The Love Resort

by Faith Bleasdale

  The doctor arrived and went straight to Anne-Marie. Ed paced the living room, waiting for her to return. Lily and Harriet went outside.

  ‘You’d think he still loves her, the way he’s behaving,’ Lily said. She felt like crying; like she’d lost him.

  ‘What?’

  ‘You know, as soon as Todd and Katie left we were going to leave too. We were going to start our new life together and, you know what, we’d have been guilt free. The way she’s treated us, we wouldn’t have had one moment of worry about her. But now she’s turned into a dribbling idiot, we will be guilty, and I bet you that Ed won’t leave her.’

  ‘Right.’

  ‘Oh, what am I going to do?’

  Lily looked at Harriet imploringly; Harriet looked a little scared.

  *

  ‘Mr Smith?’

  ‘Please, call me Ed.’

  ‘OK, well, your wife’s condition is unchanged, although it’s still early days. The psychiatrist will be along later, for an evaluation. To be frank, I am expecting him to want to section your wife.’

  ‘Well, if that’s for the best...’ Ed felt sick at the enormity of what he was hearing.

  ‘She’s very sick, and in these cases, the patient either snaps out of it quickly, or it takes a long healing process. You have to face the possibility that your wife might not ever fully recover.’

  ‘Jesus.’ Ed thought of her, her vibrancy, her demands, her shouting and swearing and terrorising everyone. He couldn’t help but feel sad for her, despite everything. However, he did need to know what this meant for him and Lily. He hated himself for his selfishness but just because Anne-Marie was ill, didn’t mean he had to stay with her. Did it? He felt as if he was being weighed down with boulders.

  ‘You have control, Ed. I think it’s important that you know that. If she’s sectioned, then you will have to sign a consent form, otherwise we might have to forcefully do so.’

  ‘Look, if that’s the conclusion you come to, then I won’t stand in your way. I want what’s best for my wife.’ He had a feeling that whatever that was, wasn’t going to be best for him.

  ‘Of course you do.’ The doctor smiled sympathetically, and Ed felt pathetically grateful that he didn’t know the full extent of what was going on.

  *

  ‘He told us not to see her, to leave her alone for now,’ Ed said, once the psychiatrist had gone. He had also told Ed that the next twenty-four hours were crucial. After that, the next course of action would be taken.

  ‘Did you tell him we’re missing eight people?’ Harriet asked, slightly hysterically.

  ‘Yes, and he said that the only thing we could do was to call the police, who wouldn’t be able to get anything out of her. If you want the police involved, then I will call them. Oh God…’ Ed put his head in his hands; Lily felt sorry for him. She shot Harriet a sharp look.

  ‘Sorry,’ Harriet said.

  ‘It’s OK. I just feel responsible. We were leaving.’ He had no idea why he was telling her that.

  ‘Lily said.’

  ‘I still want to, but you know, I can’t walk out on her with this going on. And, the thing is, that although I know it’s not rational, I blame myself.’

  ‘Which is perfectly normal, although wrong,’ Lily said.

  ‘Maybe.’

  ‘It’s not your fault.’

  ‘I agree,’ Harriet added, looking surprised at herself. ‘Look, I need to call my boss. Wish me luck. I’ve never heard of anyone being murdered over the phone, but there’s always a first time.’ Ed and Lily were both shocked when Harriet actually laughed.

  *

  Katie walked into the living room. Thea and Carla were huddled together, Jimmy was next to them. Lee had his arms around Emily and was whispering to her.

  ‘Did you sleep at all?’ she asked. They all shook their heads. Jimmy couldn’t believe that Katie Ray stood before him in her bra. She was tired, and stressed. Everything was more than freakish; he couldn’t even begin to process what was going on, what had been going on, or what would happen to them next.

  ‘Katie, how is Tim?’

  ‘He slept some, but he’s not good. Really he needs a doctor; they have pills for this sort of thing, to make it easier.’

  ‘Oh God, what are we going to do?’

  ‘I’m going to check for a way out again. There must be something,’ Jimmy said, jumping up. He was used to feeling useless but never more so than now.

  ‘I’ll help.’ Carla joined him. Jimmy didn’t hold out much hope but needed to feel they were doing something.

  ‘Can I see him?’ Thea asked, and Katie nodded.

  ‘I don’t suppose she left us any coffee?’ she asked hopefully. ‘If she did there’s no kettle,’ Emily answered apologetically.

  ‘Thea?’ Tim asked as Thea approached him.

  ‘Hi,’ she whispered. He looked awful. Grey and gaunt. Bags hanging under his eyes. He was still shaking, she noticed, as the pain of it ripped through her. He needed her help but she was useless. His hair was stuck to his head where he’d been sweating. He was really sick and she should have prevented it.

  ‘I don’t feel good.’ He tried to smile but coughed instead.

  ‘You’ve looked better too,’ Thea replied, kneeling down, and kissing his head. As her heart broke for him, she felt utterly responsible.

  ‘I’m really sick, aren’t I?’ His tone was that of a child.

  ‘Yes, Tim, you are.’ Thea said a silent prayer.

  ‘But now I can get better.’ His eyes glistened with hope.

  ‘You will get better,’ she answered, and then lay down next to him and held him. She couldn’t fix him. In acknowledging that, she felt she had at last admitted her problem.

  She told him stories from their childhood. How they used to play hide-and-seek and how whenever they were playing and their mothers called them in for tea they would hide in their best place and time how long it took for them to be found. How they would go on holiday together, always—either to Wales, with Thea’s mother, or to France, Normandy, with Tim’s. How there were so many good times: they’d learnt to ride bicycles together although Thea was much better than Tim; how they went to horse riding lessons for a while until Tim deemed it mean to the horses and refused to go. How when Thea joined the drama group, Tim, who couldn’t act and didn’t like to act, joined too to keep her company.

  There were bad times too, she told him. When his mother moved in with Steve and Steve hit her, and tried to hit Tim once, so Tim ran away. Thea’s mother sorted his mother out, and she sorted Tim out. Then there was the time when her grandfather died and she told Tim that she would die too, because she loved him more than anyone (apart from Tim). Tim stayed talking to her and made her realise that her grandfather would hate it if she did that.

  There were so many memories linking them, she told him, so many stories. And as she stroked his head, she finally knew that when she complained about her lack of family, she had one—she had one right there.

  ‘Thea, I’m sorry,’ he said, when she stopped.

  ‘It’s OK.’

  ‘No, it’s not, it’s not OK. I don’t know what it is at the moment, but when I’m better I will.’ She nodded.

  *

  ‘If we get out of here, I’m going to help him,’ Katie decided.

  ‘How?’ Todd asked.

  ‘I’m paying for him to go to the best rehab place. There’s that one back home. I know it’s full of screwed-up famous people but then I could visit him. Todd, I couldn’t help my father. This won’t make up for that, but it might help me to come to terms with it.’

  ‘And it’ll help Tim. What about Thea?’

  ‘She’s an actress. Todd; we must be able to do something for her.’

  ‘Maybe we could give her an audition. If we have any clout, that is.’

  ‘If Thea turned out to be a rubbish actress, even with the best director directing her, then that’s that. But you can at least give her a break.’

 
; ‘If I still have a career.’ Todd shuddered as he thought about how much he’d done for his precious career.

  ‘Oh, you will. We both will. After getting through this, persuading the Studio will be easy. I bet we could do it, especially now we’re friends.’

  ‘We are friends, aren’t we?’ He laughed as he thought about it.

  ‘Yes, and every girl needs a gay best friend.’

  ‘And every gay man needs a diva with great dress sense as their best friend.’

  *

  ‘It’s hopeless, Jimmy, hopeless.’ Carla tried each window in turn, while Jimmy concentrated on the door.

  ‘She’s got us secured all right.’

  ‘But she can’t leave us here for ever. When is our flight?’

  ‘I don’t know. I’ve lost track of the days. I mean, we’ve only been in here for one but it feels like more.’

  ‘I know what you mean. Are you all right?’

  ‘About Emily?’ he asked; Carla nodded. ‘Surprisingly I am. I was angry but now I’m too tired, and Lee and her—well, they seem more natural together than we did.’

  ‘I hate to say it but you’re right. I thought he was the only man I could ever love.’

  ‘Shit, you sound like one of Anne-Marie’s novels.’

  ‘You’re funny, Jimmy, really.’

  ‘I think that’s a compliment.’

  ‘You seem more confident without her.’

  ‘I hope so. As do you, without him.’

  ‘I suppose I am. Now all we need to do is fall in love and then there’s a perfect ending.’

  ‘Carla...’

  ‘I’m joking. The only thing I care about right now is getting out of here.’

  ‘It’s not that I don’t find you attractive.’

  ‘Jimmy, I don’t need you to reject me, I was joking.’

  ‘And so am I.’ His eyes twinkled and although their task was proving fruitless, they both laughed.

  *

  ‘I know we’ve only been together for a few days, although it seems like more,’ Lee began.

  He was in the kitchen with Emily and Todd. Todd looked at them, amused. It was as if they were confessing to him.

  ‘I know, but then we didn’t really get together under normal circumstances. In fact, we’ve only been on one date,’ Emily added.

  ‘Really?’ Todd asked. He wasn’t sure if he approved of what they did, but then he wasn’t really in a position to sit in judgment.

  ‘Yes, but what happens when we get out of here?’ Lee asked. Todd wasn’t sure if he was addressing him or Emily.

  ‘What do you mean?’ he asked.

  ‘I’m going to London to study and Emily lives in Devon.’

  ‘In a pub,’ Emily added.

  ‘Oh, yeah, maybe I’ll come and live with you. Sorry, bad joke.’

  ‘Oh, for God’s sake, just because Tim has a problem with drink doesn’t mean you can’t mention the pub.’

  Again, Todd wasn’t sure if they were talking to him or each other.

  ‘I guess not. Anyway, how are we going to do this?’

  ‘I suppose that I could visit you. I mean, I work in the pub but I’m on great terms with the boss.’

  ‘And if it works out then maybe you could move to London,’ Todd suggested.

  ‘With you, Lee?’ Her eyes sparkled with excitement, and Todd melted. There was something so endearing about a couple newly in love.

  ‘Well, I’m not sure, but I think so.’

  ‘In that case, I’m not sure either, but I think so too.’

  ‘Glad we’ve got that sorted,’ Todd finished.

  *

  Thea looked at Tim in horror; he was deteriorating fast. She had dozed off, after all the talking she’d done, and when she’d woken, she’d found Katie and Todd watching them, and Tim like this. The shakes were getting worse and although he drank some water, he kept vomiting it up. She rubbed her eyes.

  ‘What can we do?’

  ‘Todd,’ Katie said calmly, ‘can you take her to the other room?’ Thea looked at her, ready to object.

  ‘Believe me, you should go with Todd. I’ll take care of him. Ask Emily to come and help.’

  Todd pulled Thea to her feet and led her out. She let him; she had no strength to argue.

  ‘Hi,’ Emily walked in and sat down; Carla was with her.

  ‘Emily,’ said Katie, ‘can you keep trying to get water down him? He’s dehydrating and I think he might pass out.’

  ‘Oh God. Of course.’ Emily tipped Tim’s head up and started feeding him water.

  ‘Is there anything I can do?’ Carla asked. Katie shook her head; Carla thought she looked as if she might burst into tears.

  ‘To be honest, I have no idea what to do. I’m out of my depth. He needs proper care. Actually, could you resoak the cloths?’ Katie handed them to Carla, who went to the bathroom, grateful for something to do. She knew that the situation was serious with Tim, so much so that she hadn’t even thought about her own situation. She returned to the room and gave the cloths back to Katie.

  ‘Thanks.’

  ‘He seems to have kept some down,’ Emily said, giving him more water.

  ‘Thank God. I can’t think of anything else to do.’

  Prayer seemed fruitless.

  ‘So what’s the story with you and Tim?’ Todd asked. He and Thea were in the kitchen away from the others. Todd had renamed it the Confessional.

  ‘I’ve known him all my life. Our mothers were friends. My father walked out when I was a baby and his left when he was ten. We’ve stuck together ever since. Like brother and sister really.’

  ‘You’re not in love?’

  ‘No, don’t be silly. Tim and I could never be together. It would be like incest.’ She managed a weak laugh. ‘I really mean that. We bathed together naked as children, I know everything there is to know about him. Well, not everything.’

  ‘Why does he drink?’

  ‘That’s what I don’t know. It started to get bad when we left university. I guess he lost his structure and couldn’t cope. I worked, doing crappy extra work to pay the bills, going to auditions, classes—you name it—so I didn’t really spend much time with him. I guess that’s why I didn’t notice; I was focusing on my career, which wasn’t, isn’t, going anywhere.’

  Her guilt was nudging her.

  ‘Hey, we’ve all been there,’ Todd said kindly.

  ‘Really, even you?’

  ‘Have you seen many B-movies?’

  ‘No.’

  ‘Good, because otherwise you will have seen my worst acting. There are quite a few of them as well.’

  ‘But you made it.’

  ‘I was lucky. Then, I did work for it; I even married Katie for my career. I would have done anything. But now, it doesn’t seem as important.’

  ‘Nope. It doesn’t.’

  ‘But that doesn’t mean you should give up. You’re young and you just happened to be kidnapped with two people who can help you.’

  ‘Really? You’ll help me?’

  ‘And Tim as well. Katie wants him to go to this very good rehab place in LA.’

  ‘But it’s so far away, and I don’t have any money.’

  ‘She’s going to pay. She wants to, Thea. This is personal for her, but I’ll let her tell you. Anyway, if Tim is there, then you can be too.’

  ‘How do you mean?’

  ‘Well, we can give you a chance. If you’re good, then there must be something we can help you with. Even if my career is over, I’m fairly well connected.’ He raised his eyebrows like a lecherous old man. ‘You scratch my back and I’ll scratch yours.’

  ‘Not sure I’m your type,’ she quipped.

  ‘No, Tim is more my type than you’ll ever be.’ Enjoying the honesty of the exchange he reached over and hugged her.

  *

  ‘Can I help?’ Lee asked awkwardly, as Carla went back to the living room.

  ‘Not really,’ she replied.

  ‘Tim’s bad, isn’t
he?’ Lee looked really worried. ‘Am I to blame? I mean, I encouraged him to drink, and I drank as much as him, or I thought I did. Oh God...’

  ‘Lee, he’s sick. But we’ll get through this,’ Carla said sensibly. She wasn’t sure if she should be hugging him or hitting him, but she knew that this wasn’t the time to have another confrontation.

  ‘I’ve missed you.’ Even with Jimmy there, slumped on a crate, having given up as hopeless any attempt to find a way of breaking out, Lee was feeling confessional and contrite.

  ‘Lee...’

  ‘No, Carla, I have. We’ve been friends for three years, and I always thought of you as one of my best mates. I know the sleeping together thing wasn’t right and it also wasn’t right that I somehow led you on—’

  ‘You didn’t know,’ she cut in. She wasn’t sure where her anger had gone, but it definitely had.

  ‘I should have done.’

  ‘Yes, you should,’ Jimmy stated protectively. Carla was glad he was there. Thea had Tim to worry about, but Jimmy and Carla had a bond as a result of their cuckolded status and their broken hearts.

  ‘I know but I do care about you and now I feel as if there’s this barrier between us.’

  ‘My ex-fiancée.’

  ‘Yes, Jimmy, we’ll come to that. But, Carla, I do still want us to be friends. I’ll understand if you can’t.’

  ‘How big of you,’ Jimmy snapped.

  ‘Jimmy, it’s all right. Lee, I am mad at you but more so at myself. But I do miss you, your friendship. Perhaps we can salvage that.’ She was surprised by how easy it was to say that, although she wasn’t sure if friendship was going to happen again. Their relationship had been built on deception. She hadn’t told him how she felt, and he hadn’t acknowledged her obvious adoration of him. She didn’t know where their friendship was now, or if it even existed. But this wasn’t the time to analyse it.

  ‘Jimmy?’

  ‘We were never friends.’

  ‘True, but we were getting there, before all this happened. I thought.’ Lee looked at Carla, his eyes looking for mercy.

  ‘Jimmy, you should forgive them,’ she said simply.

  ‘Why?’ He folded his arms stubbornly.

  ‘Because right now we’ve only got each other. And Tim needs us.’

  ‘Oh, what the hell.’ Jimmy held out his hand and Lee shook it. ‘Anyway, you’re better with her than I ever was.’