Dirty Secrets

Part 72

Lyla felt Petie studying her on their elevator ride to the first floor. She couldn't blame him for expecting a psychotic episode, ranting about ghosts and dead people, but she didn't. They arrived at the lobby and exited the elevator car without incident.

As they proceeded across the walkway to the north wing of the hospital, he asked, "So, you're doing okay then? After all that?"

She offered a guarded response. "Yeah, I'm okay." During her in-patient stay, she was on casual acquaintance terms with Petie, they had never discussed personal matters.

He winked then replied, "I guess you're tougher than you look."

"Not gonna lie. I'm really sore and I got some bruises, but..."

"Crazy people in this world." He shook his head. "Sorry. I shouldn't say stuff like that."

They rode the elevator up to the fifth floor and ambled over to the Nurses' Station. He leaned his thick arms on the counter, smiled at an attractive young nurse, and inquired about Natalie.

"They said she could have visitors," he said with a courteous grin.

The nurse paced down the hallway, her white shoes soundless against the polished linoleum floor. She poked her head into Natalie's room then waved them over, whispering to Lyla, "I'm not sure if she's asleep. You can go on in."

"I'll hang out here," said Petie, eyeing the pretty nurse.

"Hey, Natalie," Lyla said quietly entering the hospital room. "Natalie?"

Natalie lay on her side facing the wall, scrunched down on her pillow. Lyla turned for the door.

Natalie squinted. "That you, Lyla?" She sat up.

"Yeah." She stepped to the bedside, then noticing her friend's heavily bandaged right arm Lyla asked, "How you doing?"

Natalie rubbed her eyes. "They got me on so much shit I actually don't even know."

"So." Lyla smiled warmly. "I came to say hey, thanks again."

Natalie returned a blank look as she smacked her dry lips. "Can you pour me some water?"

"Sure." Lyla filled a cup from the pitcher then handed the cup to her friend. "I owe you. Big time. I don't even want to think about... if you weren't there."

After chugging the water, Natalie wiped her mouth with her forearm. "Yeah, you know. When we were leaving the building, I kinda had a bad feeling."

"So what about your arm?"

She raised her right arm stiffly. "She cut me all the way down to the bone. Can't move my fingers yet."

Lyla winced.

"Good thing she got the top of my arm. Doc said I woulda bled out if she woulda cut the artery or vein underneath. Or I don't know. She didn't get you, did she?"

"No. Thanks to you."

While Natalie examined her swollen hand protruding from the bandages Lyla asked, "So did they say your hand will get better?"

"Just gonna take awhile. Worst part is, don't know how we're gonna pay for all this shit." She flinched when she briefly put weight on her right arm. "My mom's gonna sue her ass but that old skank prob'ly don't got twenty bucks to her name."

........

During the ride home, Darcy said, "Keenan's psycho mother is definitely trying to get inside your head. With that ring. Playing witchy mind games."

Lyla looked out the window, not enthusiastic about the topic.

"You know what I think?" Darcy asked. "I think it's like a magic trick."

Lyla turned to face her friend as they stopped at a traffic light.

Darcy continued, "Like when a magician makes something disappear. Like a coin or something. And some lady in the audience is all like holy, shit! Look what just appeared in my purse!" Darcy mimed showing off the coin in her hand in dramatic fashion. "Ta-da!"

"What are you even talking about?"

"There's more than one ring," said Darcy, proudly as though she just solved the mystery of dark matter. "Maybe they got a whole bunch of them."

"I don't know. I guess maybe."

"Definitely. I mean what other explanation is there?"

Lyla didn't want to go there.

The light changed and they drove on.

"You still have it?" Darcy asked. "The ring?"

"Yeah."

"You know what we should do?"

Can we just stop talking about this?

Darcy persisted. "Remember how we used to go down to the river with Jackie and Holly?"

"Looking for specimens." Lyla rolled her eyes. "Fifth and sixth grade, right?"

"That sounds about right."

Lyla said, "We were such little science nerds. I think like out of a hundred trips we might've caught a frog. Once."

Darcy cracked up. "Remember we used to put coins on the train tracks?" She reminisced. "I think I still have a smashed penny somewhere. So, you see where I'm going with this?"

"Not really."

"You know what we should do? Go down to the train tracks." Darcy's eyes lit up. "And flatten that bitch! Put it out of its misery."

"Are you serious?"

"Come on. It'll be fun." She stopped her car in front of Lyla's house.

"That's so random." Lyla unbuckled her seatbelt.

"That's how my mind works," said Darcy. "Go get the ring."

"You mean right now?"

"Hells, yeah! I think I even got a couple of beers in the trunk."

"That's convenient."

"From Richie's pity party last night. He's such a lightweight. I don't think he even finished one beer."

"How's he doing?"

"I think I cried as much as he did. It literally kills me to see him so brokenhearted." She furrowed her brows. "Ash, that cheating ratbag."

Lyla shook her head. "Okay, I'll be right back," she said as she slipped out of the car. She jogged up the porch steps, unlocked the front door, and went inside. She dashed up to her room, dropped her backpack on the bed then crossed to her desk. She dug her fingers down into the bowl of salt and produced the ring.

On her way out of the house, she darted into the kitchen and stuffed a container of salt into her bag. When Lyla got back into the car, Darcy was checking her phone, a broad smile on her face.

"Today is our lucky day," Darcy said with a mischievous grin. "The next train is due in seventy-six minutes."

Buckling her seatbelt, Lyla replied, "I don't think train schedules are that precise."

"The schedules are, the trains aren't." Darcy smirked. "You got it?"

Lyla showed the ring.

Darcy scowled. "That is one ugly-ass piece of jewelry."