consent.
“Are you really my uncle or was that a lie, too?”
The pause that followed spoke volumes. She almost dropped the phone. She closed her eyes and pressed one hand against her forehead. “I can’t believe it.” Her voice was barely more than a whisper. Tears were burning in her eyes, but she twinkled them away. “How could you lie to me all those years?”
“Ally.” Her uncle’s voice had changed. It now was velvety smooth, almost soothing. “Nothing is what it seems.”
He could say that again! A fist tightened around her heart.
“Tell me your location. When I’m back I’ll explain everything to you.”
“You had seventeen years to explain it,” Ally replied with effort. Suddenly, she had trouble breathing.
“Ally?” Julie kneeled down in front of her, grabbing her by the shoulders. “What’s going on?”
“My pills!” she gasped.
“Alienor!” David called out before the cell landed on the floor where it broke in two pieces.
Julie kicked it out of the way. She grabbed Ally’s colds hands, put them in hers and rubbed them warm. “Look at me!” she said calmly.
Ally complied. By now she was gasping for air like a fish on the beach.
“Look into my eyes, okay?”
Ally nodded.
“Good.” Julie put Ally’s hand on her heart.
“Do you feel that?”
Again she nodded. Julie’s heart was beating strong and firmly against the palms of her hands.
“Look at me, feel my heart and let’s breathe together.”
More nodding, than she realized, her own heartbeat had calmed down a bit. Julie’s serenity had jumped over and stopped her panic attack. She took a deep breath. Then one more, until she felt calmer.
“Where are those pills?” Julie asked quietly when she had apparently come to the same conclusion.
Ally shook her head. “Don’t have any left.”
“What kind of stuff is it? Maybe we can get it here at the airport?”
Good question. She had never seen a prescription. She either got it from Dr. Edwards or her uncle. Crap, she didn’t even know the name of it. They were oval-shaped, pink tablets. Her doctor had given them to her in a neutral tube and she’d never thought anything of it. Until today.
Helplessly, she shook her head, feeling like an idiot. How could she have been taking this stuff for a decade without even knowing its name? And what did her heart have to do with her taking on other people’s feelings anyway?
Why had she never insisted on answers? The questions about her parents, the accident, her mental defect. How in the world could she have trusted a man who, as it turned out, wasn’t even related to her?
Julie seemed to feel her inner conflict. She got up and sat down next to her. “Why have you never told me about the pills?” she asked quietly. “I mean, we have been best friends since…forever.”
“I hate my weakness. And I hate those pills, a reminder on how helpless I am without them–every single day.”
“You aren’t weak! And, Geez, I have to know about something important like that. I mean, what if you’d passed out or dropped to the ground during karate lesson? I wouldn’t have known a thing. Nobody would’ve.”
“The only one flat on her back during karate lesson is you,” Ally remarked, giving a slight smile. “Besides, I think the teachers knew. Uncle David…” She paused and frowned. He wasn’t her uncle. “David deposited a tube of the pills with the school nurse, for emergency purposes.”
“And why don’t you have any with you?”
“The, eh, burglars took them.”
Julie stared at her in disbelief. “Somebody broke into your shack, disabled a gazillion dollar security system, but instead of swiping the Van Gogh from the dining room, they steal your pills?”
“It’s rather weird, isn’t it?”
Julie shook her head. “I’ve never heard of something so stupid. That sucks out loud!”
One could say that. Her friend threw her a worried glance. “Is everything alright again or should we go
“Are you really my uncle or was that a lie, too?”
The pause that followed spoke volumes. She almost dropped the phone. She closed her eyes and pressed one hand against her forehead. “I can’t believe it.” Her voice was barely more than a whisper. Tears were burning in her eyes, but she twinkled them away. “How could you lie to me all those years?”
“Ally.” Her uncle’s voice had changed. It now was velvety smooth, almost soothing. “Nothing is what it seems.”
He could say that again! A fist tightened around her heart.
“Tell me your location. When I’m back I’ll explain everything to you.”
“You had seventeen years to explain it,” Ally replied with effort. Suddenly, she had trouble breathing.
“Ally?” Julie kneeled down in front of her, grabbing her by the shoulders. “What’s going on?”
“My pills!” she gasped.
“Alienor!” David called out before the cell landed on the floor where it broke in two pieces.
Julie kicked it out of the way. She grabbed Ally’s colds hands, put them in hers and rubbed them warm. “Look at me!” she said calmly.
Ally complied. By now she was gasping for air like a fish on the beach.
“Look into my eyes, okay?”
Ally nodded.
“Good.” Julie put Ally’s hand on her heart.
“Do you feel that?”
Again she nodded. Julie’s heart was beating strong and firmly against the palms of her hands.
“Look at me, feel my heart and let’s breathe together.”
More nodding, than she realized, her own heartbeat had calmed down a bit. Julie’s serenity had jumped over and stopped her panic attack. She took a deep breath. Then one more, until she felt calmer.
“Where are those pills?” Julie asked quietly when she had apparently come to the same conclusion.
Ally shook her head. “Don’t have any left.”
“What kind of stuff is it? Maybe we can get it here at the airport?”
Good question. She had never seen a prescription. She either got it from Dr. Edwards or her uncle. Crap, she didn’t even know the name of it. They were oval-shaped, pink tablets. Her doctor had given them to her in a neutral tube and she’d never thought anything of it. Until today.
Helplessly, she shook her head, feeling like an idiot. How could she have been taking this stuff for a decade without even knowing its name? And what did her heart have to do with her taking on other people’s feelings anyway?
Why had she never insisted on answers? The questions about her parents, the accident, her mental defect. How in the world could she have trusted a man who, as it turned out, wasn’t even related to her?
Julie seemed to feel her inner conflict. She got up and sat down next to her. “Why have you never told me about the pills?” she asked quietly. “I mean, we have been best friends since…forever.”
“I hate my weakness. And I hate those pills, a reminder on how helpless I am without them–every single day.”
“You aren’t weak! And, Geez, I have to know about something important like that. I mean, what if you’d passed out or dropped to the ground during karate lesson? I wouldn’t have known a thing. Nobody would’ve.”
“The only one flat on her back during karate lesson is you,” Ally remarked, giving a slight smile. “Besides, I think the teachers knew. Uncle David…” She paused and frowned. He wasn’t her uncle. “David deposited a tube of the pills with the school nurse, for emergency purposes.”
“And why don’t you have any with you?”
“The, eh, burglars took them.”
Julie stared at her in disbelief. “Somebody broke into your shack, disabled a gazillion dollar security system, but instead of swiping the Van Gogh from the dining room, they steal your pills?”
“It’s rather weird, isn’t it?”
Julie shook her head. “I’ve never heard of something so stupid. That sucks out loud!”
One could say that. Her friend threw her a worried glance. “Is everything alright again or should we go
Similar Books
