Chapter five
-The mind is curious but deadly, it can cope with anything though it does it with strange and unnerving methods-
During the hours that had pasted Ben had grown fonder of Kevin's presence even starting a conversation with the other teen about what he did with his life and Luke was mildly stunned to learn that the teen owned and ran his own garage that was already popularly known, not by him but Phil told him that even the police used his shop for repairs, and Luke grew jealous that nothing mechanic or machine like had worked for him at the boys age… or even now.
"Yeah, I… I'm glad your back, Ben." Kevin stated as he messed up the hair that had grown far too long in the week since it was trimmed back upon entering the hospital. "Hey, cop, do you think he can eat something other than hospital food? … he's so thin." Luke pursed his lips in thought making Kevin snicker a little at the girlish look, before he turned and walked to the door looking for a doctor who worked on Ben's case.
"Ah, Ma'am." He called out spotting the main one that did checkups. "Is it okay if we give Ben some outside food?" the doctor didn't seem pleased with this but as she looked over the chart she gave a sigh of resignation.
"I think at the time being a small portion won't cause too much problems, but-!" she stressed out. "I don't want anything that is greasy, got it."
Ben perked up at this, all three noticed, as he gave a feline smile, "Can I have chili fries?" Kevin busted out laughing because that was the 'teen' thing to say, but the other two were more worried. Ben had only asked if he could eat small portions that were more considered leftovers from dinner or scraps from a meal.
"Why do you want that?" Luke asked with the doctor right at his heels stating. "I'm sorry, Ben, but chili fries are what I classy as Greasy." The look on his face dropped as he seemed to give up on the idea of actually eating at that point.
"Oh, okay… I'm not actually hungry anyways." Ben gave a small smile as he closed his eyes making it seem as if he was falling asleep.
"Shesh, doc, he looked happy as a four year old on Christmas and you strike him down with the words 'you got nothing'." Kevin glared as he slouched to the spot by Ben's bed, it was nearing seven and the smoothie place was nearly closing in an hour and a half; Kevin was sure Ben would love to have gone there at least once before 'who knew what' happened to him.
"Doctor," she interrupted Luke to ask him to call her Alicia. "Alicia, we both know his condition is getting worse, I think it would be a great idea to indulge and see if this helps him actually eat something for once instead of injected nutrition, please?" Alice seemed to agree with Luke's weak, but extremely given, argument.
"Fine, but I don't want my patent to be sick… we don't know what foreign food he's ingested over these five years." Luke seemed to frown at that, he knew of how hard it was for people to try something new and not get 'too' sick from it.
"Fine, I'll make it a small, does that work?" the doctor gave a small and fragile understanding nod before turning and calling to a doctor for a specific forum.
-Not all foods we can eat without fear of some form of death, take the off chance you might find out you'll never live again from it-
After half an hour of work, a few calls to the parents and one cousin, they decided that Luke would drive Ben, Kevin, and Gwen, barely dropped off by her cousin's parents, to the smoothing shack. The four in the car seemed to be on some high for each a different reason, color had returned in small measurements to Ben's face as he watched everything go by. Kevin and Gwen enjoyed seeing their friend/cousin extremely happy as if this was another trip from that horrid summer camping experience.
"So," Luke asked pulling into the parking lot and turning around with a pen in his hand the other holding paper. "I'll buy. So, what do you guys want." Kevin smirked as he ordered chili fries and a banana strawberry smoothie. Gwen just a plain strawberry smoothie before looking at Ben, as the others had.
"I'll have the chili fries… um, banana, avocado, and seaweed smoothie if they have it… if not what Kevin has…" Ben blushed slightly before returning his gaze to the outside world and watching the people give wide berth to the cop car with three people in the back of the tinted car which they could barely tell the faces.
"Alright…" Luke responded slowly with hesitance. "I'll see what I can do." Ben turned to give a smile before nodding.
"Thanks, Luke."
Elsewhere nearby the excited four sat Albedo as he leaned forward lazily while being supported upright by his knee from where he sat awkwardly on the bench all the while sipping a banana, avocado, and seaweed smoothie he loved so much… which Ben also loved so much and the chili fries which the two ate for the last five years twice a week before bed.
"Exactly as I planned." He sipped before realizing that the smoothie was gone. "It's a shame you only have so long, Ben, to figure out why I gave you this small amount of life back." He stood and left but soon it would be best not to come back; the clerk at the desk would surely find it funny that another person was requesting his desired smoothie if he did not accompany.
Yes, it would be a horrible loss, but one he could and always can live with until a new fetish came with the next victim.
"Or the same one, but I'll be ready for a new… love-lust between us."
Luke sighed as he came up to the counter, credit card in hand, and looked at the order. "One strawberry smoothie. One Banana strawberry smoothie. Two small chili fries… uh, by the off chance do you mix drinks?"
The woman behind the counter laughed as she nodded, "What type do you want?"
"Avacado, banana, and seaweed?" Luke looked to the left rubbing the back of his head. This was embarrassing.
"Wow, you're the second person to order that in the last half hour." The woman looked a bit taken back before she nodded turning around and beginning to get the ingredients.
Luke blinked a bit surprised, "What do you mean by that?" was it really… common of a smoothie? He wouldn't think so, it sounded disgusting to him.
"Oh, for the last five years we get the same man coming in here asking for two of them. He's always stating it is for his baby brother… He came in today and he bought one… we thought it was a bit… weird, but I guess his brother isn't with him today." She set the two banana smoothies down before working on the avocado, banana, and seaweed. "He's really weird to, you know, always smiling at the teens when they come in. He always says, 'They die so young'. Whatever that means."
The woman in the next booth chuckled as she walked near them for her own customer, "That is an easy one. I doubt he even has a brother anymore. He probably is just celebrating alone this year and not at that stupid graveyard. I know for a fact that that man is ALWAYS at the graveyard." She walked behind the double doors to the kitchen.
Luke blinked before he frowned, "Ever learned his name?"
"Yeah, after a while we just asked, gets boring saying 'sir sir'. He said his name was Ben Kirby. Funny last name, don'cha think?" she set down the smoothie and the fires. "The total is $14.56, uh…"
"Luke, I'm a cop." The woman smiled wider at his name and what he worked.
"You get a discount then. The total is $9. 43." Luke leaned forward making the woman tilt her head again.
"And I'm going to need to see your security tapes for that man."
Luke came out of the building handing the drinks and food to the three in the back before setting the video tape in the passenger seat. He sighed before pulling his hand held up, "Ninner ninner, Dane, come in."
A man's muffled voice came in, "Yeah, this is Dane."
"Call the hospital, tell them Tennyson is going to the police station…. Oh yeah, Dane… got some bad news… we got five years worth of videotapes to go through." Luke shut off the handheld before pulling out. The two in the back, one not really caring as he began gorging himself on his food, looked at Luke concerned.
"What is going on?"
"Well, good news is, we got a lead on the case, bad news is we got a lead on the case and it's from Ben's drink." Luke made a face as the pulled onto the road and began driving to the station. "Ben, what did you and Albedo usually eat or drink?"
"Tuesdays and Thursdays… before bed…" Ben swallowed his food smiling. "Chili cheese fries and a smoothie. Other days nothing, Albedo 'ate' if you consider blood being food." The car grew colder as they all looked at Ben, Luke from the rear view mirror.
"Repeat that?" Luke questioned.
"Blood," Ben motioned with his thumb across his throat, "that is what he normally ate." Luke felt sick to his stomach, he could tell the others did as well as they set their drinks down, and he pulled into the parking lot of the police station.
He quickly got out and allowed the three also to come out before he walked behind them into the station. Dane rushed forward his glasses slightly slipping from his nose, "Hey, what are those two doing here?"
"No time to drop them off put them on a bench… Ben, come with me… we got more questions to ask… but… mind watching a video?" Ben nodded as he set his cup down and walked behind Luke to the room that he wanted to go to.