Chapter 9  more trouble

the scream had Portman almost knocking down the door in his haste to get back into the room he found Julie standing there staring into the drawer her mouth still opened as she staggered backwards temporary forgetting about her ankle as she dropped her crutch.  He was there then catching her even as she teetered. 

"Jules what is it?"  He asked even as he followed her gaze and stared in disgust.  In the drawer sat a wilted black rose worms crawling in and out of it's petals in a gross display. 

"Gees."  He was pulling her back to sit on the bed then he headed back to the drawer and removed it dumping in the trash.  It was only when that was done that he noticed the slip of paper.  Lifting it carefully Portman scanned the message. 

Roses are red,

Violets are blue

This rose is dead

And so are you.

"Man," He didn't want her to see that, it was a sick joke but still she'd been through enough in the last few days.  Instead he pocketed it and turned back to her. 

"I needed my medicine.'  She said lamely not sure what else to say her mind kept going back to that sickening offering left in the drawer.  Who would have done that?  The only ones who'd been there were Portman and Connie but neither would do that.  It wasn't sane; she knew Connie was a little crazy when it came to Guy but not that crazy.  Portman was one of the sanest people she'd ever known, she then realized just how little she still knew about him and shivered, would he do something like this? 

Her musings were broken off when she realized that he was there holding out a pill and a cup of water. 

"Thanks." She took it from him gratefully.    Why was her life so upside down?  Why couldn't it just be easy?  Then again nothing was ever easy.  Not school work, not hockey and not dating.  She could still remember the disaster she had endured with Scooter.  Scott had been really nice but as hung up on the game as Charlie and just as dull.  Not that she did like her captain but she just wasn't all that big on talking about hockey twenty-four seven.  Then there was his fixation with cars.  It was not like most guys, not about fixing them or anything like that but more about steeling them.  Not that anyone would believe that a senator's son got his jollies hotwiring corvettes.  Then there had been Ben Edwin, the really cute guy in there algebra class.  Well he'd at least been that, he'd not however had much of a personality; He was always staring into space and acting totally spacey.  That was always attractive.  Still who would have done that?  She thought then of Rick Riley, a thought hitting her.  This would be just his sort of thing. The guy had paid some guy to hurt her, why not leave a rotting flower in a dresser drawer?  

"Hey you ready to go?"  Portman was asking and Julie forced herself back to the present and nodded.  Then she reached for her crutches. 

With in minutes she was sitting on Portman's bed, her leg elevated and watching Evil dead 2.  Portman was beside her on the bed, all enjoyed popcorn or gave the impression of it. 

Portman was too busy thinking about the gruesome gift in Julie's drawer and trying to figure out what to do about it.  On one hand it wasn't his problem, on the other he'd made it his, even before it had happened, just by staying at the hospital.  Funny how fate could take things out of your hands, he mused.  Not that he minded really, it would give him another chance to be with her.  And he still wanted that despite the insanity brewing.  A little insanity was good for the mind, it kept one sharp. 

Julie was still wondering about who had done that, who would? Her mind took in the movie and she wondered if it was an evil monster that had done it.  "Oh boy this medication must be good.'  She thought to herself, "I'm already going loopy." 

Fulton had noticed how intent on Julie his best bud had been lately and wasn't the least surprised.  She was pretty, smart and a good hockey player.  Why wouldn't Portman be interested in her?  Of course he'd gotten over his own thing for hockey playing females when Tammy had moved from district five.  Man now tlk about looker with brains… 

As Ash fought the evil monsters from beyond the grave the three didn't notice when the door creaked slightly or when the watcher began its vigil.  

TBC

*** 

I'd like at least five reviews if I'm going to continue, let me know what you think should happen next.