That’s it; I’m confronting them the moment they walk in tonight.
Watch me.
STELLA
When I reach the ground floor, I realize two things. First, I’m still holding the spy camera in my hands. Second, I didn’t change the water in Darrel’s bottle. Now that I’ve seen with my own eyes Mom and Dad drugging him, his theory that they add a sedative to his water to keep him drowsy isn’t exaggerated or outlandish anymore. Oh, and I completely forgot to smuggle in protein-rich food for him.
That makes it three things.
I head to the kitchen, load a big plate with slices of ham and cheese, add four slices of bread as an afterthought, and return to the basement. Darrel has reopened the book, but he isn’t reading it like last time. Instead, he’s staring at the opposite wall.
“Sorry I walked out on you like that,” I say, placing the plate on his lap. “It was too… overwhelming.”
“I get it, and I don’t blame you,” he says. “Even though I should.”
I empty and refill his water bottle, before dashing to the spot where he suggested we should stick the camera for a better angle. “Here?”
“Yes.”
I attach it to the wall, then go to his bed and sit down.
He rolls up a slice of ham, without bread.
I point at the untouched toast. “Not your favorite kind? I thought you’d like some sandwiches.”
“It’s sweet of you. But, like I said before, don’t bother with the bread.”
There’s an awkward pause. I don’t know what to say, and he doesn’t try to talk. It occurs to me that not giving him a fork and a knife to eat with is a silly precaution. From the way he moves his right arm, I’d say it has almost healed. If he were going to attack me, he could hit me over the head with that plate.
I know he won’t do that. He might want to hurt my parents, though.
Darrel stops when he’s eaten about a third of the ham and cheese, and none of the bread.
I frown, confused. “Aren’t you hungry?”
“I am.”
“Then why won’t you eat it all?”
He takes his time wiping his fingers and mouth with the napkin that I brought. “Do you really want to know?
“Yes.”
“Your parents drag me to the bathroom twice a day, morning, and evening. I have to last until they’re back.”
“Oh. Right.”
He half smiles at my expression. “Humans and their needs, eh?”
“I’ll help you!” I jump to my feet. “Come on!”
“You can’t,” he says. “With both my legs out of commission, I won’t be able to limp along, leaning on you. And I’m too heavy for you to drag me.”
I sit back down, shifting uncomfortably. Mom and Dad won’t be back until ten or eleven, after their three-course dinner. All I want is to hang out here until then and talk with Darrel, but I find myself tongue-tied.
He’s the first to break the silence. “I’m going to reveal something I shouldn’t, something you can use against me.” He settles his mesmerizing gaze on me. “But I want to earn your trust.”
Unsure how to react to that statement, I simply wait for him to continue.
