'What would you say if I told you that Demons were real?
What would you say if I told you that Grubbs Grady was real and not just a figure of Darren Shan's imagination?
Enough of what it's, time for what would you do.
What would you do if you found out that no matter what you did, you were damned to be a monster of the night?
What would you do if the master of several evil minions decided to gamble your life and two other's away for a silly game of chess?
Well, who gives a flying sod what you would do, it all depends on whether it would have been thrust upon you.
Now, Grubbs Grady, to this day, since he faced the Master and his several minions TWICE, survived and lives with his uncle, known as Uncle Dervish, at this very moment. Which is where I am headed.
'Late last night, I awoke to the smell of smoke, not really sure where it was coming from. My parent's had told me they were going out for the night, and left me at my grandma's, but I came home to sleep because, I can never sleep away from home.
'The smoke seemed to be billowing from underneath my parent's bedroom door. And naturally, as a child my age (sixteen), well maybe not a child, but for someone my age, curiosity tends to get the better of you, way to many times to keep count.
I reached for handle and found it to be red hot, burning the skin cells on the palm of my hand. Now that they were burnt it didn't worry me to continue turning the handle, to which I did and opened the door swiftly, hands out like a gun, just to make myself feel better.
"Holy sh…" was all I managed as a creature unlike anything I have ever seen, turned to stare at me. It reminded me of the poem at the beginning of Darren Shan's book about Grubbs Grady, called Lord Loss.
"Mangled hands, naked eyes, fanged snakes his soul line, curled inside like textured sin, bloody curdled sheets for skin", I shivered at the thought that such a creature, a creature that was simply written about for pure enjoyment, could exist in the world of the living, or in any world.
"Well, good morning Riley Sanchez, didn't believe I'd actually be getting a chance to be meeting you", the slightly sticky, I suppose you could call him a "gentleman", smiled toothily.
"Well, here I am", I sneered, gathering my strength, realising that this was, whether I wanted to believe it or not, the creature created in Darren Shan's imagination.
"Brave, very brave", he whispered haughtily, "I believe you have…"read" about me? How depressing".
"At least I know what to expect", I smiled knowingly that this was exactly how Grubbs had gotten to him during chess.
"Oh, you do, do you?" he asked smiling, well at least what was classed as a smile for him, blood seeping from the tiny gaping holes in his skin.
"Well, here you are, thinking your all high and mighty like in the book, and here are your pathetic little minions, believing that they are able to rip my head off, oh and we can't forget the fact that, I couldn't give a flying sod", I said calmly, causing him to sneer out of frustration.
Now, I would seriously love to tell you more, but that is as far as I remember, as soon as all that happened, I awoke to find you shaking me', I finished, the police sighing. They hadn't obviously gotten what they wanted. But seriously, that was all I could remember, the last thing I saw was this fleshy thing flying at me, and then I awoke to the police.
'That's all Miss Sanchez, you may go back with your grandma's house, we'll contact you further from there if we need you again', The tired looking policeman decided as he shook my hand, and a different man lead me out of the interviewing for the fifth time in the last week.
'Mrs Sanchez, I do believe your granddaughter, Riley, has reached the age of sixteen, making her legally old enough to choose her legal guardian. Now, in many cases the legal guardian is another being related to the family in close matters, AKA Aunties, uncles, cousin's, brothers, sisters, however this is not the case', the police officer explained, pulling out a little booklet and handing it to my grandpa.
'What are you saying, sir?' asked my grandma as I stood behind the kitchen door listening in, hopefully she didn't file for court for my custody.
'Riley has filed for Dervish Grady, to be her legal guardian. Mr. Dervish has signed the papers, and will be contacted immediately upon your decision', the police officer explained.
'Why has Riley chosen this man?' asked my grandfather, obviously highly embarrassed that I had done this to them and put them through this trauma.
'Because he is currently caring for someone in the same position as me', I exclaimed as I slammed the door open and threw Darren Shan's book down on the coffee table, 'That book, is full of there story. I didn't believe it at first, but what happened to the boy in that book, what happened to his family, is what has happened to me, to my parents and my sister'.
'Riley, you don't know what your saying', my grandma sobbed as she placed her hands over her face.
'No, grandma, I know what I'm talking about. I love you guys with all my heart, but you cannot help me right now. The more I come to realisations with what happened, the more you keep pushing me away from that, confusing me, destroying me', I explained, although neither one of the elder guardians wanted to hear it.
'Officer, we do not agree to this guardian switch', my grandfather started, 'we are going to further my granddaughters recovery by placing her into Grey lands. She needs help, help that we are not able to give her'.
'What, no, grandpa, Mr. Grady can help me, he can', I exclaimed; mouth still agape at the mention of the mental asylum here in Australia.
'Fair enough, Mr. Sanchez, your daughter shall be signed into Grey lands for further tuition on her road to recovery', the police officer smiled, handing a card to my grandfather before doing up his suitcase and leaving through the now open front door.
'What the hell are you thinking?' I asked, now standing in the place where the police officers feet just were.
'You need help, Riley', my grandmother sobbed, handing the cordless phone to my grandfather.
'And the help I need can only possible come from Dervish Grady, I told you that, why can't you understand that', I was really upset and angry, I swear I could of walked over and crushed the lamp behind my grandmother to pieces.
'Hello, I would like to submit my granddaughter under your care', I heard my grandfather say.
'No!' I shouted angrily, tearing the phone from his hand and throwing it against the wall, smashing it to petite smithereens. My grandma screamed, holding her hands over her ears, and my grandpa stood up threateningly.
'You will do no such things in my house, young lady', he shouted, causing me to shiver, that seemed to be exactly what my father had said to me before dumping me here.
Flashback.
'Hey, Ma, can I have a few of my mates over?' I shouted down the stairs. Helene, James, Jack, Rikke and Tasse had already showed up, they had come in through my bedroom window, sporting a few "drinks".
'Uh, only for a little while', my mother shouted back.
'Sweet', James smiled, handing me a bottle of vodka, while dispensing the glorious intoxicating liquids.
'So what are you doing tonight?' asked Helene as I laughed at one of Jack's crappy jokes.
'Uh, I'm being dumped at my grandma's place while my parents go to a crappy play to do with Hamlet', I smiled as Tasse handed me a cigarette but I turned it down.
'I thought you liked Shakespeare?' asked James, as he had given me one of the tickets he had won to go see "Twelfth Night" last year.
'I love Shakespeare, just not Hamlet. I thought Hamlet was just an egotistical way of showing the pint sized brain of man', I answered, swigging the rest of the bottle of vodka and resting my head in James' lap.
'Riley, Your friends need to…' my father had started to say, walking in, without knocking.
'Hey Mr. Sanchez', muttered Tasse awkwardly as she flicked the cigarette out the window.
'Do not Hey Mr. Sanchez Me, all of you out, get out of my house now', my father shouted, as I got up and helped my mates up as they all rushed passed my dad. I went to go passed but he pushed me back in, 'You stay here, I will deal with you later'.
'Dad, it was some harmless drinking, we each had a bottle, it was…' I tried to explain but he cut in.
'Drinking underage, smoking…' he gulped before continuing, '…foreplay'.
'Foreplay…what the hell, I was only resting my head in his lap, because I was to lazy to find a cushion, that's not foreplay, what are you, ninety?' I exclaimed, jumping up off my bed.
'It doesn't matter what you were doing', he continued, ignoring my rather insulting question, 'you will do no such things in my house, young lady'.
End of flashback.
My life was over. My grandfather had stood up and talked me down, reminding me so much of my father. Like how disappointed he was of my lifestyle, of me…
It took half an hour for the people in white coats to reach the house. He had called them again, using my mobile, and they had arrived. I was laid on the portable bed, in a partly comfortable position before strapped. The last thing I saw after I was shoved in the van, just before the doors closed was my grandma and grandpa, standing there.
Grandma was crying, hands over her face, as if ashamed of me, and my grandpa, staring strongly at me, face as stern as a sheet of metal. He…was hurt.
I spent the first few days in solitude, in case I decided I really needed to have a fit, well that's what the doctors explained to me. The doctor's also allowed me to have my book back, the book that contained the only truth that I was to ever receive in this hell hole, the book about…Lord Loss.
'Riley, you have some family members to see you', the attending nurse said sweetly. I could never guess why she was so happy everyday. Was it because she was working with her husband, or was it because she was easily able to cheat on her husband with the male attending nurse, my best friend James, in the empty padded room next to mine?
Family members came and went; I paid no attention to any of them, not really caring whether I "was going to be ok" or that "the doctors here are the best, I couldn't possibly ask for more".
'Riley, tablet time', James smiled. I swear he could've passed as a gay guy, or maybe that's why I got along with him so well. I had been in here for almost two weeks by now and it didn't look like in the near furture that I was going to get out.
'Ok, James', I smiled; he was the only one in here that believed I was not off my rocker, 'How's Tasse?'
'She's good, Helene's coming in tomorrow, they won't let her see you, but they are letting her send in some chocolates', James rambled as I took the coke off of him and chucked the tablets in my mouth before taking a swig of the fizzy cola.
'Awesome, I could use a little fattening up', I laughed before the other attending nurse stepped in.
'Riley, the doctor has changed your appointment to now', she smiled, as James turned to look at her, licking his lips before holding up five fingers.
'Do you really need to do that here?' I asked James as he sniggered at me.
'Naturally', he laughed, kissing my forehead before I left him in the now empty room, well I guess it won't be empty as soon as the nurse stopped guiding me to the doctor's office.
'Is there anything else, doctor?' asked the nurse as she opened the door to let me in.
'No, that is all', the doctor smiled, and I shivered, knowing exactly what I was going to ask for when I got back. New Sheets. 'Now, Riley, how are these Demons going? Spoke to them lately?'
'I can't just speak to them willingly'; I sneered. It was the same every time I'm brought here. Ankles cuffed to the legs of the chair, and the doctor continued to ask me how they are.
'Well you spoke to them in you parent's room "willingly", why not now, here, in you room in the hospital?' he asked calmly, writing certain things down on the pad in front of him.
'I did not ask them to be there. The only way I am able to speak to them is if someone ask's them to be there. And there is obviously a whole other list of rules to do with it as well that I haven't really figured out yet', I answered honestly as he shook his head and continued writing.
'I'll see you in two days, Riley', he smiled grimly as I nodded, a nurse, different from the one that James was fondling in my room, came in and unchained my feet from the chair, and allowed me to walk myself back to my room.
I knocked twice just to make sure that James and his play toy had gone, when I got no answer, I walked in. There sat my book open on my bed, but before I left, I had closed it and lain it my pillow. Walking over slowly I looked at what page it seemed to have opened too.
'Sixty?' I mutter, looking at the page number before my eyes followed the page edge up to the top left corner, gazing at the first sentence.
"The worlds a confusing place," Dervish says. "I'm sure your parents told you to always tell the truth, and most of the time that's good advice. But sometimes you have to lie." He comes over and bends so his face is in mine. "These people want to help you, Grubitsch. And I believe they can. But you're going to have to help them. You'll have to lie, pretend demons don't exist, tell them what they want to hear. You have to give a little to get a little. Once you remove that barrier, they can go to work on fixing your brain, on helping you deal with the grief. Then, when they've done all they can, you can come to me – if that's what you want – and I'll help you with the rest. I can explain about demons. And tell you why your parents and sister died."
He leaves.
That's it! I have to tell them what they want to hear, not want I want them to know. That's it! Wait, why did I not suffer the psychosis that Grubbs did? How come I'm all right with the fact that Demon's exist? Why am I so…sane?
'So Riley, how are these demons?' the doctor asked me, say about 7 weeks since I discovered my book open.
'I'm not sure', I muttered, looking at my unchained ankles. They had left them unchained, as I was getting "better".
'What do you mean?' he asked me, writing a few things down on his favourite little notepad that never got smaller.
'When I'm awake, I find it hard to think of them. I begin to think myself slightly childish when I do. Yet I can simply dream about them and wake, un-traumatised', I lied, 'I'm beginning to believe that I made up these "demon's" just to make it easier to come to terms with my parents death'. The doctor nodded with a smile. I almost jumped for joy, as I knew what was coming next.
'We'll give it a week or so, and maybe you can go stay with the gentleman that your grandparents have signed custody over too', the Doctor smiled as I nodded. 'You may go'. I smiled at the doctor, turned around, and left.
'And?' James asked, as I arrived back into the common room, notebook in hand.
'In about a week or two, I might be out of here', I smiled, taking the pen out of the spiral spine of the book and opened the pages to the correct page.
'Riley, tablet time', the new attending nurse smiled, handing me a frozen coke (icy coke with icy strawberry cola). You see, before I had gotten back to my room, James and the attending nurse he had been "groping" were caught by the elder nurse, who naturally, as the old prune would do, turned them in. however, since James has worked here for over 3 years, the doctor's decided that he was allowed to have one strike against his name, but they fired the nurse, strange aye?