Troll Part V-The Locks

I lay on my stomach as they put a black bag over my head. The cold steel table I was lying on chilled my legs and stomach. Panic started to build as I heard someone say,
“Okay, do it.” The executioner slipped the needle in my arm and I think ‘This is it…this is the end.’ I’m anxious to find out if I will go anywhere or if I will remain in this black bag till the end of eternity. When nothing happens, I start to cry. But then I think, how can I cry if I’ve ceased to exist? 

Moving my head around, I realize I’m a solid form and, my guess is, that I still have a face and head and eyes. In the corner of the black bag, I see a spec of soft sea green light. I pull the bag of my head and find myself floating in vast ocean of clouds. It’s night and the stars are around me. I can see big white objects, big as whales, popping up from under the clouds…possibly balloons. I’m in awe and a little bit scared.
And all of a sudden a giant BOOM erupts and disturbs the water-like clouds. I’m sucked up beyond the sky into blackness.
BOOM….BOOM…BOOM. 

My eyes flash open and I notice I wasn’t breathing. I inhale and almost choke on the air. I’m back in my bedroom. It’s so dark, I figure it must be terribly early but then I notice the alarm clock on my phone has been going off. 6:30 AM. Still confused by the darkness, I look outside my window only to realize my blinds have been closed. I don’t remember closing them. 

BOOM, BOOM, BOOM! 

“MARGO!!!” I jumped as Holden slammed his fists on the bathroom door. “MARGO, WAKE-UP!!!” 

“It’s open!!!” I yell, not sitting up. My eyes keep closing on their own and I can’t seem to will myself to move. I heard Holden jiggle the handle. 

“No, it’s not!” he sneered, “so get off your lazy ass and unlock the door.” I wanted to reply; I wanted to scream at him, but I couldn’t. Without thinking, I just rolled out of my bed and got to my feet, locking my knees so they don’t give out. I fall against the door frame and fiddle with the locking-mechanism until I can open it. 

“What?” I manage to grunt exasperatedly. 

“I wanted to remind you to please make sure Ludwig Van sleeps in your room tonight and doesn’t poop in my room.” He said. I grew grumpier and grumpier. 

“Jesus, Holden, you woke me up for that?” 

“Well, I knew you’d forget that I’m staying over at my mom’s until Thursday… Unless you can honestly tell me that you remembered.” He raised his eyebrows mockingly. I was going to call him a smart ass but I just looked at him for a moment before closing the door. I turned to my bed and then did a double-take and re-opened the door. 

“Holden?” I tried to yell and my voice broke; he reappeared from the door on the other side of the bathroom leading to his room, Ludwig Van grazing the carpet with his nose. “Can you do me a favor and ask my mom to come to my room?” 

“Sure,” he said and closed the door without another word. I did the same and climbed back to bed in record speed. Getting under the covers, I noticed I had been sweating during the night; my sheets were damp. I tried to kick a few layers off but my legs were useless. They felt bruised and weak like I’d just run an obstacle course. I lifted the sheets and blankets and saw that I had kicked my pajama pant off in the night, as well, as they sat in a bundle at my feet. I was about to try and examine the red blotches on my knees and thighs when there was a knock on my door, followed by a rattling of the door knob. 

“Honey?” my moms voice was soft and sweet through my bedroom door. I wished that, just for today, she would stay home and talk to me through my bedroom door until I fell asleep. “Holden said you needed me… Will you come unlock the door?” I didn’t understand why both my doors had been locked. I only lock the bathroom one occasionally; when I remember that Holden could walk in at any moment. I sighed and got out of bed, unfolded the bundle of my pajama bottoms, put them on, and glided across the floor again to my door. 

I unlocked it and immediately returned to the bed, sitting on the edge. My mom walked in with a concerned look on her face. She looked so beautiful in her navy blue business suit. I think her fashion sense, along with her flirty smile, is what made her one of the most successful realtors in our town. 

“Baby, is there something wrong?” She asked, combing my disarrayed hair with her fingertips. The sincere worry in her voice made me want to cry. 

“I don’t feel very well…I don’t know what’s wrong but I just feel kind of out of it and dizzy,” I said, not looking her in the eye. 

“Well,” she said, stopping her toying with my hair and crossing her arms, “You seemed fine all weekend… Why don't you feel well?” Her sweet demeanor took a 180. I knew this would happen. She always thinks I’m manipulating her to let me stay home. 

“Mom, I told you, I’m dizzy and I have a headache… I really don’t feel good,” tears stung my eyes but I kept them back, “I can’t go to school like this.” I heard her sigh. 

“Well-” 

“I think you should stay home today, kitten,” I looked up and Nicholas was leaning against the door frame. My mom’s head was turned away so I couldn’t see the look on her face but I could guess. “Cynthia, missing one day of school isn’t going to destroy the rest of her life. You know she’s been a little lethargic lately and I think she’s been way too stressed out about school,” he walked up to my mom and put his hands around her waist, talking softly and romanticizing her, “We all need a day of recuperation every now and again, don’t we?” I could tell my mother had melted into his eyes. 

“Oh, alright,” she said finally. She turned back to me, feeling my cheeks and forehead. “You don’t have a fever,” she said, lifting my chin to look at my eyes. But instead, her eyes fell to my neck. “Oh my god, I think it’s getting worse, darling, have a look!” Nicholas came over and examined my neck again. He touched it and it triggered an intense itch around my whole neck. 

“It itches like mad!” I said, scraping at it with my nails. 

“Don’t scratch so hard, Margo,” my mom gasped, “it‘ll scar.” She then ran into my bathroom for something, leaving me barely able to sit up; a doctor poking at me. I glanced at Nicholas and, for a second, I could have sworn he looked bored by my neck rash. He started examining my eyes just like my mom and looking me up and down. His eyes lingered on my legs for a moment and I was worried they had been trembling. 

“Do you mind if I lay down, I’m really tired,” I say. 

“Of course, kitten,” he replied. I climbed back into bed and Nicholas fixed my blankets and tucked me in, kissing me on the forehead. “I want you to stay in bed today and get as much rest as possible. Also, I want you to replenish your fluids.” I tried to listen to him but my eyes were already closing and I was drifting away. He next said something about a bottle.
I felt myself falling deeper and deeper into the lowest levels of consciousness when I felt hands on my neck. My eyes shot open and I gasped only to see my mother’s beautiful face staring down at me, her brow furrowed. 

“You fell asleep that quickly?” she asked, untwisting a tube of ointment. I didn’t reply but just relaxed back into my pillows as she dabbed the gooey mess on my neck. Once finished, I felt her lean in to give me a kiss on the cheek; as she did, something cold and hard plopped onto my face. It was my mother’s silver cross. “Whoops…that’s not gonna help anything, is it?” she smiled down at me. “Have you been wearing it at all lately?” 

“No, mom… I know I can’t wear metal,” I just wanted to sleep. Why won’t they let me sleep? 

“I brought you two liters of water,” came the approaching voice of Nicholas. I opened my eyes long enough to see him put two large bottles of water on my dresser, by my ballet slipper, “I want you to um,” he picked one of the slippers up, “drink both of them… no matter how much you have to run to the bathroom, okay?” 

“Yeah… okay,” I say, closing my eyes as subtly as possible. 

“…and we‘re going to set the alarm so turn it off before letting Ludwig out,” my mom says. 

“Love you both,” I mumble. They both said their goodbyes that I barely could make out. Once I heard the door click, I let go of any consciousness I had left. Dead-asleep. 

***********************************************************************************************
My eyes open slower than I expected and I hear a high-pitched whine. It takes me a moment to realize where I am and what day it is and what hour. Ah yes, it’s Monday and I’m home sick. I look over at my clock and it reads 12:26 PM. I found out the origin of the high-pitched whine as it sounded again, followed by tugs at the side of my blanket. Ludwig Van was obviously trying to get his little paws to pull off my blanket. 

“Ludwig, gah,” I yank off the covers only to remember that my muscles aren’t working properly. I slow down my movements as I get out of bed, little scratches and licks attacking my ankles. I think about picking him up but I reckon even a Great Dane puppy is too heavy for me. I take a deep breath and make a first step towards the door; still weak but not as bad as this morning. 

As I make my way downstairs, I contemplate the agonizing aches and pains in my legs. I figure it must be from malnutrition but it seems incredibly severe. I make a note to myself to search the internet for starvation symptoms. My legs finally gave out at the bottom of the stairs and I had to sit down for a moment and regain my strength. Ludwig immediately started whining impatiently. 

“Give me a second, won’t you?” I tell him, massaging the backs of my calves. Then he started barking and moving towards the front door. I jumped at the surprising sound. I had only heard him bark a few times before. “Ludwig! Stop it!” He quieted down a little but still showed his enthusiasm for going outside. 

“Alright, come on, then,” I say, hoisting myself up. The pale sunlight flooding through the front windows and reflected on the marble floors. I walk across the cold ground to the wall where a keypad was giving off a red light. The alarm was on. Praising my own forethought, I punched in the numbers 2-7-7 and the red light turned green. I walked through the sitting room, past the kitchen and my step dad’s office and to the French doors leading to the backyard. The moment I unlocked and opened the door, Ludwig bolted out. Deciding I probably wasn’t going to get much more fresh air today than this, I stepped out barefoot to the cobblestone patio. 

It was overcast and windy, making me wrap my arms around myself. I closed my eyes and let the breeze blow through my hair and for a moment I couldn’t feel any more pain in my muscles. I opened my eyes by a fraction of a millimeter and saw the blurred outlines of the landscape. The tall green trees were waving their wild branches and leaves. Ludwig was still sniffing the grass for the perfect spot. But what I couldn’t stop staring at was the massive pool in the center of the backyard. The most perverse light blue glow emitting from it made me think it wasn’t real. It looked bottomless and abyss-like except when the breeze played at the surface, making waves. I wanted to jump in. I wanted to disappear into it and never be seen again. The thought of floating in the cold depths, weightless, was almost too much to bare. 

“Ludwig!” I called the still squatting puppy. “Hurry up…” I order him. The temptation to jump in the pool was growing stronger by the second. I knew that if I did, I wouldn’t be able to tread water for very long, and I would surely sink to the bottom and end. But part of me didn’t care. Luckily, Ludwig finished and came charging at me. We went back inside, into the warmth, closing the portal like doors behind us. 

Dismally, I started my journey up the stairs but stopped on the third step. Ludwig had stopped following me, instead turning the front door and growling at it. I called him and patted my leg for encouragement. He continued to stare out the windows for a second but then started up the stairs with me. 

It took me several minutes to make it to my bedroom, having to stop for breaks on the way. I immediately sat at my desk and pulled up the internet. I typed “effects of starvation” into Google search and it showed a list of sites with words like ‘anorexia nervosa’, ‘hypothyroid’, ‘survival’ and ‘adaptive’. I couldn’t really manage the energy to understand all the words so I pushed the back button. This time, I typed in “symptom muscle weakness, fatigue, memory loss”. But before I could read the results, there was a loud buzzing sound and my cell phone started moving across the desk as it vibrated. I picked it up saw that Mandie was calling. 

“Hello?” I answered. 

“Hey, it’s Mandie.” 

“I know. What’s going on?” 

“Not much, just sittin in journalism. Where are you?” 

“At home. I’m sick.” 

“Well, you picked a really crap day to be sick. Print issue is due next week, you know!” 

“I know, I know,” I said annoyed. “Did Danny or Mr. Simmons get my story on the game?” 

“Uh, yeah, I think so,” she said. “Hold on, lemme check.” I heard her voice yell out into what I knew was the loud, busy journalism classroom. It was the only classroom with a couch, unrestricted internet and blind-eye at cell phone and iPod usage. 

I stood up and walked to the giant window over looking the front lawn and pulled open the heavy, midnight blue curtains. The sunlight was still bleak but comfortable. I was about to return to my seat when something caught my eye. A green Honda Civic with a wrecked fender was parked on the opposite side of the street, barely concealed by overgrown trees. 

“Yeah, he got it,” said the voice on the other end of my phone. “…Margo?” 

“Uh, yeah…good,” I said, still staring at the green car. “Hey, I think my step-dad’s car is parked across the street.” 

“Why didn’t he park in the driveway?” 

“No, no, not my current step-dad… my old one.” 

“You mean Angelica’s dad? Really?” 

“Yeah, and I know it must be his because he got in a car accident,” I said out loud, more to myself than Mandie. 

“Is he there like right now, in the car?” she asks. I look out and squinted my eyes to try and peer into the cars dark windows but I can’t make out a body. 

“I don’t think so…” I say. 

“This is kinda creepy… What legitimate reason could your old step-dad have to be parked in front of your new step-dad’s house?” 

“I don’t-” 

BARK, BARK, BARK, BARK!!! 

An explosion of yelps erupted from downstairs. I had never heard Ludwig bark so loud and violently. 

“What was that?” Mandie asked nervously. I ran out of my room and down the hall, stopping just short of the staircase. I look over the white banister and can see Ludwig pacing the marble floor and barking; not at the front door, but towards the back of the house. 

“Ludwig!” I yell. When the puppy spotted me, he stopped barking and pacing and just stared at something I couldn’t see, growling as viciously as a puppy possibly could. My heartbeat quickened and I forgot I was clutching the cell phone in my hands. 

“Margo?!… Helloooo!” 

“I’m here. Ludwig’s freaking out,” I whispered into the phone. I suddenly gasped as I here the taps of footsteps closing in from the back of the house. “Oh my god, Mandie, someone’s in my house!” 

“WHAT!?” she screamed. I was frozen in time, it seemed. I wanted to run, to do something, but I couldn’t. I just watched over the banister as the footsteps grew louder and louder. 

“Who’s there?” I yell out feebly. Suddenly, I can see the person. The top of the man’s gelled head was balding and his orangey-brown hair didn’t help the cause. The man’s head reclined and the muddy green eyes of Alan Donovan stared up at me. 

“Margo,” he said crooning. Something in his voice made my stomach turn. 

“Alan, what the hell are you doing here?! How did you get in my house?” 

“The backdoor was open,” he said apologetically, stepping further into the foyer. “I hope I didn’t scare you, baby.” 

“Alan, I think you should leave… right now,” I said, trying to sound stern but my voice quivered in fear. He didn’t seem to hear me as he stepped ever closer to the staircase, grabbing hold of the banister. I backed up a ways into the hallway.
“I wanted to see you,” he said. “I’ve missed you so much, Margo.” 

“Now, that’s far enough, Alan!” I yelled, tears now welling up. My heart felt like it might explode. “Stop! Don’t come any closer!” But he didn’t stop. He steadily started climbing up the stairs, desperation in his eyes. It was the most frightening thing I’ve ever seen. 

“Alan, if you stop right there, turn around and leave, I won’t call the cops,” I offer. My fingers squeezed the cell phone in my hands and I prayed that some how, it would call 911 for me. 

“You know that I love you, don’t you, Margo?” he said in a madly calm voice. “I’ve loved you since I first set eyes on you.”
“Alan, what’s wrong with you? You sound crazy!” I yell, still backing up into the hall. I didn’t dare break his gaze to look down at my phone. I tried to find the bump on the 5 button and use it as a reference. 

“I’m not the crazy one, Margo!” he said wildly. “Now, your mother on the other hand… she’s a real quack. Why I didn’t see it sooner, I don’t know.” 

“You loved mom,” I said, trying to stall. 

“At first, yes… I did fall in love with her. But she soon changed into something ugly. Something dishonest and unclean and evil. The Devil had tainted her, Margo; and any part of her that I loved was gone. But not lost, Margo!” 

“I don’t understand,” I mumble nervously. 

“Don’t you see?” he asked, gesturing with his arms as though offering me a gift. “The light, the purity that was inside your mother, the part I fell in love with, lies within you, Margo! And I can’t lose that again.” He made one sudden movement towards me and tried to grab me. I screamed as loud as I could and a little silvery-blue ball jumped up from behind and bit down hard on Alan’s thigh. Now was my chance, and I turned and ran as fast as I could down the hall and into Holden’s room, the first door I could get to. I heard stampeding footsteps behind me and I slammed the door shut and locked it just in time. Alan banged hard on the doors. 

“Margo! MARGO!” he screamed. Panicking and fumbling with the phone in my hands, it takes 2 tries to punch in the numbers 911. “God compels me to save you, Margo!” Each rap on the door shook me inside. 

“911, what is your emergency?” 

“P-PLEASE HELP ME!” I screamed, crying quite intensely now. 

“Try and calm down, ma’am. Tell me what’s going-” 

“HE’S T-TRYING TO KILL ME! PLEASE, HELP!” I could barely get the words out. 

“Who’s trying to kill you, ma’am?” 

“M-mys-s-stepfather, he’s tryna b-break down th’door!!!” I slurred through my sobs. “Jus’ sen’ someone, please!” 

“Where are you now, sweetie?” 

“I’m in my brother’s room…” I tried to take a deep breath. “Please, hurry. He’s gone crazy.” 

“We’re sending someone now, honey. I’ll stay on the phone with you until-” 

Before she could finish, I dropped the phone and screamed as I heard quick steps down the hall and around into my bedroom. I ran to the bathroom connecting Holden’s room with mine and tried to lock it but it just kept turning loosely, leaving the door unlocked. I bolted across the tile floor to try and lock the door leading to my room but it was too late. It swung open and hit me in the face, throwing me back several feet. I screamed and tried to scramble to my feet but my legs were sluggish and slow. Just as I passed the threshold to Holden’s room, Alan ran up from behind and tackled me. My head slammed hard into the corner of Holden’s bedpost and I saw stars for a moment. Alan hit his head too and loosened his grip around my waist. I wriggled free and tried to run but my legs gave out the second I was supporting myself. 

It was then that a sickening feeling broke out inside me. My stomach dropped and I felt a panic and hopelessness like never before. I couldn’t move. I started to scream and cry so hard, I was sure the sound was coming from something else. Alan pulled me to my feet and threw me on the bed. I tried to get up but he just pushed me down again. 

“I’m going to save you, Margo,” he whispered to me, unbuckling the belt to his pants. 

“NO!” I screamed, attempting to get up again. And again, he pushed me down with ease, and pinned all of his weight down on me. My head was spinning and I thought I might faint. I felt him start to pull at my pajama bottoms. I knew what was going to happen and I became still for a moment. Something came over me suddenly and I think time must have frozen. I tried to tell my right arm to move and I think it must have for I soon felt something cold and hard at my fingertips. It was an odd shape but I gripped my fingers around it tightly. I inhaled and swung the heavy object across my chest as hard as I could until it collided with the side of Alan’s head. I retracted my arm and swung it again. The second hit had made his eyes lose focus and he fell sideways onto the bed. A splatter of warm blood had sprinkled my face as I rolled to my right and fell off the edge of the bed. 

I lay on the floor, breathing heavily, crawling towards the door with one hand. I reached the staircase and soon I heard the sweet sound of sirens and honking ambulances. I collapsed against the banister and watched all the flashing lights and trucks pull up in front of the black, ironclad gate. I felt like I had fallen into a surreal dimension. Maybe none of this was really happening. 

Panic struck me for a moment as I heard footsteps but I relaxed again as I saw Ludwig Van galloping towards me from the hallway. He ran up to me and immediately started licking my hands. Only then did I realize I was still clutching the cold, shiny object in my fist. 

I examined it and realized what it was at once. In my hand was an ugly ceramic troll, blood trickling off it’s malicious face.