“Who is the wasted zombie king?”
His voice was full of sarcasm. Leyla remained stunned and speechless - what had happened to the warm-hearted boy she used to know. He would never have said something callous like that in the past. He had always been so insightful for whoever was in trouble - human or animal.
"Are you coming to the Port Hope Fair? What can I say? It looks like you are two weeks early folks.”
He looked at them as if they were completely senile or something like that. Port Hope fair had always been something special for them. Leyla and her parents came whenever they could fit it into their schedule to Port Hope Fair for the last ten years.
The whole town was celebrating at that special weekend early September every year. From Friday evening until late Sunday night, young and old were on their feet. Leyla remembered the year when she was twelve and had participated at a tractor show together with Shane. She had almost broken her neck falling off the tractor during the show. Her mother had not been amused at all that day. Then to make it even worst, she took off with Shane to see the famous foal show, in which Shane’s mother was involved, without telling her parents and they had spent some hours to find them. Anyway, Leyla had been grounded after that day for a while. She smiled to herself remembering. Those had been the good old times for her. Now things were becoming apparently more complicated.
In the evenings, there had always been various concerts spread all across town, and of course, some loud music. In each alley is a different dance floor playing a different style of music. People used to dance all night. Leyla’s flashback came to an abrupt end when her eyes fell on Shane who had changed dramatically due to altered circumstances in his life. She looked at him and came to the conclusion that no matter how smug he acted and how cold and distant his behavior was, he was still Shane. She walked up to him and hugged him warmly. After a brief surprise, his whole body stiffened and he tried to withdraw from the hug. Leyla couldn’t shake off the acrimonious feeling that there was nothing left of the warmth that had made him so special and had been one of his biggest assets.
"Glad to see you too Shane and no, we are not here for the fair. Actually, we have some bigger issues at the moment.”
She pointed in Gregory’s direction.
“Oh and for the record, this is unfortunately not a wasted zombie king. If booze was the only issue, we would not be here. You wouldn’t believe it, but actually, one can sleep it off perfectly in Toronto as well. He's my stepcousin from Italy and…”
Shane interrupted her.
”I can’t believe it! Your Prince Charming is finally here. What the hell did you do to him? Didn’t he obey or fall to your feet or something?”
Leyla counted to three silently, trying hard not to explode, but when she saw his condescending grin, she couldn’t help it. “Oh shut the hell up, will you? You had better tell me what you've done to the Shane I once knew? It can’t be the sarcastic bastard standing in front of me.”
For a brief moment, he seemed to be taken aback, but then his indifferent mask was on again.
Leyla tried to calm down.
“He was poisoned, you charmer and we have to hide him here with you. Will you help me now to bring him into the house please?”
He looked at her in surprise.
“And now, you brought him here so that he can die in peace before his pursuers find him?
Is he a spy or something?”
He was truly to bug her.
“You really have to shut up, or do you want me to pin you to the ground with an elegant Hane Maki Komi? Will you help me to get him out of that car now, or what?”
In spite of the bad mood Shane was in, he couldn’t help it but his mouth turned into a smile without him even noticing it. Leyla was incredible. She managed to make him smile even in this difficult time, when he wouldn’t let anyone get close to him.
“A Hane Maki what?"
Fortunately, her dad came back to help, otherwise she might have hit him with the car jack. Her dad and Shane dragged the still unconscious Gregory into the house. Somehow, Leyla had the feeling that he was not completely spaced out.
“Dad,” she said, “I suggest that you bring him to the bathroom and get him instantly into the shower, otherwise the Sullivan’s will need a new couch, if he lays down on it.”
Shane raised an eyebrow wondering. She shrugged.
“It’s for your own good.”
Yet the scent had apparently hit Shane's taste buds by now. “Great idea,” he said, gasping for air. Leyla headed for the front door and the two men disappeared with Gregory in their midst into the bathroom.
Shane came out of the bathroom after no time. Apparently, he was not that thrilled to help anymore as he had been in the past.
He threw himself on the couch beginning to play some silly shooting game on his Xbox.
“So, your cousin has been poisoned. Are you going to tell me what it's all about, or do I have to ask your dad?”
Leyla didn’t get the impression that he was really interested in the story behind Gregory’s condition.
It seemed to her that he was trying a little small talk.
"He is my stepcousin and it's pretty complicated and I don’t think that you are really interested in what’s going on. Just play your silly game and let Gregory be our concern.”
He gave her an annoyed look and lost a few points in his game. “Shit,” he said, turning off the X-box.
"The fact that you brought him into this house gives me every damn right to know what happened to the freak. The old bugger usually is not home and you can’t expect Maria to look after him constantly.”
Leyla gave him an elusive look.
“You and your dad seem to get along extremely well, that you have to call him your old bugger. Wow, I am impressed! I am not sure if your mom would be happy about your improved vocabulary.”
He stared back at her angrily.
“No need to mention my mom. She has nothing to with it and its none of your freaking business how I talk about my father.”
Leyla's dad came out of the bathroom because he needed something from Maria hearing Shane's last angry words.
"Hey kids, be nice to each other.” He turned to Shane, “Do you know where I can find Maria?”
Shane shrugged, “She must have gone shopping. Since you're here, she will cook a huge menu for tonight.”
"Could you please help me to get Gregory out of the tub and get him something to wear?"
He stared into Shane’s repellent face and added, “I'd be really grateful and it would be a great help to me.”
Shane got up.
“Sure, I'll get him something to wear.”
He disappeared through the spiral staircase to the upper floor.
Leyla’s dad rolled his eyes, “My Goodness, Shane is really not in a good mood. Maria was not exaggerating. I must quickly get back into the bathroom before Gregory drowns in that bathtub.” He hurried away.
In the meantime, Shane came back down with sweatpants, a t-shirt and some underwear, which he handed over to Leyla’s dad. Then he sat back down on the corner couch.
Leyla got herself comfortable on the other side of the couch. Before he reached for the remote control, he looked over to her.
“How did he get poisoned? Do you want me to call a doctor?”
Leyla shook her head.
“No, no doctor can cure him. This poison can only be treated with an antidote created by the same person who produced the poison.”
Shane frowned and put his remote control back on the table.
"And what makes you think the person that poisoned him in the first place would deliver an antidote?"
He looked puzzled. Leyla’s phone started vibrating.
“Wait a second, this is Mila. She is exactly the person I need to talk to now - the one with the antidote.”
She picked up the phone.
“Hey Mila. My God, I'm glad you called. Did you get my message? Ok then, the others
know what happened. My dad and I took him to a safe place. It's better if only you know where he is. What about the antidote?
Yes, he's still kind of spaced out and doesn’t know who he is. What? Ok, but then try to work fast before he is dying. By the way, you said, the poison is lethal? Ok, yes, that’s possible. Ok see you.”
She hung up and seemed to have forgotten about Shane’s presence.
He cleared his throat.
“Was that Mila Jovovich of Resident Evil?”
Leyla looked at him blankly, and he shrugged.
“Well, there is only one Mila I know and she is damn hot. However, as far as I know she didn’t operate with poison. She killed her enemies through other methods.”
Leyla frowned. For a moment she didn’t know what he was talking about. Then she realized the idiot was talking about a character of a stupid movie.
"Oh yes, I know who you are taking about. But isn’t she a bit old for you? And for the record, no, it wasn’t Mila Jovovich on the phone.”
For the first time since they arrived, Shane seemed to be amused. He grinned.
“Well, I don’t care, she is hot, and she will still be hot even when she becomes ninety years old.”
Leyla couldn’t help smiling. Somewhere deep inside, he was still the old Shane.
“Is your Mila, I mean the one with the poison hot?”
"I think she is very pretty, but I am not a guy and I don’t know exactly what you mean by hot. Is it the face? The body? Who knows what guys really see in a girl? It will be best if you make up your mind yourself when she drops in. That means, if she manages to find some antidotes until then. She can’t come during the week. We have to be careful and make sure that nobody follows her. We don’t want the Vultures to become any more suspicious than they already are. So I suppose you wash your hair on Friday and try to be nice and friendly, if you want to charm her.”
She gave him an amused look but he ignored the bait.
“Don’t worry I am working on it, and who the hell are the Vultures, a basketball team?”
He reached for the remote control.
Leyla laughed aloudat the idea ofthe Vultures as a basketball team.
Her dad came into the parlor with Gregory, who had apparently come to his senses. Leyla was overwhelmed with incredible relief. He looked like nothing had ever happened. His blue eyes sparkled as their eyes met.
He said only one word:
“Lela.”
Approaching her quickly, he took her hands and pulled her into a big hug. She buried her face into his shirt. He held her close with a firm grip, incredibly strong for someone who had been laying half-dead a short time ago in the back seat of the van. Yet she enjoyed every second of this hug and was aware that he might as well be dead. He smelled of soap and Gregory. Leyla wished that time would stand still forever at that very moment. She thought about Mila, Aiden, and all the others that she would call and give them the good news, when suddenly a jolt seemed to go through his body. He pulled away and looked at her, as if she was a stranger. He had a puzzled look on his face, as if he didn’t recognize any of them.
His gaze fell on Shane and he narrowed his eyes ready to defend himself.
His eyes were darker in color now and had gone blank, as if a light had been switched off.
He apparently was in panic, frantically staring at them, with darting eyes which wandered from one to another.
He looked over his shoulder as if he was being followed.
"Where am I? Who are you? What do you want from me?”
He stepped back and tried to get away backward escaping through the patio door, which was wide open. As luck would have it, Maria was just back from the grocery store, getting in from the terrace, carrying a basket of vegetables in her arms. She dropped the basket and steered him back into the living room.
A torrent of Spanish hailed down on him and in no time, he was back in the house. Leyla's father spoke soothingly to Gregory. Maria had been pushing him onto the couch and he was sitting there utterly tied in knots like a lamb waiting for the butcher. They tried to explain to him with united forces what had happened, but he looked at them blankly and only shook his head in despair. It was quite clear that he was hallucinating and completely paranoid. After a while, he calmed down a bit and his poise was not as tense as before.
He was sitting on the sofa staring into space.
Shane had been watching silently, but now he thought that he might have an idea how they would be able to improve Gregory’s condition until the antidote arrived.
“Guys, my shrink Dr. Plum gave me some kind of sedative pills when I had totally lost it after mom’s accident. We should give him some of those pills to calm him down. That stuff really works. When I took those pills, I really didn’t give a shit anymore about what was going on around me. They take off the edge if you know what I mean.”
Leyla and her dad stared at him, as if he suddenly had grown two heads. He quickly continued to talk convincingly.
“The fear and the despair are temporarily suppressed. Don’t look at me like that. It may not be a perfect solution to the problem, but it is certainly better than the condition he is in.”
They all looked at Gregory, who was still sitting totally tense on the couch with darting eyes, as if he was going to be attacked at any moment.
“Maybe he's right,” Leyla’s dad said. “Do you still have those pills? I mean are you still taking them?”
Shane laughed aloud and that laughter had once made him so unique. The heartiest laugh that one could imagine.
“No, I would never take them again. Better to bear the pain than to veg out like a limp vegetable. Yet I think for him it would make sense to get at ease until this Mila character shows up, I mean.”
He jumped up from the sofa, which made Gregory cringe tensely. “Believe me, he needs that stuff urgently. I'll be right back.”
In the meantime, you can think through how you are going to make him swallow the pills, as I don’t think he'll take them willingly.”
Maria placed herself between Leyla and her dad putting a soothing hand on their back.
“I'll take care of it, you don’t have to worry. Non te preocupses, todo esta bien. He does like soup your Gregory, does he?”
They looked at each other somehow puzzled and shrugged simultaneously.
“I don’t know Maria, I've never seen him eat soup to be honest,” Leyla said.
"He will like it, non te preocupes.”
With these words, she disappeared into the kitchen.
“Well then, let's hope for the best,” Leyla's dad said full of doubts. Meanwhile, Shane had reappeared on the stairs, taking two steps at a time. He whirled down the steps and threw himself on the couch.
He seemed quite content, as the attention was on someone else and not on him for once.
“Here.”
He threw a small plastic bag containing three small pills in different colors on the table.
“Maybe you can tell him that these are candies, they are pretty much tasteless.”
He picked up the bag and waved it in front of Gregory's face as if he were a dog.
“Look delicious sweets.”
Gregory stared at the bag with big worried eyes, as if it could explode at any moment. His poise was tense and he looked as if he was going to try to escape again. Leyla glared angrily at Shane putting her hand soothingly on Gregory’s shoulder.
"Have you gone nuts? Are you trying to scare him or what?”
Shane looked offended, “And then they always say that sweets make kids happy.”
He snatched the bag again.
“I’ll bring them to Maria. She is experienced in feeding fruit cakes like me.”
Grinning, he disappeared into the kitchen.
Leyla really hoped that it would go well. She laid her hand soothingly on Gregory’s arm, who now was staring silently into a corner again. Unfortunately, things didn’t work out as intended and Gregory resisted the soup as if th
ey were actually about to kill him. He tried to flee, with an expression on his face, as if the devil himself was after him.
Leyla's dad and Shane had to hold him with all their strength to enable Maria force him to swallow the soup containing the pills. Leyla couldn’t stand it any longer. He seemed like a wounded animal being hunted down. She left the house and got into the van. No, she could not stay here any longer seeing him like that. The fear that he would remain forever in this state, was just too big. She flipped down the sun visor with the built-in mirror and looked at herself. What a coward you are, she said to her reflection in the mirror. My God, here she was talking to herself. What the hell was happening to her? She would not go back into the house before they had managed to sedate Gregory. She pulled out her cell phone and dialed Aiden’s number. She had to give him the two-edged information that Gregory while still alive was clearly not himself any longer and might never be again. It took a while until he answered the phone out of breath.
"Leyla, we have been….I was looking for you everywhere. Mila would not tell me where you are. I even went to your house, but there was nobody around not even your dog.”
He seemed worried.
“Where are you anyway? We are at Mila’s house. She is trying to create an antidote with her grandma. Unfortunately, the old lady was quite upset when she heard what we did. Mildly put, she is very disappointed in us. Mila’s grandma is old and fragile and the trouble Mila has created with that poison did not really help to improve her health conditions. Now Mila is feeling quite guilty. Shalin says that whatever you are sending out into the universe will come back in a seven-time fold power in the negative and positive way.”
Leyla cleared her throat.
“I am not going to say now that I had warned you about that, but one thing is certain, Gregory has got the whole nasty bashing seven fold thing and is totally apathetic and how it looks, also quite paranoid. He does not know who he is and any movement in his surroundings seems to be a threat to him. At this time, my dad, Shane and Maria are trying to sedate him and he is fighting them off like a wounded animal. I couldn’t stay and watch. That's why I left the house.”
"That must be awful for you," Aiden said, concerned.
ELEMENTARY VIRTUE: The Savior Page 17