Do Not Call

by Julian Folk

Ayelet steps inside. She sees something. The distress of her reaction affects Connor. He fears he’ll faint when he sees it.

  “Marcello, what’re you doing here?” Ayelet asks.

  Marcello?

  Connor lays his eyes on a face at once familiar and alien, gorgeous…but ghastly. Ghastly in the totality of its metamorphosis. He identifies the man by the brown of his eyes and the zeal native to them. The rest of the face nauseates: eye lift, cheek implants, filler, chin implant and cleft, lip job, nose job. Not to mention bodily swollenness, inflated muscles and enlarged bones due to steroids and growth hormone.

  The man changed. Underwent a personal revolution of the worst kind. He’s bigger, badder, crazier.

  That’s why he took a new name.

  Connor rages:

  “You’ve been fucking Eric Rice!”

  Ayelet reflexively turns her hands up:

  “….oops.”

  “YOU FUCKING BITCH!”

  Connor charges at her, but his impulse control kicks in and abruptly corrals his body, as if an invisible lasso halted his progress.

  Nearly touching her, he falls back.

  “There you go folks,” Vincent says to Val and Jeff. “Proof positive Connor’s graduated from schoolyard bully to spousal abuser.”

  Vincent bounds forward, as if to shake Connor’s hand, but not extending his. He dominates space like a man-eating tiger.

  “The name is Vincent DeSantis, Connor,” he says. “Eric Rice died at MIT. Our friend Jasper cast a spell. Eric reincarnated as me.”

  “This guy cut my balls off!” Connor shouts at his in-laws.

  “And it was the greatest thing that ever happened to me,” Vincent says. “In the hospital, I created The Way of Transformation. Thanks to the Way, I’m at my best now, the best I can be, practically formulating National Security policy for the U.S. government. You, on the other hand, kidnapped your wife and assaulted her in a parking lot.”

  Jeff nods along in agreement.

  Val shakes her head in disgust.

  “Mom, dad, this guy is insane,” Ayelet says. “Whatever-His-Name-Is stalked me. He seduced me on boat. He said his name was Marcello.”

  “He saved you,” Jeff says.

  “Connor won’t hurt you again, dear,” Val says.

  Vincent waves his hand to silence the room.

  “I tried to help you, Connor,” Vincent says. “I tried to teach you how to earn the balls you were born with. If you had followed my path, you would have succeeded like me. But you rejected my help…”

  Connor screams at Ayelet. His face inflames to the lava shade of the retro phone. Tendons bulge in his neck. Connor thrusts into her space screaming. His screams register octaves lower than ordinary screams.

  “There he goes again,” Vincent says and tackles Connor and slams him face first on the carpet, so much harder than Nikki did when they were training.

  “YOU KILLED MY BROTHER!” Connor screams. “YOU CUT HIS COCK OFF AND SHOVED IT IN HIS MOUTH!”

  Vincent grinds Connor’s head against the carpet and screams louder, as if in competition: “NO I CUT HIS COCK OFF AND HIS BALLS AND I CHOKED HIM TO DEATH ON THEM AND I TOOK A PICTURE AND I SENT IT TO EVERYONE I KNOW! HA FUCKING HA!”

  His fist smashes the swatch of carpet adjacent to Connor’s cranium.

  Why not just crush my skull and get it over with?

  Vincent rants on. Connor cries. He can’t focus. Why? The wafting of his bully’s body odor. Eric Rice’s same ripe stink.

  Connor panics into unconsciousness.

  Chapter 22

  Vincent duct tapes Connor’s forearms and ankles to the chair. “Ayelet, tell the doctor at the hospital,” Connor says. Vincent duct tapes Connor’s mouth shut and slaps his bearded cheek.

  Ayelet watches the cheek flare. She imagines the sting. She’s going to fix everything; the psycho won’t take their baby. And Jasper will pay.

  Jeff serves lemonade in tall glasses.

  “No thank you,” Ayelet says.

  A shy woman lurks under the archway. Beautiful in an eerie style, mutilated and mutated by surgeries, treatments and hormones, like a Kardashianized nerd. The chick looks hopped up on Mollie. She wears a sparkly rock on her finger. This must be Vincent’s wife. The fake 911 operator/car hacker. And her staring problem upsets Ayelet.

  Vincent places a call:

  “I’m putting this on speaker. We’ve got nothing to hide.”

  “Hello Vincent.”

  Jasper’s voice makes Ayelet feel like a dead woman playing host to a live baby.

  “Hello Jasper. You’re on speaker with Jeff and Val, Maisie, Ayelet and Connor. Connor’s pretty tied-up.”

  “As he should be,” Jasper says. “Val, Jef, it’s good to speak to you again.”

  “We value these conversations, Jasper,” Jeff says. “We’re so appreciative that your agent Nikki found our daughter and sent her back to us.”

  “By convincing them it was their idea,” Jasper says. “Nikki’s in line for a promotion, once she disposes of the others.”

  The mindfuck provokes Connor to rage against the duct tape that binds his limbs and gnash at the tape that seals his mouth. It induces semi-paralysis in Ayelet. The proposition that Nikki was working against them rings ludicrous. But Nikki trusts Jasper…

  “Nikki studied your daughter, folks. She concluded Ayelet suffers severe Battered Person’s Syndrome, with a strong Stockholm-type component. To survive the kidnapping, she adopted Mr. Yard’s delusions. Ayelet believes she and Connor are engaged in a fight against a bad guy together. She no longer understands the villain here is her husband. Years ago, Mr. Yard destroyed Eric Rice’s good name. Provoked him to do terrible things. Now, reborn as Vincent DeSantis, our boy’s an American hero.”

  Val and Jeff eat this up like dogs scarfing pizza crusts.

  Because they’ve trained their minds to believe the worst about him.

  Jeff fights tears:

  “We’re so grateful our daughter’s safe.”

  Val’s anger waxes at her own role:

  “We never stood up to Ayelet firmly enough; we let her be led astray, from the time she quit her law job. We won’t let our grandson, Vincent Jr., be led astray.”

  “I’ll call the hospital to make arrangements,” Jasper says. “Once Dr. Noon delivers the baby, a psychiatrist will attend to Ayelet’s condition.”

  “We thank you so much, sir,” Val says.

  “Thank you folks for being there,” Jasper says. “I’m sorry we nearly lost Ayelet to Connor’s depravity.”

  Vincent’s Kardashianized wife comes to life:

  “I still believe Ayelet can be fixed, Jasper!”

  “I hope so, Maisie,” Jasper says. “Do your best.”

  “What about Connor, sir?” Vincent asks.

  “Cut him loose,” Jasper says. “Trust your Program to run its course.”

  Vincent’s faith renews:

  “Yeah, every cop in the country knows what Connor did at Cracker Barrel.”

  Ayelet snarls.

  That damn employee must’ve posted the video on the internet.

  But a reasonable person couldn’t view that passionate kiss and handjob and consider it assault.

  Maisie introduces herself and shakes Ayelet’s hand with both hands and places a cloth bag containing Books I-III of The Mother of the World on Ayelet’s lap and says, “I’ll tell you how I know you if you sign my books” and kisses Ayelet’s forehead.

  Injections ballooned Maisie’s lips but they’re moist and fiery.

  “Come inside,” she says. “We’ll clean up in the guest room.”

  She helps Ayelet to her feet. Ayelet hates to leave Connor but the situation overwhelms her. Baby is restless. He’s going to pry his way out.

  Maisie lays a hand on Ayelet’s belly. Tender touch. Real affection.

  “Contractions,” Maisie says. “Vincent Jr.’s coming.”

  Ayelet wishes she had opted for the home birth in Vermont.
>
  “Are you ready to go to the hospital?” Val asks.

  “Let me take a shower,” Ayelet says.

  “We’ll take one together,” Maisie says.

  Ayelet laughs but reins in her objections. Maisie holds her hand and walks Ayelet to the guest bedroom. A pen on the desk. Ayelet takes it. She wants to stab Maisie in the neck but must give birth first.

  “What’s the inscription?” Ayelet asks.

  “For Maisie, I’m sorry I didn’t notice you in college, but I’m thrilled to see you’re at the top of your game now, and I congratulate you on making so many awesome improvements in your life.”

  Suppressing a smirk, the author inscribes Book I.

  “What about the others?” Ayelet asks.

  “Oh, Book II is, ‘For Vincent, The sex was amazeballs. I’m so thankful Maisie shared you.’ ”

  Ayelet labors to finish.

  “I hope the third one isn’t insane,” she says.

  “ ‘For Officer Rice, I’m so sorry for the hell my husband Connor has subjected us to. I’m so thrilled he will be held to account for his crimes.’ ”

  She issues Maisie a fake smile.

  Maisie hugs her from the side, avoiding the distended belly.

  “We lived across the hall freshman year,” Maisie says. “I was a computer science nerd. Extreme loser. You were practically a celebrity to us.” Ayelet has no recollection. “We worshiped the ground you walked on, in your flip flops. We losers got together and talked about the cool things happening in your life. ‘Did Ayelet come home last night?’ ‘Who’s she sleeping with now?’ ‘Is she the hottest lesbian on campus or is it Addison Simmons?’ That kind of thing. I knew when I transformed myself into the person I am today we’d be friends. Vincent came into my life and taught me The Way of Transformation. ‘Radical alchemy,’ he calls it. I knew his approach was for me. I knew Vincent was for me. I knew in due time I’d improve myself to the point that I earned his love. Then I did. Now”—Maisie wiggles her finger to accentuate the sparkling of the diamond—“I’m one of the cool kids.”

  She hugs Ayelet and cries on her shoulder.

  Ayelet kisses Maisie’s hair:

  “Um, I gotta give birth.”

  “Sorry, A,” she says. “I’m sorry I dropped this on you. I know none of this’s about me. I’ll do better. When Vincent gives me a second chance, I always excel. Let’s clean you up.”

  She hugs Ayelet again from the side. Maise’s warmth and affection comfort her. This woman horrifies Ayelet less than her parents, or Vincent, or Jasper. Still, Maisie has helped to weaponize Vincent’s violent propensities and weaponized them in the worst way—as an illegal, immoral Black Ops counterterrorism program.

  Why doesn’t Ayelet remember her?

  Maisie takes Ayelet’s hand and leads her to the bathroom.

  “We’re gonna be such good parents,” Maisie says. “Vincent Jr. is the luckiest baby. He has a mother, a father, and another mother!” Ayelet nods along. “We’ve interviewed tons of three parent families, A. Three is superior to two. Trust me.”

  Maisie twists the handle, calibrates flow and temperature.

  “I know you love hot showers,” she says. “I’ve watched you take so many with Vincent. Sorry for the spying. You mind if I undress you?”

  Ayelet shakes her head.

  Maisie removes each piece of clothing like it’s sacred and kisses the skin underneath.

  “You’re so gorgeous, A…”

  Ayelet crashes onto the toilet and pees.

  “Wow. You really had to go…” Maisie says.

  She undresses herself.

  Created by nature, crafted by science, Maisie’s body is a piece of art. Kinda like Nikki’s, but shaped by doctors and physical trainers. Veins bulge on her abs. Her boobs are bolted-on. Her ass might be, too. This body would slay in a fitness athlete competition.

  “Do you want to have sex?” Maisie asks.

  “Yeah but my water broke,” Ayelet says.

  She steps deeper into Maisie’s space, leans in, kisses her, remembering one of the principles Nikki instilled in Connor during his training:

  Resist by not resisting.

  She needs to gain Maisie’s trust.

  The woman kisses exquisitely. She washes Ayelet in the shower and re-tells her life story. Maisie’s streamlined nose fascinates Ayelet. How many operations has she had? Cheek implants, chin implants and a major bow lift. What wild eyes.

  The shower head in the cabin dribbled tepidly on Ayelet.

  This one kneads the flesh.

  The wash cloth scrubbing her back feels so good.

  What if this woman has what Vincent accuses Ayelet of having: battered person syndrome, sprinkled with Stockholm?

  Ayelet believes Maisie might be fixable.

  Hours ago, Val purchased a bunch of maternity clothes.

  Maisie dresses Ayelet. The contractions restart. They strike with a feeling of finality. Ayelet’s aversion to bringing her child into the world in bad circumstances hasn’t lifted. But Connor Jr., cramped in the womb, ready to poke his head out, will take his chances.

  Anxiety dizzies Ayelet as Maisie leads her back to the living room. Ayelet wants to see Connor, make sure he wasn’t physically hurt, but she does not want to see Vincent, nor does she want to see her parents.

  She wishes it was just she and Maisie right now. At least ’til Connor Jr.’s born.

  Connor’s still duct-taped to his chair. Face contorted in an absolutely mad expression. Val and Jeff sit on the edge of the sofa, the smuggest people on the planet. Vincent paces, an iPad in his hands.

  Discerning the scrawny nerd under the plastic surgery and steroid muscles is tough but doable. Ayelet wishes she had been able to do it on the cruise. The horrible things Vincent asked her to say against Connor in their lovemaking come back now.

  How twisted, how perverse.

  “Hey Ayelet,” Vincent says. “So glad you could join us. Please sit down.”

  “I have a baby to push out,” she says.

  “Say hi to Dad,” Vincent says.

  His father, Officer Rice, emerges from nowhere, hugs Ayelet and shakes her hand. The eyes are the same as Vincent’s. Passion inheres in them, and intensity, and seriousness of purpose and self-confidence. Indeed, too much of each quality.

  The Rice’s look is one of insane seriousness.

  The contractions come fast. Ayelet touches the bottom of her belly. Final stage of Baby’s jailbreak...

  A thought occurs to Vincent: “Oh, Connor, I forgot to show you.” He opens a photo on the iPad. “Fucking E.J., crushed by a dead elephant, bullet in his head. Courtesy of some nasty poachers in Gabon.”

  “It’s a shame 110 elephants had to lose their lives for one bully to be taken out,” Maisie says. “We regret the loss of elephant life. I mourn them.”

  Paying poachers to kill an innocent activist… The hideousness of these people nauseates Ayelet again. How manipulative was it of Maisie to take a shower with her when she was so vulnerable…

  Connor stares at his wife and cries. He’s sorry for lashing out when he found out Vincent/Marcello/Eric was one person. She knows. He’s desperate for her to flip out and denounce Vincent and Maisie and disown her parents. She knows. But she has to give birth safely and protect their son’s life.

  “I need to go to the hospital,” Ayelet says. The hope in Connor’s eyes goes extinct. “I’ll hire a lawyer afterward, Babe.”

  His head sags. His body sinks. His forearms and ankles pull on the duct tape. He looks crucified in his chair.

  “We’d like to let Connor say goodbye, dear,” Val says, “but his goodbye would involve more manipulation.”

  “You have a syndrome, Ayelet,” Jeff says. “Officer Rice has seen it many times.”

  The huge man kneels beside her. He was pacing, too, like his son had been. He fell to his knee abruptly. The insane seriousness in his eyes terrifies her.

  “You think it’s your fault, Ayelet, just like
my Vincent did, when Connor destroyed his good name. You think you’re responsible, when Connor is. You’re afraid for your life. You’re afraid for the life of your baby, Vincent Jr. You’re afraid for the lives of your parents and friends. You believe Connor is just around every corner, and will be for the rest of your life. Well, no. Jasper authorized Vincent and Maisie to test a revolutionary counterterrorism program on Connor. Works every time. Jasper’s letting the Program finish its job. We’ll protect you in the meantime.”

  Ayelet points her finger at Val:

  “Take me to the hospital. NOW.”

  Val and Jeff hop to their feet.

  “Come on, dear,” Val says.

  Maisie locks onto Ayelet’s arm and pulls her forward. Val, Jeff and Vincent are out the door.

  To make her life easier, Ayelet avoids eye contact with Connor.

  About to rip the tape off, Officer Rice says, “Connor Yard, you are wanted for the kidnapping of your wife Ayelet Martin in the state of Massachusetts, and her unlawful imprisonment in the state of Vermont—”

  Vincent slams the door.

  To sustain herself, Ayelet pictures baby pandas at play.

  By the elevator bank, she hears the rip of duct tape. Connor shrieks her name. Officer Rice roars above the shrieks.

  Chapter 23

  Northeast Kingdom

  Waiting for Jasper to relay the next location, the hideaways eat breakfast together, Nikki and Melody on one side, hips touching, Jimmy and Jan on the other, lost in the taste of sausage, egg and cheese sandwiches.

  “Hmm,” Jimmy says. “Funny picture.”

  He shuts his eyes and opens them, right then left, shuts them and opens again, left then right.

  Bored, Nikki tunes out, ruminating on Robert:

  The man she loves is dead. Robert was devoted to his job, his wife and kids, his girlfriend, and in the end, to his brother and sister-in-law. She loved a man who gave his life for her. For his family. For those he loved. And Ayelet.

  The truth, which plugs a hole in Nikki’s heart, should be Robert’s epitaph:

  He was happy to give his life for those he loved.

  She knows he didn’t think twice.