CHAPTER FOURTEEN

 

 

 

CHAPTER FOURTEEN

 

 The next morning it was ten o’clock before Tom woke.  He neglected to set his alarm clock, which forced him to hurry to be on time for his appointment with Doctor Carlton.  After a quick shave and shower, he ran down his steps hoping to grab a quick breakfast on his way.  He was not sure if he had turned off the shower but kept running.  Wasted water was not that important to him now.

“Hey, what’s your hurry?”

It was Lilith.  He felt his pockets.  The note she gave him with the marks from her lipstick was still there.

“Why didn’t you call me?”

“I’m on my way to an appointment.  I can’t talk.”

“My car’s right here at the curb.  If you’d like I can take you there.  We can grab something to eat on the way.”

“Yeah.  Sure, why not?  It’s better than being late.”

Images of Lilith ripping off her clothes as she went into the back seat flashed through his mind.

“Aren’t you going to open the door for me?” She said as she stepped off the curb and stood by the side of the taxi.

“I thought you said you had a car.”

“Don’t be silly.  Isn’t this a car?”

“Yeah, but it’s not your car.”

“What’s the difference?  It’ll still get us to Doctor Carlton’s office.”

Tom held the door open then followed her into the cab.   She sat in the middle instead of sliding over to the far end of the seat forcing him to lean against her side when he entered.

Just as the cab pulled away from the curb, she took his hand and held it in her lap.  Tom tried to move his hand away, but her firm grip held it in place.

“Wait a minute.  How do you know where I live and how did you know I was going to see Doctor Carlton?”

“He’s a good friend of mine,” Lilith said.

“What ever happened to patient confidentiality?  I don’t want the whole world to know I’m going to see a psychiatrist.”

“He only told me, your closest friend,” she said.

“I hardly know you never mind being my closest friend.”

“Well, I know you.  Look we’re involved in this thing together.”

“No, we’re not and I still want to know.”

Tom pulled his hand away.  Lilith put it back in her lap.

When the cab stopped at a traffic light Levi turned to face them.

“Hello, dickhead.  Stop asking so many questions.  Why don’t you just sit back and enjoy the ride?”

“What’s going on?  Now you even know this asshole?” Tom asked.

Lilith shrugged her shoulders and giggled.

Tom felt trapped.  If all these people were involved with the book, then what did it mean?

"I found Doctor Carlton on the web at random so how could this be possible?"

"When we get to the doctor's office you'll understand," Lilith said.

“Tell me one thing.  How do the words in the book appear then disappear?  Is someone switching books on me?”

“Don’t be afraid.  The Doctor will help you.”

“Yeah dickhead.  It’s all in your fucked-up mind,” said Levi.

"Lilith, how do you know Levi?  He can’t be your boyfriend,” Tom whispered.

“I’m glad you asked.  Maybe when you get to know us better, you’ll be friendlier.”

She whispered softly to him as she came closer, only inches from his face.

Tom resisted the impulse to put his lips to hers.  The same fiery red lips that kissed the note she gave him at the diner.  He turned his face away.  He felt her warm breath against his neck.  Her short blond hair rested on his collar. It was soft and smooth, causing goose bumps and shivers.

“Okay, I’m listening,” Tom pulled away.  He wanted to be with Angela, but Lilith was making it difficult.  He found it difficult to look away from her blue-green eyes.

“Levi is always angry and ready to get into a fight."

“But why?”

“It’s just his natural disposition.  Maybe something happened to him as a child.  I don’t know.  He won’t say.  But this is what causes people to reject him.  When they reject him, he becomes even angrier.  He can hardly control himself.  He’s been in trouble with the law, in and out of prison.”

“Is he dangerous?”

“Not when he’s with me."

“Does he love you?”

“Not really.  I don’t think he’s capable of love.  He feels accepted by me just as he is.  I keep him out of trouble with the law.  In return, I have his help and protection.  It’s more of a brother and sister relationship than anything else.”

“What about you?  How did you get involved in this weird situation?”

He saw Lilith turn away so he could not see her tears.

“What the hell happened?”  Levi stopped the car, turned around and grabbed Tom by the neck.

Tom could not breathe.  His face turned a deep red.  He felt his eyes about to explode from his face.

“It’s okay Levi.  Tom didn’t mean to upset me.”

Levi did not let go of Tom.  Instead, he lifted him up out of his seat.  Tom heard a popping sound from his neck.

“Levi, let him go!”

Tom fell back on his seat.  His head ached and he could not speak for a moment.

“Don’t worry Tom.  You’ll be fine.  Levi would never hurt you without my permission.”

“Well, what do you call this?” Tom managed to whisper.

“You hurt my feelings.  We are not weird.  It’s the world that’s weird.”

 "I didn't want to upset you, but this is all so confusing.  Are you trying to make me believe in a...," Tom lost his train of thought.

"Now that you've made a commitment by using the book you are one of us," Lilith said.

"What the hell does that mean?  I can see it as a fantasy game, but do you want me to believe it's real?"

Lilith began crying.  Tom was not sure what to do.  He put his arms around her and hugged her.  She put her hands between his legs grabbing him as she laughed.  Tom pulled her hands away.  He wondered if she knew the difference between tenderness and raw sex.

Levi turned around to see what was happening until Lilith rubbed his shoulder to let him know she was okay.

“Can’t you see?  You’re evil inside just the way I am.  We need each other.  I love you for yourself and for the evil in your soul.  We were made for each other.”

Tom made a face.  He was about to tell her he was not going to believe such an obvious over-acting attempt to convince him.  When he saw Levi watching from the rearview mirror, he stopped himself.

For a moment, Tom wondered if she could be right.  He never really fit in with other people.  He was miserable.  But Angela was his hope for a better life, not Lilith.

 

“Stop here Levi, by the donut shop so we can grab a bite to eat,” Lilith said.

She was happy now.  Her mood had suddenly changed from a desperate pleading for Tom’s love to a cheerful lightheartedness.

“Bring me back a large black coffee and a few donuts.  Bring me different kinds,” Levi said.

“Come on Tom let’s go.  You don’t want to be late.  We can eat in the cab,” Lilith said.

With mixed emotions, Tom followed her into the donut shop.  She had a firm athletic body yet balanced with soft feminine curves.  Her smooth cat-like walk fascinated him.  If he was not already involved with Angela and the right situation came up, he knew how easy it would be to give in to his lust.

“Hey bad boy we can do that later,” she said seeming to read his mind.

Tom blushed when this time she held the door open for him.

“Now it’s my turn to watch you move,” she said.

Once inside the donut shop Lilith stuffed a bag with about a dozen donuts.  Tom poured the three mugs of coffee.

“Don’t say a word.  Follow along with what I’m doing.  Okay?”

“I guess so.  Do you need some money?"

Lilith did not reply.  She walked up to the cashier to ring up the purchase.

“My dad will pay for this when he finishes picking what he wants.  He’s the gray-haired man by the coffee machine.  Here he comes.  Is it okay if we take these out to the car?”

The man behind the register smiled back and nodded his head.

“You don’t know that man,” Tom said once they were back in the cab.

“Hey dickhead, watch this,” Levi said.

He slowly inched the cab away from the curb.  The donut shop cashier came out spotted the cab then ran towards them.  When he reached the car door the roar of the cab’s engine masked what he yelled.  Muddy water from a nearby puddle sprayed the man soaking his clothes and face.

Levi put his arm out the window of the cab and held up his middle finger.  Tom watched in silence while the two of them broke out in uncontrollable laughter.

 

Levi parked in front of an immaculately clean three-story brownstone building.  Lilith walked Tom up to the front door.

"I'll wait here for you.  Try to do what the doctor tells you."

Tom went inside and down a short dark corridor.  He came to a partly open door.

“I’m here to see Doctor Carlton.”

“Come on in.  I’m Doctor Carlton.”

He was a thin frail man with neatly cut blond hair and light brown eyes.  Tom found him lying on a leather couch next to his desk.

“I’m here about a problem I’m having.”

"I know why you are here. Let me explain.  There's some part of everyone's mind that is evil but kept in place by feelings of morality.  When someone's evil traits are strong enough it only takes a push to let them take over.  This can easily be accomplished using drugs and the power of suggestion.  The power of suggestion is very important.  Outside corroboration that the hallucinations and delusions are real is necessary.  In your case this is just what is happening.  After your evil self is revealed, you will no longer need the hallucinations.  Then you will join Lilith and Levi in their operation."

“But I was led to believe I could reverse the procedure.  The only reason I performed the ceremony in the first place was to have a little fun then stop and go back to the way things used to be.  It was only a game,” Tom tried to explain.

"Let's be honest here.  You accepted the agreement because you wanted to get the power.  You thought you would be clever and get just enough to satisfy yourself then stop.  Well, it isn't so easy.  You should have stopped right away but there is some strong quality of evil in you.  That’s what was unleashed when you performed the ceremony.

Who would do such a thing to me?"

With a smooth motion, Doctor Carlton sat up on the couch then swung his legs on to the carpet.

"I can't deal with this.  I can't tell what's real and what's in my head."

"Oh, this is real all right.”

"But why do I have to be dragged into this?  Why can't you let me go?"

Doctor Carlton laughed before continuing.  He stood up and sat in a chair behind his desk.  He was quiet for a while then told Tom how it was going to be.

In his mind, Tom saw the doctor’s eyes take on a strange fierce glow, almost not human.

"I want to get out.”

"Oh no, my friend,” Tom heard Doctor Carlton’s voice bellow in an animal-like growl.

Tom heard the doctor's demonic laughter as he ran for the door afraid to look back.  He made it out of his office past the waiting room and out onto the street.  He knew he was not safe.  He would never be safe again.  He knew it was only a matter of time before they caught up with him.

He ran out of the building and jogged past the cab where Lilith and Levi were waiting for him.  Lilith ran after him.  No matter how fast he ran, she was catching up to him.

He turned at the corner hoping to escape down a side street.  The sound of her footsteps followed getting closer with every step.

Up ahead he saw the blurred image of a man running in the same direction.  Tom was sure he knew him and was sure the man had something to do with his present predicament.  He needed to find out how.

The sound of Lilith’s footsteps became louder as Tom got ever closer to the man up ahead of him.  He heard the man’s footsteps and heavy breathing.  The sound of his steps fell in rhythm with Tom’s steps and his breathing was in sync with Tom’s breathing.

Down the block, the man ran across the street to the left stopping to check for passing cars.  That was when Tom had his first clear look.

“It can’t be,” he mumbled to himself.

The man was his mirror image. Tom ran diagonally across the street nearly running into a car.  He was determined to have a closer look.  When his double ran past a couple walking hand in hand by a large glass storefront window the man had no reflection.  The couple’s reflection was clear but there was no reflection of Tom’s double.

With all his strength, Tom caught up to his double and put his hand on the man’s shoulder.  When the man turned his head, Tom saw his own face as if looking in a mirror.  That was when he lost consciousness.