Page 26 of Unlikable
There are four knocks on the door, hesitantly, as if the person behind the door would prefer not to set foot in the room. Nicholas gets up from the old, stuffy seat and stretches. Now that he knows at what times staff are present in these corridors, he need not worry about being caught leaving the crawl space.
He puts the Jane Austen book on the table—which he thinks is just a sweet and nauseating story—and walks to the door. “Got it?” he asks.
“Yes.”
He grins and shoves away the small cabinet he had shoved in front of the door to let the person in.
The young girl looks at the ground as she holds the instrument out in front of her. “What will you do with it?” she dares to ask.
He takes the violin from her and walks into the room with it. He puts it on the floor, next to the table where the book lies. “What do you think I’m going to do with it?”
“Please…don’t break it. It belonged to her mother.”
Sentimental value, in other words. She will surely miss this one.
“Come in,” he orders her.
The girl remains standing doubtfully, but when he turns to her and she raises her head to get a sneak peek at him, she immediately looks down again and walks into the room.
“Close the door.”
She closes the door.
“Sit down.”
She walks to the seat.
“Not there.” He points to the ground in front of the seat. “There.”
The girl trembles as she sits on the floor and puts her hands on her lap. She starts picking at her nails.
Nicholas sits down in the seat in front of her and crosses his legs. “How is she doing?”
The girl looks up with surprise in her eyes. When she sees his face, he sees she is trying her best not to look away. Her eyes get as big as a deer’s. “Miss Prime is constantly in her father’s room taking care of him.”
“Still? For five weeks now?”
“He was in worse shape than we thought. The doctor initially thought it was a concussion, but yesterday he came by again to examine Mr Prime after hearing that Mr Prime had started talking for the first time since the accident.”
Nicholas leans forward slightly. “He talked? What did he say?”
The girl shakes her head. “He…” She sobs, and he sees a tear running down her cheek. He does not know whether it is because she is afraid of him or because the man’s situation affects her so much. “He didn’t say much, but it seemed like he no longer knew who he was. When he was told that Theodor Clifton had died, it didn’t seem to bother him at all. He didn’t even know who Theodor was. He even did not recognise…” Another tear rolls down her cheek and she wipes it away with the sleeve of her uniform. “He doesn’t even know who Miss Prime and young Mr Prime are.”
“He has lost his memory.”
She nods and hides her face in her hands.
“The poor soul,” Nicholas says sweetly, and he leans forward so he can slide her hands away and lift her chin with a finger. She does not look at him.
“Why Miss Prime?” she asks cautiously. “Why me?”
He breathes a sigh. “Why do people always need to know a reason? Why does there have to be a reason?” When she still doesn’t look at him, he gets up and walks to the crawl space. There, he lifts the lid, climbs down and looks for the right vial. Having found it, he grabs the needle. Then he climbs up again. The girl is still sitting in the same position. She has not moved a finger.
As Nicholas puts the needle into the vial and sucks out the liquid, he tosses the empty vial aside. It clatters to the ground and rolls in her direction. When it bangs against her foot, she looks up, startled.
“Please,” she starts begging him.
He clicks his tongue and taps the needle a few times to get the excess air out. Then he walks over to her and sits back on the seat. He holds out the needle teasingly in front of her. “Do you want this?”
She nods and already starts to roll up her sleeve. “Please.”
“On one condition.”
“Anything, sir.”
He feels the corners of his mouth creep up. “I have finally picked a date to end all this, and you have to make sure Miss Prime is alone that night. Can you promise that?”
Her face blanches for a few seconds, but then she sees the needle and nods decisively, “Yes, sir. I will make sure she is alone.”
“Good girl.” He jabs the needle into her arm. The girl is startled by the sudden sting, but as he administers the drug, she breathes a sigh of relief. Nicholas then removes the needle, pondering how soon the hair on her head will begin to lose its lustre.
The drug he administers to her is the milder form of Unlikable . She is getting older and will eventually die, but it won’t be so quick this time. Each time he administers the drug to her, the process is delayed. Yes, with each dose she ages, just not as visibly as usual. Best of all, which he is personally immensely proud of having managed, is that the herb ground up by the liquid is addictive. She will come back. It is like money to the poor. Like alcohol to an alcoholic. Like a prostitute to a sex addict.
During his time here, his mother was able to provide him with plenty of supplies. This woman hates him by now; he is sure of that. Still, she does what he asks of her because she is not only afraid of being exposed as the mother who brought Junior R into the world but also afraid of dying after he gave her a dose of his previous mixture. The mixture which can only be defeated with the antidote.
And she will only get that when all this is over, when he has completed his task. At least, that’s what she assumes.
People are so gullible.
“Look at me,” he orders the girl as he sits back on the seat. When she does, Nicholas holds up the empty needle. “There is not much left. Make sure Miss Prime is alone on Christmas Day, that she knows where to find me. If you fail to do that, then I will have no reason to give my last remedy to you and finally cure you. Do you understand what I am saying?”
She nods. “I understand.” Her voice is husky, older.
“Excellent.” He gestures with his hand that she can leave. When the girl reaches the door and wants to open it, Nicholas clears his throat. “You have beautiful eyes. Did you know that?”
She looks at him, not understanding. “Sir?”
He smiles at her. “I’m counting on you, Cecile.”