Chained

Ten

The next place we check is the closet. It's most full of Emily's clothing. Bony hands appear to crawl out between the hanging dresses, but I refuse to get intimidated by something that isn't real.

Michael glances sideways at me. "Do you see something?"

"No," I lie.

"It would help if I know," Michael says. "I don't need you deciding to gouge my eyes out because you think that you see worms coming from them."

I decide not to mention that the worms aren't coming from Michael's eyes—they are crawling out of his ears. The strike the floor, splattering into sludge before finally dissipating.

"This is all your fault anyway," I mutter.

"How so?"

"How so?" I struggle to hold onto my anger and hold off the nausea. "Let's see...you run a cult." I hold up one finger. "You invite an unstable girl into said cult." Another finger. "You allow said unstable girl to grab some seriously dangerous drugs." One last finger. "And finally, you let her run wild!"

"You make contradictory arguments, Jason Hill." Michael leans against the wall. "You do not me to take care of the girl in my 'cult', but you don't want me to let her 'run wild'?"

Fingers seep through the wall, brushing his shoulders. "I don't...she needed help!" I snap, trying to ignore the freaky imagery. "Why didn't you get her help?"

"What makes you think I did not get her help?"

"Cult help isn't help."

"You are making assumptions, Jason Hill, and that is a dangerous thing," Michael says. "That's how you let a serpent into your home."

"I know that I'm assuming that you will help and that's why I let you inside," I say, sarcasm being a lifeline against the sea of insanity.

Michael smiles humorlessly. "I did attempt to get Freddie help. She was in a hospital until two weeks ago."

"Why...why isn't she still there?"

"Do you really want to know?"

I'm not sure if Michael asked that question or it just came from my own twisted mind. Regardless, I nod vehemently. "Yeah, I really want to know why she isn't in a fucking hospital right now."

He tilts his head. "Have you ever seen insanity, Jason Hill? Have you ever seen death?"

"No," I say quietly.

"Most haven't." He crosses his arms. "I knew the hospital wouldn't be able to cure Freddie. She isn't insane—she has seen a truth that has fundamentally altered her views on this world."

"Huh...I'm pretty sure that's a fancy way of saying that she's insane," I say rudely.

"Are you really one to call someone insane right now, Jason Hill?" he asks. "While your eyes keep darting around because you don't want to see things that aren't real."

"That was done to me!" I shake my head. "And you're right, okay. I shouldn't be that rude about Freddie. You fucked with her head—probably with these drugs—and that's why she is so messed up."

"If that is what you believe, it is true for you," Michael says.

I roll my eyes. "What happened at the hospital?"

"Have you ever seen blood on the walls, Jason Hill?"

I flinch. That is the warning that I need not to explore this topic further. But I just can't help myself. "Did she...did she hurt people?"