"I don't like this."
Lauren stirred the liquid tentatively with the end of her gel-pen. Reynolds squeezed the eyedropper, a single drop of an unknown liquid landing into the steaming mug. It was dubiously harmless- Earl Gray with two generous spoonfuls of sugar and a pour of milk⦠and it was harmless, really. Still, Lauren's stomach didn't sit well. She poured out another spoonful of sugar, as though that would somehow mask their treachery.
"Remember why we're doing this." Reynolds brushed a stray hair out of his face, pouring over an ancient book in a text Lauren couldn't read. He must have done this a hundred, no, a thousand times, yet he still fretted as though one small misstep would endanger the entire operation. "We're done."
Lauren blinked in surprise. "That's it?"
Reynolds snapped the book shut. "Yes."
"Is it supposed to be this easy?"
"If you do it right." Reynolds fumbled with his coat pocket, pulling out a lighter. "Besides, it's easier with two. It's difficult to measure out the correct dosage when you're stirring at precisely one and a quarter counter-clockwise turns per second." He pushed a cigarette between his teeth.
Lauren stared at the drink. "And this will keep them safe." It was a question disguised as a statement, though Lauren wasn't sure who she was asking it to.
"No." Reynolds lit his cigarette. "But it's the best we can do." He blew out a puff of smoke. Normally Lauren would be worried about secondhand smoke, but she was a tad more concerned with drugging their patients' tea. "Anyone person with knowledge of Trolls becomes a threat to Bular. Or rather, that knowledge gives the brute an excuse to eat them. Erasing that memory erases the threat. No one is eaten. Everyone's happy."
He adjusted his bowtie in the mirror on the door. (Reynolds said it was for helping clientele become comfortable with their images, but Lauren thought he just liked checking himself out. He was a psychiatrist, not a psychologist.) He smiled. It wasn't wide, like the reassuring smile he gave his clients, but hesitant like he was trying to reassure himself. "Ignorance is bliss."
Lauren picked up her clipboard. "Ignorance is bliss."
She pushed open the door to his office, leaving smudges on his full-length mirror. She felt taller, despite leaving her heels at home. The little clinic had opened half an hour ago, but the first client wasn't scheduled until 10:30. Usually Lauren spent this time scrolling through google to find information on raccoons that Rachel might be able to use, or watching Netflix when Reynolds wasn't looking. Today, something was different. Maybe it was due to the unnatural yellow hue in her bosses eyes, or the extra shot of expresso in her system, but Lauren felt like something was there that hadn't been there before.
Destiny is a gift. That's what Rachel had told her the night they met. She'd scratched it into the the bus-stop bench, waiting in the pouring rain for a person who wouldn't come. Lauren lent her the pocket knife she'd pick pocketed from a park ranger in Montana. She couldn't help but hope someone would find inspiration from those words someday. Lauren would never forget the dimpled smile that somehow made the bags under Rachel's eyes pretty.
Lauren had never believed in destiny. The world was too messy for any master plan. Still, she couldn't deny that something was different.
Lauren uncapped her gel-pen and decided to actually do the paperwork for once.
Gah! So sorry for not updating. My spring break ended, and my free time got chopped into a million pieces. Anyway, hope you like it!
