Voices

by Phyllis P. Colucci

  As they continued to discuss the situation, bouncing thoughts off one another, Michael told Rosalie that he doesn’t want to hurt her anymore than she is already hurting, but she needs to realize that it’s only a matter of time before Franco puts his trust into Maria. Soon Franco will look to Maria for comfort and Maria will have gotten what she wanted. Unfortunately, Michael added, that’s just human nature and Maria knows how to play on Franco’s emotions.

  Rosalie wholly agreed with Michael and responded to him in a low, melancholy tone, stating how sad all of this is and how heartwrenching life can be when you put your faith in someone for many years, and they suddenly turn on you…She continued that, just when you think all is well and you have it all figured out, disappointment shows up at your doorstep with abandonment not too far behind. Rosalie cried, “It’s so hard to take Michael.” Michael, unsure how to respond to her, especially since he’s developed very strong feelings for Rosalie, knew he had to say something to ease Rosalie’s pain. Her pain now became his pain. So Michael replied by simply stating, “All is well Rosalie, because we do have it figured out now. Life has a funny way of fixing things by placing the right people and the right opportunities in our path so we can find truth and happiness as we move on. That’s what happened to us Rosalie. I assure you Rosalie that something good will come out of this and I think you feel that too. All will be well.” Rosalie knew in her heart exactly what Michael was talking about as she hung onto his every word. She asked if they could meet and talk some more in person. Michael told Rosalie that he will come by her house as soon as he showers, then walks and feeds Edgar. He politely asked Rosalie if he could stay into the evening hours with her tonight. He had a plan in mind. So they both hung up, looking forward to their time together.

  … “A plan in mind?” Rosalie thought. “I sure can use a good plan right now. The sooner this horror ends, the better. I wonder what Michael has up his sleeve?” Glancing up at the kitchen clock, Rosalie muttered, “Oh I hope he gets here quickly; a shower, then walking and feeding sweet Edgar shouldn’t take too long.” Feeling restless, Rosalie signed onto her computer to check her e-mail for either a rejection or a wonderful acceptance letter on her last manuscript submission. Unfortunately that would be the one that takes place in the Victorian mansion, where one friend betrays the other for love. How apropos, as Michael would think. Yes, if it sells, how wonderfully apropos, Rosalie quipped to herself…however, no response yet as she scrolled down through her many e-mails…Rosalie then went into online shopping mode, spending the next hour searching for a denim blazer…her old one looked really raunchy since she’s worn it so many times…Suddenly – music to her ears – the doorbell rang! Rosalie quickly shutdown the computer then raced down the stairs to see who it was. Not to her surprise since she was expecting wonderful Michael, she anxiously opened the door and there he was; standing tall and smiling, politely waiting for Rosalie to invite him in. Rosalie grabbed Michael’s hand and practically dragged him up the stairs to her apartment without uttering as much as a “Hello”. Michael sensed her excitement and playfully tagged along. They were like two children giggling and chasing after one another.

  Once they were in the apartment, Rosalie closed the door behind them and gently pushed Michael down on the sofa eagerly waiting to hear all about his plan. Michael enjoyed this moment to the fullest, in awe of Rosalie’s innocence, beauty and child-like mannerisms; something he hoped to see more of in the future…Rosalie immediately interrupted this precious moment and begged Michael to hurry and tell her about his plan. She was jumping all over him like a little girl anticipating a long-awaited surprise. Michael got such a kick out of Rosalie that he stood quiet for a few more moments, teasing her further into a fit of laughter as she realized the comedy in her own display of emotion. Together they laughed in each other’s arms until they both exhausted themselves into seriousness. Rosalie wanted to know all about Michael’s plan and Michael wanted to tell her about it.

  As Rosalie studied Michael’s expressive eyes, which truly were the windows to his soul, she sat back and listened with undivided attention…Michael went on to suggest that part of the plan would be for Rosalie to make a phone call to Maria. Rosalie’s face dropped. She refused to speak to Maria. However, Michael convinced Rosalie that if she would make that phone call and pretend to apologize for the accusations she made against Maria in the past and during her conversation with Franco this morning, she may be able to gain Maria’s trust once again and perhaps lure Maria into the cellar by tonight so Michael could catch her in the act. Rosalie was very apprehensive about this since she was unsure if Franco had even spoken to Maria yet about his conversation with Rosalie this morning and of Rosalie’s accusations against Maria, and Franco himself, as being behind the voices down the cellar. Michael responded that he already considered that and advised Rosalie to just feel Maria out during their phone conversation. He wanted Rosalie to allow Maria to open up to her and play into Rosalie’s hands now. He further stressed, if the opportunity presents itself, that Rosalie let Maria know how much she hates being alone tonight especially after the conversation she had with Franco this morning; that would be an open invitation for Maria to get down that cellar tonight. In order to do that, Rosalie must control the conversation so much so that she actually leads Maria into confronting her about her accusations to Franco this morning, with the hope that Franco had already told Maria all about them. Michael feels Franco did already tip Maria off, and now it will be up to Rosalie to drag it out of Maria for the plan to be set in motion. In this way, they can set Maria up to feel confident and compelled to get back into that cellar tonight. Michael is putting his money on Maria as being the culprit. Michael further commented that Maria will want to rush her little game now before she gets caught and all of her hard work suddenly destroyed. He also stated that if those “voices” soon stop, never to be heard again, it would be like Maria admitting her guilt, and Maria is too smart for that. She cannot make any drastic changes to her plan right now and she knows it. She has to move forward – and fast. Michael is quite certain that Maria will stop at nothing in order to seize this opportunity to destroy Rosalie and win Franco, before it all backfires in her face.

  Rosalie listened to Michael’s words, going over them in her head numerous times as he continued to stress the importance of her making that phone call. Rosalie admitted to Michael that she was really uncomfortable with this and was unsure if she could pull it off. She told Michael that she accepted the possibility that her best friend Maria could be totally responsible for what’s going on down that celler or maybe yes, Franco is actually working in partnership with Maria; but then Rosalie suggested that maybe it’s not them at all. Then what would they do, she questioned. Michael confidently responded that if it’s not both of them, it’s definitely one of them and he believes it’s Maria. Michael begged Rosalie to take hold of herself because he is with her every step of the way. He feels they need to give this a shot as a first attempt at solving this mystery. If it doesn’t work out, then he will come up with a backup plan. Michael assured Rosalie that either way they will find out who is behind this, and they just may get their answer tonight. He explained to Rosalie that it all depends upon that one phone call that she needs to make to Maria. He looked into Rosalie’s eyes with concern and asked, “Could you bring yourself to do this?” Rosalie stalled for what seemed forever, then replied, “I guess I can give this a try. We need answers Michael, so let’s just do this.” Rosalie grabbed the phone in the kitchen and took a seat at the table. Michael sat across from her, encouraging her with a smile. She picked up the phone and called Maria.

  …Maria seemed terribly shocked to hear from Rosalie, but listened quietly as Rosalie spoke into the phone. Rosalie mustered up enough strength to tell Maria how sorry she was for treating her badly the last time Maria was at the apartment, and added that she had thought about things since then and now realized that Maria was only trying to help her by setting up an intervention r
egarding Rosalie’s mental and emotional state. Rosalie confessed to Maria that she felt so awful about the way things turned out between them, and hoped Maria could forgive her.

  All Rosalie could hear from Maria during this conversation was an occasional “Uh huh…uh huh…uhum…uhum” – and this was not very encouraging. Not knowing whether or not Franco had already contacted Maria about his conversation with Rosalie this morning, and also to make this apology more believable, Rosalie decided to tell Maria all about that conversation she had with Franco. She admitted to Maria that she had said such terrible things to Franco, accusing them both of being the culprits down in that cellar who were tormenting Rosalie with those horrible, eerie voices just to get Rosalie out of the way so they can be together. Maria, seemingly stunned, quickly accepted the apology. She responded by telling Rosalie that she understands completely since Rosalie is in a weakened state of mind right now. Maria added that sometimes it’s easier to blame someone else rather than accept the truth, and told Rosalie that she is willing to be the scapegoat here if it means saving their friendship and Rosalie’s sanity…Rosalie wanted to pull Maria right through the telephone line and choke her. Maria’s lying words pierced Rosalie like a burning stake. Rosalie realized more than ever that Maria was the one behind those voices. If Maria was so innocent, she certainly would be putting up more of a fight right now, and she wasn’t. Maria was not one to sit back quietly. She was always quick to defend herself, but not this time. Rosalie was on a roll. She knew she had Maria right where she wanted her.

  Maria told Rosalie that she is so glad Rosalie called today because Maria was really sick over the thought of losing her best friend. She went on to say that she and Franco wanted nothing more than to help Rosalie with whatever she is going through and she apologized if Rosalie got the wrong idea about Maria and Franco. Maria did admit that Franco called her this morning and told her what Rosalie had said about them and what she accused them of. Franco was terribly hurt and upset by this, Maria revealed. She stated that Rosalie is the priority here, however, and she and Franco still want to help Rosalie get to the bottom of these “voices” and free her from this mental anguish, and free her from herself. Maria added that she is so glad that Rosalie came to her senses and reached out to her. She remarked that Rosalie shouldn’t be going through this alone and that she and Franco will be there for her, regardless of what she accused them of. Maria went on and on about how their friendship is more important to her than anything else in this world, and reassured Rosalie that she forgives her for the things she said about her and Franco, and added that she knows Franco forgives her too.

  Maria then played the sympathy card aiming straight for Rosalie’s emotions. Only Rosalie didn’t fall for it. Not for a second. So as Maria admitted to Rosalie that she stopped in front of the house a few times while running errands in the neighborhood, heartbroken and wanting so much to ring the bell and make things right with Rosalie, Rosalie felt the blood rush to her head. The only words echoing in Rosalie’s mind as Maria spoke were, “Liar! Damn you Maria! You’re a calculating, pathological liar!” Yet Rosalie listened on to the fiction coming out of Maria’s mouth just to see how far Maria would take this and, more importantly, to see exactly where they stood with each other…So Maria proceeded to tell Rosalie that she passed in front of the house a few times sick to her stomach, wandering around in tears, trying to decide whether or not to ring that bell. Maria then said that, sadly, she took the coward’s way out and decided to walk away for fear of being rejected by Rosalie. Rosalie thought at this moment of the conversation, “What a crock, she’s just covering her tracks because she knows through Franco that Millie saw her in front of the house.” However, Rosalie played along and told Maria that she truly wished Maria would have rung the bell. Maria added that she wished she had too, but now that Rosalie phoned her today, they can just move on from here. Maria begged Rosalie to accept the help from her and Franco so she can recover and heal from this monster that is playing with her mind. Rosalie, loving this academy award performance Maria was putting on, welcomed Maria and Franco’s help and promised Maria that she would square things away with Franco as soon as possible so they can all work out a time where the three of them can sit together and discuss the next step in getting Rosalie back on track. She requested that Maria please not tell Franco about this conversation between them today since she preferred calling him herself to apologize. Maria promised she wouldn’t…Of course Rosalie didn’t believe that, but she had to accept it regardless. Even if Maria told Franco about it, there would be no harm done. Franco would believe that Rosalie had a change of heart and would soon contact him as planned.

  Rosalie confessed that she is seriously considering going to see her psychiatrist soon for further evaluation, as Maria and Franco suggested, and welcomed their assistance in getting her there. Rosalie added that they can discuss this further when they all set up a time to get together. Maria was ecstatic, as Rosalie expected. Maria now thinks she has the upper hand when, in fact, she is just falling into Michael and Rosalie’s trap. As the conversation deepened, Rosalie confided to Maria that she is so frightened to be alone tonight; adding that she hoped the stress of it all doesn’t cause those voices to come back with a vengeance. She couldn’t bear dealing with that tonight, especially since she is all alone. This prompted Maria to ask Rosalie if she is hearing those voices often. Rosalie chuckled to herself, “as if Maria didn’t know the answer to that question.” Still, Rosalie responded in the affirmative. Maria promised Rosalie that she would be there for her and recommended that she remain strong and suggested Rosalie have a glass or two of wine tonight to help her relax. Rosalie thanked Maria for her concern and for accepting her apology and her friendship. She then told Maria that she loved her…Ugh! Rosalie’s face cringed at the sound of those words coming out of her own mouth. Michael winked at Rosalie for moral support. Maria, in turn, told Rosalie she loved her as well and reminded Rosalie that they are as close as sisters and nothing or no one will ever come between them. Rosalie responded that Maria is an angel and that she will be in touch with her once she speaks to Franco. Maria replied that she will be anxiously waiting to hear from Rosalie so they can work on getting her better.

  As soon as Rosalie hung up the phone she looked over at Michael and said, “Mission accomplished. Now let’s hope this plays out the way we planned. I’m exhausted by this phone call Michael. My only regret is that Maria may know that Millie ratted her out.” Michael blew Rosalie a kiss from the other end of the table and said, “Kudos to Millie, and it’s V-day for you Rosalie. You’ll see. Now all we do is wait.” Rosalie stressed that she is so glad that Michael is already here in the apartment in case Maria wanted to keep an eye out on the house to see when Rosalie comes and goes, and when she is alone. Michael gave Rosalie a “thumbs up”, stating that was all part of his plan. That’s why he wanted to be here tonight. He wanted to be a step ahead of Maria, and Maria now thinks that Rosalie will be alone. Michael and Rosalie’s plan is working perfectly. With that, Rosalie smiled and put up a pot of espresso and placed a tray of Italian anisette cookies on the table for them to share as they sit and wait to see what the afternoon and evening hours may bring.

  Rosalie and Michael continued to sip espresso, smiling at each other from across the kitchen table. The aroma filled the air, breathing life back into the apartment. Rosalie was thrilled to share this time with Michael since loneliness had been her only house guest of late, along with those haunting voices. However, she began to feel a bit uncomfortable knowing she and Michael had another eight to ten hours to spend together. She wasn’t accustomed to spending so much time with him in one sit-in. She didn’t know what to do or what to say in order to get through those hours in a casual and comfortable manner so they both could pleasantly enjoy their time together, minus sporadic bouts of no conversation. Their relationship was still so new. Any unwanted silence invading their time together could really put a damper on things and, unfortunately, was
bound to happen at intervals. That’s just the nature of life. More espresso and Italian cookies will not solve the problem. Rosalie had to think of something to fill the long hours of waiting.

  As the minutes passed and the cookies disappeared from the tray, that uncomfortable silence seemed to break through. Rosalie was panicking. She wondered whether or not she should entertain Michael with a variety of music; from classic rock to country, reggae, jazz or whatever else she had in her cd collection. Then she thought, “No, that wouldn’t be entertaining enough to break the uncomfortable silence.” She wasn’t even sure of Michael’s favorite music. Maybe Michael would prefer to watch a couple of dvds, that would kill a few hours, she hoped. She had a variety of those as well and thought - “Adventure? - probably; Mystery? - maybe; Sci-Fi? - not sure; Horror? - definitely not!; Romance? - I don’t think so, that would be pushing it.” Rosalie decided to scratch that idea. She was too anxious to even concentrate on a movie and she thought that would be the case with Michael as well. They can always check the satellite stations and agree on something together if they decided to watch some television. She had to come up with something else. She had to make for some interesting conversation at least.