by Leo King
“I read a lot,” Patty said. “But I want you to know that when it comes to us, there doesn’t have to be a set role. Nothing says that sometimes I can’t guide you or teach you or comfort you. That’s what it means to be friends, Alexia. We do whatever the other needs when it’s necessary.”
Alexia sniffled again—hard—and rubbed her nose. “Are you sure?”
Moving to her side, Patty smiled up at her. “I’m as sure of that as I am of anything. I know I make terrible decisions and often need you to bail me out. But I’m not so pathetic that I can’t save you from time to time.”
Slowly, Alexia smiled back. It was like Patty had grown up right there in front of her. Or maybe she’s always been grown-up and I didn’t realize it.
Leaning down, she kissed Patty gently on the forehead. “Thank you, Patty. We are best friends. And I do love you.”
Blushing a little, Patty said, “Love me? Ya know, we could become lovers. Two girls and a dozen cats. All the pussy we could wa—”
With a groan, Alexia hit her best friend with a pillow. “Oh, shut up. Seriously, you keep talking like that, and I’m going to think you really are gay.” But her dark mood had lifted.
Patty rubbed her nose. “Now that’s the Alexia I know and love… in a totally celibate way.” She waggled her eyebrows.
Snickering, Alexia said, “Fine, I’m in a better mood, you dork. Now, enough talk. Let’s get some rest.”
She lay down on the bed with Patty settling next to her.
Yawning, Patty rested against her arm. “Hey, Alexia, can we make a promise?”
“Hmmm? What?”
“Can we always stick together?”
Alexia put her arm around Patty. If there was one thing she could count on now, it was her best friend. And with the adrenaline of the morning finally gone, the muddled mess in her head was back in full force. She needed sleep.
“Sounds good,” she said, pulling a blanket over them both. “Wherever I go, Patty, I’d like you with me.”
It was as good an oath as any between friends.
Chapter 29
Eversoll
Date: Saturday, April 22, 1995
Time: 7:00 p.m.
Location: Undergraduate Residences
Emory University, Atlanta, Georgia
“Oh, wow, that pizza really hit the spot.” Patty leaned back in the cafeteria, rubbing her tummy.
Alexia finished the last of her grilled chicken salad. “That was an extra large. How do you eat so much?”
Patty gulped down her third Dr. Pepper and then belched into her hand. “With my mouth!”
“That’s not what I meant!” Alexia snickered. The eight hours of sleep, the hot shower, the food, and Patty’s general cheerfulness had helped her a lot, despite the horror they’d witnessed.
“So, about the douche who tried to rape me,” Patty said, popping open another can of soda. “I want to file charges, but not until after this weird stuff is done. I don’t want a battle on two fronts.”
Sipping her iced tea, Alexia said, “Good idea. The statute of limitations on sexual battery is like six or seven years. We’ve got time.” It felt good to be able to think clearly again. Now she could finally focus on the night before.
The clue that stood out the most was the word “lullwater.” It sounded familiar, and Dixie and the others needed to hear about it.
“Hey, Patty, I want to go to the Woodruff Center and speak to Serge.”
Patty blinked. “Who what now?”
Snickering again, Alexia leaned forward. “Let me say it slowly. I want to tell Serge about something I saw. Something important.”
“Oh! Didn’t Dixie tell us to stay here?”
Alexia scowled. Her sense of justice wouldn’t let her sit idly by. “Others could die in the meantime. You heard the rumors about Marcie and Chuck—people think they went to Atlanta to go clubbing. There’s a conspiracy covering up the truth, and that’s not OK. So it’s our duty to tell whoever’s trying to solve this everything we know.”
Patty laid her head on the table and groaned. “And I was hoping to watch a good chick flick with you tonight.”
Reaching over, Alexia tousled her hair. “When we get back, I’ll watch any movie you want. Sound fair?”
Patty stood and stretched. “All right, girlfriend. Let’s toss our trash and go for a walk!”
They had just exited the residences when Alexia heard a boisterous voice call out, “Alexia! Over here!”
It was Helen, the freshman, waving at her with an exaggerated motion.
“Oh, hey, Helen. Good to see you.” Alexia waved back. “What’s going on?”
Helen bounced over, looking way happier than any person ever should. “Just finished dinner and heading to the quad. What’re you up to?”
Sweating a little at the younger girl’s exuberance, Alexia said, “Um, you know, just going for a walk. Gonna stop by the fencing hall to talk to Mr. Eversoll about… stuff.”
“Ah, cool!” Helen slipped up beside her and grabbed one of her arms in a hug. “Let me tag along. I left my foil in my locker, and I need to clean it. Otherwise, Leona’s gonna skin me.”
From Alexia’s other side, Patty peered at her. “And how long has this bit of cheating been going on?”
Alexia sweated more. “It’s not like that, Patty. Helen’s on the fencing team with me.”
“Yeah!” Helen exclaimed. “So I’ve got just as much a right to Awesome Alexia’s arm-space as you do, whoever you are!” She stuck her tongue out.
Patty stuck her tongue out as well. “Oh yeah? Well, I’m Alexia’s best friend and roommate. You ain’t got a prayer, girlie!”
Rolling her eyes, Alexia mumbled, “This is ridiculous.” Still, the banter of the two girls for her attention was a welcome respite from the stress of the night before.
Finally, she tugged both of them down the road, heading toward the campus park. “Look, we can all be friends. Let’s just have fun and enjoy the evening, OK?”
While Patty and Helen nodded in agreement, they stuck their tongues out at each other once more.
The campus park was as well-lit as the golf course. All around the concrete pathways were gas lamps made to look like old-fashioned streetlights. No one else was around, since it was a Saturday night and most of students were in town or at the quad. The fresh scent of spring woods filled the air, reminding Alexia of the pine groves and babbling brooks of Shreveport.
Helen had talked the entire time. “When my friends are all busy, I like to come here and draw birds at the lake. This has got to be my favorite part of the entire campus. Well, other than the cafeteria on Taco Tuesday!”
As Helen and Patty laughed together, Alexia felt herself relax even more.
“And Lullwater Park Trail has got to be one of the most peaceful places in the evenings,” Helen said.
Hearing the word “Lullwater” made Alexia stop short. She jumped in front of Helen. “Wait!”
Helen stumbled. “What is it, Alexia?”
Patty watched curiously.
“You said ‘Lullwater Park Trail,’ right?” Alexia asked.
Looking around as if expecting a prank, Helen said, “We’re walking on Lullwater Park Trail right now. It cuts through the park. How did you not know that?”
Alexia stepped back. She’s right. How could I not know that?
Patty snorted. “Oh, right, because the one class you blew off was Emory History. And God knows you never do something as simple as read a campus map. That’s Alexia for you. Can’t see the forest for the green.”
A surge of panic rose up inside Alexia. Patty was right—she had failed at something so simple. What else did she not know? She grabbed Helen. “What can you tell me about Lullwater? Where did ‘Lullwater’ come from? Tell me!” Such an amateurish failure was unacceptable.
Suddenly, Helen was wailing and trying to pull away.
Patty yelled, “Stop it! You’re hurting her!”
There was fear and pa
in in Helen’s eyes. Alexia realized that her fingers were digging into Helen’s shoulders, and she let go.
Helen stumbled back, clutching her shoulders. “What the hell is wrong with you? I thought those rumors about Angry Alexia were stupid, but you really are nuts!”
Instantly, Alexia felt sick to her stomach. She held out her hands. “I’m sorry! I swear it’s not like that. It’s just—”
“Leave me alone!” Helen ran down the trail.
Patty regarded Alexia with concern. “Hey, you OK? I know we saw two people die horribly last night, but you’ve been freaking at the drop of a hat.”
Holding her arms around herself, Alexia closed her eyes and imagined all of her wild emotions being heaps of loose packing peanuts. Then she gathered them and pushed them into a box, compressing them until she could close the box. The shivering stopped. Then she said, “I’m not dealing with this very well, am I?”
Once again, Patty put her arms around her. “I never thought I’d see you like this. What will it take to help? Talking to Serge? Finding Mark? Going off with Dixie? Tell me, and I’ll make it happen.”
Alexia hugged back. Again, Patty was taking care of her. “I just want things to make sense. Even what happened last night has to have a rational explanation.” Once more, she found herself wishing that Michael were still alive. He’d solve this like he solved the new Bourbon Street Ripper case.
“Well,” Patty said, “despite believing in fairy tales and fables, I know reality doesn’t allow for people to get turned into bloody ceilings. But that’s what happened. We have to trust that Dixie and her people will—”
A shrill squeal split the night air. Alexia felt her blood chill.
“Oh, crap. Patty, it’s Helen!”
They sprinted toward the cry. When they reached a bend in the trail, the lights along the path started to flicker just like the bathroom lights at the golf course.
Cupping her hands to her mouth, Alexia shouted, “Helen!”
Patty joined her. “Helen! Where are you?”
“Help me!” Helen called from the wooded area off the trail. “Oh, God, Alexia, please help me!”
They both stumbled into the brush, the twigs and overgrowth slowing them down. “Helen! Helen, can you hear me?” Alexia’s heart was pounding.
“Help me, please! Oh, God, help me! It’s right behind me!” Helen was crying.
Patty grabbed Alexia’s arm. “I’m scared!” Alexia squeezed her hand, now protecting her.
“Helen! We’re coming!” She ran as fast as she could, Patty in tow.
When they came upon Helen, it was in a small clearing lit only by the moonlight. The area was as cool as an autumn evening. She was pressed against a tree and staring out into the open. Her face was terror-stricken.
As soon as she saw Helen, Alexia yelled, “Helen! We’re here!”
She ran forward…
… and stopped when Patty pulled her back.
“What the heck? Patty, let go!”
Patty’s face was pale, and her eyes were wide and glassy. Her voice cracked. “Alexia. It’s looking right at you.”
Alexia stared back into the clearing. It took her brain a few moments to register what she saw.
Floating in mid-air was a pale, white entity that looked like it was made of fog. It was wrapped in a tattered, full-body, hooded cloak. Its bony hands and legs stuck out, and the hood barely showed its face—a skull. It smelled of death. It was watching Alexia, its bony mouth grinning. Then its jaw unhinged and let out a long, loud, deep, rattling croak, the same sound as at the golf course.
Next to her, Patty trembled.
God help me, Alexia thought, too terrified to move.
It started floating toward them and then stopped. Its grin turned to a grimace.
Christ have mercy on me. Alexia put every fiber of her being into her plea.
Snarling, the entity let out another horrible croak. As it did, Helen screamed again. Looking back, it rushed at her. She threw up her arms in defense just as the entity flew into her and vanished completely.
Alexia felt faint. She smelled piss as Patty started urinating.
Helen slowly turned toward them, her skin turning bleach white. She held out her arms, looking down at them, as her veins turned pitch black, growing and pulsing wildly through the skin. As the blackness crept up her face along the vein lines, she looked back at her friends. Her face was constricted in agony.
“Alexia. Please… help me… !”
With a sickeningly wet sound, Helen’s veins exploded in a shower of dark blood. She let out a deep gurgle that turned into a croak, just like the entity, as the blood solidified and turned into wormlike tendrils. Each tendril then buried itself in the ground.
Alexia watched, her heart pounding in her throat, as the dying figure of Helen was pulled into the earth by her own blood.
Sliding to her knees, Patty whimpered. “Mommy, Mommy, Mommy…”
Her knees shaking, Alexia’s body jerked, then lurched. But it was rooted to the spot.
Move, Alexia. Move, damn you!
With a hard push, she willed her legs forward. “Come on! We gotta run! We gotta run!”
But Patty just knelt there, stinking of piss, gibbering to herself. “Sunshine and castles and pretty maidens and kitty cats…”
“Come on!” Alexia said, shaking her. “We have got to go now!”
Patty stared at her blankly, her lips trembling. “I made a tinkle.”
Another long, loud croak drew her attention. The entity rose from the ground, its hollow sockets boring down on them. It pointed at Patty. The intention was clear.
That knocked Patty out of her shock. She shrieked.
Alexia stood between them. “Leave her alone!”
It sneered at her and let out another awful rattle.
Oh, dear Lord. She grabbed the cross locket around her neck.
It reared back as if about to charge.
She closed her eyes and prayed, “Although I walk in the shadow of the valley of death, I shall fear no evil.” Then she steeled herself for death.
But death didn’t come. Slowly, she opened one eye, then the other.
It still hovered before her. And once more, it was gritting its teeth.
My prayer? Oh, sweet, merciful God, please protect me.
She continued praying. “I shall fear no evil, for you are with me. Your rod and your staff, they comfort me.”
It shifted and let out a low growl. Its tattered cloak started peeling away.
“The Lord is my shepherd, I shall not want,” she said. Her head was starting to throb. She didn’t know if she could keep this up.
The entity spoke in a deep throaty voice. “I felt your will last night, mortal. It insults me. Your life is mine.”
Hearing it speak took away all will to fight. She just wanted to run.
A white flash caught her eye, the same kind that had drawn her attention to the blood-stained drain in the golf course. Off to the side, she saw a small, white orb floating in between a set of trees. Something about that light felt safe. She grabbed her locket and squeezed once more.
As the entity let out another loud croak, Alexia said, “This way!” They ran after the orb. She heard the apparition behind them, giving chase.
As they ran through the brush, the small, white orb stayed just barely within view, leading the way. Behind them, she could feel the entity, hear its croak, and smell its stench of decay.
Suddenly, light burst forth as they exited the brush and stumbled into another person.
“Alexia? Patty?” It was Mark.
Patty wrapped her arms around his waist and wailed while Alexia pulled on his hand. “We gotta go! We gotta—”
At that moment, the entity burst from the woods. Patty screeched and buried her head in Mark’s chest.
“Alexia, stand back!” he said. Only then did she notice he was dressed in a dark set of clothing: a tight-fitting shirt, leather pants, boots, and gloves. A pair of rapie
rs hung from a large belt on his hips.
“Mark? What’s going on?”
With one motion, Mark pushed Patty into Alexia’s arms and drew out his swords. In the moonlight, they almost seemed to glow. The entity locked eyes with him and let out its terrible rattle, its unhinged jaw dropping past its hood.
Patty, who was clutching Alexia for dear life, sobbed and then went limp. Alexia sank to her knees. Her strength was exhausted, and her momentum was gone. All she could do was watch in disbelief as Mark faced off against it.
Yelling in Scandinavian, he rushed forward, swinging both blades. With a surprised look, it drew back from the blows. Then it grunted hollowly and, diving into the ground, vanished like mist. “It is the girl, not you, who repelled my power. She is marked. I will have her life!”
As Mark turned back toward her, sheathing his blades, she felt the final threads of her strength break. With a weak exhale, she fell to the ground.
Mark. You saved me.
He ran to her as her mind was engulfed in darkness.
After what felt like hours, Alexia awoke on a cot in a small, dark room that felt eerily familiar. Outside, she heard the sound of metal hitting metal in rapid succession.
She sat up and felt a painful pulling on her side. She found that her ribs were taped. Also, she was only in her underwear. Sitting still, she listened. Other than the distinct, metallic clanking, she could also hear gentle snoring no more than a few feet away. The room was cool and smelled of bandages and antiseptic. She began to comprehend where she might be.
Let’s see, there should be a string for the light… right… here.
The light came on in the trainer room of the fencing hall. It was the place where team members were sent to rest and recover from injuries. Patty was sleeping on a nearby cot, curled up in a ball. Their clothing, mended and cleaned, lay folded on Serge’s desk
Alexia knelt at her best friend’s side. Patty. She smoothed back her hair, kissing her forehead. Watching her sleep like that made her feel more protective than ever. Once again, she was the big sister.
I’m so glad you’re OK.