The tea was bitter and perfumed, like earl grey. I preferred it to be sweet and less fragrant, but I humored Meghan and drank it, anyway. It wouldn’t make me calm. I was too agitated about Christopher’s arrest and Eric’s web of lies.
“None of you believe me.”I blew on the hot beverage and took another sip.
I sat down at the table with a deep breath. What could I say? Without a voice, it was difficult to explain. I had to find another way to convince them. I had an idea about how I could reach Andrew at least.
“They will release the next Star Wars movie in less than a month,”I said.“I’ve seen The Last Jedi.”I used a Star Wars example because I’d just watched our marathon and thought about the next movie. Andrew was also an avid fan. He had advance tickets for the new one in a few weeks. He might not believe me today, but when he watched Episode Eight, he might remember my words and change his mind.
“It had surprises, like new characters using the force. The movie ends the debate about Rey’s parents, at least for now. They weren’t anyone special. They were nobodies, which was a disappointment. I wanted her to connect to Obi-Wan or Leia.”It took forever to text when my hands shook with the intensity of my conviction.
“You’ve watched the trailers too many times,” said Meghan with a dismissive sniff.
“When it comes out next month, you’ll see.”
She turned her head away, drumming her fingers on the tabletop. I needed to clinch it with a fact that couldn’t be written off as a simple guess.
“Luke Skywalker dies.”
“Now you’re just making stuff up,” said Meghan. “Just stop.”
She looked like she might cry and her mouth turned down at the corners. She wasn’t considering my words. Red colored my vision.
I gulped my cooling tea. I didn’t want to stay here, thankful Christopher had helped me remember how to drive. I wouldn’t have to stay. It was almost dark, but I was mad enough to leave, anyway. To hell with Thanksgiving dinner.
“Get my cat. I’m leaving. When you’re ready to listen, I’ll be at Christopher’s, since I can’t go home. I have to see about getting him out on bail.”
I stood up, and my legs wobbled. A wave of heat rushed through me. I grabbed the edge of the table as my vision blurred. I couldn’t type. The room spun, and I crumpled to the floor. The bright light hurt my eyes, and the tile was cold and hard. A timer went off on the oven.
“The tea,” I mumbled under my breath. She’d put something in it.
From a long way away, Meghan said, “Dad, it’s for her own protection. I’m worried she’ll harm herself. Her delusions are dangerous. We can have her held for seventy-two hours while they do an independent assessment. We have to go on record saying we’re worried she’ll harm herself. Aren’t you worried too? She’s involved with a violent stalker, defending him. She thinks she’s a time traveler. There will be a hearing with the doctor’s report and our testimony. We need her to be taken care of by professionals. We waited too long to help Mom. I won’t make that mistake with Elizabeth.”
Her words stopped being coherent as the room faded.
I returned to consciousness as they jolted me onto something hard and wheeled me from the house. I fluttered my heavy eyelids, but couldn’t get them to stay open, so I saw only flashes. Meghan was at my side. She meant well, but this damage would be difficult to overcome.
“I’m so sorry,” she said. “It’s for your own good.”
I didn’t agree, but I couldn’t say so. I tried to get up, but was strapped down and couldn’t move. They stowed me in the back of a vehicle and the doors slammed, leaving me alone. As we drove away, everything faded once more to black.
Chapter 15
I woke to pale light entering the top window cut into the stark white walls. Nothing looked familiar, and the chemical smell had a horrifying familiarity. My heart raced in an erratic fashion while I tried not to panic. I was sweaty, and I felt as if I might throw up. My stomach churned. My first thought was that Eric had done this. I endeavored to move, but found my wrists strapped to the metal bars at the side of the bed. Fear swirled through my veins and my chest constricted like something heavy was pressing the air from my lungs.
Memories came flooding back. Meghan had had me committed to the psych ward. I screamed and couldn’t stop. With my brain clouded, this time my scream had volume. I didn’t want to be here. I couldn’t believe my family would do this to me. Someone dressed in blue scrubs injected me with something in the arm. Everything became foggy again, remote. I floated above myself, watching my struggle to regain control. My screams cut off, and I closed my eyes. My muscles relaxed though my thoughts whirled.
They’d taken Christopher. Eric would hurt me. I was alone. Even in this place, I could be in danger.
I regretted mentioning time travel. I’d known my family would never accept that as a possibility. It must have been the last straw for Meghan, who’d already been concerned about my mental health. I’d ignored many of her texts, suggesting I take time off work, and her repeated questions about my laryngitis. Nobody believed me. A tear leaked a cold track down my face. That wasn’t true. Christopher believed.
For a moment, I’d thought I might sway Andrew to my side, but he’d gone along with Meghan’s plan. They’d drugged my tea and called an ambulance. I had vague recollections of my arrival at the hospital. They’d taken my phone, causing me to kick and scream. I’d fought when they’d taken my lifeline because, without it, it was impossible to find out what had happened to Christopher. He was in jail and I was worried about him. I’d have to trust that his lawyer would contact his alibis. The problem was, I was one of them and I was in the psych ward. I hoped the others would be more convincing.
Meghan had said the authorities could hold me for seventy-two hours. She would have called her workplace, so I was certain I’d be here the maximum time, as a favor to her, but there were limits to her power. She’d need to work within the law.
Was it like jail, where I’d be entitled to a phone call? With Christopher in jail and my family’s betrayal, I didn’t know who I could call, even if I could talk. My feelings sank lower. How long had I been here? I didn’t know if I’d be left alone the entire stay or what to expect. I didn’t want to spend the next three days drugged and fogged. I needed to be calm, follow orders, and be on my best behavior so I could be lucid when a doctor interviewed me. That seemed reasonable. It was hard to stay awake.
The next time I woke, it was bright outside and light streamed in the barred window. There was another bed in my barren white room, but it was unoccupied. Only the best private accommodation for Meghan’s sister. I estimated that I’d been here for over twelve hours. I’d spent the night drugged and sleeping. There was nothing to do but wait.
It was sometime later when a nurse arrived with a tray. Thankfully, it wasn’t my sister. I didn’t want to see her right now because she would make it difficult to remain calm. She believed Eric instead of me, her sister. She’d also compared me to our mother, which was unforgivable. I swallowed so I wouldn’t cry.
