All the World

by Vaughan, Rachel L.

  “Nickolas, your uncle is driving up the road!”

  Lexie turned to see a disheveled Braedon standing in the doorway. Nickolas looked over at him, shook his head wildly, and turned back to his mother. “Uncle Phillip killed my dad! He killed your husband! And then you marry him!”

  Braedon took several steps forward. “I can’t stall him any longer. You have to talk to him now.”

  “Make him wait!” howled Nickolas before refocusing his attention on his mother. “Uncle Phillip poisoned Dad with cyanide! I have proof! He told me!”

  “Darling, what did Phillip tell you?” Audrey asked shakily, her face lined with terror and sorrow.

  “Nickolas, I need you to come with Lexie and me. Braedon, you should come too,” Pierre interjected. “We can all sit down and talk about what is going on. Lexie can give you an update on Flora.”

  “No!” Nickolas shouted, clawing at his ears. “Dad told me!”

  Lexie looked over at Pierre and was unsurprised to find that the man seemed to have expected Nickolas to say something about speaking with his dead father. Audrey, on the other hand, pressed her palms together as though she was about to pray and burst into tears.

  “Oh, my sweet, sweet Nickolas!” Audrey murmured from behind her fingers. “You’ve gone mad!”

  “I am not crazy! Braedon saw Dad’s spirit too! Tell her, Braedon! Tell her what we saw!”

  Braedon stared at his friend. “Nickolas…”

  “Braedon and I had just gotten back to Vernon Hills from D.C. the other night,” Nickolas barreled on. “We turned onto Crossroads Avenue and the car just died. Neither of us could get service on our phones to call for help. Then mist started rising from the ground.”

  Audrey was shaking her head and sobbing. “You thought the mist was your father! Grief can cause—”

  “It wasn’t the fog,” Braedon jumped in. “It really was him!”

  Nickolas nodded, spurred on by Braedon’s support. “Dad was standing in the middle of the road. He was even wearing his favorite leather jacket. Then he spoke to us about all of the evil deeds committed by Uncle Phillip.”

  “Your dad died,” Audrey said through sniffles. “I know you have always struggled with his death, but accusing Phillip of murder is not the way to grieve for him. Would you dishonor his memory by giving in to your fantasies? Honey, your father would never ask you to kill Phillip! Your uncle is a good man!”

  Nickolas’s fingers curled around a Venetian vase and he flung it at the ground near his mother’s feet. “Your mind is driven by lust!”

  He’s going to kill her if we don’t stop him! Lexie felt the blood pounding in her ears and her heart thumping in her chest. It was a jagged, ungainly hammering that caused nausea to roil in her stomach. Her mind was lost in a sea of panic, making her lightheaded. This has to stop! I need to sit down before I pass out! My shoulder is killing me! I can’t do this! Why did I leave the hospital? They’re going to put me in the psych ward with Flora!

  “Oh!” Lexie blinked. Her friend’s name was like a life vest in the chaotic waves of her mind. She had an idea, one that would possibly result in Nickolas turning all his rage on her. However, it would give Pierre a chance to get Audrey out of the house and more time for Braedon to deal with Dr. Lindegaard.

  Lexie, ignoring Pierre’s protests, moved to stand beside Audrey. Nickolas looked even worse from her new vantage point, and she was suddenly wondering if it would be better to call the police to restrain him. Does he even recognize me?

  “Nickolas, it’s time to stop yelling at your mother,” Lexie said as calmly as she could. I know how to deal with troubled patients. I just need to remember my training.

  He shook his head forcefully. “There is no reason to stop anymore!”

  Lexie chewed the inside of her cheek and held up the picture of her friend. “What about Flora? You remember Flora, don’t you?”

  Nickolas’s demeanor transformed just as it had in the hospital chapel when Lexie confronted him. He ran a hand over his face and the fanatical spark in his eyes faded to a dull flicker. He tentatively reached for the photograph, his gaze never leaving the image of Flora. He curled his fingers several times, signaling Lexie to give him the picture.

  Please don’t rip it up! Lexie allowed Nickolas to take the picture. He held it in both hands and ran his thumbs along the edges. He inhaled deeply and mouthed his girlfriend’s name before looking at Lexie.

  “Where is she?”

  “She’s in the psych ward at the hospital.”

  “The hospital…is it my fault? Why—”

  “What on earth happened here!”

  Lexie jumped and spun around to see Dr. Lindegaard rushing forward. He pushed Lexie out of his way and reached for his wife. Audrey allowed herself to be pulled into his arms, but her eyes stayed focused on Nickolas, who was now pacing and pulling angrily at his hair.

  Pierre cleared his throat. “Lexie and I came by to pick up Nickolas. We are all going to visit Flora.”

  “Nickolas needs help,” Audrey told her husband through sobs. “He’s seeing things and hearing voices! He’s saying terrible things! His father’s death has driven him to insanity!”

  Dr. Lindegaard squeezed Audrey’s arm and looked sadly at his stepson. “This is all my fault. I love Nickolas so much that I failed to see how unstable he has become! Madness in great ones should not go unwatched or untreated! I should have tried a more intense treatment plan!”

  “We can take Nickolas to the hospital,” Lexie said quickly, following Pierre’s lead. “Flora is in the psych ward. Maybe you can call ahead—”

  “You don’t love me!” Nickolas roared, pushing over an end table.

  “Audrey, leave the room and call the hospital,” Dr. Lindegaard ordered firmly.

  Mrs. Lindegaard nodded and bolted from the room, nearly knocking Braedon into the wall. Pierre hurried after her, babbling about how it was a bad idea to bring more people to the house. Lexie breathed in deeply, bracing herself for the terrible confrontation between Nickolas and Dr. Lindegaard.

  “I never thought I’d see something like this,” Lexie muttered, watching the men stare at each other.

  “Nor I,” Braedon said as he took his place at her side.

  “Your recent behavior has greatly upset your mother,” Dr. Lindegaard said in a serene, quiet voice. “I think it is best for you to stay a few nights at the hospital. You will be near Flora, and it will give Audrey and me some time to recover from this…altercation. I only want you to be well, son.”

  Nickolas clenched his hands into fists at his sides. “I’m your nephew.”

  Dr. Lindegaard regarded Nickolas for a moment, and Lexie saw a menacing gleam in his eyes. “You are both my nephew and my son.”

  “And you are an incestuous, deceitful murderer!”

  “Nickolas, you and I have already discussed my relationship with your mother. Audrey and I have had feelings for each other for years. I know this is difficult to hear, but she should have married me in the first place.”

  Nickolas looked like a wilting flower as all the grit dwindled from his body. He unclenched his fists, and all the tension went out of his arms and shoulders. Dr. Lindegaard slowly approached his nephew and placed his hands on either side of his face. Nickolas tried to flinch away, but his uncle held him firmly.

  “However, one good thing did come from their marriage, and it is standing before me right now. I truly want us to be a happy family, so go to the hospital and get help. Your mother and I will be there as soon as we can.” Dr. Lindegaard kissed Nickolas’s forehead as a father would a small child.

  This poor, screwed up family! Lexie jumped when she heard ambulance sirens. They got here fast.

  “Braedon, go with Nickolas to the hospital,” Dr. Lindegaard instructed as he let go of Nickolas.

  “Yes, sir,” Braedon said, and Lexie swore there was a slightly sarcastic undertone in his voice.

  It was a sad sight watching Braedon lead Nickolas out of the
house. Neither man looked pleased with their current predicament, but there was little they could do under the shrewd eyes of Dr. Lindegaard. Lexie sighed and started to follow her friends, but a hand on her shoulder stopped her. She turned to see her boss studying her with a weary expression.

  “I truly am sorry about the car crash,” Dr. Lindegaard said. “Nickolas loved that car. I never thought he would allow someone else to drive it unless he was sitting in the passenger seat.”

  Lexie swallowed and her voice shook when she spoke. “The other car hit the passenger side. Nickolas would have died if he had been in that seat.”

  “Well, thank heavens he wasn’t in the car,” Dr. Lindegaard muttered before leaving the room.

  Lexie watched him walk out the door, and, in that moment, she was certain Phillip Lindegaard had orchestrated the car crash in an attempt to kill his nephew.

  Chapter Ten: A Fractured Conscience

  “Dr. Lindegaard planned the car accident,” Lexie insisted as she and Pierre sat in the car at a red light. “He thought Nickolas was in the car with me. Everyone is in danger, just like you warned at the hospital.”

  “If Phillip is as determined as Claudius, Nickolas is in a very grave position. The unfortunate issue with Phillip is—”

  “He’s a real person,” Lexie interjected.

  Pierre hit the acceleration pedal so hard, Lexie’s head was thrown back against the seat. “Yes, that is true, but I was going to say that Phillip is sloppy. He did not get his fact straight, resulting in two deaths.”

  Lexie shifted guiltily in her seat. Despite the horrific acts committed by the corrupt men, Lexie felt responsible for their fates. She knew it was a ridiculous notion, but she found it difficult to purge away her contrition.

  Pierre sighed. “You did not cause the demise of Sig and Gilbert. That sin is on Phillip Lindegaard. One could argue that Claudius was the reason Rosencrantz and Guildenstern died in Hamlet. He sent them to watch Hamlet. Such is the case with Phillip, Nickolas, Sig, and Gilbert.”

  “That doesn’t make me feel any better. We are talking about actual people, not characters in a play,” Lexie grumbled.

  “Well, perhaps we can prevent more tragedy.”

  Lexie thought back to the first time she had met Pierre. He had given the impression of a tragic actor who wallowed in self-pity. It was odd that he was now the one trying to find a ray of light in the dark storm.

  “You mean by finding the key?” she asked.

  The buoyancy in Pierre quickly faded. “We have no clue where it is! I spoke to people in Stratford-Upon-Avon, and they have not had any Shakespearian artifacts given to them recently. I doubted they would, but I needed to be certain.”

  “So, we have to protect everyone in Vernon Hills? If I recall, almost all of Shakespeare’s plays end badly. How do we help every single person? The police will laugh if we tell them what’s going on. I guarantee we would be sent to the psych ward, and I don’t want to be locked up.”

  A muscle tightened in Pierre’s jaw, a sign that panic was beginning to take hold. “We cannot protect everyone. People have already died, and their deaths are on me. I am to blame, for my carelessness awoke the curse. My hands are as red as those of Lady Macbeth!”

  “Okay, stop with the theatrics,” Lexie demanded. “What are we going to do at the hospital? We have to do more than sit around Flora’s bedside and visit Nickolas.”

  Pierre was silent as he parked the car in the visitor lot near the emergency room. “We have to keep Nickolas and Flora alive. They are your friends, so let’s focus on them right now. We know the characters they represent and neither of us want them to succumb to the fates of Hamlet and Ophelia.”

  Lexie smiled sadly and squeezed Pierre’s arm. “Thank you.”

  ***

  Lexie paced in the hospital lobby, pausing briefly in front of the gift shop to gawk at an odd looking stuffed giraffe wearing a blue bonnet and a bib reading “It’s a Boy” in bold letters. She felt Pierre’s eyes on her, but she didn’t look at him.

  I look terrible! She caught a glimpse of her reflection in the windows of the gift shop. Locks of dark hair were falling out of her tangled ponytail, and her face was ashen apart from the bruises on her chin and jaw. Her arms, dappled with cuts and bruises, hung limply at her sides. The yellow visitor sticker on her shirt was the brightest thing on her.

  “Go see Flora,” Pierre ordered bluntly.

  She stopped pacing. “What?”

  Pierre ran a hand through his hair. “Go visit Flora. I’ll wait here and keep an eye out for Nickolas, Braedon, Phillip, or Audrey. You need to sit down, and I bet you will do more sitting if you’re with your friend. I’ll come get you as soon as I learn anything.”

  They had called ahead to make sure visitors were allowed to see Flora. After having their ID’s checked, Lexie and Pierre were given her room information.

  Lexie’s feet sounded like the tick-tock of a clock as they tapped lightly on the sterilized tile of the hospital floor. How much time was left on the clock until Vernon Hills was completely destroyed by chaos?

  Lexie found Flora sedated with a dreary expression on her pale face. A nurse with a heart-shaped face was taking her pulse. She smiled when Lexie entered the room.

  “Can I sit with her?” asked Lexie.

  “Of course, my dear,” the nurse replied, “but she’s sedated right now. Unfortunately, we’ve had to keep her sedated for most of her stay.”

  “Why?”

  The nurse swung her stethoscope around her neck and looked down at Flora. “Odd things set her off, and she gets violent. I brought in her dinner last night, and she was eating fine until I gave her a cup of water. She poured the water on her head, threw the cup at me, and said she needed more water. She started those riddles about flowers today after a man brought her a vase of lilies. Her condition is very…unique. Tell me if you need anything.”

  Lexie nodded at the nurse as she left, and then walked over to the vase of flowers carefully placed on a table where Flora could not reach them. The flowers were beautiful and appeared to be very expensive. They looked like something Nickolas would send, but Lexie knew that was impossible.

  “Who gave them to you, Flora?” Lexie murmured, opening the small card attached to the cream and dusky rose vase.

  To Ms. Brookes:

  A speedy recovery for a sweet lady.

  I wish you the best of luck rising from the restless water you are in.

  From Mr. Garland

  The card tumbled from Lexie’s fingers, hitting the floor with a soft hiss.

  Is all of this Cesare’s fault? Did he cause all the craziness in Vernon Hills?

  Garland Corporation had torn down the Stratford Theatre. More importantly, Cesare had done it without the approval of his father and the board members. Cesare wasn’t very knowledgeable about theatre, and Lexie doubted he would be interested in a fable about Shakespeare. However, he was quite well versed in causing panic and hurt.

  “Nickolas is having an evaluation right now. Phillip and Audrey asked Braedon to wait in the lobby, so he told me what was happening.”

  Pierre’s voice startled Lexie, and she turned to face him. “I think Cesare Garland has the key.”

  Pierre clasped his hands in front of him and pressed his lips together. “Do you have proof? What makes you think he has it?”

  Lexie unceremoniously kicked the card to Pierre. “He visited Flora. He tore down the theatre and refused to allow you to go back and look for your key. Did you sign the land over to Garland Corporation or Cesare Garland?”

  “Oddly enough, the ownership papers are in Cesare’s name, not the company’s. He owns the land, not Garland Corporation.” Pierre picked up the card and read it quickly. “What would he gain? He’s a cruel man, but what would he get out of turning a town into a Shakespearian play? I get the impression that he doesn’t truly understand the beauty of theatre. Why would he do this?”

  Lexie rolled her eyes. “I don’t know.
Maybe he wants to tear down Vernon Hills completely for his research lab. We don’t have proof, so there isn’t anything we can do. Cesare knows how to cover his tracks.”

  “I have the number to his office in Benton Junction saved in my phone. Maybe we could talk to him again,” suggested Pierre.

  Lexie stifled a laugh. “Do you remember how well things went last time we tried talking to him?”

  Pierre pulled out his phone. “This time we know more than he thinks, and we can ask him to come to us. Maybe the chaos will scare him into telling us the truth.”

  “I doubt it, but we can try,” Lexie said with a shrug. She took the phone from Pierre and left the room.

  Lexie hit the send button as soon as she found an area designated for cell phone use. “Okay, let’s try this again.”

  “Garland Corporation. This is Emily speaking from Mr. Cesare Garland’s office.”

  Lexie put on a high voice filled with false cheerfulness. “Hello, I need to speak with Mr. Garland regarding the lab in Vernon Hills. Is he in his office right now?”

  “I’m afraid he’s in a meeting outside the office at the moment. Can I take a message?”

  “Oh, well, I really need to speak directly to Mr. Garland as soon as possible. When will he be back?”

  There was a moment of hesitation from Emily. “Well, like I said he’s in a meeting outside of the office. You are calling about Vernon Hills?”

  “Yes. There are some details about…about the timeline of construction that aren’t very clear in the contract,” Lexie fumbled for a reason to get specifics about Cesare’s whereabouts.

  “I believe those details are what he and the mayor are discussing at this time. I can try him on his cell if this is truly an emergency. However, he will be most displeased to be interrupted.”

  “If he’s in Vernon Hills, I can catch him before he leaves. Thank you so much for your help. Goodbye!” Lexie spoke quickly and hung up before the secretary could say another word.

  I wonder if the mayor has changed into a character yet. How will Cesare negotiate with a man confused about his identity?