I tell Vincent, the whole story about the fight, everything I just told Liam and when we’re done, Vincent keeps looking at Liam and finally I realize why he’s doing it. “Vince,” I say. “Liam’s a friend. You can trust him. He’s here to help.”
“If you say so,” Vince says but I can tell he’s not convinced. “Look. I’ll go check out the fight just text me the location. Let me think about this, and I’ll tell you what you have to do. I’ll be off now; I’ll catch you in a bit. Give my regards to Teague; tell him I’ll see him tomorrow.”
“Sure,” I say and watch as Vincent leaves.
The doctor comes out of Teague’s room and Liam and I go in. Teague is in the process of putting on his jacket but it’s impossible to do so I help him put it on and he looks at Liam. “Friend of yours?”
“That’s Liam,” I say. “I took a position in his company.”
“You got a job?” Teague asks. “Why didn’t you say something?”
“When did you give me a chance to speak?”
“I’m sorry,” Teague says. “So what’s the job?”
“I’ll tell you if you promise not to laugh,” I say, as we both head out of the room.
“I don’t think I can laugh,” Teague says and the minute he moves just a little, I can see that he’s in pain despite all the medication the doctors have given him. Liam and I have to help him to the door and then through the hallways.
“I’m going to be a model,” I say at last.
“What?” Teague says.
“Is it really that much of a crazy thought?”
He turns to Liam. “You’re serious about this thing?”
“I’m always serious about something of this magnitude,” Liam says. “Sebastian’s face is exactly what one of our clients’ was interested in.”
“Sure he’s not interested in more than your face, Pretty Boy?” Teague says, gesturing to my face. “You know the modeling world is full of molesting assholes.”
“Seriously, Teague?” My anger at Teague resurfaces. “You’re going to tell me how to be responsible now?”
Teague says nothing for a second. “Guess I deserve that.”
We somehow make it to the limo and get Teague in. Then Liam and I get in too and Steven starts driving. Teague is sitting next to me, and Liam sits across from us and opens the minibar. He takes out some whiskey and pours it for all three of us. Teague takes a pill and downs it with whiskey and I want to kick him for doing it. “You shouldn’t mix alcohol with drugs, Teague!”
“Shut up, Mom.”
The anger that I had somehow managed to keep in for this long, suddenly implodes. “You know what, Teague. I’m seriously getting tired of your shit.”
“What shit?”
“You treat me like I’m a kid, like, the whole time but you know what? You’re the baby, Teague! Because I feel like I’m constantly picking up after you! You’ve been going to these fights for a month now and it feels like an eternity! And every minute it makes me afraid of what’s going to happen next! You have me lying to everyone! Including Mia! Who is supposed to be your girlfriend, Teague! The one person you should never lie to! And if you do, then don’t ask me to cover up!”
Teague looks at me. “This is really bothering you, isn’t it?”
“Fuck Teague,” I say. “What’s bothering me, is this! What you’re doing to yourself! Can’t you see self-harming behavior when you see it? What the hell are you doing going to those stupid fights, Teague? Why would you risk your life like that?”
He goes completely silent.
“Sebastian,” Liam says. “Maybe give him a break right now. I’m sure you can discuss whatever’s bothering you later…”
“No,” Teague interjects. “Sebastian’s right. I mean he got a new job and I didn’t even bother to ask. I didn’t even know he wanted to become a model. I’m a pathetic excuse for a friend. And Sebastian you’re always there for me. I might be an idiot sometimes and too wrapped up in my own shit, but I know you’re just looking out for me. Today, I did something stupid. I made a mistake that I won’t ever make again.”
“It could just have easily been you,” I blurt out.
No one says anything so I continue. “The other guy, what happened to him, it could just as easily have been you, Teague!”
“I know,” Teague says.
“One more drink, guys?” Liam asks, clearly to lighten the mood and change the subject.
But it doesn’t work.
The awkward silence hangs about in the air like a dark, storm cloud, ready to erupt.
The Secret
SEBASTIAN
It takes all of mine and Liam’s strength to get Teague to my room in the newly-constructed house that I have been living in for the past few months. This is the house that I was going to get good memories in and now Teague is dragging his bloody footsteps on my carpet. Don’t get me wrong, I don’t care about the cleanup that’s not why I’m concerned, it’s what the bloody carpet implies, that’s what I can’t wrap my head around.
We place Teague on the couch and he’s plenty drugged out because he isn’t screaming on every movement and looks like he’s about to pass out any time. I bring a blanket and place it over Teague’s body and make sure he’s comfortable before I say good bye to Liam. We’re standing in the hallway, and Liam still looks worried. “If you need anything, just call.”
“Thanks, Liam. And I will.”
“I hope you mean that, Sebastian.”
It’s strange but I like the idea that I can go to someone for help. It’s been a while since anyone made that kind of offer. My own parents wanted me out of the house soon as I was in high school but their behavior had always taught me rely on my own self so I guess I’m used to living that way by now. “Liam,” I say. “I honestly don’t know how to thank you.”
“Don’t thank me, please.”
“It’s just…I feel like I barely even know you and now you’re being dumped by all this stuff because of me.”
“Sebastian,” Liam says. “You aren’t dumping anything I’m happy to be of help. And I haven’t done much.”
“Still.”
“How about you go and take care of your friend?” Liam says. “Call me when he’s feeling better and then we can make some plans.”
“What about the shoot tomorrow?”
“We can reschedule. Leave that to me.”
“Just give me a couple of days to get my head around the fact that my friend might have murdered someone.”
“Hey,” Liam says. “You don’t know if he’s dead yet.”
“Yeah.”
“Look, that guy’s probably fine. I don’t think your friend is capable of killing someone.”
“You weren’t there, Liam. I saw his eyes…it’s like he was possessed.”
“Do you think maybe he would benefit from some therapy?”
“He refuses to do anything that makes him seem less cool.”
“Are you sure? Because I know someone who can help.”
“I’ll ask him. For now, I think we just have to wait.”
“At least Vince will make sure he’s not in trouble, right?”
“Yeah. Vince is pretty reliable.”
“Good. Then I’ll see you later, Sebastian.”
He leaves and I come back inside the house to find Teague gone and the couch empty. “Teague!” I go in search for him and find him crouching in the hallway in front of a closed door. “Teague!” I walk fast in his direction but something has caught his attention and when I go near him I see what that object is—it’s a photograph of the four of us, Holden, Daniel, Teague and me while we were vacationing in Vienna two years ago. He smiles as he holds the photograph in his hand. “Teague?”
“I can’t believe two whole years have passed since this,” he says. “I don’t think I’ve ever had that much fun before. By the way, where’s Mia? Why isn’t she in the picture?”
“She was taking the picture, remember?” I say. “She thought it would
be neat to just take one of the guys.”
“Right, I remember. That was the trip I realized I was truly, madly in love with her.”
“And she was ditching you for some European guy who sold flowers.”
“There’s nothing more painful than unrequited love,” Teague says.
“Teague,” I say. “What’s going on? Are things not going well between the two of you? Is that why you’re doing all this? Is that why you’re so angry all the time?”
“I’m angry because she doesn’t trust me. She doesn’t believe that anyone in this world can truly love another, not in the way I claim. She thinks it’s foolish to even think such a love exists and that if I truly believe that to be the case then I should look for a therapist.”
The truth at last.
Teague gestures to the picture. “Do you have more of these?”
“No. No…this must have…fallen from inside a book or something.”
He places his hand on the door knob and tries to turn it but it’s locked and doesn’t budge. “What’s this place?” he asks. “Why is this room locked? You live on your own, man. You don’t like have some kind of sex dungeon in there do you? Or hot, naked chicks with ball gags in their mouths, cause if that’s the case then I want in.”
“Teague!”
“Come on, Sebastian! Unlock this thing!”
“Teague, stop it,” I say, going towards him and forcing him to walk away from the door. “It’s nothing you’d be interested in. Just a bunch of old books and boxes of stuff that I’m not using. I haven’t gotten around to organizing it yet.”
“Don’t lie to me,” Teague says, as I lead him to a guest bedroom and help him to the bed.
“Teague,” I say wanting badly to change the subject. “Could you please just lie down and get some rest?”
When I finally manage to get him in bed and I’m about to leave the room, Teague grabs my arm. “You can’t tell her,” he says, and without his explaining I know exactly who he’s talking about.
“Teague, I’m not going to say a word of this to anyone.”
“She can’t find out about this!”
“How the hell are you going to pull that off, Teague? Look at you! Your face looks like it came under a fucking bus!”
“It’ll heal!”
“Yeah, but that’s going to take a while. Are you planning to just avoid her until then?”
“You know what…you’re onto something.”
“What?”
“We’ll just tell her I’m visiting a family member someplace, I’ll make something up. She hates that kind of thing, so she’s not going to ask too many questions.”
“I don’t think you’ve taken a look in the mirror, Teague. How long is she going to let you off the hook because she thinks you’re tending to a sick relative?”
“Most of this,” Teague gestures to his face. “Is swelling. It looks bad now but it will go down in a couple of days and the cuts aren’t that bad. I’ll tell her I got mugged, or got into a fight with someone.”
“I thought you didn’t want to tell her this came from a fight.”
“There’s a difference between telling her I almost killed a guy in an underground cage fight that also happens to be illegal and telling her I got into a fight with some neighbor because they wouldn’t turn down the volume to Taylor Swift.”
“Look,” I say. “Just sleep now. We can talk about this in the morning.”
“Okay.”
I start to leave and Teague calls out for me. “Sebastian,” he says. “Thanks. I’m really sorry about this; I didn’t mean to drag you into this. I don’t even know how I got dragged into this!”
“I know, Teague.”
“You hate me, don’t you?”
“Teague, I don’t hate you!”
“Sebastian?”
“Yeah?”
“Will you find out if that guy’s okay?” Teague says. “You can take the help of your new friend…what’s his name…”
“Liam.”
“Yes. He seems connected.”
“So does Vince.”
“Vince hasn’t even called back.”
“He’s your cousin and you’ve known him since you were kids! It’s not like he’s suddenly going to ditch you, Teague.”
“Then why hasn’t he called?”
Honestly, Vince hasn’t called but he did send me a text saying he was still handling it. I don’t know what the hell that means and I’m pretty sure he doesn’t want to say much over a cell phone or through a text, but there’s something Vince isn’t telling us, I can feel it. But telling Teague any of that means making him more anxious and that’s not something I want to do to him. He’s already messed up. “Teague,” I say, turning off the light. “Goodnight.”
In the hallway, in front of the locked door, I stoop to pick up the photograph. Teague was right. I don’t think I’ve ever had this much fun as I had in Vienna. You slipped, Sebastian. You were careless. That is not acceptable.
I know I slipped. This photograph shouldn’t be out of that room, how could I be so careless? Teague ignored it this time and he’s drugged out so he might not even remember this exchange the next morning but he’s not stupid. He knows this room hides a secret. I will be more careful. You better be, Sebastian.
I don’t like lying to my friends but this is one secret that I will take to my grave.
Nobody can find out.
Friend In Deed
LIAM
“Steven can we stop here?”
“Of course, sir.”
It’s dark and we’re Steven stops the limo in a deserted alley, no sign that anyone is there. But then, from the shadows, I see someone taking calculated steps towards the limo. Finally they rap the window and I let them in. The man is wearing a dark hoodie that covers his face and I can’t see anything. He’s holding a manila folder in his hand that he’s clutching tight but other than that there’s no sign of fear or unease in his body language, he’s completely calm.
“Did you bring the evidence?” he asks.
I pick up an envelope placed on the seat and hand it over to him. He opens it right there and looks at the photographs inside. “They’re very good,” he says, as though he wasn’t expecting it.
“Steve’s not just a good limo driver,” I explain.
“I see that,” the man says.
“I kept my end of the bargain.”
“You did.”
“I’m supposed to get something in return.”
I can feel him hesitating, thinking about the whole thing. If he starts getting some kind of conscience now this whole thing will be in vain. “Well?” I urge him and he finally opens the folder and places the envelope I just gave him inside. He also fishes out a piece of paper on which he has scribbled something for me.
“Here,” he says and I take the paper from him.
It’s the name of a hospital and a room number.
I fold the piece of paper and place it safely inside my suit jacket.
“The news will come out some time tomorrow,” he says.
“Why’re you telling me this?”
“Thought I’d give you a heads-up.”
“Listen to me, HT. We are not friends. This is a business transaction. And I think our business is done. Continuing this conversation will not be necessary.”
I can feel him snickering. “Right. Mr. Delaney. The big shot. The hot guy every girl in Springvale is lusting after and the rich guy every guy in Springvale hates.”
“Well, I guess you can’t please everyone, can you?”
“Not if you’re Liam Delaney.”
He says this and opens the door, steps out and vanishes into the night.
“Where’re we going next, sir?” Steven asks.
I take out the piece of paper with the name and address. “Saint Mary’s Hospital. You know where that is?”
“Of course, sir. But visiting hours must be over now.”
“That’s okay, Steven. The visit’s going
to be short and I’m not planning on announcing myself.”
The Darkness Around Me
HOLDEN
The liquor in the flask finishes and with it ends every reason I’ve been giving myself not to come here. It’s strange but maybe it’s true what they say, that blood runs thicker than water. Maybe that’s why I’m here this late, convincing myself to go back home, to Mom, to everything I know and yet, I’m still standing here, stuck and unable to do what I know I’m supposed to do. Mom will hate the fact that I came to see him again, and that’s why I brought along a chauffeur who I hired and I knew I could trust. Dad…Zaff told me to do that over the phone, just as a precaution so I did. Couldn’t hurt and at least now there’s no relying on Max and worrying about him ratting me out to my mother. Mom was pissed to say the least that I took this step, but for some reason she didn’t fight over it much. She’s been picking her battles ever since she found out about my meeting with Heliot.
She probably thinks that if she won’t talk about it and if we try to ignore it, the problem will just go away.
“Wait here,” I say to the driver and step outside.
If she won’t give me answers, then I’m going to go to someone who can.
The Visit
LIAM
The man on the bed could have been anyone. I’m not even sure I’m in the right room but it has to be, this is the room #HT said the guy would be in. I never saw Steven take the pictures but his physique was the same and he had the same kind of injuries as he had in the photographs. When I go up to him, he opens his one good eye and stares at me. Either he’s completely out of it or he’s trying to remember if he has seen me somewhere.
“You don’t know me,” I say. “And frankly I don’t really know you. Which is why this is going to be easy.” I take out a hypodermic that I’ve been keeping in my pocket and hold it up for him to see. “Oleander poisoning is hard to detect and it will kill you so fast, no nurse or doctor is going to be able to save you. I procured this especially for you.”