Chapter Nine:
EVE
I've never hated anyone, as much as I hated my brother. Not even Brandon. Okay, well, maybe they were tied for first place. I couldn't believe that he would do this. He hurt Claire. And he practically wanted to see Morganville crash and burn, including everyone in it. I regretted ever trying to help him. I'd always thought he was better than he truly was. Boy, was I wrong. He wanted to be at the top, not caring who's toes he'd have to step on. Not caring how many bridges he burned. I wanted to believe that he had a heart, but he had nothing but ice running through his veins. He didn't care. He was a lunatic, and honestly, that terrified me. I knew what he was capable of.
And now, he wasn't afraid. He managed to get in and out of Morganville, whenever he pleased. He was turning the town upside down. It made me sick to think he was my brother. My own flesh and blood. White hot rage boiled in me when I saw Claire in that hospital bed, when she said it was him.
I'd never seen Claire completely lose her cool. Until now. She was screaming and kicking. Fighting to get back to Shane. She was on her knees over an unmoving Shane, pushing off the nurses that grabbed her.
I couldn't move. I was frozen. I felt Michael let me go. He picked up Claire with ease, and carried her out of the room, grabbing my hand along the way. He towed us into a waiting room; Claire kicked and hit him, even getting him good in the face once. She eventually gave up and sat in a plastic chair, pulling her legs up and hugging her knees. I sat down next to her and carefully placed my arm around her. She leaned into me. I heard Michael's footsteps walk away, but I didn't lift my head. He came back with coffee for the three of us. Claire put hers down on the table.
At least an hour had passed by and we hadn't heard anything from the doctors. Claire wasn't crying any more. She had eventually gotten up and started pacing.
"I'm sorry," she finally said, when she stopped in front of where Michael and I were sitting.
"For what?" I asked, confused.
"For acting like that. I-"
Michael cut her off. "No, it's fine. You have nothing to apologize for. You're scared. We're all scared. We get it."
She nodded and proceeded to pace. I noticed one of the nurses sitting at the front desk staring at Claire. Claire must've saw her too, because she asked, harshly, "Can I help you?"
The nurse quickly looked down and pretended to busy herself with papers. I stifled a laugh. It was fun to see Claire get angry because she hardly ever did.
Movement caught my attention outside the window. It was still dark outside, so it took me a few seconds to notice someone standing near a tree across the street. I leaned over Michael, trying to figure out who is was. Something glinted in the figures hand. It was a knife. I realized in a panic that it was Jason. I couldn't move. If I did I would lose my cool and chase after him with a stake. I glared at him, and I saw his face lift up in a smile as he stared back.
"For Shane Collins?" Someone asked. I slowly looked away from Jason to see who was talking. It was the nurse who had been staring at Claire.
"Is he okay?"
"He's fine. We're sending him home as soon as we get clearance to open up, probably around sun-up. You can go see him, if you want."
We got up and followed her. When I looked back over my shoulder, Jason was gone.
