with.

"I'm never drinking again." Erica's voice echoed from inside the toilet bowl.

Natalie patted her on the back. "I'm sure you've never said that before."

After Erica was through, Natalie and Ted carried her the old-fashioned way back to the couch. She curled up and fell asleep within the next minute. The other two sat on the floor with their backs against the base of the loveseat.

"I'm sorry, Ted." Natalie put her arm around his shoulder. "I shouldn't have tried to make you feel bad. This isn't under your control."

Ted stared straight ahead.

"When we were kids, Erica was never satisfied with doing what everybody told her. She wanted to make life bigger, better and more exciting." He sighed. "When she took me along for the ride, I felt more interesting. More fun. When she left me behind, all I wanted was to get back to how she made me feel."

Natalie didn't know what to say at first. This was the first time she'd heard Ted open up about the girl who had his heart. "It sounds like you were more in love of the idea of a person than the actual person."

Ted broke his stare at the wall and looked over at Natalie. He let out a labored breath. "You might be right." Ted pulled his knees toward his chest and rested on his arms. "But none of this matters. Without the new Erica, we're pretty much screwed." Ted buried his face.

Natalie pulled him toward her. "We're gonna figure this out."

"No, we're not." He lifted his head. "This is something from another world, Nat. It messed up Erica's head and it could do the same to all of us."

Natalie saw the tears start to form in Ted's eyes. She couldn't tell if he was more scared that the new Erica might be gone for good or that they were in way over their heads.

Natalie tried to push down her own feelings of fear. "Look. You wanted me to be a part of this team. Well, here I am. Let's go stop this guy, fix Erica and save the freakin' world."

"So…." Ted wiped his eyes and his lips almost formed a smile. "You're in?"

Natalie rolled her eyes. "Sign me up. But no tights. No one wants to see these thighs."

Ted sniffled and hugged Natalie. She felt herself grow nervous and warm at the same time.

"Thanks, Nat."

As good as it felt, Natalie shrugged out of the hug. She stood up and pulled Ted with her. They took a long look at the sleeping, brainwashed Erica.

"Thank me when we win," she said. "If we win."

Chapter 34

Mr. Redican stumbled through the front doors of the school and collapsed to the ground. The pain from the impact of his ribs on the solid floor paled in comparison to his roaring headache. His head pounded so loud, he thought it might erupt right there on the Treasure High logo. Invading the memories of a protector had strained even the power of the book. It was too strong for anyone other than a living soul to contain. He wondered if he'd be able to use the power on Ted himself, or if the book would burn him from the inside out in the process. Using a nearby glass trophy case, Redican tried to steady himself enough to stand.

A janitor heard his struggle and shuffled over to his side. "Hey, man, you OK?"

The janitor smelled like oven cleaner, which comforted Redican. He was a man who worked hard to fulfill his job. Redican took the janitor's arm and hoisted himself up to a standing position.

"Thanks." Redican took gentle steps toward the wall where he could support himself. "I think I can take it from here."

The janitor looked him up and down. Redican figured if he appeared even half as bad as he felt, he'd seem like he was on the brink of death.

"I can call an ambulance." The janitor took a closer look into Redican's face. "Don't take this the wrong way, but I'm not interested in cleaning up any bodies today."

Redican laughed. At least, he tried to. The sound came out like more of a wheeze.