Dana’s heartbeats seem to have an echo now, amplified by the gun’s metal cylinder… Her fingers are still grasping the chamber, unnoticed, as if to tune into the thoughts of the handler. It’s pressed so hard against her chest it’s actually obstructing her breathing. Or is it the panic? His eyes are hard to look at…there is so much fear in them, horror even, but frozen – and eerily determined… There’s no one in the house – mom’s still somewhere in the subway underground, holding onto a metal pipe herself.
It only took a moment – happy and relieved a minute ago and then that horrified stare. Whatever he was seeing froze him in his tracks…he shook so violently she thought it was a seizure and tried to help him to a bed. In response he suddenly jumped into a frenzied search for something…bringing them to this moment… Those eyes may be the last thing she ever sees…but how can he look at hers and see something he wants to destroy? Unless of course they’re the eyes of a giant insect…or was it a lizard? Nothing pleasant to look at he assured her once….How long until he realizes it really is her… What if mom comes in with him still like this? No, that can’t happen…
She can barely make out the clock display on the laptop screen behind him: “5:45″. He took his medication at 5:30 – if he didn’t forget. It could take another 15 minutes – God, please let it be that he took it… The bottle is visible through the kitchen wine rack but too far to make out exactly how many pills are left in it… Still, there’s nothing to do but buy some time…moment to moment – all of life… Did he come from that direction? Hard to remember now… She could try and speak – but who knows what kind of noise he’ll hear… It could set him off… His finger’s still on the trigger but the gun’s now against her side – he seems to be letting up… “Mikey? It’s still me – it’s your sister…Mikey?” No response. “Please…I don’t know what you’re seeing or experiencing right now but it isn’t real….Mikey? Did you take your medication? Try to remember…you’ll know I’m telling the truth in fifteen minutes”,,, But it doesn’t seem like he’s hearing anything… “Please, mom is coming…MOM… she can’t go through this again…Mikey?”
Deafening noise but no pain…and now it’s coming on…sharper by the moment…but she can’t let it overtake her, she has to get that gun out of his hand…lock him in the closet… He’s not even looking at her… Now’s her chance… she grabbed it…he didn’t react, just let the gun slip right out of his hand… But the moment she touched him he jumped back as if burned…than into the kitchen – grasping for the knife as she held him away pulling on his shirt…. He recoiled back at her, knocking her to the floor… She pulled him down but falling he knocked down the cutlery stand and the knife with him.
As he sliced through the air in the direction of her face she managed to block his arm away but it now landed across her shoulder, cutting into it…. He managed to land a punch than sprang back to his feet but slipped in the pool of her blood and fell to the ground… He didn’t move for minutes… Relieved at first, terror now started coming over her – could he be dead? Mom must be just blocks away now… He still had a pulse and there was no major bleeding as far as she could see but it was difficult now as her own blood was everywhere… She needed something to tie him up with…
On the counter were oranges, gathered up into a large plastic produce net. Seconds later the net was knotted around his wrists. She still needed something for his feet and the remaining folded up garbage bag looked most promising… As she reached for it a loud thud redirected her attention: Her gaze met her mother’s – who stud in the doorway, stunned. The produce she dropped rolled through the pool of blood around Mikey’s unconscious body, forming a red-speckled fruit halo around his head. A moment later Dana was pinned to the floor next to him, her mother on top of her screaming as she stretched the roped up garbage bag across her neck… She couldn’t explain – the make-shift restraint was pressing on her throat too tightly… and most of her strength had drained out with the blood now anyway… She’ll stop soon, Dana was certain, and then it’ll all be cleared up…she’s just in shock now and doesn’t understand – the whole thing just looks so wrong… Maybe Mikey will explain when he wakes up…she’s just too tired now…