Too Perfect
Anita
finished securing the strips of blanket around Brian’s leg. The bleeding
had finally stopped. For awhile I had been sure he was going to shed
blood forever. It was all over Anita, the floor and I. Rick and
Jeff gently laid him on one of the couches. A.J., Anita and I sat on the
other. His skin was so pale. I turned to Anita.
“Is
he going to make it?” I asked her.
She
looked down, as if she were unable to meet my eyes.
“I
don’t know,” she replied shakily. “He lost so much blood. I’m sorry
Lisa I just don’t know.”
Tears
filled both of our eyes. I couldn’t lose him. The rest of the day
we sat there on that couch simply waiting. Waiting to be found, waiting
to be let free, waiting to be killed. Waiting
for any finality to the situation. They fed us a little for lunch but no
where near enough. And with each passing moment there was a less and less
chance that Brian would survive. The sun began to set once again.
“We
have to do something,” A.J. muttered under his breath.
It
was the first time that he had talked the entire day.
“What
do you mean?” I asked him.
“We
have to escape.”
“You’re
kidding right?” Anita said. “This isn’t some kidnapping movie. We
can’t just get up and walk out.”
She
did have a point. This wasn’t
“I
am not going to sit here any longer while one of my best friends dies right in
front of my eyes. We have to take the chance.”
I
felt even more confused about A.J. than I had before. The A.J. of a
couple of hours ago had no hope in him whatsoever and now he wanted to try and
escape. I was beginning to think that he was nuts.
“A.J.
what in the hell are we going to do?” I muttered. “We’d probably die trying
anything.”
“Do
you want to lose Brian?” he asked matter-of-factly.
Pain
stabbed my heart, the thought of it happening hurt so much.
“No,”
I stated.
“Then
we have to do something. Because if we don’t he will.”
I
knew in the bottom of my heart that he was right. I was willing to try
anything he had to propose.
“I’m
in,” I said and then looked at Anita.
She
still looked skeptical, but she nodded her head. “Me too.”
Almost
as if on cue Jeff got up and announced that he was leaving. Something
about that Paul should have been back already and having to check the stash.
“Can
you handle them?” he asked Rick.
“Easily,”
he replied.
"Over
confident bastard," I thought.
We’d
show him. Jeff left and Rick sat at the table glaring at all of us.
A.J. whispered his plan to both of us. I was actually impressed. It
might just work. He proposed that I would all of a sudden go into an
epileptic seizure. And in the confusion Anita or A.J. would knock Rick
out with the lamp. But it wouldn’t be all of a sudden. I’d start
complaining that I didn’t have my medicine and in about half an hour I’d start
my act. And it would be so easy. I occasionally took part in
Community Theater and I’d recently played the part of an epileptic. I’d
studied their seizures to make my act as realistic as possible. Rick
would never know the difference. It would be extremely dangerous and
heaven knows if we would live through it. But we had no other
choice. Brian had risked his life for me and I was prepared to risk mine
for him. Almost immediately we set to work.
“Anita,”
I mumbled loud enough for Rick to hear. “I don’t know how much longer I can go
without my medicine.”
Rick
sat upright in his chair.
“What
do you mean?” he asked me his eyes narrowing.
He
was of course going to suspect something.
“Nothing,”
I muttered.
“What
do you need medicine for?” he asked raising the gun.
My
fear was real. I gulped.
“Well
for my seizures,” I said shaking a little.
What
if he shot me when I went into convulsions or something. I slipped a
silent prayer to God for our safety.
“Is
this some kind of joke?” he said harshly.
“Epilepsy
isn’t a joke,” I said faking anger.
People
did tend to be prejudice against epileptics. He looked at my face for any
sign of lying.
“And
you don’t have any medicine?”
“Does
it look like it?” A.J. said sarcastically.
“Watch
it smart ass!” Rick said to him and sat back down at the table unable to do
anything.
I
sat nervously awaiting the time that my act would begin.
***
