He took a deep breath. “Last night, I injected myself with an experimental serum made from scorpion venom. That must be why I slept all day.”
He looked like he was waiting for a huge reaction.
“We know,” Christopher said. “But it wasn’t just last night.”
Brandon furrowed his brow as he continued. “I made the serum in the lab. It’s supposed to make the subject resistant to pain. It was a two-step process, but I only injected the first stage. I wanted to document the results for science. Until last week, I didn’t think we were ready for human trials. My boss is a real ass and pressured me to get it done. He stands to make boatloads of money.”
He looked at us and our lack of surprise. “What am I missing?”
“This isn’t the first time you’ve woken up,” said Christopher. “Your serum caused a severe allergic reaction, and you fell into a catatonic state. A coma.”
“I don’t remember this.” Brandon looked back and forth between us for verification.
“They found you unconscious in your lab in August and you remained in a coma for three months. The hospital told us it was a drug overdose, but Elizabeth and I didn’t believe them. We worked together to figure out what had happened. We went through some of your notes and guessed what you’d done. She guessed it was from a reaction, so we bought and injected you with scorpion antivenom and you woke up.”
“Since then, you’ve been awake another two and a half months,” I said. “But you were different. Your serum was successful. You were remote, detached, and unemotional.”
“What are you talking about?” said Brandon.
He jumped to his feet and paced his small living room.
“You’re telling me it’s 2018 and that I’ve lost more than five months of my life?”
“I’m sorry,” said Christopher. “This must be strange to hear, but we talked to you less than a week ago. We convinced you to give yourself the serum antidote. You made some for the others that were part of recent human trials. Said it would take three to four days to complete the process. Today is the fifth day. We got worried and came over to check on you.”
“I don’t remember any of that.” Brandon sat down and grabbed his head between his hands and pressed on his temples. “Why can’t I remember any of this?”
His eyes were wide open and his voice was loud.
“You were going to leave a video for yourself to watch. It should be on your phone or computer. It should explain most of this.”
Christopher’s voice was soothing as he tried to calm his brother.
My phone chimed. I glanced down at a message from Andrew.“Lead on Eric outside of town, sending a car to check it out. Looks like a solid tip about where he’s staying.”
Hope surged that at last Eric might be caught. The police were closing in.
“I’m going to let the two of you talk without me,” I said. “There’s a box of photos in my garage that the real estate agent found in the master bedroom closet. I’ll walk over and get it. Let me know when you want to pick me up.” Christopher nodded. He raked his hand through his hair. It would be better for the two of them to talk without me.
I hurried out and down the sidewalk. This looked like they would work it out, though Brandon needed time to adjust his worldview. It couldn’t be easy if he didn’t remember things well from before the coma.
The night air was crisp as I strolled. I was uneasy about being alone, but I refused to let my fear of Eric dictate everything I did. Thanks to Andrew’s text, I was relaxed enough for a quick walk. There was no sign of the Real Tech goons. The sidewalk had slippery sections, but I was careful. The neighborhood was well lit and seemed safe. Inside my townhouse would be cold and not a great place to wait, but Christopher and his brother needed privacy.
Now that the contractors were finished, the heat should have been shut off in the townhouse and the water turned off so the pipes wouldn’t burst if we had a sudden cold snap, but I didn’t plan on staying long, but I could collect the box. Facing the place where I’d been hurt and miserable one last time might bring some closure to that piece of my life. I detoured and bought a steaming cup of tea to keep myself warm while I waited.
The porch light was on, and its light illuminated the stairs. I found it amusing that the light was on, since I didn’t live there anymore. When I lived here, I’d forgotten all the time. I felt little as I opened the door. It wasn’t home anymore, and I’d moved beyond the misery I’d felt living here. I wasn’t planning to attend the open house.
My phone chimed again. Christopher sent,“On my way.”He’d be here soon.
It wasn’t as cold as I expected for a vacant house in February. I removed my gloves and set them on the table with the rest of my tea. Perhaps the real estate agent or the contractors had left the heat on yesterday. Curious about the repairs, I decided to check out how well they’d repainted the walls. The contractors must not be quite finished in the kitchen, though I couldn’t see anything else to do besides clean up. I sighed. I’d have to send someone to deal with their mess before the open house; they’d left garbage and food containers on the counter.
I flicked on the light to my bedroom first. The room looked fantastic. Neutral eggshell-colored walls complemented the new laminate flooring which matched the new flooring in the kitchen. We’d left a few pieces of furniture to stage the house for sale. I’d hired a company to do everything. My house went on the market next weekend. It would be a relief to have it sold. Most of my memories of living here were unpleasant.
Footsteps sounded in the hallway. I must have missed hearing the door. Brandon and Christopher had finished talking sooner than I expected. I hoped their discussion had ended with few hard feelings. I was confident, given time, they’d work it out. Christopher had agonized over this for months, but had been clear that under no circumstances would he break up with me or allow me to walk away, as per our original deal.
“I’m in the back bedroom,” I called. “Checking out the paint job. Must have taken five or six coats. You can’t tell the wall was ruined.”
“That’s too bad,” said Eric. “It was more work than you think getting the letters that bright and that even.”
